The Outsiders

* Chapter One *

The fire struck from nowhere.

That's the thing about death, he is always watching. He lingers about in the shadows waiting for the perfect moment to wrap his icy fingers around the next victims soul.

He is unpredictable. Many spend their lives running away from the grasps of death yet he still finds them. Death always finds them.

How can people be so afraid of something so graceful?

In their last final moments death seals their inevitable fortune with a kiss, taking the very last breath from unsuspecting lips.

Death seemed to linger around the Whitlock family, nonchalantly taking away each member one at a time. It seemed to always be a tragedy in which each Whitlock had encountered. It had been this way for centuries, death following them like some twisted curse.

A fire, the most recent catastrophe taking the life of Count Edward Whitlock.

He was the last male heir to carry on the Whitlock name. The Whitlock name perished in the fire alongside Count Whitlock, leaving behind a girl whom had came across the cold reaper of death many times before.

Present Day...

"Your grandmother is very eager to see you miss" Edgar the chauffeur reassures, not taking his eyes off the road.

Lilith ignored him and continued to gaze out upon the green fields surrounding the dust road. Unlike Britain there seemed to be no sign of clouds nor rain. Lilith hated it, although she would never admit it she wished she was still at home in Derbyshire.

Her town was large, yet everyone knew of the Whitlock family. Her father was respected amongst the townspeople. Many kept away from their family due to a rumor regarding the families involvement with witchcraft.

Because of the families alienation from the rest of society, Lilith was used to spending her days wandering the cold halls within the Whitlock estate. She had grown comfortable with her solitude and preferred it to socializing with the townsfolk around her age.

The only positive to this hellish situation was that Lilith was left a huge fortune from her father which would be bestowed to her in monthly installments. Enough for her to live comfortably. Another thing Lilith had been left was whatever's left of the Whitlock estate after it perished in the fire, however due to her minor age she cannot inherit the estate until she turns 18. Saying as though she had not long turned 17, Lilith would have to live with her grandmother for almost an entire year.

She did not know anything about this grandmother, her father never spoke of his mother in law. Lilith didn't even know that she had another living relative, the closest thing to a relative she had left was Edgar who had served her family for many years. He had already visited the home to bring all of Lilith's belongings.

According to Edgar, she ran a home for the mentally deranged youth. It seemed quite peculiar but at least Lilith wouldn't seem so out of place there.

A sudden chill sieged throughout the car and the all too familiar musky scent fills Liliths senses.

Jane.

Lilith looked over at the seat next to her and sighed at the sight of Jane watching her with the same melancholic eyes. Jane always seemed to follow Lilith, never leaving her younger sister alone for very long. Jane had the same striking Whitlock features as Lilith, long mousy hair, enchanting green eyes, tall willowy figure and pale skin. Only, the younger Whitlock sisters throat didn't have a protruding red slash across the jugular.