4 hours later I woke up to someone shaking me. I screamed, grabbing the
covers and pulling them up and over my face.
"Stop being stupid I have breakfast" My kidnapper's voice which
must be 'Master' Alexander whispered softly but coldly.
I didn't move one inch but stayed in my little cave of covers, he
sighed and i heard no noise. I jumped as the door was slammed closed, i
didnt even hear any footsteps. I hesitantly peered over the covers and
looked at the plate on the table. It had some mouthwatering bacon and
eggs just sitting there with a glass of juice. I slowly headed over to
it and took a nibble off the bacon but i wasnt hungry. My eyes looked at
the door wondering if he had been stupid enough to not lock it. My hand
extended to the brass knob and i placed my hand on the hard wood quitely
turning it. A loud clicking noise indicated that it was unlocked. I did
a silent victory dance but to observers it was more like i had ants down
my pants. I hesitated before taking a step out of the room, did I really
want to wander around a house that could hold much worse creatures than
vampires? Better late than never. I stood in the hallway and gazed down
the long seemingly endless path with at least 10 or so doors. I went to
the door right at the end and prayed it was the door out. It opened
slightly and it was a bedroom and there was a big brown wolf sleeping on
the bed it was the size of a small car. I accidentally let out a gasp
the wolf stirred opening its eyes. It got up, stretched and started
moving towards me. I ran down the hallway and spied some stairs and ran
down them nearly falling over. I ran into the first room I saw.
I skidded to a stop in surprise at the bunch of guys and girls around my
age sitting on lounges watching TV. They looked at me weirdly. I
couldn't run, scream or fight, I just couldn't do any of it anymore
I was officially giving up. I couldn't escape last night and somehow I
knew this was pointless and there was no point escaping now they'd
just find me again, they had my scent. I broke down crying as
realization hit me that I wouldn't be able to escape this place, I sat
on the floor hugging my knees to my chest.
"Who's she" I heard a guy whisper curiously his voice seemed a
beautiful lullaby.
"I think that's the new chick Alex told us about" someone
replied.
I heard footsteps "Hey guys has the movie started yet" it was Alex
yet his voice wasn't cold but pleasant and beautiful.
He must have heard me sobbing because I heard an impatient sigh. He
grabbed my arm and pulled me into a standing position. I may have given
up escaping but I wasn't going to make it easy having me around. If I
was around long enough.
"Let go of me" I snapped attempting to pull my arm out of his grip.
He looked surprised "wow you didn't start crying for once" he
sneered.
I slapped him in the face he glared at me and dragged me out of the
room. Then HE slapped me. Hard! I clutched my cheek and glared at him.
"What do you want from me?" I asked frustrated.
"Your blood" he whispered.
I looked at him in shock and he laughed coldly which made me even more
freaked out. I mean he laughed and mocked me when before he was cold and
harsh.
"Take me back to my room" I ordered.
To my surprise he actually did that. He released me and I took that
chance to slam the door in his face. The day passed slowly I didn't
eat or sleep I just sat in my room in a trance. To my surprise this
continued for 3 days. I had only eaten 2 pieces of bread and one glass
of water and I rarely went to sleep. Alex had been bringing me food
whether I ate it or not he also brought me a pair of normal clothes. I
didn't want to go outside the room because I didn't want to see what
else was in this house or mansion or whatever it was. I was also
terrified any day could be my last. Then one day a girl about my age or
older walked in. I knew she wouldn't hurt me when she sat down next to
me ready for conversation.
"You know I was in your shoes once" she said conversationally
light.
"I doubt that, I'm kind of going barefoot for the moment" I murmured
showing her my feet, my voice was flat and dull.
"I mean it" she insisted staring at the part of my face exposed to
her.
I looked at her properly she was stunning with straight fiery red
layered hair, blue eyes and pale skin. Her eyes told the truth and what
she said was true, she had a stubborn aura about her.
"Where you?" I said disbelievingly.
She nodded and turned away staring ahead with a dazed look in her eyes
"They turned me when I was 19 which was 2 years ago".
