Reborn to Bite (Vampire Shadows Book 1) by Mark Gronwald Page A

crib, your favorite blanket. Do you see the mobile? There, you see your mother's face; how angry she was? No mother would be that angry with a baby as wonderful as you. We'll travel back in time a little more... and the hospital-"
    "Everything's blurry. I can hardly see."
    "That's what happens with old childhood memories. Now you're in the nursery."
    Sabine struggled and tried to run, but couldn't move. She saw a girl who looked too much like a teenage version of herself, crying in a hospital gown. Could this be her true mother? Sabine thought back to what she could remember of the woman she thought had been her mother. They hadn't looked that much alike. Looking at the memory of this girl, the heartbroken look on the girl's face, and she just knew. Mom! Don't leave me!
    A woman in a crisp pinstripe gray business suit put a clipboard with some legal papers in front of the crying girl in the hospital gown. "Sign the papers. She'll have a better life than you could provide her."
    The memory dissolved, and another memory of her new parents holding her came into her mind.
    Tina Christiansen, the woman Sabine had known as Mom, said "She's so cute. She's the quietest baby we've seen so far. Let's take her."
    "She'll do," the man she'd known as Dad said. Robert Christiansen, total stranger at that moment, had approved of her.
    Sabine closed off the memories. She curled into a ball on the soft imaginary ground, and tried to feel nothing. Instead, she felt like throwing up. Then she thought about where she was, and looked up to see Esmerelda's compassionate stare. She forced back the bile and sat up to face the young version of the old witch.
    "So do you think I'm a danger to your family?"
    Esmerelda smiled. "Not unless we get on your bad side."
    "I can't imagine that happening," Sabine said, smiling through her tears.
    "Then no, I don't see you as a danger."
    Sabine wiped her tears away. "Okay, so how do we get out of this place?"
     
    Sabine stood on the porch, everything still in place like it had been frozen in time. She pulled her energy back out of Esmerelda's mind and they both staggered forward.
    Everyone paused. Apparently the whole conversation she'd just had with Esmerelda had happened in the blink of an eye.
    Mike grasped Esmerelda's arm. "What just happened?"
    Esmerelda gave him a cheerful smile. "Sabine is a good woman. We had a nice chat, and I think she'll fit in just fine."
    Mike looked shocked, checking his wife's eyes. "Are you sure?"
    "I'm sure. Now let's get inside and get comfortable. I'd like to find out more about our guests over lunch. Justin, please take Doug's bag to the purple room. Taylor, please take Sabine's bag to the flower room."
    The two teen werewolf boys flexed their muscles and smiled as they took in the bags. The surfer-blond was apparently Justin, and the brown-haired boy with the shorter haircut and bigger build was Taylor.
    Mike introduced Sabine, Doug and Tiana to the whole clan. Mike and Esmerelda were Val's parents, and the Alphas of the pack. Mike explained that it was rare for a non-shape-shifter to be the Alpha female. It said a lot for Esmerelda's talent at witchcraft.
    Esmerelda's granddaughter Elise had inherited some witch skill in addition to being a werewolf. Elise's dark brown eyes glared from a moody sixteen-year-old face. She wore black goth makeup, frustrating her parents. Even her hair was dyed black. She wore what looked like totems on her necklace, earrings, and bracelets. She seemed glued to Esmerelda's side.
    Mike introduced six or seven more people, but Sabine lost track of their names.
    After introductions, Sabine escaped to her room to rest. She had just put her head on her pillow when there was a soft knock at the door. She groaned and turned to face the sound. "Come in."
    A young Esmerelda stepped into the room and quietly closed the door. "I'm sorry to bother you Sabine, but do you have any idea when your resurrection ceremony took place?"
    Sabine yawned. "I'm pretty