by Renee Lake
“I enjoy the history; in my own homeland it is rare to find new things. I won’t be doing too much renovation.” His voice was a little less pleasant.
“Have you met my daughter, Lucy?” Mrs. Westenra waved a hand at Lucy, on the couch, trying to brighten up the mood, though motioning to a sick girl, not the best way to go about it. One could tell she was used to Lucy being the prettiest, most sparkling, joyous, belle of the ball
“I have not, though Dr. Seward raves about her beauty.” Dracula made his way over, his eyes on the girl, she could not look away, her hand reached up and touched her throat.
“Dracula, old man, what a thing to say.” Dr. Seward blushed; sitting next to Lucy with his doctor’s bag.
“Have you been ill, Miss Lucy?” Dracula asked.
“Just a little tired,” Lucy murmured.
“The good doctor thinks she is anemic.” Nea could stand it no longer, she thrust herself into his path. His eyes fired as they raked over her body and then became distant.
“This is Miss Nea Bathory and Miss Sabine McLendon, friends of my daughter. Both are staying in Whitby for the summer and single,” Mrs. Westenra added, quickly introducing them.
“A pleasure to meet you both,” Dracula said.
“Wine, Count?” Sabine asked, as a waiter stopped near his elbow, she was baiting him.
“I never drink…wine.” The humor in his voice only Nea and Sabine could appreciate.
“If you are anemic Miss Lucy, you should eat more meat, iron is good for the blood.” He turned his attention back to the girl.
“I don’t care for dead animal.” Her voice was almost a whisper, her eyes still latched on Dracula.
“I’ve tried to tell her that,” Dr. Seward commented.
“You must eat meat. I have seen anemia in my time, and quite often it is the only solution, the rarer the better.” Dracula took another step towards the girl.
“Count, why don’t I show you the terrace, Lucy is tired, all this attention is too much for her.” Nea tried to be coy, but they both knew she was interfering.
“Alas, I would like nothing better, but I cannot stay. I have business in London. I wanted to stop by and simply thank Mrs. Westenra for the invitation.” Dracula turned back to the older woman and bowed over her hand.
“I am sure we shall all see each other soon.” Then with a swirl of his cape he quickly left the room, Mina passed him as he walked out, her eyes going wide.
“Who was that?” she asked.
“Oh Mina! You missed it!” Lucy exclaimed; stopping to try and breathe, overly excited. Mina sat down next to her friend and began to calm her down. Sabine and Nea walked away to talk.
“We will have to watch this evening,” Sabine said.
“What was that all about?” Nea asked, “he had to know we were here.”
“He did. It’s a game Nea, and we better figure out the rules.” Sabine shook her head, both watching as Lucy told Mina all about the strange Count.
That night Sabine and Nea stayed over at the Westenra house, faking fatigue and spirits, they acquired a room next to the one Lucy and Mina were sharing so that they would be within close proximity if anything should happen.
It was almost two in the morning when Nea noticed the change in the air and felt Vlad lingering outside the house.
“Sabine, it’s time,” she whispered to her friend. Both Stregas were in night gowns, having had to imitate getting ready for bed with Mina and Lucy. Nea pulled on a long black satin robe.
“You go make sure Mina doesn’t wake, I’ll take care of this,” Nea said. “When I have Lucy away from him, wake Mina up.” she stepped out the doors that led into the moonlit court yard, just as Lucy’s room did. It was a little cold and she shivered, pulling her robe tighter around her. The glass doors to the room next door were open and she could see Lucy was already across the courtyard and out the gate leading up to a hill.
“Good luck,” Sabine murmured and went to take care of Mina.
Nea didn’t need luck, this wasn’t about anything as mundane. She followed Lucy and watched as a man came out of the shadows and beckoned to the girl. Lucy went and the man embraced her, it was intimate, but was really just the vampire feeding. Nea knew it would feel likes excess amounts of pleasure was running through the girl’s system, it was easy to become addicted.
“Stop, Vlad,” Nea said a few feet from the entwined couple. He did, but it took a few seconds for him to raise his mouth from the girl’s swan like neck.
