PROLOGUE

It was raining so hard that day.

I could hear the pitter-patter of raindrops on the floor. I could smell the ground. I could feel the mud on my body. I laid on the ground, paralyzed. Too weak to even move.

I could feel the blood gushing out of my side along with the wounds I got. I felt almost half dead. And I actually just want to be dead at this point than feeling the overwhelming pain all over my body.

But that wasn’t the pain that made me wish for death to greet me.

It was the pain of loss. The pain of losing a family.

I could still feel the heat from the embers that still burned lowly from the fire. The fire that turned our village into ashes.

The Primrose was attacked by the vampires. They burned our entire village. Killed all the villagers that fought back.

I was one of the people who fought hard. But here I am, like the rest of the villagers. On the ground, bitten, stabbed. Bloody.

I could feel my body throbbing. I could feel the burn from my arm being twisted on my back. I wanted to move but I couldn’t move even a single muscle.

The pain was overwhelming, and I couldn’t even do anything about it.

I was so tired.

I just wanted to give up and die right there and then.

But then I heard it.

Bree’s screams pulled me back to sanity. It was her cries for mercy that gave me the strength to at least open my eyes.

I need to see her. I need to know she is okay.

And so I opened my eyes.

But the horror in her blue eyes was what greeted me.

She held both of her arms towards my unmoving body. And amidst the rain, I could tell that her tears had wet her cheeks more than the rain did.

She wore her favorite dress today. But the color white in her dress was almost indistinguishable with all the splotches of blood and mud on it. Even her golden locks lost its shine as it stuck on the sides of her face. The crystal clips that held it were dangling on its tips, some she totally lost.

My throat constricted at the sight of her.

She begged me to buy her those clips the other day. She even traded doing all the chores for an entire week just so I would buy her those shining butterfly clips.

But as she cried and screamed over and over, she cared no longer for them. All she wanted was to come to my unmoving and bloody body. Scared that I was going to leave her, too.

The pain in her blue eyes struck me harder than the knife that was on my side. And her screams of fear and pain are louder than anything my failing senses have ever heard. It was as if the pain she was feeling was more than she could take.

My eyes brimmed with tears at the sight of my lovely Sabrina. My younger sister.

I wanted to reach my hand out to her and wipe those tears away from her eyes. She has always been dependent on me. And I need to go to her now more than

I’ve ever needed before. I need to tell her it’s going to be fine. That everything will be okay.

But I couldn’t. Not when I couldn’t move. And most certainly not when she was held by two tall men, dragging her away from me. Making Bree thrash against their hold.

But her defiance was like of a fly to a spider’s web.

She had nowhere to go. She was trapped. They were already taking her. Taking her away, just like how they took our parents away from us. From me.

My lips trembled in utter loathing. I felt a blazing fire of anger suddenly lighting up in my chest. Pure, unadulterated hate consumed me.

Those monsters killed them. Our family. The people in our village.

Those monsters killed them all!

“... one creature. They must not have found it.”

“Then, we’re going for the next human village?”

“Probably.”

All my body could do at that point was shake and pour out a single tear. But my chest was so full of anger that I could feel my head twisting. Churning. Snapping. It almost felt like I was getting mad.

It was that kind of anger that you just want to smash into anything, even harm yourself in the process. That kind of anger that you wouldn’t mind getting sick mad just so you could get the revenge that you want.

I never knew I could go to such extent about wishing people dead. But here I am, wishing to the universe to kill off the monsters that took my family away.

“Hey! This one is still alive!”

One man—no, monster—screamed and pointed at me.

I could feel my eyelids closing, feeling too tired and exhausted at the emotional and physical pain I was feeling.

But as I could no longer hear Bree’s screams, the thought of the reason why that is, fuelled the fire of anger in my chest even more.

They took her! They finally took her away from me!

But I will take her. I will do everything to taker her away from these monsters!

I suddenly felt myself getting shoved on the shoulder.

