I’m about to scurry back up to my room when a large group shuffles in after me, laughing and chatting. To make way for them, I sidestep into a dark corner, clutching my wineglass to my chest. I feel immediately like I’m back in high school. The loner kid with one friend and a weird mom.
Before I can spiral further, a booming voice rings out throughout the room.
“Silence!”
My heart freezes at the sound. Immediately, the music stops, and all chatting, laughing and other activities cease. Vampires and living humans turn to the back of the room, where a woman sits atop a raised platform, on an ornate, golden throne with a blood-red seat.
A powerful shiver crawls up my spine. She’s clearly a vampire. Her pale skin is almost white, smooth and unblemished. I didn’t notice her before, probably because she’s sitting impossibly still, her gaze as powerful as a laser. She has sharp, grey eyes that survey the room like a ruler assessing her subjects. She has a magnetic presence, commanding attention the moment she speaks.
But there’s something else about her that makes my heart jump into my throat. Her hair is cropped closely to her head, just a few dark strands falling into her eyes. She holds herself in an assertive, dominant way, as though she owns the entire world and couldn’t care less. As though anything she wants could be her’s. She wears an impeccably-tailored blazer and pants, her crisp white shirt underneath unbuttoned at the top. I can see the curve of her collarbone at the base of her neck. There’s a watch on her wrist, masculine and expensive.
I’ve never seen a woman like her. Hard in all the right ways…andsoftin all the right ways…
Her voice fills the thick air like fog. “Tonight, we celebrate the death of our late king, Xavian Night.”
I swallow. I didn’t realize that someone haddied. But she doesn’t seem very somber about it. The other vampires certainly aren’t openly grieving.
“Xavian led our clan with an iron fist and a heart of steel,” the vampire continues, a smirk at the corner of her mouth. “He brought great prosperity and power during his death, and we mourn his loss!”
The other vampires raise their fists in a chorus of shouts. The sound is supernatural and overwhelming, and I jump, almost spilling my wine.
“So tonight, we drink, we dance, we fuck, and we call in a new era!” the woman booms, her terrifying eyes gleaming, full of triumph. “An era of strength and power…unmatched by any other vampire clan on the continent!”
Again, the vampires cheer, the humans joining in now, raising glasses.
I’m not sure what’s happening, and again, I feel totally out of my depth. But I’m glued to the spot, unable to take my eyes from the magnetic figure on the dais.
“But first,” she hisses, beckoning to one of the humans. She’s pretty, with soft honeyed curls and large eyes, wearing a black dress. She eagerly hops onto the platform and prostrates herself before the vampire, extending her neck out.
To my horror, the vampire opens her mouth as her fangs elongate down her chin. I had no idea they could get that long. Their sharp edges glint in the neon lights. She moves like a lion, taking down its prey, stealthy and focused. In a smooth motion, she sinks her fangs deep into the woman’s throat. The woman moans, her thighs trembling.
I gasp, and stumble backward into the wall behind me. Wine spills onto the carpet, but nobody’s paying any attention.
The vampire removes her fangs from the woman’s neck. Then she holds her body out before her like an offering. Thick, crimson blood spills out from the two bite marks, gushing onto the floor.
“To Xavian Night!” the vampire shouts, her voice thick and deep through her long canines.
“To Xavian Night!” the other vampires cheer.
Trembling uncontrollably, I stumble out into the hallway.
What have I gotten myself into?
CHAPTER 5: IT COULD FEEL GOOD
Paige
I breathe deeply, trying to ground myself. A sip of wine helps a little, although it doesn’t do much to ease the tight, heavy weight of terror in my stomach.
No one else is out here, except a few servers with trays of wine glasses.
“Excuse me,” I ask one of them. “Do you know where Eloise is?”
She frowns. “I think I saw her go down that hallway, toward the kitchen.”
“Thanks,” I respond, hurrying in the direction she indicated.
The hallways are like a maze. Another server comes out of a room, holding a full tray of glasses.
