1 After burying three husbands, my gambling-addicted father finally found a way to cash in on my curse. He sold me for three million dollars. He forced me into a binding marriage pact with the nine-hundred-year-old patriarch of a pureblood vampire clan. Just as I expected, my curse struck again. On our wedding night, the ancient lord reached the end of his unnaturally long life and crumbled into a pile of black ash. But he left behind half of his bloodline empire. He also left behind his pureblood heir, Eli Blackwood. Eli looked no older than twenty-eight. He kicked open the heavy iron doors of the bridal suite, grabbed me by the arm, and dragged me down to the crypt to keep vigil over the old man. The ancestral hall was suffocating. Ancient portraits lined the stone walls, and the room was packed with pale, cold-eyed vampires. My stomach twisted into knots. I was terrified they would blame my "Black Widow" curse for the patriarch's death and drain me dry on the spot. I decided to strike first. I looked up at Eli and put on my most comforting face. "Grandson, your grandfather lived a long, full life. I am sure his soul has found eternal peace in the Sanguine Abyss." Eli's eyebrow twitched violently. His crimson eyes widened in sheer, absolute disbelief. "What did you just call me?" I swallowed hard, my throat dry. "According to the blood pact, I am technically your step-grandmother. So, you can just call me Grandma." Almost instantly, a chorus of muffled snorts and choked laughter erupted from the crowd of vampires behind us. I had been dragged into the Blackwood Estate entirely against my will. "Serena, this is your destiny. Human women must rely on the strong." My father spat those words at me before sneaking out the back gates. Not long after he left, the servants' horrified screams echoed through the halls. The Old Lord was gone. He was technically my fourth husband. Honestly, my partners were dying faster and faster. This one did not even survive the wedding night. A butler had approached me shortly after, handing me a glowing parchment bound by blood magic. He forced me to sign it. Only after the ink dried did he casually mention that the Old Lord left me billions in assets, with one specific condition attached. I was required to personally care for his pureblood heir, Eli. I assumed the heir was a newly awakened child. Instead, I was staring at a fully mature, incredibly dangerous pureblood. My heart hammered against my ribs. Before I could even speak, Eli had kicked the door in, his eyes glowing with a lethal red light. "Serena. Come here." Before I could react, he seized my wrist. The pureblood strength was terrifying. My bones felt like they were going to snap. "I have no idea what filthy tricks you used to bewitch my grandfather. But since you stepped foot into this estate, you are going to kneel at his altar." I stumbled behind him the entire way down to the crypt. When we arrived, he threw me onto the freezing marble floor. He towered over me, his jaw clenched tight. "Kneel. Pay your respects." I forced down my panic and glanced around. The room was full of lesser vampires from the branch families. The air was thick with a crushing, predatory energy. A black coffin sat in the center of the room. It only contained the clothes the Old Lord left behind. I stared at the portrait on the tombstone, sheer terror gripping my chest. I knew vampires were not like humans. If Eli decided I was responsible for this, I would not leave this crypt alive. Eli let out a cold, merciless scoff. "What? You don't want to kneel? Then why did you sell yourself for such a high price to marry into this family?" I stared back at him. Survival instinct took over, and I forced a flattering smile. "Grandson, your grandfather was nine hundred years old. That is a glorious age to pass. I am sure he will live a long life in his next reincarnation." Dead silence fell over the crypt. Eli's face turned so dark it was terrifying. "What did you call me?" "Grandson. According to the pact, I am your grandmother..." Step-grandmother is still a grandmother, right? The moment the words left my mouth, someone in the dark corner failed to suppress a laugh. Eli shot a lethal glare toward the shadows. The vampire instantly dropped his head, trembling uncontrollably. "Get out. All of you." No one dared to argue. The new Lord of the estate ruled with an iron fist. Once the heavy doors clicked shut, Eli crouched down. His cold fingers clamped around my jaw. The pureblood aura pressing down on me made it impossible to breathe. "Serena, you had better behave. Do not try any of your cheap little tricks in my castle." I struggled to open my mouth to explain. I was so incredibly nervous that a drop of my saliva accidentally dripped onto the back of his hand. My eyes went wide. I tried to suck it back in, but it was too late. Deep, visceral disgust flashed through Eli's eyes. He shoved me away so hard my head snapped to the side. "Serena! Do you have a death wish?!" I shook my head frantically. I did not want to die. If I wanted to die, I would have drowned myself in the river the first time my father sold me to an abusive mutant. "Stay here and keep vigil by yourself." He turned on his heel and slammed the crypt door behind him. I picked myself up from the marble floor. Looking at the Old Lord's portrait, I actually felt a little safer. I found a velvet prayer cushion, curled up in the darkest corner of the crypt, and forced my eyes shut to sleep. 