Vampire Brothers Begged Me Back

When I was three years old, my twin brothers, Silas and Julian, nearly died in an explosion while trying to save me. The Vampire King happened to pass by and turned them into high-ranking vampires. He had wanted to turn me too, so our family could stay together forever, but they refused. The King's power was too overwhelming, they said-the transformation would be agonizing. So they promised to turn me themselves when I turned eighteen. They spent every last penny they had on an impossibly rare serum-a blood-calming agent that would ensure I survived the transformation safely. But six months ago, they brought home a fifteen-year-old human orphan named Elena. Silas snatched my serum and handed it to Elena, his voice cold as ice. "You're strong enough to endure the transformation on your own. Elena is far more fragile than you-she needs this more." Julian's face twisted with undisguised contempt. He pointed at the door and snarled, "Get out! Don't come back until you learn to share!" I didn't say a word. I picked up the suitcase I'd already packed and disappeared into the rainy night. They assumed I was just throwing a tantrum. They figured I'd come crawling back in a few days. To celebrate ridding themselves of their "burden," they took the orphan on a vacation to the Caribbean coast-the trip I'd been dreaming about for years. But when they returned to the castle two weeks later, they were stunned to discover that I had undergone the Vampire King's transformation personally. Not only that-I had voluntarily signed a hundred-year agreement to join a classified isolation research project studying resistance to holy silver and crucifixes. A century of solitary confinement. I was never coming back. That day, they completely fell apart. Chapter 1 Six months before I was supposed to receive my eternal transformation, my twin brothers Silas and Julian brought Elena home. Silas took my calming serum and gave it to her. Julian roared at me: "Get lost! Stop being an eyesore!" They even took that girl to the Caribbean coast-the place I'd been begging to visit for ten years. Days later, when they returned to the castle, they discovered I had already undergone the Vampire King's transformation and applied for the century-long isolation research program. I would never return to this family again. That day, they searched the world for me like madmen. …… The day I accepted the Vampire King's invitation happened to fall on the Blood Moon Festival-the sacred day when vampire families gather to celebrate. The Vampire King walked me to the entrance of the underground laboratory, his tone uncharacteristically gentle: "Alice, in five days you'll undergo my transformation and begin a hundred years of isolation research. Go say a proper goodbye to your brothers." Vampire territory always carried a bone-deep chill. I stood on a street corner for a long time before finally mustering the courage to call Julian. Predictably, he'd already blocked me. I sighed and tried Silas instead. Eighteen years as siblings-didn't I at least deserve a goodbye? No matter how bad things had gotten between us, we should share one last meal. He hung up on me. Again and again. I swallowed the bitterness rising in my throat and kept trying. After eighteen attempts, I finally got through. The phone rang for an eternity before he deigned to pick up, as if answering were some grand act of charity. Afraid he'd hang up, I spoke as fast as I could: "Today's the Blood Moon Festival. Could we? maybe come home and get together?" Dead silence on the other end. I added carefully, "I made everyone's favorite cranberry mousse cake by hand, and I prepared French pastries for Elena-the ones she likes." Elena was the girl they'd taken in. Julian's voice cut in, cold and impatient: "Thanks to you, Elena's injuries from being pushed down the stairs still haven't healed. We're all at the hospital with her. How dare you bring up celebrating?" I pretended not to hear the disgust in his voice. "Then how about I bring the desserts to the hospital? We can keep her company and celebrate in her room-would that work?" I had never humbled myself like this before. Ever since Elena appeared, we'd been fighting nonstop for six months straight. Even during our worst arguments, I'd never stooped this low. But this was different. Once I left, it would be a hundred years. Who knew if we'd ever see each other again? Julian said nothing. A few seconds later, Elena's sickly sweet voice came through: "I want strawberry tarts." "I'll bring them right over," I said immediately. After hanging up, I made a detour to pick up the gifts I'd pre-ordered, then finished the pastries by hand in the kitchen. I'd taken every job I could get over the years and saved a hundred and fifty thousand dollars. Now I was spending it all. For Silas, I'd bought a premium blood jade that accelerated wound healing. For Julian, I'd tracked down a rare ancient vampire spellbook. And lastly, the box of strawberry tarts. I'd strained the cream three times to make sure the texture was perfect. When I arrived at the hospital, there was only a small table in the room. Julian glanced up at me. Before he could say anything, I grabbed a small chair and tucked myself into the far corner by the floor-to-ceiling window, then set out the desserts. