Chapter One |
2010
It was a hot summer day, the day I met him. We were in my small town’s local pub, a place where even minors were allowed in because the only other option for food was a truck stop dinner 5 miles out of town. I was there, the day before my departure to college, with my best friend Sibyl. After grinding it out for 2 years in community college, we were now preparing to move to the city to attend the state school. Even with her academic accomplishments, Sibyl also had the head of the high school and community college lacrosse team on her back. And if it wasn’t for her, I would have failed long ago, but many late-night study sessions and mental breakdowns led us to this.
He was odd, only because our town was so small everyone already had their designated spot. It wasn’t hard to spot an out-of-towner; they stuck out like sore thumbs. And no one really visited Rollins; it was a farm town you passed through and commented on the cute cows in the pasture. Every smart person leaves Rollins, and the only people who stay are people like my parents, who insist the soil is better in Rollins. I stopped questioning their superstitions; if they believed the soil was good in Rollins, that meant we were no longer moving around. And that was nearly 12 years ago; now I was finally leaving Rollins.
“You’re staring,” Sibyl comments, poking my ribs with her finger.
“Do you see him?” I say, peeling my eyes away from here. He was looking at us now, a drink in one hand, a smirk playing on his perfect lips. He was the most gorgeous man I’ve ever seen—His skin was peachy and golden in the sun, yet pale and smooth, and he had the prettiest brown eyes that almost gleamed amber in the sunlight; I was sinking into them.
“He’s looking at you like you’re a piece of meat—Let’s not waste our time on drifters, Nali,” Sibyl says, giving me a look. The same scrunched-up, annoyed look she gave at every house party, before I made a bad decision. She was like the cricket on my shoulder whispering to me about making good decisions, but she was always quiet enough to ignore—
“Hello, ladies—Sorry to intrude,” his voice was deep and alluring. Almost hypnotizing, I had to try to contain myself as I turned his way; his gaze was like sinking into a hot bath.
“Hi,” I manage to stammer out
“I just wanted to ask if you knew any good places to sleep for the night. I’m not really familiar with this area,” he says.
“You don’t have a cellphone or GPS?” Sibyl pokes, and I shoot her a look before smiling at the handsome man.
“There is a motel down the road from here, you can’t miss it—And that’s probably it, there aren’t very many tourists in Rollins,” I tell him.
“Thank you,” he says with a warm smile. “My name is Torrian Almeda,” he introduces himself, his voice like soft music in my ears. A song I couldn’t get out of my head.
“Nice to meet you, Mr. Almeada—I’m Enali,” I smile.
“I hope it’s not too forward to ask, but can I buy you a drink, Enali?” He asks.
“Not too forward at all,” I smile, stepping closer to him.
“Excuse us,” Sibyl steps in, suddenly interrupting us. She grabs my hand, pulling me from our table and towards the back of the bar.
“Sibyl! Wait!” I say, pulling away from her. “It’s just one drink,” I say.
“A drink with a stranger, Enali, you can’t be serious,” Sibyl says.
“This is our last night here! I want to have a little fun! I spent all of high school in textbooks, and I had to settle for hooking up with boys in their cars for 2 years. I can’t have this?” I whine. “Sibyl, I’m a big girl, and if he wants to buy me a drink, I’ll let him!” I smile before pulling away.
“You’re really not going to listen to me?” Sibyl gawks, and I can’t help but laugh.
“I love you, I do, and I love your concern, but I’ll be okay, I promise!” I say. “I’ll text you when I get home, and I’ll make sure to be up and ready for the drive tomorrow,” I wink, and Sibyl’s shoulders sink, which means she knows she’s not winning this.
“Okay, but I don’t want to hear you complaining about a hangover,” She says, before air kissing me goodbye and leaving out the back door. I turned back, returning to Torrian, who patiently waited at the table for me.
“I hope I didn’t cause a problem,” he says with a smile, and I shake my head.
