Helga used a thermometer to check Olivia’s temperature, nodding. ‘It’s a great place to learn vocational skills and find your passion. At least, it worked for me. It’s not all pearls and snooty vamps, you know.’ Helga winked. ‘And even if you didn’t want to pursue healing, Wallachia offers courses of study in any subject imaginable – with the highest standards of teaching.’ She sat back on her heels, thinking. ‘I remember when I was your age – so many possibilities.’
Ivy took a deep breath. ‘Are you happy?’ She handed back the crushed herb.
Helga smiled. ‘It’s my calling.’ She sprinkled the herb on a fresh bandage. ‘And now for the final touch.’
Ivy helped Helga apply a new poultice to Olivia’s legs. As if by magic, the colour started coming back into Olivia’s cheeks and, seconds later, her eyelashes fluttered. Another moment passed and Olivia slowly opened her eyes. She looked at Ivy, who wanted to hold her hand as tightly as she could, but kept her grip gentle. Olivia was even more fragile than she’d thought!
‘Welcome back, Miss Olivia. You should have told me you were human,’ teased Helga. ‘You gave us quite a scare!’ She collected the rest of her bottles and ointments and stashed them back in her medicine bag.
‘Oh.’ Olivia looked confused. ‘I thought it was obvious.’ Ivy laughed.
‘I’ll give you two a moment,’ said Helga.
‘Thank you,’ said Ivy.
Helga nodded and quietly started to leave them, Horatio in tow, while Ivy turned her attention back to Olivia. ‘I’m so glad you’re OK,’ said Ivy, chipping at her Midnight Mauve nail varnish. ‘Um . . . you were really sick, so I didn’t know what you wanted me to do, but I was wondering . . . do you want me to call . . . him ?’
Olivia stared at the ceiling.
I’ve said something wrong! Two seconds was all it took for me to make my sister feel rotten again! But then Olivia’s lips parted and her face cracked into a big smile. She nodded in the direction of Helga, who was standing in the hallway outside their room with Horatio, chortling at something he’d said. Ivy hadn’t heard him telling a joke!
‘He finally got the courage.’ Olivia was hoarse, but she sounded happy.
Ivy watched Helga and Horatio. Helga was brushing something off Horatio’s lapel and straightening his tie. ‘They are pretty cute together,’ Ivy admitted.
‘Don’t tell me you’ve caught the wedding bug now too.’ Olivia waggled her eyebrows. ‘I’m sure a certain somebody would be pleased to hear you’ve found your soft side.’
Ivy shook her head, smiling. Her own wedding had never so much as crossed her mind, but she had to admit, Brendan would look handsome in a tux. She and Olivia watched the two vampires flirting and, although Ivy was not prepared to dive full-on into romance-o-mania, she couldn’t help but look at Horatio and Helga and think: Awww . . .
This wedding stuff is going to kill me!
Olivia was in bed, tucked into her cool lavender sheets. She was finally starting to feel like herself again – although a much more exhausted version – and at least a hint of her usual pep had returned. All she needed was a good night’s sleep.
Unfortunately, that gave her the energy to worry. No one had seen Tessa since the rehearsal dinner and Olivia was starting to fear they had an actual runaway bride on their hands. After all that Prince Alex and Tessa had overcome, was the wedding really going to fall apart?
I don’t even know why Vincenzo turning up is such a shock! she thought. Obviously, he was over-the-top and insensitive and crass. But was that enough to make a bride flee her own rehearsal dinner, or for the twins’ dad to tremble with fury? There was more to this than Olivia knew. But if Tessa really had done a runner . . . no bride meant no wedding! How dreadful! And who was going to tell Georgia that her big title story for VAMP magazine wasn’t going ahead either? I bet the designers have already started working on the cover!
Maybe Olivia could leave that conversation to her sister . . .
A sliver of light appeared at the door, and Charles stuck his head into the room. ‘How are you feeling, Olivia?’
Olivia propped herself up on her elbows. ‘I’m still breathing.’
‘That’s good to hear.’ Olivia’s bio-dad chuckled. He was wearing fluffy slippers and a shiny, black robe with a monogrammed C embroidered on it.
Ivy’s coffin creaked open, like a zombie crawling out from the grave. ‘Hey, are people still up?’ she asked, sounding sleepy.
