o2; vampires exist, yeah, apparently they're serious.

Cold air whipped past me as I plunged to earth. All I could hear was the whistle of it in my ears and the feel of it freezing me to my bones. Snow was everywhere I looked fluttering around me beautifully... Reality hadn't hit me, it was like flying.

But I was going to die.

Just as the shock had tingled through me, I was caught. He'd swooped down and caught me. It would have been reminiscent of Superman, if I wasn't on the brink of freezing to death and he wasn't a monster from another dimension trying to kidnap me for mysterious, worrying, unknown reasons.

"Do that again, girl," He growled, his voice suddenly converted to a raspy snarl, "Then you will suffer more than I had originally intended."

And how much had I been originally intended to suffer? I wondered with a touch of terror. As if this wasn't bad enough.

Eventually I felt so cold that it hurt to move. I wanted to curl up into a ball and go to sleep. My eyelids were beginning to close, and I wasn't keeping track of time, when I noticed a change in the air. It was a lot more still. I made myself look down. Below us, not too far below us either, the mountains had receded. The sky was cloudy still, but it wasn't snowing or raining. I could see thick foreboding forest on the craggy hills in around us, walling the valley in.

On one of the those crags sat the most ominous, and similarly, the most exciting castle I had ever been to. Not that I had ever been to many - except save a few when I went to France with my father. But this castle wasn't like those ones.

It was dark slate coloured, and stood out of the rocky cliff face like it was part of the land, blended well with the forest. But it was too beautiful to be natural, and it was much too gigantic. High iron wrought fences surrounded the immediate grounds, the only area where the glass was at all manicured. There were towers and perfectly constructed spires and statues. I couldn't guess at how many floors the building had - but certainly many. People in stained glass windows stared my hauntingly as we flew past, as if they disapproved of me and my feeble state at the moment.

I didn't have much time to admire the place though, as my kidnapper kept going ever lower, aiming, I think, for a blackened balcony with an open archway to enter through.

What could they even possibly want me here for? How could such a place exist and not be known about? Surely I was still dreaming, because that was the only possible explanation I could even begin to understand.

He hit the ground so lightly that at first I didn't even notice. I was so exhausted, more tired, and colder, than I'd ever been in my life. I just wanted to fall asleep... Or even better, wake up, and be safe in my bed at home.

"Stand up." It was a command, not a request.

He put me down, and I flinched when I felt my frozen feet hit the rough stone floor of the balcony. My knees, weak and useless, buckled beneath me. Before I collapsed, I felt his hands digging into my shoulders, holding me up. He growled loudly. I could almost imagine him saying, pathetic humans...

He lead me into the room. I barely noticed anything about it, save for the bed and the warm looking sheets atop it. Then another thought hit me.

"What do you want from me?" My voice had taken on another meaning this time. He smirked at me, and looked almost like he was about to laugh.

"Nothing for now," He said, his voice turning stern again. "Sleep. Do not leave this room - or you will be punished. Someone will bring you food if you need it. Goodbye Lilly."

He turned away, looking more than glad to be rid of me - relieved. I was too tired to worry anymore, too tired to care what he was, or to care who I offended. I just wanted to sleep and to be warm. And to see my parents, but that looked unlikely.

"Who are you?" I said, my vision starting to blur with exhaustion.

"My name is Erik," He frowned at me with disapproval that reminded me of the stained glass people... Or did they remind me of him? Whatever. He disappeared before I could even trace the movement of his shadow.

I stumbled towards the inviting looking bed, until I literally fell on it. I had barely pulled the sheets over my body and my eyes closed instantly.

***

When I woke up I was shaking. I'd had a nightmare I'd never forget, flying vampires, snow capped mountains, a gigantic castle... and intensely bright green eyes were all burned into my mind. Then I opened my eyes - expecting to be in my room, safe, wrapped in my familiar sheets, with Beverley Hills waiting just outside my window.

I was very mistaken.

My heartbeat began to race once again when I took in the strange alien room that I didn't recognise at all. I remembered my nightmare - or rather, last night - with new found clarity, and the panic started again. I wrapped my arms around myself, pulling my knees to my chest, trying to convince myself I was dreaming still, that I'd wake up soon, but it wasn't working.

The room I was in was lavishly decorated - the walls were covered with ornately patterned expensive wallpaper - black and tarnished silver. Ahead of me the archway that I'd flown (I still couldn't believe it) through - had been closed against the outdoors with heavy red drapes. Around the room there was a polished wooden desk and carved chair, a oak wardrobe, and there looked to be a bathroom, as well as a door out - which I clearly remember being told I was not to use, and I felt cold again. Then theme was most definitely gothic.