“No, you’re fine. What brings you to Rollins?” I question. “If you don’t mind me asking,”
“I’m looking for a friend of mine, and I think I just missed him, he likes to play Hide and seek, if you believe me,” Torrian says with a crooked smile. “It’s like a game of cat and mouse with him, and I’m losing it a little,”
“I’m guessing you’re the cat in the scenario?” I lean in, and he laughs with a nod.
“I am,” he says.
“Well, I hope you find him eventually,” I say.
“Are you doing anything else tonight?” he asks.
“Uh—I have nothing planned,” I answer honestly with a smile.
I finished packing everything this morning before Sibyl, and I went out for the day. My brothers had already packed it all away into moving trucks that Sibyl’s mother and my parents had rented for the school trip. All I had to worry about was waking up early tomorrow morning and dealing with my father’s pissy attitude, even though it was he who insisted on driving Sibyl and me into the city in the first place. “I was probably just going to help my mom with a few things before I leave tomorrow,” I nod.
“Leave tomorrow?” Where are you headed?” he asks.
“School—State university,” I tell him.
“Ah—Freshman?” he questions, his eyes glazing over my body; instantly warming me.
“Technically, Junior—I did 2 years of community service, so I could transfer for free to the state college,” I tell him.
“Ah, I see,” he smiles. “Seems like you’re very prepared for school,” he states, and I couldn’t help but nod—I knew it was mostly because of how my siblings ended up, but my parents were always harder on me. My sister got pregnant with my first niece, fresh out of high school. And her boyfriend at the time went missing, which she later found out was him just living with the second girl he got pregnant with. And my brother—he was selling weed out of his apartment, out on the edge of town. I knew my parents knew about it, but they never confronted him about it. Partly because I think they’re afraid of him and the people he calls friends. They put extra effort into me and made sure I did academic extracurriculars and everything to get me ahead—
“Well, congratulations—Why won’t we do a little celebrating?” Torrian says, stepping closer to me, making my stomach twist. He smelled like pine needles, and his body being close made a feeling wash over me I had never felt before.
“What?” I stammered, my stomach twisting at the thought of spending more time with him. He was so alluring, and his every word made me want to be closer to him; he was like a magnet, or he was putting a spell on me.
“I have a little spare time, and I don’t want to spend it alone,” he admits, his voice low, even though there weren’t many people around us.
“I uh—Okay,” I answer with a nod. “Why not?” I say, if he was planning on hurting me, he wouldn’t have spoken to me in a bar where everyone knew my parents. I could see a few of my neighbors looking at me now, a few people whose children I babysat for to pay for keg money.
“I promise you won’t regret it,” Torrian says with a small grin.
The moon peeked through the motel room curtains, and I realized I should have headed home sooner. I wasn’t usually out this late, and Sibyl lived nearby, so there was very little reason for me to be out when the moon was up. I hadn’t messaged my mother or answered the many calls and texts I’ve received since being here. I expect my father will still be awake when I do make it home, annoyed that I stayed out so late, and wondering what I was up to so late. As I lay in the bed, I thought of something I could tell him—Hopefully saying I was Sibyl would be enough.
After Torrian bought me a few drinks, I showed him to the motel, and he got a room for himself. I’ve been with a fair number of the boys in my town, but that’s all; they were boys. I’ve never been with a man like Torrian before. My mother insists that sex is only for the married and that God would cry in heaven if I did anything otherwise, but I didn’t see it that way. Neither did any of the other girls in my town,
Sibyl would lose her mind if she knew I slept with him; I wouldn’t hear the end of it. I could hear her now. “You need to make better decisions, Enali.” “You could have caught something, Enali.” This came from the same girl who would hook up with the preacher’s son in the church when we were still in high school.
“Do you have to leave?” Torrian whispers against my skin, his arms tightening around my waist.
“Yes,” I say, pulling away before I could sink back into his arms again. “My parents are probably wondering where I am—and annoyed that I’m not home yet,” I state.
