Diary of the Unbroken (BOOK #4)

The Father's Dance

Ava

        Jacqueline and Bernard organized the charity ball within a week of their arrival. I knew they both had a certain pull on people, one that had nothing to do with compulsion. But damn, they worked fast.

            I pulled on the cream-colored gown Angelina had laid out for me. Luckily, it fit and didn't hug my body too tightly. She also helped twist my hair into a simple, demure bun. Now I stared at myself in the mirror, barely recognizing the girl looking back.

            Only months ago, I did just the same. Dressed in that sleazy red dress with my hair all tangled and matted and my eyes blood red. Then, I didn't recognize the girl either. I was a vampire. That much hadn't changed.

            But I was tired of groveling in self-loathing. Ever since William left, things had changed. More than an old me could ever imagine.

            Someone knocked on the door, pulling me from my fading thoughts.

            "You ready?" Luke asked, dressed finely in a well-fitted tux. A few months ago my heart would hurt at the sight.

            For so long Luke had a thing for me, and I had a more unspoken thing for him. But we both went our separate ways as we developed feelings for other people. The two people who also happened to have disappeared and lose touch over the last month.

            I took in a deep breath, ignoring the scent of his blood. "Yeah, let's get this thing over with."

            The event was being held at the Newberry Country Club. An orchestra played as we walked inside the building and people already filtered throughout the room. I tried not to breathe due to the amount of human surrounding me. Lately my senses had been amplified more than usual.

            "Are you okay?" Derek asked, coming up from behind me.

            "I'm fine," I snapped, maybe a little too harshly.

            People smiled and laughed and danced—no signs of the Originals' compulsion at work. I tried to ignore the sinking in my stomach and nausea taking over me. The old me lived for this kind of thing. Way back when, Liv and I would be stealing a bottle of liquor right about now and finding a back room to have our own little party.

            I glanced around for Liv. She stood with Hanson  near the refreshments. We'd barely talked any lately, due to a few recent events. Ever since she told me she was dying, things had changed even more. She'd been acting pretty damn bizarre lately, but I couldn't say I was doing any better.

            Familiar faces floated by, stirring up that sinking feeling inside of me. Months ago, I walked this same line. I divulged myself in the life of the party. I knew these people and their dirty secrets. And they thought they knew mine.

            But months ago, I wasn't a vampire. Months ago, I wasn't an orphan.

            I took a seat as everyone danced, feeling slightly queasy. Lately, the feeling became a new part of my nature. I knew to expect it at the most inopportune times.

            Derek walked over at one point, trying to hide that forever-worrying expression on his face. He offered a hand to me. "Care to dance?"

            I shook my head. "No, thank you."

            "But I insist."