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw him stiffen for a moment, seemingly caught off guard by how small I'd made myself. But it lasted only a few seconds. He turned back and gently cut a piece of strawberry tart to feed Elena. Silas placed a cushion behind Elena's back, terrified she might be uncomfortable. Elena had barely taken one bite when her face changed. "Cough-cough cough!" She suddenly clutched her throat and shrieked, "There's-there's a nutty taste! I'm allergic!" Her pale face flushed an alarming crimson, and her breathing turned rapid and shallow. With a sharp crack, Silas swept his hand out in fury and knocked the entire box of pastries to the floor. The ceramic plate shattered, splattering cream and fruit everywhere. I shot to my feet, my mind reeling. "That's impossible! I made everything myself-there are absolutely no nuts in there!" Frantic, I dropped to the floor to sift through the broken pieces, desperate to prove my innocence. "Look-strawberries, cranberries, there's nothing-" In my panic to clear my name, my palm pressed straight down on a jagged shard of porcelain. It sliced deep into my hand, and blood poured out instantly, staining the white cream on the floor red. "You're still lying!" Silas roared. He unleashed a wave of vampiric pressure that sent me stumbling backward. "Did you try to kill her on purpose? You knew her nut allergy could be fatal!" My hand shook with pain, blood dripping from my fingertips. "I didn't? I really didn't put any-" "Enough!" Julian shoved an antihistamine at Elena with one hand while glaring at me with ice-cold eyes. "Your sister nearly suffocated right in front of you, and you're still putting on an act? Get out of this room! I never want to see that vicious face of yours again!" That accusation cut deeper than any wound on my hand. I stopped arguing. I just stared silently at the wreckage on the floor, clenching my jaw against the searing pain as I hid my bloodied hand from sight. Chapter 2 The hospital room quickly settled back into its warm atmosphere, as if I had never existed. Elena sat on the edge of the bed, taking small sips of the antihistamine Julian fed her, her face radiating contentment. She spoke softly: "A classmate told me last week that the Caribbean has the most beautiful sunshine and beaches in the world." "When I grow up, I want to go see it. I want to walk on the beach in the prettiest white dress." Julian ruffled her hair affectionately. "Why wait until you're grown up? It's no big deal-we'll take you this year." I stood outside the door, blood still dripping from my palm, but my heart felt like it had been packed with ice. I'd begged my brothers countless times to take me to the Caribbean, and they always refused with a frown, saying vampires naturally despised sunlight-it was torture for their skin. Yet now, just because Elena mentioned it, they agreed without a second thought. Silas even chuckled. "The timing works out. Julian and I both have time off at the end of the year. We'll be with you the whole trip." They discussed travel plans as if I didn't exist, booking a private jet in under thirty minutes. Elena squealed and leaped into her brothers' arms. After a moment, as if suddenly remembering I was still standing in the doorway, she tilted her head and asked me, "Do you want to come too?" This was probably the best moment to tell Silas and Julian I was leaving. "I'm not going. In a few days, I need to report to the Progenitor Council's isolation research center-" Julian cut me off impatiently. "We don't care about your boring academic stuff. You don't need to explain yourself to us." The words "I'm leaving for a hundred years" lodged in my throat. I forced them back down. Julian seemed to remember something, his eyes turning cold again. "Elena's being discharged tomorrow." "Because of your 'mistake,' she got hurt, and it's inconvenient to care for her elsewhere." "I'm going to have the housekeeper prepare the guest room-" Before he could finish, I spoke quietly. "Let her have my master bedroom." Julian stopped mid-sentence. He stared at me like I'd grown a second head, eyes full of disbelief. "What did you say?" Silas frowned too. Clearly he thought I was playing some kind of reverse psychology game, and his tone grew even more hostile. "Cut the passive-aggressive act." "I know you're petty, but once Elena's healed, she'll move back to her own room." I looked at them steadily. "Let her move in." "She's a fragile human. She needs the best environment. In your castle, my room is the only one that gets sunlight." "Besides, I won't be staying here much longer anyway?" Bang! Julian slammed his coffee cup down on the table. The sudden crash cut me off. His face was terrifyingly dark-he probably thought I was performing some pathetic