The room is dead silent.
My breath comes in shallow bursts, my heart hammering so hard it might explode.
Valentine stands in front of me, his back rigid, his entire body coiled like a predator ready to strike.
The presence in the apartment is wrong. Thick. Suffocating. A darkness that curls in the air like smoke.
And then, the voice slithers through the shadows again.
"The Sunlit One."
My blood turns to ice.
Whatever's out there, it's not human. It's not a vampire, either. It's something else.
"Stay behind me." His voice is sharp, clipped, his stance widening. He's not playing around.
I grip his arm. "Who is that?"
"A Shade." His tone is grim. "They hunt for the council."
I swallow. "Hunt… as in, kill?"
The air shifts. I hear something—no, I feel something moving. Too fast. Too wrong.
Valentine barely gets a word out before the lights flicker—then die.
The apartment plunges into darkness.
Oh perfect, just what I didn't need!
My pulse spikes, panic crawling up my throat. I can't see. But I can hear. A whisper of movement, the barest shuffle of something not meant to exist in the same space as me.
Valentine doesn't hesitate. He moves in a blur, faster than my eyes can track, and then there's a snarl—a clash of force against force. The impact rattles the walls. My lamp crashes to the ground.
A shadow moves in the dark. Two silver eyes flash like molten metal.
And then it lunges.
I stumble back, my hands gripping the desk behind me as Valentine meets the Shade midair.
The force of their collision sends a gust of wind tearing through the room, and I swear I hear something crack—wood, bone, I don't know.
They fight like monsters. Fast. Brutal. The air rings with the sound of flesh striking flesh, of something sharp cutting through fabric.
I press a hand to my chest, trying to ground myself, but a sharp pulse runs through me. A feeling I don't understand. A heat, familiar and yet completely foreign.
And then as if from my body–
The world flares white.
For a split second, everything is illuminated. The Shade is frozen mid-step, Valentine's fist buried in its ribs, his face twisted in a snarl.
And then—nothing.
The light vanishes as fast as it came.
The Shade steps back, unnatural eyes locking onto mine. I think it smiles.
And then it's gone. Just… gone. No sound. No movement. Just a void where it used to be, and then the lights come back on.
The only thing left is the message burned into the wall in jagged, foreign letters that Valentine reads out:
"The council watches. The council waits. The Sunlit One must choose."
A chill licks down my spine. The room smells like burnt air, like something unnatural just left its mark.
Everything is a mess. Some parts of the walls are broken, my lamp is a shattered piece on the ground, the wooden ground is caved in in some places...
Thank goodness Ellie is working nightshift today as well. I'd hate to imagine what could have happened if she were to here.
Valentine exhales sharply, running a hand through his hair. His hands are still clenched, his entire body vibrating with tension.
He knew this would happen.
I whirl on him, shoving his chest. "What the hell was that?"
His jaw tightens. "A warning."
"A warning?" My voice rises. "That thing broke into my home. It could've killed me!"
He scoffs. "If it wanted you dead, you would be."
"Wow. Comforting. Really, I feel so safe now." I gesture to the wall. "What does that even mean?"
"It means the council isn't waiting around anymore." His voice is hard. Cold. "You're too much of an unknown. They want to see what you are. What you can do."
I shake my head. "What I can do? I don't even know what I am!"
His eyes darken. "Neither do they. That's the problem."
Urgh, this shitty talk about the council is going to be the death of me. I just know it.
I stare at him, every nerve in my body screaming. "When you figured out what I was, you knew this was coming. Didn't you?"
Silence.
"Didn't you?"
His shoulders tighten. "Yes."
The word slices through me.
I step back, my hands shaking. "You—You let me sit here, questioning everything, while you knew this was coming? While you knew what they'd do?"
His eyes flash. "What did you want me to say? That you're a ticking bomb waiting to go off? That every second you exist, you make me a target too?"
My breath hitches.
He exhales, pinching the bridge of his nose. "North, this isn't just about you."
I let out a sharp laugh. "Oh, believe me, I know that. Because nothing ever is, right? You always make the decisions. You always keep me in the dark. And I'm just supposed to trust you?"
His control finally snaps.
"Should I have just let you die, then?!" He roars.
His voice shakes the walls. His chest rises and falls rapidly, anger burning in his gaze. But there's something beneath it. Something raw.
I glare at him, fists clenched at my sides. "You didn't even give me a choice."
His hands curl into fists. "You would have died if I ever did!"
"And you tied me to you instead!" I scream. "You changed my life, my future, everything, and you never even asked if I wanted this!"
His eyes burn. "I regret not telling you sooner," he says, voice low, rough. "I regret thinking I could protect you from this."
I freeze.
"But I will never regret saving you."
I stare at him for long seconds and open my mouth to speak. Before I can get the words out, the sound of sirens fill the night.
My stomach twists. The wail of police cars grows louder, cutting through the night air.
Valentine swears under his breath. His head snaps toward the window before turning to me, his expression unreadable. "We have to go. Now."
I hesitate, my gaze flickering toward Ellie's room. "I can't just leave her here—"
"She's safer without you here." His tone is sharp, final. "If they find you, they'll kill her and take you. Trust me, you don't want that."
"But—"
"North," he cuts me off, his voice lowering to something dangerous. "We're running out of time."
I grit my teeth, my pulse pounding.
Then, with one last glance at my room—my life—I nod.
He doesn't waste another second. In one fluid movement, he grabs my hand and pulls me toward the window.
The cold night air hits me as we step onto the ledge. Below us, the city sprawls, the distant red and blue flashes bouncing off the buildings.
Valentine glances at me. "Jump."
I barely have time to process before he leaps—his body twisting through the air like it's second nature.
I don't think. I just move.
The wind roars past my ears as I land in the alleyway, my knees bending to absorb the impact.
Valentine is already moving, leading us into the deepest shadows, away from the flashing lights.
A sleek black car waits at the curb.
He pulls open the door, gesturing for me to get in.
I hesitate—just for a second. Then, swallowing down the fear clawing at my throat, I slide inside.
The door slams shut behind me and I sink into the warm seat.
Well...fuck me.