“Nea, don’t interfere,” he growled, eyes red. He lowered his mouth back to her neck, keeping eye contact with Nea as he drank.
“I said stop, you will kill her.” Nea took another step forward, gathering her magic around her, she would strike him if she had to. He drank deeply for a few more seconds and then pulled away from the girl, not even bothering to lick the wounds gone.
“She is only a child Vlad, what use could you possibly have for her?”
“I need a companion here in England; she is lovely to look at and will do nicely.” He stepped away from Lucy, the girl stood in a trance, eyes blank.
“Then you should have brought one of your current brides.”
“They didn’t want to come, too stuck in the past. I would prefer you, but you have stayed as far away from me as possible these past 200 years.” He sounded hurt.
“You know why.”
“No, I do not.” He pulled Lucy against him, her mouth formed a perfect O.
“Why are you even here, Vlad? Go home, don’t make me kill you.” Nea begged.
“You, kill me?” He laughed, coldly, “if you must know, there is a relic here I need to acquire.” His grip on Lucy tightened, she was starting to wake up from her trance.
“What relic?”
“It’s a Thracian weapon, called a Rhomphaia, This particular one was used in the Dacian Wars, the battles in Wallachia, it was later dipped in Dacian Gold. I have located records that it was on display at Carfax before it fell into ruin, I am hoping it is still there in the catacombs of the church.” He looked frustrated.
“Why would you care about this ancient weapon?”
“My grandfather’s journal says that not only was it a family heirloom that never should have been given away, but it has the power to help the owner calm his blood lust in battle.”
“Oh, Vlad, you are trying to control your blood lust?” Nea was sympathetic, he became a vampire to help his people, they long since did not need his brand of help.
“Yes, now go and let me finish here.”
“I cannot. You are killing her, she’s already addicted to your thrall, let her go” Nea commanded.
“Then take her place. It’s really you I want, you I wanted to pin up against the wall at that ridiculous party, no one else…But I am lonely.” He admitted, eyes sparking with passion.
“I can’t come with you now.” She checked behind her making sure that she couldn’t be overheard.
“Now?” He strode over to her, leaving Lucy standing like a sleep walker, behind him.
“Mihail explained about my family?” She asked quickly.
“Of course, we keep few secrets.”
“I will come back to you, once I break the curse.” It was a weight off her chest, something she had been considering for years. Vlad’s eyes widened and he closed the distance between them, resting his hands on her shoulders, stroking her through the silk.
“You will?” His voice soft.
“Yes, you will have to free your brides, but I will be yours again. You must leave Lucy alone and release Jonathan Harker.” Nea hoped with Jonathan’s release Mina might be a happier person. She also hoped that agreeing to be with Vlad again might put an end to some of his more murderous habits, like enthralling young virgins and slaughtering ship crews. She knew that Bendis would never allow it, but she had often wondered; would she be happier with her love by her side? No matter what he had done the answer was yes and had always been yes.
“Your w
ord.”
“When have you ever needed my word before?”
“You are a Strega, tied to an ancient Goddess, who knows how that has changed you.” His hand ran down the side of her robe, touching her in a way she hadn’t let anyone in years, caressing the side of her breast.
“I am still the woman you love, the one you married, that hasn’t changed.” Nea’s voice hitched as her nipple hardened under his fingers.
“You are and you are not. I love you still, but I must have your word if I am to do as you say.”
“You have my word.” Nea stood on tiptoe and pressed a kiss to his mouth, not even flinching at the taste of the girl’s blood that lingered on his lips.
“ I will give my brides freedom and leave the girl alone, as for Jonathan Harker, I released him some time ago, he was a foolish man, prone to hysteria and the girls had a bit of fun with him against my wishes.” Vlad scowled, “last I heard he was being tended by some nuns in Budapest.”
“Thank you.”
“How long am I supposed to wait for you?” he asked, hands wandering down to grab her bottom and pull her against him. He was hard against her skin and she resisted the urge to tremble.