guilt trip. He didn't acknowledge me again. He turned, lifted Elena onto the bed, and pulled out a storybook to read at her side. Just like countless times over the past six months, I was once again the unwanted, awkward outsider in this family. I picked up my bag, my voice rough. "I'm leaving." No one responded. I suddenly remembered many years ago, when our parents died in that deliberate explosion. In the raging inferno, Silas and Julian had thrown themselves over me. The blast wave scorched their backs, and the shrapnel nearly tore them apart, but they never let go-not even as they died. They were saved only because a passing Vampire King turned them in that moment of death. Back then, Julian had held me as I trembled, his eyes blood-red, his voice impossibly gentle: "Don't be afraid, little princess. You still have your brothers." "As long as we're here, you'll always be our most precious treasure." Liars. My nose stung so badly I nearly burst into tears. That evening, I rushed back to the academy and went straight to the lab to finalize my data. I had seven days left. Seven days, and then I would undergo the Vampire King's transformation and leave for good. I worked through the night. The next morning, after a short nap, I returned home to clear out the master bedroom. The family's old servant muttered indignantly as she helped me move my belongings to the guest room: "What kind of family makes the heir give up her room for an outsider?" I packed my books and a few simple clothes into a box and answered calmly, "It's fine. I won't be here much longer anyway." Just then, an ice-cold voice came from behind me: "Where exactly are you planning to go?" Chapter 3 I turned around. Silas stood right behind me. As a high-ranking vampire, he had moved without stirring a breath of air. His expression was frozen solid, his eyes locked on my overstuffed suitcase. Julian leaned against the doorframe with his arms crossed, wearing an identical look of contempt. Elena trailed behind them, her head lowered, but the barely contained excitement practically seeped from between the fingers gripping her skirt. For one second, I wanted to tell them the truth. But I remembered Julian's emotionless words: "You don't need to explain yourself to us." All my courage evaporated. Fine. When I was finally gone, at least I could lie to myself-they simply didn't know I was leaving, rather than simply not caring. I shoved my hands into my coat pockets, my fingernails digging into the unhealed wound on my palm, using the pain to force myself to stay calm. I shrugged with feigned nonchalance. "As you can see, since the master bedroom has been given to Elena, I need to move my personal things to the cellar or to school." Silas's expression froze for a beat. Then he replaced it with something even more vicious. "Don't pull this running-away stunt on me." "If you leave, don't ever expect me and Julian to turn you." I nodded along with his words. "So I'm indeed not planning to accept your transformation anymore." Silas's pupils contracted sharply-the telltale sign of a vampire's rage. I swear I wasn't trying to provoke him. I just wanted to make my exit as painless for them as possible. Elena put on her most innocent face. "You should stay-this is your home, after all. I'll be the one to move out." I looked at her without a flicker of emotion. "No need. Once I'm gone, I'm never coming back." Elena's lips twitched in a smile she couldn't suppress fast enough. She quickly ducked her head and went back to playing helpless. Julian lunged forward a step. "Who are you threatening? You think you'd survive three months in the vampire world without this family? You really want to live out your life as an ordinary human?" Silas sneered. "If you want to leave, then leave. You think anyone would spare you a second glance without us?" I said nothing more. I picked up my heavy suitcase and headed for the door. Fifteen years in this castle, and there wasn't much I wanted to take. Apart from a few necessities and our parents' belongings, nothing in this house was mine anymore. I dragged two black suitcases toward the foyer. Julian's savage voice erupted behind me: "Go ahead-and don't you dare die out there!" I hauled the cases down the marble steps. Silas's taunt drifted down from the terrace, dripping with casual cruelty: "Don't come crying at our door when you're starving and digging through garbage!" I wanted to grab the black umbrella by the entrance. But his words hit me like a sledgehammer to the chest, leaving me gasping. I shoved the door open and plunged headfirst into the midnight downpour. The freezing rain soaked through my shirt in an instant, and the cold cut straight to my bones. I dragged my suitcases through the courtyard, rain blurring my vision. Julian's voice was still rising behind me: "From this moment on, anyone who dares open the door for this traitor can leave with her!" My eyes stung so badly I couldn't keep them open. I couldn't tell if it was the rain or the tears I couldn't hold back. My soaked sleeves began to