2 The heavy wooden doors burst open at the crack of dawn. A cold-eyed maid woke me up. "Mrs. Blackwood, the young master demands your presence." They gave me no time to react. Two emotionless servants grabbed me by the arms and practically dragged me up the stairs to the dining hall. I wanted to scream. I wanted to tell them I had my own two feet. Eli was elegantly enjoying his breakfast. He was sipping a crystal glass of warm, dark blood. Sitting next to him was a stunningly beautiful female vampire named Victoria. I had heard the whispers among the servants. Victoria was his childhood sweetheart. Their bloodlines were highly compatible. Everyone expected her to become his official blood-bound mate. "Serena. Get over here." Eli's voice gave nothing away. I was still wearing my elaborate human wedding dress from yesterday. Victoria glanced at me, a flash of pure venom in her crimson eyes. "How amusing. The Old Lord just turned to ash, yet here you are, parading around in a bright human wedding gown. Do you have absolutely no respect for the Blackwood family?" Of course I respected them. But did Eli give me a single second to change my clothes? I kept my head down, playing the part of the submissive, useless human. "Victoria, eat your food," Eli interrupted her with a flat tone. She slammed her glass down on the table, muttering under her breath. "Despicable, scheming human." She stood up and stormed out of the dining room. Eli and I were left staring at each other in awkward silence. He clearly had no intention of talking to me. He wiped his mouth with a linen napkin and walked away. The funeral happened quickly. I pinned a white rose to my chest and put on my best performance, constantly wiping away fake tears. The vampire aristocrats who attended the service looked at me like I was a freak of nature. The Old Lord's will was genuinely incomprehensible to them. He had decreed that I, a fragile human, would co-own half of the Blackwood empire and its territories alongside Eli. Without my signature, Eli could not access the full ancestral power of his bloodline. He was trapped with me. He had no choice but to keep me in the estate. Eli walked up beside me and lowered his voice. "Stop acting. Come with me." I followed him into a side parlor. My father was standing there. He rubbed his hands together, an oily, flattering smile on his face. "Lord Eli, can I take my daughter home now?" My spine stiffened. A cold wave of dread washed over me. Who was my father planning to sell me to next? Some underground monster? Another dying mutant? "The Old Lord made the terms clear. Three million dollars bought her permanently," Eli said coldly. My father's face turned green. "I raised this girl with my own two hands! It wasn't easy for a human! Since the Old Lord is dead, your kind should release her!" Eli cast a freezing glance at me. "Do you want to leave with him?" I shook my head violently. If I went with my father, I would be thrown into a living hell. Life in the vampire castle was terrifying, but at least they fed me. My father's face twisted in rage. He pointed a shaking finger at me and screamed. "You ungrateful little bitch! I fed you, I clothed you, and this is how you repay me?!" Eli gave a subtle nod to the vampire guards. A hand clamped brutally over my father's mouth. He was dragged out of the parlor without a shred of resistance. I let out a long breath I did not realize I was holding. Eli let out a mocking scoff. "Serena, stay in line. Stop playing these pathetic little games with me." I knew he harbored a massive prejudice against me. Anyone would think I was a calculating gold-digger who used seduction and black magic to manipulate an ancient vampire. After the funeral, I was confined to the west wing of the castle. Eli ordered everyone to stay away from me. The servants treated me like a ghost. They delivered my human meals on time, but they never made eye contact or spoke a single word to me. This isolation lasted until one weekend, when Victoria hosted a party for the elite vampire socialites in the castle gardens. I heard the noise and walked down from my room. Victoria took one look at the beautiful gown I was wearing, and the hatred in her eyes turned lethal. "Well, well. How does it feel to play the grand lady of the Blackwood estate? The Old Lord is dead. There is no one left to protect a filthy human like you." The vampire heiresses surrounding her chimed in, their voices dripping with mockery. "I did a background check on her. She has been married three times. Every single husband died violently. She is cursed." "Everyone knows Lord Eli only has eyes for our Victoria. As if he would ever touch a cheap, dirty human." They pushed and shoved me into the center of their circle. I kept my head bowed. I knew I could not afford to offend these supernatural elites. I just swallowed the humiliation in silence. Suddenly, a glass of freezing red wine was thrown directly into my face. The dark liquid dripped from my hair and stained my skin. "A dirty bloodline like yours does not deserve to wear something this expensive." I gripped the fabric of my skirt. I had seen this dress in a human fashion magazine. It was a custom haute couture piece worth fifty thousand dollars. My own father sold me for less than a fraction of that. "Look at her pathetic face! I bet if I slapped her, she wouldn't even dare to breathe." The vampire woman who spoke grabbed a fistful of my hair, yanking my head back. Smack! Smack! Two blistering slaps landed on my cheeks. The pain was so sharp that tears instantly welled in my eyes. Victoria leaned elegantly against the garden sofa, swirling the wine in her glass, quietly enjoying my humiliation. 