“Yes, I know. The traitor of Christ.”
“Well, traitor, take my advice and go back to where you came from.”
“Look, I’m no traitor, and believe me when I say no one wants me out of here more than I do, but I can’t.”
“Yeah? What’s keeping you here? It couldn’t be a cute little blonde werewolf, could it?”
“I understand when she’s under the influence, she’s a redhead.”
“Look, don’t play games with me. Just so you’ll know, my name is Dirk Scarret, and I’ll be watching you.”
“I’m sure you will,” Judas murmured as he wondered about the strange reaction he was getting from Dirk. He couldn’t figure out if he was simply being protective of the lady who paid him the generous salary or if the feeling went much deeper. “Look, Dirk, I have no designs on the lady of the house. I’m simply here to help, and you’ll have to admit that she needs help. Right?”
“There’s only one way you can do that, and that is to put a bullet in her brain.”
“Kill her?” Judas growled, his anger rising. “That’s a little extreme, isn’t it? I mean…” He stopped speaking, knowing he couldn’t say any more. It would reveal too much. Instead he simply said, “Well, there are other ways, and I…I want to try. If I do, I might need your help. I mean, we’re both working toward the same goal, wouldn’t you say? You do want to see her…uh…illness destroyed, don’t you?”
“Illness?” Dirk snorted. “Don’t you mean curse? I know what people say about this old place, but to me it’s nothing more than a decrepit old plantation from out of the past. When I first saw it, something drew me. I don’t know what it was, but the next thing I knew I was carrying pails of water and peeling potatoes. It’s this house, don’t you see? There’s something here. Something as real as you or me. Something that calls people to it. If you die, then it captures your children, and their children, with some kind of invisible umbilical cord. She’ll never be free, and neither will you if you stay here. The curse on her can never be destroyed…never. She can’t be helped, but you can. That’s why you need to go now.”
So that was it. Dirk wanted to get rid of him all right, but not for the reasons he thought. He was afraid for him to stay, to become buried in this house of shadows where evil lived. It was at that moment that Judas truly realized the extent of the damage Lupercus had done. Yes, there was an umbilical cord, but it was one that could, and would, be broken.
“I understand what you’re saying, but I have to try. If I need help, are you willing to assist me?”
“I got nowhere to go.”
“Fine. Now, if I could borrow some clothes that would be great. It seems all I have with me is a rather brief flying suit.”
Dirk’s attention was drawn to the black leather outfit lying on a chair. “Flying suit?”
“Yes, it…” Suddenly Judas knew that he could never explain anything about himself in terms that Dirk would understand. “I know it looks strange, but it serves me well where I come from.”
“Yeah?” Dirk said, still looking at the flying suit. “Where is that?”
“I come…” Judas halted his words abruptly, his sudden silence prompting Dirk’s eyes to shift toward him. “Remind me to tell you about it someday. In the meantime, how about those clothes?”
“I’ll bring some up,” Dirk muttered. With that he turned to leave, a look of doubt and suspicion on his face.
When the door closed, Judas sat down and took the cloth from over the food. It looked like something similar to what he’d seen on the serving board in the studio the night he had arrived. Not what he expected, but tasty. While he ate, he faced the night air that blew in through the French doors. The white curtains billowed wildly in the air. To some it might be cold, but to Judas it cooled his flame-licked body and fed his cold soul.
Chapter 13
Later that same night…
She awoke feeling a cold breeze on her shoulder, a taste of cold blood in her mouth, and the distant memory of a dream. It was full of shimmering moons, the lust for blood, and ugly mutilated flesh. She couldn’t live with these memories, she needed her love. Where was he? She agonized, calling to him, but when he didn’t answer, she reached up, raking her fingers through her hair as if she could scratch the memory out of her head.
And then suddenly she lifted her gaze and looked toward the bathroom.
