Aria's entire world tilted.
Bound to a vampire? If he died, she died? It sounded like something out of a nightmare—except she wasn't waking up.
Her breath came in shallow gasps as she stumbled back, shaking her head. "No. No, there has to be a way to break this."
Lucien watched her, his expression unreadable. "There isn't."
"There has to be!" she snapped, her pulse racing. "I don't want this. I don't even know you!"
Lucien's silver eyes darkened, irritation flickering across his face. "Do you think I wanted this, little human?" His voice was cold, clipped. "Do you think I chose to be tied to a fragile mortal who can barely comprehend what she's gotten herself into?"
Aria flinched, but she refused to back down. "Then fix it."
Lucien exhaled sharply, pinching the bridge of his nose. "I told you, it's not that simple."
Aria clenched her fists. "Then what is simple? What happens now? Am I just supposed to… follow you around like a lost puppy?"
Lucien tilted his head, considering her. "No," he said smoothly. "You're supposed to survive."
She blinked. "What?"
Lucien took a step closer, his presence overwhelming. "You don't seem to understand, Aria. You bear my mark now. My kind will sense it. And when they do, they'll come for you. Not to welcome you, but to eliminate you."
A chill ran down her spine. "Why?"
His lips curled into a humorless smile. "Because I broke the law by marking a human. And if they can't kill me, they'll settle for you."
Aria swallowed hard, the weight of his words sinking in. "So I'm just… bait?"
Lucien's gaze locked onto hers, something dark and possessive flickering behind his eyes. "No. You're mine now."
Her breath caught.
"Which means I'll protect you," he continued, his voice dangerously soft. "But in return… you'll do exactly as I say."
Aria's stomach twisted. She didn't want to be tied to him, didn't want to be a pawn in whatever dangerous world he belonged to. But if what he said was true, she had no choice.
"So what are you proposing?" she asked warily.
Lucien smirked, but there was no warmth in it. "Simple," he said. "You stay close to me. You listen to my orders. And if you're lucky, you might live long enough to hate me properly."
Aria exhaled slowly.
She was trapped.
But if she was going down… she wasn't going down quietly.
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