A Vampire's Life Book 1

Chapter 28

The trees are long and lanky, not a leaf to be found. The woods are sparse; the trees creak with the freezing cold wind that howls through them. I see the bird in the distance, resting on a branch. It chirps quietly again and flutters off as I reach it. The snow gets deeper, I can barely make it through it and I am cold, so very, very cold. The bird is in the near distance, it sits on another branch above a deer that has stopped, watching me. The bird melts into a long slithery shape, wrapping itself around the branch, it turns into a snake and slinks down the trunk of the tree. When it reaches the bottom, it takes the form of the queen, she grabs the deer, it barely has time to make a noise before I hear her snap its neck.

"Come here my child."

I walk over to her, watching her as she runs her finger over its neck, cutting at its flesh, blood oozing out. The smell of the blood fills my nostrils and something takes over, filling my mind with a need. My heart races.

"Quickly now."

In seconds I find myself on the deer, sinking my teeth into the wound. The blood warms me, my need sated. I can feel it course through me, my head swirls with the sensations. I pull up from the deer and look at the queen.

"The lord called me Alina."

"I know, I heard."

"All this time, you were the bird?"

She nods. "A ruse to make the Lord think that I was bringing the girl in later."

"Is she here? At the house?"

"Come, now is not the time."

She takes my hand and pulls me through the thick snow.

It seems like we are trudging through the snow for an eternity. We reach the edge of the woods; a housing estate lies in front of us. My pants are completely frozen, and if it wasn't for the blood from the deer I am guessing I would have icicles for legs. The queen pulls my hand to a nearby house and quietly knocks on the door. To my surprise Gerald opens the door. He says nothing as the queen pulls me in and shuts the door behind us. My parents and Ingrid are in the lounge room of this little house. I begin to say something and the queen shakes her head, covering my mouth. She raises her finger to her lips gesturing for me to be quiet. Ingrid smiles at me, something is different about her, something I cannot place. She gestures for me to follow her into an adjoining room. My mother and the queen follow us in. Between the three of them, they strip me down, leaving me naked in the cold room. My mother tosses a towel to me and I quickly dry my lower body. I look around the room and see there is a rack of clothing, beautiful dresses hang from it. My mother passes me dry underwear which I am really grateful for. Ingrid pushes me down into a dining chair and starts working on my hair.

Their behaviour is rather perplexing, I try to question them, but before I can speak, one of them always frowns at me. Ok, shut up, I get it. Just wish I knew what was going on. My mother starts to dress quickly, picking one of the dresses off the rack. As Ingrid starts on my make-up I see the queen changing outfits. When she is done she lifts a dress bag off the rack and unzips it. She pulls out a long white dress and unzips it. Tiny little crystals sparkle in the light, Ingrid pulls me to my feet and they help me into the dress. a wedding dress? In shock I look at the queen, she smiles at me softly. When we are all done, we return to the lounge room, my father waiting with several jackets. Thank Christ, it is freezing out there.

Gerald looks nervously out the window, he balls his fists with his anxiety, the leather of the gloves squeaking. He quietly opens the door and slinks out to the waiting car. Everyone rushes out, Ingrid gets into the front seat with Gerald, the queen and my mother getting into the back seat first then my father, he gestures for me to sit on his lap. Just like old times. I don't know where he drives to, but when we arrive I see another car. The building is old, the moonlight shines on the dark grey stones, tiny windows dot the façade. At the top of a tiny spire is a cross. A church? The door to the church opens slightly as Gerald pulls the car up alongside the kerb. Ingrid gets out and opens the door and helps me off my father's lap. Everyone follows us up the stairs and into the church. There is a man in a long white robe, he shuts the door after we enter the church, bolting the door tight. I look around, it is dark, a few candles light the way into the entry. The man nods at us and walks into the main part of the church followed by Gerald and Ingrid. My mother hugs me, the queen puts a sash over me and tiara on my head, curtsies and then hugs me. Why did she do that? She quickly follows after my mother. I look at the sash, it is a soft gold material with a crest that sits on my hip. My father stands beside me, in the dull light of the candles, I can see a happy tear trickle out of his eye. He kisses me on the cheek and links his elbow in mine. He pulls me into the church and I see the man again, he waits at the end of the aisle with the king and Alex. The queen, my mother, Penny, Gerald, Ingrid, Miranda and Terrance stand from their pews as we walk down the aisle. It dawns on me as I look at them in their regal attire, we are getting married, in secret.