Chapter Two

Three hours later, the novelty of being away from her parents and the constant watch of maids, minders and bodyguards had worn off. The room Colbie had been allocated was stark and plain, the white walls and bland furniture were a far cry from the four poster bed and mural covered walls that decorated her bedroom at home. She supposed that there was a price to pay for leaving home.

Lying back on the bed, the brunette ignored the pile of boxes in the corner and instead examined her hand as sunlight filtered through the window. The warmth of the light made her skin tingle pleasantly and it even buoyed her spirits. Having spent most of her life on a nocturnal schedule due to her parents’ race, Colbie’s skin glowed so white it was almost fluorescent. Or at least that’s how she had felt when she had walked among the other students who all had some degree of a tanned skin.

It was simple things like feeling the warmth on her skin, a strange and almost foreign sensation – one that would be lost to her should she follow in the footsteps of her siblings.

Shaking her head side to side, she tried to dislodge the thought. There were month’s left before the decision had to be made, months before her life would irrevocably change.

A knock on the door pulled, the slim woman from her thoughts. Pushing to her feet, Colbie stumbled to the door, tripping over a few boxes that were strewn over the worn carpets. With her hair hanging over her face and with her skin flushed, she pulled open the door.

“Hi,” She whispered breathlessly as her eyes took in the person on the other side.

He was barely six feet tall but with his slight frame and square glasses he was unlike anything Colbie had seen before. Behind his lenses she could see that his eyes were a blue colour that was so pale it was almost grey. They twinkled and positively glowed with childish glee.  All the males that she knew were either members of her father’s staff or they were obsessed with becoming part of the black brotherhood.  Those in service of her father were dressed in uniforms every day, were older than her by at least a decade and each treated joy and laughter like it was a hostile enemy.  The rest were so obsessed with becoming part of her family and its legacy that they cared more about how beefy their arms were and how fast they could swing a blade rather than making polite conversation.

“Hi, I’m Max. I’m your new housemate.” The guy replied brightly, his voice deceptively smooth and deep despite his stature.

For some reason with his string bean physique, she had almost expected him to squeak his way through his words.

Colbie eyed his blue tee with the superman logo emblazoned across the front and smiled in greeting.

When he held out his hand towards her however, she still eyed the offending appendage as if it might be contaminated but finally – hesitantly - wrapping her fingers around his.

“Nice to meet you Max. My name is –.”

“Colbie Carrington. I know.” He interrupted. Max’s hand continued to pump hers up and down with such enthusiasm and almost childlike glee that it was a little daunting to the girl who had spent most of her life in seclusion. “I watch the news you know. Your father is a bit of a legend.”

He stated it so blandly, like he was talking the weather but his words had already done the damage, Colbie, who had started to get just a little bit hopeful that this Max character would be prospective ally in this strange new world that had opened up to her, felt everything in her just stop. His need to know everything had dampened any amusement his quirky personality had inspired.  

Trying not to be too obvious, Colbie snatched her hand away and placed it behind her back. He wasn’t a wannabe muscleman, she thought as her smile lost its brightness and transformed into a grimace, he was a follower.

Max paused and frowned at the girl before him. In the space of ten seconds her entire demeanour had changed and his lack of social skills left him at a loss as to where he had gone wrong in the conversation.

“Anyway, I just wanted to see if you were coming to the party?”

A hand drawn posted was thrust into her face, waving right under her nose so that she went cross eyed in an attempt to read the words on the paper. The eager boyish man bounced on his feet but the youngest Carrington snatched it from his grasp. A small grimace was her only offer of an apology as her eyes flitted over the crudely drawn pictures and words.

“A party you say?” she murmured, peering over the edge of the paper to let her brown eyes rest upon the stranger. His name is Max, she reminded herself as she watched his head move up and down like one of those bobble head dogs.

“Do you know if there is alcohol at this party?”

Max deliberated for a second before nodding again.

“Yes, but if you are a teetotaller then you don’t have to partake.” He answered hesitantly. His perpetual energy high meant that within seconds he was bouncing on his toes once more.

“Oh I want to drink.” Colbie glanced side to side. Noting that they were alone, she whispered conspiratorially to her new housemate. “I’ve never been drunk before.”

Max rubbed his nose and gave her a grin so wide his white teeth shone.

“Nor me. My mum was a little bit strict. She didn’t even like me playing games on my Xbox if there were rated 15 or higher.” He rolled his eyes with a silly smile on his lips as he leant against the door jamb. “Luckily for me, my dad likes to oppose my mum at every turn.”

“So where exactly is this party?”

Twirling a lock of hair around her finger, Colbie wondered briefly what her parents would think if they found out that her first act as a free person was to go out and get drunk. She shrugged.

It doesn’t matter she reasoned. According to UK law, she was an adult. She was legal to drink, drive and buy lottery tickets. Not together though, she thought as she listened for Max’s reply. That could be dangerous.

