Everything seemed to go back to normal, for the most part. Victoria started to leave me alone, going back to making snide remarks and otherwise ignoring me. I’m guessing Zain probably talked to her. Her groupies hadn’t forgiven me for my verbal assault yet, though, so every now and then when she wasn’t looking they’d try to corner and harrass me. Miraculously, though, there always seemed to be someone who showed up to keep things from getting really bad. Sometimes Claire, sometimes Rose, sometimes even Dmitri or other vampires. I got the distinct feeling that I might have an invisible watch guard now.

And feedings had resumed once a week, only now it was going to be the same evening, same time, every time, in the same place. Whether it was out of consideration for me or not, I wasn’t sure, but at least now it was in the comfort and privacy of my room.

Zain landed on my balcony and I let him in, still feeling awkward about trying to forget that last incident in addition to the fact that I was letting him into my room...through the window. Had we both been human this would look pretty scandalous. Also I wouldn’t be doing it. Actually it would probably look scandalous regardless.

“Have there been anymore info on...you know what?” I asked. He shook his head, closing the balcony and shutting out the frost.

“Activity has quieted down, there haven’t been anymore sightings of thralls around the castle. The hunters have informed us too that they seem to be moving on.”

“You think it was just an abnormality?”

He looked worried. “I don’t know. It’s possible. That note still worries me though. It DEFINITELY came from somewhere in the castle, it’s possible they may have been using the activity as an opportunity and nothing more, but-”

“-but that means they’d know about it happening, and are already in the system,” I finished for him, suddenly thinking of Greg the account keeper.

“He’s definitely on the suspect list,” Zain responded, hearing my thoughts. “He’s one who arrived just a few years ago, and created not long before that. But that list is growing pretty large.”

I gave a start at this information, remembering the encounter with that thrall not all that long ago.

He rolled his eyes. “Thralls don’t go feral until after hundreds and hundreds of years. It depends on the age they’re turned but it still takes a long time. They’re still people, Helen.”

I tried to ignore the strange jolt from hearing my name. “What happens when they do go feral, then?”

“We’re pretty good at telling when it’s about to happen. And they know it will happen to them eventually. We move them to a secure location, where they can have some peace, and put them down before they lose themselves completely.”

I swallowed. So much for eternal life.

He shrugged. “Would you rather they take the alternative?”

“I guess not,” I muttered.

He sighed. “I’m wasting night, no more talk now.”

I grimaced as he took my shoulders. “I really hate this…”

He narrowed his eyes in slight annoyance. “Oh? Really, do tell me about it, I don’t think I’ve heard you express that before.”

I shut my eyes and sighed. “Just get it over with.”

His bite was much more careful, as had been the previous times now since the...incident I won’t think about. It barely hurt this time, and it was easier to ignore the sensations as he drank. But I was super sensitive to his scent and touch; they were so warm, so gentle. I had to fight the urge to wrap my arms around him, to feel his embrace again. The resentment had dwindled down into small fire of loneliness, and it took all my willpower to keep these feeling at bay. It helps to know they weren’t real, that it was just because my body was developing more into his Bride.

What didn’t help was that Zain had been much more careful around me, more...dare I say, considerate of me. We didn’t fight as much, nothing more than our exchange just a moment ago, and when I asked him about something he answered. I didn’t see him at the pool again, which was a relief, but also disappointing. He was trying to be polite, maybe even trying to make up for being so mean to me. But I was wary. Anything could change it back to how he was.

He let me go and wiped his mouth, looking out the window. “It’s going to snow next week. You should look into getting a larger coat, and try not to catch a cold.”

I nodded, unsure how to fill the awkward silence, but feeling a question slowly develop.

“Can vampires get sick?”

“Of course n-” he stopped mid response, and thought about it in mild curiosity. “...I don’t actually know.” He glanced back at me with a shrug. “I’d rather not find out though, so you better keep healthy.”

“Yeaaaaah, that’s some wishful thinking…” His eyes questioned. “I always get sick for the first snowfall.”

“Well, let’s hope there’s a first,” he said, and vanished into the night.

True to his word the very next Monday we all woke up to a blanket of white. And...true to mine I woke up with a pretty bad cold. I could almost hear him berating me for not taking better care of myself. But whatever, this was expected. It wasn’t too bad, I just kept myself quarantined to the dorms while Claire made sure I had plenty of food. And I had some company; I wasn’t the only one who got sick during the winter.

