Victoria squeezed my hand. "We’re with you, Julia. You're not alone in this."As I looked around the room, filled with ancient knowledge and hidden power, I felt a spark of hope. Maybe, just maybe, I could face this challenge head-on.“Tell me what we have to do?” I asked, taking a deep breath, finding my courage.“We will start from tomorrow, but you must know this, your journey is not going to be easy!” She warned me.“I know, and I will go beyond limits to fight him!” I reassured her.Since then, complications only began to multiply.When I arrived home, my mom was already there. I rushed toward her and embraced her tightly, expressing how much I had missed her. I planted a kiss on her cheek."I missed you too, baby!" she smiled. "Would you like to come in?" she asked Victoria."I would love to, Mrs. Murphy, but maybe another time. I have to get back before the lockdown," Victoria excused herself."Lockdown?" Mom asked, clearly confused."Yes, lockdown! I'll explain everything insi
“They are planning to hurt you, I suggest you should call your parents and I think we should report this to the police station for your safety.” Seeing him lost in thoughts I gently placed my hand on his shoulder, studying his face for any signs of distress.There was an undeniable unease in his expressions, although I couldn't quite pinpoint what it was. However, I knew something was not right."Dominic, is there something you're not telling me?" I inquired, my eyes locked with his as I firmly grasped his shoulders.He shook his head, although beads of sweat formed on his forehead. "It's nothing," he replied, taking a deep breath.Then he finally told me what bothered him "I happened to see them near Mr. Murphy's grave that evening, and they saw me watching them. Perhaps that's what bothered them. I didn't pay much attention to it, convincing myself that I was overthinking.Considering the events of that day, I blamed it on my tired brain." He smirked burying his hands in his pockets
The color was a rich, deep emerald green, reminiscent of a lush forest glade, which brought out the warmth in my hazel eyes, finally giving them a meaning, they looked like wet soil sparkling under the sunlight.The dress featured a modest V-neckline, beautifying my visible collarbones without being too revealing.The top part of the dress was tight-fitting, with small gathered folds that made it look interesting and gave me a nice shape.A thin satin belt in a matching green color was tied around the waist, highlighting my natural curves.The skirt flowed down from the waist in soft, cascading layers, each one slightly shorter than the one beneath it, creating a tiered effect that added flow to this beautiful dress.The hemline brushed just above my knees, offering a balance between chic and playful.It was sleeveless. Tiny, embroidered floral patterns in a slightly lighter shade of green adorned the edges of the sleeves and the neckline, adding a delicate, feminine touch to the over
To mask his desperation, the Count refused, stating, "There is no such thing as immortality." However, the dark one summoned one of his servants and bit her on the neck, causing her to die and return as an immortal.The next offer caught the Count's attention. Even more: "I will grant you eternal youth!"Upon hearing this, the Count smiled and accepted the offer. Genevieve, upon learning of this, confronted her father and declared that she would only marry Lincoln. In response, her father imprisoned her and sent servants to prepare her for the wedding.However, one of the servants, who had raised Genevieve as his own daughter, managed to sneak into her prison and help her escape.Meanwhile, the dark one arrived at the wedding hall only to discover that his beloved had fled with her lover, further fueling his rage.He dispatched his men to search for them, going from door to door. A month passed, during which Genevieve and her love were constantly on the run, hiding in one place after
Meanwhile, Genevieve remained in the room with the dark one, staring at the floor, still shaken by the sight of her beloved's body.As the dark one removed his coat and began unbuttoning his vest, he slowly approached her.She whispered something that caught his attention: "I curse you." Her voice was barely audible, but he still couldn't get what she said.Confused, he brought his ear closer. "I'm sorry, what?" He asked."I curse you!" she shouted. "I curse you so that you will never be able to touch me unless I allow it, and that will never happen!" Her words were filled with hatred.He chuckled, trying to brush it off as a joke, but as he moved closer, he realized he couldn't even get near her.An invisible barrier surrounded her, leaving Genevieve surprised by the effectiveness of the curse she cast unknowingly. She couldn't help but laugh at his suffering, spinning round and round in the room, with her cackles echoing.Amidst her laughter, she realized that her love had been snat
He looked up and smiled, his eyes squinting. "It's strange, I had a headache and suddenly... It's gone," he remarked."That's because I'm here," she playfully approached him, engaging in a passionate kiss.Breaking the kiss, she squinted and smiled. "That was intense!" she giggled, before they resumed their passionate kiss.He held her tightly, his arms wrapped around her, his fingers gently caressing her back.Spinning around, he lowered her onto the bed, their kisses continuing.The next thing he remembered was small moments of kissing her neck and holding her tightly in his arms.She was enjoying the beautiful feeling until she gasped in pain."You're hurting me," she whispered, fear evident in her voice.He was breathing heavily against her skin when he slowly withdrew, realizing that he had unknowingly dug his claws into her back.Terrified, she watched as he transformed before her eyes. "Lincoln! Your face!" she exclaimed.Unable to resist his primal transformation, his love and
