Chapter 1

In my first life, my twin sister and I were born with a rare bloodline, and tradition demanded that we marry into rival factions.

I married Lucian Vale, crown prince of the Vampire Court, and became the princess everyone revered.

My sister was sent to the Hunters' Order. Within a few years, its brutal discipline had killed her.

Lucian blamed me for stealing my sister Rosalie Ashford's future and driving her to her death.

He poured all that hatred into punishing me, then drained every drop of my blood to feed his Bloodmoon Scepter.

When I opened my eyes again, I was back on the day our marriages were arranged. I changed the bride's name on Lucian's contract to Rosalie's without a second thought.

Everyone believed Rosalie and I carried the same bloodline, only hers was a little weaker.

Only I knew the truth. Her blood had mutated years ago, turning into a lethal curse.

If Lucian loved her so much, then he could drink the poison from her veins himself.

Chapter 1

"You're really giving me the chance to marry Lucian?"

Rosalie covered her mouth, her eyes wide with disbelief.

Our mother, Evelyn Ashford, slammed her palm on the table and jabbed a finger in my face.

"Iris, what kind of trick are you pulling now?"

"Offering to step aside, are you? Trying to play the victim in front of Lucian so he'll feel sorry for you?"

I stared coldly at my mother and sister and said nothing.

I pulled the marriage contract bearing the Vampire Court's gold seal from my bag and slammed it onto the table.

"The Elder Council has already replaced Iris Ashford with Rosalie Ashford on the contract."

"Tomorrow, she marries Lucian."

"I'll take her place in the diplomatic marriage and wed the Lord Commander of the Hunters' Order."

The moment Rosalie saw her name on the contract, a squeal of pure delight escaped her.

She snatched the contract and clutched it to her chest.

"You really went and changed the name?"

Rosalie stared at the contract, her voice trembling with excitement.

I leaned back and watched her clutch it like a starving dog guarding a bone.

"It's right there in black and white. The Elder Council's seal can't be forged."

The fury on Mother's face melted instantly into delight. She pulled Rosalie into her arms.

"Thank heavens! My Rosalie has finally caught a break. She won't have to go off to the Order to die!"

She turned and looked me up and down with contempt.

"At least you have some self-awareness."

"Your worthless life can buy peace for this family. That's about all you're good for."

I had heard those same vicious words countless times in my first life. Now they couldn't touch me.

"Don't regret this later, Iris."

Rosalie tucked the contract into her bag and fixed me with a taunting look.

"You think I don't see through your little scheme?"

"You're handing over the contract so Lucian will feel guilty about you, aren't you?"

"Keep dreaming. Once you're shipped off to that hellhole, you won't even live to see another sunrise."

I was about to answer when the front door crashed open.

"Rosalie!"

Lucian strode in.

He never even looked at me. He went straight to Rosalie, naked anguish in his eyes.

"Lucian!"

Rosalie instantly slipped into her wounded-innocent act and threw herself into his arms.

"I'm sorry you're being put through this, Rosalie."

Lucian stroked her hair, his voice thick with guilt.

"Tomorrow you're heading to that dreadful place. I wish I could take your place."

I watched his lovesick performance and nearly laughed.

Rosalie and Mother had no intention of telling him the truth.

They were afraid that speaking up now would invite complications.

They planned to wait until the wedding made the swap irreversible and trapped Lucian for good.

"It's all right, Lucian. I don't mind."

Rosalie nestled deeper into his arms, her voice coated in practiced sweetness.

"As long as my sister gets to be happily married to you, what does it matter if I die in her place?"

Lucian heard this and whipped around, glaring at me.

"Iris, look at how selfless Rosalie is!"

"She's about to go die for you, and you're just sitting here without a care in the world?"

I met his gaze, my expression ice-cold.

"What would you prefer? Should I kneel at her feet and thank her for going?"

Lucian flinched at my indifference, his brow furrowing.

