Chris started to laugh, a full bodied laugh that rumbled out of him. Despite herself, Cassie could not help but join him, shaking her head as Devon stepped back. Melissa rolled her eyes again, chuckling softly. “He looks so lost,” she said softly, her chuckles growing in intensity.

“Yeah he does,” Chris agreed enthusiastically. “Big bad vampire taken down by a crown!”

The three of them burst into loud laughter that drew the attention of the few students closest to them. They didn’t pay attention as they clung to each other, laughing loudly. At some point through it, Cassie realized that they were not truly laughing at the situation. They were laughing because they needed to. It had been so long since she had heard their laughter, so long since she had expressed any of her own. The release was wonderful.

Kara stepped up to the microphone, drawing Cassie’s attention back to the stage. Wiping back the tears that had formed in her eyes, Cassie was slowly able to regain control. Devon was watching her with a raised eyebrow; amusement glowed in the depths of his bright emerald eyes. She waved at him, unable to completely rid herself of the silly grin she wore.

“And now nominee’s for Homecoming queen!” Kara announced eagerly.

That was enough to make her smile slip away. Melissa’s hand tightened on her shoulder as the names were read off. Cassie felt a small jolt of surprise when she was mentioned. She had expected her name to be as eradicated as she had been in the eyes of the student body. Well not completely eradicated as she was still the center of attention, she was just the most hated person in school now.

“And the winner is…” Again the dramatic pause as Kara ripped into the envelope. Her bright grin caused Cassie’s stomach to roll violently. “Marcy Hodgins!”

Loud applause exploded through the room. Cassie didn’t move, didn’t even breathe as she watched Marcy eagerly climb the stage. Marcy’s grin was so wide that every one of her teeth showed. She waved like a queen to the crowd, as she eagerly accepted her crown and flowers. “Thank you everyone!” she announced into the microphone. “Thank you so much!”

“They love me, they really love me!” Chris said with a high falsetto, he fluttered his lashes as he folded his hands demurely before him.

Despite the sick feeling in her stomach, Cassie could not help but laugh again. Chris never failed to cheer her up; he always seemed to know exactly what to do in order to get a laugh from her. He grinned back at her, his sapphire eyes twinkling merrily. Without Chris she would have been lost long ago, adrift in a world that she didn’t understand. They had survived The Slaughter together, had moved everywhere together, and had grown closer than any brother and sister ever could have.

The band began to play again, catching Cassie’s attention as the soft song drifted from the speakers. The lead singer moved forward, reclaiming his microphone. “Now for the king and queen to share a dance!” he announced.

Cassie ran her hands up and down her arms as her skin began to crawl. This was the part that she had been dreading. Melissa’s arm tightened around her. Devon glanced helplessly at her as Marcy seized hold of his hand. Cassie managed a wan, reassuring smile as she nodded briefly. Marcy led him eagerly forward, practically pulling him down the steps of the makeshift stage.

Chris laughed coldly as he shook his head. “Could she be any more desperate?” Melissa muttered in disgust.

“She’s been looking forward to this for months. Even if I hadn’t fallen from grace I think she would have stuffed the ballot box just for this dance,” Cassie said softly.

“Have to agree.”

They reached the dance floor; Marcy released Devon’s hand as she practically threw herself into his arms. He took a small step back, a disapproving frown marring his attractive face as he took a step back. Marcy chose to ignore it; stepping close once again, she wrapped her arms around his waist and rested her head on his chest.

The tingling of Cassie’s skin became worse; her heart lumbered painfully in her chest. She couldn’t stand to watch this, but she couldn’t bring her frozen legs to move either. Devon rested his hands lightly on Marcy’s shoulder, holding her slightly back when she tried to get even closer. Which Cassie didn’t think was possible.