In the morning, as I woke up and my vision cleared, I noticed a lizard on the ceiling directly above me. I may be a brave girl, but I have a fear of amphibians, particularly lizards, a condition known as Herpetophobia. I didn't mention this earlier because it's not something to be so proud of and brag about.Reacting quickly, I rolled to my right and hurriedly ran out of the room, screaming for my mom. "Lizard, Mom! A Lizard in my room!"She rushed toward me, concerned about what was happening. I explained to her that there was a lizard in my room, gesturing with my right hand to indicate its size, "It is this big!" I said, pointing my fingers to the ceiling and putting the other hand under my palm.Then a thought terrified me as I exclaimed, "What if the lizard was crawling all over me during the night?" I panicked.My mom, trying to calm me down, raised her voice and called out my name. "Julia!" she yelled."Stop and listen to me... I will take care of it!" She comforted me by patti
Later that evening, Dominic called me and said, "Look outside your window!" before ending the call.I glanced out and spotted him waving at me. Sneaking out, I closed the window behind me, catching a brief glimpse of Mr. Redwood's car stopping in front of his house - my heart began to beat as if it had stopped before.However, Dominic's voice pulled me out of my thoughts as he called out to me, "Come on!"Mr. Redwood exited his car and hurried inside. As soon as he entered his house, he discovered his grandmother on the floor, along with her wheelchair, and Amaya lying lifeless in a pool of blood, her throat brutally slashed.Rushing to his grandmother's aid, he helped her back into the wheelchair and wasted no time in dialing the emergency hotline.When the operator answered, "Hello, 911, what's your emergency?" He took a deep breath and began, "My name is Evan Redwood. I just arrived home, and I... I found my grandmother's caretaker, Amaya, dead on the floor.There's blood everywher
Jade's voice echoed through the air once more, softer this time. "You've succeeded in retrieving them from their memories. Now, return to the real world."The sea began to dissolve around us, and we found ourselves back in the tub, the knives gone, our palms healed. We were drenched, exhausted, but alive. The connection between us had deepened, and we knew what she meant by them being hinges to the door.Jade stood over us, a faint smile playing on her lips. "Well done. But this is only the beginning. There are greater challenges ahead, and you'll need each other more than ever.""What was the purpose of this test?" I stepped out of the tub and dried myself with a towel, I stared at my healed hands with surprise."I wanted to see how all that revelation affected you, how you are going to face him after finding out the truth about yourself, and what you'd choose between your fear and the lives of your loved ones." Jade grinned, helping Victoria out of the water.Then my phone rang, and
This time, I had to go to the realm of fear once again, and this time, Victoria and Dominic were going with me.We took our boots off and entered the tub. “Present me your palms!” Jade extended her hand, holding a knife in her other hand. We obeyed her and offered our palms to her. At first, she placed my left palm on top of Victoria’s palm and then did the same with my right palm and Dominic’s palm.Then she picked two sharp, thin knives and poked them together in both my hands, piercing through Victoria’s and Dominic’s palms as well. We screamed and grunted with pain, but that was it; she left the knife in our hands, still piercing through our hands when we fainted together.After a while, when we three woke up, we woke up in a strong stormy sea. At first, I swam toward the surface of the water and coughed as I saw ocean waves crashing against one another.I caught my breath and coughed, struggling to find my friends, but one after another waves ran me over, I again reached the top,
I was left in shock, staring at her in disbelief. "Mom?" I struggled to speak. "How did Dad pass away?" I questioned."He had a heart attack," she replied confidently, but sadness was visible in her eyes."Do you remember his last message?" I tried to dig in."What message?" She raised an eyebrow."Do you recall anything about the blood in the granny's restroom?" I pressed on."Blood? Did you hurt yourself?" She took my hands and examined them."It's nothing, I just... I think I need to rest," I said, holding her hands before retreating to the bed.It was a difficult night, filled with thoughts that kept me awake: "What's got into her?" I couldn't believe anything that happened with Mom.It wasn't just hard for us, but also for Viviana. An image of the map and an unseen presence tormented her, a man's voice echoing in her mind. "You shouldn't have done that," it repeated throughout the night.When morning finally arrived, I headed out for a jog. Later, I explained everything to Domini
