Prologue
Six years ago.
Lucinda
We walk through the gates of Stars of the Rose Private Academy, Rin’s fingers curled tightly into my sleeve like if she lets go, she might disappear.
The campus stretches wide and pristine polished stone paths, rose gardens blooming in controlled perfection, but none of it softens the way her grip trembles.
I glance down at her and force a small, steady smile.
“Hey… look at me,” I murmur, brushing my thumb lightly over her knuckles. “You’re going to be fine here. I’ll see you at lunch, okay?”
She lifts her gaze, those light ocean-blue eyes glassy, uncertain. She nods, barely.
Then she lets go and walks away.
Class drags on as if time stood still for just a moment.
Voices blur into a dull hum, chalk scraping against the board like distant static. I don’t hear a word. My pen moves on its own, carving crescent moons into the margins of my notebook, roses curling around them petal after petal, thorn after thorn, wrapping tighter, suffocating the page.
I don’t notice I’ve pressed hard enough to nearly tear through.
Until the bell rings.
Lunch crashes into me all at once the roar of voices, sharp bursts of laughter, the clatter of trays against metal tables, but it all fractures in an instant when a scream cuts through it, high and jagged, wrong in a way that makes my stomach drop. The sound slices clean through the noise, through thought, through breath, and before I can even process it, before I can decide, my body reacts on instinct alone, already moving, already running toward it, driven by a knowing buried deep within me. The crowd parts just enough for me to see it.
Rin.
Her feet barely touching the ground, Bobby’s hand locked around her throat. Her face is already swelling, one eye darkening, a red handprint burning across her cheek like it was branded there.
For a single, suspended second, everything inside me goes completely still my thoughts, my breath, even the pounding of my heart like the world itself has paused around the sight in front of me, and then it breaks, violently and all at once, a locked part of me fractures open, beyond control. “What’s going on here?”
My reply comes out low. Too calm. Too controlled.
Bobby glances at me and exhales like I’m an inconvenience.
“Stay out of this, Star,” he says, tightening his grip just enough to make Rin choke. “This girl deserves it. Been dodging me all week then disappears before I can finish what she started.”
I step closer, slow and deliberate, each movement controlled as I tilt my head slightly, my gaze locking onto his. “Oh?” My response stays calm, almost curious. “And what exactly did she do to deserve this, Bobby?”
He lets out a laugh, hollow and bitter, like it scrapes on the way out. “You really don’t know? Before she ran off for a month, she embarrassed me and Xavier in front of everyone.”
My fingers tap once against my thigh, calm and measured, a steady rhythm grounding the storm building beneath my skin as I meet his gaze without flinching. “You mean when you were cornering that first-year?” I say softly, my tone even, controlled.
“When she stepped in and stopped you?” I let the silence stretch, thick and deliberate, forcing the memory to settle between us before tilting my head slightly, my eyes sharpening. “What was her name again…?” A brief pause, then I answer for him, quiet but precise. “Flare. Flare Thompson.”
His grip loosens just enough and Rin tears free, stumbling behind me as her breath comes out ragged and uneven, each inhale catching like it hurts; I don’t turn fully, but I feel her there, small and shaking, trying to fold into herself like she can disappear if she just takes up less space.
I angle my head slightly toward her, my reply lowering, softer now, but no less steady. “Was it him?” I ask quietly. “Is he why you had to leave? Why you’ve been struggling to catch up?” She doesn’t answer, can’t but she doesn’t need to, because the silence she gives me is louder than anything she could say, heavy and trembling and full of everything she’s too afraid to speak.
Heat coils low in my chest not sudden, not explosive, but slow, deliberate, rising inch by inch as it spreads through my veins like it’s been there all along, waiting for this exact moment to surface.
It builds quietly, tightening, sharpening, until every breath I take feels heavier, thicker, Like I’m tearing through dense resistance that bites back.
I turn back to Bobby, my gaze locking onto him as the words leave me, edged and unforgiving. “How dare you.” My words cuts cleaner now, sharper with every step I take closer to him. Flare wasn’t enough for you?”
I close the distance, each word landing harder than the last. “You had to push her so far, she disappeared for a month… and now you think you can put your hands on her again? Here?” A locked part of me shifts, final and irreversible.
My pulse spikes no, not just a pulse but a surge, thick and heavy, crashing through me like a force I can’t contain. My blood pressing hard against my skin as if it’s trying to break free, to spill past whatever is holding it in. My vision flickers, stuttering for a split second then everything floods red.
For a second, I can’t see anything clearly only movement, blurred shapes shifting around me, and him standing at the center of it all. But then I notice it a reflection flashing off a cafeteria tray on the table behind him. and my focus locks onto it, dragging my attention in until I see it.