seep dark red-the ceramic wound on my palm had torn open again from the strain. Years ago, during that explosion, while Silas and Julian were being turned, I'd shielded them from interference and suffered severe burns across my back. My health had never fully recovered since. But I couldn't feel the pain anymore. My body just felt like lead. I wasn't sure if anyone would still be at the Council offices at this hour. The truth was, I had no idea where else to go. Then Elena ran out into the rain, her voice pitched with theatrical urgency: "Wait! I'm sorry, this is all my fault! If you hate me, I'll be the one to leave!" Julian's furious voice chased after her: "Elena! Are you insane? You're human-the rain in vampire territory will burn your skin! Get back inside!" I managed a bitter, self-mocking smile. I was human too. I was half-dead from the rain, and he couldn't have cared less. But a few drops on Elena, and he acted like the sky was falling. The world began to dim around me. Just as my body was about to collapse into the mud, a strong hand caught me firmly by the waist. The pounding rain above my head vanished instantly. I forced my eyes up. The man before me wore a pure black commander's cloak, a ruby medal of supreme authority pinned to his chest. This was Caspian-the First Enforcer under the Vampire King. He had long been searching for a way to make vampires completely immune to holy water and crucifixes. He'd noticed my talent in blood pharmacology and had extended multiple invitations on the King's behalf-to join a century-long isolation project. Once you entered, you were cut off from the world entirely. I'd always refused because I couldn't bear to leave my brothers. But now, there was nothing left here worth staying for. His black Rolls-Royce idled in the rain. Several vampire attendants in black suits stepped out in perfect unison and took my luggage. Silas and Julian went white the moment they saw the scene. As vampire nobility, they recognized exactly whose people these were. Almost reflexively, they straightened their spines and bowed in a formal gesture of submission to Caspian. Silas's voice trembled. "Sir? what brings you here? If my sister has offended you in some way-" A flash of worry crossed his eyes. Obviously, he assumed I'd gotten myself into trouble. In their minds, being singled out by Caspian meant one of two things: being taken as a lowly blood slave, or being dragged away to die. Just as Caspian gestured for me to get in the car, Silas and Julian moved in unison. Even facing the overwhelming pressure of a superior, they gritted their teeth and threw themselves in front of the car door. "Sir! If Alice has offended you, we'll take her punishment!" Julian's hoarse shout made something clench in my chest. That reckless protective instinct-I hadn't seen it in so long. But Caspian merely gave a cold snort. He didn't even raise a hand. The sheer force of his bloodline authority radiated outward like a hammer blow, sending both of them hurtling backward into the estate's thick stone wall. Two heavy thuds. Cracks spiderwebbed through the masonry as they slid to the ground, coughing up dark blood. I instinctively started toward them, worry flashing in my eyes. Then I looked down at my own blood-soaked palm and remembered the serum they'd taken from me. I stopped dead in my tracks, said nothing, and got into the car. Caspian swept a cold glance over the two crumpled figures. "I'm taking Alice." He opened the car door for me himself, as gently as if escorting royalty, and shielded me from the rain overhead. Silas and Julian stared, stunned. Julian wiped blood from his lip, and the worry in his eyes instantly turned to the wild fury of someone who'd been deceived. He braced himself against the wall and stood, his voice sharp with scorn: "So that's why you suddenly grew a spine-even daring to leave home!" "You climbed into the Enforcer's bed. Alice, you'll really do anything to get back at us, won't you?" Silas hauled himself upright too, his smile sharp and hollow. "All this just to secure your next meal ticket. You even staged that whole martyr act. Get lost-and don't you ever call yourself one of ours again." The window rose slowly, cutting off their venomous curses. Caspian looked at my bloodied hand, his expression dark. "This is how they treat you? I truly don't understand why you insisted on going back for more." I watched the streetscape blur past the window. A long time passed before I murmured, "Because they used to be? really good to me." Caspian said nothing. He didn't believe me. Tears finally mingled with the rain and slid down my face. "Really. My brothers used to love me so much." Chapter 4 I leaned back in my seat, exhausted, but my mind wouldn't stop dragging me back to childhood. I was three when our parents died in that lab explosion. They had been commissioned by a vampire clan to develop an affordable drug that would protect vampires from holy silver and crucifix burns. It threatened the profits of the old pharmaceutical giants, and a rival had detonated