Chapter 1
Mina
On a cold winter evening, the Mortem family, my family, were stuck inside because of the snow. Since the cold, they haven’t been able to hunt which is bad since we’re vampires… and when a vampire doesn’t get to hunt… well it doesn’t end well for anyone involved. My parents become cranky and they slowly starve. Luckily a human lasts them a week or two, and by then they’re ready to eat. My sisters and I are partially vampires, but not full. Mother was human when she gave birth to us. Not until we’re bitten and we have our own sire. A soft snowfall was falling outside and I could hear the crunching of it as we walked inside from going into our town of Shadow Falls, but it’s really my parents’ clan, the Mortem clan. My mother was human before my father, Dyrk turned her after we were born. Apparently, it was important to her.
“Mother, are you going to have another ball?” I looked up at my beautiful mother, Leila Mortem. Frozen in time in her early 40s. Long, wavy dark chocolate brown hair. Chocolate brown eyes. A dark red wine lip and a light blush to give her some color on her face so humans don’t think we’re anything suspicious. Mother and Father were turned in the late 1800s, early 1900s if I remember right, where balls were the norm to have, and mother just never stopped.
“I was thinking of it. There are still some humans in town that we could definitely invite… they smelled so enticing that it was hard going into town.” I could see her almost wanting to charge back to the town to grab some poor soul, but I held her back. Mom had her morning sun potion that is made by our head cook and kitchen witch so she can go outside.
“Why not just invite the town? We have plenty of room.” Our manor was very large. It was built in the Victorian era, or so I’ve been told. Outside despite being cold, it probably just adds to the creepiness of the house. The front yard with a broken iron fence and a small graveyard for our family. Two large stairs curve and meet in the middle to go to the front door. In our grand foyer, you’re met with a large crystal chandelier and stairs that lead to the upstairs. Of course curtains on the windows. We don’t want to get burned by the sun. And we don’t sparkle either… ugh I’ve heard that some modern books think we sparkle. No, we don’t…
“I’ll talk to Father to see what he thinks about the idea.” She leaves me in the foyer and heads towards the study in a different part of the manor. For such a big house it can be lonely sometimes. I make my way to my bedroom and just plop on my bed. Yeah, yeah I can hear you now, ‘where’s your coffin??’ My sister, Nyx embraced that cliche, but I feel like I’m the soft one out of the three of us girls. My room may seem grand, but at least it’s one space where I can have peace. A canopy bed with light black and burgundy curtains, burgundy blankets, pillow, and sheets with some white pillows to make things not so doom and gloom. Burgundy is pretty much everywhere, paint, curtains on the windows, chairs, and behind my bed. A white couch to sit on and lounge, some light fixtures to lighten up the room, side tables, and lamps next to my bed for my books, with a soft fuzzy rug under my bed, and a chest at the foot of my bed to put extra ballgowns that I don’t use, which I might need to look through soon. I let out a deep sigh into my pillows. Maybe I’m just not meant to fit into the world of vampires even though it’s all I know. My sisters and I have normal food for now until we get bitten either by our mate or someone you choose to be a sire can. My sisters and I haven’t been turned fully yet, but once someone bites us then we’ll fully turn and the person who bites us is our sire. Someone who will help us, guide us, show us what our new life as a vampire will be like, how to hunt properly. Stuff like that.
I hear a knock on the door and it’s mother again. I peek through my pillows wondering what she wanted.
“The ball will be at the end of the week.” She tells me proudly.
“So soon? I thought you’d need more time than that.” She usually planned these things for months, but maybe they’re desperate.
“I’m sure we can have people, food, decorations, and dresses by then. Besides you know how we can be if we don’t feed quickly.” Yeah true… I best avoid them for a while when they’re hangry.
“I’m sure you can. I guess I’ll look around my closet to see what dress I’ll wear.” Mother smiles, she was always the shopaholic.
“Ooh, I can’t wait to see what you actually pick!” She squeals for pure joy and she leaves the room. I sigh in defeat. These balls are elaborate and beautiful, but they’re always boring, at least to me. I always questioned if I was meant to be a vampire… I’m in my mid-20s so I have plenty of time to decide, but seeing how desperate my parents are to feed every couple of weeks… I don’t want to be like that. I hope I get a good sire to lead me. I look around my closet to find a ballgown.
