Эллен Шрайбер - Royal Blood

"I'm sure as soon as the Sterlings meet you," my mom continued, "they'lllove you like I do."

"You have to love me; you're my mother," I rolled my eyes.

"Let's see what you chose to wear."

"Are you kidding? Becky and I already decided on it. I can't go back now."

"I'm sure you chose something appropriate. I'll go downstairs until you're ready," I retouched, rebrushed , and fussed until my Edward Scissorhands clock flashed, "You're late!"

I flew down the stairs to find my family hanging out in front of the TV. I modeled my outfit.

"Shouldn't you wear somethingmore.,.conservative ?" my mother asked. "How about a pretty knit sweater?"

I ignored my mother's remarks.

"You look wonderful," my dad said.

"I think she looks awesome," I heard Henry say to Billy Boy.

"I think I'm going to hurl," my brother retorted.

I hugged my parents exceptionally hard. I was going to be dining with adult vampires. Who knows-I might lever come back.

A few minutes later our doorbell rang.

I was too nervous to answer, so Billy Boy opened the door.

"One moment," he said in his politest voice. "Raven- it's for you."

I took a deep breath and started for the door. Jameson stood before me, complete in his butler's uniform and gloves. "Miss Raven, your car awaits you."

My mom winked and my dad gave me a thumbs-up.

As Jameson and I walked down the driveway, I glanced back. Billy Boy and Henry were spying through the front window. Then two more heads popped into view-former hippies Paul and Sarah Madison.

Jameson led me to the parked Mercedes and kindly opened the back door.

My parents were impressed with my chauffeur and gothic limo service, even if the chauffeur was unusually creepy.

12

ROYAL BLOOD

It seemed as if it took an hour for Jameson to drive me to the Mansion. I was afraid by the time we reached its gates, dinner would be stone cold.

We parked in front of theMansion, It was quite the celestial sight. Candles flickered inside the house like a festive holiday party.

Jameson opened the car door for me.

I reached the top of the crumbling stairs, and, as if on cue, the front door creaked open. On the other side were the first adult vampires I would ever meet. At first I didn't see anyone.Then out stepped Alexander, stunning in an oversized blue silk shirt and black jeans.

"Wow! You are beautiful." He offered his hand to me and kissed me on the cheek.

Somber violin music faintly filled the Mansion.A pewter umbrella stand containing at least half a dozen parasols sat by the front door.

"Miss Raven is here," Jameson called to the second floor, and retreated to the kitchen.

"My mom takes forever."

The Mansion's air was unusually chilly, and I was shivering.

"Are you nervous?"

"Petrified.And cold."

"My mom likes the thermostat set to freezing. I'll fix that."

"That's okay-," I started to say.

But Alexander had already taken off.

A ghoulish and magnetically morbid woman descended the red velvet staircase like an apparition. Her perfectly straight jet black hair, streaked with a vivid violet, cascaded over her bony and beautiful shoulders.

She continued to come down the stairs, with the confidence of Cleopatra but the attire of Elvira. Deep eggplant-hued lipstick and nails were ghastly and gorgeous against her corpse-white skin.

Strong black eyeliner intensified her blue catlike eyes, and her long, purple, flirty eyelashes sparkled.

A tattoo of a black rose crept out from her dark velvet corset, which shaped her chest like a heart. Her small cinched-in waist was accentuated with a fabric belt and a long, flowing black mermaid skirt. Her frame was petite but curvy in all the important places.

I was mesmerized by her beauty.

At the end of the staircase a man appeared out of the shadows. He was tall, with broad shoulders and blazing black and gray shoulder-length hair. He was utterly handsome, as striking as any fifties film star.

His dark eyebrows were in sharp contrast to his frost-toned skin. He wore a dark silk suit with a bloodred tie and a matching cape. He had a sharp antique wood walking stick, capped with an ivory skull. Alexander's father formally took his wife's hand and led her toward me.

I froze. I was standing in front of Alexander's parents. I didn't know if I should bow or salute. To me, they were the most normal-looking parents I'd ever seen.

Mrs. Sterling extended her hand to me. In the most lyrical Romanian accent, she said, "It is our pleasure to meet you, Raven."

I couldn't help but notice the two purple bite marks on her neck.

I tried to speak, but I was so in awe. My words stuck in my throat.

Just then Alexander returned.

"This is Raven," he said proudly, "We were just introducing ourselves," his mother stated.

"I'm so happy to meet you, Mrs. Sterling," I finally said.

Her hand was cold but firm. "Call me Cassandra."

"And this is my father, Constantine," Alexander said.

Mr. Sterling extended his hand to me. "It is lovely to meet you, Raven." His voice was deep, causing shivers to flow through my body. His dark eyes were intense and hypnotic.

"You are just as beautiful as Alexander described," the dashing seniorSterling complimented. "And he has exquisite taste." He grinned, and the candlelight caught the edge of his icicle-sharp fangs.

I wasn't sure if he meant "taste" literally. I was, after all, being greeted by a vampire.

"Alexander has told us so much about you," Mrs. Sterling said.

"He has?"

"Come, we'll be dining outside tonight. I'm bloodthirsty and starved to the bone."

We walked to a side door, where an umbrella was leaning against the wall.

"The moonlight can be so strong." Mrs. Sterling opened her umbrella and went down the back stairs.

The violin music grew louder.

The backyard was grimly festive. Awaiting us was a grand gothic affair. A long black runner ran along the grass from the bottom of the steps to a morbid dinner party under the stars. Four torches burned, presumably to repel insects (but in this case, more likely, to attract them) several yards away from a long, dark wooden table. On closer inspection, I could see that a coffin lid had been transformed into a dining-room table. Several floor-length candelabras surrounded the table, wax dripping like trickling blood. Alexander offered me a chair and gently pushed it in for me as Mr. Sterling did the same for his wife. Mrs. Sterling sat at the head of the casket and Alexander's father at the end, while Alexander and I sat at the other sides.

I was surprised to see a string trio in the gazebo-two men dressed in tuxedos and a woman in an evening dress- playing ina minor key unmelodious funeral-type music. I didn't recognize the musicians as being from Dullsville. I had assumed the music was coming from an entertainment center, I had no idea it was being played live.Or rather» undead.

This was unbelievable. It was as if they had transformed the backyard into a cryptic dining hall- All that was missing was a china cabinet.

If Becky and my parents could see me now, they'd never believe I was at the center of this macabre dinner celebration. If only I could immortalize it with a photograph-but then again, most of the diners wouldn't come out, Jameson quickly tended to Mrs. Sterling. He poured her a glass that appeared to be champagne mixed with blood.

"I like mine bubbly," she said with a laugh.

Jameson approached me with his Underworldly concoction. "I'll have a Coke," I said.

"Of course, Miss Raven."

Then Jameson attempted to serve Alexander, but my boyfriend covered his glass with his hand. "I'll have what Raven is having."

He finished by pouring Mr. Sterling a tall glass and, from a neighboring chest, retrieved two sodas.