the laboratory before dawn. When the explosion hit, Silas and Julian threw themselves over me. They were left on the brink of death-saved only because a passing Vampire King turned them just in time. I survived too, but with permanent damage. My lungs were scarred, and I'd been physically frail ever since. Those first years after being brought to the vampire castle were the most terrifying of my life. I was at the age when human blood smells sweetest. As newly turned, bottom-tier vampires, my brothers walked me into a predatory world filled with hungry stares. Powerful old-blood vampires wanted to snatch me away as a premium blood source. My brothers were still weak then, but every single time, they hid me inside a battered coffin and fought those monsters tooth and nail-literally. Silas once had half his shoulder torn off. Julian nearly had his heart ripped out. But they always smiled and told me: "Don't be afraid. We'll get stronger. No one's ever going to touch you." I was just a three-year-old human child, terrified of the darkness and the bats in the castle. So Silas and Julian slept beside me every night. These two ice-cold fledgling vampires would suppress their thirst for blood and patiently pat my back, murmuring old bedtime stories until I drifted off. To ensure my transformation at eighteen would go smoothly, they trained with me from the time I was small. "Come on, little princess, one more lap," Julian would say with a grin, wiping the sweat from my forehead. "Once you're stronger, the First Embrace won't hurt as much." They'd even spent every last coin they had, scouring half of Europe, to find that legendary calming serum. Vampire territory had no sunlight. As a child, I didn't understand vampire taboos. I saw the Caribbean on television and begged to go. I was so desperate for the sunlight of the human world, but vampires simply couldn't survive under that kind of light. I remembered Silas's deep frown. But in the end, he just sighed: "If that's what you want, we'll find a way." To make my dream come true, they began training obsessively to resist ultraviolet light, enduring the agony of their skin being slowly scorched away. Now they'd finally grown strong enough to walk freely in the sun. But the person they were taking wasn't me anymore-it was Elena. The "orphan" left behind by the human hero who had tried to save our parents in the explosion before being killed. It took Silas and Julian fifteen years to find her in a rundown orphanage. But fate had a cruel sense of humor. Six months after Elena was brought to the castle, I ran into the orphanage director at an off-campus restaurant-dead drunk. She grabbed my hand, sobbing and confessing: the real hero's child had died of heart disease at the age of three. The current "Elena" was just a replacement-another girl who couldn't afford heart surgery. The director had swapped her identity so my brothers would foot the bill, and maybe even grant her immortality through the transformation. I'd stormed back to the castle in a frenzy and caught Elena rummaging through my room. The crash was deafening. Our last family photo-the only picture with all five of us-shattered on the floor. As always, Elena had deliberately cut herself on the glass and was sitting there looking pitiful, waiting for Julian to come to her rescue. I lost it. I grabbed her arm and screamed, "Take your lies and get out!" That was the first time Julian ever turned on me. Even Silas, normally so reserved, looked at me with disappointment. "Alice, you're too selfish. Rein in that princess attitude." I told them the truth. I saw the panic flash across Elena's face. She was healed now-she had no right to steal my home, to destroy my memories. But Julian's response hit like a wrecking ball: "Enough, Alice! Why do you have to pick on an orphan?" "Her father was blown to pieces trying to save Mom and Dad-she's all that's left of him! You'd make up such a vicious lie just to get rid of her? Don't you feel even a little guilty?" After that, the house went cold. A month ago, Elena struck again-she smashed the necklace I always wore, the one that held my mother's ashes. I chased her to the top of the stairs and slapped her in a blind rage. She let herself fall. I lunged to catch her, but my weakened body betrayed me-I tumbled down the stairs after her. My arm was torn open against the hard stone steps. I was still struggling to get up and explain when- Slap. Julian hit me. The first time in his life. Silas, usually the calm one, stood over me with ice in his eyes and revulsion in his voice: "Alice, if you can't get along with Elena, get out of this house." They carried the uninjured Elena to the hospital and left me bleeding on the cold hallway floor. That was when I finally understood. The brother who once promised to take me to the sea, who swore to protect me forever-he was already dead. Chapter 5 It didn't matter anymore. It would all be over soon. I would never have to see them again or intrude on their perfect little family of three. I went back to school and sorted