"Monsters" I muttered instantly feeling sympathetic of the poor
girl.
"Only because they had to" she defended, her eyes becoming deadly.
I raised my eyebrows and she sighed "okay I'll explain everything"
she took a deep breath and closed her eyes "when I was 19 I was stupid
and went into the woods alone, a wolf attacked me and took a few chunks
out of me" she showed me the scars on her stomach, still unhealed
properly "and then it left me bleeding to death. I was on the brink of
death when someone found me he took me here and told me he's a
vampires of course I didn't believe him. He showed me his fangs and I
feinted" I gave a small smile knowing she was waiting for a laugh, but
it wasn't funny "yes I know it was very embarrassing but he realized
the only way to save me was to turn me into a vampire so he did. Then I
woke up and he explained everything and after long weeks I began to
realize they weren't evil monsters and here I am today" she finished
with a big warm smile and I saw her move her hand slightly so that
something glinted from the light.
I gaped at her and she held up her hand it had a beautiful ring with a
big blue sapphire on it that was the same colour as her eyes.
"The one that found and turned me, Jaron, well he and I are now" her
cheeks were tinted red "married have been for 1 year, it seems that
whoever turns you creates a bond with you and our bond was more than
magic".
I couldn't smile at her enthusiasm, she married a monster and is one.
Nothing about it was beautiful. It was sick.
"Why are you so proud to be married to one?" I asked trying to make
my disgust sound like confusion.
"There not bad there good, just like us" she said reassuringly, it
didn't reassure.
"Why did they kidnap me?" this part was actually confusing me, I
didn't understand any of it, where I came in, I wasn't anything
special.
"Alex did and I don't know why but I have been here 2 years and they
have never done anything to anyone except protect and look after,
weirdly enough they try their hardest not to kill, they think it
disgusting and giving themselves the name monster by doing it" she
took a deep breath and I noticed her shaking hands, like anger "they
are good people you will get your explanation soon enough as to why they
kidnapped you but for now be nice if they wanted to kill you they would
have already" I knew there was truth in her words from her voice and
honest eyes but nothing in this situation could keep away the fear, I
was still scared and would be for ages "don't be" she muttered.
"What?" I frowned surprised.
"Vampires can sort of read minds its pretty cool, but it only pops up
like dot points" she smiled and then something entered my head like
she was speaking "there's nothing to fear".
My thoughts unshuffled and I rifled through all she had just said, could
I try this? My answer was a small nervous smile and she sighed in relief
and held out her hand to shake.
"Hi I'm Terry" she grinned happily.
"Hi I'm Chelsea Le Renata" I shook her hand.
"Sorry about being harsh before, its just everyone seems to get the
whole monster image about us when we aren't like that and its so
fustrating" she apologized, she looked disaprovingly at my body "You
look terrible" she studied me closely and pulled up my shirt to show
my stomach, it wasn't really there.
"I've only eaten 2 pieces of bread and a glass of water in 4 days"
I sighed pushing her hands away ashamed.
Terry suddenly started crying and pulling on my shirt to bring me into a
hug, to comfort herself or me I have no idea. I flinched at the physical
contact, I wasnt used to the close contact with another person or anyone
overly friendly so fast. I had no idea why she was crying so I awkwardly
pat her on the back she pulled away wiping her now red, puffy eyes, she
was still unnaturaly beautiful.
"I'm sorry its just I feel your pain and you look so haunted
considering you're not a vampire" she sniffed and placed a finger on
my jaw and gasped at how obvious the bone was.
"Do I look that bad?" I didn't think I looked that terrible, maybe
the affects kick in fast with my body.
Terry nodded then smiled ruefully "please come downstairs and I'll
make you something" she pleaded, already on her feet in the blink of
an eye.
I let my mind wander for a second, I knew Terry wouldn't let anything
happen to me, I hoped.
"Ok just hold on a second".
