My adopted sister, Clara, framed me. She claimed I forced beast blood down her throat. The terror, she said, gave her a heart attack.

So my three beloved vampire brothers sealed me away. They trapped me in the observatory in the highest tower, bound by a blood curse.

I pounded on the door, helpless, explaining and begging them to let me out.

Damien, my eldest brother, the head of our family, pierced me with a look of cold disappointment. Then he turned his back on me.

"There's a limit to your selfishness, Lilith. Clara is a fragile human. She has a heart condition! Did you force that filth on her? Were you trying to kill her? I don't want to see this cruel side of you again. Stay in here and think about what you've done."

Ethan, the rock star, and Julian, the gothic architect, couldn't even look at me. Their voices were tight with anger and exhaustion.

"We put up with your tantrums, but not so you could hurt our family! You've let us down, Lilith. Stay in there and figure out what you did wrong."

Then they carefully lifted the "unconscious" Clara and disappeared down the hall.

But they didn't know. The observatory was only meant to open at night. But it malfunctioned.

When morning came, the dome didn't close. Deadly sunlight streamed straight in.

My power evaporated. My screams turned to silence. I burned to ash.

Three days later, my brothers returned with a "recovered" Clara. Only then did they remember me.

They had no idea the sun had already executed me.

The searing pain of the sun still burned deep in my consciousness.

I opened my eyes. I was floating in the grand hall of the castle, right beside my three brothers.

"Clara, how are you feeling?"

Damien's gentle voice drifted over.

I looked down, and my soul fractured.

My cold, stoic eldest brother was gently helping Clara onto the sofa. Those eyes once held a tenderness saved only for me. Now, they were filled with anguish for another girl.

Clara was pale, her hand resting over her heart. She looked so fragile a light breeze could knock her over.

"Much better, Damien." Her voice was barely a whisper. "My heart condition flared up again. It's an old problem. I should have told you all sooner."

"Don't say that," Ethan knelt beside her at once, touching her forehead. "It's our fault. We didn't protect you."

Julian brought her a glass of water from the bar, holding it to her lips. "Slowly now. Don't rush."

My soul began to tremble as I watched my three brothers dote on Clara, so careful, so tender.

They used to be like that with me.

"Young masters," Moses, the butler, walked in, trembling. "Miss Lilith… she's been in the observatory for three days. There hasn't been a sound."

Damien's face went cold.

"Don't mention that brat. She can stay in there and reflect on what she did."

His words were shards of ice, piercing my soul.

I’m the brat?

Damien, have you forgotten?

When you had a raging fever, I was the one who clumsily cared for you, staying up all night by your bed.

You woke up, smiled, and stroked my hair.

You told me I was your precious little princess and that you would protect me forever.

Forever… I guess forever isn't that long.

"But… it's been three days," Moses hesitated.

"So what if it's three days?" Julian's voice was sharp with anger. "She's always been spoiled, but this time she treated Clara like a toy, scaring her with that vile stuff! Clara's heart is already weak. What if something had happened?"

Clara trembled in Damien's arms, tears welling in her eyes. "It's all my fault. I went to talk to her, and that's what made her angry…"

"This isn't your fault," Ethan said, taking her hand. His voice was softer than I'd ever heard it. "Lilith went too far. She knew you were a fragile human, and she still terrified you with beast blood on purpose."

"She's going to be so angry when she gets out," Clara whispered, her voice shaking. "She's never been locked up this long. She'll be furious. I'm scared..."

Damien pulled her into a tight hug. "Don't be. After this, she'll learn her lesson. She won't dare hurt you again. I promise."

"That's right," Ethan said, stroking her hair. "We'll protect you. Lilith has been too willful for too long. It's time she learned some restraint."

Julian nodded. "Don't worry, Clara. She won't get another chance to bully you."

Just then, Damien frowned, as if sensing something was wrong.

I thought he'd finally realized what happened to me.

"It's strange," he said. "She hasn't sent a single mental plea. That's not like her. She should be crying and begging for forgiveness by now."

"Maybe she's still sulking?" Ethan guessed.

"Then let her sulk!" Julian snapped. "She nearly killed Clara and she still doesn't feel any remorse!"

Clara lifted her pale face. A flicker of something—triumph?—crossed her eyes before she hid it.

"Brothers, don't be so hard on her. Maybe she was just angry. No one's ever confined her for this long before…"

"She deserves it!" Julian said, his voice raw with anger. "Unless she gets on her knees and apologizes to you, I'll leave her in that observatory for a whole year!"

"A year is too short," Damien said coldly. "She needs to learn that you are not her toy. You are our family, and we will protect you with our lives."

I floated there, listening to them, feeling a bone-deep sorrow.

They couldn't see me or hear me at all.

After our parents were turned to ash in an accident, my brothers poured all their love into me.

Until the day I found Clara on the street.