through the last of my things in the dorm. There were my parents' pharmaceutical research notes-containing the preliminary formula for a drug that could free vampires from the threat of crucifixes entirely. The next day, I was sitting on a bench with the notebook, waiting to meet Caspian, when I spotted Silas and Julian in the hallway. Elena had dragged them to a bench not far from mine. Her bright laughter echoed through the corridor. "Behave yourself," Silas said, ruffling her hair. "We leave for the Caribbean in a few days. You can wear any dress you want there." Listening to them, my chest felt suffocating. Just then, a classmate called my name, and I stood up to go over. When I came back, Elena was holding my notebook, tearing out the pages one by one. My vision went white. I rushed over and snatched it back. Elena let herself tip backward, striking her forehead on a stone pillar with a sharp cry. Every vampire student in the hallway turned to look. My hands trembled as I opened the notebook. It was my parents' life's work-and five years of my own research. All destroyed. The pages had been ripped to shreds, and the remaining ones were smeared with a silver-ion solution that had blackened the text beyond recognition. On top of the pile of ruined paper, she'd drawn a large, mocking smiley face in marker. Silas was at my side in an instant, not bothering to ask a single question before erupting: "Alice! Have you lost your mind? Why did you push her?" Julian helped Elena up, his face dark as a storm. Caspian walked over then. He took one look at the destroyed pages in my hands, and his expression turned lethal. "Your research notes were destroyed?" he asked in a low voice. Silas's fury faltered. He leaned in to examine the torn paper and frowned. "That's impossible. Elena wouldn't do something like this?" "Let's go," I said to Caspian, my voice flat. I didn't wait for Silas to finish. Strange-I should have been hysterical. I should have screamed and raged the way I had so many times before. But all I wanted was to leave. I'd been fighting them for six months. Six months of arguments, and the outcome was always the same. Since I was leaving anyway, there was no point wasting my breath. I walked toward the exit with the ruined notebook clutched to my chest. To my surprise, Silas followed. His tone was as cold as ever, but there was something oddly strained beneath it: "Give me the notes. I'll try to restore them with a restoration spell." I didn't look back. "Don't bother." I had originally planned to give this notebook to Julian-he'd once shown a deep interest in pharmacology. Silas seemed to sense something was off. He grabbed my arm. "Alice, what's going on with you lately?" There was a thread of anxiety in his voice I couldn't quite place. I simply reached out and gently pushed his hand away. We stood at an impasse for a moment before he spoke again: "Elena is still young. If she really tore it, it couldn't have been on purpose." Of course. He was only worried I'd "retaliate" against his precious darling. I stepped into the elevator and pressed the close button. In that moment, the part of my heart that had refused to give up finally went still, and went completely numb. As the elevator doors closed, I said softly, "It's fine. Don't worry about it." Julian came running-he seemed to want to stop the elevator, but it was too late. As the elevator descended, the last thing I glimpsed was the flash of panic in his eyes. At noon, Caspian accompanied me through the final preparations for my audience with the Vampire King. That was when Julian suddenly called. After I picked up, there was a long silence. Just as I was about to hang up, he finally spoke, his voice hoarse: "When are you coming home?" I hesitated. "School's been busy. I'm not coming back." "What about tonight?" he pressed. I was confused. "I have plans." Another long silence. "Today's the anniversary of us being turned into vampires," he said, awkward and halting. I held the phone for a long time without speaking. In years past, I'd always started planning months ahead-expensive gifts, and I'd tell them that even though vampires had eternal life, every day had meaning as long as you had family. I'd even begged them, eyes brimming with tears, to turn me on that very date, so the day of our rebirth would be the same forever. But now? "Happy anniversary," I said flatly. "Just go ahead and turn Elena." Caspian plucked the phone from my hand, his tone frigid. "Your birthday gifts have already been sent to the castle. I'm sure you'll find them quite 'surprising.'" After he hung up, Caspian shook his head. "I sent over the medal of honor for your research project." I smiled and shook my head. They probably wouldn't believe it. Or if they did, they wouldn't care. Caspian then took me to the Vampire King's castle. He was already waiting on his throne. I lay on the bed that had been prepared in the great hall. The King looked down at me, solemn. "Are you ready for your new life?" I nodded calmly and closed my eyes. After the First