Groaning softly, Cassie tore her gaze away when Marcy’s hands drifted down to his ass. Though she knew that Devon wanted nothing to do with this dance, or Marcy, she couldn’t stand to watch anymore. “I have to go to the bathroom,” she blurted, spinning out of Melissa’s light hold.

“Cassie.” Melissa grabbed hold of her hand, halting her progress. “He doesn’t want this.”

Cassie nodded as she gently tugged her hand free of Melissa’s. “I know that, but I also don’t want to watch it.”

“I’ll come with you.”

Cassie shook her head, the crawling of her skin growing more intense. She couldn’t see what was happening anymore, but she was certain that Marcy was still doing her best to grope Devon. “I just need a few minutes. I’ll be right back.”

Melissa’s eyes were sad but Cassie didn’t stop. Hurrying swiftly through the crowd, she ignored the stares and mutters that followed her. She also ignored the satisfied smirks on the faces of Marcy’s friends. Girls who had once been her friends too. The only one who didn’t look completely smug was Kara. Cassie met her gaze for a brief moment, a surge of hope spurting through her at the sorrow and loss that filled her old friends gaze. For a moment she felt a connection to the girl again.

Then Kara blinked, her eyes darted to the girls surrounding her before she turned swiftly away. Anger surged through Cassie, anger at Kara, and anger at herself for even momentarily entertaining the idea that Kara might once again be her friend. She should have known that Kara would not risk the censure of the rest of the school. She would not go against the grain by alienating herself, and becoming the outcast that Cassie had.

Though Cassie could not entirely blame Kara, she still couldn’t help the hurt that shot through her. Turning away, Cassie hurried through the rest of the crowd, forcing herself not to bolt from the room, and the people inside it. She burst out of the gym, taking a deep breath of the cooler, fresher air.

Her hands clung to her arms, trying hard to stop the shaking that had seeped into her bones. Heels clicking on the linoleum floor, Cassie made her way slowly to the bathroom as she attempted to regain control of her wildly swaying emotions. Pushing the bathroom door open, she poked her head inside.

Kelly Jackson was at the sink washing her hands; Kelly froze as her eyes met Cassie’s in the mirror. Cassie gave her a brief nod before continuing onto one of the stalls. Closing the door, she leaned her forehead against the cool metal, grateful for the brief, solitary peace as she inhaled and exhaled deeply. She listened as Kelly left the bathroom before popping the door back open and stepping outside once more.

Making her way to the sink, Cassie turned the cold water on. Splashing her face, she found her control slowly returning as the water shocked her out of the dull haze suffusing her. Grabbing some paper towels, she dried her face. The door opened and closed again, she didn’t look up; she couldn’t take the shunning and disgust anymore. She was in control again; she didn’t need to be rattled out of it.

Footsteps rang across the floor, stopping behind her. Cassie frowned, a chill swept down her back as her heart leapt into her throat. A shimmering wall seemed to come down upon her as a wave of terror suffused her. Freezing like a deer trapped in the headlights, Cassie’s hands tightened upon the sink, her heart lurched and leapt as fear seized hold of her muscles locking them in place. She knew who was behind her, knew who had come in. She knew what he wanted, but her body refused to react to such knowledge.

Slowly, ever so achingly slowly, she lifted her head to look in the mirror. Julian stood behind her; a cruel smile twisted his beautiful face as his icy blue eyes clashed with hers in the glass. His white blond hair was spiked up in disarray, showing off the hard angles of his perfect face. Though Cassie was petrified into immobility, her mind somehow processed the fact that the just out of bed style looked good on him. Though, she was certain that there probably wasn’t much that didn’t look good on him.

For a moment they simply gazed at each other, silently surveying the competition. He was enjoying playing with her like a cat with a mouse, practically salivating at the thought of draining her dry. She was simply trying to get her brain to work again as she struggled to grasp the ramifications of this situation.

“For what it’s worth, you definitely had my vote.”