“I don’t mean to get you into trouble—I just didn’t think I’d like being with you this much,” he says, forcing me to look back at him. He’s sitting up now, staring at me, his eyes wandering my still nude body. “This won’t be the last time we see each other, Enali,” he tells me.
“I sure hope not,” I say with a smile, before standing and quickly pulling my clothes one, ignoring his eyes on me as I do it. “It was uh—Nice meeting you, bye,” I say, before slipping out of the room before he could say anything else.
It wasn’t a long walk home. Mainly cutting through back roads and crossing lawns. My nerves still nipped at my body like mosquitoes. When I made it home, I was shocked to see all the lights on the main floor on. And when I walked in, Sibyl’s mother was sitting in the living room with my parents. My first thought was that she told them I was out with a stranger. Were they mad enough to set up an intervention this late at night? Were they planning on dragging me off to the church or giving up on me like my siblings?
“Oh, Enali! There you are!” My mother shouts, shooting off the couch and rushing towards me, crushing me in her grasp. “Is your phone off? Why haven’t you been answering me?” she questions, squeezing me tightly.
“My phone died when I was at the pub. What’s wrong?” I question, attempting to pull away from her.
“Where have you been?” my father asks behind her.
“I was uh—Saying goodbye to some friends from school,” I lie.
“Where’s Sibyl?” Sibyl’s mother steps in, my mother pulling away from me. “She came home and said that she needed to finish packing, and then she said she was going to go back to the restaurant you guys were at to pick you up,”
“I hadn’t finished my food, and she said she wasn’t feeling well—I didn’t think she was going to come back to pick me up,” I say, pulling something from thin air. Why had she gone back to the bar? When did she? I was too busy with Torrian to even bother looking at my phone.
“Well, Sibyl has been gone all day, and I’m getting worried,” Sibyl’s mother says with a distressed sigh.
“I’m sure she’s fine, I’m sure she just forgot to check her phone,” I defend.
Sibyl’s one goal in life was to make her mother happy. They had been through so much. Sibyl’s Father was an alcoholic and serial cheater and impregnated nearly half of the town. Before disappearing one Christmas Eve when he claimed to be going to the store to get milk, A classic story.
Since then, her mother has been in and out of relationships and forcing Sibyl to treat the men with respect as if they raised her, but half of them barely gave her enough money for lunch at school. They also never worked, and even though her mother had two jobs, Sibyl still had to get a job after Lacrosse to help put food on the table.
I was relieved that Sibyl was getting away from all of this, and both of us could get a fresh start. She no longer had to be Sibyl, the girl with the problems at home, and I no longer had to be Enali the golden child; we could make names for ourselves that weren’t revolved around our family and what they thought.
“Let’s wait until the morning, and then we can go to the police,” My mother says.
“We have to leave in the morning, Laurie,” my father groans, and earns a mean look from my mother.
“I don’t want to hold you guys from the trip, but I’m just so worried,” Sibyl’s mother says.
“I understand, I understand--” my mother says, before leading her back to the couch and sitting down again. I immediately leave the living room, my stomach in knots.
What if something happened to Sibyl? What if she was hurt or worse, all because I wanted to have some fun? It’d be my fault, and if I had just listened to her, she wouldn’t have had to return to the bar to try and look for me.
But Torrian.
An experience I don’t regret in the slightest, even if I don’t ever see him again. I make it to my room and change out of my clothes into pajamas. I fell into bed and began calling and texting Sibyl. I knew she thought hanging with Torrian was a bad idea, and I knew I usually just follow her blindly, but I just can’t believe she’d be mad at me enough to ignore her mother and me.
“I’m sure your friend is fine, honey,” My father says, appearing in the doorway. “Rollins is a good town. We used to keep the doors unlocked when I was younger,”
“And you had serial killers that walked through the back door Dad--” I say, looking over at him, before biting my tongue. “I just don’t want to start my new life without her, and we kind of had an argument when I last saw her, and I just don’t want that to be the last thing that happened between us,” I say.
