The Vampire Queen Read Online Free Page A

for the Count. She had her purple, velvet cloak ready in case she got cold but couldn’t imagine what was keeping him. She had even summoned Coletta and asked her to go ask Master what was taking so long, but she looked aghast at the request and refused. At midnight, he appeared in the parlor with no apology and headed for the front door. She was livid! He knew how important this was to her! They went outside, and he was right about the cloud cover that night. There was no moon in sight.
    “Ok, hold onto me, and we will fly,” he said.
    “I want to fly on my own,” she pouted.
    “You will, but not on your first flight. You have to remember what it feels like first,” he explained.
    “Fine,” she said, reluctantly giving in and holding on to him tightly.
    They slowly started to rise from the ground. First, just their feet seemed to be free. As they slowly started to rise, their clothes moved around them and made their entire bodies feel free. The cool, night air stung their faces and made them feel alive. Finally, as they picked up speed, her hair was flowing behind her like a horse’s mane. She felt so free, and all her worries in the past few days were gone. She knew how the birds felt and wished she could fly forever and never have to come down.
    “Don’t take this the wrong way, but flying with two people is exhausting and can only be sustained for short periods of time. We are going to have to head home,” the Count announced. She just nodded. She was disappointed but understood. She couldn’t wait to fly alone. She was silent the rest of the way home, enjoying the last of their trip and the air around her. It felt very familiar to her.
    When they arrived, she thanked him and called Coletta to help him into the house and to bed. She told her the Count was tired from their walk. She, however, was not ready to go inside just yet. She was still full of adrenaline and didn’t want to let go of the wonderful experience she’d just had. She also craved more of that night air. Even without instruction, she had to at least try to get her feet off the ground. She stood there, with her eyes closed, and wished to fly. She stood there for what seemed like forever, just wishing and wishing, but nothing happened. Finally, she opened her eyes, and she was three feet off the ground! She was amazed and proud but broke her concentration, so she came crashing down. She did this probably 20 more times, until her body ached, and she could no longer concentrate. Nothing more than hovering was achieved that night, but she did it by herself and was happy with just that.
    The following evening, the Count found her in the rear of the grounds, just hovering in the air.
    “Isn’t it magnificent?!” she exclaimed.
    “Come down this instant!” he barked.
    “Why?” she snapped.
    “Because, I said so,” he snapped back.
    “Show me how to come down,” she said slyly.
    “If you can go up, you can get down. How do you get down any other time?” he asked. She looked sheepish but did not answer.
    “Don’t make me come get you,” he threatened. At this point, she was determined she would not come down, because it would mean falling in front of him and admitting she didn’t remember how to come down properly, yet.
    “Do as you wish, but I am not coming down,” she sneered. He jumped into the air, grabbed her, and brought her back to the ground.
    “Get your filthy hands off me!” she shrieked. “You can’t just manhandle me like that! You know who I am! I thought you would be proud of what I taught myself,” she said.
    “You do not fully remember how to fly yet, and you should never do so alone because of who you are,” he explained.
    “Then, teach me to fly,” she pleaded.
    “You are not ready,” he said solemnly.
    “Fine. Lizzy will tell me how to do it. She’s already told me more than you have, anyway,” she said as she started to stalk off. He grabbed her arm to stop her.
    “You may think she speaks, because