Reunion: Blood Brood Book 1 (Vampire Romance)

By Trina Page

Eve is looking forward to her class reunion, curious to know how her classmates had changed in ten years. But when she arrives she finds the answer is 'not much' and resigns herself to a wasted evening. When a mysterious stranger arrives to her lonely table, professing to be a former classmate, she finds herself caught in a planned abduction and thrust into a world of blood and captivity.
Escape seems impossible, but with the help of a new friend her hopes are raised. But as she begins to spend time around the vampire, Eve begins to wonder if she really wants to flee from her kidnapper...

• Language: English
• Publisher: Trina Page
• Release date: Apr 28, 2018
• ISBN: 9788828316022

Book preview

Chapter 1

        Ten years. Eve couldn't believe that so much time had passed since her high school graduation. As she maneuvered her car through the winding city traffic she dwelt on that thought. Her dark brown hair was long, flying in the wind from her open window. Wearing a light cotton dress, white with a pretty group of lilacs imprinted on one side, she comfortably made her way down the road.

        The ceremony itself was still rather clear in her mind.

        The lines of students coming down the aisle, making their way to the enormous stage. The school was a large one, with over four-hundred students graduating in their class. The principal and superintendent droning on about how proud they were while everyone inwardly groaned, waiting for the speeches to end.

        There was the traditional throwing of their hats and then everyone scrambling to find their own once that was done. Eve could picture herself scrambling around, looking for the one with her name on it. Luckily one of her classmates held it. A small, wiry fellow with a severe case of acne and wavy brown hair, he'd given her a shy smile and handed her the top.

        Racking her brain, the young woman couldn't recall his name, but knew that they'd gone through much of their schooling together.

        But she hadn't dwelt on him for long. After that was a whirlwind of parties and congratulations. Of course many people inquired what she was going to do with herself. At that time college looked a good prospect, but Eve admitted that she had neither the ambition nor the funds for such an endeavor.

        Her grades were average, certainly nothing meriting a scholarship and the idea of taking on thousands and thousands of dollars of debt didn't appeal to her. So instead of spending the next four years extending her high school years, she went straight into the job force.

        After a few months of job hunting she was able to locate a secretarial position at a local bank. Her earlier jobs working part time at a local grocery store stood her in good stead on her application and she was hired. She'd been there ever since.

        Even in such an office the turnover was high and she now found herself having worked there almost longer than anyone else. It wasn't much of a career builder, but at least the job paid her bills. It kept her in her small apartment with her two cats, and brought food to the table for all of them.

        As for the rest of her life, she was single with no prospects on the horizon. Her figure and face weren't anything to brag about. While she didn't have any blemishes or skin problems, her face couldn't really be called pretty, even at the best of times. Her nose was a little too big, her lips not full and generous like was popular. Her eyes were a normal brown, matching with her hair.

        She could well describe her figure as a rectangle rather than an hourglass. Her breast size would probably be her only attention grabber, but her usually baggy clothes tended to hide them. She wasn't one to like the sort of attention such flaunting would bring.

        Her time in the dating scene hadn't really panned out. Sure, she'd gone out with several guys, tried all of the dating apps, but nothing seemed to click between her and them.

        There were some nice men and some she wished to never see again, but no spark that made her want to get into a serious relationship. Looking at the friends she still kept in touch with from high school, all of them were married and had a kid or two already.

        Eve was happy for them, she really was, but every now and then an emotion suspiciously like jealousy reared its ugly head and she would hide away for a few days. Mechanically she would drive to work and back, sometimes making the idle trip to the store, but always avoiding the issue that she was lonely.

        At least her family still lived nearby, affording her an opportunity to get out and be around others There was also the odd weekend or so that she went out with a group friends and their families, enjoying the beach or a movie.

        The young woman willingly admitted that she loved children, hoping one day to have some herself. But until the right man came around that would have to remain firmly in the 'dream' department of her mind.

        Being a single parent would be hard, both on her, the child and probably her parents, as she wouldn't be able have anyone else babysit, not at today's costs.

        When the invitation for the anniversary party came in the mail to her parents house, Eve was shocked to realize so much time had passed. She was disappointed when her friends point-blank told her they weren't going to attend.

        Everyone's going to be the same, her best friend Sarah told her one day as they sat in her living room. Around them her two children were playing tag and she paused a moment in their conversation to yell at them to go do that outside in the backyard.

        But aren't you a bit curious? Eve asked, tilting an eyebrow.

        No. Frowning, she took a huge gulp of lemonade before putting the glass down with a thunk. Ask anyone, they'll tell you the same. Ten years isn't near long enough for people to change their attitude. Once everyone gets there they'll gravitate toward each other in the old, familiar cliques.

        Knowing she was losing the argument, Eve nonetheless struggled on with a few more points. But some of them have to be changed a little. Besides, I'm wondering what everyone will look like.

