There was nowhere to go, no one to turn to and if I would have started to scream it would only have made them laugh harder… because only they would be able to hear my cries for help.

I was alone and terrified and I was about to die.
~
“There is no such thing as vampires, Emma! How many times do I have to tell you? Huh?” A deep crease formed between my younger sister’s eyebrows, as the small pout that had formed in between her two chubby cheeks turned into a frown.

It was only a few days before Halloween and of course my step mother had volunteered me to bring my little sister shopping for a costume while her and my dad finished packing for their honeymoon. That thankfully had been delayed a good two months, because of the start of school, and the fact that there was no way in the world my dad was going to leave me alone with my seven year old brat of a sister for two weeks. While I began my junior year in a totally new school in a totally new state, yeah, not gonna happen.

“But CANDY!” I cringed as my little sister’s voice seemed to go up an octave as my name poured from her small mouth, like water from the three hundred dollar fountain our newest mother had installed in the master bathroom. I snapped back into reality as my sister continued whining. “I wanna be a vampire! Vampires are too real and they are so cool!”

As Emma nodded her head, her little blonde ringlets bounced off of her tiny shoulders and it only reminded me more and more of my real mother. I frowned and turned away from Emma and put the vampire costume back on the rack where my little sister had found it. “Emma no, you said that you wanted to be something realistic for Halloween, correct? Well then why don’t you be a princess or a puppy dog?”

I turned around facing my sister once again and a small gasp escaped my lips as my eyes landed on the tall and unbelievably gorgeous human being standing behind her. “I think vampires are pretty cool too and legend has that there once was a clan of vampires that lived here, in Red Oak…” It was Blake Van Gordon, the oldest and yummiest of the Van Gordon boys. Yes, I said boys, there are three of them other then Blake and they are just as yummy as he is.

Anyways, all though I had only been at my school for about a month, I knew who each of the Van Gordon boys were and now Blake, that hottest senior that ever lived, was standing right in front of me; my annoying pest of sister was the only thing between us.

Emma had turned around and was now looking up at Blake with a mildly interested look on her face. She tilted her head to the side causing her blonde ringlets to bounce yet again as she spoke to the Greek God like create standing in front of us, “Who are you? You’re really cute.”

My face flushed as I looked down at Emma. Lord, why had I been cursed with such a blunt little sister. I looked back up at Blake just as his musical laugh floated through my ear drums. He smiled and actually winked at me as he knelt down in front of my sister. “My name is Blake, and you must be Candy’s little sister. Am I right?” One of his perfectly shaped eyebrows rose as he smiled his eyes never once leaving Emma’s.

This was a good thing because I’m pretty sure my face was the same color as a tomato at the moment. He knew my name? Oh my goodness I almost passed out right then and there but then I noticed Emma wrinkling her nose slightly. My hand found its way onto her shoulder and I squeezed it gently hoping she would get the idea to be nice to my future husband… okay in my dreams at least.

Emma looked up at me and let out a dramatic seven year old sigh before she nodded, “Yeah, my name’s Emma.” She nodded a little once again and then I swear her frown turned into a smirk but of course to anyone else it would only look like an innocent little smile, but the words that came out of her mouth were anything but innocent. “You’re the Blake that Candy wrote about in her diary! You have three brothers, right?” Before another word could leave Emma’s mouth I placed my hand over her mouth quickly.

I smiled apologetically at Blake and laughed it off and took my hand away from her mouth and instead patted her head, “Sorry, I don’t know where she gets these silly little ideas…” I bit down on my bottom lip hard and tried to control the burning in my cheeks.

Blake only smiled up at me and laughed a little as he stood his dark amber eyes seemed to burn into mine as our ryes made contact. I barely even noticed the smirk that slid across his face as he spoke, “I know what you mean, my brother’s always make up stuff to try and embarrass me. It’s cool.” He then smiled again and I think I melted inside.

Then something flickered in his eyes and I thought they turned a bit darker, but when I blinked they were exactly the same as always. Blake smiled at me and tilted his head to the side a little, “So, Candy, my brother’s and I are throwing a big Halloween party over at our house on Crawford. I was hoping that you would be able to stop by.”

I’m pretty sure my jaw actually dropped but I soon realized how much of a dork I probably looked like and I closed my mouth and actually smiled, “Yeah, I’ll be there.” I smiled a little wider and nodded eagerly; maybe a little too eagerly.

Blake smiled that unbelievably sexy smile of his and nodded a little as well, “Great, if I don’t see you in school I’ll see you on Friday. Here’s an invite.” Blake pulled out a small card from the back of his pocket and handed it over to me. He then smiled down at Emma and took her hand kissing the back of her hand, “It was very nice to meet you Emma.”

Surprisingly, my sister only stared at him her face blank and emotionless she didn’t say one word and Blake shrugged it off standing up straight again he smiled at me his eyes burning into mine once again, “See you soon Candy.” He smiled and I realized that it was the first time he smiled so I could see his teeth, and they were perfect. So perfect that I couldn’t help but stare at them until he waved and walked away.

Emma soon broke through my little dazed out world by tugging on my hand quite hard, “Candy, Candy I don’t like him…”

I shook my head, frowning a little as I looked down at her, I’m not going to lie, she looked totally freaked out and that completely surprised me. He was nothing but a total gentleman to her; after all I was watching them the entire time… Okay, maybe I was watching him the entire time.

