Heidi.

I was always that girl the one in the back of the class who was more interested in talking to her friend than paying attention. The one all the good boys wanted but only the bad ones had the courage to pursue. I was pretty, freaking gorgeous in fact, but I was the firecracker. The good girls all looked down on me. I used my looks to get things. I wasn't modest or shy. I was a knockout and I knew it. I wore skimpy clothes and did absolutely nothing with my wild hair. I knew I caught the eye of every male in the room, and I loved it.

Most people thought I lived in some rundown trailer on the edge of town. They thought my parents were hicks who didn't know any better and that I was a drug addict. Every time I heard these whispers about myself I laughed out loud. These stupid people knew nothing.

In reality I lived in a huge house in an exclusive area on the outskirts of town. My parents wanted me to be like the nice girls, modest, shy, bubbly, covered in pink from head to toe. They wanted me to play tennis, and join the equestrian team. They'd actually bought me a pony for my fourteenth birthday.

Most people didn't know this about me. Most people didn't know me, not even the people who called themselves my friends. I could hear the chatter around me, but I never really cared. I was the girl people thought was bad, but really wasn't.

For my graduation present, my parents sent me to Italy. My dad's ancestors had been from Italy, my mom's had been from Sweden. Walking through Rome had been an amazing experience. I'd gone against their wishes and decided to go by myself. They'd wanted me to take a friend, but, since I was such a solitary person, I couldn't bring myself to do it. I was standing there, staring up at the Colosseum when I noticed him. It was dark outside, nighttime. There was a young boy sitting on the curb of the street a little way away from me. He looked too young to be out at this hour of the night. I walked down towards him, where he sat sniffling. "Are you okay?" I asked him, kneeling, while looking around for a hysterical mother somewhere.

My breath caught in my throat when he looked up at me. This little boy was gorgeous. He had the prettiest face on any person I'd ever seen anywhere. He was very, very pale, with dark eyes that had an odd tint to them that I couldn't quite make out in the dark. "I can't find my uncle and sister." He whimpered. I stood, pulling him up with me.

"Where did you last see them?" I asked.

"That way." He pointed down a deserted street.

"Let's go look." I took his hand. It was so cold, it felt like ice. He led me down the alley. There was another larger man standing there in an odd cloak with a little girl who looked to be the little boy's twin.

"There you are Alec." The man's deep voice boomed all around me. He peered down at me. "Thank you for returning my nephew, I'm Felix." I stared up at the man. He had shaggy black hair and was completely and totally beautiful. The little girl next to him was also extremely pretty, more so than her brother. All three of them had the odd eyes.

"No..no problem." I choked out.

"I'd like to repay you. We are going on a tourist trip in a few days, would you like to come?" He asked. My brain was screaming run! you don't know this man, he could be a murderer or a rapist. This could be a trap. But, I was nodding in spite of myself. He could've asked me to go jump into the Trevi Fountain, and I would have. He handed me a brochure and on the front there was a spectacular clock tower. The name of the city was Volterra. I looked back up when I was done reading the name of the city, only to see that the three of them were gone. I had an odd feeling though, like I was being watched. A little shocked, I walked back to my hotel.

Once I was in my room I opened the brochure. Inside, there was information about when and where this tourist group was supposed to meet. Apparently the tourists were taking a private plane to a city outside of Volterra and then driving in on a charter bus where we'd immediately get off and go on a tour of one of the most historical buildings in the city. Attached to the brochure was a ticket and a card that looked like a credit card, but I wasn't completely sure.

The next few days passed by in a blur. Every so often I'd see that same brochure for Volterra. It was odd, but I figured hey, if other people were going, why not? I wasn't afraid. I'd never been afraid of anything in my life.

The day of the trip came. I went to the specified meeting place. I still wasn't sure about going, but I figured when the time came if I hadn't thought of any reasons why not to, then I would. I stared around me at the people. It wasn't a really large group, about thirty-five to forty people. There were people of all ages, all ethnicities. I decided right then and there that I was going. If all of these people were willing to go, then, I would have to. I was too curious to stay behind.

We boarded the plane, and I saw the man and children I'd met a few days before. For the first time in my life, I'd felt odd boarding the plane with all of the people staring at me. My clothes were relatively conservative that day, and my hair was drawn back into a low bun, with wisps that had escaped around my face. I quickly hurried to a seat toward the back and settled in. We'd been completely in the air for about half an hour when the man, Felix, came back to sit next to me. "Hello again." He whispered quietly into my ear.

