She perused the books on the shelves. Under normal circumstances she would probably have picked up one of the musician biographies to read but these weren't normal circumstances. She ignored the book on torture, having no desire whatsoever to delve into that topic. She was interested in werewolves now that she had actually met one but it was the scrapbook that she pulled down and took with her to a plush chair near the window to read.

There was only one reason an immortal baron would keep a book like this. It undoubtedly held memories and mementos from his past. Reading this might give her some valuable insight into the man who claimed her as his bride. Still, she hesitated before opening it. She might learn things from this book that she didn't want to see or that the Baron didn't want her to see. She dismissed that thought. If there were secrets in here Adalstan didn't want anyone to see he would have stored it in a less public room. She opened the book and began skimming through it, becoming so absorbed that she forgot to listen for footfalls all together.

The scrapbook was strange. It was on her to figure out how some things had related to one another as it hadn't been written in a straight forward method. There seemed to be at least two topics here too and seeing how they fit together wasn't clear. She managed to piece some of it together when she came across newspaper articles that had images. There were a few black and white photos of people she recognized from the party.

The articles related to them had been about their demise. How they were murdered by a freak cult found with strange puncture wounds. She could guess that these were memories of the people the baron converted over. But there were other clippings that didn't fit, savage murders with dismemberment that didn't fit the M.O.

She noted that they had been all throughout Europe in both cases. The major matter that made sense had been that Adalstan had been tracking this murderer while conducting his own. Maybe.

On occasion she saw articles about this person or that who disappeared without a trace. In each case the person was a young female who had been similar to her in appearance. Their occupations differed. Most were unemployed as tended to be the norm but few were known as authors, fashion designers and the like.

Getting immersed in her reading she came across one of the articles about a savage killing that listed a suspect … Luke Wellington … as the victim had mentioned with meeting with the man to the last person that saw him alive. Afterward Luke went missing as well.

With the light creeping out beneath the door she was easy to find. The door opened and in the doorway was Adalstan himself. He gazed in her direction then glanced to the book she was reading. “An interesting read, don't you think?”

The disturbing subject matter of the book had put her on edge so, when she suddenly heard Adalstan's voice coming from the doorway, she jumped. She was annoyed with herself for that. She gave the Barron a bitter look which he didn't see as his eyes were fixed on the book in her lap. She returned her gaze to it too and frowned. "Interesting is not the word I would use for it but it has been quite revelatory."

The book had not told her anything she couldn't have guessed given the things she had seen tonight. She was in a den of vampires and monsters. Of course they would leave a swath of dead bodies in their wake. She had almost been one of them. She closed the book and set it aside as she stood up and started brushing the wrinkles from her gown. When she spoke again she strived to sound as casual as possible. "So, did you tell the other girls the same pretty lies you told me? That they were 'the one'? That you were certain of it? Is that how you convince them all to step into that arena with their death."

She met his eyes briefly, only long enough for him to see how angry she was with him, before she quickly turned away. She didn't want to give him time to use his power against her. She turned to the window to stare out at the dark night instead and waited for his reply.

He shook his head as she posed her question to him though glancing away before he could beguile her with his eyes. “They were all wrong. They merely looked the part and just would not do.” He moved in behind her though it was more of a sense that he was close rather then hearing him. He was silent and quick.

“But they were simply told to face Winston, Luke now in recent years with his passing. But there is more to you. I could feel the same aura that I had with her. Not even the others could feel what I did but the others were never so close to your ancestor.

“It has been difficult finding you. I have searched far and wide but yours isn't a conventional family tree.” The back of a pair of his knuckles traced along her cheek. “But you are now at the threshold of becoming something new, something that even transcends the children of the night. Your recent ordeal only serves to verify it. The others lack true understanding, they cannot see what I nearly accomplished in ages past but will finally get to accomplish now.”

She shied away from his touch and moved away from him. His words had done nothing to alleviate her concerns. They did just the opposite, in fact, and brought up all new ones. "You still didn't answer my question. Clearly they weren't the one you were searching for," she gestured to the book on the table. The fates of those women meant that they had not passed the trial and thus were not "the one". "You still made them take your test though. So you clearly thought they might be. Did you kiss and seduce them all first too? Or am I to believe that I am the first to receive your declarations of love?"

She attempted to side step him and move to the other side of the room. She was still avoiding his gaze as she did this. "Perhaps it makes since that your kind would be obsessed with bloodlines but no woman wants to hear that she is desirable because of her ancestry. What trait have I inherited anyway? What did I win in the genetic lottery that allows me to repel werewolves and courses me to be hunted by vampires?"

“There was uncertainty with them. They had a resemblance and needed to be tested but they never sparked anything, I got no feeling that they were the one but they could have been.” He seemed so casual about human life just as she would treat an ant it seemed indifferent to killing it.

She had been able to move to the opposite side of the room, his attention directed to the book briefly. “In a few nights this will not matter to you. Before the change is always different.