“It won’t be,” my father says sternly. “Everything will be okay, honey. Get some rest, we have to get on the road early in the morning,” he tells me.
“Okay, Dad,” I sigh.
In the morning, my house was silent. That’s how I knew something was wrong. By now, my mom would be screaming about last-minute packing, and my father would be loudly grumbling about wanting coffee. When I walked downstairs to the living room, my parents were sitting together on the couch, talking lowly. “Good morning—Why didn’t anyone wake me up? What’s happening?” I yawn, stepping into the living room. We should have left 3 hours ago.
“Oh, honey,” my mother shoots up fast again. “Honey, I’m so sorry,” she starts stepping towards me.
“No—What’s wrong, what’s happening?” I stammer, my heart suddenly loud in my ears.
“They found her. They found Sibyl—” my mother says, stepping carefully towards me again, I could tell from her tone she meant they didn’t find her alive.
“No,” I stammer out, tears blurring my vision immediately.
It’s all my fault.
“I’m so sorry, Enali,” my mother says.
This was all my fault.
Sibyl was buried only two days after she was found. The doctors and police held her body briefly because there was a connection with her death and the deaths of a few other girls in the state. The day of her funeral felt unreal; it felt like I had been killed alongside her. I was supposed to be far older; I was supposed to be mourning with her family; HELL, I was supposed to go first—I never pictured my life without Sibyl. From the moment I moved to Rollin’s, she was like my guiding light; the sister I desperately needed instead of the one who cared more about boys than her sister. If only I had listened to her and stayed with her that day, she’d be okay, or maybe we’d both be dead. Either way, I wouldn’t have this pit in my stomach, and I wouldn’t be dealing with all of this alone. I wouldn’t be moving on with my life without her.
“Enali—” my mother steps into my doorway.
“I just can’t believe she’s gone, Mom,” I cry, dropping my head in my hands again. It was getting hard to pull it together. She crosses the room, sitting down beside me on my bed, and I drop my head on her shoulder.
“I know, honey, I know,” she whispers, wrapping a protective arm around me and pulling me into her.
“She was like my sister—my other half,” I cry, digging my face into her shoulder. “And now she’s gone, and it’s all my fault,”
“None of this is your fault, Enali. Stop saying that this could have happened to anyone,” my mother tells me.
“But it happened to Sibyl, it had to happen to her? She was nice to everyone; she wouldn’t hurt a fly. Why would someone do something like this to her?” I sob out.
“Some people are just evil, and it’s unexplainable why they do what they do,” my mother says, squeezing me into her body. “We must keep going,” she whispers, helping me stand from my bed. “Sibyl would have wanted you to keep going,”
Although I’d rather curl up in bed for the rest of the day, I still follow my mom out of my room and downstairs.
Sibyl was getting buried in her family plot at the church in town. It took a lot of convincing for the church to even allow it, given Sibyl’s mother's past, but with the tragedy of her death, they allowed it. The church was full, was Sibyl knew more people than I had honestly expected. Rollins was small, and Sibyl had lived there since she was born. She had known and touched so many hearts, but I was the only one who got to call her a best friend. I was the only person who spent her birthdays with her and went on family trips. My parents and I took our seats near the front, where Sibyl’s mother sat alone. I peeled away from my mother to walk slowly up to her casket.
She looked like she was sleeping. Her hair was brushed nicely, and they put extra blush on her face, but I knew the truth. “I’m sorry, Sib,” I whisper, gripping the wooden frame of the casket and staring down at her. My nails are digging into the velvet lining on the box. “This is all my fault—I’m sorry they hurt you,” I whisper, leaning down and kissing her forehead. It was cold, she was cold. I pulled away my vision, becoming blurry again as I steadied myself against the casket. She was gone—actually gone. I step back, my knees weak as I turn and march down the center of the church’s aisle, and out the front door. I run down the steps so fast I feel like I’m flying. Bile rising in my chest, making my body hot as I lean against a tree to catch my breath. I slid down the side, hitting the dirt next to the tree, trying to catch my breath. My sobs shake my entire body as I try to calm myself down, sucking air like a dying fish.