3 A butler bowed low at the garden entrance. "The young master has returned." The words barely settled before Eli walked through the archway, wearing a long black trench coat. He glanced at me, his face an emotionless mask. Victoria's triumphant smile froze. The female vampires who had just assaulted me stepped back, suddenly looking incredibly nervous. I kept my head down and said absolutely nothing. Silence and submission were the only things that provided me with a shred of safety in this icy prison. "Victoria, who gave you permission to bring these people here?" Eli's voice was dangerously quiet. She stood up quickly, reaching out to hook her arm through his. "Eli, I was just so bored. Is it a crime to throw a little garden party?" Eli sidestepped, avoiding her touch entirely. He looked at me, but spoke to the maids. "Take Serena upstairs. Clean her up. She is coming with me to run an errand." Victoria's body went completely rigid. She forced a painfully awkward smile. I turned around obediently and went upstairs to bathe and change. Looking in the bathroom mirror, I stared at my swollen cheek and let out a bitter, self-deprecating laugh. By the time I walked back downstairs, the garden was completely empty. All the guests had fled. Eli was sitting on the leather sofa. He looked up at me. "Why didn't you fight back?" I gave him a tired look. "Would it make a difference?" They dared to humiliate me not because I was human, but because they thought Eli wanted me broken. His silence was their permission. He went quiet for a moment. He looked away, his voice dropping slightly. "It will not happen again. I apologize on Victoria's behalf. She is a bit spoiled." I stared at the floor and stayed silent. He raised an eyebrow. "Are you holding a grudge?" "No," I answered flatly. His lips pressed into a thin line. He stared at me for a long time but did not push the issue. He called the estate doctor to treat the swelling on my face, completely forgetting his previous order to take me out on his errands. Late that night, my phone buzzed. It was an unexpected call from Victoria. As soon as I answered, she started screaming insults into the receiver. "Serena! What kind of black magic are you using to make Eli protect you?! He grounded me! He forced my father to lock me inside my own house because of what happened today!" I frowned, thoroughly confused. "Protect me? I am his step-grandmother. We don't even have a real relationship." "Stop playing dumb with me! I am telling you right now, Eli belongs to me! We are bound by destiny and blood! A cheap human like you will never get your hands on him!" She slammed the phone down before I could say a word. She was completely insane. I was just trying to survive the week, yet she was guarding Eli like every female on the planet wanted him. "Psychopath," I muttered under my breath. I put my phone on the nightstand and turned around to unbutton my collar. My breath caught in my throat. I locked eyes with Eli. He was leaning casually against the doorframe of my bedroom. His crimson eyes glowed faintly in the dim light. I had no idea how long he had been standing there. I forced my racing heart to slow down. "My Lord, why are you in here?" "To sleep." I took a deep breath. Was he going to steal my bedroom now, too? Whatever. The entire castle belonged to him. It was just a room. I quietly stepped toward the door, intending to leave. But Eli reached out and grabbed my wrist. His grip was tight. "Where are you going?" "To sleep in the guest room. Or the sofa." His eyes shifted to the massive king-sized bed. "Is the bed not big enough for you?" I was speechless. I had no choice. I dragged a heavy quilt off the bed and curled up on the thick carpet on the floor. I was absolutely terrified of provoking him. I huddled into a tight ball, my mind racing a mile a minute, desperately trying to figure out a way to escape this castle. If I stayed here, these vampires were going to drive me completely insane. In the middle of the night, I was wide awake. Frustrated, I pulled a sewing needle from the nightstand drawer and started aggressively stabbing the corner of my pillow. I began whispering the most basic, superstitious human curses I knew. "Everyone who bullies me is a piece of trash. I hope my curse gets all of them..." I was powerless to fight back, so I relied on the oldest coping mechanism in the book. "My father is a bastard. Victoria is a bitch. Eli is a monster..." The moment his name left my lips, Eli sat straight up in bed. His voice cut through the dark like a knife. "Serena, what exactly are you whispering about?" I jolted, a cold sweat breaking over my skin. I shoved the needle deep into the carpet fibers, squeezed my eyes shut, and played dead. In the suffocating silence, I could feel the weight of his icy stare burning into my face for a very, very long time. Eventually, he laid back down. 4 When I woke up the next morning, the bed was cold. Eli was gone. He did not return to the castle for over two weeks. The next time I saw him was when the butler informed me that I was required to attend a massive, mixed-society gala for humans and vampires. I was going to be Eli's official date. I felt a deep sense of dread and confusion, but in this castle, the word "no" did not exist for me. The moment we walked into the glittering ballroom, Victoria marched right up to us in a pair of stunning stilettos. "Eli, are you still angry with me?" His face remained completely indifferent. He looked at her and gave a low command. "Greet her." Victoria bit her lip. She glared at me with absolute loathing, forcing two words through her gritted teeth. "Mrs. Blackwood." The moment I heard that title, it felt like a bolt of lightning struck my brain. My mind went entirely blank. I whipped my head around to stare at Eli, all the blood draining from my face. He raised an eyebrow, looking slightly confused. "What's wrong with you?" In that split second, every bizarre, creepy detail from the past few weeks clicked into place like a jigsaw puzzle. No wonder Victoria hated my guts. No wonder Eli insisted on sleeping in my bedroom. No wonder he always looked at me with such intense disgust. When my father used his dark magic to forge that marriage pact, the legal husband written on the parchment was not the dying Old Lord. It was the new pureblood leader. Eli. And on my wedding night, in front of the entire vampire hierarchy, I had boldly looked him in the eye and called him "grandson." I was completely, utterly paralyzed.
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