Passion for Blood

Chapter 3

"What the hell is this? " Nathaniel asks with clearly audible irritation in his voice. " This is the party I was telling you about, brother, " Xavier says with an expert smile on his face. Somehow he had managed to get Nathaniel to accompany us to this ball, but from the looks of it, he has not been told what kind of party it is, nor does he look impressed. " Have you told him what this is really about? " I whisper in Xavier's ear. "I may have left out a few important details " he replies and a smirk creeps onto his face. The week leading up to the ball flew by, at least it did for me, as it consisted of my preparations, from trying on dresses with Grace to hair and such. The room was decorated with beautiful flowers, and the willow vines twined around the columns conveyed a garden theme. Music surrounded us everywhere, as did beautiful women in their gowns and masks covering their faces.

People were dancing around the room to the music, joy was evident in their eyes, laughter and the clinking of champagne glasses filled my ears. Seeing men walking up to women, asking them to dance and talking only makes me more nervous about this whole situation. " Well, I am not here to babysit... " Xavier says as he grabs a glass of champagne from a passing waiter. " Where are you going? ", I ask. " To have some fun, " he says with an obvious look. I take a deep breath and turn to my other brother who already has his mask on. " Shall we? " he asks, extending his arm so I can put mine around him. I put my mask on and we start walking around greeting a few friendly faces, my heartbeat still speeds up, it's unsettling being in crowded areas and knowing they could be anywhere. "You need to relax, little sister," Nathaniel whispers in my ear.

" I'll try," says I. " Have you your dagger with you? " he asks. " Yes, I have, " I say. My brothers had taught me to defend myself and know when an undead was nearby, as a safety measure when they were not. It's not that hard to spot one because if the person is not eating or drinking, it could be one of them. I carry a dagger in a pocket on my left thigh for emergencies. Even though I am prepared for it, it still scares me because I have never seen an undead before and if I were to be put in the position of having to kill one, it would be horrible because I did not just kill it, I killed what used to be a human. "Madeleine, is that you?" I hear a voice all too familiar from behind me and as I turn around I see Grace walking towards us. " That's my cue to leave," Nathaniel says kissing me on the forehead. He never liked Grace before, especially after she tried to pursue him. " He still does not like me," she says watching him walk away. " I am afraid not, besides there are plenty of men here, take your pick. " I say pointing to all the men in the room. " Most of them are not here just to talk, you blady perverts," she says looking at them in disgust which makes me giggle. " Have you talked to anyone else besides the old people and your brothers?" she asks. "No, I do not plan on it either," I say crossing my arms.

" I understand you perfectly, I should be afraid too, who knows if the person you are talking to is an undead," she says challengingly. " Who says I am afraid? I am just being vigilant. " I say proudly. "Whatever you say, at least dance with a man," she pleads. Huffing, I look around to see who I could dance with, but most seem very busy with the more outgoing and confident women. I'd much rather sit in the library and read a book, any book that traps you in it's world forgetting what our world is facing.

Grace and I are sitting on one of the couches now, watching people have a good time. "I am curious why Alexander did not show up for your first social season," I hear her say from beside me. " There was a meeting with the council and one of them had to attend," I say. " Oh dear, the meetings take forever and they keep repeating the same old things, work harder, is there any news... their numbers are growing blah blah blah, " she says mimicking their voices which makes me giggle. Shaking my head, I turn around and continue to watch the lively people in front of me until he catches my attention.

Brown eyes staring intently at me. I feel my heart sink into my stomach and my heart pound in my ears. His presence is quite unsettling, his mask only making it worse. A sense of power surrounds him and the way he stares at me like I am his prey only makes me more anxious, but oddly enough he also interests me. As if sensing my desperation, he tilts his head to the side and a smirk curls his lips, eliciting a frown from me. " Earth to Madeleine ", Grace snaps me out of the trance I was in just moments ago. " What happened to you? " She asks, smiling. " That man there, who is he?", I ask her " Oh, where? " She asks a little excitedly. " There, " I turn in the direction I saw him, only to find he's gone, " I do not see anyone. Madeleine, are you all right? " she asks with visible concern in her voice. "Yes, I am fine," I lie. I wonder where he could have gone or did I just imagine it?

" Well, I am off in search of a waiter, who I hope is walking about with something strong," says Grace, as she rises. " You can not drink, who will take you home? " I ask, ready to stop her. " Not for me, but you. It's 1935 and you can not even go near a man who is not related to you, so alcohol is the next best thing " she says smiling. Grace goes off in search of a waiter, leaving me alone with all these strangers, fantastic. I sit and watch how people interact with each other. The smiles and laughter everywhere remind me of the time when my family was normal when events happened and we all lived normally and mingled with strangers without care when I knew nothing of the other world. Now I wish for nothing more than to return to that time. I decide to go find Grace since she has been gone for a while now. I go to the bar area, but I do not find her. I thought she was going to get drinks. I finally end up outside and the cool breeze on my bare skin gives me goosebumps. I hug myself and keep looking for her, I walk down the balcony but come to a dead end. I turn to go inside. On my way there, I hear a choking sound behind me. I turn around and follow the sound and find an alley I missed. I notice two shadows, but the fire flares outside are not strong enough to see them clearly. I hide behind the wall so they can not see me. As I tilt my head to the side, I see that the two figures are a man and a woman. His head is resting on her neck as she holds onto him for support. This is certainly not where Grace is. What an unusual place to sleep with your partner, that must be quite uncomfortable.

Just as I am about to leave, I hear that choking sound again. I feel my heartbeat quicken and turn to see the woman's body fall to the ground and go limp. I take off my mask to see better, but when I look up, I see the same pairs of brown eyes as before. I try to turn and instinctively run away, but he wraps his arm around me and pushes me against the wall. I try to punch him, but his other hand stops me. Then he takes both my hands and holds them with one of his over my head while the other holds my waist. I am scared, no I am terrified and now I am stuck and I can not do anything but scream. I take a deep breath... "If you scream, I will kill anyone who rushes to your aid and we do not want that, do we peach," he says, his tone nothing but a warning.

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