Chapter 1

The wind was whipping fiercely as I made my way down Bourbon Street in the historic town of New Orleans. My stomach was in knots, as it had been for the last few days. Staying in a small hotel just outside of the French Quarter, today was the first day that I had been brave enough to venture into the heart of the city.

Looking at the beautiful antique ring on my right hand, I remembered why I had journeyed to the city in the first place. "You belong here," I told myself for the first time since arriving there. Jazzy, soulful music cascaded onto the streets thanks to the open doors of the bar across the street from where she was standing. The sun was shining high in the sky, and I took a moment to let it warm my skin.

I had come to New Orleans to find the life I had hoped for since I was just a little girl. All I wanted was a family, and place where I was free to be who I truly was. No more hiding, or being a slave to those who thought themselves superior. It was time for me to make my move. After all, I didn't have much to loose.

I pulled out the tattered piece of parchment that I had kept folded in my back pocket. Unfolding it, I gazed at the sketch on the man who should have been my father. The man that left my mother behind to die a horrible death. The man who had no idea that I even existed. Marcel Gerard.

My mother had died giving birth to me many years ago. I had never met my father, and the only thing I had to guide me in my search was the portrait that my mother had drawn of the man before she died. His name was scratched across the bottom of the picture, putting a name to the face.

Upon my birth, I was hidden away by my mother's family. The servants and slaves raised me as if I was one of their own, thought my skin was only marginally darker that that of the master's of the house. When I was eight, my mother's family decided that it was not wise for me to stay in their home. Someone may see the resemblance between us and start to ask questions. I was a disgrace to their name, and so I was sold as a slave to a wealthy man from town.

He was a harsh and cruel. If things were not exactly to his liking, he would have his servants or slaves whipped. His temper was the worst I had ever seen, and it made my earlier childhood seem like a fairytale. The older slaves took pity on me, and tried to help when they could. Many of them even took the blame for things that I had done to save me from our master's harsh punishments.

I was 15 when I first tried to run away. I didn't even make it to the edge of the property before I was caught and drug back to the house. I still have the scars on my back from the whipping that followed.

The second time I tried to run was the last. I was 19 and ready to put my life as a slave behind me, or die trying, and that is exactly what I did. I made it into the forest that bordered my master's land, and I was so sure that I had finally made it. Little did I know, after my last attempt to flee my master had purchased attack dogs. They were trained to hunt down run away slaves. For the rest of my life I would never escape the haunting sound of their barks and snarls as they echoed off of the trees, getting closer and closer.

It wasn't long before the first one reached me, biting at my legs and bringing me to the ground. Two more hit me and pinned me to the ground, waiting for their owner's commands. The last thing I remember is looking at the silhouette of my master in the moonlight as he gave to order, "Kill". That was the end of my human life….

Marcus, a local vampire, was in the woods hunting for wolves when he heard my screams. He arrived just in time to give me his blood, but not soon enough for it to heal me. I died with his blood in my system, and so I transitioned into a vampire.

When I awoke, the first rays of the morning sun were reflecting through the trees. The dogs who had hunted me the night before lay dead on the ground around me. Marcus was there, standing in the trees as if he were an angel there to save me. His blonde hair and fair complexion just reinforced this thought.

He explained to me what I was becoming, and that I had to feed on human blood. Back then there were no blood bags to get by on. Marcus had kept my master alive, and gave him to me to feed. He was the first person that I killed, and I felt nothing. Marcus told me to feed, and so I did. He told me to follow him, and I did. His wish was my command, but I never realized just how wrong the situation was. I was sired to him, and I could not disobey him. He realized this long before I did, and used me. I was his pet. I fetched his meals, his clothes, and anything that he asked for. I even did his killing for him.

It wasn't until two years prior that Marcus was killed by another vampire, and my bond to him was broken. I was finally free to live for myself for the first time in my life, human or vampire.

I started to dig and try to find out if I had any living family members. After a short while I uncovered the story of Marcel, my father, and what he had become. There were rumors circulating that the original family had returned to New Orleans and had been wreaking havoc with Marcel, and now they have settled down there with the miracle baby, Hope.

I was determined to find my father, and if I had to go through the originals to do so, then so be it…

Thanks to everyone who read the first chapter! I will try to update as often as I can. Drop a comment and let me know what you think!