“Yeah, yeah, I know…” he rolled his eyes.
“No, seriously…” she couldn’t stop laughing. “It’s a nice name and all…” she kept on giggling, “but, meeting you here, inside the botanical garden, and your name is Thorne…”
“Yeah, yeah, come on…” he sounded annoyed, but she could se
e that there was a lingering smile on his face, too. “Laugh it out, come on.”
“Just a little more and I’m done, promise…” she was still bent down, her hands pressed against her stomach.
A few seconds later and she was finally able to take a deep breath again.
“My mom is into botany,” he explained. “My older sister’s name is Rose, my younger sister’s name is Lily, and as you already heard, I’m Thorne.”
“That’s sweet,” Mina really meant it.
“She went a little overboard with it but what can you do.”
They both laughed. The sound of their laughter echoed throughout the room, filling it with more than soothing smells of plants and blossoming flowers. For a second, Mina felt like everything was alright with the world. She felt happy. She had forgotten all about Kellam’s disappearance and she could laugh freely, without that heavy burden pressing against her heart.
“Do you have any brothers or sisters?” he asked.
“A brother,” she replied.
“Older?”
“Yes,” she nodded. “He’s my only family.”
“Oh, sorry to hear that but I’m happy that you're not alone. No one should be alone.”
She had no reply to this. There was no reply to this, really. He was right. He had no idea how right he was. She didn’t want to be alone, now or ever. She needed her brother back.
“Is everything okay?” he asked suddenly, seeing the look of sadness on her face.
“Yeah, just… I miss him,” she admitted softly.
“Where is he?”
“I don’t know.”
“Did he also escape when your clan was…?” he asked, but didn’t finish his question.
“Sorry…” she got up, grabbed her backpack and rushed away from him. “I gotta go.”
She slammed the door shut behind her, leaving Thorne confused, thinking he’d said something wrong. Warm tears were streaming down her face and she was cursing Dante’s name with all the strength of her wounded, little heart.
Chapter 7
The following night, Mina couldn’t fall asleep. Whether it was the new bed, the new place or the fact that her brother was still out there, waiting for her to find him, dead or alive, she couldn’t be sure. It was probably a combination of all those factors which was keeping her awake in the dead of night.
She tossed and turned, trying to make herself comfortable but it was no use. Strange sounds kept coming from outside, from the forest the mansion was surrounded by, sounds Mina had never heard before. First, there was a wailing, as if a woman was crying. Then, it resembled a wolf howling. This was followed by sounds of thunder. Then, it all started again, in the same order.
She tried ignoring them at first. She wished she had some ear plugs on her but they were the last thing on her mind when she was packing for this hellhole. She considered herself lucky that she was able to bring a few of her favorite weapons and potions in a hidden compartment of her backpack. Somehow, no one asked to check her baggage and she didn’t question fate. It was simply how it was meant to be. She felt like she was where she needed to be, fate made sure of that. Only, she had no idea how this journey would end.
A wolf howled in the distance, the sound oozing through the window as if it was wide open. Mina angrily pulled off her covers and stomped over to the window. She pushed the curtains aside and gazed into the darkness. It took her eyes a few seconds to adjust to the darkness that reigned outside. All she could see were tree tops, darkened bushes, and a mountain peak far away in the distance. Everything was black and grey, just silhouettes of their daytime counterparts. The moon was full, but it didn’t illuminate the earth enough. Mina could only see shadows and outlines, as if she was slowly going blind.
Then, suddenly, she thought she saw something bright red, orange and yellow flickering in the distance. She squinted in an effort to see it better. Quickly, the light disappeared. It was dark again. She looked around but there was nothing. A second later, the light flickered again, only for a brief moment, then it died. The same thing happened a few more times. Now, she was sure that something was happening in the forest, outside school grounds, something mysterious, something manmade.
She quickly changed into a pair of sweatpants and an oversized hoodie, and tiptoed out of her room. The hallways were empty. She wondered how she’d be able to explain her going out to the watchman, as every dorm had one, purely for the safety of the students. Though she wasn’t sure what vampires had to be kept safe from. They were the most dangerous creatures here, in her opinion.