I looked up at him, speechless. "Hi." I replied. I wondered at myself mentally, when was the last time any guy had made me act self-concious? Seriously.

"I see you decided to come."

"That would be why I'm on the plane, yes." I pointed out sarcastically.

He smirked. Then, a different expression took it's place. "That's a very interesting shade of hair color, is it natural?" He asked, pushing a strand away from my face.

I thought about my mohagony locks. "Yes." I replied shortly.

The rest of the plane ride was pretty much the same. He'd ask me questions and I'd answer them usually with a sarcastic or cynical remark mixed in. Every few minutes another passenger would look at us with envy. Secretly I was loving the attention, I always had.

When the plane landed, we all got off and were led to the bus by another tall mad with short, brown hair. I hadn't noticed him before, but he was also extremely attractive. I walked to the back of the bus, sliding in next to the window. Once again, Felix followed me to my seat. "So, you like attention?" He asked, amused.

"Sure...I've always gotten it. I'm used to it."

The bus ride into Volterra was short and quiet. As we rolled into the city, I gazed out the window, trying to take in all of the beautiful buildings. "You like the way Volterra looks?" Felix asked.

"Yes, it's gorgeous." I replied, a little preoccupied with watching all of the buildings roll by.

We came to a stop outside a large business building made out of stone that had a random circular turret sticking out. The man with the brown hair led us into the building. We walked around the building, where he was telling us about the building's history and the story behind all of it. When we were led into a circular stone room, I was a little confused, this wasn't making sense. I realized then that we were entering the tower. Inside the next room was brightly lit, long rectangular windows that were close to the ceiling made the light slant in at odd angles. There were three throne-like chairs, with slightly smaller seats next to them, occupied by three men and two women. I quickly realized that these were couples. One man seemed to be the odd man out. The man in the middle stood and walked toward us, falling into a beam of sunlight for half a second. I gasped, as did a few others who had caught the same phenomenon. When the man had stepped into the light, his skin began to sparkle. I knew it wasn't just my imagination, because other people had seen it too.

The man made no mention of his glittering skin and simply boomed, "Welcome to Volterra!". This man was beautiful too, all of the inhabitants of this building, along with Felix, Alec, and the girl who's name I never caught, we all breathtakingly stunning. I couldn't shake the feeling of insignificance next to these people. Felix and the children moved, along with the other brunette male whose name I didn't know, to stand next to this tall, strange man. The people sitting in the thrones stood and moved to stand with the others. The man with no companion seemed positively zombie-esque. The people then spread out into a large circle around us and the door to the tower was closed. I moved to the center of the group, feeling uneasy, and soon, all the people around me were being massacred. I seemed to be the only person staying calm. Others who weren't being killed yet were trying to escape or screaming, begging for mercy.

I knew I should be frightened, but I still wasn't. I felt fascinated. These people moved with blinding speed, my eyes couldn't keep up with their movements. I watched the little girl grin slyly at a large man, I wondered how she planned to take him down. Just as I finished that thought, however, the man fell to the floor, writhing in agony, and she quickly snapped his neck. I was confused, curious at how she did that.

The tall, dark haired man who had welcomed us, stopped what he was doing and turned to me. I knew I was facing death, but I'd observed how these people worked, I knew it would be painless and instant. "You, you are not attempting to run." He observed over the screams of the others.

"No." I replied calmly, looking him in the eye.

"You are not screaming for help or mercy."

"No." I replied again.

"Hold your hand out." He told me.
"Excuse me?" I asked. Why wasn't he killing me?

"Hold your hand out." He repeated firmly.

I held my palm out, like I was waiting for a high-five. He pressed his palm to mine, and once again, I felt that strange cold. I looked at the man's face, only to find that his eyes were boring into mine. Instead of feeling uncomftorable, I began to feel more at ease. "Are you done yet?" I asked.

The man simply laughed. "We could use you." He then said something too quick and quiet for my ears to hear, but several of his comrades, turned to look at me curiously. The man beckoned me to follow him out of the room, so I did. He quickly shut the door behind me so none of the others would escape. I couldn't understand why he was not killing me. I wasn't sure what this man or the others were, but I knew, they were more than human.