“You are different. You are the Alpha, it is in your blood. There are two ways of becoming one of the beasts of the night, cursed through injury or simply born into it. But your father ranged far and wide. There were many leads to check into, many dead ends. But there has been a problem that had been worked on with your grandmother … your mother was suppose to be the key but she was mortal. However, just as your grandmother passed the gift to her your mother passed the gift to you.”

He grinned and approached again. “You will be the first. Though there is a small problem that may be an issue before hand that will need to be addressed.” He was before her now, his hand going to her chin lifting her head up. “Ah, you did not know? Not even suspect? You have not been awakened to these things, not that it matters.”

She could hardly believe what she was hearing. He though she was an Alpha? That was insane! She was a musician not a born leader. Okay, so she couldn't explain the incident with Luke but whatever had made the werewolf back off it wasn't her assertiveness. She was about to set the baron straight when he was suddenly right in front of her, babbling on about a problem that needed to be addressed. She tried to pull away but he caught her chin and forced her to face him. She could have avoided meeting his eyes but his words had annoyed her so she glared murderously at him instead. "Really? You only see one problem with all this. That's funny because I can think of a dozen at least." She continued staring at him coldly as she spoke. "Pray tell, what is the problem you foresee?"

He saw the annoyance in her gaze though like a parent that just scolded a child he ignored it save for the smirk that curled up one side of his features. “Two now that you bring attention too it, I suppose. Each is a small matter that won't take much to address. The first ...”

Adalstan was so calm as he spoke,perhaps he expected a tantrum as if she was a child, it didn't seem to matter to him if she liked it or not but he paused for effect in order to gather her complete attention. He used that time to peer into her eyes longer as his hand came away from her chin.

“Rikter will need to be handled. I suspect he will attempt to track you down. The last ...” a lengthy pause then a smile.

“We'll have to get rid of your mortality when it is time. But that is a simple thing. It will be as simple as falling asleep and reawakening fresh.”

Her eyes widened minutely at the mention of Rikter. In all the confusion of the evening she all but forgotten the kind man who'd escorted her home early that day. It felt like that had been ages ago now. Still, she remembered him fondly and disliked the menacing way Adalstan spoke of "handling" him. She caught his wrist and wrenched her chin out of his grasp. "If you wish my cooperation with the latter of those two problems you will tread lightly with the first. You may think nothing of murder but I've seen enough violence tonight and only agreed to come here tonight because your thugs threatened to hurt that man. He has shown me more kindness than any of your people tonight and thus has earned more of my loyalty than you have thus far."

She released his wrist and stepped away from him again. "I don't know if things were different the last time you went a-courting a bride but if you wish to woo me with any of this you are failing miserably." She must have been mad on that balcony when she had first been so enticing. He felt like a different person now. He said nothing of love or desire. His reasons for wanting her seemed to only circle around the power he claimed she processed. "If you think me such a powerful Alpha then I'm surprised that you think I would so easily won. Why should I accept a husband who treats me like my opinion doesn't matter? You think it is my mortality that makes me soft but I assure you it is not. If you only want me for what think I will become after the change then I suggest the abandon that foolishness. I have no interest in making such a cold and heartless match."

It was clear that he was not going to woo her. Adalstan was open with his objectives and it seemed that he didn't care what she believed or did as if she was powerless to stop it. Maybe she was. Even ending her own life seemed dangerous as that had been his end game, not unless she did it in a manner where there was little left of her or her body wasn't recoverable such as leaping into the ocean but she could not be sure she wouldn't be found.

Her guess was that they may have been capable of bringing her back a short time after death or had to invoke it themselves. The lore didn't really spell out all the rules in becoming one but it seemed to make the most sense.

“I will handle that brother of mine if he meddles in my affairs. Don't worry, I won't kill him.” He grinned either he had something fiendish or under handed in mind or delighted in her connecting the dots, attempting to reason how old Rikter was, if he was a vampire as well or the like.

“In the end none of it will matter.” He was smug, confident and arrogant. Yet his eyes were drugging. Not in the sexual way as before but now it transfixed her.

“Easily won? You have no choice, Nell. You have not awakened to your true nature yet, sadly, else I wouldn't waste time in such idle talk. Come.”

He lead her away by the wrist, his gaze making it virtually impossible to do anything but be lead along. She was left in a bedroom now locked inside, that haze soon ended though she saw that she was not alone. There were others here, other women that feasted their attention on her. Three attractive women that drank her in with their eyes … no, not her she would come to realize though they regarded her with a mixture of curiosity and jealousy. It had been the glimpse of Adalstan that they seemed to hunger for ...

"Rikter is your brother?" That explained the resemblance then and the portrait in the hall. "Then he is a vampire like you?" She asked, fishing for more information. Rikter had been kind to her. If he was a vampire too then there was hope for her still. "If he is like you then you know the change will not alter me into some heartless fiend. What will you do when my abilities are awaken and you cannot control me anymore?"

