CHAPTER 1 Olivia Abbott smiled to herself; the lilac crocuses in the flower beds along the sidewalk were the exact same shade as her mini dress.
Franklin Grove was finally shaking off the snow from winter and spring was in the air.
Her twin sister, Ivy Vega, in her stompy black boots, seemed more interested in balancing along the line of black tar that ran between the slabs of concrete than in looking at the flowers.
"Where's he taking us?" Olivia whispered to Ivy.
Mr Vega, their biological dad, was striding a few paces ahead of his daughters like he was being stalked by a vampire hunter. He had asked for another bio-family afternoon together but hadn't told them why.
"Somewhere dark and quiet, I hope," Ivy whispered back, shading her black-lined eyes with her pale hand. "All this sunshine is giving me a headache."
"Don't be such a hermit, Ivy," Olivia teased. Despite being complete opposites, Olivia totally loved her goth twin. <strong style="font-family: Tahoma, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 26px; text-indent: 28px;">Chapter 2 "That's me," said Aunt Rebecca, smiling warmly. "And you two are the spitting image of your mother."
She was older, obviously, than the photo they"d seen of their mom and her hairstyle was different – but there was no denying it. She looked just like their mother, the same mischievous smile, the same oval chin. Ivy was so surprised, she couldn't think of anything to say.
"I didn't know she was a twin," Olivia said, grabbing Ivy's hand under the table.
A few months ago, when Ivy learned that their mother had died in childbirth, it had felt hollow, like something was missing. Aunt Rebecca was the closest she would ever get to her real mom, and she couldn't get closer than a twin. Ivy squeezed Olivia's hand back.
"I wish you"d known about me," said Aunt Rebecca, casting a glance at Mr Vega. "And that I"d known about you."
Uh oh. Ivy realised that there was some tension between the two adults. That's why he brought us to Mr Smoothie: the First Law of the Night. No humans could ever know that vampires existed – Olivia being a rare exception – so Mr Vega had to be extra careful that Rebecca didn't get any hint of the truth. You couldn't get more un-vampire than neon lights and cow-shaped straw dispensers.
And Ivy guessed that was why Mr Vega never told Rebecca about the twins and separating them.
Ivy jumped in to try to break the tension.
"Well, it's good to meet you now."
Mr Vega started to explain, "I knew she used to live in LA, but –"
"But I moved years ago," Rebecca interrupted. "Now, can I give you both a hug?"
Ivy nodded and the twins stood up at the same time. Their aunt smelled like hay and coffee and hugged like a warm, comfy quilt. Ivy wondered if that's what her mom's hug would have felt like.
