A Vampire's Deception

2 - Company (Edited)

Marital affairs were messy, and utterly disturbing if you witness them in the act. Trinity hated to sleep because she suffered from memories she tried to repress. It was the day she forgot her English Literature notes on Othello. She got home, assuming it was vacant until she heard the kisses, thumping and moans from her father's study. She walked in on David kissing the other woman. He had her on the table, unbuttoning her white shirt, frenzied hands tracing every inch of her skin.

Tonight, she was dreaming. She found herself at the grand staircase of the Paris Opera House she went to visit ten years ago with her parents. She remembered posing for a picture with her mother and she was definitely sure her father took it. Instead a man, his face hidden behind the camera took the image. He seemed familiar, but the last she remembered was a blinding light from behind him.

Trinity's legs jolted and her eyes snapped wide open. Her vision was blurred but she knew something was not right. She saw red furniture and felt alone in her usual double sized bed.

"Kat." She sat up straight and grabbed her glasses from the bedside table. Then she realised that her mother's photo was missing. Her vision became clearer as she rubbed the sleep dust away, the dried blood on her hand flaked. "Where the hell am I?"

She sat in a king-sized, canopied bed with silk pink curtains draping from the sides. She touched her neck and was glad to feel the locket against her chest. She looked down the pillow and the duvet were wine-red with golden embroidered floral patterns. Her heart began to pound in her chest and as she jumped out of the strange bed, she stumbled, landing on her palms.

"KAT!!!" Trinity was horrified to see her friend on the floor, with dry blood clinging to her neck. She touched her face and shoulders, demanding for her to wake up. After a moment, she weakly opened her eyes. "Oh God Kat! What happened to you? Your neck."

Dazed, Katrina winced in pain as she saw speckles of blood on her white top. "Trin, something attacked me last night." She darted her eyes around the room. "Where the fuck are we?"

"Attack – Kat. I'm really scared."

Katrina ripped her sleeve and wrapped it around her neck. "Look, woman, we'll get through this. Let's try to get out of here first."

Trinity supported her to stand. For a moment they could only stare in bewilderment at the sheer size of the red room. Thick velvet curtains hung in front of two wide oriel windows, with comfortable tuffets to view the outside. The high magnolia walls standing at four metres held swirls of the plaster medallions ceiling. In the middle, a crystal chandelier tinkled and chimed in circles. A gilt wardrobe filled the space of one wall and the rest were lined with golden-mirrored scones. Above the dying embers of the fireplace was an equally long mirror.

"Can you stand by yourself?"

"Yeah," said Katrina. "You go and check the balcony. If the door is locked then we'll have to –"

"We're not jumping."

"You got another plan?"

Trinity headed for the balcony; its white curtains swayed from the gentle breeze. She could not tell if it was night or day as the grey mist blocked her from stepping outside. She gasped when she heard the grandfather clock chime six times somewhere in the manor.

Katrina searched for clues. She peeked into the oak trunk in front of the bed; only to reveal a series of small shoes and umbrellas in a range of colours. She noticed a scarlet divan stretched underneath the chandelier. The crimson carpet felt velvety underneath her feet.