INVITED: Bloodlines

INVITED: Bloodlines >They thought killing the Emperor would end the curse. They were wrong. When Bianca Lupei and Sebastian Barbaneagra begin to feel a new presence stalking them-one that does not obey the laws of night or blood-they realize something impossible has survived Lucian Dascălu's death. His name is Adrian Dascălu. Born the son of the first vampire, Adrian was never bitten. He was never turned. And because of that, he endured when his father did not. Neither fully human nor bound by vampiric law, Adrian is something far worse: a predator who chooses when to become a monster. By day, Adrian walks freely among men, untouched by sunlight, hiding his hunger behind a human face. By night, he sheds that skin-becoming a weapon perfected by centuries of observation, hatred, and patience. On Adrian's eighteenth birthday, the hunt begins. Desperate to uncover who is tracking them and why, Bianca and Sebastian seek out a familia-a living bloodline servant bound to ancient secrets. Their search leads them to a roadside ambush, where they interrupt a robber preying on a drunken tavern patron. The encounter reveals a truth they were never meant to learn: someone is herding the predators now. With time running out, the couple is forced into hiding in the one place Adrian cannot enter-sanctuary, protected by an old ally who has already faced the darkness and survived: a priest who knows the cost of faith in a world where God does not always answer. But sanctuary is only a pause, not safety. Adrian cannot be fought on their terms. He must be fought on his. And that means one thing. When the sun goes down, bloodlines will be tested. In the night.