Terry nodded and I picked up the clothes Alex had brought me yesterday
and went into the bathroom to change. I slipped on the clothes which was
just shorts and plain white shirt, I looked in the mirror. I guess I did
look sort of bad, my hair lost its shine and was dull, my eyes had lost
their spark and had dark rings and bags around them from lack of sleep.
My body was skinnier than before. I returned from the bathroom with my
head hung low.
"Now I know what you mean by haunted" I murmered in the silence.
Terry nodded quickly and reached for my hand "come on let's eat".
She led me down 3 flights of stairs to the kitchen, everything was dark
and it took my eyes a while to adjust. I sat on a stool at a very long
marble bench.
"So what do you want?" she asked, opening the silver refrigerator.
I shrugged "surprise me".
She instintaniously started pulling out eggs, bacon and pancake mix and
got to work on cooking a huge breakfast. The end product when she had
finished was a plate with 3 eggs, 3 slabs of bacon and 3 medium sized
pancakes.
"I won't be able to eat all this you know" I stated, already slicing
into my moist pancake.
"Yeah, I know. I cooked enough so there'd hopefully be some left over's
for me" Terry laughed and licked the edge of her dagger sharp teeth.
I realized once I started I was ravenous and couldn't stop shoving the
delicious goodness down my throat. A mouthful didn't seem enough. I did
end up finishing it easily and still wanted more, I mean I had missed
out on 4 days of food. I gave Terry my puppy dog eyes and she laughed,
but I could feel her caving.
"You want more?" she reached for the fridge again.
I nodded and she made more which I threw down at an unsafe pace, I'm
surprised it didn't all pile up in my throat. When I was full I sighed,
finally content and almost on the brink of stomach ache.
"So how'd you know I was here?" I asked starting a conversation, while
picking at the last few crumbs left on my plate.
"Alex called me to talk to you" She said, starting on the dishes.
My face darkened at the mention of him and I looked at her sharply.
"You know he's not too bad just a little arrogant" my expression didn't
change and she smiled sheepishly "if you're going to live here you
should meet the others" Terry suggested.
"Why? I only want to hang with you" I complained, I wanted to take all
of this slow.
"But I don't live here" Terry said indifferently as if it was an
everyday thing.
"What?" I shrieked and sent my plate smashing into the ground, small
fragments flew everywhere.
She sighed and took out a ready dust pan and brush "Okay I'll explain
everything. This place is actually a castle with 9 floors you only live
in the fourth. This place is kind of a refuge for all kinds of mythical
creatures I didn't think existed until I lived here. But for some reason
if you're married you can't live here but people tend to not want to
anyway. Alex's father owns this place so he is in charge, kind of like
the landlord" she smiled.
I thought about what she said "what's the time?" something else
sparked my interest.
"Just past noon" Terry said, checking her watch.
"Can we go outside?" I begged, clasping my hands together and glancing
at the curtained window in the kitchen.
"Okay" she agreed.
We went through big French doors, exposing the front yard to my keen
eyes. It was really cloudy and starting to spit but my eyes were
sensitive to that small sun exposure. There was a roundabout with lots
of big green plants, some reaching metres high, it was quite pretty. I
walked 20 meters in front of the castle and turned back round to stare
at my living arrangement front on properly. It was so surreal it could
have come straight out of one of those fictional vampire horror movies.
It looked so haunted with a few huge vines crawling up the side and
every window covered by a black curtain, not to mention the occasional
cracks near the base of the building.
"Do you want to see the back?" Terry suggested.
I nodded and went back into the castle. We were going past the lounge
room when Terry stopped.
"Come meet the gang" she offered.
I hesitated but agreed we walked into the lounge room everyone inside
instantly looked at me.
"Hey guys this is Chelsea" Terry introduced "Chelsea this is Rowena,
Theodore, Katrina, Katinka, Cornelius, Luscious, Maxamus, Jonathan,
David and Daniel" they all waved at me when she said there name and I
waved back.
"Sorry for scaring you the other day" Theodore apologized.
I looked at him confused.
"I was the wolf" he hinted.