“Over on the main campus. There will be a small firework show and bonfire as well as some live music. All planned by the student reps.” He taped the poster to reiterate his point.

“How do you know all this? The poster just says ‘party tonight!’”

Max shrugged and pushed away from the wall. “I like to research things. For example, the girl in the room next to yours has been around the block more times than a bicycle – if you know what I mean.” He whispered the last part behind his hand.

Colbie snorted and he laughed.  When neither could think of anything to say to follow up on that little nugget of information she shook her head incredulously.

“How?”

“You would be surprised as to what is available on the internet these days. How do you think I knew who you were? I saw the ridiculous car you turned up in and did a bit of google searching. If you wanted to blend in, you really should have opted for a different car.”

“I know.”

Max didn’t seem to hear her. He continued to murmur on under his breath but more to himself, his eyes going to the floor as he stopped bouncing and instead paced back and forth in front of her door.  To be polite, Colbie tried to pretend she wasn’t listening.

The poor guy was more than a little bonkers, probably with one or more screws loose,  but as she eyed his slim frame and kind face – well she could certainly imagine worse people to meet on her first day in the big bad world.

Clearing her throat, Colbie nodded at her head at the paper. “Will you be going to the party?”

When Max nodded, she clapped her hands and beamed so bright even her mother would have been proud.

“That’s settled then.  You can come and get me when it’s time to go.”

“That’s why I was knocking. We’re going to start the party now. You know a little pre drinking to get the show on the road. Apparently all students do it!” Max’s excitement was almost catching, the way he bounced eagerly on his feet as he waiting for a response.  His long blonde hair, which she had barely taken note of until that moment, flopped up and down with his excitable movement.

“And who told you that?”

“Oh, you know, the girl upstairs whose room is right next to mine.” Max’s cheeks became stained with a pink blush but she chose to ignore this little tit bit.

“Uh huh. Well if you say it is what student do then I suppose I should learn from the master. I’m new to the whole student thing.”

“Really, but your twenty. I read it in that article that ladies magazine did on you. Didn’t have any pictures mind you but people always seem to be fascinated with the unknown – you know?  What did you do last year instead?” 

And there it was again.

Drawing in a deep breath, and pulling her back up straight, Colbie tried not to think of how disastrous her year of ‘freedom’ was going to be.  There really was no escaping her life – if one geeky looking guy could find out everything there was to know about the elusive and never-before-photographed Carrington heiress within a matter of hours - it was obvious that there was little hope for a quiet life in the mortal world.

“There was a death in the family. Surely you read about that? It was on the front of every paper around.”

Ignoring the harsh bite to her words, Max’s eyes widened behind his ridiculously large and square glasses as his lips formed a perfect ‘O’.

“I’m sorry. My mouth runs away with me sometimes. My mum tells me constantly that I have no mental filter. I am supposed to think before I speak. I just forget to do that most of the time.”

Colbie held her hands out in front of her defensively.

“It’s fine. I would rather not talk about it. Just give me a minute to find some shoes and we can get this party started – what do you think?” When Max continued to look like a wounded puppy, she landed a playful punch on his arm. “Then you can tell me some more about our neighbours. I’m guessing I’m not the only one that you have been spying on.”

A flush ran up the back of the younger boy’s neck as he ground the toe of his shoe into the linoleum floor of the hallway.

“No.”

“That’s a date then.”

Grey eyes went so wide behind the lenses of his glasses that it was almost cartoonish. For a second, a stranger to normal human interactions herself, Colbie was uncertain what had provoked the reaction in the first male to actually talk to her in many years. And then her own face was heating as heat coursed through her.

“I didn’t mean. Never mind. Just –.” She paused. “Max, can you keep me being me a secret? I don’t want everyone to know who I am just yet. Makes it a little difficult to be me - you know?”

Max nodded his little head as he looked down at his new friend.

“No problem, I am great at keeping secrets.”

With a jaunty wave and a happy skip in his step, Max disappeared as abruptly as he arrived. It took several seconds for the young woman to realise she could actually close her door and that she was alone. The sudden silence and lack of energy now that he was gone left made everything so much emptier.

Releasing a sigh, Colbie looked down at her jeggings and tunic top combo.

“What does one wear to a party?”  

***

Darkness had fallen by the time Colbie, Max and his other friends had arrived at the party. Music blared from loud speakers on all sides and people gyrated against one another like some weird animal mating ritual that belonged on the discovery channel. Used to the ways of manners and genteel courting, even if her family did have one foot in the human world, it was all a little much for Colbie.

“Is that meant to be – dancing?” Her little nose wrinkled as she found herself squashed between Max and a few rather scary looking guys he had dragged out from the house next door to theirs.

