by Renee Lake
“Why am I being punished? That little boy was so cold to the touch, his eye lashes dark upon his pale skin, but he was still so soft. His family was supposed to keep vigil, but they were all getting drunk in the other room. It’s not my fault; I couldn’t help it, just like with that girl with her young firm breasts, no air left in her lungs to move them. When they are still and cold, lifeless, they are so lonely…I just need to keep them company.
“That’s vile.” Nea felt bile rise in the back of her throat and had to swallow it down. It was customary for the family to clothe and bathe a deceased loved one and keep them in the home for two nights between the death and burial. Nea couldn’t even think about how it must have been for the family to come in and see Catharine with the body of their son.
“This is your other great aunt, Margaretha.” Bendis pointed to another large frame. This woman was stunningly beautiful, wearing a costume of sorts, looking like she came from stories about far away desert places, in bright colors like green and yellow, her face partially covered by a scarf. Nea read the dates beneath her painting 1420-1448.
Nea head was beginning to hurt. If this was how she was going to spend her eternity, she didn’t want it, she just wanted to go home and crawl into her enormous fur covered bed next to her husband. She didn’t want to touch the portrait, but she did.
“I hate this cell, I deserve so much better!” Margaretha sounded high strung and full of herself, “How did Viktor think we were affording our lifestyle? I am a female Bathory. They don’t like to give me any of the family money because I am going to turn out so evil.” There was harsh giggling.
“Well they made me evil! Those children were starving, penniless, homeless, so I sold them, so what? The men who call them their wives probably feed them more than their dirty poor parents. Their new masters, while harsh, at least will keep them clean and give them a place to sleep. Viktor thinks he is so much better than me now, just like my first husband. Excuse me? Could I at least get some decent bread in here!”
“Did my mother know her?” Nea wiped her palm on her night gown, as if touching the painting had tainted her.
“Barely. They didn’t live that close, they were the same age but your grandfather kept your mother away from his sisters. Your mother had already run away by the time Margaretha died.” Bendis gave a great sigh, eyes focusing on the next portrait.
Nea made to touch the portrait but Bendis stopped her, “Don’t, that one is particularly revolting, and is barely understandable.”
“Why?”
“This is your second cousin Barbara. She was interesting, she liked women.” Bendis paused seeing Nea’s revulsion, “I won’t tolerate that Nea. Love is love and you will learn quickly I have no patience for judgement.”
“I am sorry, I will try.” Nea cast her eyes downward, she understood what Bendis was saying…Love was love, but in her world, the one she wanted to go back to, it was a sin to sleep with a member of the same sex.
“Good, as I was saying. Barbara raped her lover with twigs and beat her so brutally she could not walk… After the third girl came forward with similar tales of horror her father took her out to a lake and drowned her, rather than have more shame on your family.”
Barbara was an angry looking young woman of 16, her dates read 1475-1491. She had long light blonde hair and the Bathory blue eyes, her skin was smooth and shiny, but she was frowning, petulant.
“She is so angry.”
“She was, angry all the time, and it came through in her deeds. One day you will have to listen to the painting, but not today, or even tomorrow.” Bendis was quiet.
Nea knew the face in the last frame very well. It was her mother: Jenica Bathory. Nea felt her heart rate speed up, this was a great gift: to be able to look at her mother whenever she wanted to. She was the oldest woman in the portrait hall the dates under her said: 1420-1458.
She reached out to listen to her mother’s voice, but when she touched the wood nothing happened.
“She was not like the others, her painting is simply that…a painting.”
Disappointed Nea gazed at the painting.
“Mother, she got so sick that winter, I wanted Vlad to bring her to the castle. But the healer said that she couldn’t travel. I didn’t get to see her before she died. Father followed two years later.” Nea sniffed. It hadn’t mattered she was a princess or that she had married Vlad, illness and heartbreak had still taken them from her.
“I know. She was a good woman”
“How did she escape the curse?”
“I have no idea. It is something for you to figure out, you and she will be the first to do so. It is because of her you are not dead.”
“Maybe I would rather be dead.” Nea spat out, realizing as a Strega she would never see her family again.
“Perhaps, but you are not so why dwell on it?”
“Why are you showing me this? Telling me these horrible tales?”
“Because your main task is to break the curse of the Bathory women. You are linked and will become aware the moment a Bathory girl’s curse triggers. I don’t care how you do it but find a way to stop it.” Bendis shrugged, trying to look nonchalant but Nea knew better.
“And if I do?”
“I will personally take you into the underworld to be with your family…If that is what you still wish.” Bendis leaned down and placed a kiss on Nea’s forehead.
“Wait. Earlier you told me I wouldn’t have gone to my afterlife.” She was confused, and really didn’t like the Goddess touching her.
Bendis sighed, “Yes, it is part of the curse.... Women in your family who reach puberty do not go on to be reincarnated or any sort of afterlife where they are rewarded or punished…they wind up in purgatory.”
“Wait…. Is that where my mother is? In purgatory with all these hideous women?” Nea paled, the thought of her kind mother spending time with the likes of Catharine, Agata and the rest, a nightmare.
