As holy light cannons bombarded the gates, Darius violently ripped the Sunstone from my neck and fastened it around Cecilia. The heavy doors slammed shut, locking me outside the barrier. I stood defenseless before dozens of elite hunters, instantly reduced from a devoted partner to a discarded human shield. Refusing to supply his vampire empire with my magic for another second, I plunged a dagger into my own chest. Searing agony ripped through my soul as I shattered our century-old blood pact. This forbidden severing would permanently scar my heart and destroy my ability to ever form supernatural bonds. Collapsing into the heavy chains of the hunters, I left my survival entirely to fate. Darius believed he had secured his reign, utterly unaware that the stolen Sunstone was silently recording a holographic memory of his betrayal.