Sunlight struggled to filter through the fog swarming Nevermourn like an army of ghosts. Not a single vampire was in sight, and the only sounds that echoed in their ears were the rustling of leaves and the roaring winds that made some of the old structures creak.

Castor dispelled his broom away upon entering the town, brushing closely against Lucien. It wasn't unusual for Nevermourn to resemble a ghost town during the daylight hours since vampires preferred to sleep when the sun came out. Yet as they walked down the path to Sebastian's clinic, unease crept down Castor's spine.

"It's very quiet," Lucien said.

Darkened shops that once glowed with life during the witching hours appeared abandoned. Thick curtains covered their windows as if they feared what devils would emerge in the sunlight. Castor had heard stories from Sebastian and some of the other vampires about how they used to hide during the daylight from Hunters before Marusticia's Blood Treaty.

Signed many years ago, when they were merely infants, a formal agreement was made between the vampires and the wizards in their country. Vampires were given land to reside near the Niveous Ocean and formed a barter with the vampire country of Valorath to import blood to quell their hunger.

Vampires could only feed from humans if they signed blood donating consent forms. If any were caught illegally drinking blood or draining their victims to death, they'd bring the Hunters in to behead them.

"Will Sebastian be asleep at this hour?" Lucien asked, shifting his light hair out of his eyes. The fog had dew coated everything, and he shook his hand with an ugh as he moved closer to Castor.

"No, he should be awake. It's only Moonday, and Sebastian typically rests every other day," Castor explained.

"You and Sebastian must be pretty close. You even know his sleep schedule."

"Yeah, because he told me. Don't tell me you're jealous," Castor teased, punching Lucien on the arm with zero force behind the blow. It was a nudge more than anything, and Lucien shrugged him off.

"Of course not." Lucien turned his head toward a pub they walked by called the Last Drop. "It was just an observation I made."

"You're more of a night owl too," Castor said. "Even when you'd stay at my house, you'd be up past the witching hours. Always needing extra blankets too because you get cold easily."

"Okay, I get it. You're weirdly obsessed with our sleep schedules." Lucien laughed.

When they arrived at the clinic, similar dark curtains draped over the windows to keep the sunlight out. Castor reached out to open the door only to find it locked. "That's strange."

"Have you been here in the daytime before?" Lucien asked. "Maybe they lock things up until nightfall?"

Castor shook his head. "I've been here during the day before and they don't ever lock up. Not the clinic."

"Do you know where Sebastian lives?" Lucien asked. "Maybe we can try to find him and see what's going on."

"Yeah, he told me where his coven's located. You don't think something bad's happened to him or the other vampires, do you?" Castor stepped away from the clinic's door, glancing down the foggy path ahead of them.

"You're good at detecting traces of black magic, right? Wouldn't you have sensed something like that around here?" Lucien pointed out.

"I suppose, yeah." Castor agreed. "Maybe I'm just being paranoid. I'm sure Sebastian has an explanation for everything."

The fog only worsened the further they tread into Nevermourn. Castor kept his ears perked and eyes peeled for any evidence of the vampires lurking around, but found nothing. It was like they had all vanished. Curiosity bested him as they approached a shop called the Coffin House. Just like every other establishment, dark blackout curtains covered the glass window panes, but Castor didn't let that stop him.

He gestured for Lucien to follow him down the shop's narrow alleyway. Birdsong echoed like a long forgotten melody in the sky, and Castor glimpsed up toward the sky just in time to see three bats soar above their heads. As if they were in a rush to get somewhere.

"Well, that's weird," Castor muttered as he led Lucien around the back of the shop.

A thick tapestry of vines and ivy covered the weathered bricks of the old coffin shop, an innocuous failing of proper pruning to the untrained eye, but Castor knew what lay beneath. He drew his wand and whispered a chant in Sebastian's native language. Valorathian had been a trial to learn, but rolled smoothly off his tongue now as he summoned embers to push back the camouflage around the hidden entrance.

It creaked open just enough for them to step inside and plunge them into its dark depths. Castor had his wand prepared when the door quietly sealed up behind them, casting his flames along the walls painted with majestic golden butterflies. They glowed and fluttered around them as they crossed down the narrow hallway.

Sunflowers sprouted along the bottoms of the walls, the painted blooms reaching to brush against them as they passed, and swirls of stars above starlight cast a silver glow over Lucien's golden hair as they advanced.

Lucien crouched down to read the signature woven between the sunflowers. "Forever yours, Mave Wraith." He furrowed his brows as he turned his head toward Castor. "Do you know who that is?"

"My wife." Sebastian emerged from the shadowy hallway with a small smile as he touched the painted wall. "She was very talented."

"Was?" Lucien pulled himself back to his feet.

Sebastian's smile faded. "Yes, she's no longer with us. Why are you both here? It's not safe to be in Nevermourn right now."

"What's going on?" Castor asked.

"Four vampires were found on the dock with our blood shipment this morning, bodies burned beyond recognition," Sebastian explained. "We believe they were all from Valorath, but the Sanguine Council issued a stay below grounds order for the daylight hours while they investigate."

"Gods," Castor said. "That's awful. Did they find traces of black magic too?"

"Yes, it was identified as hellfire used against them." Unease crept in Sebastian's voice.

"Hellfire?" Dread sunk in Castor's chest. "That means a wizard or witch with fire magic is responsible."

"I know. It doesn't look good for you or your family, Castor. That's why I said it's dangerous for you to be here right now," Sebastian said.

