Again thank you Omen freak for your review, you rock! I apologize in advance because I will be using more dialog from the movie, some chapters will have none, some will have it line for line in addition to my own scenes and dialog, but there will never be a chapter that's just a chunk of the movie and nothing else, so hopefully it won't annoy your pet peeve to much. I hope you enjoy chapter 3!

Two months Sera spent in that manor. Two months of seeing Theo's sick smug face. Two months of her father hunting vampires and coming up with nothing. Though hunting wasn't the only thing he had been doing, Theo had begun training shortly after their betrothal and to Sera's dismay he'd turned out to be a fast leaner.

Meanwhile, Sera had been learning how to walk, talk, sit, stand, eat and dress like a high-class lady. She had adapted to her new environment well, but inside she hated every minute of it. Possibly the worst part of it all was watching Lady McAshton dote on her three sons; Theo, Nigel and Flint, they were her pride and joy and though they all thought themselves so much better than others she was blind to it. Having to watch her look at them with so much love in her eyes only made Sera miss her mother more and more with each day. It was like that hole in her eight year old heart had opened up again and day by day sucked more and more of Sera's soul into it.

The past seven years of her life ran through her thoughts each day. Learning to hunt hadn't been what she wanted, it was what her father forced upon her. And now he'd forced her into something she was expected to suffer through for the rest of her life. Yes she'd be rich, yes she could have anything she wanted, except happiness. The McAshton's money couldn't buy her that. Especially when every time Theo passed her he eyed her like a trophy, like his property, it made her feel nauseous.

She tried to push all those dark thoughts away as Trudy and a few other maids dolled her up for a ball the McAshton's were hosting tonight. Her make-up was done like a porcelain dolls, her hair had been pulled away from her face in an elegant and elaborate up do. She had been tied up in a corset –seriously who wore those anymore? So now breathing was a painful chore. Trudy helped her slide into her dress, honestly she didn't mind dressing up and going to a party, it was just the way the McAshton's did it that made it all seem so unnecessary.

She stared at her reflection in the floor length mirror while Trudy made the finishing touches. The gown itself was stunning the royal blue fabric had a sweetheart neckline but her chest was covered by sheer silver lace that also covered her shoulders and back as well. There was also a thin silver lace belt at her waist that helped display her figure. The reflection in the mirror was beautiful but unrecognizable. It didn't look like Sera, not even the eyes – had these people really drained the life out of her so quickly?

~~~~~~~~~O~~~~~~~~~O~~~~~~~~~~~O~~~~~~~ ~ ~ O ~ ~ ~ ~

She entered the grand ballroom on Theodore's arm pretending she was with someone else, anyone else. Theo looked dashing of course in his perfectly pressed tux, his blonde hair gelled back, the ends curling slightly. He smiled like the whole world was laid out at his feet, being a McAshton it kind of was.

They began their night talking to people who were important to his grandfather. Even the new American couple Bob and Dottie Thompson. They all seemed nice enough but it didn't make up for Theo's behavior. His hand kept sliding down her back and she kept glaring at him until he returned it to an appropriate spot. Once, she was so fed up with it that she stepped on his foot with her heel.

She wondered if this was a preview of her life, an endless parade of parties suffering by Theo's side. As the night went on the conversations seemed to become more mindless as the people chattered on about their absurdly expensive lives.

At some point Theo decided he'd spent enough time with Sera to appease his family and now he was free to get away, to her great relief. But her good mood didn't last long, Theo went straight for a group of girls who'd been looking at him all night. Of course, Sera rolled her eyes, she'd gotten the playboy for a future husband. Ugh. Husband the word made her cringe. She made her way back to her room, for the past two months it had become her sanctuary. Once she was in the peaceful quiet of her bedroom she began ripping pins out of her hair. She went to her dresser and pulled out her old hunting clothes, she'd been hiding them behind all the silk and satin clothes Trudy insisted she wear.

Once she was in her skinny jeans, racer back tank top, hooded army jacket and converse she made her way to the balcony and took out her bow that she had hidden in the large potted plant. Instead of her quiver she opted for a holster that could be strapped to her thigh and could hold three arrows, it was lighter, more convenient and easier to conceal if need be. Then she began climbing down the ivy. She ran into the forest as thoughts of her mother began pouring into her head again. What would she say about everything that had been happening? Would she approve of the arranged marriage? Probably not. Would she approve of Theo? Definitely not.

Her mother had always told her to be herself and be proud of who she was. That definitely was not what she had been doing. The more she walked the more she thought about how disappointed her mother would be at the act Sera had been putting on. Sera didn't realize she'd been heading for the cliffs until she'd gotten there. She'd been walking for longer than she thought and in all that time the dark hole in her heart had taken over again and made every thought depressing. Her mother's smile, her laugh, spending holidays with her and Aunt Renee, none of it made her happy it only brought sadness.

When her mind came back to reality she was already standing on the edge of the cliff looking down into the dark water.

We have no way out. Grandfather is determined to see this through and McAshton's always get their way.

It'll be even more fun to break you in.

You can't beat me, Seraphina.

All of Theo's words from the past two months repeated themselves in her mind. Before they filled her with fire, a determination to beat Theo at his own game. But something inside her told her that it was hopeless to fight, why waste the energy?

Inch by inch her feet shuffled closer to the edge causing some loose rocks to fall into the sea below. She wondered what it would be like to fall, to feel so completely weightless and then feel nothing. If she was lucky maybe she'd even see her mother on the other side. As her toes hung off the edge a voice said,

"Don't do it."