I sighed. “You know how I feel about the initiation ritual.” I grimaced dramatically.
She laughed. “Well, it’s for a good cause. You are greatly protected.”
“Yes, I just don’t like the blood.” I didn’t like any of it really. I knew it all had to be done. The vampires would kill me before I could even blink. Those that are the child of a member are highly privileged, and I was the child of the leader. I had to get better at hiding my discomfort. Everyone worshipped the members. Maybe I should give in and court one, that would certainly appear normal.
As I entered the dining room, I was met with a scowling Lillian; my mother donned it so well. Olivia smiled sympathetically, and Father’s eyes never left his journal. I sat beside Olivia, and she patted my knee for moral support.
After I filled my plate, I finally met my mother’s glare.
“Thomas parted early last night. He wished us well.”
I cringed internally. We all knew what that meant.
“Charlotte.”
Ice burned through the length of my spine.
“Have you been feeling well?”
“Yes, of course. We just had ... different interests.” It certainly was not a lie.
“Are you sure?” Her words came out slow, methodical.
Olivia squeezed my knee. I had drifted from the room until then, and her warmth grounded me once more.
A twinge of pain shot through my chest at the memories that would never grace me with enough distance. I could feel the silver burning through me. The next exorcism would kill me. I was sure of it. But they didn’t see it that way. They thought my agony was a normal part of the process.
I fiddled with my scrambled eggs, pushing them around with my fork.
“Perhaps ...” I took in a breath before I forced out the words. “I should court with a member. We would have a lot more in common.” That was certainly a lie.
Father finally lifted his head from his journal, meeting my eyes with a grin. He leaned back in his chair, folding his arms over his stomach.
Mother glanced at him and back at me with a furrowed brow.
“That could be arranged.” He smirked.
My mother lifted her brow and returned to her food. “Very well.”
I had always been so vehemently against the idea, and they gave up a long time ago. So, I was not surprised that they didn’t push for answers. They were just happy that I finally came around.
Though my eyes widened slightly at the slice of grapefruit I turned to as I remembered last night, who was to monitor me closely. I maintained my composure as I realized who my father would arrange me with.
* **
I crouched behind a giant porcelain planter that was bigger than my body, wedging myself between it and the wall. It was placed in front of a set of double doors that were no longer in use. There was a crack between the doors, just wide enough for the perfect glimpse into the member’s dining room, where they held all of their meetings.
I had been spying on the Society since I was a child. As soon as I could register the threat to our world, I wanted to know everything about the vampires. I managed to read through every book on vampires in Father’s study whenever he was away on hunts.
A hand poked through the foliage of the planter, holding a dinner roll. I snatched it and turned back to the crack. The staff had always known I eavesdropped, and they always let me be, never telling anyone. As a woman, they didn’t believe I could do much with the information anyway. I nibbled on the roll as I watched the members settle in for dinner. They had their meetings far later into the night. Mother and Olivia were already tucked in bed by now.
“I’d like to welcome our newest members to their first Society meeting.” My father raised his crystal glass to the room. The burgundy liquid sloshed towards the edge. Everyone else raised their glasses as well. There were five grand tables in the room, my father at the center, of course. The Society consisted of about three hundred members, ever-growing each month. He placed his right hand over his left breast, over the amulet. “May silver reign.” They all repeated the same words and drank in unison.
I rolled my eyes as I bit into the roll. I’m not sure when the disdain started. It could have been when I was a teenager and Jeremy Evans tugged my hair and said, “Don’t worry, once I kill the demon that did this to you, your hair will turn to a normal color.” I nearly gagged when he winked at me. They were all so arrogant. I glared at him as he already drained his glass and held up the empty crystal for a refill.
James’ eyes met mine through the crack, where he knew I’d be. He also knew that I eavesdropped ever since he caught me one day. He tried to make me promise that I’d never listen in again. He didn’t want me to hear all of the terrible evils of our world, but I begged him to let me. I needed to know what was going on. No one would tell me otherwise. I deserved to know. He relented on one condition—that I came to him if it ever became too much. No one should process this sort of information alone.
I suppressed a giggle as he mocked my father’s stern expressions as he went through the usual speech of the Society’s importance. James’ face quickly fell flat with one glance from my father.