Slowly she stood as she walked toward it. After running her bath, she reached down and swirled the water and watched the mist as it rose from the heated surface. It was here, in her safe place, that the dream would begin to disappear, to break up into tiny molecules of terror, and for a short time she could escape until once again the dream would return, and begin to unfold, reminding her of who she really was, what she really was.
A thing that scoured the countryside hungry for blood.
When she couldn’t stand the torment another moment, she would come back here to this cocoon of warmth that was created by water so hot she would get lost in the steam that drifted and caressed her tenderly.
Now as she stepped down into the tub and sank into the warmth to relax until the good memories returned, the visits, the sapphire eyes, the swarthy skin. Yes, only they could make her forget about her occasional descent into hell.
Closing her eyes, she lay quiet and undisturbed while another dream slowly emerged from out of that euphoric darkness. It was a dream of blond hair, a kiss from soft, pillowy lips, and the pressure of a muscled body against hers.
She lunged forward, her lids flying open and the water splashing. Something, a form, was etched on the dark screen of her mind. She recognized him immediately as the man with the horrible name and scarred face. The one who rescued her and made love to her.
He was here!
In her home!
Something about him was different. He had hair of a different color, a scar, a body that resembled a mighty warrior, brave and strong. For some reason she saw him surrounded in roiling black clouds while lightning ripped the sky behind him. The words “Black Heavens” rang in her memory.
The rest of Sugar’s night was spent tossing and turning in her bed. She couldn’t get the face she’d seen out of her mind. He was handsome, so very handsome, the scar changing him from a pretty boy to a dangerous enemy with vivid green eyes that penetrated her very soul. She wanted him, but why?
My God, she thought. Was it because of his bruising look?
After all, she had fallen in love with the beast that her husband had become. Finally giving up on getting any sleep, she rose from the bed and poured herself several drinks and paced until dawn finally arrived. She turned and pulled the bell cord. In minutes a knock sounded on her door.
“Come in,” she called out impatiently.
“Sorry, ma’am, but your breakfast isn’t quite prepared.”
“No…I…Dirk, you must tell me. When you talked to our guest last night, did he tell you anything about himself?”
“Well, he told me his name and asked me if I would assist him.”
“Assist him? In what?”
“He calls it your…illness.”
“My illness?”
“He meant—”
“Yes, I know what he meant.”
“That’s about all I could get out of him. He wouldn’t tell me where he was from or much of anything, really.”
“Then I wasn’t dreaming,” she muttered.
“What was that, madam?”
“Oh…nothing. I suppose since we have a guest in the house, the dining room should be prepared for breakfast.”
“Yes, ma’am.” Dirk turned to go, but Sugar stopped him with her words.
“By the way, where did you put him?”
“He’s occupying the Blue Room.”
She whirled around. “The Blue Room. You mean the one next to mine?”
“Yes, ma’am. He said he wanted to be near you, and it was the only one I had ready in this wing.”
Sugar rubbed her forehead, then t
urned to Dirk. “Watch him, Dirk. I don’t trust him. I don’t even know what ever possessed me to ask him to stay.”
“Whatever you say.” Dirk hesitated a moment, then spoke again. “Ma’am if you want, I could ask him to leave.”
“No, I can’t do that,” she said, appearing nervous.
“Has he done anything…said anything…?”
“No, it’s just me. For some reason he makes me uncomfortable. Last night I was so grateful for his help that I offered him a room in the mansion. Today I’m thinking a little more clearly and hope I haven’t made a mistake.” She lifted her eyes to Dirk and smiled. “Well, what’s done is done, and there’s nothing we can do about it now. Just prepare the dining room, please. Oh…Dirk.”
He had turned to leave but paused and turned back when he heard his name. “Yes, ma’am?”
She wrung her hands. “Have…have you had breakfast?”
“No, ma’am. I don’t usually eat until everyone else is served.”
“I know this is…unusual, but would you take your breakfast with us? As I said, I don’t trust him, and I’d feel better if you were there.”
