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🔥HOT 🔥 Vows Between Shadows and Moonlight - HOT
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00:00My sister Isabella and I were promised to two very different men on the same day.
00:05She chose Derek, a werewolf leader. So I was given to the fallen vampire, Lucien Ashwheel.
00:10No one could have predicted what came next. On the very day Isabella was wed and brought to
00:15Blackthorn Estate, Derek received urgent orders and rode out to war, and never came back.
00:20Meanwhile, Lucien passed every trial the Supernatural Academy set before him.
00:24His future is very bright. Isabella spent two years inside Blackthorn Estate, raging and weeping,
00:30clawing to be let go. Our father gave her a sharp slap across the face.
00:34You'll never leave.
00:37Isabella went mad. When I came to comfort her, something unexpected happened.
00:41A magical energy turned our destiny around. When I opened my eyes again, we were both standing in
00:46the parlor on the night of our betrothal ceremony, the night it had all begun. This time, Isabella
00:52spoke first. I want to marry a vampire. I smiled, a life of comfort and ease with no household to
00:59manage, and Isabella didn't want it. The moment Isabella snatched the vampire's token from the
01:04tray, I knew she had been reborn too. In my past life, she grabbed the Blackthorn Obsidian Pendant
01:10and threw a small bottle of crystallized roses directly at my feet. Clara, this fallen vampire
01:16suits you far better. Ashwell Manon is poor and cold. I've always looked out for you,
01:21so I'm giving you the better match. Blackthorn Estate is yours.
01:25Isabella! My stepmother's goblet shattered on the stone floor. My sister leaned close and
01:30whispered in her ear. My stepmother's expression shifted from alarm to something calculating.
01:36Are you certain? If something goes wrong, that's what I have you for, Mother.
01:41A long silence.
01:42All right, I'll allow it.
01:44And so our fates were sealed again. My stepmother sighted Blackthorn's wealth against Ashvale's poverty
01:50and quietly redirected my portion to Isabella's. I didn't mind, the only question was whether all
01:56that gold would fill the void waiting for her.
01:59In our previous life, she swept into Blackthorn Estate at the head of 10 carriages. I arrived at
02:05Ashvale Manor in a single plane coach and became the wife of Lucian Ashvale, a fallen vampire.
02:12But the night Isabella arrived, Derek rode north, and not one Blackthorn Manor came back. Three months
02:18a wife and she was a widow. She raged. My stepmother promised her she would take her away in three
02:24years. We both knew it was a lie. Isabella suffered for two years and tried to end her life more
02:29than
02:29once. The last time, Lady Evelyn summoned our father. Take her home. She is young.
02:36Our father knelt down on one knee, said no and slapped Isabella. You'll never leave.
02:42When she learned Lucian had risen to a prestigious post, she demanded to see me. Lady Evelyn caught my hand
02:48first. Talk sense into her. I'd free her myself. But your father is too cautious.
02:53Walking the corridor, I thought, if Ashvale Manor had anyone half as kind, I'd count myself blessed.
02:59The courtyard was dark. Clara found Isabella sitting in the grass, knees drawn up, facing nothing.
03:06She had been there a long time, judging by the dew that had soaked through her skirts.
03:11She looked up when she heard Clara's footsteps, her face looking tired.
03:14It isn't fair. Her voice was very quiet. She pressed her fingers into the cold grass.
03:21I chose correctly. I chose power. And what did I get? A husband who died before I learnt the sound
03:27of
03:27his laugh. A house full of people who look at me like I'm already a ghost. I wasted two years.
03:35Isabella, don't tell me it will be alright. Her voice cracked on the last word. Clara's hand had just
03:41touched Isabella's shoulder. Suddenly, lightning flashed across the sky. Without any warning, there
03:47was no distant rumble of thunder. Only a fierce bolt of lightning struck Clara directly. Along with Isabella,
03:53the current leaped between them, as if a matter of fate. The 3rd of September, both sisters were
04:00wed. The date had been chosen for Isabella alone, but she pestered my stepmother for weeks to let
04:06us get married on the same day, because that was the day Derek was to be ordered to go to
04:10war.
