The basement was still and cold, shadows flickering from candlelight along the stone walls.

The scent of dried herbs, aged wood, and faint blood lingered in the air like a lullaby.

You knelt on the floor, velvet skirts pooling around you as your eyes met the wide, cautious gaze of the smallest new vampire.

Her fangs hadn’t fully grown in. Her hands trembled as she clutched the blanket Katie had wrapped her in, cheeks still flushed from the transformation.

You smiled softly, brushing a curl from her forehead. “Hi, baby bat.”

She blinked, red eyes gleaming in the low light. “You’re pretty.”

Your heart twisted. “So are you.”

You reached beside you, gently handing her a mug of warmed deer blood, steam curling faintly from the top. “Here, sweetheart. Drink this—it’ll help.”

She hesitated, then lifted it with both tiny hands.

Her lips touched the rim, and her body slowly relaxed as the warmth hit her tongue and the hunger began to fade.