"What kind of attitude is that?"

"I didn't come here today to listen to your sarcasm."

He marched up to me and towered over me, thrusting out his hand.

"Hand over your Heartstone."

My eyes sharpened, and I instinctively pressed a hand to my chest.

The Heartstone was the only keepsake my birth mother had left me. Its magic nourished my bloodline and kept me strong.

"Why do you want it?" I asked, my voice hard.

"Rosalie is going to the Order tomorrow. It's crawling with danger."

Lucian spoke as if he were asking for something trivial.

"Her bloodline isn't pure enough. Those demon hunters could tear her apart."

"Give her your Heartstone for protection. You owe her that much!"

A laugh broke out of me, sharp with disbelief.

"I don't owe her anything. The Heartstone is mine, and without it, I'll be critically weakened."

"You'd sacrifice my life to protect hers?"

Impatience flashed across Lucian's eyes.

"Iris, do you have to be so selfish?"

"You'll be my wife tomorrow. The entire Vampire Court will protect you, so what could you possibly need the Heartstone for?"

"Rosalie is being sent to her death! And you can't even give up one little trinket?"

I looked at Lucian, standing there so self-righteous it was sickening.

"No." I bit out the word.

"That's not up to you!"

Lucian's expression darkened. He lunged forward and seized me by the throat.

"Lucian, what are you doing?" I clawed at his hand.

Rosalie let out a perfectly rehearsed cry of alarm.

"Lucian, please don't hurt her! I don't need it. If the hunters kill me tomorrow, so be it..."

Lucian scoffed. With his other hand, he wrenched open my collar.

He ripped the Heartstone from my neck by brute force, still warm from my skin.

Agony tore through me. Power drained from my body as though someone had pulled a plug, and my knees gave way beneath me.

Lucian draped the Heartstone carefully around Rosalie's neck.

"There. Now I can stop worrying about you, Rosalie."

He turned and cast me a glance.

"Iris, we're getting married tomorrow. You'd better behave."

The door slammed shut with a bang.

I dragged myself upright, bit through the skin of my finger, and used the blood seeping from the wound to trace a spell circle on the floor.

It was a ritual I had discovered in my first life, one that opened a direct channel to the Lord Commander of the Hunters' Order.

The moment the circle was complete, a faint silver light flickered across the floor.

A faint, holy presence drifted through the air.

"How unusual."

A cold, deep voice laced with danger emanated from the circle.

"The bride of that useless vampire prince is calling me the night before her wedding. Are you that eager to die?"

I took a deep breath and fought down the weakness coursing through me.

"Nathaniel Cross, I want to make a deal."

"Oh?" A note of amusement crept into his voice. "I'm listening."

"The one going to the Order tomorrow isn't Rosalie. It's me."

I fixed my eyes on the faint silver glow and made every word count.

"I'm offering myself to you."

Silence from the other side of the circle. Then a low, soft laugh.

"What do you want?"

"Two things."

I wiped the blood from the corner of my mouth and stared into the silver light.

"First, send the most magnificent carriage to pick me up tomorrow. Don't blow my cover."

"Second, prepare a Silver Mirror for me."

"I want to see, crystal clear, the look on Lucian's face when he lifts that veil."

Nathaniel chuckled, the sound rich with unconcealed delight.

"As you wish, my future bride."

Chapter 2

The next morning, the bedroom door was shoved open.

"Still lying there playing dead?"

Mother's shrill voice stabbed through my aching head.

"Get up. The prince sent a carriage to take you both for your dress fittings."

I forced myself upright through the dizziness, bracing against the wall to stay on my feet.

In the mirror, my face was bloodless. I looked half-dead.

Mother saw it and didn't care. She curled her lip in disgust.

"What a miserable little ghoul. Your wedding is tomorrow, and you insist on looking like a corpse?"

I ignored her taunts and changed into a high-collared dress to hide the bruises Lucian had left on my throat.