See myself and my breath stutters as I realize my eyes are no longer mine, but glowing, unmistakably crimson. Bobby stumbles back, his confidence cracking in real time, the edge in his posture slipping as uncertainty creeps in. “What’s wrong with you?” he snaps, but the bite in his tone falters, hesitation threading through it, fear starting to show despite the front he’s trying to hold. “Why do you even care? You didn’t step in for that other girl. So why her?”
His words barely register, fading before they can fully land, because beneath them under the noise, under everything I hear it; a whisper, soft and close, not coming from around me but from somewhere far more intimate, far more dangerous, curling through my thoughts like it belongs there, like it’s always been there, waiting to be heard.
He hurt your family what will you do now Lucinda will you back down or will you let your power show
I shake my head, trying to calm the storm building inside me, but it won’t settle it won’t listen. My chest rises too fast, my pulse too loud. “She’s my sister,” I say, my words tighter than I mean it to be. “That’s why. And I protect my family.”
The slap comes out of nowhere, sharp and stinging, snapping my head to the side as heat blooms across my cheek. Bobby leans in close, his grip tightening as his declaration drops low and cruel. “Fine then. I’ll just punish you… and she can watch.”
A laugh breaks out of me, brittle and edged. “Try it,” I say, lifting my head, meeting his eyes without flinching. “You’ll be the one on the ground by the end.”
Behind me, I hear Rin crying, her voice trembling as it reaches me. “Lucinda, you don’t need to do this… Mom will already be worried enough with me coming back bruised. She doesn’t need both of us—”
I lift my hand, stopping Bobby where he stands, and turn to her. Dropping down slightly, I meet her eyes, forcing myself to soften when everything in me wants to burn. “Rin… you might be older by a few years, and you’ve always been the best sister,” I murmur, my throat tightening as I look at her. “But this time… it’s my turn to protect you.”
Her eyes widen, fear breaking into a deeper feeling. “Lucinda… your eyes… they’re red. Like blood. What’s going on with you?”
I smile softly, even as a deeper part of me holds tight. “Don’t worry about that. I don’t know why it’s happening,” I admit quietly. “But I will protect you from him. You won’t have to hide from bullies anymore. You’re going to graduate, go to a good college everything you’ve worked for.” I nod once, steadying myself. “Just sit back, okay? It’ll be over soon.”
She hesitates, then nods.
I turn back and Bobby’s fist slams into my face.
Pain tears through my nose, sharp and blinding, a break hitting as the world tilts. Before I can recover, his hand grips my collar, jerking me upward as another slap lands, harder, ringing through my skull. He leans in, his reply a venomous whisper. “Oh yes, Lucinda… it will be over soon. Just not for you.”
My vision swims, heat flooding through me, burning, spreading, like every part of me is being lit from the inside out.
And then…
The whisper curls through my mind.
Are you going to let him beat you like this… when you vowed to protect her? Let me help you… just this once.
I take a shaky breath, feeling his grip tighten, the pressure cutting into my throat as the world narrows.
“Fine…” I whisper, barely audible. “Do it… protect her.”
Robby laughs, harsh and mocking. “Are we talking out loud now? Trying to give yourself hope?”
But I’m not listening anymore.
Because I feel it.
he resonance between me and the second self inside me. no, her closing, tightening, merging. A rush overtakes me, overwhelming, flooding every vein until I can barely hold steady…And then I’m not in control.
I’m there but pushed back, dragged into the depths of my own mind as my body moves without me.
My hand snaps up, gripping Bobby’s wrist, ripping it away from my throat with a force that isn’t mine. A laugh spills from my lips cold, sharp, wrong.
“So, you think it’s okay to bully my family?” she says through me, her tone dripping with disdain. “You weak, pathetic mortal. I’ll show you what happens when you touch what’s mine.”
He charges.
She lifts a single finger.
And I feel it a deep, unnatural draw as dark red pours from him, unseen yet undeniable, filling me. He gasps, choking, clawing at his chest like breath is gone, like a vital part is being ripped free.
No this is too far…
I push back, hard, fighting through her control, forcing myself forward until I break through…
My hand drops.
The pull stops.
Bobby collapses, gasping for air, stumbling back as terror overtakes his face. “Lucinda… you’re a demon!” he chokes before turning and running.
Silence crashes down.
I turn to Rin and the look on her face steals the breath from my lungs.
Fear.
Pure, unfiltered fear.
I step toward her instinctively, reaching out. “Rin—”
She jerks away, standing up quickly, putting distance between us. “Lucinda… you’re a monster,” she says, her words shaking. “A freak. Why did you do that? How did you do that?”
I shake my head, panic rising now, replacing the heat. “I—I don’t know. I heard someone… they said they would help me protect you, and then it just… happened. Let’s just go home, okay?”
I try to reach for her again, but she backs up further.