Dirk shrugged. “If you’re sure.”
She smiled nervously at him. “Don’t worry. It’ll be okay. You know I don’t hold much to tradition anyway.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
When Dirk had gone, Sugar’s thoughts stretched back to when she had first come here. Judas was so completely different from her husband.
Her husband was dark, Judas was blond.
The man she married had eyes of sapphire, Judas’s eyes are an electric green.
Her husband was a native of the south, Judas was from Hell!
* * * *
Judas’s eyes flew open with the sudden invasion of blinding light. He could feel the painful rays stab into his eyes as if trying to bore a hole into his brain. The assault caused him to squeeze his eyes closed again and bury his face in his pillow.
Where the hell was all this light coming from?
And then he remembered that he wasn’t in the woods. The recollection rushed into his mind with the needle-sharp prickle of a dagger, causing him to open one lid at a time carefully, very carefully.
The French doors were open, giving him a glimpse of a blue sky.
A bright, blue sky.
He kept his eyes closed as he reached out and grabbed the bedpost like a blind man. Slowly he struggled to a standing position, and without opening his eyes, stumbled around until he found the French doors and slammed them closed. He then rushed over to the dresser and blindly scattered the articles on it as he felt around for his sunglasses. Once he found them, he grabbed them as he would a lifesaver and put them on. The darkness soothed him enough to help him find the bathroom and shower. He knew he must look ridiculous standing beneath the thundering water with his sunglasses on, but it was better than going blind.
This was too much. He was used to swirling black clouds, darkness, a pit, the only light was an occasional burst of flame. He should have known, especially after his stay in the woods, but he was used to doing what he had to do at night and sleeping during the day. Anytime he couldn’t, he used his sunglasses religiously. Who knew he would need them when waking up to light that burst in on him like a bullet to the brain?
The shower and the semi-darkened room helped him get used to all this ridiculous light. While he was still drying off, he heard a knock at the door, so he wrapped the towel around his hips and opened it. When he saw the look on Dirk’s face, he realized what he must look like.
“Sorry, I just got out of the shower.”
Making no comment, Dirk said, “Breakfast will be served in the dining room in fifteen minutes.”
Judas nodded. “I’ll be there.”
Dirk turned slightly, and then with a curious look in his eyes, he asked, “What’s with the sunglasses?”
“Oh, yeah. Sorry.” He reached up and pulled them off. When Dirk didn’t move, he said, “It’s just that my eyes are sensitive to the light, but they’ll adjust. I’ll be right down.” He saw Dirk look beyond him into the shadowed room and then back. He knew that Dirk didn’t understand and would never understand why the normal influx of light was like a pounding spike in his brain, and Judas couldn’t explain.
Finally, Dirk said, “The dining room is down the stairs and to your left.”
“Thanks. I’ll find it.”
He watched Dirk walk away, still feeling the chill that radiated from his very soul.
From his soul.
Judas turned the phrase over and over in his mind. He knew about cold souls since he had one himself, but there were other kinds of cold souls, and Dirk had one.
Yes, he was a loyal servant, keeping his mouth shut and protecting the lady of the house with his life, but it wasn’t for the money. No, Dirk, like the fabled Renfield, was mesmerized by the evil, evil that made him a slave. More than a servant, Dirk was a follower with a protective nature which made him suspicious of everyone. Judas had thought it was him he didn’t like, but Dirk treated everyone the same. Like a hound from hell, he was on his guard with every new face that came around, but once he learned from his master that they were okay, only then would he retreat into the darkness of his bell tower, his dungeon, his lair.
Chapter 14
Dirk was in the dining room, laying out the meal on the sideboard, when he heard voices. He turned and saw Judas and Sugar enter. Sugar gave him a knowing glance, which was his cue to take his place at the table. After filling each plate, he slipped in the seat beside her, facing Judas.