"You know we wouldn't do this to you and your kind, right?" Castor asked, desperation lacing his voice. "You're my friend."

"I know, Castor." Sebastian bit his lower lip with his fang. "And I'll do everything I can to protect you from their inquiries. Your family might be the only ones who wield fire magic in Briarwood, but that doesn't mean there's no other fire wizards or witches out here."

"Should we leave?" Castor gazed down the dark hall behind them.

"It would be safer for you to travel at nightfall," Sebastian replied. "You can stay here until then. I take it you came here for a reason."

"We did." Castor nodded as he pulled the book of Charlotte's from his robe's inner pocket and handed it to Sebastian.

With a single wave of his wand, Lucien dispelled the glamor magic and revealed the horrifying contents of the book. Sebastian frowned and flipped through the book.

"Where the hell did you find this?" Sebastian asked, his crimson eyes glowed with fury.

"Charlotte hid it in our old treehouse," Lucien said. "I only found it because I was feeling nostalgic and visiting our childhood haunt."

"Charlotte had this?" Sebastian pinched the bridge of his nose, taking a moment to collect himself. "Gods, she might've deceived us all."

"I don't understand," Castor said. "It looks like she was looking into the vampire murders around here with how she charted the death curses used."

"Don't you know what this is?" Sebastian held up the book and pointed to a page with a symbol of a sword with seraphic wings. "That's the emblem of a Hunter."

"You don't think Charlotte had enlisted to be a vampire hunter, do you?" Castor asked in disbelief.

"This book you found was likely a part of her studies. With the Blood Treaty enacted, they're not allowed to hunt as freely as they once did. Only when certain cases permitted it," Sebastian explained. "Perhaps she went rogue on them or they ordered her to break the sacred laws."

Could Charlotte really be a Hunter? Castor struggled to imagine her slaying vampires without remorse, but he knew how much the Cromwells' prided themselves for their powerful magic and wondered if she had joined the Hunters to prove herself to her family.

His heart ached when he met Lucien's crestfallen gaze. Castor reached out, gently touching his arm, and in return Lucien wrapped his fingers tightly around his hand. No matter what else they learned about Charlotte, he'd do everything in his power to protect Lucien.

A ruckus behind them made Castor tense as he glared down the cavernous hall. "Are you expecting someone?" he asked softly.

"Fangs," Sebastian hissed. "You both need to hide. Now."

"Who is it?" Castor hissed as he grabbed Lucien's hand, trailing behind Sebastian as he led them further into his home.

"Vampires from the Sanguine Council, most likely." Sebastian all but shoved them into his bedroom and closed the door. "They know about you and your fire magic. With the recent killings, they won't hesitate to pull him in for questioning and trust me, you don't want that." He brought them over to a coffin in the middle of the room and shifted the lid open. "Climb in here and don't make a sound until I return."

"Is this your bed?" Castor asked, voice laced with skepticism.

"Yes." Irritation simmered in his glowing crimson eyes when someone called out Sebastian's name. "Hurry and get in."

Castor climbed into the mahogany coffin first and laid down against the black velvet lining. There was even a little pillow to nestle his head on. Lucien hovered over him for a second with a look of unease before carefully lowering himself on top of him. Before either could say another word, Sebastian shifted the lid back over the coffin, only allowing a small crack so they could breathe.

When he heard the bedroom door open and shut again, he knew Sebastian had left them. And in quite a precarious situation.

Darkness surrounded him, and the smell of wood mingled with Lucien's earthy scent. Their bodies were pressed close together, with Lucien's weight fully settled on top of him. Castor wasn't sure where to rest his arms, as it was a tight squeeze at his sides, so he settled on wrapping them around Lucien's waist.

Warmth bloomed in Castor's face as Lucien's breath tickled the side of his neck and he shifted himself slightly. "Sorry," Lucien whispered in his ear.

"It's fine." Amid the suffocating silence, Castor's own heartbeat echoed in his ears.

"Can you imagine always sleeping like this?" Lucien asked softly to break the silence. "It must get so cold without blankets."

"Yeah, sure. Cold is not how I'd describe this."

"Sorry." Lucien wriggled against him again. "There's just not a lot of room."

"I know, it's okay." Castor tightened his arms around him as if that could hold him still. "Just stop grinding against me." He clenched his teeth with a frustrated groan.

"Gods, I'm sorry. I didn't know I was."

"Again, it's fine." Castor sighed.

"Do you think we're supposed to stay quiet here?" Lucien brushed his lips against his earlobe as he whispered each word.

"Probably." Warmth spread like a wildfire through his body just at having Lucien so close against him. It was like the Gods wanted to torture him.

Moments of more nerve-wracking silence passed by unbearably slow until Sebastian finally returned to lift the coffin's lid and free them. "Sorry about that. I just had to make sure Monarch Elaine and her men left."

Sebastian extended a hand down for Lucien to reach up and grasp to pull him out. Once Lucien was back on his feet, he did the same for Castor.

"Did you show them Charlotte's notebook?" Castor asked.

"He couldn't," Lucien said. "Not with me so far from it. Charlotte enchanted it to open only to our magic. Only she or someone related to her can reveal her writing."

"I wasn't planning on showing them anyway." Sebastian reached into his pocket and returned the book to Lucien. "I'd suggest you burn it, but if not, keep it safe and don't let it fall into the wrong hands."

"Do you think this is what got my sister killed?" Lucien frowned at the book in his hands.

Sebastian replied, "If Charlotte was truly a Hunter, then there's no telling how many enemies she might've made."