A lonely human girl, so small and thin it broke my heart.

I brought her home, gave her my favorite room, and gifted her the jewelry our mother left me.

I even acted more spoiled on purpose, just so my brothers would dote on her more.

I thought it would help her fit into our family.

But now…

I gave Clara a place in my heart. She used it to steal my brothers' love.

And then she framed me, again and again, turning them against me day by day.

Including this time. They locked me in the observatory without even asking for my side of the story.

They wanted to teach me a lesson, to take away my freedom.

But what waited for me was death.

I beat on the door, begging them to listen.

Then the dome opened, the deadly sun poured in, and my skin caught fire.

I tried to send one last mental message for help, but the blood curse Damien had cast blocked everything.

I could only burn to ash in agony.

And now, watching Clara's fake smile, I was filled with a fresh wave of despair.

Brothers, do you know?

The sister who loved you more than anyone in the world…was murdered by your own hands.

Clara's tears fell like perfect pearls.

"Brothers, please don't be too hard on her," she whispered, her voice trembling, which only made her look more pitiful. "I'm sure it was just a silly prank. She didn't mean to hurt me."

Her words were fuel to the fire.

Damien's face darkened instantly.

"A prank?" His voice was ice-cold with disappointment. "You're too kind, Clara. She knew about your condition. This wasn't a prank."

"Exactly!" Ethan's fists clenched, his eyes burning with rage. "We knew she was selfish. We never imagined she was vicious enough to turn on her own family!"

My soul recoiled at his words.

Vicious? Jealous?

Ethan, have you forgotten?

During your world tour, a rival clan ambushed you with silver-laced weapons.

I didn't even think. I threw myself in front of you and took the blow that would have killed you.

You held my bleeding, powerless body and cried, telling me I was the most important person in your life, the sister you would die to protect.

Did you forget that promise, too?

Clara swayed, pressing a hand to her chest as if she was about to faint. A sick, rosy flush colored her pale cheeks.

Julian rushed over and swept her into his arms. "Don't talk. Don't think about it."

"I'm so scared..." Clara clutched his shirt, her eyes wide with terror. "No, I'm okay… I'm fine… I don't want Lilith to think I'm weak."

"Damn her!" Julian's eyes were murderous. "How could she be so cruel!"

I wanted to scream, to rip their lies apart.

That's not what happened that night!

Clara came to me, her eyes wide and innocent. "Sister," she'd begged, "I want to feel real power. I want to understand your world. I don't want to be the weak one you always have to protect."

I was moved by her sincerity.

I carefully slit my wrist, ready to share my precious blood with her—a source of power meant only for blood kin.

The moment I turned to grab a vial, she swapped my blood for the beast blood she had hidden.

I was so proud of her "courage" when she drank it.

Then she screamed and collapsed, convulsing on the floor. Only then did I realize something was terribly wrong.

But it was too late.

My brothers burst in to see Clara writhing in agony and me holding the empty bottle.

"And she still shows no remorse!" Damien stood up, radiating a dangerous energy. "It's been three days without a single apology! She doesn't care that she almost killed Clara!"

"Maybe she doesn't think she did anything wrong," Ethan sneered. "She's been the family princess her whole life. When has she ever been punished like this?"

Julian held the trembling Clara tighter, his anger practically a physical force. "She has to pay for her cruelty!"

Damien took a deep breath, his eyes glinting with resolve.

"Moses, prepare the ritual for the Blood Pact."

Moses looked horrified. "Master Damien, you mean to..."

"Bind her powers," Damien said, his voice flat and cold. "If she doesn't know how to control herself, then magic will teach her some humility."

The Blood Pact!

My soul shuddered violently.

It was an ancient, forbidden curse that would permanently strip a vampire of their power, leaving me as weak as a human.

"Damien…" Clara looked up, a flicker of triumph in her eyes, quickly masked by concern. "Isn't that too much? She carries the family bloodline..."

"The family's bloodline?" Damien scoffed. "Our bloodline does not prey on its own. If she chooses to use her power to bully the weak, then she doesn't deserve to have it!"

"He's right!" Ethan agreed. "Let her see what it feels like to be weak. Then we'll see if she's still so arrogant!"

I watched in despair, my heart feeling like it was being shredded.

Damien, did you know that I secretly sacrificed half of my own life force to secure your empire's place on the Vampire Council?

Ethan, did you know how many times I fought off vampire hunters to protect your identity in the human world?

Julian, do you have any idea the mortal dangers I faced to find the rare materials you needed for your designs?

And now, you were going to destroy my power, all for a lying human girl.

But it didn't matter anymore. I was already dead.

Brothers, you can give all your love to Clara now. There's nothing left for me.

"Moses!" Damien snapped impatiently. "Go! Prepare the ritual!"

Moses scurried to obey but paused at the door.

"Masters, there is one thing I must report… I haven't sensed any response from Miss Lilith in the observatory. Not even a faint energy fluctuation."