"Oh that's okay I finally realized this is a living nightmare that I
can't get out of so I'm trying to adjust to it all" I smiled I was
tempted to ask what he was.
"I'm a lycon" he said.
"You can mind read to" I said shocked.
He laughed "no I could tell by your facial expression" I blushed "do you
know what a lycon is?" he teased.
I shook my head "nope didn't pay attention in my mythical creature's
class" I joked.
They all laughed making me feel not so nervous.
"A lycon is a human that can change into wolf form at anytime" He said
this like he was on a discovery channel.
"That's pretty cool anyone else a lycon?" I asked.
Cornelius raised his hand.
"Anyone else a vampire?" I said wrinkling my nose a bit.
Katrina, Katinka (twins), Jonathan and Luscious put their hands up.
"Anyone here a werewolf by any chance?"
David and Daniel put their hands up (there also twins).
"I'm staying away from you guys at full moon" I joked.
They feigned hurt."What are you guys then?" I asked Rowena and Maxamus.
"I'm a water demon and Max is a fire demon" Rowena answered.
"I thought a demon was just a demon" I said awed.
"You have been watching too many supernatural episodes" Max laughed "I
can sort of control fire and Rowena can sort of control water".
"What so you finally decided to show?" a cold voice rang out making my
smile slide off my face.
"Hey Alex man" Daniel and David called out at the exact same time.
I looked at Alex a frown plastered on my unhappy face.
He smirked at me "knew Terry would get you out".
I didn't say anything I just looked at Terry to see a gorgeous guy with
his arm around her waist.
"Hey Chelsea this is Jaron" Terry gushed smiling at Jaron
affectionately.
He gave me a warm smile "hey Chelsea I heard a fair bit about you from
Alex but never a name".
I smiled at him he seemed nice "Hey to you to! He wouldn't have told you
my name because I didn't give him one and what could you have heard
about me from him he doesn't know anything about me" Jaron shrugged.
"So Chelsea you've obviously met the gang" Alex said putting emphasis on
my name.
I ignored him "can you show me the back now?" I asked Terry.
She shook her head "sorry me and Jaron have to be going now" she said
apologetically.
I gave a small smile "that's okay I'll see you soon?"
She nodded and hugged me I flinched again then they left.
"I'll show you the backyard" Alex offered.
I ignored him again and turned to Theodore instead.
"Can you?" I asked in a wheedling tone.
Theodore glanced at Alex uncertainly but smiled at me "sure come on".
I followed him eagerly through the bottom floor he opened same French
doors that were at the front just at opposite ends of the castle.
"Pretty" I gushed clasping my hands together.
The first thing I saw looked like a miniature forest and it had a little
path going through it and at the end was a big fenced in ground pool.
There were lots of little fountains, lamps and pretty, colourful plants
and flowers. Near the pool was a cute, little gazebo with a little table
and chairs.
"Come on let's sit" I said pulling him over to the gazebo
I plopped down and closed my eyes taking a deep breath.
"Don't you love the smell of rain" I sighed content.
"Its okay I guess" he said nonchalantly, I opened an eye at him and he
shrugged.
"Why aren't you scared?" he asked.
I closed my eye I don't know why I wasn't scared Theo didn't look the
killing type "why dwell in fear your whole life?" I answered simply
"were you always a lycon?" I asked.
"No I was attacked by one when I was 8" he said sadly.
I didn't want to ask but I was curious.
"So if you're bit by one you are one?" I asked cautiously.
"Yeah I guess so?" he said distractedly.
"Does your wolf side um....take over?" I phrased awkwardly.
"Only when you first turn. For a while you can't control it but
eventually you do" he explained.
"Does it hurt?" I asked getting off that subject.
"What?" he said confused.
"Changing into wolf form" I asked.
"The first few times yeah" he answered.
We fell into silence so I opened my eyes. He was full on staring at me
and I fell off my chair in surprise. I got up off the ground blushing
and he laughed at me.
"You need clothes" he stated.
"You think?" I said sarcastically.
He laughed again."So about how many uh things live here?"
I asked delicately not knowing how to phrase it.
