Pain.
It slithered through her veins, dull at first, then sharp, biting, relentless. A slow, pulsing throb that echoed in her skull, radiating down her limbs.
Every breath sent a fresh wave of aching through her ribs, her body feeling heavy, as if she had been drowning for hours and had only now broken the surface.
The scent of dried blood clung to the air, thick and metallic, intertwined with the sterile bite of antiseptic.
Beneath her, soft sheets tangled around her fevered skin, silken yet, too smooth, too unfamiliar.
The world around her was veiled in shadows.
Candlelight flickered in the distance, its soft glow stretching and twisting against the dark wooden walls.
The golden chandeliers above, normally so grand, felt like skeletal hands hanging from the ceiling.
Selene's breath hitched.
She was awake. Truly awake.
Her lashes fluttered, the weight behind her eyelids pressing down like stone. And then, she saw him.
A figure slouched in the chair beside her bed, his posture unguarded, arms resting against the armrest in an almost careless sprawl.
Strands of raven-black hair framed his face, his head tilted forward, casting sharp shadows along the planes of his cheekbones.
Lucian.
Selene's heart slammed against her ribs. The moment she laid eyes on him, something inside her coiled, something hot, vengeful.
And then, like a dam breaking, memories came rushing in fast, violent.
The cold tunnels. The metallic tang of blood filling her mouth. The unbearable agony of her body failing her, growing weaker with every fading heartbeat.
And then, his voice.
Low, steady, whispering words she couldn't quite grasp as darkness swallowed her whole.
Selene sucked in a breath. Her body lurched forward on instinct, but the pain, God, the pain; clawed through her like fire, dragging her back down against the pillows.
A hiss escaped through her teeth as she lifted her trembling arms.
Bandages.
Wrapped tight around her forearms, her palms, her legs, even a strip across her forehead.
Everything hurt. A deep, dull ache settled into her bones, as if she had been torn apart and stitched back together by unsteady hands.
And yet, he was injured too.
She hadn't noticed it at first, but now, with the dim glow of candlelight flickering over his figure, she could see it.
White bandages peeked beneath the cuffs of his dark sleeves, wrapped around his wrists, climbing up his forearms.
Bruises marred his skin, faint but visible, staining his otherwise pristine form.
Her gaze narrowed. What the hell happened before she blacked out?
The memory wasn't there. It was empty, like a severed thread in the fabric of her mind. But it didn't matter. None of it mattered.
Because she knew the truth now.
The fleeting moments of peace, the illusion of a life she never had, was a lie. A carefully woven deception.
She was no longer Selene Raine, the leader of The Resistance. She was something else now.
Something she never wanted to become.
Because of him.
Her fingers curled into the sheets, nails biting into fabric. Anger simmered in her veins, slow and molten, coiling in the pit of her stomach.
The hatred was sharp. Clear. Real.
Lucian stirred.
His breathing shifted first, deep and steady turning into something lighter, more aware. His fingers twitched slightly against the armrest before his head lifted.
And then, silver met blue.
Selene's stomach twisted.
Lucian blinked, his gaze sharpening with the cool precision of a man who was always aware, always calculating.
A flicker of something unreadable passed over his face before he tilted his head, studying her.
"You're awake." His voice was smooth, too calm, as if he had been expecting her to wake at this exact moment.
Selene inhaled sharply, her throat burning with unspoken words.
Then, in a voice laced with quiet fury, she whispered, "I remember everything."
A beat of silence.
Then, he smirked.
Just the faintest twitch of his lips, barely there, but enough to make her blood boil. "And?"
Selene's nails dug into her palms.
And? And? Just... And? How dare he?
Her next words were like ice; sharp, biting, and absolute.
"I hate you."
"And I'm not too fond of you either" He retaliated as soon as she shut her mouth.
The room burned with the weight of her fury.
Selene's breath came ragged, her chest heaving as a storm raged beneath her ribs.
The pain no longer mattered. The bandages no longer mattered. Nothing mattered, except him.
Lucian Valcrest.
The monster who had stolen everything from her.
"You!" Her voice cracked, raw with rage. "You had no right!"
Lucian remained silent, watching her.
His arms remained folded, and he didn't flinch when she lunged forward, her body shaking, only to collapse halfway, her strength failing her.