When I came downstairs, Lucian and Rosalie were already seated in the living room.

Rosalie wore an expensive dress, and my Heartstone glowed warm and red at her throat.

The Heartstone's magic had put color in her cheeks and a radiant glow in her skin.

Lucian walked over to me with a show of concern.

"Iris, you look awful."

"Didn't you sleep last night?"

He reached out to steady me.

I sidestepped his touch and answered flatly.

"I'll live."

Lucian's hand froze in midair, and his face darkened.

"Iris, are you still throwing a tantrum?"

"I took your Heartstone to save Rosalie's life. Why can't you understand that?"

"Besides, tomorrow you'll be a princess of the Vampire Court. What more could you possibly want?"

His nauseating speech made my stomach churn.

"I said I'll live."

Rosalie piped up from behind, her voice dripping with delicate sweetness.

"Lucian, don't blame my sister. She's just upset I took something of hers."

Lucian let out a cold snort.

"If only she had half your grace."

We arrived at the most exclusive bridal salon in the city.

Since both weddings were being held simultaneously the next day, Rosalie and I were both there to select our gowns.

Two wedding dresses stood displayed in the center of the hall.

One was a midnight-black bridal gown for a Vampire Court wedding, studded with dark crimson gems.

The other was the Hunters' Order's ceremonial gown, pristine white and severe in its beauty.

When the attendant moved to bring me the black gown, Rosalie suddenly rushed forward and seized it.

"Wait!"

She clutched the black dress to her chest, her eyes instantly welling with tears as she turned her pitiful gaze on Lucian.

"Lucian... tomorrow I'll be sent to that violent, dangerous place. I might never get to wear a black wedding gown in my life."

"I know the black dress is meant for my sister, but could I... could I please beg her to let me try it on? Just once?"

"Just this once. Let me pretend I'm the one marrying you. Please?"

Lucian's heart melted on the spot, his eyes filling with anguish.

He strode over and pulled Rosalie into his arms.

"Rosalie, you're too good for this world."

He turned to me, his tone that of someone issuing a command they considered perfectly reasonable.

"Iris, did you hear that?"

"Rosalie is going to die for you tomorrow. She just wants to try on the black gown once. You wouldn't refuse her that, would you?"

I stared at the two of them and their little performance, my heart brimming with scorn.

Rosalie didn't want to just try it on. She was planning to wear that very gown to marry Lucian tomorrow.

And I was the one who needed the white dress.

"Sure." I walked calmly to the white gown.

"Since my sister wants the black dress so badly, I'll take this white one."

Lucian saw me reach for the white ceremonial gown of the Hunters' Order, and fury twisted his face.

"Iris, what the hell do you think you're doing?"

"You're marrying me tomorrow, and you dare try on the Order's white gown in front of me? Are you trying to curse our wedding?"

He snatched the white gown from my hands and flung it to the ground.

"Even if you're angry, this is no way to take it out on me!"

Rosalie pounced, grabbing Lucian's arm.

"Lucian, don't be mad. I'm sure she didn't mean anything by it."

"How about this? There's an old white dress someone returned. If she insists on wearing white, she can wear that one. It's just for show anyway."

The trembling attendant brought out a cheap, indecently cut white dress smothered in plastic rhinestones.

It barely qualified as a dress, let alone a wedding gown. It had been chosen to humiliate me.

Lucian glanced at the hideous thing and sneered.

"If you're so desperate to parade around in the Order's colors, wear this!"

"Let's see you stand beside me at the altar in that piece of trash."

"Go on. Put it on. Let's see just how low you're willing to sink!"

Chapter 3

Night fell, and the governor's estate blazed with light.

The governor was hosting a banquet for both brides-to-be.

I sat alone in the shadows of a corner, wearing the cheap, revealing white dress Lucian had forced on me.

At the center of the hall, Rosalie swept through the crowd in her priceless custom-made black gown, the undisputed star of the evening.