The bed I was in was comfortable to the point that it felt like I was sinking into it, being strangled by the blood red silk sheets. I pushed them off me, realising I was wrapped still in my fuzzy black dressing gown that I'd been wearing last night. No, it hadn't been a dream. I was never this imaginative.

My feet recoiled when they touched the bare floor. The stone was cold on my bare feet, and I didn't have any shoes or socks. I didn't have anything - I didn't even know where I was. I made myself explore the room - fighting panic every step of the way. I couldn't summon the courage to look outside and pull back the drapes - I could remember, almost collapsing on the burnt looking balcony last night, in the dark lit only by my kidnapper's incandescent anger at me...

On the desk was a set of clothes that someone must have left out for me. Had someone been in here while I slept? It was unnerving to think about. The clothes seemed to be about my size, including a dark wine coloured sweater, a black knee length skirt, and even a pair of plain black doll shoes, also the correct size, which lay beside the chair. I guessed I was supposed to wear them. Not that I had much choice, really, compared to what I had.

Next to the clothes was an open notebook, black and leather-bound, and a pen resting on it. It was empty save for this, written in elegant script:

Lilly Marie Morretti

A reminder. Do not leave this room until you are sent for. The door is locked. You were warned.

Then a line below it, in completely different, in loopy scrawl:

Put the clothes on - if they don't fit then let me know. I'll see you soon, probably.

I was left to wonder at the message as I explored the bathroom. The first one was obviously from him. Erik. The second one, I had no idea. It looked like they didn't want to hurt me, at least. That was a bright side.

The bathroom was white - the oversized round bathtub looked more than inviting. At first I worried if they wouldn't like this, then some more defiant part of my mind took control, and I started the hot water, not caring about my situation. I realised I was still cold from the night before - and I stuffed my hands into my dressing gown pockets - I was surprised when I felt the cold plastic of my blackberry at the bottom of it.

I gripped like it an explorer held onto their last bottle of water in the Sahara desert. I could contact someone. I would be rescued. They could trace my call, they had to, somehow...

When I turned it on, there was no signal. It was impossible to send or receive calls in this place. In tried to remember the view I'd seen of the castle - I didn't recognise it. And hell, if I told anyone I'd been kidnapped by flying monsters with glowing eyes and monstrous fangs, they'd think I was insane, or that I was crank caller, and hang up anyway. A new wave of despair rolled over me.

I turned off my phone, and left it at the very back of one of the desk drawers, hoping that no one would find it, and that maybe I'd get a chance to use it.

According to my phone it was ten in the morning - but I didn't know where in the world I was, so I peered carefully outside just to check. The craggy valley looked different in the pale sunlight. The forest stretching out before seemed greener and wilder than ever - more impossibly unnatural. The castle I was trapped seemed blacker against the rocks. I stepped cautiously onto the balcony, and looked over the low iron rails. The height was enough to make my head spin with vertigo. The ground seemed so far away, so rock hard.

There were birds, big and unusual birds that I didn't recognise, but other than them, I could see no other signs of movement around me. Everything seemed still, even the windless air.

When I went back inside, the bath was full.

I sat in it for a long time, until I felt warmed to the bone, and my hands went wrinkly with the steam and water. I thought about my family. They'd be looking for me right now. My mother would be going spare, my father would be furious. No doubt the newspapers would want to know about the disappearance of the celebrity couple's youngest daughter... I could imagine the newscast now, I thought sarcastically.

And I realised that I was crying.

Last night had taken it's toll on me, I realised when I saw my face in a mirror. I was paler than ever, and the dark circles under my eyes were more prominent than ever. I pulled my wet hair out of my face to see more clearly. A sparkle of silver caught my eye. My eyes trailed, for the first time, down to my neck.

Glittering malignantly on my neck was an elaborate silver pendant - with a big dark red stone set into the concise silver loops and swirls. It leered up at me from my collar bone, daring me to try and remove it. I reached to the back of my neck searching for the clasp; there wasn't one.

It seemed to have fused to the skin of my neck. My mouth fell open, horrified. I pulled on the silver band around my throat, but not only did it refuse to budge - it racked my head with searing, blinding pain until I let go. It would not be removed. I blinked, trying to clear my head. If I couldn't remove it, I had no choice but to wait.

I got dressed into the clothes that someone had left for me. They fit very well actually. Wasn't I being a little pampered for this to be a proper kidnapping? I tried to open the door out of my room, feeling braver. The heavy door was locked tight.

Then I saw the notebook. I started to write.

I didn't know how long had passed when the I heard the lock of the door I'd been trapped behind click, with a strange rusty noise, but it made me jump from my seat. I snapped the notebook closed shut, feeling silly for writing a diary at a time like this. I shoved it quickly into the back of the drawer with my blackberry as the door swung open.

