06 Love Bites - My Sister the Vampire Read Online Free PDF Page B

Trees towered over the car like the vaulted ceiling of a cathedral. They blocked out the sun and it was almost as if it were already night.
    Olivia woke up as the road narrowed and got bumpy.
    Mr Vega twisted in his seat and gave them a tense smile. ‘We do not have far to go now, my daughters.’
    Ivy hadn’t been worried before, but with the butler and the fancy car, she was feeling like she wasn’t really prepared to meet her family. What if she kept making a mess? Or she said the wrong thing? She hadn’t really thought what beingrelated to a Count and Countess meant.
    Olivia reached out for her sister’s hand and Ivy was glad for the millionth time that she had her twin by her side.
    When we left I was trying to perk up Olivia,
Ivy thought.
Now I’m the one feeling jumpy.
    ‘Before we arrive,’ Mr Vega said, ‘I want to say something. The three of us are a family and I will never let anything come between us again.’
    Ivy saw Horatio glance over at her dad.
    Maybe the same goes for the Count and Countess?
Ivy hoped. She’d love it if her dad and his parents were able to put their differences behind them.
    Moments later, Horatio turned the car down a tree-lined lane and paused at tall iron gates that swung open automatically. They then rolled up the long, sloping drive.
    ‘That is the vineyard, dormant for winter.’ Horatio pointed out of the left window atneat rows of wooden frames with brown vines clinging to them. ‘And the stables are on the right. I’m afraid the lake house at the back of the property is closed but you might get a chance to skate on the frozen lake.’
    The lake house!
Ivy mouthed to her sister.
    Then, the house came into view.
    ‘How old is this place?’ Ivy asked, staring up at the six towers casting imposing shadows across the lawn.
    ‘Only three hundred years old,’ Horatio said dismissively.
    It was even bigger than the gothic building that housed the entire Franklin Grove Middle School. The dozens of windows along the long facade were dark and uninviting. As they came to a stop, Ivy could see gargoyles on the rooftop. They seemed to stare down disapprovingly. Normally, Ivy would be all about the gargoyles,but she was feeling so out of place.
    She followed her sister out of the car and the cold made her shiver. Her clunky boots crunched on the gravel, and she saw that the door knocker was a distorted face with fangs.
    Ivy shuddered.
I’m a long way from home,
she thought.
A very long way.
    Olivia expected the huge oak doors to creak open, but they swung open silently.
    It was warm inside and the scent of burning pine logs filled the air from the open fireplace in the corner of the hallway.
    ‘It’s almost cosy,’ she whispered to Ivy, who was gazing up at the walls.
    Olivia followed her gaze to see portraits of stern-looking men and women. One woman was wearing a tight corset and a large ruby ring on her finger while another stared down at them dressedin a velvet cloak and white ruff. They all had pale skin and unusual-coloured eyes.
    ‘This must be the family,’ Ivy said.
    Opposite the front door and to both sides were long corridors, making a T-shape. Each corridor was decorated with tapestries, chandeliers and more paintings. ‘It’s like a museum,’ Olivia whispered.
    From the hall on the right, an elderly couple dressed in black entered the room. Olivia caught her breath. The woman was graceful and elegant. Olivia immediately felt dishevelled and under-dressed. Her hair was in a neat bun and she wore a stunning green jewel on a choker. Olivia realised it was shaped like an eye with a V in the middle – the same symbol that was on her and Ivy’s matching rings. This must be her grandmother, the Countess.
    ‘Welcome home, Karl,’ she said. She held outher hand, her arm clad in intricate black lace, for Mr Vega to kiss.
    Olivia couldn’t help noticing how her father’s face coloured. ‘It is Charles, now, Mother,’ he replied stiffly. ‘Call me