“I do not know.”
“Then I shall wait until you break this curse to free the girls. I do not like to be alone. I shall also hunt here as I choose, but I shall stay away from this girl.” There was a look in his eyes Nea didn’t like, but she had to concede, who knew if she would ever break the spell, she couldn’t ask him to give up everything on something that may never happen.
“I understand.”
“Come home with me tonight Nea, let me inside you, be with me,” he commanded.
“I cannot, but I wish I could,” she whispered, reaching up and touching his face, his eyes seemed to pierce her soul.
“I do not enjoy this.”
“I know, now go; I need to tend to Lucy,” Nea said, Vlad nodded and with a thought he was gone, into the night, a shadow on the moon. Lucy slowly blinked her eyes and cried out, almost crumbling to the ground. Nea caught her.
“Lucy, are you alright? You were sleepwalking!” She had to try very hard to act like she was upset and shocked when every molecule wanted to go into the night with Vlad.
“I feel so strange, was there a man here?” Lucy asked, just as a cry sounded from the house.
“I’ve found her!” Nea called. She stripped off her own robe and wrapped it around the girl; she was worried being under a vampire’s thrall had permanently damaged Lucy. There was a flurry of activity and then Mina and Sabine appeared, running up the hill.
“I woke Mina the moment you told me you’d seen Lucy sleepwalking,” Sabine fed Nea the lie.
“Of course. Here help me, she’s so cold.” Nea looked up at Mina. All three women helped Lucy down the side of the hill and tucked her back into bed, closing the doors from the chill of the night air. Mina had the maids start a fire in her room, just to try and warm the poor girl up.
“I am so glad you saw her, thanks for waking me,” Mina whispered as they made their way out into the hall, closing the door.
“You should call for her doctor. She seems even sicker than before,” Sabine told her.
“Yes, I’m going to, at once.” Mina hurried off and Nea filled Sabine in on most of what happened.
“So you convinced him to leave the girl alone?”
“I believe so, but he’s been feeding off her steadily for almost two months, I think the damage is done, she and her mother have weak hearts,” Nea said, gravely.
“So you think she’s going to die?”
“Possibly and if she does before she heals from his touch she’ll become a revenant, not like a normal vampire.” Nea glanced back at the door, thinking of the young woman who lay inside, icy, insipid and fighting for air.
The physician spent the night tending to Lucy, worried about her condition. He left explaining he couldn’t do anything but allow her to rest and hopefully heal. The marks on her neck were of great concern and the doctor was worried some poisonous insect had bitten her. Nea thought about bringing Marina in, but didn’t want to tempt fate, it would look suspicious if the girl suddenly just healed herself.
That afternoon while taking tea with Mrs. Westenra a telegram arrived for Mina, it was a letter from Jonathan. The excitement Mina displayed was quite possibly the first show of genuine emotion Sabine or Nea had seen from her, aside from occasional bouts of worry. Mina packed up and left within the hour, just as Dr. Seward and Quincy Morris arrived to see Lucy.
Quincy Morris was a strong, able young man with dark brown hair and a moustache. He had a thick accent and proudly told anyone he came across that he was from Texas. Nea found him amusing and thought the fact that Dr. Seward, Quincy and Arthur Holmwood were best friends was interesting, especially since they had all proposed to Lucy on the same day.
“I think I know a way to help your daughter,” Dr. Seward stated, taking his hat off as he entered the room.
“And what would that be, Dr. Seward?” Nea asked, curious.
“Please, it’s Jack to my friends. I think a blood transfusion could cure her,” Jack said.
“Isn’t that risky?” Nea knew that in this time so much was still unknown about blood, she knew people died from transfusions.
“No riskier than doing nothing,” Quincy drawled.
“Rest and good food and nutrition might work,” Nea offered the suggestion, but it was halfhearted.
“I understand your concerns, but Jack here has told me all the risks; we think it’s her best option. We’ve already messaged Arthur about it.” Quincy gave her a lopsided grin.
“Do it, please,” Mrs. Westenra said softly from her seat on the sofa.
