Chapter Four: An Alliance of Blood Debt

“With the blood of Everday's heir, I guarantee that neither guest will be harmed by the hungry before sunrise. During the guarantee, you owe me only protection of equal value.” The ribbon tightened. Cold entered Jianyue's chest, and an invisible line seemed to extend from her body to Pei Du. “That's still a blood debt.” “A declared, limited, repayable one. You should learn the difference between a cage and a railing.” Fingernails scraped stone outside. A maid stood in the passage. Her face was bloodless, and her black ribbon had been torn in two. Her mouth was packed with slips of paper bearing handwritten names. “Lin—Jian—” The bell rang.