Once reaching the top of the steps leading out of the Grove, Emelia brushes past other ball attendees and scans the area for any sign of her cousin.

After a few minutes of frantic searching, she spots Malcolm amongst a group of men and makes a beeline in his direction.

He doesn't appear to notice her at first when she stops just outside the little gathering, but the others do.

Eyes of varying colours but with the same level of coldness flicker over her and instinct screams at her to turn around and get the hell away from there, but she doesn't and clears her throat instead.

"Malcolm." Her voice comes out assertive and steady, doing nothing to reveal her frazzled nerves.

All conversation in the group stops and Malcolm's attention finally settles on her.

"Ah, Emelia," he coos, the gross skin on his face crinkling as he smiles. Or, at least, smiling is what she thinks he is trying to do. "So nice of you to join us. I trust you enjoyed dancing with my godson?"

"Where's Sofie?" she demands, refusing to be side-tracked and getting straight to the point.

Malcolm blinks at her blankly before turning his head to look around.

"Oh!" he says, voice high with feigned surprise. "I don't know. She was here not that long ago."

"You don't know where she is?" Emelia glares at him.

"She must have wandered off." His reply is too casual, too innocent, and it makes warning bells go off in her head.

Without wasting another precious second on Malcolm, Emilia storms away to resume the search but soon finds navigating her way through the large and crowded Grove too overwhelming.

She can feel herself being watched by some of the patrons as she walks and it makes her skin crawl.

She looks all around for a glimpse of a familiar face - Camille, Jacques, or even François - but everyone looks the same.

There is an ominous energy in the air that Emelia can't shake away. It's subtle like the bitter aftertaste of fruit-flavoured yogurt that has spoiled and it causes her anxiety to mount with every minute that passes.

"May I offer you some champagne?"

Emelia whirls around to see a member of the waiting staff - a young woman with cropped brown hair and a warm complexion, perfectly human.

"I'm fine, thank you," she replies with what she hopes is a believable smile.

When the lady walks away, Emelia decides to find some higher ground in order to get a better view of the area and hopefully spot Sofie's bright pink dress from above.

Moving away from the centre of the Grove, Emelia climbs up a set of steps leading to a closed entrance of an area of the palace.

From there she scans the grounds. The parts she is able to see, at least.

The dance floor is no longer visible, hidden beneath a swarm of bodies that swirl to the ever-increasing volume of music like a school of fish whilst every other corner is bustling with activity.

People talking, drinking, laughing... But no sign of Sofie.

Distracted, Emelia doesn't hear the door behind her open but feels the air shift when someone comes up behind her.

An arm hooks itself around her neck before she can react and yanks her back, causing her to fall against what feels like someone's chest as the door is pushed closed again.

What the-?

Emelia flails, trying to regain her footing while being dragged backward. With a surge of adrenaline, she uses her head as a weapon - literally - and slams it into the front of her assailant's face when they lift her off the ground.

Hissing from either pain or surprise, they release her instantly and she lands on the polished floor of a long, airy hall.

"I had a feeling you'd be feisty."

A chuckle rings out as she clambers to her feet, head ringing slightly.

Her assailant is a stranger but his face is vaguely familiar and it only takes a second for Emelia to realise that it's the guy who tried to block their way when they had arrived with Jacques at the start of the night.

Emelia's stomach drops. Clearly, this is no coincidence. He must have been watching her.

Hurriedly, she yanks down on the door's brass lever but whatever-his-face-is prevents it from opening by slamming a hand against the frame.

Darting to the side, Emelia moves along the wall in order to put some distance between them.

"Where are you going?" he coos, eyes glinting as he follows her in a way that mimics a predator stalking its prey.

"Where do you think?" she retorts, still backing away while facing him.

The noise from outside is muffled - barely distinguishable - and Emelia doubts that anyone will hear it if she screams. Or if they do, even bother coming to her rescue.

The vampire's gleeful smile grows until it resembles nothing but a ravenous snarl, his already-elongated canines glinting beneath the chandelier light.

The sight sends Emelia whirling to run in the opposite direction but the heels sabotage her attempt.

She makes it less than four steps before her ankles twist, the glazed marble floor flying up to meet her face as she topples forward.

An involuntary cry passes Emelia's lips as she throws out her arms to catch herself but someone else beats her to it.

A pair of heavily scarred hands appear, ensnaring her upper forearms to halt her fall but propulsion still sends her crashing into the person with enough force that it knocks the breath from her lungs.

___.___

💫 Happy New Year, everyone! I hope you had a nice Christmas and are taking care of yourselves. I've been bedbound for the past few weeks due to ME but am feeling a teeny bit better today and so was able to stay awake long enough to login and upload this chapter XD

Hope you enjoyed reading it and am praying that 2021 is a better year for all of us 💖