04:11I just stepped into the new room. Hoofbeats thundered through the gate. A pair of dark riding boots
04:16stopped before me. Clara. Orders from the High Council. I ride within the hour. Forgive me for
04:24this. Derek Blackthorn. He had such a face. My lord, I had a dream. You rode into an ambush.
04:32Wounded. The roads snowed shut. The supply lines cut. Please take this. Be cautious. I will be here
04:40waiting. The amulet trembled along with my hand. I was no great lady, but I knew right from wrong.
04:45I could not bear to see Lady Evelyn lose everything, or tens of thousands of soldiers
04:50die for nothing. After a long silence a broad hand lifted the charm from my palm. Thank you.
04:58Derek rode to war, and I did not stand idle. My mother's family, the Voss merchant clan,
05:04had trading operations across the kingdom. I presented my mother's token at the nearest Voss office,
05:09and left word that I needed a trusted contact. Instead, the very next morning a young woman arrived.
05:15Sophia Voss, eldest of the main branch. The Voss capital operations are mine to run.
05:20Name what you need. In my previous life I had met Sophia only once. Three years into my marriage,
05:27when a maid tried to pawn one of my brooches. Sophia recognized it, came to Ashvale Manor herself,
05:33and quietly pressed banknotes into my hands. But the lady of Ashvale Manor swept in and declared no
05:39self-respecting household dealt with merchants. Sophia left, but tucked the money under the tea
05:44tray before she walked out. I tore it to shreds in front of the lady. We cannot accept money from
05:50a
05:50merchant house. She threw a goblet at my head and made me tend her through the night. No matter how
05:55badly things got, I never went back to Sophia. But Lady Evelyn was nothing like that. When I mentioned
06:01my mother came from the Voss family, she smiled warmly. I didn't hesitate. I gave Sophia a full,
06:08earnest bow. Please help me.
06:12Sophia and I spoke privately for half an hour. When she rose to leave, she paused at the door.
06:19Clara, are you certain this is everything you own? I nodded. From the moment I had spoken to Derek on
06:25our wedding night, I had known I was wagering everything. The old Lord Blackthorn once saved
06:29my grandfather's life. I will not fail you. I stepped into a waiting carriage for the customary
06:34formal call on my family, a courtesy among noble houses after a wedding. Lady Evelyn had prepared
06:40gifts that filled two carriages. Oh sister, look at you. This is quite an hour to finally appear.
06:47The estate keeps one occupied. You mustn't take the front too hard. Once things settle, Lucien will find
06:53something for you. On a battlefield, blades find no favorites. What if Derek were to... Oh, forgive me.
07:04Since you know you misspoke, shouldn't you stand and make it right? How dare you just because you
07:09married into Blackthorn? Her face went cold. And yet here you are speaking ill of Blackthorn in their
07:15own shadow. Is that the Asheville standard? We stopped arguing until our father arrived with Lucien.
07:22One glance told me Lucien had already won him over completely. He has promised he will never take
07:27another. Isabella moved closer to me. I nodded. Lucien had said the same to me in our previous life.
07:33He kept that promise, technically. Right until the moment I died. After lunch, I made an excuse to
07:39leave. Just as I stepped out the gate, a simple black carriage was parked by the roadside. A gust of
07:45wind lifted the curtain, and I saw a beautiful girl who seemed to have been waiting for a long time.
07:50How interesting. I stepped into the Blackthorn carriage.
07:54Over the next two months I asked Lady Evelyn to teach me how to manage an estate. She had me
07:59and Derek's
07:59sister, Cecily, learn about accounting, staff, the politics of supernatural nobles, and how to calmly
08:05manage a room full of werewolves. Cecily found most of it miserable. I absorbed everything. Before
08:12long we were genuine friends. She offered to teach me to ride. I turned out to have a gift for
08:17it.
08:18Three days in, cantering unaided, Derek's notorious horse standing docile beneath my hands. Cecily laughed.
08:25You and my brother are made for each other. Even his horse agrees.
08:29Have you seen his letter? She marched me back to the manor, a sealed envelope on the writing desk.
08:34To my wife, Clara, for her eyes alone. One line inside. I dreamed of you. I hope the dream's true.
08:43He was alive.
