CHAPTER 1

The only thing worse than being surrounded by dark-bloods was being surrounded by noisy drunk idiots playing dress up. Every establishment would be like this tonight. Faye had no idea how this ridiculous Hunter's Moon tradition started, but she wanted to slap the moron who brought it about. Glancing over the crowded bar with a sigh, she picked at her dinner. The smell of cooked meats wafted through the air, interrupted by the scent of cheap cologne. Faye impatiently waited for the appropriate amount of time to pass so she could conclude her birthday celebration without her sister's objections.

Sparrow kicked her under the table, leaving Faye's shin stinging. "At least pretend to be having fun, bitch. You're spacing out over there."

"Do you see what we're surrounded by?" Lost and Found, a popular pub in the merchant district, was full of people wearing glamoured fangs, elaborate costumes, and theater blood dripping from the corners of their mouths. Drunken masses decided it would be great fun to masquerade as vampires and prance beneath the glow of tonight's red moon.

Sparrow's eyes widened bringing her fingertips to her lips. "By the Darkness, people are having fun." She threw back her shot of whiskey, slamming it on the table. "You're having fun tonight even if I have to beat it into you."

She beamed, looking past Faye. Dark-blooded men were all the same with one exception, Vashien, her sister's beloved, coincidentally the only man to last more than a few months with her sister as well.

He was the only man who made Sparrow light up every time she saw him. Faye always thought he was kind and settled some of Sparrow's wild energy. Though she suspected Vashien's acceptance stemmed more from his relationship with her sister Sparrow than a liking for her.

Vashien moved through the crowd, shoving some of the more inebriated patrons with his green membranous reptilian wings. Artithians were a large, winged race, but even by their standards, he was big. Faye smiled at the colorful, glittering cake he held, looking tiny in his hands. A sparkler jabbed into it.

"Happy birthday," Vashien said, his smile warm and genuine. Giving Faye a squeeze with one arm, he set the cake down in front of her. Moving to Sparrow's side, he thumped her with his wing. "Are you behaving and keeping the birthday girl entertained?"

She snorted, shoving at him. "Faye doesn't want to be entertained."

He nodded, sliding his fingers under Sparrow's plate. "Are you done with this?"

Holding her fork like it was a weapon, she said, "Take my food, and I'll stab you."

Faye giggled as Vashien held his hand up in peace and leaned down for a kiss. Glancing at their drinks, he nodded to Faye. "I'll get you two topped off."

Sparrow leaned back in her chair, craning her neck to watch Vashien leave.

"What are you even staring at? You can't even see his ass when his wings are folded like that."

Sparrow fluttered her hand at Faye. Sister code for shut up, I'm busy. "Get your own man to ogle." Turning back, she lifted her second shot glass while pointing at Faye's drink. "I think Vash only keeps that shit on hand for you."

Faye raised her glass of pomegranate juice, swirling the dark red liquid and smirked at her sister. "What about that shit? I can smell it from here."

"Touché," was her only reply before throwing back another shot. Sparrow's gaze fell to the decorated chocolate cake. She leaned forward. "Are you going to eat that?" Without waiting for a response, Sparrow stabbed her fork into Faye's cake, taking a bite. "Wow, that shit is good."

Faye pulled the extinguished sparkler free and set it on the side of the plate before nudging the rest toward her sister. She didn't understand how Sparrow ate so much and stayed so tiny.

Faye's gaze rose to the open dark wood beams along the high ceiling. The tavern was warm and welcoming. Clothed tables were arranged through the front of Lost and Found for those who wanted a hearty meal. The back and loft hosted three bars, two on the lower level and one above. She smiled when she spied a large sign on the railing above.No flying. That was new.

Faye could only imagine the drunken Artithian who thought it would be brilliant to fly to the lower level instead of taking the stairs. She would have paid a gold mark to see Vashien's face if anyone tried.

"It's your birthday so you get to pick. And these are the only options. Either we sneak into the Hunter's Moon Ball at the High Queen's castle,orrrrr we sneak into the Hunter's Moon Ball at the High Queen's castle? Great options, right?"

Faye's brow furrowed. Sparrow had been this way since they were children, wanting to shove every experience into her life. Insisting,the consequences will be worth the memory.But this was a bad idea even by Sparrow's standards. Vampires lusted during the Hunter's Moon. The High Queen of Necromia was a Pure Blood, one of the only two left. A born vampire. She held her annual celebration for all her kind at her estate while the pretend vamps partied in places like Lost and Found.

Faye frowned. "You've lost your shit."

Her long, wavy blonde hair fluffed as she bounced in her chair, whining, "Come on, I want to see the vampire orgy."

Of course, she did. "We're not going. There are two kinds of attendees at the ball, vampires and blood whores. And we're not vampires so are you offering up your blood and flesh for a coin this evening?"

Sparrow rolled her eyes and plopped her chin in her hand, pouting as she looked away. "They don't know we're not vampires."

Even with the best disguise, their heartbeats would give them away to start. Lack of fangs. Revulsion to drinking blood.

"Excuse me, ladies," a man said, interrupting their argument, flashing his glamoured fangs.

Sparrow straightened, returning a smile as Faye glared at her for encouraging him.

