I woke with a start and peered around the quaint room. No sun twinkled from behind the curtains. No birds chirped. I sighed and looked down at the satin sheets, running my fingers over the silky material. As I raised my hand to my eyes to rub away the sleep, a lingering taste of ginger sat on my tongue. It tasted sweet with a slight pinch that reminded me of the time I had bitten down on a piece of black pepper. I licked my lips and savored the moment.

“Adrian,” I whispered.

I could still smell his cologne. The sandalwood and sage mixed with the faint taste of ginger. He had given me a piece of his candy to settle my stomach, and it had worked, but I had fallen right to sleep after my nausea spell had passed. He must have left when I passed out.

“Well, that’s embarrassing,” I said to the empty room. I rubbed my eyes harder as I tried to remember our final conversation, but the night before had been a blur. My memory was getting weaker, just like the rest of my body. It didn’t stop me from grinning like an idiot at the memory of him, though, no matter how fuzzy it might be.

Though his kindness confused me, it felt relatively genuine, and I smiled at the thought. My eyes closed, I pictured his gentle smile in my mind. Deep down I knew he was a dangerous man, but it was hard for me to care when he smiled at me the way he did. Something about the rumors of his dark past made the game all the more fun. I felt like a stupid teenage girl by the giddiness I felt that Adrian, one of the ancients, had taken a liking to me.

A knock came from the door and I startled in bed as it pulled me from my reverie. I looked over at the dark crimson wood and swung my feet over the bed, tossing the satin sheets aside.

“Who is it?” I asked.

“A humble servant, madam,” replied a husky voice.

Timidly, I approached the door and fixed my blouse. I looked down at my crooked clothing. I hadn't even had time to change before climbing into bed. Had I felt that sick?

I reached for the knob while eying the wood suspiciously, wondering who was knocking on my door first thing in the evening. As the door creaked open, I found one of the house servants who held out a silver platter with a card. His eyes remained fixed on the ground.

“For you, madam,” he said.

I took the card and held it up to the dim light. Black embossed letters stood out from the thick, white parchment. It read Lady Serenity requests your company in her office on the third floor. I gulped, tucked the stiff card into my pocket, and then bowed my head.

“Thank you, Marcus,” I whispered.

“You're welcome, Miss Riley,” he replied.

As he turned to leave, I shut the door.

Lady Serenity, I thought. That's Adrian's maker. Will he be there?

I twitched with excitement. A shy grin crossed my lips as I walked over to the vanity and sat down. There was a medley of make-up laying out on the desk—multicolored brushes, colorful palettes, a variety of red lipstick, and plenty of eyeliner. None of it was particularly familiar to me except the eyeliner, which I tentatively lifted to my face. I smoothed some black around my eyes, plumped my lashes with mascara, and then combed out my long black hair.

As a human, I would always get complimented on my eyes. They were large and heavily lashed with thick black eyelashes that hardly needed mascara. They shone a pale lavender, almost gray, circled by a thick band of midnight blue around the outer edges of my irises. As a child, people would pull my mother and I over in the grocery store to gush about my pretty eyes. As a young adult, they were the perfect tool to attract men. I blinked and looked back at my reflection in the mirror, a small smile creeping its way across my face.

Since being turned, my eyes shone even brighter than they had as a human. They positively glowed in the dim light, the radiant blues and purples a sharp contrast to my pale skin and long black hair. Even I had to admit they were stunning. Too bad that radiance couldn’t have been shared throughout the rest of my being. I felt duller with each passing day, the only thing keeping me going was the knowledge that my mentor was working on an elixir that could potentially negate the need for vampires to feed on humans. It made this whole thing almost worst it. Almost.

The clock on the wall chimed, revealing that it was 8:30 PM. I sighed and gave myself one last look in the mirror. I still looked tired. I was due for a treatment soon. With another sigh, I smoothed my hair one last time and stood to fix my clothes. I wasn't sure where Lady Serenity's office was located, but I was sure I could easily find it. Many of the rooms here were labeled, the names of the occupants carved into the heavy wood doorways. Considering that most of the occupants would be here eternally, it made sense.