“Yes and there is nothing I can do about it. When I found out they were being kept in Limbo I did what I could….founded a sort of inn where they stay…They understand they are dead but not completely. Most are content to try and hurt each other and do what they did while they were alive and my minions try to accommodate that.” Bendis explained, grief in her words.
“No, that’s not acceptable. I can’t do this knowing my mother is in some sort of Limbo Inn with members of her family she ran away from.” She was scared and angry, a bad combination.
“I know how you feel. Would it make it better if I promised to take you there? Your mother is safe and happy. I promise, she is not alone with these monsters. I would not leave her to that after the good life she lived.” For a moment Bendis looked so remorseful it pushed back the loud emotions swirling inside Nea’s head.
“Good, but you still haven’t told me how I make a Strigoi.” Nea was tired, this was all too much, but she would hold the Goddess to her word and see for herself her mother was fine.
“You will just know. You must make one every five years to satisfy me, it seems like a lot, but only the cleverest Strigoi live longer than a decade. I must go, the night is ending and I still have other things to do.”
“Wait! You’re going to leave just like that?” Nea exclaimed
“You are a grown woman my Strega. You have seen a marriage bed, birthed two healthy sons and seen bloodshed. I think you can manage. If you truly need me then call for me, but I won’t always come.” With those words she was just gone and Nea shivered in the hallway.
“Well I did not think she’d ever leave.”
Nea spun around at the voice. There was a young woman standing behind her. She was slim wearing a velvet dress of deep green, her very red hair was in a thick hair net called a snood and her green eyes had amusement in them. Staring at her Nea felt a not unpleasant tingle from her fingers straight up her shoulders.
“Yeah that would be your first lesson, that tingle means you are in the company of another Strega.” T
he girl had a strange accent, one that Nea had never heard before.
“You’re a Strega?” Nea asked, distrust lacing her words.
“Yes. My name’s Sabine. Been with the Mistress here a while. So when she figured on you for a new recruit, told her I’d be happy to teach you the ropes.” She shrugged.
“Where are you from?” Nea just had to know, this woman spoke so strangely. Nea understood the words, not so much the context.
“Scotia.” She winked.
“How did you end up here?” Nea knew from maps her father had that Scotia was very far away. As she followed her down the hall she watched her, this Sabine was probably a spy for the Goddess.
“Hecate. She grabbed me up from death and made me an offer I could not refuse. C’mon let’s get you settled in. Follow me, lass.”
“Hecate? And I am a married woman, certainly not, a lass.”
“Meant no offense, with those hips I can tell you’re no maiden. And Hecate is my name for Bendis.”
Nea wasn’t offended by Sabine’s words. She was much fuller of figure than Sabine, it was a sign she was rich enough to eat well, and honestly she’d never lost the weight after having Mihnea. Vlad had told her more times then she could remember how much he liked her with some meat on her bones.
Confused about why Sabine would call the Goddess a different name she asked. “Is Hecate like a nickname, or a…pet name?”
“Nah. Hecate is a powerful Goddess, she is seen all over the word. The Holy Roman Empire calls her Trivia, while Egyptians praise her in the name of Hequet. In my country and in Greece she is called Hecate,” Sabine explained, “She has three forms, the crone, the maiden and the mother, which you have just seen and that’s lesson two.”
“So are you my keeper then as well as a teacher? Here to make sure I don’t run away?”
“I couldn’t care less what happens to you. If you are dumb enough to try and run go for it. It won’t take Hecate long to find you. Then she might stick you with a Strega who is not as much fun as I am.”
Sabine opened a door and warmth hit her square in the face from the fire place. She sighed with welcome when she saw the bedroom. There was a bed, vanity, dresser and everything she could need to be comfortable. Except her children and her husband.
Sabine reached out, flicked a switch and harsh light filled the room.
“What is that?!” Nea exclaimed wincing, and a little frightened.
“Electric light from the 1890’s.” Sabine had mischief in her eyes and words.
“The 1890’s? You’re teasing me!”
“Nope, Hecate can time travel and we get the benefit of her gifts.” Sabine went farther into the room and opened a door; there was a fancy indoor privy. Nea turned a tab and was astounded that warm and cold water came out of it.
“It’s called plumbing; you have three, what’s called, bathrooms and then water in the kitchen.” Sabine sat down on the edge of the bed.
“Why doesn’t she share these things with the rest of the world?” Nea asked.
“She has Stregas all over, some in different times. She has to let humans learn on their own. Lesson three; you are not to share anything from the future with a human, unless you have Hecate’s permission. She gives us gifts, she can take them away.” There was a hint of anger in Sabine’s voice.
“Then why can’t she go into the past and change my family? Or the future for that matter?”
“Lesson four, you ask good questions for a spoiled rich girl, Hecate cannot change anything that has already happened or is fated to happen. Some things she says are called…fixed points.” Sabine stood up, yawning.
“Can I time travel?” Nea thought that would be a great way to spend her spare time, she decided to ignore the spoiled rich girl comment, she had employed classier servants than this overly talkative red head.
A shadow passed over the other woman’s eyes. “No. We could once…but not for a while now. I used to go into the future all the time. They have the best clothes in the future!”