“Are you sure? It could kill her.” Sabine sat next to the older woman, concerned.
“It’s obvious everyone thinks she will die anyway, if this could help her then yes, I am sure.”
“Who will you take the blood from?” Nea asked.
“Quincy has offered to donate as did Arthur, he will be here soon. I have also called my mentor Professor Van Helsing. He knows quite a bit about this sort of thing, he was already in London for a seminar and will be here by nightfall.” Jack was searching through his medical kit.
“I think Sabine and I will leave you both to do your work then.” Nea was trying to hide her dismay, she didn’t want to use mind magic on all of them, and didn’t have enough clout to persuade Mrs. Westenra against it.
“Yes, please call for us is you need anything,” Sabine patted Mrs. Westenra’s hand.
“You girls are sure you won’t stay?” Quincy asked.
“Sabine doesn’t like blood,” Nea lied.
“I faint dead away,” Sabine tittered, almost overdoing it.
“Well then yes, you should go, we will let you know how it turns out,” Jack said.
Sabine and Nea, gathered their things and left, walking slowly back to the house they had bought.
“Van Helsing,” Sabine hissed.
“Yes, this won’t end well.”
“He’s killed several of my Strigoi over the last few years, vampires too.”
“I haven’t had to worry about that with Costica running around.”
“Do you think Jack knows that Van Helsing hunts the undead in his spare time?” Sabine wondered out loud.
“I doubt it.” They walked into their little cottage, all white, blue and quaint and Marina met them at the door with mail and household news from the last 24 hours. The house was much smaller than any of them were used to, but it was nice and different.
“Marina, I need you to go to the Westenras, take them a pie or something, but use your magic on Lucy and make sure the blood transfusions work,” Nea explained what was going on.
“Fools, they are more likely to kill her than help her, the first successful whole blood transfusion won’t happen until the 1900’s. They barely know about blood typing right now.” Marina undid her apron and hung it on a pole near
the door, “I’ll go now, cook made a delicious cake for tonight, but Mrs. Westenra will appreciate it, her maid’s gossip says she enjoys sweets,” and she hurried off.
“What should we do?’ Sabine asked.
“Nothing. This is a mortal problem and we don’t interfere more than we already have, we have to allow this to play out. Vlad has promised to leave the girl alone and now her family and friends must deal with the fall out.” Nea hated saying it, but it was true. Unless Vlad got back into the picture or something else happened, Nea and Sabine were watchers only. Bendis didn’t like her Stregas anymore involved in mortal affairs than they needed to be. Lesson 28 was they tried not to mess in the affairs of mortals if at all possible.
“Well, then what should we do? Are we actually going to try and have a holiday?” Sabine laughed.
“Possibly, but what do young women do on holiday?”
“What we have been, flirting and parties, sleeping until noon, pamper ourselves.”
“We have also been doing a little recon, which has kept us from being bored.” Nea chuckled, there was a knock on the door and Nea went to answer it. Sabine heard a scuffle then a slap and rushed to the door in time to see her best friend reel back a little, she caught her, eyes wide as she saw Costica was standing at the front door a maniacal grin on his face and a bouquet of dead roses in his arms.
He dropped them on the ground and kicked them across the threshold. Nea rubbed her face where he had slapped her, relieved Sabine was there to steady her.
“I’m getting my sword.” Sabine made sure Nea was standing on her own and darted away.
“You have some nerve showing up here like this Costica, we can hunt you now, especially after recent physical contact.” Nea was stunned that he was fully formed in the middle of the day, must have been another side effect of the Fairy blood in him.
“You were bound to find out about me anyway, mate,” he said, sounding as gentle and educated as always.
“And how is that?”
“Well, when my fiancée Miss Lucy Westenra introduces us.” He took pleasure in watching the color drain from her face.
“You’re Arthur?” It couldn’t be.
“I am now, have been for a while now. His family hadn’t seen him in years and then his father got sick and died. Now I am Lord Godalming, with all the riches and entitlements that come with it,” he bragged.