“Don’t ever touch me,” she whispers. “You’re not my sister. You’re not normal. I don’t even think I can call you human. You’re a freak, Lucinda.”
Each word lands, heavy and sharp.
We walk home in silence.
When we step through the door, my mother looks up with a smile but it fades the second Rin rushes behind her.
“Mom… Lucinda’s a monster,” Rin cries. “She almost killed someone today!”
A deeper part of me rises again, sharp and defensive, my chest tightening. “I only did what I did to protect you from that bully, Robby! If I hadn’t stepped in, you could have been hurt worse!”
“Protection?” Rin snaps, anger cutting through her fear. “You call that protection? You almost killed him! You didn’t even sound like yourself, it was like you were possessed by a demon! You’re a freak, Lucinda. You’re not my sister… just a monster!”
The heat surges again, stronger this time, my blood boiling, vision flickering as red threatens to take over…
Then my mother’s hand lands on me.
Firm.
Grounding.
And slowly… the red fades, my eyes cooling back to their emerald green as everything inside me falls into a fragile, shaking silence.
Caleb
Three years ago,
I find Sarah in the library just as she’s about to step into the forbidden section, and something in me tightens hard enough to hurt. I reach out and stop her before she can cross the threshold, my hand closing around her wrist. “No don’t, Sarah,” I say, my voice low, strained. “You know I’ve been put under Zane’s control… after he ripped Ren away from being his weapon.”
She turns to me slowly, and when her hand lifts to my cheek, everything in me softens despite the fear clawing underneath. I lean into her touch without thinking, my eyes slipping closed for half a second as she speaks. “I know, Caleb… but I have to do this. I don’t want to be controlled by Zane. Even as a pureblood, we’re still bound to him all of us except Ren and I can’t live like that.”
Her thumb brushes my skin, steady, grounding. “We shouldn’t be ruled by fear… we should be ruled by love. But only the royal purebloods can change that. This has to be done. And when it is… I can save you. I can get you out of his grasp.” She murmurs but her resolve doesn’t waver. “Let me do this for you. Just meet me back at my dorm. I promise… I’ll save you. One way or another.”
I exhale slowly, the weight of her words settling deep in my chest, and I lean in, pressing a kiss to her lips, holding it there like I don’t want to let go. “Fine… but don’t do anything too dangerous,” I murmur against her. “I can’t have Zane sending another kill order. I just had to do one last month with Robby for the forbidden section.” The memory sits heavy in my throat. “I would die if I had to… for you.”
She smiles, soft and certain. “I promise… I’ll be careful.”
I leave the library, but the tension follows me, wrapping tight around my chest with every step. I spot Ren first. “Hey, Ren,” I say, trying to sound normal, but it comes out thinner than I want. He nods, quiet as ever. Then I see Yuki, and I sigh before she even reaches me. “Let me guess… Zane wants me?”
She smiles, almost amused. “You catch on quick.”
I take a slow breath, steadying myself before following her to Zane’s dorm. The air shifts the moment I step inside heavy, suffocating, like it always does around him. “What is it, Zane?” I ask, keeping my voice even.
He smirks, watching me too closely. “There’s a rumor that Sarah is trying something… against the rules. I need you to find out and report to me.”
My hands curl into fists at my sides before I can stop them. “I won’t kill again for you, Zane,” I say, the words sharper now. “Especially if it’s Sarah. She’s going to be my mate. I’m not killing her for you, so back off.”
The shift is instant. He’s in front of me before I can react, his hand wrapping around my throat, lifting just enough to remind me exactly where I stand. “Fine,” he says, his voice cold and controlled. “I’ll leave looking into her to Yuki and Ron… but you will do as I say.”
His grip tightens, cutting into my breath. “I’ll send Yuki to you for the kill order, and you will follow it. Remember you’re here to replace Ren. You will maintain the order I’ve built. If I say kill… you kill. You don’t have a choice.”
Rage burns through me as I rip his hand from my throat, stepping back, air rushing into my lungs too fast. “Just leave me out of this.”
But I already know he won’t.
Yuki is already gone by the time I leave, and I head straight for Sarah’s dorm, my pulse refusing to settle. I push the door open and freeze. Books are scattered everywhere, pages open, symbols from the forbidden section etched into the margins like she’s already crossed a line that can’t be undone.
“Sarah… what have you done?”
She turns to me with a smile that feels too bright, too certain, and before I can say anything else, she pulls me into a kiss. It steals the breath from my lungs, pulls me under with her.
“I did it, Caleb,” she whispers when she pulls back, her eyes shining with something fierce and unbreakable. “I found it a unlinking spell. Only purebloods can perform it. I can be free from Zane… and so can you.”
My heart stutters in my chest.
“I’m going to do it tonight,” she says, her voice filled with dangerous hope. “On the balcony. Please… come with me. Be free of Zane.”