“She was bitten. How is this mortal still alive?” The curiosity in that man’s voice was so palpable it also made me ask the same thing.

Why was I still alive? Why didn’t I just die the moment I was thrown out of the house? Why didn’t I just die the moment that blade pierced through my side?

Why didn’t I just die the moment that vampire monster bit me?

Why was fate so cruel to me that I had to feel all these pain: all wounds I got, my parents getting killed and Bree taken away from me?

I grew up a strong woman, but not as strong as someone who could endure this. I could take blow after blows in my body, but not this kind of pain. The internal pain of losing someone.

Not another one. Not all of them.

I felt a cold hand taking my wrist. “The bite must not be as deep. She has survived.”

“She will die eventually. Let her be. The humans bitten in this village are as good as dead. She either will be dead like the rest of them, or she’ll turn. But the first option is more probable with the wounds she got.” Raw anger burned in my chest all over again.

It was so easy for these monsters to talk so casually about death. About our entire village’s downfall. It was as if we were insignificant. As if we were ants that they so mindlessly would stomp on just to get rid of small nuisances like us.

“No, take her.”

The men’s chatters were stopped when another voice boomed around the place.

Even without opening my eyes, I could feel how the men beside me froze; how the air suddenly became extra chilly. How it suddenly shifted. Not because of the cold winds from the cloudy sky, but because of the mere presence of the man that suddenly wanted to take me with them.

No! I’d rather die than be with them for another second of my life!

With my body constantly growing weaker by the second, I could almost not hear anything anymore. I was becoming too distracted at how my mind was drifting away, pulling me towards the pits of unconsciousness.

But I fought against it. I was too curious who this sick bastard was to decide to further torture me with their devious presence.

“... die in a few more hours.”

There was a moment of silence before I heard steps approaching me. The feet that were moving against the muddy ground didn’t even make as much squishy sounds as the men that was with me. He moved like the air. He made no sound but his presence was certainly felt.

I flinched at the sudden touch on my cheek. And I don’t know what has gotten into me, but I felt something stir inside my chest and stomach upon that touch. A sudden jolt that was far from being painful. And it seemed like I wasn’t the only one who felt it.

The man’s fingers stayed still on my cheek, lingering for a while before taking it away. Making me seek for his touch just as immediately.

A deep longing suddenly was overwhelming my senses for him. I sought after his touch. The longing I felt for it was so strong I wanted to use all my remaining strength to chase after his fingers.

“Take her. I want her in the coven.”

But the icy command in his deep voice snapped me out of my insane trance. The fire of anger that was momentarily appeased from me getting back, burning brighter inside me.

No! I can’t be taken and used by these filthy monsters!

“Yes, My liege.” I immediately felt hands gripping on my shoulders.

As much as I wanted to thrash away, I couldn’t. I was so close to passing out now.

But with all the remaining strength I have, I opened my eyes again, wanting to at least show them how I loathed the idea of even merely getting touched by them.

Monsters!

But the moment I opened my eyes, my supposedly glare turned to an emotion of shock upon seeing those pitch black hair, gorgeously structured face and those piercing mismatched—gold and silver—eyes.

My mind immediately brought me back to that long hall I used to go to when I was a kid. That hall that was full of paintings.

My heart thumped rapidly in my chest. I recognize those eyes.

It was those eyes. The man in that painting.

The momentary change of color in his eyes caught me off guard even further. His oddly beautiful mismatched orbs just turned completely silver for a millisecond. A silver sheen passing through them for a while.

And the weirdest feeling made me close my eyes again. I also felt a sudden shift in my own eyes for a while. It was as if I also had the same silver sheen passing through my orbs. Certain sensations surged through my veins.

I felt all my strength leaving my body, only to feel getting refilled again by something new. Something that I know that wasn’t from me. Something that was given—transferred.

“The oath was taken by the heavens themselves. Soon you will be found by the person who shares the fate of your blood.”

My grandmother’s words rang inside my ears before I finally fell into oblivion.