08:46When news reached the capital that the Blackthorn forces were surrounded, Isabella arrived the very
08:51next morning under the guise of sisterly concern. She was told I was unwell and unable to receive
08:57guests. She performed her sympathy beautifully for Lady Evelyn's benefit, then left half disappointed,
09:03half pleased. Cecily sent me a note by pigeon that evening. I cannot believe you share blood with that
09:09woman. I've never seen such a despicable person. I had no paper to reply with. I folded the note and
09:15tied it back to the pigeon's leg. That was the signal we'd agreed on. It meant, I am safe. Don't
09:21worry. By then, I was less than a hundred miles from the northern front. The day Derek's letter
09:26arrived I went straight to Lady Evelyn. I knelt before her, laid out the whole story. Every word
09:32I had given Derek on our wedding night, then placed his letter on the table between us. Lady Evelyn was
09:38quiet for a long time. But if something happens to you, how do I face Derek? How do I face
09:44your father?
09:45Grandmother, I go to stand beside him, not behind him. As for my father, he has never especially
09:50valued me. I have no illusions. I am no great lady. But since I came to this house, you treated
09:56me well,
09:57Cecily treated me well. Derek's sister-in-law taught me things worth knowing, and the little boy still
10:01learning to walk saved me the last piece of his honey cake because he said I looked tired. Lady Evelyn
10:07pressed a hand over her mouth and wept. Then slowly, Lady Evelyn rose from her chair,
10:12and to my astonishment dipped into a formal bow. Lady Evelyn. Clara, when you return safely,
10:18I will go to the crown myself and petition for a title in your name, not tied to Derek's yours
10:21alone,
10:21whatever path your life takes. And if Derek ever fails to deserve you, I give you my full blessing
10:26to walk away. A title of her own, not borrowed, not conditional. Go. Come back to us. She personally
10:32chose her finest household guards to accompany me north, and arranged for the group to travel
10:37embedded within a Vos merchant convoy. What I had not anticipated was finding Sophia herself
10:42leading it. Did you think you could mobilize the entire Vos network without me noticing? And besides,
10:48when we win this, I want to be named Crown Merchant Supplier. You'll speak for me. I laughed
10:53genuinely, from surprise, I said. Done. We rode north through fog and frost, the land bleaching to gray and
11:02white and the pale silver of bare trees. Even wrapped in the finest fur cloak and warmest boots I owned.
11:08I shivered in the cutting wind. The exposed skin of my face cracked raw. My fingers swelled red and
11:14stiff with frost. My arms and legs ached in waves. I pressed low against the horse's neck and told myself
11:21again and again. Clara, this is the last stretch. After this, no one controls your life but you. Because
11:28of your birth. Because of your blood. They look down on you. They put chains on you, layer by layer.
11:34Break everyone.
11:38Derek's horse suddenly screamed and lurched to a halt. I hauled back on the reins, and from behind the snow
11:44drifts ahead, dozens of dark shapes poured out. Arrows split the air and thudded into the sleds
11:50and cartboards. Raiders, protect my lady! The guards threw steel and charged. But the attackers
11:59outnumbered us three to one and hit hard and fast. Within moments, two guards had taken arrows and gone
12:04down. A sled driver was cut from his seat. Blood spread bright against the white snow. The last guard
12:11at my side raised his blade to meet them. A raider caught him across the chest with a backhand stroke.
12:16The guard fell, the raider came straight for me, blade raised, face savage. I pulled my belt knife.
12:23My hand was shaking. I could not stop this blow. The steel came down. I shut my eyes. A dull
12:30thud.
12:31When I opened them, the raider was pitching sideways from his horse. A white feathered arrow buried in his
12:36throat. I followed the arrow's path with my eyes. Through the driving
12:41snow, a column of armored cavalry came crashing through the drifts, hoofbeats rolling across
12:46the ground like muffled thunder. The rider at their head wore black armor and carried a longbow,
12:51red banners snapping behind him by the dozen. Derek vaulted from his horse. A sound like snapping
13:00timber tore through the air as the change took him. His frame erupting, armor splitting at the seams.
