[book one]
The game was simple: A contest comprised of three unique challenges, designed to test a human's strength physically and mentally, their personality compatibility, and their chance of survival.
The prize was excruciatingly tempting: The ch...
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THE MOONLIGHT DWINDLED as Aubrey led Sophie further into the depths of the castle. The sound of her wedges clicking against the stone was the only sound that passed between them. Sophie kept her arms folded across her chest. Her lips were pressed into a firm line.
Her heart still pounded away inside her chest like it was on steroids.
"Here," Aubrey said. She stopped in front of a massive wooden door, with a fearsome dragon engraved on it. Sophie's neck craned back. She stared at the dragon's gnarly fangs, terrified.
Aubrey shoved through the door, and stepped inside. She folded her arms across her chest. "This is where you'll stay during the games."
Sophie took a timid step inside. Her gaze flicked around the room, taking in her extravagant surroundings. It was like the girl's dormitory, only condensed. High ceilings stretched far above their heads, covered in gentle engravings. The images were slight and hard to discern. A series of pastel couches were clustered together in one corner, surrounding a flat-screen that was as big as the wall behind it.
A kitchen-like area comprised of the rest of the room, with white marble counters and stainless steel appliances. In the center stood small white-wooden table with a pastel green vase on top, filled with a bouquet of bright pink flowers.
Through an intricately carved archway, the rest of the room opened into a bedroom. Four comfortably sized beds spread out across the room, each covered in a mass of pillows and blankets. A door opened beside each bed, into a full bathroom and walk-in closet.
Sophie grimaced. "It's nice."
"The other female Day-Class contestant should arrive soon," Aubrey said.
"What about the other two girls?" Sophie glanced at her from over her shoulder.
Aubrey stood by the door, her arms folded across her chest. A guarded expression remained on her face. "Did you not learn anything from our little chat in the hallway?"
Sophie gulped.
"The Night Class are vampires," Aubrey continued. Her eyes glistened with ice. "We feed on pathetic humans like you, sometimes without meaning to. The Night Class and Day Class aren't supposed to mingle."
A realization slammed against Sophie, hard.
"I understand now," she murmured. Her fingers pressed against her mouth with thought. "You're not mad at me because of Wolfe. You're mad because you think that I have something with Wolfe, when your brother is interested in me."
Aubrey changed then.
The temperature of the room dropped ice cold, colder than Sophie had ever felt before. Her wedges clicked ominously against the floor as she stalked closer, the sound echoing in the massive room. Aubrey's fingers stretched wide and angled sharp, her manicured nails like claws. Her lips pulled back over her fangs, and her gaze turned lethal. "What did you say?"
