He looked on, disgusted. The rogues could have at least brought him something a little more appetising. He would think her dead if he could not see the pitiful rising and falling of her chest.

He stepped forward. His footsteps echoed in the silence and, startled, the girl raised her head, her eyes searching the gloom and struggling to focus.

‘W-who are you?’ she croaked.

‘Who I am is of no concern to you, but what I am is,’ he taunted, parting his lips to reveal his two sharpened canines.

Her eyes widened in fear, and she attempted to scrabble back, but the ropes binding her prevented her from doing so. ‘Please—’

He cut her off. ‘What is your name?’

‘S-Sarah.’

He smiled once again, revealing his gleaming fangs. ‘Well, Sarah. I have a proposition for you.’ He stooped down to her level. ‘You and I can have a little bit of fun and you can become like me – once I am done with you of course. Or you can become my dinner and … die. Your call.’

Her eyes widened, and tears trickled down her cheek. ‘Just kill me. Please,’ she sobbed – at least, he thought it was sobbing. It sounded more like the whine of a dog.

The smile dropped from his face. This was not what he wanted. Lust and thirst were pumping through his system, driven by his dead heart, and he wanted to have his way. He wiped her tears away with his thumb, grimacing as grime coated his fingers. He stroked her cheek, rubbing his thumb in small circles, fighting to keep his calm demeanour.

‘Are you sure, Sarah? We could have so much fun,’ he prompted breathily.

‘It hurts too much! Just end it,’ she sobbed, her head drooping once more. He knew unconsciousness would soon envelop her, sheltering her from the pain. He would not let her get away that easily. He took hold of her neck with both hands, wrenching her free of the ropes.

‘You’re lucky that I am a merciful vampire.’

With that, he broke her frail neck, almost snapping her in two. The crack echoed in the stillness as he felt her go limp. So thirsty now, he yanked her neck towards his waiting fangs and began to drink.

Her blood was bitter and nowhere near satisfying, but it would do for now. He picked up the mangled body in his arms and walked outside, tossing the corpse into the dark forest.

A tiny trickle of blood escaped his lips and slid down his chin. He wiped it away, smiling to himself, already wishing for more.

I sat bolt upright in bed and screamed, the horrendous sound echoing off the walls. Cold beads of sweat ran down my forehead and I was shivering, gagging for breath between shrieks.

‘Violet!’ The door burst open to reveal Fabian, wearing a panicked expression. ‘Violet, are you okay?’ He rushed over to me, untangling me from the mass of sheets that had wrapped around me whilst I slept. Dry sobs tickled my throat and I took several short and shallow breaths, desperate for air, trying to nod my head but failing.

‘What’s wrong? What happened?’ he quizzed, placing an arm around my shoulders.

‘I was asleep …’ I began, confused, my eyes darting about the room, searching for nonexistent answers.

‘Was it a dream, Violet?’ Fabian cooed, peeling himself away from my sweaty side and looking at me through his soothing blue eyes. I nodded.

‘What was it about? Why was it so bad?’ he asked as I took deep, shuddering breaths, unsure of whether to tell him. He wouldn’t understand. How could he? He never slept; never had dreams; never had nightmares.

‘There was a man. And a girl. H-he killed her,’ I sobbed, the tickling feeling returning. Bile rose in my throat as I thought of her begging to die and I gagged a couple of times. ‘It seemed so real.’

‘It was just a nightmare, Violet.’ Fabian muttered sternly; unconvincingly. ‘But tell me if you have any more, won’t you?’

‘Only if you promise not to tell anyone that I have nightmares.’ It was a strange request, but I didn’t want anybody knowing, especially Kaspar.

‘You have my word,’ Fabian assured, extracting himself from my sheets and getting up to leave. ‘Are you okay now?’

I smiled and nodded, and he left my side reluctantly.

But I wasn’t okay. Even as my eyes closed and I tried to drift back towards sleep, a far more disturbing thought crossed my mind. If they were real, then an innocent girl had just died and somewhere out in the darkness of the night, a true monster prowled the nearby forest.

