LUCIEN’S POV

I wasn’t supposed to be here, but it was a Conclave that I had to attend as the Lord of Shadowmere Coven.

News of Vera’s awakening had spread through every territory, and I was curious to see it myself.

We had all called her weak.

The gates of the vampire palace towered before me. Lit torches lined the path to the conclave grounds, each flame swaying in the wind like it knew something was about to change.

Voices echoed from beyond the courtyard walls, whispers, gasps, the pulse of ancient drums. The scent of night-blooming flowers and old magic hung in the air.

She was here.

Vera.

I slipped into the outer ring of the conclave platform, sticking to the shadows. Old habits.

The clearing was massive, crowds packed around its edges. Lords in ceremonial armor, their banners staked high. The High Priestess stood at the altar, her silver robes gleaming, her arms lifted in invocation.

And at the center, on her knees, was Vera.

My heart stilled.

She was bent forward, power radiating from her like heat waves, her fists clenched into the stone platform. Her body shook with the force of whatever ancient magic clawed through her veins.

The crowd was silent.

Then her scream ripped through the air, primal and raw.

Magic exploded outward in a shockwave. Crimson and gold. Blinding.

I shielded my eyes with my forearm, but I couldn’t look away.

When the light faded, I saw it. Her body transforming in front of all of us.

Power burst across her skin, glowing like liquid fire against the night. Her form shifted with sharp, fluid precision. Not breaking, but evolving. She endured it all.

And when she stood, power crackling around her like controlled lightning, veins glowing gold beneath alabaster skin, every single vampire in the court dropped to their knees.

Even me.

Even without thinking.

She raised her arms, and the world seemed to bow in response.

The royal coven knelt.

The conclave erupted into whispers of awe, as if the earth itself had been waiting for her rise.

The Blood Princess.

It wasn’t a myth anymore. It was standing right in front of me.

As the ceremony melted into celebration, music rising and dancers flooding the courtyard, I moved through the crowd, quietly, quickly, my eyes fixed on her.

She stood near the stone altar now, back in her human form. Her hair shimmered under torchlight, and even with her back turned, I could feel it.

Her presence was like gravity.

I stepped closer, and then she turned. Her eyes found mine, and everything stopped.

For a breathless second, it was just us again. No crown. No palace. Just the two of us.

Then she turned her face away and walked in the opposite direction.

Without thinking, I followed.

“Vera,” I called, catching up to her near the side archway, away from the crowd.

She kept walking.

“Vera, please.”

She stopped.

Slowly, she turned to face me.

“What do you want, Lucien?”

I swallowed. “To talk.”

“We don’t have anything left to say.”

“I made a mistake, and I’m sorry.”

Her eyes narrowed, and I saw power flicker behind them like distant lightning.

“No, not a mistake,” I corrected, rushing the words. “I was a coward. I let them treat you like you were less, and I followed instead of fought. And now, now I see what you are. What you’ve always been.”

She crossed her arms. “Too bad you needed a transformation and a title to see it.”

“I didn’t come here because of a title.”

“Yes, you did.”

I exhaled hard. “Then maybe I stayed because of something else.”

She turned her head. “Don’t.”

“I’m asking for another chance.”

“You had your chance,” she snapped. “You had three years of chances.”

“I didn’t know what I had.”

“You knew,” she said, voice low, shaking. “You just didn’t care until you lost it.”

My mouth opened, but nothing came out.

She shook her head. “You watched them humiliate me. You let them name me unworthy, and now you want to talk about fate and mistakes because you saw me glow for five seconds?”

“That’s not fair—”

“No,” she said, stepping closer, her voice steel now. “What’s not fair is you dragging me into this again. I have fought every night to unlearn the damage you and your coven did to me. And now, when I finally find out who I am, when I finally own it, you want to bring me back into your story?”

“I want to be in yours,” I whispered.

She laughed. It was cold and empty of any warmth.

“Do you know what I went through after you cast me out?” she asked, her voice deadly quiet.

“Vera—”

“Do you know what it’s like to have your own husband look at you like you’re a burden? To be told you’re not strong enough, not vampire enough, not worthy of the name you carry?”

I flinched. “I was trying to protect you.”

“From what? From being myself?”

“From them!” I snapped. “From my coven, from the other Lords, from anyone who would have used you to get to me.”

“So you decided to use me first.”

“That’s not what I—”

“That’s exactly what you did,” she said, power crackling around her fingertips. “You took everything I was and convinced me it was nothing. You made me small so you could feel big.”

“I was young. I was stupid.”

“You were cruel.”

The word hit me like a physical blow.

“And now,” she continued, “you want absolution because you finally see what everyone else sees. The power. The title. The crown.”

“I see you,” I said desperately. “I see the woman I fell in love with.”

“No,” she said, turning her back on me. “You see what you lost.”

And that’s when the voice came.

“Blood Princess.”

We both turned.

Caelen.

His tall frame stood by the archway, his expression unreadable. But his eyes—his eyes were locked on Vera like she was the only person in the world.

I recognized him immediately.

The advisor from the royal court. The vampire with a reputation for ruthless strategy. The man now staring at her with more than just loyalty.

My blood boiled, as he stepped closer, never once looking at me. “Vera. A moment?”

Her face softened slightly. She nodded once.

I moved before I could stop myself. My fist connected with his jaw with a satisfying crack.

The crowd behind us gasped.

Calean stumbled back, caught off guard, hand flying to his cheek.

Vera’s eyes widened. “Lucien!”