The forest was dark, almost pitch black. I could barely see my tiny hand in front of my face. At only 3'4, my legs were not as long as my older sister's, so it was harder for me to keep up with her as we walked through the woods, exploring.

I couldn't help but worry that Momma and Daddy would be mad. We weren't allowed in the woods after dark, and the sun was already almost down. If we didn't turn around now, we would be in trouble with Mommy and Daddy—or worse.

"Sadie!" I called out, but she had disappeared. I tried again. "Sadie!"

I kept walking through the darkness, trying to find my sister. Where in the world could she have gone? Just a few minutes ago, she was right beside me . . . wasn't she?

Suddenly, an ear-piercing scream filled the forest around me. Even though I rarely heard any of my family members scream—only if my Mom or Sadie saw a snake or rat—I still knew that scream anywhere. Sadie was in trouble, and I still couldn't find her to save her.

I picked up my pace as limbs pulled against my long, straggly hair and my feet tripped over limbs in an attempt to find Sadie. I just had to find her before anything bad happened to her. But, before I could find her, she found me. Well, she ran right into me, therefore finding me.

"Oh my God! We have to get out of h-" she panted before she was cut off by something grabbing me out of her grasp. I looked up into the blood red eyes glowing in the darkness around me. The pale skin stood out against the blackness, and her evil grin only made my tiny heart drop. I was terrified—like, pee-in-my-pants terrified.

"Well, well. What do we have here? Another child?" she spoke in a velvety voice. "Oh, and a feisty one at that!" she exclaimed when I tried to bite her. "Uh-Uh-Uh! No biting . . . yet."

What was that supposed to mean?

"Put my sister down!" Sadie screeched, kicking the beautiful woman's shin. The woman simply glanced down at my sister before sighing.

"Ah, the joys of children," she muttered, loud enough for us to hear. I scowled at her, frozen in her death grip around my neck.

The woman's face suddenly perked up. "What if we play a little game? Ah, I know. I'll take you," she pointed to Sadie, "with me as my dinner tonight, and come back later for you," she finished, pointing at me.

I was about to protest when Sadie said, "Yes. Yes, let's play." I shot Sadie a look, scared for not only my own life but for hers, too. As a mere child, barely out of my toddler years, I was pretty advanced in my thinking.

"Please, let my sister go, then you can come back . . . in thirteen years. On a Friday. Friday the Thirteenth." Wow, it was almost like Sadie had really thought this through.

The woman simply grinned. "Ah, that sounds . . . terrifying. I love it! You're pretty smart . . . for a human."

I saw Sadie raise her brow in astonishment. Then, I caught on. Did she say "for a human"? What was that supposed to mean?

Sadie opened her mouth, most likely to ask, but the woman interrupted her. "Yes, child. I am not human. Isn't that obvious?"

"W-What are you?" she asked, barely above a whisper.

The woman grinned and chuckled evilly. "A vampire."

With that, she dropped me on the ground, grabbed a screaming Sadie, and ran off with blinding speed.

"Sadie!" I screamed, much like I did earlier while trying to find her. "Sadie!"

"Sadie!" I yell as I sit up in bed, fully awake now. I blink, taking in my surroundings. I am in my bed, covered in a cold sweat, shaking. I sigh as I realize that it was just another nightmare. I seem to have a lot of those these days. And, most of the time, they are based on the same thing—my sister's death.

"Evie? Are you okay?" My mother, Sheila, runs into my room, a worried look on her face. She is always worrying about me—probably because I'm the only child she has left. At least that's one parent who actually cares if I'm alright or not. Can't say the same for my Dad, though.

I wipe my forehead with the back of my hand, hopefully removing most of the evidence of my nightmare, and nod with a forced smile. "Yep. Everything is okey dokey."

Momma smiles softly, but her eyes betray her. She knows I'm lying, but she would never call me out when it involves my nightmares. She knows what they were about, and she knew that if she called me out then it would only bring up the painful subject that none of us really wanted to bring up. Plus, she still didn't believe me when I told her it was a vampire. The police ruled it as a bear attack—I was supposedly lucky. But, I knew the truth. I was the only witness, so I knew the whole truth. It wasn't a freaking bear that kidnapped my sister. It was a vampire.

"Okay, well, hurry up and get dressed. You've got to feed Ash before school." With that, she disappeared down the hall.

I sigh and roll over, attempting to land on my feet. But, the sheet tangles up with my legs. I scream as I fall face-first onto the cold, hard floor.

"Ow," I mumble into the wood before kicking off the sheets and standing.

After dressing in jeans, a black tank top underneath a thin gray hoodie, and my black and white converse, I pull my long, straight-as-a-board light brown hair back into a low ponytail at the nape of my neck and pull the hood up over it. I almost always wear a hood on my head to school; it helps me hide from the stupid high school idiots I'm forced to go to school with. Plus, when I wear the hood, the kids keep a distance. Sure, they may call me a freak, but I'm the tough freak.

I apply a light amount of eyeliner around my blue eyes and grab my black messenger bag before skipping down the stairs. After dropping my bag off in my car, I head out back, behind the house.

After feeding my "pet", I head for my car—a black Ford Mustang—and hit the gas. It takes a few minutes to get out of my driveway—the stupid thing is about a quarter of a mile long—before I am on the two lane highway. Once I'm on the highway, I gun it straight for town.

I live about two miles outside of town, while Kim is right on the outskirts. She actually lives on the same highway I live on, so it's a straight shot to leave my house, pick her up, and head to school. And that is exactly what I do every morning Monday through Friday.

It takes about a minute for me to arrive at Kim's. She is standing on her front porch, her book bag on her shoulder and an annoyed look on her face. That's when I glance down at the clock on the dashboard. 7:58 flashes back in green. Crap. That means we have two minutes to get to school, get inside to our homerooms, and be in our seats before the bell rings at 8:00. Hah, there is no way in heck we are going to make it. No wonder Kim is pissed. She hates being late, while I could really care less. That's just one of the many differences between us. Kim is the shy, quiet girl who dreams of becoming a famous writer while I'm the type who will murder anyone who hurts the ones I love and not think twice about it. I protect Kim most of the time from the kids who pick on her for being a "dork" or "geek." I, for one, call her my best friend.

Kim hops in the front passenger seat of my 'Stang and I reverse it back onto the highway. She immediately loses the annoyed face when something crosses her mind. I have a feeling it has to do with a certain boy—as always.

"Do you think Jared will be back at school today?" she asks hopefully.

I knew it. She is always talking about Jared Michaels. Honestly, I don't give a crap what happens to the guy, but as long as my best friend is head-over-heels for him, I'm forced to care.

"I dunno," I reply. He has missed the last week of school, and everyone says he has been sick. But, I think it has something more to do with it. What with the weird "cult" rumors going around that Sam Uley and Paul Reid dragging Jared in. I don't know though. I just have that weird feeling that something more than sickness is involved.