Embrace, all former ties of blood would be severed forever. Sharp fangs pierced my skin, and the scalding royal blood surged into my veins. A tearing agony engulfed me, and I slowly sank into unconsciousness. Chapter 6 The day I formally entered the Progenitor Research Center was three days after my transformation. Caspian hosted a final banquet for all participants. As vampires, we rarely consumed human food, but that evening the table was laden with the finest blood wines and specially prepared dark berries. After several rounds of drinks, the atmosphere in the banquet hall turned thick and somber. More than a few vampire researchers seated at the long table had tears in their eyes. Caspian set down his goblet and surveyed the room, his voice echoing through the vast hall: "This is your last chance to contact the outside world. Make a call to your kin or your loved ones." "Once you enter the core laboratory, you'll be immersed in a hundred years of research stasis and pharmaceutical trials. If you want to back out, now is the time." The soft sounds of dialing filled the room, interspersed with stifled sobs. I sat still for a long time before finally taking out my phone and opening a social media account I hadn't touched in ages. Silas had posted an update. They'd taken Elena to the Caribbean. In the photos, the sea was a blue so vivid it hurt to look at, as if God had spilled his palette. Elena was wearing the hand-sewn lace dress that should have been mine. She glanced over her shoulder on an endless stretch of sand, her smile dripping with sweetness. Caspian's voice interrupted my thoughts. "Alice, make a call." "Once you walk through those doors, who knows what century it'll be when you come out." I gripped the phone so hard my knuckles went white. After a long hesitation, I dialed the familiar number. But the voice that answered was Elena's-light and gloating: "Hey! Need something?" My voice was hoarse from the transformation. "Are they there?" Elena chirped back, "You mean the boys? They told me to answer. They're busy taking me diving right now and can't talk. Whatever you need to say, you can tell me." In the background, I could faintly hear Julian calling out: "Elena, put the phone down! Come over here-the waves are strong!" Elena's voice carried a sliver of undisguised triumph. That petty teenage vanity seemed almost comical to me now. "So what did you want to say? I can pass it along." "Oh, by the way-you left a box at home, right? Since you've moved out, there's no point keeping that old stuff around, so I had someone get rid of it. You don't mind, do you?" My heart went completely still. I answered flatly, "Never mind." I hung up. When everyone had finished their goodbyes, we began walking toward the massive door. On one side lay the bustling human world. On the other, a century of solitude. I removed my SIM card, snapped it in half, and tossed it into the recycling bin by the entrance. I crossed the threshold without looking back. Not once. …… After a week in the Caribbean, Silas was gripped by an inexplicable restlessness. With the Full Moon Festival approaching, Elena wheedled to stay on the island for the celebration, saying the beachside festivities were famous. Silas's instinct was to refuse. His work was done for the year, and he should have felt at ease-but this nagging sense of absence wouldn't leave him alone. They'd only been gone seven days, yet it felt like centuries. He was groping for an excuse to go home when, to his surprise, the usually composed Julian spoke first: "You can come back and play anytime." "There's urgent blood-contract business at home. I have to go." Elena was still in high spirits and protested: "But you promised Alice there'd be absolutely no work during the family vacation!" Julian froze, his gaze drifting guiltily toward the window. Elena huffed and stormed out, abandoning a newly purchased plush toy. Silas stared at the teddy bear on the floor. He suddenly remembered-it was the kind I used to love as a child. What was I like as a little girl? Silas tried to recall, and was horrified to find the images almost completely blurred. All he could summon were the last six months-my frantic screaming, my tearful demands to drive Elena away. And then, the version of me that grew quieter and quieter. I no longer clung to him for bedtime stories or asked about their missions. I was always "busy at school." When I crossed paths with him in the castle, my eyes were full of distance and unease. Each time Elena broke something of mine, my reactions had evolved-from explosive rage at first, to eventual numbness. All I'd say, in a voice devoid of feeling, was: "It's fine." Silas picked up the teddy bear from the floor. He was suddenly aware of a hollow ache in his chest, as if he'd lost something precious beyond measure. When had he lost it? That little princess who used to tug at his sleeve, whose eyes held nothing but him-when had she disappeared? Julian's cold voice shattered his reverie: "I'm flying back to North City tonight." "If you want to stay here with