At first Colbie had shied away from the imposing figures – both were over six feet tall and built like rugby players. Yet as time had passed and drinks had flowed, she had discovered that even though they didn’t talk much, it was clear that their bulk was more intimidating than the souls that resided within their bodies. Thus, snug between J.T, Brian and Max, she felt safe. Colbie felt secure. It was a foreign feeling to the heiress as the tensions at home had meant that there was never a moment when you could just be safe and be.  At least it was better than being forced into the centre of the overly enthusiastic love fest that was brewing just a few feet away.

“Yes, at least I think it is.” Max tilted his head to the side. “Some of them are skipping all pretences and going for the real deal though.”

Following his gaze, the pair shuddered when the spotted several couples who were too busy swapping spit and groping each other to pretend that they were dancing. At least the dance was a little more modest than that, Colbie thought as she snatched the bottle of £3.99 wine from Max’s hand and took a large gulp. No doubt Eleanor Carrington would have been horrified if she could see what her daughter was doing now. But Colbie barely spared her mother a passing thought, all she cared about was drinking enough to try and drown out the things going on all around her.

Warmth bathed the side of her face from the huge bonfire that had been set up down the other end of the field. And yet despite the distance and the numerous bodies between her and the flames, she could feel the heat as if she was standing right next to it. It was beautiful to look at though, fingers of red and orange dancing up to the sky.

“I can’t dance like that. I was taught ballroom under the finest teacher my father could find. Madame would be rolling in her grave if she could see this. Or maybe she did see it and that is what made her finally give into death.”

She shivered and glanced away.

“So Max, how about you go and get some more drinks. Maybe we can drink enough that we never remember this night. And we can finally mark off being drunk from our list.”

He wasn’t listening to her though. His face, which had held either childish glee or disgust for most of the night, now stared in to the crowd with pure wonder. 

Before she had even turned her head knots were forming in Colbie’s stomach. Following his gaze, she almost let out a yelp. She was forced to bite her lip while she just stood and watched the excitable puppy of a man stopped his bouncing. Instead he swayed on the spot, enchanted by the blonde haired beauty in the middle of the dancing crowd.

“Sorry Max, you don’t even want to go there.” He was rewarded with a pat on the shoulder as she tried to pull his attention away. “That’s Lydia. She’s my cousin. She’s awful.”

Colbie shrugged her shoulder uncomfortably as the blonde turned her head. It was as if she had heard her name being spoken even over the music. It was impossible though as it was hard to even hear your own thoughts let alone someone’s voice as the music was so loud the floor was vibrating in perfect sync with the bass.

But still, Lydia had heard and in an instant her eyes had zoomed in on her prey. The duo shivered as they were bestowed with a smirk – Max with so much delight that Lydia had actually seen him. But for Colbie it was pure horror. Lydia was not a nice person. Sure she could act like it but beneath the surface was a devious calculating woman with a heart made out of black cold stone.

Unfortunately for Colbie, no one else seemed to believe her. 

“She’d eat you alive.” She stated with pure certainty.

“That’s okay. I think I would let her.” His voice was soft and wistful as his ever watchful gaze followed Lydia as she gyrated through the crowd, kissing and caressing people as she passed by them.

Lydia was lost in her own euphoria, eyes at half-mast while a rosy hue danced across her cheeks as she passed on through. She moved further and further away, slipping easily through the crowd. Within minutes she had disappeared completely.

Max was too lost in his own fantasies to notice the frown that had appeared on his newest friend’s face. For Colbie however she had the urge to leave and fast. Her attention was stuck on the trees bordering the top end of the field - the exact same dark and creepy trees where her cousin had been headed towards. The dark shadows grew darker. They would just swallow up her elfin looking cousin with ease - snatching up the beauty that was the envy of every girl and woman in vampire high society.

Something flashed.  A whisper of dread coursed down Colbie’s spine causing the hair at the nape of her neck to stand on end. She squinted at the treeline but saw only shadows.

A quick shake of the head and she glanced back at her lovelorn companion.

She was being stupid, she thought in an attempt to reassure herself. Living with vampires had made her paranoid. Having her parents be who they were had made her paranoid. But she was safe, she was mortal – for now at least- and no one knew who she truly was.

“It’s time to start living,” she murmured, her eyes straying over the crowd in search of her cousin before darting back to the treeline.

Grabbing Max’s hand, and feeling just a little bit of amusement at the state he was in, Colbie slapped the bottle of bitter wine into his hand and helped him take a big slurp. He jolted in shock, snorting when some of the bubbly liquid went down the wrong way.

“Come on lover boy, let’s party.”

He tried to protest but the alcohol flooding through his body loosened his inhibitions. With a merry cackle, he allowed himself to bounce after her. True to their word, the two of them drunk more than they ever had, danced until their feet got sore and continued to dance until the sun rose once more. But no matter how much alcohol was consumed, Colbie’s eyes would always stray back to the treeline even though her senses were no longer warning her that danger was near.

Her dreams, when she finally fell into bed, were filled with gnarled and twisted trees and glowing eyes that started out from the shadows in between.