Cameron met my gaze as if to check that I was being serious. "Not many of them will understand, Derek. The Shade has become a smaller version of Ancient Rome. We've grown complacent and drunk with power... Some of the Elite call our citizens the untouchables."

"And you agree?"

"No." He shook his head. "We've had it good for too long. The tides always turn eventually."

"Exactly. So you understand why we must prepare our people for that time when the tides turn?"

"Of course. We fought side-by-side a long time ago. You know how I recognize it when the winds speak of battle. I'm just telling you the situation as it is. Not many will understand."

"We'll make them understand." I said through gritted teeth. "There is no choice."

Before Cameron could respond, I heard a familiar, shrill voice echoing through cavernous corridors.

"Derek! What do you think you're doing?!"

I turned to find my twin sister, Vivienne, marching at full speed toward me. It was easy to see how furious she was. Vivienne was both feared and respected as the Seer of The Shade. Many of her visions and prophecies had saved The Shade throughout history. However, some of her prophecies had only served to place me in trouble especially with my father and brother. One in particular burdened me whenever I recalled it: The younger will rule above father and brother and his reign alone can provide his kind true sanctuary.

As I watched my sister storm her way toward me, the words echoed through my mind. Sometimes, I would wish that she could somehow stop seeing into my future and just let me live without being pressured by what she saw lay ahead of me.

"h.e.l.lo, Vivienne."

"What's going on, Derek?"

I looked at Cameron, who was shifting his weight from one foot to the other, always rather uncomfortable whenever found in the midst of a confrontation involving a woman. I couldn't help but grin. Some things never change.

"Hendry. You can go ahead of me. You don't have to be present to watch this bloodbath."

Relief washed over his face. He bowed his head at Vivienne. "Princess," he acknowledged, before speeding his way toward the Great Dome.

"So? What are you blazing mad about, my dear sister?"

"Come on, Derek ... A draft? A census? Why?"

"You've been too lax with our citizens during my sleep. They've become weak... complacent... Father, Lucas, you... how did you let it get this way? What happens when the other covens decide we have it too good and attack us?"

"Father is doing everything necessary to take the road of diplomacy as we speak."

"Diplomacy, Vivienne?" I scoffed, slitting my eyes in scrutiny of my sister. "Tell me... does this road of diplomacy lead somewhere toward Borys Maslen?"

Her face paled at the mention of the name. The Maslens were one of our fiercest adversaries and Borys Maslen in particular had an especially dark history with my sister. Her inability to come up with a response to my question was enough indication of the continuous threat the Maslens posed over us.

I smirked. "I thought so. I have serious trouble thinking that Borys Maslen will welcome an amba.s.sador from us with open arms and seriously take into consideration talks of peace. Not unless you are part of the deal."

Vivienne's face hardened. My gut clenched at how insensitive my words were. I still couldn't wrap my mind around what kind of h.e.l.l that monster Borys once put her through. "Vivienne... I..." My apology got frozen on my tongue.

"He has a new girl you know... Maybe he wouldn't want me as much now."

"A new girl?"

"Ingrid Maslen. No one's ever really laid eyes on her yet. Borys keeps her under lock and key, his biggest secret. Some say she possesses some kind of power and that's the reason Borys turned her into a vampire. According to rumors, she's stunningly beautiful."

"Don't be a fool, Vivienne. Borys has it in his mind that he owns you. Only two things will make him forget about coming after you: your death or you back in his hands."

"We're still protected by Cora's spell," she managed to say, composing herself after all the talk about her former betrothed.

"For how long, Vivienne? Corrine isn't Cora. Her loyalties don't lie with us as strongly. Do you really believe that a witch's spell can protect The Shade forever? Once we're no longer protected, what happens then? How do we protect ourselves from hunters? b.l.o.o.d.y h.e.l.l, Vivienne... how do we protect ourselves from the world once they find out how many human slaves we've been exploiting and murdering within our walls?"

Her silence encouraged me to go on.

"You never should've allowed The Shade to grow this weak."

Her beautiful face tightened as she took a step forward to challenge me. "We refused to just survive. We thrived. What's so wrong with that?"

"It was at too great a price. How many have died on this island, Vivienne? How many?"

"If I remember correctly, a good few of them died under your iron fist, Derek. Remember how your hands were tainted with blood while you were building this fortress?"

She stepped out of line and she knew it. She faltered and backed up a step when she saw the murderous glare I sent her way. She knew how to hurt me. I had to give her that.

But to my surprise, she wasn't finished at all. She continued right on, pushing my boundaries. "You let her go, didn't you? Sofia and that friend of hers... the one you forced Claudia to give to you... Ben, is it? You let them go."

I was initially alarmed. How did she find out? I gave Sam and Kyle strict orders not to breathe a word of it to anyone. Even the girls living in my house still had no idea that I let Sofia and Ben escape. Only Corrine was informed, but only because for reasons I didn't fully understand - Sofia insisted on letting the witch know. I then reminded myself whom I was talking to. Vivienne had a gift of prophecy and discernment. Of course she knows. She didn't even need me to answer her question to realize that she'd just spoken truth.