        Snorting, Sarah leaned back on the couch. They're going to look like us, a little older. Forget it, I'm not going.

        And that was the same with everyone else she asked. In the end she was forced to go by herself. Taking an off ramp from the highway, Eve checked the directions to the party one more time. It was being hosted at one of the graduate's home, out in the country. Already the large urban sprawl was giving way to stately homes mingled with lush forests.

        The farther she went, the more the trees took over and the less she saw of civilization. This certainly was an out of the way place to hold the party. Not to mention that the trees were already beginning to change color, fading from green to yellow and orange. Weren't these types of events usually held in the summer?

        People and their strange ideas. She brought the card up again. She vaguely recognized the name of the graduate, them having listed her maiden name as she was now married. Eyeing the lovely country lanes and farmhouses, she felt herself smile. At least she had an excuse to get out of the city for a day, she thought to herself.

        Several more miles down the road and she saw the driveway leading up the the house. On either side were trees and bushes. Turning onto the lane, she was half a mile down when she finally saw the house. Or mansion would have been a better word. No wonder they were hosting the get together. The building loomed two stories tall, sprawling over an acre of land. Vast windows silently watched as she pulled off the main road.

        Already there were lines of cars on either side of the road, and rather than hoping to get a closer spot, she opted to park as soon as there was an opening. Stepping out of her car, she made sure of the address one more time, but no, she was at the correct place.

        Gathering her purse, she opted not to leave it in the car should anyone try to break in, she made her way toward the house, glad to have put on some sensible sandals. The fall day was abnormally hot and humid, and the shoes gave her breathing room.

        Here and there other people were walking toward the house as well. None of them she recognized and they didn't say a word to her so her journey was made in silence. The main doors were thrown open and people were lining up to go in.

        Seeing that there was someone at the door she started to dig around in her purse. Along with the invitation came an official ticket to be shown when you arrived. That way, said the note, there wouldn't be as good a chance for party crashers to show up.

        There were two people standing there. Digging out the piece of paper, she waited for her turn to come up. When it did she handed over the ticket to the first one. The man standing next to him took the invite and handed something back. The original man held out a small sticker and Eve saw her name written on it. Taking it and with a wave of his hand he indicated she was to go in. As there was no way to prove who you were once you relinquished that item, Eve assumed that once you left you couldn't come back in.

        Keeping that in mind she started into the main foyer. She stopped for a moment just inside the doorway to pin the tag to her dress. It wasn't such a bad idea really, their class being so large. The vaulted, white ceilings rose high above her. There was glass on the ceiling, allowing in more natural lighting. On the walls were assortments of modern paintings. The furniture was ultra-chic as well, with what would usually be plenty of seating space.

        Due to the amount of crowds, however, there was hardly a vacant spot to be seen. Ambling, she took a peak in the room on her right, finding a living room jam packed with people. Deciding to try somewhere else she headed to her left. There was an open room, with windows looking out over an exquisitely kept yard. Making sure not to bump anyone, she made her way to the bay windows.

        The lawn stretched for a long ways, sloping downhill from the house for about fifty yards, then evening out. Beyond was a small orchard of trees decked out with festive banners and string. Farther on loomed the untamed forest that surrounded the entire estate. To one side of the lawn there was a temporary pavilion set up and from the plates people were bringing out she assumed that was where the food was being served.

        Turning, she surreptitiously eyed the others in the room with her, hoping to see a familiar face. There was none, and reading the name labels didn't help her either. Everyone had been given one, just in case some people had changed beyond recognition.

        There were drinks set up on a long bar and she followed the example of everyone else and grabbed one. Eve was beginning to feel a little foolish. She should have listened to her friends. But no, she had to throw their sound advice to the wind in a stupid attempt to assuage her dumb curiosity. Huffing, she found a comfortable lounge chair in the corner and settled down with her drink, which turned out to be a strong punch.

        People were talking and laughing around her as she sipped. Her eyes darted around, trying to figure out what she should do. No one approached her and those nearby were engrossed in their own conversations.

        Inwardly sighing, she decided that she could do with a small snack. The trip here took over an hour and lunch was already past. There was a porch that wrapped around the entire second floor and she assumed there would be stairs outside down to the lawn.

        Floating to the next room, she spied an open set of french doors leading outside. Careful not to jostle anyone in the crowd of people gathered together in groups, she made a beeline for the outdoors. On such a warm day the fresh air outside was a relief to the stuffiness of the indoors.

        Taking a deep breath, she took a few steps onto the wooden porch, admiring the view. There were many deck chairs set up and people were taking advantage of the open umbrellas to find some much needed shade.

        Still on the lookout for anyone she might know, Eve found the stairs and made her way to the grass. The lawn was even more immaculate up close, like a golf course. The sun was out and warm for a fall day, making for the perfect weather.

        More people she didn't recognize, but Eve decided to focus on getting something to snack on before continuing her search. Ducking inside the large tent,