Chapter 1 A new life

LOUISA

I jerked my head up when the sound of my mother's feet against the wooden floor crept into my room. I groaned and got up, reaching for my packed bag before she entered.

As I expected, she pushed the door open and walked in.

“Mom, I told you to always knock,” I complained for the hundredth time.

“Enough with the whining. Let's get your things to the car,” she said as she bent down and picked up one of my bags, nodding that I brought the rest to the car outside.

I sighed and picked up the rest of the bags then dragged my feet out of my room and down the stairs to the living room.

I paused and swung my head to the side when my eyes caught my elder brother, Ellis.

He had his head buried in his phone, his legs crossed as he slouched down on the couch.

“Are you leaving with us?” I asked.

“No. I have a kill tonight,” he said and my throat knotted in anger.

He paused his game and finally looked at me, a mocking smirk tugging at the corner of his lips when he saw the look on my face.

“What's with the long face, huh?” He asked like he didn't know what was going on with me.

“I haven't had my first kill!” I snapped and he scoffed, narrowing his eyes.

“Who cares,” he whispered, bending over to tie his shoes.

“I won't be able to become a member of the organization this year if I don't get my first kill–”

“We promised we won't talk about it, didn't we, honey?” My mom's calm yet authoritative voice pierced the room and forced me to keep shut.

I narrowed my eyes and walked off while my brother's mocking chuckle clung to my back.

I walked out of the house with my bags and down the driveway to my father's car.

“Hey dad,” I murmured as I dumped my bags into the trunk and got into the car. I could feel his eyes watching me from the rearview mirror silently.

Ever since I reached thirteen, I've wanted nothing more but to kill a vampire. That was what my parents did under the surface of luxury store owners and a normal family. We were vampire hunters, born and trained to wipe their existence out. After the first apocalypse that took place a hundred years ago, the organization of hunters was founded to destroy the vampires and prevent the possible coming of another apocalypse.

Those irritating, bloodsucking creatures have wanted nothing but to destroy humankind and take over the world. They were just like the zombies, except that they only creep around when the sun is down, and they kill humans instead of turning them into one of their own.

I'd rather die than be a vampire though.

My head raised when I heard the car roar to life. I sighed and leaned back into my seat, fiddling with the silver bracelet around my wrist.

I didn't have many friends here since my family always moved all the time. Making friends was something that I barely did because in the end, I would leave those people with little pieces of memories of me.

“You're about to start a new life, honey,” I heard my mom laugh.

That was what she always said whenever we moved to a new town. I wondered if this new life would be any different since my parents decided to move on their own and not in response to the order the organization sent.

“I hope this lasts this time,” I muttered and the smile on her face faded.

She sighed and turned to face the road ahead.

Ellis, my selfish, dumb brother, kept whistling as we drove down to the new town. Ever since he had his first kill, he had been unbearable. He never hesitated to scream about it, and what irritated me the most was that the only vampires he had staked were vampires that dig around at night in cemeteries.

I sighed and turned my head to the side, closing my eyes and hoping for some peace so I could take a nap.

The moment I closed my eyes, flashes of the nightmare that had haunted me ever since a horrible encounter with a shape shifter appeared in my mind. I gasped and pulled my eyes open, breathing heavily as chills washed down my spine.

“Another bad dream, baby?” My mom asked. I sat straight and looked in her direction. She had her worried, piercing eyes fixed on my flushed face.

“Are you okay, honey?” She asked again.

“Of course, I'm fine,” I gasped out while my heart raced from the shock.

My encounter with that vampire hybrid was the closest I had ever gotten to killing a vampire but I didn't. Instead, I was pushed to the verge of falling into death through deceit. It had transformed into my mother and made me let my guard down. It spoke like my mother, acted like my mother, and felt like my mother–

“There was no way you would have known it wasn't me,” my mother broke up my thoughts and spoke like she had read my mind.

I looked up at her, sighing in frustration.

“There was a way, she just didn't know,” Steven muttered and my chest tightened.

“Shut up Ellison!” My mom snapped at him and he chuckled.

I glared at him while he grinned, enjoying the trauma I was going through.

Silence reigned in the car as no one spoke again.

I took out my phone and earphones and put on calming orchestra music, sighing as I felt peace wash down my body.

I closed my eyes and reminisced on what it would feel like to kill a vampire. Will they turn to ashes? Or disappear into thin air? Will they fall to the ground and bleed to death?

The hybrid my mother had killed disappeared into thin air. She told me it was because she had another monstrous blood flowing through her but I didn't believe it. What if it wasn't even a woman?

I sighed and shook my head, letting the music consume me instead of my thoughts.

My parents had planned to drop me off at the gate of my new school before heading over to inspect and fix their new home.

I swirled around in a pool of nothing, the orchestra directing me until the car finally stopped.

I pulled my eyes open and snapped up, my head straining.

“Hey, baby!” My mom turned, smiling at me.

I got out of the car and walked slowly ahead then raised my head. I felt my heart racing and goosebumps spread over my skin as I stared up at the high, majestic building of my high school. The name “Starfall Academy” was written in bold letters at the top of the building. But that wasn't the only thing that caught my eye, a figure on the rooftop did. I stared closely at it and my throat knotted. Silver hair, sharp blue eyes, and an aura so dark that I could feel it from where I stood.

Chills washed down my spine when I noticed something else smeared against the corner of his lips and his chin. Blood.