As it turns out, I wouldn’t want any jam sandwiches anymore. The very first moment I’d tasted blood, I was done for. The cravings were intense. Merlot had nothing on it, jam had nothing on it, and neither did rare steak; there wasn’t anything that could compare to the insane taste of rich red life, fresh from the vein.
Hans had been keeping us close to the blood house. I’d been sucking at Sarah’s neck so many times these past few weeks that I’d lost count. Hans and I had been having the time of our lives.
I wondered if he was taking a nip at Daniel while Edwin watched on, over at the manor, quenching his thirst a little as I embarked on my first ever Herefordshire coven adventure.
Maybe I’d take a nip of Daniel myself when I got back…
“It’s definitely at the Garway community hall tonight?” Mum asked me, interrupting my thoughts.
“Yeah, it is.”
“But you still don’t know who is going to be there?”
“Nope. I have no idea. I can’t wait for the surprises.”
It had been almost a full month since the night in Garway church when I’d become an immortal, and the full moon was glowing bright outside. It was time for the witches to be meeting, and I – Katherine Blakely, of the long line of Orcop witches – was about to reveal myself as the ninth of them. The spring was in full flow and I was the latest in the family tree, about to take my place amongst the coven.
“Almost time,” I said, and Mum took a breath.
“Are you ready for this?”
“As ready as I’ll ever be.”
I checked out my hair in the mirror, and smoothed down my dark green dress. I was paler now than ever as a vampire. My hair looked a lot, lot darker for it, and my eyes were hazel with a glow.
I was nervous as I walked down the stairs, the tension growing inside me as Mum got her car keys ready to drive me to Garway community hall. I felt like I was back to being a teenager driven around by a parental chauffeur, but it was nice these days. Our bond was growing stronger every day.
Just a shame Grandma didn’t want to be a part of it. She’d disappeared off down south to some kind of holy refuge centre, no doubt preaching about us being sinners. Oh, the joy of a disjointed family.
On that note, I shot Mum a glance as I slipped into the passenger seat.
“Have you heard from him today?”
She blushed like she was even younger than I was. Her cheeks were bright pink, even in the dark. I could feel the heat from them. I could hear her heart thumping fast.
“Who?” she asked, but I laughed at her.
“You know who!”
She shrugged. “Yeah, a little. We’ve been messaging.”
“A little? Right. Yeah, sure.”
I knew she was underplaying it. Her grin made it obvious, not to mention I could feel the joy coming off her.
Who’d have ever thought that my dad would be dating my mum again after eighteen years apart? They could play it cool all they wanted, but it was a facade. Both of them wanted to end up together. Mum couldn’t stop blushing as soon as Dad’s name was mentioned, and Dad lit up like a beacon at the wordSerenaevery time I’d seen him in London. They were as much fated mates as me and Hans were.
I could only imagine the weirdness of going out on double dates.
Maybe one day…
“Are you still spending a lot of time with him?” Mum asked.
“Yeah. He’s nice.”
“You’d hope so. He’s your father.” She paused. “You look more like him now you have those fancy teeth, you know?”
I grinned to show them off. She was right. Everyone said it. I definitely looked like the daughter of the occult master of Britain, and I’d definitely inherited some traits from him. I was lucky to have been born of two bloodlines with such complementary talents.