The cake was a long sheet cake with black flowers and tiny tombstones on it. In blood-red letters it read, "Happy Birthday, Alexander and Raven."
It was really sweet that Jagger had taken the time to decorate this room, get us this cake, and arrange for this party.
Two candles were burning like tiny torches. Alexander and I looked at each other. We both made our separate wishes and blew out the candles. "Thanks, Jagger," I said. I gave him a big hug. He was taken aback by my affection but seemed grateful for it. We each took a piece of cake and then headed for the small dance floor. "So it's just us?" Becky said. "Who are not . . . ?" "You, me, Matt, and Trevor. But I still think Trevor is one, deep down," I teased. "Scarlet and Onyx?" "Oh yeah," I said as I danced. "Are we in danger?" "No - I carry garlic, just in case." "You do?" I shook my head. "You are safe tonight. Nothing is going to happen."
Just then Sebastian took a swig from a bottle. His mouth was stained with red liquid that he wiped off with the back of his hand.
"Is that wine?" Becky asked. "I'm afraid not." We continued to dance, and my friend tried to absorb her new reality without passing out. It was then she spotted two marks on Luna's neck. "I think I have to go to the bathroom," Becky said. "Are you okay?" I asked. "Yes," she said, starting for the door. "I'll go with you," I said, and followed her up the stairs and into the girl's bathroom. She splashed water on her face. "When did you know?" she asked.
"After Alexander's Welcome to the Neighborhood party. I was using Ruby's compact and he didn't show up in the reflection."
"That was months ago." "I know." "And you held this secret inside you for that long?" "I had to. For everyone's sake." "Who else knows?" "No one. It's so important that no one else know." "I'm not going to tell anyone. Who'd believe me? But I have to tell Matt." "He'll have to swear to secrecy." "He will," she assured me. She dotted her face and neck with a paper towel. "I know this is a dream come true for you. But for me - " "A nightmare?" "Pretty much. Your boyfriend and all these people I've come to know are vampires." "Can you believe it?" "And they sleep here?" "Yes, isn't that cool?" I said with a smile. "In coffins?" "Yes, you want to see?" "You are joking." "No, I'm not." We left the restroom and I pushed through the crowd of clubsters, Becky trailing close behind.
"I'm not sure I'm ready for this," she said when we reached the spiral staircase. "I almost fainted once. And these stairs are spooky enough."
"It's just down here." "Besides, don't you want to get back to the party? Matt is by himself."
"Alexander is with him." I'm not sure if that was comforting to Becky anymore. I, too, wanted to return to the party. I'd been waiting to celebrate for days, and in such a cool vampire way. But I'd also been waiting to share this secret with someone - anyone, especially my best friend - for so long now, it was comforting being able to reveal the load I'd been carrying alone.
"All right," I said. "I can show you later." Just then Scarlet arrived behind us. "What are you girls up to?" "Uh . . . I had to get something in Jagger's office," I said.
I didn't have to lie anymore, but I was so used to it, I wasn't sure what to say. Besides, I wasn't sure how Scarlet felt about Becky knowing she was a vampire.
"Cool. I have to go to our room, so we can walk together." She stepped around us and we followed her down the hall. "I just need to grab some fresh lipstick. Trevor rubbed it all off."
Becky hung back as Scarlet opened the door and popped inside. "Do you guys mind if I take off?" Scarlet asked when she came back out. "I want to head back to the party. Sebastian and Luna are going to have their mock covenant ceremony. You don't want to miss it."
"We'll only be a sec," I said. "Are you feeling faint?" I said to Becky when Scarlet had gone. "Sort of." "Then we'll stop." "I think this might be a dream," she said. "Hopefully I'll wake up any minute."
"Okay, but don't freak out if you don't." I opened the coffin room door wider so she could see in. There they were, five coffins in a row.
Becky screamed. Fortunately we were too far away from the Crypt for anyone to hear. "That's how they sleep?" she asked. "Yes." "And Alexander, too?" "His is black and it's at the Mansion."
Becky didn't move but remained fixed in the hallway. It was as if she expected one of the coffins to open and a dead person to jump out.
"No one is in them," I assured her. "They are all at the party." "They really sleep here? Even Sebastian?" she wondered aloud. "Yes, his is the one with stickers from different countries on it." "A vampire was interested in me?" It was too much for her to take in on one night. "Yes, he was." "I feel woozy again." She began to get weak-kneed, so I pulled her into Jagger's office. "A tarantula?" she said nervously. "And gravestone etchings on the walls?" "Maybe this wasn't the best place for you to sit down. But you should really catch your breath."
It was then I spotted the blueprints for the Covenant lying out on the table. On closer inspection I noticed something I hadn't seen before. These plans were old and weathered.
They were the original factory plans. In the margin, written in pencil, was a small area that remained untouched. When I looked closer, it said, "tomb." Now I was ready to faint. It appeared to be a small burial site for soldiers. Part of the factory had been built over sacred ground - the part that Jagger now called the Covenant.
And any minute, Sebastian and Luna were going to have a real covenant ceremony. And unbeknownst to Alexander's best friend, it wasn't going to be "just for fun."
"Oh no!" I said. "What?" Becky asked. "We have to get upstairs!" "I still feel woozy." "Do you want me to leave you here?" Becky recovered lightning fast. Before I could move, she was standing at the door.
I grabbed the original blueprints and we raced through the hallway and up the rickety spiral staircase. We squeezed through the crowd and scurried down the Covenant stairs.
When we reached the underground club, Sebastian and Luna were standing over a coffin on the covenant stage. "Where were you?" Alexander said. "Sebastian and Luna are doing their ceremony. And we're next." Trevor, Scarlet, Jagger, and Onyx were watching from the sidelines. "I have to talk to you," I whispered. "Shh!" Jagger scolded. Sebastian held up a goblet and recited some words I couldn't understand. "I have to talk to you - it can't wait any longer!" "It will have to wait until after the ceremony," Alexander said. Then Luna repeated the same words and took a drink from her goblet. "We are on sacred ground," I said to Alexander. "What?" he said.
Just then Sebastian turned to Luna. He held her hands and stared lovingly at her. He then took one hand and brushed her hair off of her neck. He smiled and leaned in.
I shoved the blueprints in front of Alexander and in my loudest voice declared, "We are on sacred ground!!!" Sebastian stopped, and everyone in the club turned to me. Alexander's face turned white, but it was Sebastian's face that was the most horrified. "What?" I waved the blueprints. "We are over a real tomb. You are performing a real covenant ceremony!" "I thought this was a joke. Just a game," Sebastian said, stepping back. He looked at Luna, whose bright face fell. Sebastian jumped off the stage and shook his head. Disgusted, he pushed past us and headed up the stairs. Jagger's face was red with anger.
Luna stood alone on the stage. It was the second time she'd been stood up at a covenant ceremony. First by Alexander, and now by Sebastian. Even I didn't wish that kind of rejection for her. I could see the horror and sadness in her face. One tiny pink tear fell down her porcelain white cheek.
"Luna - " I said, jumping up onstage to comfort her. She gave me a killer stare that made me shudder. Then she stormed off the stage and out of the club. Alexander went after Sebastian. Jagger was nowhere in sight. Matt held Becky in his arms.
While everyone was in chaos, I took a moment at the altar. I imagined Alexander and me standing together over the coffin. He'd recite foreign words and lift his goblet and drink. Then I'd do the same. We'd face each other and stare into each other's eyes like a dream.