FIFTEEN

Violet

I woke up early the next morning, my dream still troubling me. I was groggy and tired, but eager to be awake before the Varns returned. The sun was breaking through the fluffy white clouds and the day had more of a summer feel to it – finally. I got ready, and headed out, only to stop dead in my tracks when I reached the top of the stairs. My mouth fell open. The Varns had returned. But they weren’t alone. I darted back into the shadows and stared wide-eyed at the opposite wall. I need to go back and change.

‘I saw you, Girly,’ a voice sneered from the bottom of the stairs – Kaspar. All pity that I might have reserved for him after learning of his mother’s fate evaporated with his tone of voice and I groaned. ‘Don’t be rude. Come down.’

Reluctantly, I edged back around the corner of the wall and teetered on the top step, folding my arms around my middle. First to look up was Fabian, who smiled. In a flash, twenty other vampires were staring up at me.

They were mostly men, but there were a few women too, Charity amongst them, shooting me murderous looks. They were a mix of ages, some looking as young as Kaspar, some looking like they should be lying in a coffin.

There was a wolf-whistle from the bottom of the stairs and I looked down, searching for the source of the sound. Leaning against the bottom step was a man, his tussled blond hair cut short, a little stubble on his chin and his skin an odd pale orange in colour. He looked up casually at me, not bothering to hide the fact that he was staring at my br**sts.

‘Well, who’s this then, Kaspar?’ He had an American accent – a complete contrast to the Varns’ upper-class British voices.

‘Who’s the leech?’ I muttered, not intending for them to hear, but of course they did.

‘The human?’ The man’s voice filled with glee as he quizzed Kaspar, who nodded. ‘Well, come on down then. I’m sure Kaspar won’t mind sharing.’

I wasn’t going to move but Kaspar’s glare made me think otherwise. I didn’t have to hang around long until his glare turned into a weapon as his eyes scanned the writing on my – well, Lyla’s – T-shirt:

‘SORRY, I DON’T DO SPARKLES. BUT I WOULD TAP VAN HELSING ANY DAY!’

‘Kitchen. Now,’ Kaspar growled. He pointed towards the living-room door and followed me through, rounding on me as soon as we reached the counter.

‘What the hell?’ He pointed at my T-shirt.

‘It’s Lyla’s!’ I protested.

He rested against the countertop and ran a hand down the side of his face. ‘That’s half the council out there and you had to wear it today! God, you are more trouble than you are worth.’

‘Vampires have councils?’

‘Plainly; you were just looking at it,’ Kaspar retorted. ‘Go, just go. But you’re to be down for dinner later. Wear something nicer than that.’ He gestured at my clothes and motioned for me to leave at the same time.

I gave a disinterested humph, and left, climbing the stairs. But as I climbed the hairs on the back of my neck stood up and I was compelled to glance behind me. Someone was watching. Sure enough, a young man in the far corner of the room was studying my back with unwavering concentration. He had long silver hair, tied back, and an extremely angular face, with prominent cheek bones. He was not plain, quite handsome in fact, but there was something that made him repulsive. Perhaps it was his stance, looking up at me through his slit-like eyes, expression cold. Or maybe it was his crimson cloak, the same colour as blood. I turned away and sped up the stairs, taking them two at a time.

I crashed on my bed, thumping the mattress in frustration. Dinner with a vampire. Joy.

The clock was nearing six and, reluctantly, I slipped off the bed, sleepy after my afternoon doze. I hadn’t meant to fall asleep, but I was paying for the early mornings. Lyla had already laid a short, dark brown dress out, which I changed into, disgruntled by how low the cut of the lace neckline was.

It wasn’t long after when there was a knock at the door. Thinking it must be Fabian, I got up to answer. But when I opened it, I did a double-take as I saw who was outside.

It was the vampire from the far corner of the entrance hall. His dark blue eyes were wider now, warmer, and a smile adorned his face. He wore a black suit with a red tie and his long hair was loose.

‘Forgive me, Miss Lee, but I have been sent to escort you to dinner,’ he said in a smooth voice. I blushed.

‘Right.’ I nodded, trying to remember what to say. ‘Err, just give me two minutes, I’m nearly ready,’ I said, backing away and darting back into the wardrobe.