“Why can’t we time travel anymore?”
“A Strega screwed something up big time. When one of us is bad, we all get punished, remember that.”
“Another lesson?” Nea was only half way listening now, thinking about time travel and the future.
“Yup, Lesson 5. If you run we’ll all be on lock down and a bunch of angry witches will show up at this castle.”
“I do not understand some of your language, why would locked down angry witches come here?”
Sabine laughed, “I use what is called slang, in the future. Spent a little too much time there, at least that’s what Hecate says. I meant a large group of angry Strega’s will come here, furious….at you… because they will all be confined to their quarters, got it?”
“Oh, well I would not want that. Can you tell me who used to be in that other painting in the gallery?” Nea frowned, she wanted this woman to at least like her a little, especially if she was going to learn magic from her….Though the thought of Nea learning magic was still ridiculous.
Sabine went to the wardrobe and opened the closet showing Nea many clothes, “You should change. Some of these are from the future, try not to wear them outside unless you are sure you won’t be observed.” Sabine glanced at Nea’s outfit and raised her red eyebrows, judgment in her face at Nea’s state of dress.
Nea looked down at herself, noticing for the first time that aside from the coat and boots she was in her linen chemise: her underwear. She’d been dressing for bed when Radu had come into the room. Nea hoped that Vlad would do truly horrible things to his brother. Picking at the nightgown she blanched, the Goddess had dried her off, but the stains of her own blood were still reminders of what had happened.
“Do I have a decent size staff here? Will you be staying here with me, permanently?” Nea asked, shrugging out of the coat and hanging it up, she hoped not, Sabine was really rough around the edges and would get on Nea’s nerves in no time.
“Goodness no, I am just here to help you out for a bit of time. You’ve got yourself a fine staff, couple of maids, a housekeeper, butler, cook, even a gardener and stable hands, right proper lady you are. Most are from other time periods, like my own staff. Owe Hecate a favor…or two.”
“So you will be teaching me...” Nea trailed off, sitting down on the bed and pulling a huge fur blanket around her, she was so tired, she didn’t think she could change and bathe, blast what Sabine thought of her.
“Magic,” Sabine raised her eyebrows, “I know you’re a Christian woman, but Stregas, well, we gotta get over our old hang ups to follow Hecate’s path. I gotta teach you how to use all that power, how to eat emotions and create Strigoi.”
“And in your first life, you were not Christian?” Nea wondered if in the morning she would wake up in her bed and this would all have been a really strange dream. Sabine’s odd word choices were making her current headache worse, what in God’s name did “hang ups” even mean?
“Of course not, it was easy for me to give up my old ways…but I guess I am a natural, not everyone has what it takes to be a Strega.”
“I think I can manage it just fine, thanks.” Nea’s eyes narrowed.
“We’ll start with your first Strigoi tomorrow, Bendis requires we make one every five years. Best get it out of the way first off, and then you can do anything you want for a while. I’ll be leaving you to sleep now, you’re still healing from the fall after all.”
Sabine left the room and Nea laid down, glad the other woman was gone and annoyed. Too tired to bathe and change she fell on the bed and curled up on her side, crying as she begged God for this to have all been a nightmare, but as she drifted off to sleep she could have sworn she heard Bendis’ laughter.
Chapter 3
1482
Sabine stayed with Nea for years, teaching her how to use her magic, showing her how to feed on emotions and how to make Strigoi. Nea discovered that Strigoi gathered emotions for Strega’s to fuel their magic. Bendis
called on them several times to fix the balance between day and night, good and evil. This basically consisted of good not becoming too full of themselves and evil understanding there were consequences to certain actions.
The two grew into the best of friends, even after a rocky start. Nea learned to understand Sabine’s bizarre way of talking, even figured out how to use a few of her phrases correctly.
Sabine helped her through difficult times, like right after she became a Strega and Nea went to check on her sons, Sabine held her while she cried out all her sorrow of missing them growing up. Patting her head Sabine said,
“Lesson seven; looking back is a bad idea. After Hecate found me I tried to go back. Worse mistake of my life.”
Sabine went on to tell her about how her husband pushed her off a cliff and Bendis restored life to her broken body. Nea and Sabine grew closer since they shared the same death.
There were many trying times the first decade Nea was a Strega. Three months after her “death” she had word that Vlad had been taken capture by a man they had both though that was their friend, Matthias, who was a leader in Hungary. He was held for ten years. Her children were raised by distant family and she had nightmares about not being with them. Finally Sabine appealed to the Goddess who granted Nea the right to use magic to free Vlad.
“Lesson 30, learn to bargain.” Sabine had stroked her hand but Nea never did find out what Sabine had bargained with.
They cheered together in 1476 when Vlad took back Wallachia with Hungarian support and Nea thought a new era had begun for her husband and children. She felt like she could relax into her new life, it was not to last however.
One night only months after his regained glory, Bendis came to tell her Vlad had died, Nea didn’t realize her heart could break again. The rumors were he had been ambushed on his way to Bucharest and beheaded. Nea had pleaded with Bendis for the right to have her children come live with her. Bendis refused and forbade Nea to even see her boys until it was time to turn Mihail.