"Let me!" Dominic tenderly cradled her in his arms, carefully adjusting her position on his lap. Gently stroking her hair, he whispered into her ear, "Do you remember that night? The night you turned me into a vampire?" His voice was filled with a mixture of gratitude and affection. He continued, "You saved me that night. Now, it's my turn to save you." With that, he bit his wrist and fed her his blood.She swallowed a mouthful of his blood, feeling a surge of energy, but then she whispered. Her voice barely audible, "Disgusting."Dominic couldn't help but giggle, tears streaming down his face. "That's more like it," he said, his face lighting up. "Now, tell me, what was the spell you used to restore your health every time you fed me?" His tone was gentle, filled with care.She began to whisper something in Latin, and as she did, her body started to heal. Taking a deep breath, she felt a sense of relief wash over her.Dominic wrapped his arms around her, a smile forming on her lips.L
She whispered an incantation in Latin, then paused and turned toward the sheriff."She is strong, she has not allowed this soul to take complete control of her body yet!" She said."But the longer it remains inside her, the more it will dominate!" After that, she said something else that sent shivers down our spines."I know a way to help her.But there are three things you must know. First, once the ritual begins, there is no turning back.Second, she could die in the process. Third, you have no other choice..." Before she could say anything else, I interrupted her."You make the act of 'killing' sound so simple! Do you have any idea what you just said? Is there any guarantee that she will survive this?" I furrowed my brow and stared at her.Victoria grasped my shoulder and nodded. "Jules! Even if I die, at least the city will be safer. I do not wish to end up like Hunter!" She glanced at the sheriff, who was staring at the ground."I choose to rid myself of it, and you must respect
Afterward, we left the cafe, not to return to town but to meet the sheriff's friend. He drove us closer to Shadowbrook, eventually pulling over in front of a large bungalow.The bungalow, tucked away in the corner of the town, has its architecture a blend of simple charm and unique elegance. Tall, arched windows lined the front, allowing glimpses of the warmly lit interior. The exterior was covered in old stone and dark wood, giving it an inviting yet chilling appearance.A broad porch wrapped around the front, with sturdy columns supporting the overhanging roof. Vines climbed the stone walls, and the soft glow of lanterns illuminated the pathway leading to the entrance.Large oak trees framed the property, their leaves rustling gently in the breeze, adding to the safe and peaceful environment. The garden was beautifully maintained, with neatly trimmed hedges and an arrangement of colorful flowers that stood in contrast to the surroundings. A stone driveway curved gracefully up to the
"No!" Scott snapped. He walked over to our car, noted the number, and made a call. His next words left us all in shock, except for Luna. "Listen to me very carefully! I need you to do something big this time. It is a matter of life and death. The number I just gave you, I need you to shift its locations through all CCTV footage, and also alter the memories of this car throughout Shadowbrook.Oh, yeah! One more thing! Visit the secret back entrance of the Li Lake, collect the blood samples, and start working on searching for him right away!” He then hung up and turned to Luna.Luna's eyes narrowed. "Who did you call? What is going on?"Scott sighed. "We need to leave immediately."“You all are coming with m,e and no, I am not asking!” He almost commanded and entered his car. So with no time to argue, we piled into the car. He drove us to a decent little café located away from Shadowbrook. It was a place I had never been to before. We all settled down at a table in the corner, and he k
Victoria tried again, this time shouting "Confractus." Unfortunately, the boulder remained unaffected, but the strong force of the spell threw Victoria back with great power.Thankfully, Dominic was quick to react and caught her before she could fall. Confused and frustrated, Victoria exclaimed, "I don't understand! This should have worked!" Meanwhile, Luna retrieved the phone from the pool, and we decided to explore our surroundings in the hopes of finding an alternative route.However, our disappointment grew as we realized that there was no other way to go. Desperate for answers, I looked at everyone and asked, "If he's not here, where could they have taken him? We need to find a way out of here!" As we looked up toward the opening at the top, the moon shone brightly, casting a beautiful glow that captivated my gaze.Dominic also had his eyes fixed on the scene, but then Victoria, filled with curiosity, glanced at me before looking up. She wanted to see what had captured my att
At first, I stared at her, my mouth hanging open in disbelief. After a moment, I shook my head. "I'm completely lost right now, but this is not important right now... what is important is that we have to find him. No matter if he's a vampire, a Lycan, or even a gremlin, we'll save him!" I finally breathed a sigh of relief."Gremlin? Seriously?" Victoria sniggered.However, the fear of losing him again was still in my mind. "But how are we going to find him?" Victoria asked, her confusion evident on her face."We'll do what detectives do! We'll go to the crime scene!" I declared, but Luna interrupted me."You kids stay right where you are. I'll inform Asco!" She pulled out her phone, but I grabbed her hand."I just found him. I can't just sit around and wait for another problem to tear us apart!" I looked into her eyes, pleading with her."Besides, he reached out to me. He needs me!" I convinced her.I turned my head toward Dominic. "Are you coming?" I asked, hoping he would join us.