I shrugged it off and turned back to the shelf and picked up the vampire costume. Once I turned back to my sister I let out a small sigh and held the package out to her, “I’ll let you get the vampire costume if you don’t tell dad that I’m going to the party on Friday.”

Emma’s face lit up and she snatched the costume from my hands and skipped off in the direction of the register with a grin on her face that beat the Cheshire cat’s by a mile.
~
Finally, it was Friday night and I was a bundle of nerves. Or at least that’s what my Gran could have called me, if she could see my running around my room like a chicken with its head cut off.

Emma was staying with a friend while the parentals were in Jamaica; so not only did I have the entire house to myself, I also had free access of my hag of a step mother’s beauty supplies.

After buying Emma’s Halloween costume I realized that I needed one as well, and I was flat ass broke and totally screwed. Thankfully, my step mother came in handy once again. She had a walk in closet the size of most people’s bedroom and costumes that you could find nowhere within a one hundred mile radius of Red Oak. And I found the perfect costume stuffed back into the corner of her closet with her other costumes from Halloween’s pasts.

It was an all black dress, some red showing here and there. The top part, completely strapless, and basically just a corset with red silk ribbons tying it together in the back. The bottom half of the dress stopped a little under mid thigh and hugged my body tighter then anything I ever dreamed of wearing. I’m not going to lie.

I looked hot… or at least I hope Blake would think so.

Ever since the eldest Van Gordon boy had bumped into me and Emma in the Halloween shop I’ve seen him everywhere, and not just in the halls like before. Once I got to school the next day, Mr. Davies, my like two hundred year old homeroom and history teacher, side stepped me while trying to leave homeroom. I’d been bumped up to the AP History, which means I would also need a new homeroom.

Once I heard the news, I admit I wasn’t all that happy, that was until third period, when I saw just exactly who was in my new class.

It was Blake. Everything seemed to be going from absolutely boring and horrible to extremely perfect in a matter of less then forty-eight hours. And now, I was looking absolutely drop dead gorgeous and I was about to have one of the best nights of my life.

At least it was… until Blake invited me downstairs into the basement of the Van Gordon estate, his brothers and three girls, most likely their dates, dressed a lot like me believe it or not, following behind us.

We made it to the bottom of the dark stairwell before I realized how cold it was and how the music from the party, just one flight above us, could no longer be heard.

I could feel my hear beat quicken, the pounding in my chest becoming way too loud in my ears. God, I hoped Blake couldn’t hear it…

“Oh, but I can, Candy…” I jumped and before I even had a chance to turn around and face Blake a hand came over my mouth, covered in a cloth that reeked of some dead animal. In a matter of seconds, the darkness of the basement was replaced with the darkness of my eyelids fluttering closed, as my body slumped against the person holding me up.
~
The pain started even before the numbness of the chloroform left my brain. It began in my head and radiated all through out my body, passing over my heart that felt like the faster it seemed to beat; the closer it was coming to bursting inside my chest.

The weight that had once felt like one thousand pounds was lifted from my eyelids and my eyes fluttered open soon after revealing that there was now some kind of light that was let into the dark basement.

I tried turning my head and then I realized that I was attached to a wall.

I groaned and tried to move my arms and feet but obviously nothing was working. Maybe if I would stay still I would wake up in my own bed, this entire mess some crazy nightmare…

“No, Candy. I’m sorry to tell you, but this is no nightmare,” I knew that voice anywhere. It was Blake.

Laughter echoed around the room and around my skull as Blake and his younger brothers seemed to glide into the cell like room I was put in. The youngest of his brother’s, Jeremy, walked up so he was standing in front of me. He had to be at least three years younger then me, but not only was he taller then me, I was terrified of him. I was terrified of all of them.

“She’s the only one left, boys… and if you ask me, I vote that we let the little girl, suffer,” I stared up at the boy in front of me as he hissed at me, his scent so intoxicating and yet his eyes. They were black, and I swear I could see myself staring into them for eternity, but they had other plans in store for me.

“No, you three had your fun. This little darling is all mine…” Jeremy hissed something in audible to me before moving off to the side where I sensed his other brother’s were standing. Blake then came into my view and I gasped as he smiled wide, looking down upon me like normal.

There was nothing normal about that damn smile. Blake Van Gordon, no, scratch that… all of the Van Gordon boys were vampires. A wide grin cross Blake’s face as my thoughts became clear to him again he began to laugh his brothers then joining in not to long after.

There was nowhere to go, no one to turn to and if I would have started to scream it would only have made them laugh harder… because only they would be able to hear my cries for help.

I was alone and terrified and there was no doubt in my mind that I was about to die.
~
Emma sat in the middle of the living room of her friend’s house, her eyes glued to the television as the news reporters droned on about a Halloween party gone wrong the night before on Halloween night.

Emma’s eyes widened remembering where Candy was the night before as the woman on the television went on about the party, “Four girls… some kind of neck puncture… drained of blood… dead.”

Emma grabbed the remote from her friend, just in time to stop the other girl from changing the channel to cartoons… and just in time to see Candy’s “unidentified” picture of her dead body appear on the screen.

Emma’s scream echoed through out the entire town of Red Oak that early Saturday morning. Disrupting everyone in the town; except the four Van Gordon boys who were busy planning their next Halloween Party.