Sounds of clashing lips filled the room.
A blonde woman straddled Elias, her body completely bare against his. He didn't touch her like a lover—he devoured her like prey. His hands gripped her hips with sharp possessiveness, dragging her against him as he kissed her with brutal hunger. His mouth moved like he was trying to erase her existence.
Her breath trembled. "Your Highness is so… eager," she whispered against his mouth, daring to tease him as she nipped at his jaw.
Without a word, Elias grabbed her by the hair and yanked her head back, exposing the vulnerable stretch of her throat. His gaze burned into hers—eyes no longer human, but monstrous. Crimson bled through his irises, and black veins spread beneath them like cracks in porcelain.
"Don't scream," he commanded.
His voice was low, calm… but the force of it vibrated through her skull. Something ancient surged from within him, a raw compulsion that invaded her mind like a knife sliding between ribs. Her body locked in place, frozen.
Then he struck.
His fangs pierced deep into her neck. She didn't make a sound—not because she was brave, but because the command had rooted itself into her bones. Her mouth opened, but nothing came out. Only a silent gasp as her blood surged into Elias's mouth, hot and rapid.
He drank her like a dying man in a desert, showing no care for how much he took. She trembled, her body weakening fast.
When he finally withdrew, her pulse was barely there.
He licked the blood from his lips slowly, indifferently. Her head lulled forward, dazed and cold.
With a cold glance, Elias wiped his mouth, then pressed a finger beneath her chin.
"Forget," he commanded.
A sudden shock ran through her system—her mind blanking instantly, memories scrambled. Her eyes unfocused as her body relaxed.
With one smooth movement, he lifted her and laid her gently on the silk sheets—like a discarded doll.
He turned away before her head even hit the pillow.
⸻
Outside the room, the hallways were cold and quiet.
Lucian stood by the arched window, one hand on the sill as he stared into the courtyard where the wind rustled the hedges. He sensed his brother long before he approached.
"She wasn't necessary," Lucian said without turning.
Elias stepped beside him, adjusting the cuff of his shirt. "She was convenient."
"That's what you always say."
Elias didn't respond.
Lucian finally turned to look at him. "You're spiraling."
"I'm steady."
"You're empty," Lucian replied.
Elias smiled faintly, a dead, joyless curve of his lips. "That's the point."
⸻
In the shadows of the palace walls, a figure cloaked in thick layers of midnight stood still. They had been watching.
Not breathing. Not blinking.
Just watching.
And their presence was getting closer.