I looked myself over one last time and then checked my left pocket. My dagger was still safely tucked away inside. I turned and headed for the door, poking my head out first to check the hallway. It was empty. I carefully shut my bedroom door and walked the length of the hall to the set of stairs towards the east side of the house. It was much quieter than the main stairway and would safely lead me up to the third floor without much interaction with the rest of the coven.

I climbed the stairs slowly with my hand firmly over the wooden banister. I could feel my stomach dropping the higher I climbed, overwhelmed by the anticipation of meeting Lady Serenity. Was she a kind fang? Was she stern? I imagined her as a Victorian woman, proper in manner and in speech. It was intimidating to picture, and I found my palms sweating as I made my way down the winding hall. I wiped them on my skirt.

After passing a few doors, I found one labeled Lady Serenity and took a deep breath before knocking. The door creaked open and revealed a tall, sensual woman with her hair pulled up into a formal bun. Yellow curls hung in ringlets on either side of her long face, tickling her high cheekbones. Her round green eyes positively sparkled as she greeted me.

“We finally meet!” she cried while opening her arms.

“Good evening,” I whispered while bowing.

She immediately pulled me into a hug and tugged me into her oval-shaped office, setting me down gently in a chair across from her desk. She leaned against the desk and held my hands in hers.

“I have heard so much about you, Riley,” she said. “And it's such a delight to have you here at last. I've been preparing your party for the past week. It’s all everyone’s been talking about.”

I blinked up at her, confused and moderately shocked. This was not at all what I expected one of the older makers to look and act like, and from the smirk that formed on her face I could tell she found the dumb look on my face amusing. “I don't understand,” I said finally said, my voice timid.

“Well, we want everything to be perfect!” she exclaimed.

A giggle erupted from her red lips, and she bounced around the desk to sit in her chair, the cushions wheezing as she relaxed into the leather. She moved the mouse of her computer and focused on the screen.

“So, we have everything chosen according to Sirus, but I wanted to make sure your demands were met as well. What are your favorite colors?” she asked.

I sat stunned in silence. My thin fingers wound around the red cloth hanging from my belt as I stammered over a response.

“Are you alright, my dear?” she asked.

“Yes, I'm fine. I just…” I trailed off as a chuckle replace my words. “I suppose I wasn't expecting you to be so...so…”

Lady Serenity laughed, her fangs gleaming in the light from the chandelier above.

“So fabulous? Oh, darling!” she exclaimed. “I am the least intimidating fang you'll ever meet.”

“I just assumed,” I began, but I came up short. I simply shrugged and offered her a small smile.

“You know what happens when you assume, my dear,” began.

I chewed my lip and began to laugh. “Your name sounds so proper.”

“I suppose it does, doesn't it?” she asked rhetorically.

I nodded with a shy smile and looked down at my hands that were still busy messing with the red cloth.

“I'll let you in on a little secret about this coven, sweet heart. We are full of surprises. And many of us tend to change over the years. It just comes with the territory,” she explained.

“Then, why hasn't Sirus changed?” I asked.

She remained quiet for a moment, pursing her red lips in thought. After a moment, she offered a shrug.

“Sirus does what is best for the coven. Our customs remain sacred because it's who we are. It's why he appointed me to be in charge of planning the events,” she replied. “That doesn't mean it can't be an extravagant and memorable event. We'll have plenty of fun.”

“I'm sure,” I whispered timidly.

“Don't worry. I'll walk you through the appropriate steps for the ritual,” she assured me.

“I still don't want to do this,” I admitted.

“I know, dear, but I'm positive we can encourage you to move forward. It's better for you to participate than to be killed at the stake in the middle of the forest,” she said as casually as one would announce what was for dinner.

“Stake?” I asked.

“Oh, did Sirus not mention it?” she asked.

I shook my head.

“If a vampling fails to complete the ritual within a week of their twenty-first birthday, they are set aflame at a stake in the middle of the woods. It's a warning to other vampires that our customs are sacred,” she explained.

I gulped as Lady Serenity continued to grin. I knew we were killed, but I had no idea it was so violent.

“But you don't have to worry about that. We'll make this nice and easy,” she practically sang.

Her green eyes sparkled and I gave her a polite smile before returning my eyes back to my fingers. They were trembling now. It didn't matter how much I voiced my concern against killing. This ritual was going to happen, whether I liked it or not.

And it was going to be the worst night of my life.