Wendy sat beside me on one of the couches, watching a movie as we both enjoyed a nice warm cup of camomile and lavender tea. Her quiet demeanor was very relaxing, albeit her unfocused eyes were a little off-putting. It always looked like she was in a constant state of lost-in-thought, sometimes in anxiety. I wished I could help her, but since she didn’t talk much I didn’t want to pry. It didn’t feel like it’d be my place to say anything either.

But we enjoyed the movie and pampering nonetheless.

A couple days into the cold I found a note on the inside of my balcony window from Zain, essentially berating me like I had thought he would for getting sick, but also telling me not to worry about feedings until I felt better. For a moment I thought it was more consideration, as doing that was both physically and emotionally exhausting. But then I remembered...it’s probably because he’s afraid of catching my cold. The thought made me laugh.

Eventually the cold broke and I felt better, well-rested, and just in time too. Amber was making plans for a horseback ride through the woods as a special treat. I was pretty excited, but also nervous; it’d be the first time I’ve been outside the boundaries since that attack. And the woods were beautiful during winter time. I asked Amber if she wouldn’t mind making an exception to the enrollment and letting me bring the other girls on the trip too, and to my surprise it was an open sign-up; a lot of people were going to be coming.

“Yeah, It’s a pretty regular thing to look forward to,” Rose explained, elated that I wanted them to come along. “Amber’s a pretty good instructor, she tries to make sure everyone has a chance to do it. Usually it’s in fall though, I wonder why she had it put off?”

I had a pretty good idea why, but I made a promise not to say anything.

The day arrived pretty quickly. I traveled with my friends to the stables, Claire bouncing up and down with excitement, Alice and Suzanne laughing at her antics. I stayed wrapped in my new blue winter coat and scarf, wearing my new gloves and also wishing I had gone for fingered instead of fingerless. The excitement was bouncing back and forth, everyone full of high spirits.

Except...Wendy.

Wendy looked incredibly nervous, anxious, for once her eyes not lost in the distance but focused, darting. I could feel her anxiety climb more and more with each step towards the stables.

I hung back, letting the others move on ahead of me, and matched her pace. “Wendy?”

Her eyes snapped to me, as if I broke a trance, and they were bright and fearful. “Helen…!” She looked like she wanted to tell me something, her eyes scared and warning, but was choking on the words. Dread slowly creeped in on me.

“Wendy...what’s wrong?” I asked quietly.

She grappled with herself, like something was physically preventing her from speaking. “Helen...be…be careful, don’t trust...them,” she managed to say, as if having to cycle through allowed words.

“What do you mean, who…?” I began patiently, and she groaned in frustration again, holding her head. And then suddenly she had an epiphany. She looked at me, her steel grey eyes focused and serious.

“The eyes...they’re always watching,” she said, hoping I understood. A chill that had nothing to do with the snow filled me.

Claire and the others hollered for us. Wendy’s words filled me with a sense of foreboding; she knew something, something about the note. Something she physically wasn’t allowed to say. I was afraid; afraid for her, afraid for everyone. Whoever was behind it, they must know...that Zain knows. I shivered; I need to tell Zain, that might be why the activity has gone down. But...I have no idea where he’d even be. The pulling sensation was very faint; He could be anywhere, on the other side of the castle.

Tonight was a feeding night...I can tell him then. It might be a better idea, I could get Wendy in trouble if I reacted now. I resolved myself to act normal, and drew upon the excitable energy to keep face.

“Alright everybody!” Amber hollered out. “Now, I got ya each assigned to a horse based on yer experiences and temperaments, so no swapping now. Each horse’ll be connected with a rope via the saddle to keep us all together and prevent any of ya getting lost and wanderin’ off. If ya pull on it, or mess with it at all you’ll throw the whole group outta wack, so don’t.” She smiled to lighten up the seriousness. “We’re all here to have some fun after all.”

Everyone climbed on their horses, and with it being my first time the thoughts of foreboding fell away. The one underneath me just so happened to be Bitey, the chestnut brown with the white diamond I met during my first class. I looked around and spotted Adrian, who still didn’t talk to me anymore but gave me a nervous smile. I smiled back; it was both our first time on a horse.

