I tried not to look too skeptical. After all, to me this was a prison. Though Florence certainly looked very pleased to be here.

“So you aren’t a new student?” I asked.

“No, I am. But I’ve been here over part of the summer. My mother is one of the librarians. I’m more familiar with the school than most students, especially most blightborn. That’s probably why they selected me.”

“Then you aren’t a vampire?” The next instant I felt like an idiot. “Of course, you aren’t. Your hair.”

She smiled. “Exactly. And no, I’m not. Though there are halfborns. I don’t believe we have any in our cohort this year. None of the students in our dormitory are highbloods. Eventually, the best of us will be selected into one of the four houses and that’s when we’ll choose a specialty and eventually be assigned to squads.”

I stared at her. “And you... want that to happen? You want to be part of a vampire house?”

“It’s the highest honor in Sangratha,” she said simply. “Just being here at Bloodwing is beyond my wildest dreams. It’s a huge honor for my family. I mean, it’s just my mother and I, but she’s completely over the moon.”

The girl seemed nice. She also seemed helpful.

She did not seem stark raving mad. But I supposed looks could be deceiving.

I decided telling her how completely absolutely insane her excitement seemed to me wouldn’t be the best idea at the moment.

Not until I’d gotten to know her better.

With a sinking heart I realized something.

“No bath,” I said, my voice sounding hollow with disappointment, even to me.

Florence perked up. “You actually have your own private bathing room just through here.”

She pointed to a door I’d mistaken for a closet and I sighed in relief.

“Hot water?” I asked hopefully.

She nodded. “That’s one of the nice things about being at Bloodwing. You don’t even need to call upon a servant to fetch it. We have real copper plumbing. They’ve had it here for centuries. Highbloods are extraordinary. They really think of everything.” She beamed.

“Everything that can benefit themselves, I’m sure,” I couldn’t help but say.

She looked a little taken aback.

“Anyhow, thanks for showing me around,” I said quickly. “How did you know who I was?”

She gestured and I looked down at my hair.

“Oh. Right. I guess I stand out like a sore thumb now.”

“A little. I mean, not in a bad way,” she said hastily. “But you are fairly easy to spot.”

“And all of the other students, down in the...”

“The common room,” Florence provided. “We all share that space.” I appreciated how she made sure to emphasize “all.”

“Right. Down in the common room. They didn’t look very pleased to see me.”

“Well...” Florence chewed her lip as if buying the time to formulate a diplomatic response. “This all happened very fast. For you, I mean. Many students spend years preparing themselves before applying to Bloodwing. Most are never accepted.”

“So everyone is just dying to be here?”

Her eyes widened. “Oh, no. I wouldn’t say that.” She glanced back into the hall then lowered her voice. “Every year there are a few who don’t wish to come. Some students had no choice.”

“What do you mean?” I said, narrowing my eyes. “They were forced to come here?”

“Some would have been taken by force if they refused the summons, yes,” she confirmed reluctantly. “But their families would have been compensated, I’m sure. Sangratha does not believe in wasting precious talent.”

“And what if they or their families resisted?” I pressed. “What then?”

She shook her head. “I’m not sure. I don’t think it happens very often.” She looked almost hopeful.

“Right,” I muttered. “I’m sure the vampires were very gentle with the ones who didn’t want to come.”

But Florence either didn’t hear me or was pretending she didn’t. She’d crossed the room and now I watched as she flung open the doors of the wardrobe.

“As you can see, most of your clothes have been prepared. Not everything you need is here yet, but you should be able to find suitable attire for tomorrow’s first day of class,” she said with pride as she indicated a wardrobe filled with an assortment of clothes.

I saw cloaks, boots, tunics, dresses, trousers, and even a gown or two. Everything I could see bore the Bloodwing crest. It seemed I would be wearing the vampire school’s brand daily.

“Is there anything particular I need to wear tomorrow?” I asked, figuring it couldn’t hurt. I didn’t want to show up to a riding lesson in a short skirt, after all.

Florence shook her head. “Tomorrow’s Orientation Day. We’ll attend a few classes, and then there will be a welcome speech from the headmaster at the end of the day. You can wear anything you please. I don’t have your schedule yet, but it should be delivered here in the morning.”

She stifled a yawn. “Pardon me, Medra. It’s getting late and it’s been a long day. If you don’t need anything else, I think I’ll turn in.”

I thought of how my day had begun. Had it even been properly morning when I found myself on that heap of corpses? And now look at how it was ending.

At least there would be a bath.

“Of course,” I said quickly. “Thank you for showing me around. Do you mind if I tag along with you tomorrow? This school seems huge and I haven’t quite gotten my bearings yet.”

“You’d have been welcome to,” Florence said, beaming again. “But you won’t need my guidance. I’ve been informed that Regan Pansera herself is coming to pick you up in the morning and help you get through the first day of class. What an honor! She’s a very popular student. Being seen with her will be a huge boon.”

I planted a weak smile on my face. “Yes. Indeed.”

When Florence was gone, I flopped down on my new blue-velvet bed.

None of this felt real.

If I accepted that this was real, then it meant I was alive. I was betrothed. I was a hostage of vampires. And I was a student.

I gave a snort of laughter. I wasn’t sure which one of those things was more ridiculous.

I had never attended school. There were schools back home, in my city of Camelot, of course. But as a royal, I’d only had private tutors.

As for marriage? Back in Camelot, I’d been too young for it to even be talked about. Not to mention the fact that my kingdom had been in the midst of a war. But I had no doubt I’d have been permitted to choose my own partner, my own path.

I wondered if the war had ended with my death.

I tried to imagine my family back in Aercanum. My aunt, Morgan, and her husband, Draven. Had my uncle, Kaye, become king? What were they doing right now? Did they miss me?

I sat up abruptly, shoving aside the painful ache in my chest.

There was no point in thinking about the family I’d left behind. I knew I’d never see any of them again.

I breathed in deeply, then coughed. Florence Shen had been too polite to mention how badly I stank.

No more melancholy thoughts. There was a bathing chamber and I planned to use it.

The tub was black marble and slippery as hell. But when it was full and I’d successfully managed to get into it without breaking my neck, I sighed with bliss as the hot water soaked into my tired body.

I closed my eyes, running through the events of the day one more time.

I was in a new world.

Somehow, I didn’t think there would be any going back to Aercanum, as much as I longed to return.

Was that the price I had paid? I’d gained a new life but been forced to give up my old one. And everyone and everything I’d loved was in the past.

I was sure many people would kill for a second chance like the one I’d received. But I couldn’t say I was completely grateful.

Not when I considered the world where I’d wound up.

A world where vampires weren’t just the stuff of legend.

No, Blake Drakharrow was an absolute ass. But he was absolutely flesh and blood.