"Lilly-Marie, right?" A curious sounding voice inquired. A girl who looked about twenty, with jagged, bright purple hair, standing in the doorframe was looking at me curiously - I tried not to let my face flush, then she might notice the that I had hidden the notebook. But I didn't feel like she was going to hurt me. Probably because of the way she grinned cheerfully at me, like this was totally normal.

"L-Lilly," I corrected unsteadily, I tried standing up, and staggered slightly. "Who are you? Are you the one who-"

"Left you the message - yup, that was me - the second message anyway... Erik can be a bit...um, moody, can't he?" Her voice was surprisingly amiable. She seemed really normal - she was human, I meant. I hoped. No more monsters, please...

"My name's Zoe, by the way," she smiled. "And don't worry, I'm human. And, oh, the clothes look good on you - I knew I'd got it right. If you don't like them or anything then I can get some more - this place has pretty much everything."

"It's, er, the clothes are fine," I stammered, more confused than before. "What do you mean by being human? Where are we? And why is this-" I gestured to the necklace "-bolted into my neck?"

She eyed the pendant with some worry, then shrugged her shoulders mystified by it. "You'll have to ask someone else, I'm afraid. The vampires don't tell us a lot - we just get our orders and carry them out."

"Vampires?" I stared at her. "Is that what he was?" She was kidding, the rational part of my mind told me. But I knew that she meant what she said.

"How else do you think you got here last night?" She laughed like I was silly, "A bus?"

"B-but vampires don't exist," I wailed, "They're just... fiction!"

"Mhmm, that's what most people think," she nodded, "But you'd be surprised... Anyway, come on, I said I'd bring you downstairs to get food - so lets go before I forget which way I'm going again." She made a sharp movement to the door, and just because I didn't know what else to do, I followed her. My head was still in total chaos so much I hardly care about leaving my blackberry in the bedroom behind me.

I was about to ask her how exactly she would get lost, but when I looked outside, I could see why. Dark, forbidding corridors, with an unimaginable number of doors and archways leading to who knows where, many of them looking strange and forboding. Three sets of stairs that I could see - one spiral, one stone, and one wooden - so rotten is looked like it would break if I stepped on it. Windows every now and then, but not many. This place was a nightmare to navigate... I realised my mouth was open, and shut it.

Zoe smirked. "Yeah, it's hellish, I can tell you," she said, strating towards the spiral staircase closest to us. "It took me about an hour to find my way here. Some people go missing for days in this labyrinth - some don't ever come back."

"What?" I stared at her. Her face was grave.

"Yeah, I think that's why Erik doesn't want you trying to get out," she murmured. "There's worse things than vampires in this castle - it's wild. A vampire is relatively simple next to some of the monsters we've got."

"You're joking," I told myself again... Then looked back at the stony, haunting corridor behind us and quickened my pace.

"I'm totally serious," she said calmly. "But jeez, cheer up Lilly." If she was human too, then why did she accept all this lunacy? I ground my teeth together.

"You still haven't told me where I am," I muttered, "Or what you want with me. I was told I'm never going to see my family again - how am I supposed to cheer up?" She turned sharply into a hallway I almost never noticed, and I swerved to keep speaking to her.

"Honestly, I have no idea where this place is; Only that it's the castle of the King Vampire, Christoph, and that it's a pretty long way from California," she sighed, probably feeling a bit sympathetic. "I don't know what the vampires want with you; I just work for them. I risk my life working here, but it's kind of thrilling sometimes too, not to mention they pay me a small fortune - but they don't tell me that much. To be honest sometimes, I'd rather not know. Maybe they'll tell you, maybe not."

"Well, that's kind of unhelpful," I groaned, exasperated.

"Yeah, I know," She said, flicking her long purple fringe out of her sharp brown eyes to see my face, and smiling kindly. "If it's any consellation, I don't think they'll kill you, yet."

"That's... comforting," I replied, staring worriedly about me. Remembering those sharp white fangs flashing in the light.

"Erik doesn't usually kidnap people, Lilly," She frowned, thinking, "They usually come willingly. They probably need you for something... I'm just not sure what."

"I'm sure it was this way..." I heard her mumble under her breath, choosing a door and stepping through. I was completely lost as to where we were, feeling useless as ever. Zoe walked quickly ahead of me. I paused at the door when I heard a noise from close by. Not far away. Just down the hallway. It sounded like sobbing.

I stopped, and when I looked back for Zoe, she'd disappeared. I was alone. In a massive haunted castle. Owned by a bunch of vampires.

I was starting to think this would be the worst (or last) day of my life.