Gravel crunches outside. The black Mercedes pulls up to the bottom of the steps, Raven insignia on the doors silvered by the bright moon. My stomach lurches.
‘Please convey our regards to Stella,’ my father says, his hand on my back propelling me gently forward. ‘And remember, you’re representing Raven.’
How can I forget?
My mother frowns at him. ‘But have fun! It’s almost Halloween, after all.’
I go outside because I have no choice. At least Kyle isn’t trying to take my arm anymore. But my stomach won’t stop churning as we head down the steps. The driver opens the door and I get in, sliding across the seat, dark leather soft under my thighs. Kyle gets in next to me, folding his tall frame into the space.
‘This is pretty nice.’ He rubs his hand on the upholstery. I watch it, distracted momentarily by the long fingers, his smooth skin.
‘Is it?’ My mouth twists and I turn away, watching night stream past the tinted windows, black upon black. I can hardly breathe.
‘Who’s Stella Ravenna?’ I turn to see that Kyle has moved closer, one arm sliding along the back of the seat, and all at once it’s oh-so-intimate to be enclosed with him in this space of leather and metal, the smoked glass panel separating us from the driver as though we’re speeding along in our own little bubble. It’s an uncomfortable feeling. I know I need a personal guard, but why did my parents have to choose someone so annoying? I clear my throat.
‘Er, she’s a cousin. Sort of.’ I move away from him.
He huffs out a sigh, folding his arms. ‘So, it’s just going to be a party with all your rich Raven friends tonight?’
My rich Raven friends?How dare he. ‘They’re not my friends.’
‘No? Not fancy enough for you?’
I don’t say anything. First, because I need to control myself. And second, because he couldn’t be more wrong. I have no friends. How could I? My mind shies away from the recollection of small hands grasping, needle-sharp teeth biting, blood trickling from a graze on my knee. These are not fun memories. I blink back tears.
‘Sorry,’ he mutters.
Oh no. That’s the last thing I need. Pretty boy vampire pity. No thank you. I turn away, staring into the endless night. The landscape flashes past, dark humps of trees, the occasional building. I wonder how far we are from the nearest Safe Zone.
Safe Zones were set up two years after the Rising, during the Famine. Humans were dying, everywhere. And vampires realised that, if they wanted to feed, they had to take care of their food. So the four families got together and created the Safe Zones. Vampires were forbidden from hunting in them, their borders guarded, sun and wind powering silver lights to bind them in glittering strands of safety, keeping out the night, so that humans could live how they used to. I’ve never visited one. But I’m desperate to.
On impulse I lean forward, tapping on the glass partition. It slides down, the driver glancing back at me. ‘My lady?’ he says.
‘How far is the Safe Zone?’ I ask.
‘About a twenty-minute drive,’ he says.
‘Really?’ I bite my lip. ‘Is it along this road? Can we go there, on the way?’
The driver shakes his head. ‘I’m sorry, my lady. I’m under strict instructions from your parents. Perhaps you should speak with them.’
I sit back, disappointed. Something makes me glance at Kyle. He’s looking at me, frowning. I return the frown, then turn away.
We reach the outskirts of Dark Haven, the closest town to our estate. It was a human town once, before the Red Rising when the great families came to power. The shops are decorated for Halloween, the streets full of people, some already in costume despite the fact it’s still weeks away, everything painted silver and grey by the moon.
I spot a group of people dressed in black moving through the crowd, walking in formation. As we get closer, I realise they’re Raven guards, moonlight catching the silver details on their uniforms. I sigh. Does my mother not think… My mouth drops open as I spot another group of guards, marching in the opposite direction. What the hell? Have my parents actually sent a battalion of guards to watch out for me? Even by their standards this seems excessive. I turn to see yet another group of guards on the other side of the road, moving quickly through the crowds. And I realise Kyle is still staring at me. His arm has returned to the back of the seat, his fingers tapping on the leather behind me.
Already this night seems far too long.
As we turn the corner we pass a building I recognise. It’s a restaurant – well, at least it used to be, an old-fashioned soda place, they called it. I remember being taken there when I was younger, the colours muted by darkness, the smooth surfaces and mirrored wall fascinating.
Now it’s derelict, the walls half collapsed, beams like blackened shards against the moonlit sky. The damage looks recent, too. I knock on the driver’s partition and he lowers it again. ‘What happened to the restaurant, on the corner there?’
‘It burned down, my lady. A few weeks ago.’
‘Oh.’ I sit back, frustrated. It’s obvious it burned down. As the car slides past, the crowds parting, I glimpse writing on the wall, scrawled on the soot-stained white paint. It says ‘The North Wind will blow’.
I’m about to ask what that means when the car slows. We’ve arrived. My stomach drops. We’re pulling up outside a nightclub, the Dome. There’s a queue of waiting patrons, the doors blocked by several huge vampires. They’re Ravenna guards, their silver-grey livery banded with black signifying their status as a branch of the Raven family.