13:06A massive dark wolf rising from the wreckage of the man. The raider stumbled backward, horses screaming
13:12and bolting. The wolf moved before they could run, a streak of black through white snow, each strike a
13:18collision of pure force growls. Screams, the crack of something breaking. Then silence absolute, and
13:25sudden, the snow around him churned dark and still. He shifted back. Derek again, breathing hard,
13:31standing at the center of it. His eyes found mine across the snow. There were flecks of blood on his
13:36face. His eyes moved over me from head to foot. Are you hurt? I shook my head. No. My voice
13:43came
13:43out tight, but he said nothing more. He simply lifted me. Leave the supplies to my men. You're coming back
13:50to the garrison with me. Derek gently carried Clara into the room, the firelight from the fireplace
13:58immediately illuminating their faces. He settled her on the armchair by the fire and pulled a blanket
14:04over her trembling shoulders. Looking at her cheeks flushed red in the firelight, he swallowed hard,
14:10his voice a few decibels lower than usual. Wait a moment. I'll go get the medicine. Clara looked up,
14:15meeting his gaze. I'll be right back. He finished speaking, turned and strode towards the door,
14:20as if afraid that if he lingered any longer, he wouldn't be able to leave.
14:24I watched his departing figure. In my previous life, this was the day Derek had died. He had been 16
14:30the
14:31first time he rode to war, led 800 men into enemy territory and returned victorious. At 17, he drove a
14:38hostile force, 300 miles back from the border. At 19, he married, rode north, and was killed on this exact
14:46date.
14:47Because of glory, hungry commanding officer sent him and his kinsman into a trap without sufficient support.
14:53His kinsman was captured. Derek went back for him, badly wounded in near white-out conditions,
14:59and got him out. He died of his wounds three days later, a rising star extinguished before it had
15:06properly burned. In this life, that story would never be told. I settled into the chair by the fire,
15:12and was asleep before I could think another thought. Derek came back to find me asleep in the chair.
15:19He stood in the doorway. He removed his armor piece by piece in silence, then crossed quietly
15:24to the fire and added another log. When he turned around, I was watching him.
15:29You're awake. Replies are secured. Men are handling the incoming runs. He sat on the edge of the cot,
15:34and looked at me across the fire. We're not safe yet. Not enough to last through a real engagement,
15:42but enough to hold until the capital sends reinforcements. Good.
15:45I said, and exhaled. You knew the exact date. He said quiet. When you warned me, you knew the week.
15:51And you knew details about our position that shouldn't have reached you at all.
15:54I believed you because what you described was already beginning to move. But I've been thinking
15:58about it since. The fire crackled between us. I can't offer an explanation that would satisfy
16:04anyone reasonable. Try. I looked at him properly. The way I hadn't allowed myself on our wedding day
16:10when everything had been moving too fast. He was younger than I kept forgetting. The authority he
16:16carried sat so naturally on him that it was easy to mistake him for something fully formed. But there
16:21was still something unresolved in his face. The look of a person who had learned fast and was still
16:26deciding what to do with all of it. Say I had seen how things would go. All of it. And
16:32I didn't like
16:32the ending, I said carefully. For us, or for the garrison? Both.
16:38Derek was quiet for a moment. He crossed to me without speaking, knelt beside the chair, took my
16:43injured hands in his with a careful precision that had nothing to do with the soldier he was,
16:48and worked a tin of salve into the cuts, said quietly. You'll go back to the estate when the
16:52supply runs are finished. This isn't a safe place for you. I know. I was already planning to leave. He
16:59glanced up, faintly surprised as if he had been bracing for an argument. I'm not useful in a garrison.
17:05I'd only be a distraction. I can do more good from the estate. All right. He rose and carefully
17:11settled me under the blankets on the cot. Enemy forces sometimes probe the walls at night,
17:16but don't be afraid. I'll be here. He held my hand and patted my back gently, steadily,
17:22like one soothes a child through a nightmare. Sleep. I'll keep watch. Exhausted from days of hard
17:30riding. I was already drifting. Just before sleep took me entirely, I thought I heard him
17:35say something soft, almost to himself. She's thinner. We did not stay long at the garrison.
