Teen Ink

Prologue

Cold.
Her lips are like ice. They gently touch my throat, and I feel her fangs sink into my skin. I want to fight, but I don't.
I know what I'm doing is wrong, but I can't help it. The vampire pulls away, smiling. Her teeth are red with my blood.
Why?
I've asked myself more times than I can count, but I know I can't answer it. I don't know why. I don't know why I keep coming back, night after night, deceiving everyone I know and love. But it's the only way I'll survive. After everyone I know is dead, she'll reward me.
I stare into her dead eyes, blacker than the bottom of her empty, lifeless heart and I know she's lying. The only reward I'll get is living through everyone else's deaths. And when she's finished, she'll kill me, too.
"Aden had a premonition," I whisper, knowing the only way to leave with my life is to give the vampire more important information. Information that could kill everyone I care about.
"What did she see?" Her cruel voice tears through the dim light.
"The other vampire." In an attempt to please her, I add, "The one you don't like. He was feeding."
She nods, her eyes thoughtful. "I know you hate betraying her. The two of you are so close..." Her lips curl into a sharp smile.
I swallow hard, not sure how to respond.
"Leave," she orders, not even bothering to look at me as I phase and trot out the door.
I break into a run as soon as I'm out of the abandoned building she calls home. I stop by a small creek, shifting human and scrubbing the already drying blood off of my neck. Sweat runs down my face as I feel the vampire's dark magic coursing through my veins.
I pull the small vial out of my back pocket, wiping my sweaty palm on my jeans. I take a quick drink of the antidote, hoping it kicks in before I faint. In this part of town, no one will recognize me in the dark baggy clothes that I wear to meet the vampire.
I don't want to be recognized. I want to let her feed on me without anyone knowing, so that I don't have to face the truth. Because, the truth is, I know I'm going to die, too. I know that as the last bit of life is sucked out of me, all I'll be able to think about will be the tortured screams of everyone around me as the poisonous magic steals their lives. By that time, I'll be looking forward to dying. And there's only one word to describe the haunting pain that shoots through me as I realize what's going to happen.
Josephine.