Page 16 of A Touch of Darkness

I swallow, nodding, even though my mind’s racing with a hundred more questions. “Okay. I want answers… but I’m also freaking out.” A shaky laugh escapes me. “I just—this is crazy, right? Vampires? Witches? All under one roof, acting like normal students?”

Nicole gives my hand a gentle squeeze. “It’s definitely crazy. But it’s our reality. And now it’s yours, too.”

Rebecca adds, “And we need to make sure we stay on top of the Society issue. If this Isabel girl pops up again, we need to be prepared to ask more in-depth questions to see what they want from you.”

The mention of the Society sends a shiver crawling down my spine.

“Isabel said I’m connected to them somehow, but I don’t understand how. My family is normal. My parents, Lara—all normal. Humans. There isn’t, in any realm of possibility, a chance that we’re connected to anything that could help them.”

Nicole leans forward, her gaze intense, unyielding. “The Solstice Society doesn’t see the world the way you do. They think in terms of bloodlines, prophecies—power. If they want you, it means they think you’re important. And they don’t let go of people they think are important.” Her expression is grim. “Last night, introducing Isabel. That was just step one for them.”

Rebecca nods. “The Society, and the Guild—the governing body for witches—have been at odds for centuries. To the Solstice Society, we’re just another kind of monster. Vampires, witches, shifters—we’re all the same in their eyes. They may want vampires gone first, but we’ll be next, and we’ve always known it.”

My heart pounds harder. “Do they think I’m one of them? I don’t know why else they’d think I could help…”

“It sounds like they think youcouldbe,” Nicole says. “But if you ask me, the Solstice Society doesn’t care about what you want. They care about what they can use you for.”

Rebecca’s gaze softens. “I know this is a lot to take in. But Sylvie—we’re here, and we’re going to figure this out. Together.”

I nod slowly, though the burden of it all feels unbearable. Everything I thought I knew about my life, my world—it’s all gone. All that’s left is this strange new reality, and I have no idea where it’s going to take me.

I do know one thing, though.

I have a deep, instinctive feeling screaming at me to believe them.

To not ignore this.

To trust myself.

I believe the women sitting in front of me. And a very big part of me wishes I could just dig my head in the sand and act like they’re nothing more than crazy lunatics—but I don’t think that would do anyone justice. Least of all, my sister.

I inhale a deep, cleansing breath. “This is just a lot to take in. I need to go back to Blackthorne and have some time,” I tell them, looking from Nicole to Rebecca. “I need to learn more about Solstice before I make a decision about meeting with them. But if they really do know where Lara is, I want to get answers sooner than later.”

Nicole nods, though her expression remains grim.

“Just know they are trying to do away with everyone who is different, Sylvie.”

I sigh, knowing that’s what they are telling me. But with so much information being thrown at me, I don’t know what’s real and what’s not—despite believing the girls, it’s still hard to wrap my mind around everything. Vampires. Witches. Bloodlines…

“I think you should talk to someone else, too,” Rebecca says, pausing to sip from her mug. “He’s going to be able to give you more information than either of us can.”

I sit forward in my chair, eagerly willing to soak up any knowledge I can.

“Great,” I say. “After I have some time to decompress, can you introduce me? Who is it?”

Nicole and Rebecca look to each other and then back to me, and then Nicole says, “It’s Professor Draedon. Lucian Draedon.”

The city hums with a distinct rhythm I know too well: a symphony of muffled heartbeats, distant horns, and whispers carried on the wind. Beneath its polished facade, a darker melody thrums, one that calls to only creatures like me—those who walk the knife’s edge between civility and hunger. It is here, in the forgotten veins of this sprawling labyrinth, that I find solace.

And fuck, am I hungry.

Midnight Delight lies hidden beneath the city’s surface, an ode to indulgence and sin. It’s a true and proper feeding club—with only consenting adults.

The air grows colder as I descend the cracked stone steps, the weight of the night pressing against my shoulders like a familiar cloak. The cumbersome oak door creaks as I push it open, releasing a rush of heat and sound that envelops me in its embrace.

Inside, the club is alive with a decadence only our kind could conjure. The walls are cloaked in dark velvet, rippling shadows that seem to drink in the light. Purples deep as wine blend into blacks that gleam like polished obsidian, interrupted only by streaks of silver. Overhead, iron chandeliers drip with chains of quartz, their fractured light casting broken constellations across the arched ceilings.

The scent is the first to greet me: blood, concentrated, rich, and coppery, mingling with the faint tang of fear and the sweet notes of surrender. Humans drape themselves across low couches, their wrists and throats exposed like offerings on an altar, just waiting to be consumed. Devoured. Worshipped. There are no chains to bind them here, no iron to tether them to this place. They come willingly, drawn by the promise of something forbidden, something greater than themselves.

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