"May I inquire what court you beauties belong to?" The man clasped his wrists in front of him.

Faye didn't need to look at him further. The dark-blooded shard on his index finger told her everything she needed to know. All magic was a gift from the Darkness, borrowed through life and returned in death. Soul shards served as an external indication of the depth of power housed within the individual, divided into two castes: the dark-bloods and the day-bloods. The tendrils within the swirling mist determined which caste they belonged to. White tendrils were day-bloods, black tendrils, dark. The darker the mist surrounding the shard, the stronger the individual. These small marquise-cut crystals dictated a person's worth and social standing, as though magic was all that mattered in life.

She glanced up at the stranger, the words of polite refusal frozen on her tongue. Faye studied his face. "Who are you dressed as?" The man wore cheap costume accessories like everyone else celebrating tonight, but veined misted shadows swayed beneath his eyes, brushing the tops of his cheekbones. The light caught Faye's ring as she sipped her juice.

"A Pure Blood." The man answered cheerily, looking down at her hand. The corner of Faye's mouth turned down, instantly souring her mood. He'd been polite because he thought she was one of them. She shoved it underneath the table. Faye's ring was a fake, displaying a soul shard Sparrow charged with her power to mirror her dark-blooded shard.

"You have the wrong hair if you're masquerading as the Shadow Prince," Sparrow interjected.

This man's dark mass of curls was all wrong. Rumor said his hair was long and white. From her seat, she could pick out a handful of the crowd dressed as him, but she'd never seen anyone pair bad eyeliner with the glamoured fangs. She answered dark-bloods in the same manner as their requests. He had been polite, so she returned the favor.

Plastering a false smile, Faye inclined her head. "I'm sorry. I must decline your advances." The words of protocol within the dark-blooded courts to tactfully decline romantic interest.

The man placed his hand to his chest. "Of course. I belong to the Court of Silver Leaves if you have a change of heart." He bowed and turned away from them, disappearing into the crowd.

As an Anarian, she was either propositioned or ignored. The ones who deigned to speak to her acted as though she should be grateful to catch a dark-blood's eye. Eyeing her ring again, Faye glanced from her hand to Sparrow's, comparing the two, unable to discern the difference. This simple fraudulent piece of jewelry allowed her to walk freely in Necromia. The energy Sparrow put into it would fade over time, seeping from a shard never meant to hold its power. It would be empty by morning.

Many Anarians dreamed of being chosen by a dark-blood, their life ambition to live within their lavish dark courts. As a pet. They would have material things and want for little, but it came at a cost Faye wasn't willing to pay. Being a pet meant someone owned you. A possession to be stroked and touched when they pleased.

Sparrow slouched in her chair. "You should give them a chance."

Faye narrowed her eyes on her sister. She'd given them chances in the beginning, hoping to be seen for who she was, instead of the soul shard she lacked. Experience taught her how young and naive she'd been. But looking back, it had been glaringly evident from the beginning. Sparrow had waited a month for Faye to turn twenty so they could invoke their blood together. They traveled to Necromia. Sparrow insisted on invoking her blood at the largest of the blood temples, deeming it good luck, but when she failed, she knew what fate lay ahead. That day the entire walk back no one had met Faye's gaze. She'd come there full of hope and left an Anarian, a shardless, powerless mortal.

"No," was her only reply as she looked down at her drink.

Sparrow tapped the table, pulling Faye from her pained memories. "Vampire orgy?" Sparrow's green eyes lit with excitement.

Faye fell back in her chair, looking upward. "You ask every year."

"And every year, I hope you grow some balls so we can go." Sparrow tilted her head, staring at her expectantly. As though she were asking for something normal, like going to the bakery. "I can't not know things. Please."

"Dark-bloods already surround me. Why would I agree to be surrounded by more dark-bloods?Blood suckingdark-bloods."

Sparrow slouched. "They're not all bad." Her sister, forever the optimist. They weren't bad to her. She was one of them.

"They are, and I can prove it," Faye said casually, inspecting her nails. They'd baited each other with those words since they were girls.

Sparrow leaned forward, her green eyes gleaming. "What are we betting?"

"We'll go to the Hunter's Moon ball. I'll give you five minutes to find me a day-blood among them. When you lose, we never go again. You stop trying to set me up on dates and let me die a virgin in peace."

Her sister narrowed her eyes, scrutinizing her. "If I win, you have to go on five dates and be nice. And we go to the Hunter's Moon ball every year. I need an hour to find a day-blood. Blood whores count, right? Anyone in attendance."

Faye nodded. "Ten minutes, unless one of them tries to bite me. Then you lose, and we leave."

Sparrow smiled, waving her hand. "They won't even see you. Thirty minutes."

"Fifteen."

"Deal." Sparrow beamed.

Vashien returned with their drinks. Sparrow took her glass of whiskey and swallowed the contents in one gulp.

She set the glass down and got to her feet. "Faye agreed to have fun!" She swatted Vashien's ass as she happily made her way to the door.

Faye glanced at her pomegranate juice, feeling guilty for letting it go to waste. "I'm sorry."

Vashien smiled reassuringly at her. "I'll put it in the batch going to the cottage. What kind of fun did she talk you into?" Vashien stacked their dishes waiting for her answer.