Reborn to Bite Back

Synopsis

I was out hiking one weekend when I came across a weakened man. He told me that if I let him feed, he would fill my hands with bars of gold and guarantee I'd never want for anything. At the time, I was still a teenage girl obsessed with vampire novels. He was devastatingly handsome, pale as moonlight, exactly like the creatures in my stories. On impulse, I agreed. He pulled me into arms that held no warmth, no pulse. His fangs pierced my throat; the dark, saccharine rush of blood loss sent me floating, weightless, toward some holy oblivion. Just as I began to drown in it, he withdrew. Three days later, he showed up at my door in a tailored suit, carrying a case of gold bars, every inch the gentleman. His eyes glinted with a predator's patience. "Tina, I tasted your soul in your blood. Marry me, so the world knows you belong to the dark." I said yes, breathless with joy. A year into our marriage, my sister Catherine Reed married the owner of a small bakery. Her life was quiet, simple, and happy. But no one saw it coming. On Christmas Day, Catherine slipped something into our wine. "Tina, I can't live with this anymore. I'm younger and prettier than you. Why did you get to marry a man like that while I'm stuck being a baker's wife? "There's poison in both our glasses. I'm done with this dull, miserable life. You're coming with me." I died in agony, yet my face held a smile of relief. When I opened my eyes again, I was back on that hiking trail.