“Enali? Enali?” his hands are on me, and from the sparks that flooded my body, I knew it was him. Torrian. I opened my eyes, and he was holding me, my head on his chest. He was squeezing me tightly, steadying my body, anchoring me to my spot. He was the only thing keeping me up right now. “I’m so sorry—I’m sorry about your friend,” he whispers.
“I thought you were gone,” I pull away from him.
“Yes—I’m still trying to find my friend, I believe he’s still here,” Torrian says, swallowing down something. His face wasn’t as light-hearted and relaxed as it was the first time we met. This time it was stressful and solemn. He looked tired.
“Well, have you?” I question.
“That isn’t important,” he shakes his head, pulling me back into a hug. “I’m sorry this is happening to you,” he whispers.
“Why are you here?” I ask again, pushing him away this time. The fog is clearing my head as my body finally settles.
“What?” Torrian questions, seemingly taken aback by my words. “I came for you, Enali, I just—I couldn’t get you out of my mind,” he says.
“How did you know I’d be here? How did you know it was my friend?” I cross my arms.
“I saw it on the news,” he answers smoothly, his voice soft. “I recognized her from the bar—And I wanted to talk to you, but I didn’t get your number, and I just didn’t know where to start looking,” he answers. I take a deep breath, stepping away from him, running my fingers through my hair.
“She’s dead because of me—Because I was being selfish that night,” I say, biting my lip.
“Enali—You have to understand,” Torrian starts.
“No! I should have been with you, my friend—My only friend is dead because I wanted to get to know some stranger. I’m going straight to hell,” I choke out, covering my mouth before another sob starts again; I had to hold myself together.
“Enali!? Honey? Come back inside!” My mother shouts from the church steps. I look up at her, and she’s already walking towards us.
“You need to leave,” I turn towards Torrian. “Leave here, leave this town—” I state, before turning and walking away, hooking arms with my mother as I walk.
“What’s wrong, baby? Who is that man?” my mother whispers, looking back at Torrian.
“It's no one, Mom, let’s get inside,” I say, tugging her back into the church.
It’s late when I wake up to the sound of rocks hitting my window. At first, it sounded like nothing, but then my window broke. I sit up quickly in bed, and there is a pebble-sized hole in my window. I climbed out of the bed quickly, shuffling to my window and finding Torrian standing in my side yard.
I knew my father wouldn’t ask very many questions before pulling the trigger, especially since he broke my window, so I had to rush downstairs to him. As quietly as possible, pushing outside and nearly tackling Torrian to the ground.
“Are you insane? How did you even know this was my house? Or my room?” I hissed at him, pulling him away from the house and towards the backyard. “My Father will kill you if he sees you,” I tell him. “And I thought I told you to leave,” I say, pushing us into the shed in the back of my yard, where no one could see us from the house. I close the door behind me, turning towards Torrian, and before I can say anything else, he’s grabbing my face and kissing me.
“I know you didn’t mean it,” he whispers once he pulls away. “You’re upset and grieving, and you’re in pain, and I understand what you’re going through,” he tells me.
“I don’t think you do. This is all my fault,” I state, pulling away from him. “If I wasn’t being so stupid I’d—”
“This isn’t your fault, Enali, none of it is—” Torrian steps in, grabbing my shoulders. “I’m going to tell you something, okay, and you have to promise to just hear me out, please, you have to listen,” he says.
“What?” I whisper.
“The friend that I’ve been trying to find—His name is Demetrius, and he’s a vampire, specifically a newborn,” Torrian says simply.
“Like Vampire Diaries,” I question.
“Yes—I guess,” Torrian nods. “They survive only on blood, and some get a little thrill out of killing people,” Torrian tells me
“How do you know all of this?” I question, pulling from his grasp again. “And why are you telling me this? Are you trying to tell me that your friend that you’re supposed to be looking for when we were together, he’s the one who murdered Sibyl?” I question.
