The scent of crimson roses filled the chamber—a scent Elias hadn't breathed in since that cursed night beneath the blood moon. His amber eyes opened slowly, fixating on the half-burned sigil etched into the blackened marble floor of his sanctum. His claws extended instinctively, reacting to the faint pulse still echoing in the air. Someone had summoned the Crimson Pact. And there was only one other person it could have bound to.
Kael.
"No..." Elias hissed. His chest rose and fell with growing fury. Magic burned in his veins like wildfire, responding to the summoning mark that had activated during his slumber. A forbidden link had been triggered, which could mean only one thing—Kael had conceived from their union.
The pact had never failed. Not when awakened by true bloodlines.
He vanished into mist, reappearing inside the inner sanctum of the Crimson Syndicate, where vampire lords lounged on velvet thrones and whispered in hushed tones. The scent of fear greeted him before the sound of his boots hit the stone.
"Lord Elias…" one of the elders began, eyes wide as the glow of the pact sigil burned like fire across his neck. "We feared your silence meant you were dead."
"I was… sleeping," Elias said, voice low and thick with menace. "But now I'm awake. And someone has called me back through the ancient blood."
He didn't wait for permission. A single wave of his hand caused the blood mirror to rise from the center altar. In its reflection shimmered Kael—disheveled, flushed, and clutching his stomach in pain. The sight of his soft belly, curved just enough to hint at life, shattered Elias's composure.
The child was real.
A soft growl rumbled in Elias's chest. His fangs extended involuntarily. The Crimson Pact had never failed in centuries of secrecy—but this was no ordinary spawn. The child's energy pulsed with dual nature: fae and vampire.
A hybrid.
Back in the human realm…
Kael collapsed into a pool of silk cushions, sweat coating his trembling skin. His best friend Mira pressed a damp cloth to his forehead, eyes wide with a mix of awe and dread.
"You're glowing again," she whispered.
"I can't stop it," Kael breathed. "It burns through me, like he's inside me even now… Elias. His mark keeps flaring. I think the child is awakening it."
Mira chewed her lip. "Then we need to hide. Now. If the Fae Council learns about this, they'll strip you of your name. Or worse—take the baby."
Kael wrapped his arms around his waist protectively. He could still feel the phantom heat of that night—Elias's body above him, magic surging between them with every thrust. It had been more than sex. It had been binding.
He remembered how Elias had groaned his name, how his teeth had scraped down his chest, how his hands had cradled Kael like a sacred offering.
Now, Kael's body betrayed him with more than memory.
His nipples had become sensitive—aching at the brush of fabric. His thighs trembled with phantom touches. Desire licked his skin as his temperature spiked.
He whimpered, half in fear, half in need.
Mira backed away, whispering, "The bond is still active. It's tethering to him… drawing him to you."
Back in the vampire underworld…
Elias burst into his private chambers and ripped open the spell-forged drawer. Inside was the Crimson Codex—the book of forbidden children and pact-born destinies.
Flipping through its blood-soaked pages, he halted on the sigil now etched in Kael's skin. He touched the ink, and fire flared in his palm.
"She's carrying him," Elias murmured. "My heir. The first of the Crimson Line reborn."
And just like that, the fury in his veins was replaced with a lust deeper than blood. Not just lust for Kael's body—but for the power he now held.
He closed his eyes, and the bond allowed him to feel it again—Kael's scent, his heartbeat, the soft curve of his stomach stretching beneath delicate skin. His moans, still echoing from that night, now wrapped in vulnerability and strength.
Elias's fangs ached.
The child would be hunted.
Kael would need him.
And Elias would return.
Not as a lover.
As a protector—and a possessive, relentless mate.