Just as he expected, Judas’s eyes registered surprise.
“So, Dirk, tell me a little more about yourself,” Judas said as he spread his napkin in his lap. “Since you are apparently a part of this household, I should probably get to know you better.”
“I’m afraid my life would be a big disappointment to a man such as yourself. You wouldn’t find it interesting at all.”
“Possibly, but where are you from? Where did you go to school? Do you have any hobbies, any interests?”
Dirk looked up from his plate and gave Judas a black look. “Why?”
“Why?” Judas repeated.
“Yes, why? Will my past make any difference to the help you will be giving to the madam? I would suggest all your efforts be focused on her and the plan you have of breaking this curse.”
Judas looked at him, a shrewd smile etching his face. “Very well put, Dirk. That statement leads me to believe you might have something of an education. If that’s true, why are you here, in a job far below your capabilities?”
“There’s not much to offer in an area so far from the city.”
“Then move to the city. You have no reason to stay here, and there must be jobs by the hundreds waiting for a bright young man such as yourself.”
“Not as long as the madam needs me.” A curtain of anger fell over Dirk’s eyes as he stared at Judas. “You seem awfully anxious to get rid of me.”
“I don’t like to see a life wasted, that’s all.”
“I don’t believe that for a minute. You avoid talking about yourself, so you ask questions rather than answer them. You’re the stranger here, yet you pry into things that are none of your business and have nothing to do with the reason you’re here. I have told you about myself, yet you tell me nothing of yourself. I find…”
As Judas watched Dirk’s performance, he brought his elbows up on the table and listened while a strange smile etched his face.
The look made Dirk feel that he had fallen into Judas’s trap and ended his tirade on a sudden note. The moment his words stopped, the room settled in an awkward silence.
Dirk’s eyes darted defensively between Judas and Sugar, at the way they stared at him suspiciously. Knowing he’d said too much, he rose from the table, his breakfast only half eaten. “If you’ll excuse me, madam, I’ll begin cleaning the kitchen.”
* * * *
Sugar’s eyes followed him as he hurried o
ut. “How strange. I’ve never heard Dirk speak so affluently before. He’s always said so very little, answering my questions with little more than a single syllable. He’s usually very quiet, spends his time alone, but now…”
“Apparently you don’t know him as well as you thought.”
She turned her eyes toward Judas. “What do you mean? Are you saying he could be dangerous?”
“No, of course not. In fact, Dirk is a very faithful servant. He just doesn’t like other people. He’s very protective of you, that’s all.”
“Do you think he’s in love with me?”
“Not at all. Dirk will never love any woman. Dirk is in love with evil.”
“My God,” she whispered as her eyes shifted toward the door Dirk had left through. The fact that it was still swinging sent a chill down her back.
“Sugar,” Judas said, breaking into her thoughts. “Dirk is right, you know. It’s not fair of me to be here without you knowing all about me.”
“Oh, God,” she whispered.
Judas reached out and took her hands. “I’ll try and be as gentle as possible, but you have to try and understand—”
“I don’t think I want to hear this,” Sugar said, pulling her hands out of his.
“No, please,” he said as he took her hands again and held them with a firm grip. “Sugar, look at me.”
She reluctantly turned her eyes up to his, imagining she could see small lightning bolts in their electric green color.
“The truth is, I’m from a place far away called the Black Heavens.”
“That’s it,” she said. “The night at the club. I heard you say you came from…that place. Oh, God, it can’t be.”
“Sugar,” Judas whispered, “why would I say it if it weren’t true? I’m not crazy. There’s a world out there, Sugar. One you wouldn’t even dream existed, and it’s far, far away from here. But it doesn’t matter how far away it is because I’d travel any distance to help you.”
“Yes, but you must have known about me before you came. Otherwise, why would you?”
“Because one very tragic night you summoned us, and later you tried to take your own life by performing a very powerful ritual. One that shook our world.”
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