her, suit yourself." Silas looked up sharply. In Julian's eyes, he saw the exact same restlessness and dread. Almost instinctively, Silas replied, "I'm leaving tonight too." Julian said nothing. He turned in silence to pack his things. The next evening, their private jet touched down in North City. The whole way, Silas's temples had been pounding. When they arrived at the castle, the great hall was cold and empty. No familiar figure anywhere. The old housekeeper came forward to take their cloaks. Silas asked, as if it were a casual afterthought: "Alice isn't back yet?" Chapter 7 The housekeeper shook her head, her eyes rimmed red. "Miss Alice never came back at all." Silas frowned, a note of unease creeping into his voice that he himself didn't recognize. "It's been over a week. Tomorrow's the Full Moon Festival-how could she not be back?" The housekeeper had served the castle for many years and had always doted on me. She replied coolly: "I wouldn't know. After all, hasn't the lady of this house already been replaced?" Silas was about to press further. But Elena rolled her eyes with evident irritation, latched onto Silas's arm like taffy, and wheedled: "Oh, she'll come back eventually. Don't worry about her. Come look at this poetry collection I just bought-you have to read it to me tonight." Silas felt a surge of inexplicable frustration. He recalled how Elena had mentioned my name in the Caribbean with barely concealed disdain. Now I'd been missing for over a week, and there wasn't the faintest hint of concern in her eyes. All those syrupy calls of "sister"-how many had ever been sincere? The housekeeper retreated to the kitchen, muttering under her breath: "If the masters don't care about the young miss, why bother pretending to ask about her now?" Those words were like poison-tipped silver needles driving into Silas's heart. Elena was still complaining in that small voice: "She's a grown woman. It's not like she can just get lost." A nameless fury ignited from deep within him. Silas wrenched his arm free. Without a word, his face like stone, he walked upstairs. Behind him, Elena let out an exaggerated wail: "Did I say something wrong? You won't read to me anymore?" Silas didn't look back. He left behind a single, icy sentence: "You're fifteen. Can you not read?" Elena's aggrieved sobbing immediately filled the hall. Once upon a time, Silas would have turned around to console her in an instant. One teardrop from her and he'd give her anything she wanted. He'd always believed that failing to be kind to Elena was tantamount to betraying our dead parents-betraying the hero who'd tried to save them in the blast. He'd placed Elena on a pedestal, showered her with extravagant favoritism, and told himself it was repaying a debt. But what about me? I was his real little sister. Silas walked to the second floor and stopped at my bedroom door. He pushed it open and found it bare. Even the faint scent of cold fir that had always been mine had vanished. He stepped inside and looked around. Only now did it hit him-I'd taken so many of my belongings with me. A violent wave of unease crashed over him, like a hand closing slowly around his throat. He sank into the sofa and scrolled through his phone-through the entire contact list-searching for missed calls or messages from me. My social media was silent. Not a single post. Dead silence. Where had I gone? Julian walked in then, his face alarmingly pale. He'd clearly noticed something was wrong too. "Can't reach her?" Julian's voice wavered. They exchanged one look, then finally summoned the courage to dial the number that made every vampire tremble-the Vampire King's private line. The phone rang three times before the King's deep, pressure-laden voice came through. Silas held his breath and spoke with desperate humility. "Your Majesty? forgive the intrusion. I wanted to ask-is Alice with you, receiving the First Embrace? She hasn't been home in days?" Dead silence on the other end. Then, after an eternity, the King let out a cold, derisive laugh. His voice was glacial: "You mean you don't know she's already joined the century-long isolation research project?" Silas and Julian went rigid, as if struck by lightning. "Project?" Julian seized the phone, shaking. "But she-she was supposed to still be undergoing your transformation. She's so frail, how could she possibly-" "Frail?" The King's voice was laced with undisguised scorn and admiration: "She is the most resilient, most gifted vampire I have ever seen. Three days after her transformation, she volunteered to enter the isolation zone and begin her research." "For the next hundred years, unless the research succeeds, no one will see her." "Isn't this what you pushed her into? Coming to ask now-don't you think it's a little late?" The phone slipped from Silas's hand and landed on the expensive carpet with a dull thud. Silas and Julian sat slumped in my empty room, staring at the blood-red moon through the window, like two children who'd lost their entire world, letting out howls of near-total despair.