‘I was just checking on your sister.’ Charles opened the door wider and Ivy shielded her eyes from the light coming in from the hall. ‘You should go back to bed.’ He started to leave.
‘Before you go, can I ask you a question?’ Ivy bit her lip – as though she knew that she would have to tread carefully here. ‘Would you mind telling us how you know Tessa’s uncle? Olivia’s little moment earlier meant that we never got to hear the full story.’ Ivy grinned at her sister.
Charles entered the room and pulled out the chair from the desk. ‘I guess you girls are old enough to know what happened.’ He let out a long sigh as he settled into the chair. Olivia sat up straighter in her bed. She heard Ivy rearrange herself too.
‘Very well then,’ Charles began. ‘Vincenzo and I were friends once, a long time ago. Best friends, actually, despite our differences. Vincenzo was always . . . an attention-seeker . . . but we got on despite his little scenes. Then we had a falling out. It’s a long story that took place in a different era when the vampire rules were very different. His behaviour didn’t just hurt me, but Tessa’s family too. It made life very difficult for them, having someone in the family who generated so much gossip and rumour. Eventually, the stories became too much – he went too far. Tessa’s family decided to have nothing more to do with him, and I argued with him. We never put aside our differences.’ Olivia thought her bio-dad seemed tired, as if carrying around that grudge for all these years had been a heavy burden. ‘If we hadn’t let it fester for so long, we’d probably have it sorted out by now. But we didn’t, and now it will forever be between us.’
Olivia gulped. Did she dare ask what her father had meant when he said Vincenzo would not ruin ‘another wedding’?
‘Dad,’ Ivy started. ‘What did you mean by –’ As usual, her sister had got right to the point, but Charles anticipated what she was about to say and interrupted.
‘Vincenzo was supposed to be the best man at my wedding.’ Olivia caught her breath. She had never heard about her parents’ wedding day. ‘It was going to be a small service in America, very low-key and discreet. We’d asked Vincenzo to tell no one, because our relationship was largely a secret. But – as I’m sure you girls have seen – Vincenzo is a loud character and had an idea that he would invite all of our vampire friends over from Transylvania for a big party. Of course, word got out, and my parents discovered that I was planning to sneak off and marry your mother. My idea had been to get married and present Susannah to my mother and father as my wife. That way, they would have had no choice but to accept her. But, thanks to Vincenzo, my plans were ruined.’
‘So you and Mom didn’t get the wedding you wanted?’ asked Olivia, after a quiet moment had passed.
‘No.’ Charles rubbed the ring he still wore on his left hand. ‘But I did have a wonderful marriage, which is the most important thing. Vincenzo is partly correct. I’m not proud of the way I acted downstairs. I’ve had time to calm down and gain some perspective over the situation. At the very least, I hope you girls never behave like I did.’ His eyebrows shot up as he looked at each of his daughters. Olivia nodded vigorously. ‘But it is all in the past and there is no point in dwelling on it too much. Still, there are some friendships that can’t be restored. Now –’ he stood up – ‘you two need to get to sleep.’ Charles strode over and kissed both girls on the forehead. ‘If the wedding goes ahead, you’ll have another hectic day ahead of you tomorrow.’
Hectic I can handle, thought Olivia. Just as long as I don’t get another near-death exper
ience! She curled up in her bed, enjoying the soft hum of the ceiling fan. Her thoughts turned to Ivy’s trip to Wallachia. The day had taken such a sharp turn, she’d never got a chance to ask her sister about the school visit! She peeked over the side of her bed at the sealed coffin. Her questions would have to wait until tomorrow. For now, her bio-dad was right. She needed to sleep . . .
Dong! Dong! Dong!
Olivia felt like she’d only been asleep for five minutes when a loud noise woke her.
Dong! Dong! Dong!
There it was again. She sat up. Ivy was already halfway out of the room, muttering, ‘No, no, no!’ Her sister tugged on the ends of her wild, slept-on hair. ‘No!’ she repeated.
‘Now what?’ asked Olivia, rubbing her face to try and wake herself up properly.
What was going on?
Chapter Nine
Gooonnnnnggggg!
