NightSide [The Forgotten Vampires, Book One] by Holly Hook

Author:Holly Hook [Hook, Holly]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2020-12-31T16:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

Sweat gathers under the dress and my feet are cold in the fancy shoes I've squeezed into. My calves hurt as I pace around my bedroom. My phone, which I've left on my night table, remains out of reach. Lily can't even text me. And she can't go with me, either, as much as I've wanted her to. If I take a hunter to the Beaumont mansion with me, that'll blow my cover. The Beaumonts will know that I have some dirt on them. We both agreed the best chance for my survival means playing stupid.

Lily's hug lingers around my waist. Her helpless hug.

This is a test. I have to do everything I can to not make the Beaumonts suspect me any more.

I can't even tell Mom where I'm going. Or that I might not even come home. She's working late at the vet, anyway, having got stuck with the night shift at the emergency clinic.

A low motor sounds from outside. Peeking out my window reveals a limo parked on the side of the road. Dominic said he'd send a driver.

Pretend to be excited. I snap shut the curtains and run outside, lifting my purple skirt (the skirt I might die in) and running towards the limo. I wave at the driver who looks normal enough. Then I get into the back.

"Why hello, young lady," he says. He's an older man with no copper ring in his eyes. He's human. So the Beaumonts use human servants instead of Nightside slaves. "Olivia, correct?"

"Yes," I say.

"You're the first girl the Beaumonts have ever invited to their place," he says. "Maybe they're loosening up. In all my years of driving for them, this is the biggest surprise."

Yes. He's human. I wonder if he knows what the Beaumonts really are.

The driver, whose name turns out to be Herman, drives me to the mansion. The closer we get, the sicker I feel. Will the Beaumonts be able to smell my fear? Maybe I'll taste better to them scared. For all I know, they like to prey on Nightsides the way they do vagrants.

The house is darker than ever, with candles flickering in the windows and the expensive cars out front. This time, the yard is trimmed with most of the vines cut back. The gardener’s been here.

The driver drops me off at the front gate. "The Beaumonts are ready to receive you," he says with a friendly nod. "Enjoy your dinner."

I get out of the car, forcing my legs to carry me closer to the house. My knees quiver the closer I get to the double doors, which swing open as if the house itself is expecting me.

Standing inside the house are four vampires, none of which I've seen before, and I'm getting the idea the coven is large. Two men and two women, all adults, stand on either side of the entrance. The women have no relation to each other—one has perfect dark skin and her hair in an equally perfect bun, while the second is a redhead complete with freckles and a mean glint in her copper-green eyes.

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