I sigh, the weight of it pressing down into my chest until it aches. “I will… we just have to hide this from Zane, or else—” My words trail off, but the meaning lingers, heavy between us. Sarah exhales softly, her hand lifting to cup my cheek, her touch warm and grounding even as everything inside me tightens.
“Or he’ll make you kill me?” she asks, steady in a way that makes it worse. She takes a slow breath, her eyes searching mine. “Look, Caleb… I know you want me as your mate, but as long as you’re linked and bound to Zane, you won’t be free. And I won’t be your mate as long as we’re tied to that monster. So, once we’re free… we can bind to each other. Okay, Caleb?”
I nod, even though something deep inside me resists, like it already knows what’s coming.
Day slips into night, shadows stretching long across the courtyard as we make our way there together. The air feels colder, heavier, like it’s waiting. And then I see him.
Zane.
Standing there with Yuki and Ron, his smirk already in place like he’s been expecting us all along. “So you thought you could hide this, Sarah?” he says, his voice smooth and cutting.
She laughs, but there’s no fear in it only defiance. “Oh, I knew you were lurking, Zane. But your tyranny will end. If not by my hands, someone else will come and finish what I started… and it will be your doom.”
His gaze shifts to me.
“Caleb… kill her.”
The words hit like a command carved into my bones, but I don’t move. I plant my feet, forcing myself to stay where I am. “No. I won’t.”
His eyes bleed into a bright, unnatural crimson, and I feel it instantly the chains tightening, wrapping around my will, pulling at me from the inside. His demand cuts through me again, sharper, heavier. “Do it now. Kill her.”
Yuki steps forward and places a knife in my hand, and the moment my fingers close around it, the weight settles in a way that feels wrong too real, too heavy, too final, like the outcome has already been decided and all that’s left is for me to follow through.
I look at Sarah, my vision blurring as I pull her into my arms, holding her close like I can protect her just by refusing to let go. “Why, Sarah?” My voice breaks, splintering under the pressure. “Why do this? Isn’t my love enough for you? Why did you have to make me do this? I can’t—I can’t do this…” My hand trembles, the knife shaking so badly it feels like it might fall from my grip. She looks up at me, her golden eyes soft, shining with tears that spill down her cheeks. “It’s okay, Caleb,” she whispers, her voice gentle in a way that shatters me. “I’m not meant to be your mate.” The words hit deep, cutting through everything. “There will come someone who can kill Zane… and that is your mate. Until then, harden your heart. Wait for them. They will finish what I started and set you free.”
Her breath falters, but she keeps going. “Do this for me… and you will be able to live.”
I shake my head, my entire body rejecting it. “I can’t do this…”
But when I look back…
Zane stands there with a fireball burning in his palm, bright and deadly.
“Do it,” he says, his voice cold, absolute. “Or you die, Caleb.”
My breath catches, stalling in my chest as everything around me narrows into a single, suffocating moment, the world blurring at the edges until there’s nothing left but her in front of me and then, before I can stop it, before I can fight it, I move, and the blade sinks into her chest.
Her scream tears through me, sharp and broken, as blood spills over my hands, warm and unstoppable. My knees give out, and I fall with her, her body going limp in my arms as the life drains from her too fast, too soon.
“No…” My voice barely exists as I press a trembling kiss to her forehead. “I will live with hate until your wish comes true… for any woman.”
I lay her down gently, like I can undo it if I’m careful enough.
Then I stand.
And I turn to Zane.
“You will pay for this with your life, Zane,” I say, my voice low, shaking with something far darker than grief. “I don’t care if you’re a pureblood.”
Power erupts through me, lightning cracking from my hands as I strike him over and over, each hit louder, sharper, the air splitting with it. His flames rise to protect him, but they falter under the force, breaking apart as I keep going, pushing harder until the lightning slams into his chest.
He screams.
Ron and Yuki fall back, leaving him there as I drive the power into him again and again.
Then Yuki’s response cuts through it. “Lord Zane, we’ve got you!”
My eyes widen as I grab the blade they gave me and throw it, watching as it cuts through the air and hits its mark, sinking into him. My lightning crashes into his body again, and he collapses, unmoving.
Dead or so I think, the stillness settling too quickly, too easily, until his eyes snap open without warning, locking onto mine with something that refuses to die. “I will come back for you… when I wake.”
Rage surges through me as I rush forward, reaching for the blade to finish it, but blood spreads across his body as Yuki and Ron step in front of him, blocking me.
“You will not touch him,” Yuki says sharply. “You are the weapon now. Don’t forget that.”
A hollow laugh escapes me, broken and empty. “For now,” I say, my voice low as I glance back at Sarah’s still form. “But I will make Sarah’s wish come true.” My gaze lifts back to Zane, cold and unyielding. “One day… I will tear his power down from him.”
