CHAPTER 1
Charlotte Petrova hummed a tune as her mother did her hair. The Christmas festivities were still on-going but her family was poor and without title, which meant no invitations would land on their doorstep. The most important family in town was holding a masquerade and she badly wanted to attend. Rumour had it that the hosts often invited their footmen to the masquerade in hope that it might provide some entertainment at the unmasking. Say, if a lady flirted openly with one of the footman thinking him to be a rich lord, she would be greatly embarrassed when his identity, or lack thereof, was revealed. Her family had not enough money to send her to London for a season so this was her best chance at landing a titled man. She had to go. She shuddered at the thought of being found out.
They will drain you of your blood.
Kathleen had warned her about the danger when she had expressed her desire to attend the masquerade without an invitation and had asked to borrow a simple décolleté gown. It was not beautifully adorned but it would definitely attract some male attention, or so she hoped. In return, Kathleen had requested for some of her mother's berry pie. Now, standing in front of the mirror, her mother pulled the laces of her corset snug, helped her don the gown and applied rouge to her cheeks and lips.
Pulling her into an embrace, her mother gave her a last piece of advice, "If you are caught, get down on your knees and beg for your life. It's no use running from them. They fly faster than birds. Be careful, my dear."
She reassured her mother and left for the masquerade.
She sneaked in through the gardens. The first thing she noticed was the beautiful costumes, one especially. Lady Rebekah's costume was a short blood red satin dress and was easily recognizable because of the necklace she always wore around her neck. She was the host family's daughter and one of the creatures that terrified the night, but she mostly preyed on men. Vampires were not all evil though and most fed only when they had to. Those that could not control themselves were called rippers and they went on killing sprees, feeding even on the injured. Luckily, she did not know of any in town.
Just as she was admiring Lady Rebekah's costume, a man with his back facing her blocked her view. He was surrounded by many giggling debutantes and she could hear his voice, deep and sexy. She wondered what he had said to make the debutantes laugh like that and stepped a little closer so that she could hear the conversation. At that moment, he turned to take a champagne flute off a waiter's tray and locked gazes with her.
"Those stunning blue eyes..." she muttered.
She did not know how he heard her but in a flash, he was right in front of her.
"Do I know you?" he asked, reaching out a hand to caress her cheek before tilting her chin upwards to meet his.
"I... I do not think so, my lord."
He laughed, "Then we will get to know each other, sweetheart. Let's get some fresh air."
The giggling debutantes were now staring, some fuming and sulking because they no longer had his attention. She on the other hand could feel the butterflies in her stomach. She could not tell Lord Niklaus who she was or it could be the end of her for he would certainly know who was invited and who was not. But somehow, she was in a dazed state and her hand automatically found his and her body allowed him to lead her to the gardens.
He stopped short when they were in a quiet spot, bending his head down closer to hers. Closer to her neck. She couldn't move. She felt his soft lips on her neck and willed herself to scream but no sound came out. She prepared herself for the pain that would soon follow when he sank his fangs into her jugular and sucked her dry but instead he kissed her there and her heart started beating so hard it felt like it was pounding out of her chest. He could sense her fear. But everyone feared him, even those annoying debutantes.
She backed away, breathing hard. "I... I need to tell you something, my lord. I wasn't invited." she blurted, blushing red.
He had known when he had inhaled the scent of freshly baked berry pies.
Unbeknownst to her, he had often watched her collect berries for her mother in the woods. His step-father, Mikael, had always hated him because he was illegitimate but matters got worst when Henrik died and the blame fell to him. True, it was he who brought Henrik to the woods to watch the werewolves transform but how could he have known how dangerous they were. He still blamed himself for Henrik's death. Mikael did not know that the werewolves only transformed on full moons and thus, completely avoided going to the woods. The woods became his sanctuary from Mikael and he was never bored watching Charlotte Petrova.