Damien waved him off dismissively. "She's throwing a tantrum. Giving us the silent treatment."

"But…" Moses's face was pale with fear. "Even in the deepest sleep, a vampire's life force gives off a faint energy. From her… there is nothing. No sign of life at all."

The room fell silent for a moment.

Ethan frowned. "Maybe she's using a spell to hide her presence?"

"Impossible," Julian said, shaking his head. "The blood curse seals the observatory. She can't use any magic."

A flicker of unease crossed Damien's face, but it was quickly swallowed by his anger.

"Let's go!" He shot to his feet, his eyes murderous. "We'll drag her out of there. I'd like to see her try and hide. She will kneel and apologize to Clara!"

The hallway to the top floor felt colder than ever.

My soul trailed silently behind my three brothers, watching their angry backs. Every step they took felt like it was crushing my shattered heart.

Clara had been left downstairs to "rest." It was just the four of us now.

Three living brothers. One dead sister.

The observatory door came into view.

That heavy, black metal door. It used to be my favorite place.

As a child, I’d watch the stars with my brothers from there, listening to them tell ancient vampire legends.

Now, it was my tomb.

"Lilith!" Damien's voice echoed down the hall. "Get out here!"

Silence from within.

"I know you're in there!" Ethan stepped forward, his voice hot with fury. "Stop playing dead in there! Do you think you can just hide from the consequences?"

Still nothing.

Julian leaned against the wall and let out a disappointed huff.

"She probably snuck out. The second she has to take responsibility for something, she runs. She'll never grow up."

I floated beside them, wishing I could tell them I hadn't run.

I was right behind the door. I had been the whole time.

I had pounded on it, desperate for them to just listen to me.

Begging them… to believe me one more time, just like when we were kids.

In my last moments, as the sun ate me alive, all I wanted was to see their faces again.

But my voice would never reach them.

"Impossible." Damien frowned, walking toward the door. "The blood curse is still active. There's no way she could have left."

He held out his hand, a deep red light glowing in his palm as he began to undo the curse.

But a second later, his expression changed.

"What the…?" he muttered, confused. "The curse is being disrupted."

The crimson light flickered over the door, unstable, as if it was being hit by a powerful force.

"That little bitch! She's fighting back!" Ethan slammed his fist into the wall. "She's actually using her power against us!"

"Stubborn to the very end!" Julian gritted his teeth. "Even now, she's still resisting!"

I looked at the door, an endless sorrow washing over me.

The frame was warped. The metal was covered in a chaotic pattern of dents and claw marks.

Those were the marks I left as I desperately slammed my body against it while the sun burned me alive.

I wanted to live.

When the deadly light poured through the open dome, I threw myself at the door, trying to escape the death trap.

My nails tore off, my hands were shredded, but the blood curse held the door fast.

I could only be scorched, inch by inch, until I was nothing but ash.

And now my brothers saw these marks and thought it was me, defying them.

"Dammit!" Damien shoved the door, but it was stuck fast. "She's barricaded the door from the inside!"

"Then we'll break it down!" Ethan roared. "Let's see how long she can hide!"

"Right!" Julian joined in. "Let's show her the price of defiance!"

Three powerful vampires charged the door at once.

CRACK!

The massive impact echoed through the castle.

Fissures appeared in the doorframe, but the door held.

"Again!" Damien roared, his eyes blazing.

BAM! BAM! BAM!

Crash after crash. Roar after roar.

My soul trembled as I watched them use all their strength to punish someone who no longer existed.

Suddenly, a strange smell drifted from the cracks in the door.

"What's that smell?" Ethan wrinkled his nose.

"Smells like… something burning," Julian said, confused.

The stench of burning grew, thick and suffocating, like ozone after a lightning strike.

I knew what it was.

It was the last scent I left on this earth as the sun consumed me.

Brothers, when you finally break down this door and smell this, will you feel even a flicker of pain?

Or will you just be disgusted by my smell, too?

"Keep hitting it!" Damien ignored the smell, his eyes filled only with rage. "Whatever sick game she's playing, she is coming out today. She will apologize to Clara!"

CRASH!

Another violent impact.

The doorframe finally gave way, splintering and breaking apart.

The burnt smell grew overpowering, almost suffocating.

In the distance, Moses covered his nose, his face ashen. "Masters, that smell…"

"Shut up!" Damien yelled. "Lilith is just trying to gross us out with these sick games!"

My heart shattered into a million pieces.

Even the smell of my death was just another one of my "tricks" to them.

"Last time!" Ethan and Julian put their full force into it.

The three of them charged the door like furious beasts.

BOOM!

This time, the door couldn't take it. With a final, deafening boom, the door exploded inward.

A tidal wave of the scorched, acrid smell washed over them.

The observatory lay before them, empty. In the center of the floor, there was only ash.