“And many other girls, yes, and he’s going to continue to do it until I stop him,” Torrian admits.
“And how do you plan on doing that? He’s a monster? You just said he’s a monster?” I state.
“So am I,” Torrian cuts in, and I back away more. “I am a vampire—And I made the mistake of turning Demetrius I thought he was a different person, but he wasn’t ready for this lifestyle, and he’s on a rampage now, and if I don’t stop him—It’s going to get a lot worse,” Torrian lays out.
“You’re a vampire?” I pushed out.
“I’m not going to hurt you,” Torrian insists.
“You’re lying, this is some kind of sick joke,” I cross my arms. “It’s not a very funny one, but you have to be joking,” I say again, and Torrian sighs.
“I know that something like this is hard to process, especially springing this up on you like this, but mortal humans aren’t the only creatures that walk the earth. Many creatures hide, and many that blend, and you’d be foolish to believe you’re the higher species,” Torrian tells me. “Vampires have been around far longer than any mortal human, and they will be around even after the last mortal dies.”
“How old are you—Actually?” I question after a moment of silence, and he growls out a sigh.
“I just turned 100 this year,” he answers.
“Christ—100?” I blurt out. “And how old were you when—when you became this?” I question.
“I was 24—I, however, wasn’t turned like most are these days, my abilities came at a great sacrifice at my own personal expense. I wanted to live forever without worry or illness; at the time, that’s what I thought I wanted, but I hadn’t known the repercussions for such a wish,” Torrian tells me. “I asked a witch to grant me endless life, but instead she cursed me like she’s cursed many others. I was immortal, practically indestructible, and far powerful than I could have ever imagined, but—The thirst,” he says solemnly.
“Why are you telling me this?” I question.
“Because I want you to understand, I want you to hear where I’m coming from and know that I never meant any of this to happen to you,” Torrian tells me, stepping towards me again.
“You’re a monster, and you made a monster that killed my best friend,” I say, holding my hand out. “I don’t want to understand anything about you,” I bite.
“Enali—Please,” Torrian starts.
“No, No! I want you to leave right now, and I mean it this time—I want you to go out there and finish what you started. My best friend died because of you, and you were being so careless, knowing that people were dying, and for what? For a few hours with a girl you just met?” I quip.
“You’re not just some girl, Enali,” Torrian starts, and I sigh, squeezing my hands to my side.
“I am just a girl, Torrian,” I say slowly, leveling my voice. “And I know that night we shared was—Special,” I whisper out when the truth was words couldn’t even describe the time we spent together, it wouldn’t have looked like we just met the way we melted together. It was like he’d known my body forever, and we were meeting again in this lifetime.
“It was extraordinary,” Torrian says.
“But clearly—We’re from two different worlds, and I could never think of becoming immortal and watching my family die, and I just stay the same, I just wouldn’t be able to live with myself---” I say. “We can never be together, so I suggest you leave now,” I say.
“I can’t do that,” Torrian whispers, his voice trembling slightly.
“Well, you’re going to have to, because I don’t want you here, and I have to leave in the morning for school,” I push out, crossing my arms.
“I can tell you’re lying, Enali—Your body betrays you,” Torrian whispers, stepping forward again and wrapping his arms around me, pulling me into him. I tried to ignore the lightheaded feeling that crept into my head now that I was close to him. I had to stay strong. He hooked his fingers around my pajamas so I couldn’t pull away fully. “I know you want me to stay, and I know you’re scared, but I also know you’re curious—And I promise Enali I will not hurt you, and I won’t do anything without your consent,”
“And you’re going to find this Demitrius guy, right? He must pay for what he did; he can’t get away with what he took from me,” I whisper, and Torrian nods with a small smile, knowing he’s won.
“I will do everything in my power to make sure Demitrius gets what he deserves, I promise you that,” Torrian says to me.