"Well there's about 108 rooms so about 100 people" he shrugged "they
don't all stay here all the time half of them only sleep here and do
their own thing during the day".
I got a funny feeling in my stomach it was half nervous half scared.
"Its okay we sorted the floors into age groups" I gave him a questioning
look "okay on the first floor is where Alex's dad sleeps and where
everything is like music room, kitchen, lounge room you know" I nodded
"second floor is the kids third is for early teens fourth is for late
teens which is us fifth is for early 20's sixth is late 20's seventh is
early 30's eighth and up is late 30's and up".
I nodded "It sounds really organized".
He shrugged "Yeah I guess so".
"Can I call you Theo? Theodore takes too long to say" I asked randomly.
"Uh okay" he said taken by surprise "we going back" he asked seeing as
how I was getting up.
I nodded and skipped down the path back to the castle once again
marvelling at its size. I pushed through the door and ran into someone
making me fall to the ground on my butt.
"Dam chest of stone" I grumbled picking myself up off the ground.
When I didn't get a reply I looked t see who the chest o stone belonged
to. It was a guy about his early 20's and handsome in a dangerously dark
way. He had dark olive skin, short black hair and dark brown eyes. He
stared down at me making me feel minuscule and uneasy.
"The polite thing to do is say sorry" I encouraged.
His stare didn't falter "I'm Chelsea" I offered shaking my hair out of
my eyes and offering a hand.
He just stared and I put my hand down shuffling my feet awkwardly. Theo
came up behind me.
"Hey Derek" he said warningly.
'Derek' shrugged and slouched away."That was way awkward" I confessed.
Theo frowned "Be careful with him Elle".
I grinned at my new nickname then it changed to a frown at what he had
just said.
"Why?" I asked curiously.
"Just because okay?" Theo warned.
I still looked at him confused.
He sighed "look I'll tell you later" he snapped his face going dark.
I whimpered at his tone and he softened.
"Sorry it's just I can't tell you yet okay?" he said gently.
I smiled "that's okay" and I skipped back to the lounge room back to
everyone.
There was another member to the group.
"OH MY GOD YOU MUST BE CHELSEA!" a preppy looking chick squealed running
over and giving me a preppy hug (you know how it's not really a hug more
like just touching their shoulders and leaning in).
She pulled away from me and gave me the once over and wrinkled her nose
a bit. Her blonde hair looked anything but natural and she had plain
hazel eyes that screamed 'FAKE'. She was wearing a micro Minnie skirt
and a seriously tight little shirt. She had big heels and really red
lipstick. If I passed her on the street I'd say hooker and she was the
kind of person I would avoid at school. She held out her hand.
"Hey I'm Tiff" she said beaming freakily.
"Hi I'm Chelsea but you already know that" I said shaking her hand while
worried her extra long nails would scratch me.
"Alex told me all about you" She exclaimed nodding like a bobble head.
I looked at Alex then back at Tiff "He's been doing a lot of that to
everyone" I frowned.
"Later we are so going shopping" Tiff squealed excitedly.
"Yeah" I squealed back.
I rolled my eyes when she turned away. I heard someone chuckle. It was
Alex he had seen me roll my eyes.
"What?" I snapped at him.
"You're amusing" he smirked.
"You're ugly" I retorted.
"You don't think that" he teased evilly.
"What?" I was confused.
"Remember when I kidnapped you. You thought I was gorgeous" he smirked.
I blushed my face heating up at an alarming rate irritated that I got
embarrassed "that was before you spoke".
He didn't cease smirking "Whatever" he looked at me for a second "follow
me" he ordered.
"No way" I wrinkled my nose.
"I'm just going to give you something" he said impatiently.
I followed him upstairs to his room. It was easy to say he was wealthy;
his room was huger than mine and more elegant. He started looking around
under his bed and in his cupboard.
"What are you looking for?"
He glanced back at me "close your eyes" he ordered.
I reluctantly closed my eyes to feel a wet lick on the side of my face.
"What the-" my eyes flew open