Ivy plugged her fingers into her ears as the metallic vibrations echoed through the castle. She had thought she was having a nightmare. She pinched herself, but the resounding noise still rang out. It’s . . . it’s . . . She suddenly recognised the sound. The gong! That could mean only one thing in Transylvania; she had learnt that at the Academy. A duel!
Ivy peered out of the bedroom door. ‘Is there really another duel?’ she shouted over the head-splitting racket. ‘And, if so, what silly argument is it over this time?’
‘What on earth is going on?’ cried Olivia, as she scrambled down from the top bunk.
‘I’ll go check it out,’ said Ivy, hastily tugging jeans on over her nightgown.
‘Right behind you – well, sort of!’ Olivia called as Ivy sprinted from the bedchamber and out of the castle on to the grounds. Even at full-speed, Olivia would have no chance of keeping up with a worried vampire!
Outside, the lush grass was wet and dewy under Ivy’s toes. She spotted Vincenzo on the lawn. Of course, he would be the cause of all this commotion. He’d thrown his cape over one shoulder and he was standing with open arms, his face tilted up towards the castle. ‘Karl Lazar!’ he called through cupped hands. ‘Karl Lazar! Come out!’ Ivy’s heart skidded to a stop. ‘Let’s settle this feud the old-fashioned way.’ Vincenzo beat his fists against his chest.
A servant wearing white linen trousers and a billowing shirt beat the gong again. Ivy waited, holding her breath. She hoped her father would ignore Vincenzo. Surely her dad wouldn’t do something as barbaric as enter a duel. But then the massive doors of the castle swung open and Charles appeared in the archway.
Ivy’s dad strode out, looking dignified in black trousers and a red silk shirt. Had the whole world gone batty? Olivia and Lillian followed closely behind him. Lillian was pulling the sash of her silk robe tight. Her porcelain face was screwed up with worry. Ivy didn’t blame her. This was a terrible substitute for a wake-up call.
‘Dad!’ Ivy tugged on his sleeve as he passed her. ‘You can’t fight about this,’ she begged. ‘Please don’t fight.’
Lillian, resting a hand on his shoulder, piped up. ‘Really, Charles, this is ridiculous. You can’t honestly take him seriously.’ She pointed at Vincenzo, who now seemed to be imitating a chicken pecking around the front lawn.
‘Are you scared, Charles? Are you not enough of a vampire to follow vampire tradition?’ Vincenzo was playing to the crowd that was slowly starting to gather out in front of the Lazars’ home. The sunlight peeping over the castle roof was dazzling and the dry breeze gusting at their backs smelled of summer. Everything felt out of place for a duel. This was supposed to be the setting for Tessa’s wedding day, not some macho death-match between two vamps old enough to know so much better!
Charles shook both Lillian and Ivy off, his jaw set. ‘Don’t worry. I’m not living in the Middle Ages.’
Olivia sidled up to Ivy and reached out for her hand, which Ivy took and tried not to crush.
From all over the castle, servants and courtiers streamed out on to the lawn. Ivy groaned. They looked just as excited as the students had at Wallachia. But this was her father, not some dumb kid fighting over the rules of a stupid sport.
Vincenzo pointed a long finger at Charles. ‘You embarrassed me in front of my niece.’
Charles casually placed his hands in his pockets, laughing. ‘I embarrassed you? I believe you embarrassed yourself by turning up looking like you were going to a fancy-dress party as Peter Cushing.’
‘Who’s Peter Cushing?’ whispered Olivia.
‘No idea,’ Ivy whispered back.
Her dad narrowed his eyes. ‘You have always caused problems, Vincenzo,’ he continued, approaching the pony-tailed vampire slowly. ‘Ever since we were at school, you’ve refused to grow up and act your age. What are you now, over two hundred years old? And yet you would rather play-act the scary villain than be a proper uncle to your niece, or a friend to me when I needed you.’
‘I – that’s not fair. I . . .’ Vincenzo scratched his cheek and shifted his weight from foot to foot.
Charles interrupted his sputtering. ‘No, what isn’t fair is that you make every major event about you.’ He circled Vincenzo. ‘My wedding, even your niece’s – they become one big Vincenzo Show!’
‘I do not !’ Vincenzo pivoted in place, keeping his eyes on Charles. ‘I mean, they do not!’
‘Enough is enough, Vincenzo.’ Charles folded his arms.
