Baldassarre: A Vampire Novel

01

I'm finally getting around to republishing and editing this book! This is a story I wrote around mid 2015, which I was still writing Little Wolf. I ended up unpublishing it, and there will probably be a title change. Thanks for reading.

Edited 4/6/16

I stood in my knee high combat boots and sundress, the royal blue cap and gown way too large for my tiny frame. It was a sight to see, as my mother would say. I had decided to spend an hour curling my pale blonde hair, only to brush it out and give up after I had burnt the side of my neck, resulting in a hello kitty band aid to cover the mark. I ended up deciding to be myself, throwing on the classic smokey eye my mother hated so much. As far as she was concerned I might as well start sacrificing lambs and worshipping Satan.

The ceremony was going to start in twenty minutes, but of course my family was no where to be found. They had never been on time, but you would think on this day they would at least try. Although I was the 'mistake daughter' they never wanted, who turned out to be worse than they imagined, I expected them to still show up. I tapped my toes and checked my watch with an urgency that reminded me of my mother.

Ten minutes passed and I pulled my iPhone from my pocket. No messages. No calls. Cool. Ten more minutes passed and the principal took the stage, ready to begin the ceremony. I still had a couple of speeches and a hundred students before they began to call the R's.

Enough time to introduce myself.

My name is Valencia Radley. Valencia. Just like the Instagram filter, although the name has been around way longer than social media. I am an eighteen year old fairy princess stuck in the body of a moody, grungy teenager.

Just kidding, I'm just a teenage girl who wears way too much eyeliner and enjoys listening My Chemical romance(RIP) instead of going to church with my family.

The principal started on the C's... No where to be found. I watched the doors, waiting for my parents to walk in at any moment. The door opened suddenly, revealing two police officers who were looking around for someone. The approached one of the teachers, Mrs Wayne, who sat at the end of one of the rows, whispering something into her ear. She stood up immediately and turned back to look at the crowd of seniors who waited patiently. Her eyes made contact with mine, and her usual scowl she sent me was missing. She walked over towards me, motioning for me to come to the end of the row.

The ceremony continued on while I stepped out from my row, and followed Mrs Wayne to the door where the police officers sat. Was I in trouble? I couldn't remember doing anything wrong lately... I could already hear the whispers of my peers, assuming I was being arrested at graduation. Of course it would be me of all people. We finally reached the two officers, who shot me matching solemn looks, before opening the doors and indicating for me to follow them out. Once outside, and away from the prying eyes, they finally spoke.

"Valencia Radley?"

"Uh yeah... Look I haven't done anything wrong, it's not cool to interrupt-"

"You didn't do anything wrong, darlin." The older officer began. He had a southern twang to his voice, and a thick bushy mustache that reminded me of Ron from Parks and Recreation.

"So... what's up then?" I crossed my arms and raised an eyebrow expectantly. Yeah, so I had a little bit of an attitude problem.

The younger officer cleared his throat before he began to say his piece. "Look, I'm sorry to say this, but there's been an accident."

My heart stopped. What kind of accident? Did something happen? Was this why my parents hadn't shown. My attitude immediately dropped. "W-what do you mean? An accident?"

"It seems that your parent's car was found flipped over on the side of the freeway, right by the old mill." He avoided looking me in the eye.

"And my parents? Are they alright?" I could feel my anxiety begin to build, my body shaking slightly, where only I could tell it was happening.

"Unfortunately, when we arrived at the scene, there was no one in the car-"

"Oh okay, so they got out? They're fine?"

"If you would let us finish, Miss Radley" the older officer interrupted, a stern look on his face. "We did find the bodies-"

"Bodies?! As in not alive?" Tears threatened to explode from my eyes but not once did I shed one.

"It seemed they were dragged from the car and mauled by some kind of animal, no one made it."

No one made it.

And with those last words, my whole world turned upside down.'