The moment Stephany stepped into Lucien's mansion, she felt the weight of a hundred hungry red eyes pressing down on her.
The grand hall was vast, lined with towering stone columns and adorned with chandeliers dripping with blackened crystals. The air was thick with the scent of blood and something darker—something ancient and predatory.
A hush fell over the room as she entered. The vampires that filled the hall, lounging on velvet sofas or draped over the railings of the grand staircase, turned their attention to her. Some smirked, their elongated fangs glinting in the dim candlelight. Others inhaled deeply, savoring her scent, their pupils dilating with raw hunger.
A single, venomous whisper slithered through the crowd.
"Human."
