The midnight bell tolls. Dion Lancaster is already gone. Maids guide Ruby Kingsley toward the exit, her white silk train rustling against the stone. Rows of sword-bearing guards line the corridor, boxing her in.

The towering doors of the Great Hall groan open. Countless vampire nobles sit in tiered rows, their red eyes tracking her every step. The guards halt at the threshold. Eight maids gather the heavy lace of her veil and skirts.

Ruby grips a bouquet of red roses. She paces down the long, narrow aisle. A massive stained-glass window looms ahead. The moon is impossibly large, a ring of crimson bleeding around its edges.

She approaches the royals seated beneath the glass. Their faces are masterpieces of pale perfection. Their gazes are heavy and ancient. The Grand Mage leads her through the ritual bows—the King, Queen Bellaceline, then the Princes.

The ruby necklace drags at her throat. Brian Lancaster leans in and brushes his lips against her gloved hand. The weight of the stones keeps her gaze anchored on the floor. She never sees his face.

Dion watches the white gown move through the red moonlight. The semi-transparent veil masks her features. Her lips are a tight, crimson line. She moves like a porcelain doll with hollow eyes.

His gaze never leaves her. She stands before him under the Grand Mage's watchful eye. Her pulse thrums against the air, a frantic rhythm of panic and heat.

She extends a hand in silver silk. Dion leans in, inhaling the scent of sugar and iron. The sweetness of her blood nearly drowns him. He closes his eyes and grazes the back of her hand with his lips.

He lets go before his self-control evaporates. The human bride and the vampire prince stand frozen under the Blood Moon. The Grand Mage begins to recite ancient, rhythmic verses.

Dion stares forward. His knuckles turn white as he clenches his fists. He watches the back of her head, his posture shifting into something defensive... possessive.

The vampire poetry is a long, hollow drone. Ruby keeps her head lowered behind the veil. Her eyelids flutter and close. A faint, forbidden curve touches her lips as she drifts.

The chanting snaps shut. The organ falls silent. Ruby's eyes fly open. Brian and the Mage are huddled with a soldier in the distance, gesturing toward the doors.

Brian never looks back. The Hall erupts into a wall of whispers. Queen Bellaceline stands and exits. The room descends into chaos.

A guard in palace colors snatches Ruby's arm and jerks her toward the side-exit. She looks toward Dion, but he is already walking away. She cannot see his eyes.

The guard drags her through the labyrinth of stone. They enter a cold, unfamiliar chamber. The heavy door slams. Ruby stares at the high back of the guard. "Where are we?"

The guard reaches for the back of his neck. His posture is jagged, wrong. He pulls at the skin until the mask peels away in a single, wet motion. Jacob Vraj stares back at her.

Ruby's jaw drops. "Jacob... you really came. Just like he said..." Jacob brushes the messy hair from his forehead. "Just like who said?"

"Dion Lancaster. The Prince. He told me..." Ruby's fingers twist in her silk skirts. "He said you'd come for me."

She remembers his cold breath against her ear in the dark room. He hadn't been guiding her to the altar. He had been guiding her to the exit.

Jacob stays silent. He shakes his head. The news of his betrayal has already hit the Queen's ears. "He knew?" Jacob mutters. He looks at the locked door. "We move. Now."

Ruby pulls the dark cloak over her white lace. They slip into the night air. The towers of Châtelet shrink into the fog. A hollow sensation settles in her chest as the spires vanish.

The carriage hitches as they hit the dirt road. "What happened?" Ruby asks. Jacob's eyes are hard. "The Kingdom of Aurelia has crossed the border. The first cannons fired at midnight. The war is here."

"Humans... against them?" Ruby asks. She pictures the speed of the Prince. Jacob's lip curls. "Vampire numbers are at their lowest point in centuries. Bellaceline was greedy. This is our opening."

"My military force belongs to the humans now," Jacob says. Ruby looks at his hands. "And Angelina?"

"She's at the border." Jacob's grin is cold. "Waiting to watch the empire burn."

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Ruby shifts toward the far corner of the leather seat.

Jacob Vraj's eyes cut through the shadows of the carriage, tracking her movement. "Do I scare you now?" he rasps.

He turns toward the window, his reflection shimmering in the glass. "What would you do if your vampire father drained your mother dry right in front of you?" He isn't crying. A low, jagged chuckle escapes his lips. "Finally... the day is finally here..."

Ruby's spine locks against the carriage wall. Her pulse hammers against her ribs. "When do I see Angelina?" she whispers, her voice barely a thread.

Jacob's grin is a cold, sharp line. "The day the humans win. That's when you get your reunion."

The warmth in Ruby's chest turns to lead. "And if they don't win?"

"Then none of us will be breathing anyway." Jacob stares at the passing trees. Ruby grips the edge of her seat, staring at the man who used to be a gentleman... now just a stranger with a vendetta.

The wheels churn through the dirt for a day and a night. Desolate stone houses pass by in a blur of grey. They are still deep within the borders of Châtelet.

The village is a graveyard. No one walks the cobbles, even as the moon hits its peak and the predators should be hunting. Ruby stays silent. Jacob wouldn't answer the "where" even if she asked.

She is a ghost in a white gown. A fake princess? A Vampire Prince's runaway bride? Neither title matters while the cannons are firing.

The carriage halts before a grey, hulking fortress. Jacob waves the driver away and pulls Ruby toward the heavy oak doors.

The air inside tastes like dust and rot. Cobwebs hang like grey lace from the crystal chandeliers. This place hasn't seen a living soul in decades.

"Stay here," Jacob says, his dark red eyes scanning the vaulted ceiling. "The villagers won't touch the castle. But step outside? You're a Bloodbound Servant or a snack before you hit the treeline."

"Food's in the kitchen. Sleep there." He points a gloved finger at a moth-eaten sofa in the center of the Great Hall.

Ruby looks at the rows of dark, closed doors on the upper landing.

Jacob catches the look. "Every room is locked," he barks. "Don't touch the handles."

He turns and slams the front door. The heavy bolt slides home. He is gone.