Cassie’s mind lurched into action as his melodic voice pounded into her ears. The terror tearing through her was pushed aside as her survival instinct finally kicked into high gear and years of training poured through her. He would kill her if he got a hold of her, and there was no one around to help her. She wanted to kick herself for turning Melissa down, but she was extremely grateful that her friend was not here now. At least they wouldn’t both be killed tonight. Melissa could go on with her life, even if Cassie couldn’t.

No matter what happened though, no matter how this all turned out, she was not going down without a fight, and Julian would not walk away from this without injury.

“Though you aren’t a queen, you can be my princess.”

With those purred words, Julian launched at her.

CHAPTER 14

Devon finally managed to extract himself from Marcy’s desperate, grasping touch. There had been a time when he had thrived on his inherent ability to attract women, a time when he had reveled in the endless parade of them. Not anymore. He wished he could flip a switch and turn the ability off, but unfortunately it didn’t work that way.

Making his way across the floor, he steered clear of the girls that attempted to approach him. All he wanted was to get back to Cassie, take her in his arms, and rid himself of the lingering feel of Marcy. The girl had no shame whatsoever; he tried hard not to shudder at the reminder of her.

He stepped clear of the crowd, frowning as he spotted Chris and Melissa, minus Cassie. Worry filled his gut as he scanned the students gathered near them. “Where’s Cassie?” he demanded, far more abruptly than he’d intended.

Melissa lifted an eyebrow, studying him with an amused expression. “The bathroom, she’ll be right back.”

Devon shifted; uneasiness grew in him as he perused the crowd once more. He didn’t like the idea of her being alone, even if there were a lot of people in the building. Folding his arms, he tapped his foot as he fought the urge to go after her. She needed her freedom, without it she would rebel, chafing against any restraints placed upon her. Even as he reminded himself of this fact, his anxiety level hiked up a notch.

Reaching out, he used his powers to search for her presence. He had become so in tune with her that it was easy for him to shift through the people surrounding him, shoving aside their personalities as he reached for her. His mind clicked onto hers, his body going numb with the cold that suffused him as her terror pounded into him. For a moment he couldn’t move as her fear tore into him, leaving him frozen in place.

He had to pull away from her, had to remove himself from the edges of her frantic mind, otherwise he would be unable to move. Breaking free of his paralysis, he bolted forward, shoving people aside in his heedless rush. Ignoring the shocked looks he received, he leapt easily over a table as he raced out of the room, not caring that a human wouldn’t be able to move as fast as him, or with as much agility. He did not care if his reaction put doubts and questions into their minds; all he cared about was getting to her before it was too late.

***

Cassie darted to the side as Julian came at her in a blurring rush that was nearly indistinguishable. She just barely managed to avoid his questing grasp as his hand skimmed over the skin of her back. He spun at her again, coming at her with a ferocity, and a hunger, that sent her heart racing as her fight or flight instinct kicked into hyper drive. She wanted to flee, though it was highly unlikely that she would be able to.

Her breath was coming in quick, short gasps as she turned swiftly, reaching for the first thing she could grab. Her panicked fingers seized hold of the soap dispenser. Fear made her stronger as she ripped it from the wall in one fierce pull. He grabbed hold of her shoulders, shoving her backward as he slammed her into the sink. A gasp escaped her as pain flared up her bruised and battered spine. Her head smashed into the mirror, breaking the mirror above the sink. Shattered glass spilled around them in a tinkling wave that crashed upon the sink and floor. She was momentarily stunned into immobility from the force of the impact.

The bright lights of the room reflected harshly off of the shattered pieces, dazing her with their brilliance. She was too terrified and adrenaline filled to succumb to the pain that slammed through her bruised and battered spine, and wounded skull. She would die if she did. Blinking back the stars that momentarily filled her field of vision; she worked hard to bring him back into focus. His beautiful face was twisted into a snarl, his long fangs extended past his lower lip. Her breath rushed from her as he struck at her, moving faster than any rattlesnake.