Chapter 6 First Night Fears

ARIA'S POV

"No!" I jerked backward, slamming into the wall. "You're not turning me into a vampire!"

Sebastian's fangs retracted. He stepped back, his expression unreadable. "You don't have a choice. The bargain was made before you were born."

"My mother's bargain, not mine!" My heart hammered against my ribs. "I never agreed to this!"

"Your mother saved your life with vampire blood. That blood has been dormant inside you for twenty-five years, waiting." He gestured to my glowing mark. "The moment you were chosen, it woke up. You've already started changing, Aria. Can't you feel it?"

I wanted to deny it, but he was right. Ever since the mark appeared, I'd felt different. Stronger. My senses sharper. Even now, I could hear heartbeats somewhere far above us—the other brides in the Sanctuary.

"I don't want to be a monster," I whispered.

Something flickered across Sebastian's face—pain, maybe even understanding. "Neither did I. Eight hundred years ago, I was human. I had a family, a future, a life." His voice went cold. "Then everything was taken from me. I became this because I had no choice. At least you have twelve days to prepare."

"Twelve days until what? Until you drain me and turn me?"

"Twelve days until the binding ceremony on Christmas Eve. If you survive until dawn on Christmas Day, the transformation completes. You become immortal." He moved toward the door. "Or you can refuse. Fight it. And die before sunrise."

"Wait—" I grabbed his arm without thinking.

The moment I touched him, power surged between us. Golden light exploded from my mark, flooding the chamber. Sebastian's eyes widened in shock.

Through the connection, I felt everything he felt—eight hundred years of loneliness, grief for his murdered family, and underneath it all, desperate hope that maybe, finally, he wouldn't be alone anymore.

He yanked his arm away, breaking the contact. The light vanished.

"What was that?" I gasped.

Sebastian stared at his arm where I'd touched him. "That shouldn't be possible. The bond shouldn't activate until the ceremony—" He looked at me with something like fear. "What are you?"

Before I could answer, bells rang throughout the palace. Deep, thunderous bells that shook the walls.

Sebastian's expression darkened. "Morgana's召oning the court. She's going to announce that you survived her test." He grabbed my arm—carefully, not letting our skin touch. "Come. You need to return to the Sanctuary before she suspects something's wrong."

"Wrong? What's wrong?"

"Everything," he muttered, dragging me toward a hidden door in the wall. "That power between us—it's not supposed to happen. Not yet. If the court finds out..." He shook his head. "Just stay quiet and survive the next twelve days. Can you do that?"

I wanted to argue, to demand more answers. But the fear in his ancient eyes silenced me.

He led me through secret passages back to the Sanctuary level. At the golden doors, he finally released my arm.

"Your mother asked me to keep you safe," he said quietly. "I've honored that promise for twenty-five years. Don't make me break it now by doing something foolish."

Then he was gone, disappearing into shadow.

The doors opened. I stumbled inside the Sanctuary, my legs shaking.

Elena rushed to me immediately. "Aria! You're alive!" She hugged me tight. "We heard the bells. Everyone said you'd be dead—"

"I'm fine," I managed, hugging her back. "I made it through the maze."

The other brides stared at me with a mixture of awe and terror. The youngest one—her name was Lucy—whispered, "Nobody survives Lady Morgana's test. Nobody."

"Well, I did." I tried to sound confident, but my voice shook.

Iris appeared from the shadows again, her red eyes wide. "The court is gathering. Lady Morgana is furious that you survived. She's going to—" She stopped suddenly, sniffing the air. Her eyes went impossibly wide. "You smell like Lord Sebastian. Not just his presence, but his power. What happened in that chamber?"

All eyes turned to me.

"Nothing," I lied. "He just told me I passed the test."

But Iris's expression said she didn't believe me. "Be careful, Aria. If Morgana discovers that Lord Sebastian took a personal interest in you, she'll find a way to kill you before the binding ceremony. She's been in love with him for two hundred years. She won't let a human take him from her."

A cold dread settled in my stomach. I'd survived the maze, but I'd just made an enemy of the most powerful vampire in the court.

Elena pulled me toward the beds in the corner, away from the others. When we were alone, she whispered, "Tell me the truth. What really happened down there?"

I wanted to lie. To protect her from the terrible truth. But Elena was my only real friend here.

"My mother made a bargain with Sebastian before I was born," I whispered. "I'm supposed to become a vampire. That's why I was chosen."

Elena's face went pale. "But the other brides—they're going to die. You're going to—"

"Live. Apparently." I pressed my hands against my eyes. "Elena, I don't want this. I don't want to be a monster. I don't want to drink blood and live forever while everyone I've ever known dies."

"Then don't," Elena said fiercely. "Fight it. There has to be a way out."

Before I could respond, the door burst open.

Lady Morgana stood there, flanked by a dozen guards. Her face was a mask of cold rage.

"First Bride," she said, her voice dripping with venom. "The court demands to see the girl who survived my maze. Lord Sebastian has requested your presence in the throne room." Her smile was poisonous. "Immediately."

My stomach dropped. "But you said I had twelve days—"

"Plans have changed." Morgana's eyes gleamed with malice. "Prince Dante has challenged Lord Sebastian's right to claim you. By ancient law, when two lords want the same bride, there must be a Trial by Blood." She stepped closer. "Tonight, Lord Sebastian and Prince Dante will fight to the death. The winner claims you as his bride."

"No," I breathed.

"Oh yes." Morgana's laugh was cruel. "And the best part? You have to watch. You have to see which monster will own you for the rest of your eternal life." She grabbed my arm, her nails digging in. "Let's go, little bride. Your future husband is waiting to spill blood in your name."

As she dragged me from the Sanctuary, Elena shouted, "Aria!"

I looked back and saw terror on her face. But there was something else too—Iris whispering frantically in her ear, pointing at something.

Then the door slammed shut, and I was being pulled down the corridor toward the throne room and whatever horror waited there.