The sheets tangled around her legs, but she didn't stop, her hands fisted the fabric, her knuckles white.
"Do you have any idea what you've done?" she hissed. "You took everything from me! Everything!"
Lucian's silver eyes held steady, scrutinizing her with a piercing intensity. "You would have died, Selene."
"Then I should have died!" she snarled, her voice ricocheting off the walls. "I'd rather be rotting in a ditch somewhere than here, trapped in this nightmare with you! "
Something flickered in his gaze, something unreadable, but he remained calm.
Too calm.
Selene's nails bit into her palms, her whole body shaking. "You turned me into this... this thing! I was supposed to die as me! But now? What the hell am I even supposed to be?!"
Lucian exhaled slowly, as if weighing his next words carefully. "None of this would have happened," he said, voice even, "if you hadn't ambushed me in the tunnels."
Selene's eyes widened with disbelief. Then, the fury snapped.
"You think this is my fault?! " she seethed.
"You requested a peaceful audience with The Resistance; what a joke! I knew better than to trust your kind, and I still don't! You're all liars, manipulators, monsters!"
Lucian's expression remained unreadable. "Then why are you still alive? Do you think that I wouldn't have eliminated you all if I actually held a grudge against your sect of Resistance in my territory, Do you think I don't know where all your hideouts are? Do you think my warriors are not enough to wipe out your miniscule numbers... "
She froze.
He snapped his fingers once, the cruel sharp sound bouncing off the walls, "As fast as that, everyone in your pitiful squad would be gone at my command, so... I'm just generous, Selene."
His words cut through her anger like a blade. The answer should have been simple, because he wanted to turn her into a weapon, into some twisted experiment.
But instead of admitting that, he simply watched her.
A cold dread slithered down her spine.
"What did you do to me?" she whispered, her voice barely above a breath.
Lucian leaned back slightly, his fingers tapping against the armrest. "I didn't expect you to survive it, I only did it because I thought you would die anyways."
Selene stilled.
His tone was void of remorse, of guilt. He spoke as though this was all some calculated move in a game she wasn't even aware she was playing.
Her throat tightened. "What the hell is that supposed to mean?"
Lucian sighed, tilting his head slightly. "I took a chance."
"A chance?" she repeated, incredulous. "On what? "
His gaze darkened slightly. "On finding out something."
Selene's stomach twisted. Something. Not someone. Not saving her.
Something.
"You really are a bastard," she spat.
Lucian didn't deny it.
The silence stretched between them, thick, suffocating.
Selene swallowed hard. Her body still trembled, still ached, but she forced herself to sit up, glaring at him. "It wasn't supposed to be like this, was it?" she asked bitterly. "You're saying I wasn't supposed to wake up like this, wrapped in bandages, in agony?"
Lucian's fingers curled slightly against the chair. "No, the bandages are not my doing, but yours."
Selene narrowed her eyes. "Then explain."
He exhaled through his nose. "It's complicated."
"Then simplify it!"
A muscle in his jaw tightened, but his voice never rose. "I will find a way around it. But right now, neither of us trust each other, so there's no point in trying to explain something you won't believe."
Selene gritted her teeth. "You think I'd believe anything you say?"
"No," he admitted. "That's why I won't waste my breath on you."
The words stung in a way she hated.
Because he was right.
No matter what he told her, she wouldn't accept it.
Not from him.
Her hands clenched into fists. "Fine. Then I want to leave."
Lucian's expression didn't change, as if he expected this. "And go where?"
She met his gaze, unyielding. "Back to the resistance."
Lucian was silent for a moment. Then, he sighed. "They won't accept you, Selene."
"You don't know that!" she snapped.
His eyes softened slightly, not with pity, but with something dangerously close to understanding. "I do."
Her breath hitched.
No. He was lying.
He had to be.
"They're my people," she said, voice shaking. "I fought for them. I bled for them. They wouldn't-"
"They will see a vampire, not you," Lucian interrupted, his voice gentle but firm. "They will see a monster, Selene. And they will kill you for it."
Selene's throat tightened. "You're wrong."
Lucian said nothing.
For a moment, the silence was deafening.
Then she shook her head violently. "I don't care. I won't stay here. I can't."
Lucian watched her for a long moment, his silver eyes unreadable. Then, finally, he leaned forward, resting his forearms on his knees.
"Let's make a deal."