Lahat ng Kabanata ng Betrothed (Book #6 in the Vampire Journals): Kabanata 1 - Kabanata 10

Sam woke to the sound of screeching birds. He opened his eyes and saw, high up overhead, several huge vultures circling. There must have been a dozen of them, and they circled lower and lower, seemingly right over him, as if watching him. As if waiting.He suddenly realized they assumed he was dead, and were waiting for their chance to swoop in and eat him.Sam jumped to his feet, and as he did, the birds suddenly flew off, as if startled that the dead could rise again.He looked around, trying to get his bearings. He was in a field, in the midst of rolling hills. As far as he could see, there were more hills, covered in grass and odd bushes. The temperature was perfect, and there was not a cloud in the sky. It was very picturesque, and there was not a single building in sight. It appeared he was in the middle of nowhere.Sam tried to figure out where he was, what time period, and how he’d arrived. He desperately tried to think back. What had happened before he’d gone back in time?

"I see you two have found each other," came a voice.Caitlin and Caleb, in the midst of their embrace, both spun at the voice, startled. Caitlin was shocked that anyone could have snuck up on them so quickly, especially given their alert vampire senses.But as she stared back at the woman standing before them, she realized why: this woman too, was a vampire. Dressed in all white, wearing a hood, the woman lifted her chin and stared back with piercing blue eyes. Caitlin could detect a sense of peace and harmony coming off of her, and she let down her guard. She felt Caleb let down his guard, too.The woman broke into a wide smile."We've been waiting for you for quite some time," she said, in a gentle voice."Where are we?" Caitlin asked. “What year is it?"The woman only smiled back."Come this way," she said, turning her back, and heading back out through the low, arched doorway.Caitlin and Caleb exchanged a look, then followed her out the doorway, Ruth at their side.They w

Sam flew over the British countryside, Polly at his side, but keeping her distance. Their wings were spread out but they were not close to touching, as they each wanted space from each other. Sam preferred it that way, and he assumed she did, too. He liked Polly, he really did. But after his debacle with Kendra, he wasn't ready to get close to anyone of the opposite sex for a long time to come. It would be a while before he could trust someone again. Even someone who had been close to his sister, as Polly seemed to be.They had been flying for hours, and as Sam looked down in the morning light, he saw endless stretches of farmland, with occasional small houses, smoke rising from their stone chimneys, even on this beautiful fall day. He saw the occasional person out in their yard, tending to clothing, hanging sheets on strings. There were not many houses, though. This countryside seem so entirely rural, he began to wonder if cities even existed in this time—whatever time and place they

Kyle opened his eyes in a blinding rage. He sensed immediately that he had traveled back to the right time and place, the same city and year in which the despicable Caitlin, Caleb and Sam would be. He should be grateful for that.But he wasn't.He was sick of time travel, especially in the wrong direction; he missed his war in New York, and he resented Caitlin more with each trip back. He lay there, so overcome with rage, that he could barely even move. He thought of all the ways he’d take vengeance on her. Killing her, and torturing her, would no longer be enough. Not after this many trips back in time. And killing her beloved, Caleb, and her brother, Sam, wouldn't be enough either. He needed more. He would have to think of an even more inventive way. Like tracking down every one of her friends, any and all distant family members, and killing and torturing them slowly, too.The thought of it relaxed him, made him even smile just a bit. Yes, maybe he could arrange something like thi

Caitlin felt as if she were in a dream as she walked, with the others, through the sprawling courtyard of Windsor Castle. She was so happy to see Lily again, and amazed to see that a human, too, could live multiple lives. It was uncanny to see her here, and as a royal, once again.On the one hand, everything was so different here—the time, the people, the architecture of this castle—but in other ways, nothing had changed at all. Here was Lily, still royal, still beautiful, still regal—still her old self, just living in a different place and time. It made Caitlin wonder if all of us were destined to live a similar life, over and over again, just changing our place and time, our fashions and names. Was everything in every place and time connected? Was the distance between places, the time gap between centuries, really just an illusion?It made Caitlin feel connected to everyone and everything. And, of course, to Lily. Along with Polly, she had felt as if Lily were her closest friend, a