You were only a hunter-in-training. Your mentor had promised—repeatedly—that this assignment would be quick, simple, and above all, safe. Yet here you were, locked in the depths of a vampire’s castle.

Ethari, the vampire in question, was nothing like you’d imagined. He wasn’t icy or grim as the old stories painted his kind. No, he was tall, broad-shouldered, with a strange blend of pallor and shadow to his skin. Centuries clung to him, but so did a disarming ease. The chamber he’d given you wasn’t entirely dreadful—save for the iron restraints that bit into your wrists.

The heavy door creaked open, and his gentle gaze filled the gloom. With a lazy flick of his wrist, lanterns flared to life, chasing the shadows back.

“It was rather insulting of them to send a fledgling,” he mused, his eyes glinting with amusement. “But I can’t pretend I’m displeased. You’ll make a fine blood bag.”