Blood Match

Chapter 53: Awakening Shadows

For a moment, nothing seemed to happen. Liam stood perfectly still. Then, suddenly, Gideon’s eyes widened. It was as if he rose out of his catatonia.

Colors. Flashes of emotion. Whispers and shouts of sound.

Evil. God, I should have strangled you when you were born. I knew that pagan bitch couldn’t be tamed.
A man’s voice—filled with hate and fanaticism.

You are worthless, just like that whore of a sister of yours.

Then feelings: hard strikes, the bite of leather across his back.

The searing hatred.
The desperation for it to end.

As quickly as it began, it was over.

Another voice, another moment in time, took its place.

“I can give you what you want. Power—power to punish, power to kill, power to break free.”

Then the searing pain.
Then the exultation of release, and the freedom to kill.

And again, it changed. More flashes of color: fragmented images of blood, victims screaming in terror, the hunger and the pleasure of the hunt.

Then there was Marlowe. Her image dominated the scene, bringing peace to the chaos.

Suddenly, the world went red, filled with bloodlust and exultation.

Marlowe’s image faded, replaced by a new Marlowe: immortal, and cruel.

Then came the images of horror—bodies, red and ripped. Not just victims of bloodlust, but prisoners of pain and torment, only set free in the cruel release of death.

And within these images was an exultant howl of ecstasy. It turned Liam’s stomach as his consciousness witnessed the depravity.

But even in his disgust, he felt pity. And in that moment, he realized that Gideon needed the mercy of death, not as punishment but as release.

Then Liam felt it—love, full and overflowing. It seemed to wrap him in warmth and strength. It pushed the horrors of Gideon’s mind back and interposed itself as a wall of light.

In that moment, he knew: this was Leo. This was the power of the Sanguinis Divina, standing as shield.

Always, my love—you never again have to face anything alone. I am here.

The thought floated like a flame in his consciousness, warming the cold and scattering the darkness.

Liam slowly exhaled and refocused on Gideon’s eyes. He could see that Gideon knew something had happened but was unable to understand what.

“Gideon, you cannot escape punishment. You struck at the Sanguinis Divina, and that cannot be allowed. But I have seen the truth of who you were, and how you became who you are. So I will show you the mercy of allowing you to choose the way you will die. You may choose to die by my hand… or by the light of the sun.”

Liam heard many in the room gasp at the implication. A mortal was prepared to deal the deathblow to an immortal. It was unheard of. But everyone knew that things had changed—a power not seen in centuries was reappearing for the first time.

Gideon’s eyes seemed to refocus, and he stood taller: a man knowing that freedom would soon be his. He looked at Liam and spoke.

“I will choose the sun. Let me die seeing it one last time, and so end this prison of endless night.”

He dropped his head, as if nothing else was worth his attention.

It was then that Leo stepped forward. Taking Liam’s hand, he spoke.

“So be it. The Longest Night is coming to a close, and the dawn approaches. Alexi.”

At the sound of his name, Alexi walked to Leo’s side.

“Yes, Divina.”

“Do you remember the execution cell in the ruins of the old castle?”

“Yes, Divina, but your father ordered the cell bricked up when he was still alive,” Alexi said quietly.

“Yes, I remember. Have some of the Coronados open the cell again and repair the sunwheel. Tomorrow night, Gideon will begin his vigil of waiting for the sun.”

“Yes, Divina.”

Alexi motioned to the Coronados to remove Gideon from the ballroom. He followed them out.

Leo turned back to his guests.

“The Long Night has come, and the dawn now approaches. We return to the shadows once again. And yet this night has become a moment of rejoicing, for the Crown of Fire has been found, and the Sanguinis Divina has ascended.

For centuries, the Sanguinis Divinas have searched for the one perfect Blood Match that would bring them completion. Only after finding them could they sire a child and pass on the gift and the curse of the bloodline.”

Leo fell silent, allowing everyone to realize the import of his words.

No one stirred. The silence lay across the room, expectant and heavy.

“Yes, the Sanguinis Divina bloodline was born from a curse, and only through the sacrifice of one immortal, whose name had been lost to the sands of time, has it become the gift of power you now witness before you.

Malachi, the first Sanguinis Divina, and Beatriz, his Blood Match. Let their names be remembered and celebrated by all vampirekind, for their sacrifice allowed us to survive.”

Still silent, every vampire bowed their heads in acknowledgement of the names Leo spoke.

After a moment, Leo took Liam’s hand, and together they walked from the ballroom.

✨ Author’s Closing Note ✨

Thank you for staying with this binge, hour by hour, as the fire revealed its truth. The Crown has risen, judgment has been spoken, and the Long Night edges toward its end.

The next chapter will arrive Friday. Until then, protect the flame.