‘Of course,’ he called after me. I ran back in and scrabbled around, searching out a pair of shoes.

‘So who are you?’ I called from the wardrobe.

‘I am the Honourable Ilta Crimson, second son of Lord Valerian Crimson, the Earl of Wallachia.’

I sprung up as I heard his voice right behind me.

‘Do not be scared, Miss Lee. I will not hurt you.’ He reached out and took my hands in his. ‘I am simply inquisitive about your most intriguing future.’ He smiled, a little too nicely, revealing his sharp fangs, which I could have sworn were far longer and pointier than any of the Varns’ or their friends’ fangs.

At that moment, Fabian appeared in the doorway, surprise then anger covering his face. ‘What are you doing here?’ he demanded, turning to Ilta. I glanced at our hands, still joined, and wrenched them away.

‘I am here because I was sent by the King to escort her to dinner,’ said Ilta.

Fabian arched an eyebrow. ‘Well, Kaspar sent me, too. Are you all right?’ he asked me, shooting me a look as if I should be shaken.

I nodded, ‘Lead the way, I guess.’

SIXTEEN

Violet

I walked into the dining room, Ilta leading me, Fabian just behind. Candles flickered in their holders on the walls, bathing the room in a soft light. Red drapes were closed over the windows, and in the centre of the room was an extremely long table, covered with a deep red tablecloth and laid with elaborate cutlery – and just a single plate of the china must have cost the earth.

Ilta led me to the middle of the table, where he pulled out my chair for me. I sat down and in a blink he was opposite me, pulling his own chair out. Other vampires filed in after us, taking their seats. Sat next door to me on the left was the American and to my right was Fabian.

After a few minutes everyone was seated and a dull chatter filled the room. I turned to Fabian. ‘Why am I here?’ I whispered, trying to keep my voice as low as possible.

‘Well, as the council are discussing what to do with you in the morning, they wanted to actually meet you.’

‘Why are they discussing me?’ I answered in alarm.

‘There have been … developments.’ He twiddled with one of the many knives and, catching my ever-so-slightly horrified expression in the gleaming blade, he placed it down. ‘Oh, don’t look so worried. You won’t be shot of my wonderful company that easily.’

I wasn’t worried about that. I was worried about the ‘developments’.

‘What sort of developments?’

‘It’s worth more than my inheritance to tell you that. Anyway—’ He glanced towards the door before hooking an arm under my elbow and hoisting me up onto my feet. ‘The show is on the road.’

The door opened and the King entered. Everybody hushed, shifting as they stood, waiting as the chair at the far end of the table was pulled away a fraction and then pushed back in once the King had sat down; only once he was seated did the other thirty guests – including the Varn children – sit down.

I leaned forward, absorbing his presence, noticing that both he and Kaspar wore the same suit, embroidered with the coat of arms. The only real difference between father and son was the arrogant smile that Kaspar wore as he winked at Charity, who giggled, twirling her hair and returning the gesture. As I stared at him, his gaze flickered my way. His smirk widened, but he was distracted as a waiter poured him a glass of blood.

A waiter appeared at my side too, offering me wine. I accepted and he returned within seconds – after only a minute or two, they had filled every glass and they moved to the side of the room, where they retrieved large platters of food. It didn’t look very substantial – there were small canapés and tiny bowls of soup, one of which I took, staring down at the assortment of knives, forks and spoons laid out in front of me, unsure of which to use. I glanced to my right for help, but Fabian and Ilta were already engaged in conversation with those sat on their other sides.

‘Work from the outside in,’ a soft American voice whispered from my left. I looked up, startled to see the vampire I didn’t know talking to me.

‘Thanks,’ I hissed back, taking up the spoon at the very edge. The vampire dipped a spoon into his soup, scooping away from him. I copied his actions, watching how he ate exactly. I grimaced as I took my first mouthful. Asparagus. Yuck.

He smiled a little, amused. ‘I’m Alex,’ he said.

‘Violet,’ I replied, returning his smile.

‘Oh, I know,’ he chuckled.

I raised my eyebrows, displeased that everyone knew my name, but he just laughed once more.