Lucian stayed glued to her side, his gaze lingering on her with barely concealed longing.

"The prince certainly seems devoted to the younger Ashford sister."

"What a pity. A perfect couple like that, torn apart tomorrow."

The murmurs around them were relentless.

Hearing these whispers, the grief in Lucian's eyes deepened. He gripped Rosalie's hand tighter, as though she might vanish at any moment.

I watched this pitiful melodrama from the sidelines, cold and unimpressed.

Without warning, the hall's glass windows exploded inward.

Three massive shadow demons, their bodies reeking of decay, came charging through the shattered glass with deafening roars.

The room erupted into chaos.

Screams, sobs, and the crash of overturning furniture filled the air.

The three shadow demons ignored the crowd entirely and barreled straight toward my corner, as if driven by madness.

My pupils contracted sharply.

Rosalie had actually unleashed shadow demons to kill me.

She must have reasoned that if I died at the banquet, no one could expose the bride swap. The next day, she could quietly take my place as Lucian's princess.

The shadow demons moved with terrifying speed, a gust of foul wind preceding them, their razor-sharp claws aimed at my throat.

If I still had my Heartstone, I could have crushed these low-level creatures with a flick of my finger.

But now, I didn't even have the strength to stand.

Bang!

At the very last second, a beam of silver holy light split the skull of the lead shadow demon.

Wardens from the Hunters' Order had arrived.

Several armored wardens subdued the other two shadow demons within seconds.

I clutched my chest, coughing violently, a thin thread of blood seeping from the corner of my mouth.

The hall's lights flickered back on.

The warden captain strode into the center of the room, his expression carved from stone.

"Shadow demons in the city center. How did they get past the wards?"

"Scan for magical residue. Now."

The wardens deployed their instruments.

Within moments, the needles went haywire, then locked firmly in the direction of Rosalie, who was cowering in Lucian's arms.

"Captain, the trace leads to Miss Rosalie Ashford."

The room erupted in shocked whispers.

Every eye turned to Rosalie.

Her face went white as chalk. She shook her head frantically.

"It wasn't me! I didn't do it!"

"I don't even know how to summon shadow demons! Someone is framing me!"

The captain regarded her coldly.

"Miss Ashford, the instruments don't lie. The summoning powder on your clothes is still active."

"Under imperial law, unauthorized summoning of demons within the city walls is punishable by death."

"Take her away."

Two wardens stepped forward to seize her.

"Stop!"

Lucian threw up his hand, and a crimson barrier materialized in front of Rosalie.

"I dare anyone to lay a finger on her!"

The captain's brow furrowed.

"Your Highness, are you protecting a criminal?"

Lucian clenched his teeth, veins bulging at his temples.

How could he possibly stand by and watch the woman he loved be dragged away?

More than that, in his mind, Rosalie was being sent to her death at the Order tomorrow.

He could not let her be thrown into a dungeon now.

Lucian's gaze swept frantically across the crowd and locked onto me.

He strode over and hauled me up from the floor.

"This was you, wasn't it?!"

He screamed in my face, spittle flying.

"You were jealous that Rosalie got to wear the black dress, so you planted the summoning powder on her to frame her!"

I looked at his contorted face and found it utterly absurd.

"Lucian, have you lost your mind?"

"The demons came after me. You think I framed her to have myself killed?"

Lucian didn't listen. He pressed his mouth close to my ear and whispered a threat only the two of us could hear.

"Iris, confess right now. Say you did it."

"Rosalie is going to the Order tomorrow. She's already as good as dead. How can you stand to see her locked up on top of that?"

"You're my fiancee. The Wardens will go easy on you for my sake. One night in the flooded cells and a few lashes. You'll live."

"Refuse to take the blame, and I promise you won't make it through the Vampire Court's gates tomorrow."

I looked into his eyes, saw the madness and the cruelty there, and felt the last ember of warmth in my heart go out.