“Feels like it’s been forever since we met now, huh,” I cooed to Bitey, patting his neck. His hair was coarse and yet soft, almost like dog fur.

Amber called everyone to attention, sitting atop a gorgeous black mare with tall lithe legs and beautiful muscle tone. She danced antsily, as if excited for the ride too, while Amber kept her skillfully under control.

“We’re going to be following the path out into the woods for a good half a mile, and then we’ll veer off towards the hot springs.” I perked up; I didn’t know we had a hot springs in the area! “After that we’ll take a short break, let the horses warm up a bit, and then we’ll head back. Remember to stay on your horses, and if for whatever reason you get separated, they’ll know the way back. Everyone ready?”

A chorus of readies. My heart started to pound. And then we were off.

We went at a pace just under a trot, everyone bouncing up and down at different rhythms. The snow crunched musically underhoof. I blew puffs of hot air, watching my breath fog like the little child that I was right now. I wasn’t the only doing that either. The sun glittered through the trees through the winter wonderland that was once the lush green summer woods. Everyone’s voices were hushed and quiet, respecting the muffled silence in the air. Thoughts of that warning fell away. It was peaceful, soothing, close even to the feeling I got during my late night swims.

The group veered off the path and our pace slowed to a gentle lumbering walk. Some had to duck heads and lean to avoid branches, but the speed gave us ample time to react. The further along we went the higher the branches grew, until the air was clear of them and the trees were so tall I had to crane my neck back to see the canopy. In the distance we heard loud cracks as the ice split the bark off a poor tree.

“Look at that!” Suzanne whispered excitedly, pointing off in a the direction of a bush. I squinted, trying to see what she was looking at, and then I saw a long white ear twitch, giving away the outline of a fluffy white rabbit.

“It’s a bunny!” I whispered back. The rabbit took a tentative hop forward and then, nose in the air, smelled the horses. In just moments it took off, vanishing into the white.

“That was so cool!” she whispered. “You don’t see that too often, I wonder if it was wild or was once someone’s pet?”

I nodded, smiling as well. “Who knows?”

Then suddenly a burning, searing pain slashed across my body and the world went white. It felt like gashes were being ripped open on my shoulders, my sides, my arms, my legs everywhere. Something hit my head and my back was wet and cold. I heard cries of panic and someone calling my name.

And then it stopped, leaving me breathless and my throat sore and hoarse. The grey-white sky and canopy of trees were directly above me; I had fallen off my horse. Amber and her mom were helping me sit up while Claire, Rose, Alice, Suzanne, and Wendy looked on with anxious, scared expressions.

“Easy, easy,” Amber said. “What happened? Is everything alright?”

My hands went over the different parts of my body; there wasn’t a scratch on me but the phantom pain still lingered. It had felt so real, so terrible…

“I...I think I’m okay, I’m sorry, I don’t know what just happened,” I said confused.

“Do ya think ya can finish the ride or should we send ya back?”

I thought about that carefully, slowly standing up. I felt fine.

“I can finish, sorry,” I apologized again, feeling incredibly embarrassed.

On the other side of the group Victoria made a snide comment under her breath, and the people around her murmured in disdainful agreement. I flushed more as I climbed back up on my horse; I didn’t do it on purpose… What on earth even was that? It was...it was kind of like that pulling sensation but way, WAY different, too precise, too specific. I swallowed nervously and tried to finish the rest of the ride calmly.

We made it to the hot springs with a breath of relief; everyone clambered off with stiff legs and backs and sat all around the pocket-ponds of hot steaming water for warmth. Rose and her mom, Ruby, got the horses situated around some of the other pools, letting them warm up without them climbing into the water. I sat down on a stump next to Claire and took my jacket and scarf off, noticing Wendy watching me with extremely worried eyes. It made me wonder if that sensation had anything to do with what’s been going on.

I leaned back and sighed. How many more surprises are going to keep jumping out at me? I wondered bleakly.

As if on cue there was the snap of a branch behind us and the rustling of leaves. The girl’s and I turned towards it in surprise, and I tensed. The cord pulling I hadn’t felt in a little while became alarmingly magnetic, and then Zain limped out of the bushes, haggard and covered in blood.