‘But . . . but . . .’ Then like a car with no petrol, Vincenzo stopped, dropping his greasy head. He clasped his hands together behind it, the way Ivy had seen boys at her school do when they missed an easy free-kick on the football pitch.
‘You’re right, my old friend,’ Vincenzo said at last. ‘Of course you’re right – I came out here to make it up to Tessa and to try to do the right thing, but look at me. I’ve made a mess of everything all over again.’
Charles’s posture softened. Ivy let out a breath she hadn’t realised she’d been holding. Was there still a chance she wouldn’t have to witness another silly duel?
‘I just didn’t expect you would ever come back to Transylvania,’ said Vincenzo. ‘I thought I was safe living in a tiny village, being the centre of attention there. For years, it was enough for me. Then I heard that there was to be a royal wedding, I saw the newspaper reports – Tessa’s photo and rumours of wedding guests, including you. I couldn’t resist coming. I’m sorry.’
Ivy’s father rested his hand on Vincenzo’s shoulder. ‘Apology accepted. You were right about what you said before – it’s all in the past.’
Now that is how vampires should act, thought Ivy.
Prince Alex pushed his way through to the centre of the ring, his dark eyebrows drawn together. He looked as if he’d been getting ready for his wedding when the gong had struck. He already had his cummerbund fastened around his waist, but his sleeves were loose, awaiting some cufflinks. A flutter of hope sparked in Ivy’s chest. Maybe there will be a wedding, after all!
‘Speaking of the old ways –’ Alex cleared his throat – ‘what are we going to do about the duel? I’m pleased to see you two have made amends, but once a challenge has been issued, it cannot be refused.’
Charles ran his fingers through his hair, tilting his head. ‘Says who, exactly?’
A young vampire stepped out of the crowd. ‘How dare you talk to the Prince that way!’
Alex held up his hand. ‘No, it’s OK. Go on, Ka– Charles.’
Ivy’s dad went on: ‘Who says that we must follow through with a duel once the challenge has been issued? Who came up with these rules?’
Alex pursed his lips, looking as though he was trying to work out some particularly tricky maths problem in his head. ‘I don’t know. That’s just how things have always been done.’
Charles looked back to Vincenzo. ‘I am proud to be a vampire and I haven’t turned my back on the old ways entirely, but that doesn’t mean I think our system is perfect. Remember what Professor Igor taught us at Wallachia all those many years ago: a person is on the right road in life when he walks
it alone.’
As soon as their dad finished, Olivia started clapping wildly. Every head turned in her direction. ‘What?’ she asked, shrinking back. ‘Vampires don’t applaud?’
Ivy laughed. She thought about what her father had said, how the right path was the one you created for yourself, and she realised she had never been more proud of her father. If her dad could graduate from the Academy without becoming a Wallachia drone, why couldn’t she? Maybe it would be good for her. And, who knew – maybe she would be good for it too.
‘Vincenzo.’ Charles extended a hand to his old friend. Vincenzo hesitated but, after a moment, took the proffered palm. The two vampires pulled each other into a back-thumping hug. A cheer rose up from the crowd, but as fast as it had started, it died off.
Ivy followed the slowly turning heads, wondering what was drawing their attention. Then her heart sank to her toes.
Tessa was standing alone in the doorway.
Nobody moved. The tension stretched between the crowd and the former servant girl like a thick rubber band. Ivy waited, but nobody said anything. The silence felt more suspenseful than a horror movie! What was Tessa going to do – go on with the wedding or let her big day be ruined?
‘Tessa.’ Vincenzo advanced towards his niece, arms opened wide. But before he could get within a few feet of her, Tessa span around and dashed off across the grounds with her hair flying, running barefoot at a speed only a vampire could reach.
Ivy frowned at the fleeing figure. As far as she was concerned, Tessa was practically family. Almost like a third sister. Ivy tapped Olivia on the shoulder. ‘Come on, I think this is a job for us.’
Olivia nodded. ‘Twin sisters to the rescue.’
Olivia and Ivy slowed down when they saw Tessa. She was sitting on the edge of the rose meadow plucking grass from the ground and idly throwing it aside. Silently, they took a seat on either side of her and waited for her to talk.
10 Date with Destiny - My Sister the Vampire Page 9