Penny's Choice (Book 1 of Penny's Choice Series)

Chapter 3 (A New Normal)

"Okay, learn book," Penny said mockingly, taking the book in her hands. "Is there anything I should know that will speed the learning along? This is a pretty thick book."

"Not to be smart, but the beginning. Read the first chapter a couple of times. It's a very basic introduction. After that, you can skip around."

"So, will I learn why I wasn't killed with my family in this book?" Penny asked. The thoughts tormented her since that night. Most of her dreams revolved around her surviving.

"Indirectly, maybe. However, I can tell you one thing: it's important to remember with vampires that they are supernatural creatures, unlike humans who are natural, physical creatures. So a lot of things that make no sense to us, or even appear to be completely silly from a human perspective, are important to vampires."

"And how does that relate to him sparing me?" Penny asked. She often wished that she had just died with the rest of her family.

"Ah, basically, that you may never know. It could have been something you were wearing, your birth date, something you ate that night."

"Like garlic bread?"

"Um, no, vampires aren't allergic to garlic. More like an herb they consider having mystical properties or, even more likely, a dish that their mother used to make when they were human. Vampires tend to be obsessed with certain smells from their human life. If you get to know a vampire well enough, you can trap them with nostalgia."

"So if the vampire's mommy made tuna noodle casserole, now he has to stop and smell it?"

"Yep, kinda like a tuna noodle trance," Charles said without a hint of a laugh. Penny liked that she had a hard time deciphering when he was being serious or joking.

"You're right, that is silly." Penny leafed through the book for a minute while Charles stood over her.

"Do you have any questions?" Charles asked. He was leaning in close to her. Penny's heart beat a little faster every time he got closer to her. "I have some business to deal with. But I will be back in a couple hours."

"No," Penny replied, even though she had one burning question on her mind: What about us? Actually they were a series of questions about him kissing her, whether they were even allowed to kiss each other, and if he actually liked her or just got caught up at that moment. She would wait until later. "I need to get settled in here anyway."

"All right, I'll see you later then." He left without a hug, a kiss, or any other sign of affection that had been there before.

Penny sat on her new bed and surveyed the room that would be hers forever. There were strange symbols and decorations on every wall. The furniture was elegant, and either made of wood or gold. There were no mirrors anywhere in her room and, in fact, she hadn't seen them anywhere else in the house either. The ceiling was painted with frescoes from Shakespeare, and all the linens were silk or taffeta and all the drapes, the ones surrounding her bed and the ones covering three windows, were made of heavy embroidered wool. It was much fancier than she would have expected from a group of vampire hunters. But then again, from the moment she saw the house, it had blown her mind.

To say that the house was enormous was an understatement. Its Victorian architecture sprawled on four acres with gazebos; the miles of twisting hallways were made even more intriguing by secret passageways in the walls. Charles and Penny had to travel through the house in a roundabout fashion in order to get to her room. They descended a staircase seven steps and then went up eleven steps, where Charles reached out his hand and smacked the wall. A door had appeared, and he swiftly directed her through it. They had walked through walls, opened windows on the floor, walked on air. They rode the elevator down several stories and then walked across the hall and rode it back up to the same floor, which now looked completely different than before. Penny had counted again to make sure they were on the same floor. When Charles had seen how confused Penny was, he said, "I know this place doesn't seem to make much sense, but it keeps the vampires out." Penny was beginning to wonder if becoming a vampire took away your sense of logic.