17:42After a few days of rest, when the snow eased, we turned south. Derek walked us out through the
17:47gates himself. When the walls had shrunk to a distant smudge, Sophia pulled her horse alongside
17:52mine and looked back once. He watched until we couldn't be seen anymore, Sophia said. I kept my
17:58eyes forward. My grandfather always said you learn a person's true nature in three moments.
18:03When they've just won. When they've just lost. And when they think nobody's watching. She straightened.
18:10I know which side will when this is over. The return south was easier than the journey north.
18:15By the time Blackthorn Estate appeared on the horizon, the worst of the winter had spent itself.
18:20I had barely stepped inside before a maid intercepted me. My lady, Miss Isabella has
18:25called on us three times this week. I changed my clothes and went to the front parlor. Isabella
18:30was waiting. Impeccably turned out, as always. But the edges were fraying. A tightness around the eyes
18:36of someone holding herself together by will alone. She looked me over and something crossed her face
18:41before she smoothed it away. You look dreadful, Isabella said. The northern roads, I assume.
18:47They are what they are. How are you, Isabella?
18:50Wonderfully, she said, deploying her ease like armor.
18:55I heard about the situation at the front. You needn't perform grief for my benefit.
18:59If things go badly, I'll make sure Lucien looks out for you. And really, you barely knew him before
19:04he left. On a battlefield, no one is safe. What if Derek were to- She caught herself.
19:09Forgive me. I shouldn't say things like that. Since you know you misspoke,
19:13shouldn't you stand and apologize properly? Her expression flickered, surprise sharpening
19:18into cold fury. She leaned close and said in a low, deliberate voice.
19:23Sister, I'll tell you plainly. Derek Blackthorn is already dead in that frozen waste.
19:29For no reason I could quite explain, the words left me faintly annoyed. Not grieved,
19:34just irritated at the casualness of it. I straightened and said softly,
19:39Tell me, Isabella. Does your confidence also explain why Lucien has not yet come to your room?
19:47Not once, in four months of marriage. Her eyes went wide. The situation at the front was settled.
19:53Isabella could change nothing there now. So I saw no reason not to let her understand.
19:58She was not the only one who had come back. The answer is, I lifted one of Isabella's curls
20:04and let it fall. Something you'll have to find for yourself. I rose and walked away without looking
20:10back. His spring sun slanted longer, and the wind turned warm. Cecily had claimed her spot at the
20:17upstairs window well before dawn, pulling me along with her to watch the Blackthorn forces return in
20:22triumph. I leaned against the sill, on the street below. A young man on horseback seemed to sense
20:28something. He looked up, and our eyes met. Cecily shook my arm. Clara! Clara! My brother is looking
20:34at you! All the women are throwing tokens to him! Quick, throw one too! I didn't bring any. Before I
20:39could
20:39finish, Cecily had pressed seven or eight small favors into my hands all at once. I gave her an amused
20:45look, selected one, and tossed it toward Derek. But my aim and force were both badly off. As it sailed
20:51wide of
20:51the mark and began to fall into the crowd, Derek suddenly snapped out his riding crop and flicked
20:56it back up into his grip. He looked up, about to smile at me, and was immediately punched in the
21:01arm by his elder brother. Cecily ripped collapsing into laughter. My brother was showing off and got
21:07scolded for it! Cecily reported. After the procession passed, Cecily dragged me back to the manor and
21:12chattered the whole story to Lady Evelyn and Derek's sister-in-law. Lady Evelyn smiled. And did you catch
21:18sight of your own betrothed today, Cecily? I did. He came in last. Lucky he could still ride,
21:23or I'd never have spotted him at all. She had been promised to one of the garrison's officers before
21:27the winter. She was to be married in the summer. Derek's sister-in-law rose to see to the welcome
21:33feast. I moved to help, and she turned me back firmly. Clara, go and change. I looked down at my
21:38dress, confused. She sighed, called one of her own maids, and sent me back to my room. The maid whispered
21:44something to my attendants. Then they descended on me, opened every chest, found my wedding dress,
21:50and between them had me dressed and presented exactly as I had been on the day I arrived at
21:54Blackthorn Estate. It took a full hour. At the end, they curtsied to me and then withdrew. I waited.
22:00A pair of dark riding boots stopped before me. Clara, I'm back.
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