She challenged him even as his eye ensnared her again. She offered no resistance as he took her wrist and lead her down the hall. Still, she continued to speak. "What use is a having an Alpha bride if she stands in opposition of you?" He led her into another bedroom and lock her in again but she was not alone this time. There were three beautiful women there too. Their predatory gazes seemed in imply that they too were vampires. They made her uneasy as they looked towards her but when she realized that they seemed more interested in Adalstan she attempted to escape their gaze.

She stayed to the edges of the room with her back to the door. She hoped that those hungry stares stayed to ed on the door and not on her. She was not sure why Adalstan had put her in here with these women but she felt certain it wasn't have a friendly chat. She wanted nothing to do with these people.

He shook his head slightly. “He is not ...” Whether that was out of regret or not she could not say. Certainly he was something if Adalstan had been a vampire for even a few decades then something had to be keeping Rikter young.

In any case Adalstan had to be infected with vampirism at some stage while his brother had not. When she mentioned not being controlled by him as they walked along he grinned. “Awakened or not you would have the same resistance to my gaze, physical strength isn't the same as mental strength. As your scion you wouldn't be capable of making a move against me any how.

“I foresee some resistance at first but in the end you will submit.

She was sealed into that room and while she suspected that they were vampires as well she sought to avoid their gazes. Whether they could do the same with their gazes or not she did not find out. One of the woman came near though. Stroking her hair, running a finger against her neck and making her feel uncomfortable. It seemed as if she was going to feast on her when another woman called her off and to leave Adalstan's toys alone. It seemed that they could sense that she had been human.

Left alone she contemplated what Adalstan revealed to her. She had been left alone for the most part. Something seemed to agitate the women after some time. At first it was jerking up their heads, straining to listen as if they heard something. It had been about the time that she heard someone turning doorknobs then moving on that one of the women addressed her.

“Get behind us.”

She was really worried for a moment that these women would attack or abuse her in some way. One seemed ready to, she detached herself from the group and started to acost her. Nell was about to loss her temper with her unwanted advances when other woman told her to back off. She disliked the implications that she was Adalstan's toy but if it kept the other vampires from touching her she wasn't about to correct them.

They mostly ignored her after that. She was just fine with that. She didn't know what Adalstan's purpose in leaving her here was but she didn't intend to waste the time. She started looking for likely means of escape but before she could find anything she became aware of a growing unease in the room. The women around her started to move in agitation and toward their attention towards the doorway. Then they were suddenly still and she heard the sound of the doorknob turning.

"Get behind us." One of the women warned and, without really understanding why, she obeyed. It was instincts she supposed. Whoever was at the door had made a room full of anxious predictors nervous. That was reason enough to exercise caution. Though, maybe this was something she could use to her advantage. She moved behind the vampire woman, peeking around them to see what was coming in. She would decide how best to respond depending on who or what was at the door.

There was silence but it was tense. From behind the vampire she saw the door knob turn slowly as if someone was checking if it were locked or not. That was what the person outside had to be doing though it was uncertain if what they were searching for was locked away or not.

Then everything went still, the door knob did not retract so whoever or whatever was out there could toss the door opened at any moment. One of the vampires used hand signals to get the other two to fan out and move closer to the door while she remained behind her.

Such an explosion soon followed, the door burst open with a suddenness as if someone put their shoulder too it despite it not being locked. It was near impossible to follow, one of the vampires seemed o crumble to dust before her eyes. She saw and heard a spear fall to the floor … no, just a wooden stick. An elongated stake?

The man burst into the room coming straight ahead so quickly that the one near the door didn't have time to react before he had passed.

A sword was drawn in one smooth motion he head of the second vampire was lobed off and she turned to a pile of ash. Adalstan, no Rikter. He was grinning and she saw that there was a pistol on his belt as well. Now things had slowed down with him facing the last vampire each studying the other for an opening. Of course she was behind the vampire as the creature had not yet connected her importance to the man, perhaps she was a bit confused at what she had seen, perhaps she believed this to be Adalstan and was asking all the fateful whys ...

The room erupted into chaos when the door suddenly burst open and women started screaming. Screaming and dying. Faster than her eyes could track the newcomer, a man with a sword, attacked the vampires one by one. He decapitated them cleanly and they dissolved into ashes. One of the woman still stood before her, though whether she was actually trying to shield her or guard her was hard to say.

For her part, Nell stayed silent. She caught a glimpse of the man and realized who is was but she was not sure yet if he was here to rescue her or kill her. Her experience with his brother had made her wary. He had seemed nice when he walked her home earlier but she knew now that he wasn't human. Perhaps he was only being nice to her because he too wanted her power. Now that she was in his brother's power her might behave differently.

In any case, she didn't trust him not to hurt her in the confusion. He may not realize that she was here amongst the vampires and in his haste to dispatch them he might kill her too. She backed towards the back wall, wanted to be as far from the vampiress guarding her as possible. She didn't want to be counted amongst her number. She hoped Rikter would stop once he killed the last one and she would have time to decide what to do next.