"Is this why you're doing all of this? To keep yourself from thinking of Sofia?"

I grabbed my sister's jaw, every single one of my muscles tensing as I stared at her. I knew from the look in her eyes that she saw in me the Derek that existed more than four hundred years ago the one whose ruthlessness built The Shade and all its fortifications over the spilt blood of thousands of humans. I took advantage of her fear and for the first time in a long time, I saw my sister cower.

I leaned closer to her, so that my mouth was directly in front of her ear. "Don't talk to me about Sofia, Vivienne. Her name is never to escape your lips again. Not in my presence. Not unless I give you permission. Do you understand?"

She nodded. "Never again."

I let go of her, red marks forming on her porcelain skin where my fingers gripped her jaw. She then said one of the most unnerving things I'd heard her say in a long time: "This, Derek, is what you're going to turn into without her in your life. You can only get worse from here. This is why you need her."

Gaining back her composure she stood to her full height and gently caressed my face with her long fingers. To her next words, I couldn't bring myself to react, much less disagree.

"You never should've let her go."

CHAPTER 7: SOFIA.

Ben and I checked in to the same resort we stayed at with his family last summer. The moment we arrived at the hotel room, neither one of us could wait to get out. It mattered little to us how beautiful the suite was in fact, it paled in comparison to the lavish penthouses of The Shade. What mattered more to us was the sun. We were in Cancun and we'd missed the sun for too long to spend that bright, sunny day indoors.

It became an unspoken rule between the two of us that for that morning, there would be no mention of The Shade, no mention of anything dark or heavy. For a few hours, we tried to be what we had every right to be teenagers having fun on one of the most beautiful beaches in the world.

Without us even noticing at first, we ended up avoiding any kind of shade. We wanted to feel the sunlight against our skin, so we stayed clear of umbrellas and roofs and anything that would block the sun. I was sure that by the end of the day, I'd be burnt to a crisp or end up looking like a bright red tomato, but I didn't really care. I couldn't even remember what sunburn felt like.

Breakfast consisted of fresh fruits and virgin pina coladas at an outdoor seaside restaurant. After that, we headed off to the ocean. At some point, I ended up building a sandcastle on my own while Ben remained in the ocean, enjoying a good, long swim. To my right was a pouch filled with seash.e.l.ls we managed to collect for a good half hour. Neither of us had any idea what we were going to do with the sh.e.l.ls, but it seemed like a great idea at the time. A few feet away from me was a large, bright red towel we bought from the hotel store. Over it were a bunch of snapshots Ben and I took after squeezing into a photo booth and goofing off.

Each of the items surrounding me brought a smile to my face. We were making every effort to lighten up, find a reason to smile or laugh or try to make a connection to our former selves. We wanted to forget even though we knew how impossible that was. Still, it was worth the effort to try if only to hear my best friend laugh and see that dashing smile on his face again.

I turned my gaze toward him and found that he was already emerging from the water and headed my way. I couldn't ignore how hot he looked or how several ladies nearby were openly gawking at his handsome face and lean, well-built physique. With the sun shining down on him, making the beads of ocean water clinging to his body glisten, he looked like he'd just walked right out of a swimsuit catalogue.

Of course, I knew better. Beneath the white shirt he had on, his upper torso was still covered with layer upon layer of scars, evidence of what he went through at The Shade. My gut clenched as I shook away the thought, refusing to sink back to negative thoughts.

I shifted my attention back to Ben, trying to go back to those days when I would lose myself in daydreams about being with him. Strangely enough, I was quick to realize that he didn't take my breath away like he used to. He looked incredible, but he no longer had the same effect he had on me before.

It didn't take long for him to reach me and plunk himself right on top of my beautiful sandcastle.

"Ben!" I screeched.

He laughed. "Sandcastles always fall, Sofia. I thought you might as well bid it farewell sooner rather than later."

I found myself transfixed by the smile on his face. I realized how much I missed him the old him.

"What?"

I shook my head. "You seem happy."

The smile on his face remained, but his eyes betrayed a concoction of varied emotions none of them happiness. I reached out for his hand. I wanted him to know that I was there for him, but he withdrew from my touch. It was a harsh reminder that I could never fully understand what he went through at The Shade.

I wanted to ask him about what he was going through, about what was going on inside him, but Ben wasn't the kind of person who talked much about feelings. Most of the time, we handled whatever issues we had by finding a diversion. If things were the other way around, Ben would've already found a way to make me laugh or divert my attention elsewhere. I wondered if I should do just that throw a sh.e.l.l at him or something but the brokenness in his appearance made it seem insensitive. So I just sat there, hoping that my presence would somehow bring him consolation.

"I feel numb." He confessed a few minutes later. "Just numb."

