Chapter 8
Night fell heavily over the academy, wrapping the ancient walls in a velvet darkness that breathed and shifted like something alive. Elara tightened her cloak as she made her way toward the courtyard, where Lucien had asked her to meet him. She wasn't sure if she should have come—but curiosity had never been kind to her.
Lucien stood beneath the crooked willow tree, moonlight painting his pale skin with a silver glow. His eyes—those unmistakable, dangerous eyes—lifted when she approached.
"You shouldn't be out here," he said quietly.
"You're the one who called me," Elara replied, crossing her arms. "You disappeared for two days. Everyone noticed."
"I had to," he murmured. "Things are… changing."
She studied him carefully. His aura felt different tonight—colder, heavier. As if something ancient had taken one step closer to waking inside him.
"Lucien," she whispered, "what are you hiding from me?"
He hesitated, jaw tightening. "You wouldn't believe me."
"Try me."
Silence stretched between them. A breeze rustled the leaves above, and for a fleeting moment, Lucien looked as though he was at war with himself.
Finally, he exhaled.
"The reason I can't stay near the west wing… the reason they locked that place away… is because of me."
Elara frowned. "What do you mean?"
"I made an oath," he said. "A blood oath I wasn't supposed to make."
Her breath hitched. "Lucien… what kind of oath?"
His eyes darkened. "A vampire oath."
The word hit her like a stone thrown straight into her stomach.
"I wasn't always like this," Lucien continued, voice low. "But when a vampire is desperate—when he wants to survive—he can bind himself to a stronger one. It gives power… but it takes freedom. And now the one I swore to serve is coming."
Elara's hands trembled. "Coming here?"
"Yes. And he'll tear down these walls to find me."
"Why? Can't you just break the oath?"
Lucien shook his head. "You break a blood oath with death. Nothing else."
Elara stepped closer without thinking, anger and fear mixing in her veins. "Then why tell me? Why involve me at all?"
This time, Lucien didn't look away.
"Because the moment you saw me behind that window… the moment you looked at me without fear… the oath stirred. It reacted. Vampires feel connections differently. And now—" His voice faltered. "Now he senses you."
Cold rippled down Elara's spine.
"What does he want with me?"
Lucien's jaw clenched. "To use you against me. To break me."
A sudden crack echoed across the courtyard—like a branch snapping under a heavy weight.
Lucien instantly grabbed her wrist. "We're not alone. He's closer than I thought."
Elara's heart pounded as the shadows behind the willow thickened, twisting into a shape too large to be human.
"Run," Lucien whispered.
But the darkness stepped forward first.
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