To protect Rosalie, he was forcing the actual victim to take the blame for a capital crime.

I closed my eyes, concealing the tidal wave of hatred behind them.

"Fine."

I opened my eyes and turned to the captain.

"I did it."

"I was jealous of my sister, so I framed her."

Chapter 4

The water dungeon beneath the punishment chamber was bone-chillingly cold.

Putrid water rose above my knees, thick with leeches that fed on magic.

I hung suspended from heavy iron chains, not an inch of my body left unscathed.

An entire night of flogging.

But I hadn't cried out once.

I just bit down on my lip, carving every ounce of humiliation and hatred into my bones.

Soon. It would be soon.

At dawn, the iron door groaned open from the outside.

Lucian walked in wearing a sleek black wedding suit, immaculately groomed.

He looked at my battered state without a shred of pity. Instead, his eyes held the condescension of someone dispensing charity.

"Rough night, Iris?"

He stopped in front of me, pressing a white handkerchief over his nose.

"Don't blame me. I had to protect what little dignity Rosalie had left."

"She's so fragile. Going to the Order is a death sentence for her. I couldn't let her be disgraced on top of everything."

"You've always been strong. A few lashes won't kill you."

I slowly raised my head and fixed him with a dead stare.

"Lucian, you make me sick."

His expression faltered, then twisted into a cold smirk.

"Careful. I'm the one who got you out."

"I've already settled things with the Wardens. The matter is closed."

"Go clean yourself up and put on the gown."

"Today is our wedding day. Once you're mine, you'll have the entire Vampire Court behind you."

"Meanwhile, Rosalie will be at the Order with nothing, just waiting to die."

"So stop sulking and let it go."

I looked at his self-righteous face and began to laugh, a raw, broken sound dragged from deep in my chest.

Yes. It was over, all right.

Several hours later, I arrived at the governor's plaza.

Two wedding processions stood waiting.

To the left waited the Vampire Court's black procession, with black silk across the road and ghostly flames to light the way.

To the right stood the Hunters' Order's white carriage, drawn by four horses wreathed in holy light.

I wore the cheap, revealing white dress beneath a large white cloak that covered me from head to toe.

Rosalie emerged in her magnificent black gown, her face hidden beneath a thick black veil, supported by Mother's arm.

Lucian stood before the black convoy. When he saw the cloaked, white-veiled figure walking toward the white carriage, his eyes instantly reddened.

He believed the person in the white cloak, heading off to die, was Rosalie.

"Rosalie... I'm sorry..."

Lucian's voice cracked with anguish. He squeezed his eyes shut, and tears slid down his cheeks.

"Go. If there's a next life, I swear I'll protect you."

He performed his tearful farewell to my carriage.

Then he turned and walked toward the figure in the black gown waiting by the dark convoy.

The grief on Lucian's face vanished in an instant, replaced by a cold, almost repulsed expression.

"Enough dawdling."

He snapped at Rosalie.

"Get in. Don't make us late for the ceremony. If saving your life didn't require it, I would never marry a vicious woman like you."

Beneath the veil, Rosalie stiffened. But she didn't dare say a word and meekly climbed into the black carriage.

I stood by the white carriage, watching through a gap in my cloak, and a cruel smile curled at the corner of my mouth.

I climbed into the Hunters' Order's carriage without looking back.

The carriage door slammed shut, sealing away the outside world.

Nathaniel's envoy produced a crystal-clear mirror and presented it to me with a respectful bow.

"My lady, the Lord Commander prepared this Silver Mirror for you. It will show you everything happening at the Vampire Court."

I took the mirror and lightly touched the surface with my fingertip.

The image flared to life, revealing the bridal chamber inside the Vampire Court's citadel.

I leaned against the cold wall of the carriage, my eyes fixed on the mirror.

Lucian, when you lift that veil, I want to see the exact moment your world falls apart.

"Move out."

The horses let out a piercing whinny and launched the carriage into the sky.