My gut clenched. What did she do to him? Images of Claudia, the gorgeous blonde female vampire who held Ben captive, flashed through my mind. Back at Derek's penthouse, after Derek asked Claudia to give him Ben for my sake, Ben had already told me about how Claudia tortured him, healed him by forcing him to drink her blood and then tortured him all over again. It was punishment for trying to escape. Something told me however that it was just a glimpse of what Claudia had put my best friend through.

"What happened to you, Ben? Back at The Shade?"

I could never forget the look on his face the moment he heard me mention the island. All traces of the charismatic charmer that my best friend used to be disappeared. In his place existed a dark and broken character, whose features were openly screaming b.l.o.o.d.y murder.

"Do you really want to know?"

I hesitated. Do I? Still, the question had already been asked, so I tentatively nodded. "Tell me everything."

"You asked for it." He stood up and held out his hand to me. "Let's take a walk then."

I grabbed his hand and he pulled me up. As his story unfolded, I found myself wishing for his sake that I had never asked.

CHAPTER 8: BEN.

As we strolled over the white sands beautifully complementing the clear blue ocean water, I told Sofia my story, not bothering to mention that by making me recount my tale, she was forcing me to live out the horrors of The Shade all over again.

I was distraught. I once again let Sofia down. Ditching her on her birthday for Tanya total babe that she was was on top of my growing list of screw ups when it came to the best friend I always managed to take for granted. It felt awful to see the hurt look in Sofia's eyes, but I figured she'd take a walk and get over it. After all, I knew that sooner or later, she would forgive me. She always did.

I sneaked into her hotel room just before the break of dawn the next day, fully expecting her to still be in bed, with my five-year-old sister, Abby, snuggled against her. I was disappointed to find my mom lying beside Abby. It was clear to see that my mom was p.i.s.sed off about something, because even while asleep, she had a firm scowl on her face.

I shook her awake. "Mom, where's Sofia?"

She blinked several times and frowned at me. "I have no idea where she is. What time is it? She was supposed to be here. Abby was terrified about having to sleep here alone."

"Perhaps she just went out for a walk or something..."

"At this hour? What's gotten into her?"

"I'll find her," I responded, starting to feel worse about what I did or didn't do to Sofia the night before. It was unlike her to just run off. Between the two of us, she'd always been the more responsible one.

Worried sick and knowing that I'd been a complete jerk to her, I set out to the beach to look for her. I walked about half a mile down the sh.o.r.e line before realizing that I was wasting my time. If Sofia wanted to be found, I would find her. I kept trying to call her phone, but just kept getting her voice mail. I was ready to turn back when I b.u.mped into a gorgeous blonde girl, wearing of all things a black leather jumpsuit.

She approached me, looking at me from head to foot, a sultry look in her eyes.

"I'm Claudia. You are?"

Distracted by how beautiful she was, I forgot about my quest to find Sofia. I flashed my best smile, all of a sudden also forgetting my obsession with Tanya.

"I'm Ben."

To my surprise, she grabbed my neck and pulled my head down as she faced me for a kiss. It was arguably the best kiss I'd ever had. When our lips parted, she smiled. It was that smile that told me something was wrong, because aside from the fact that everything about her smile hinted madness, fangs suddenly protruded from both sides of her upper lip.

"You're perfect," she hissed before stabbing me in the neck with a sharp syringe. It took mere seconds for me to fall to the ground, unconscious. The last sound that registered in my mind from that early morning was the laughter and childlike quality in her voice when she said, "I'm going to have so much fun playing with you, Ben."

When I came to, I found myself in a large bed, my wrists cuffed to the bedposts. She was on top of me, kissing my neck, my shoulders... I was so much larger than her, and yet I felt helpless and completely at her mercy.

"What are you doing? Who are you? Where am I?"

She chuckled.

"Ohh ... So many questions, my pet."

I grimaced at the word she used, turning my mouth away from her when she tried to kiss me. Obviously irritated, she grabbed my head with both her hands before forcing a kiss on me. When our lips parted, she c.o.c.ked her head to the side and pouted.

"You ought to be thankful that I'm in such a nice mood, because I've decided to answer your questions ... What am I doing? I'm kissing you. Who am I? I'm Claudia, your mistress. Where are you? You're in my bedroom."

Her lips and her hands were all over me and all I could think about was the way she smiled at me back at the beach before I lost consciousness. "You're a vampire." Saying the words out loud made me feel absolutely insane.

"Smart boy..." she straddled my waist and propped herself up over my chest as she looked down at me, the same manic smile on her face. "Now, I want you to shut up." She gagged me, and then she sank her teeth down my neck, drinking my blood for the first time.

Once satiated, she lifted her head, my blood dripping from the corners of her lips. "You're as sweet as he was. The Duke..." Claws protruded from her fingers and she began to trace one of them over my torso. "Do you have any idea what he put me through?"