The Bathory Curse

by Renee Lake

“It was the least Sabine and I could do, besides, I had never been to China. I only wish we could have saved your sisters,” Nea said sadly.

  “I know they fought well.” Ah Kum’s grief was all over her face. She and the two other Stregas had been concubines together. They had been caught trying to run away and beaten to death. Bendis, or as Ah Kum called her, Sheng Mu, had offered them revenge if they became Stregas. Nea often felt resentment that she had not gotten a similar deal.

  “Now that it is just me, Sheng Mu will have to find new Stregas. I hope she puts them into my sisters’ homes.” Ah Kum’s eyes were tight with pain and concern. All three had opened secret homes throughout China taking in runaway concubines and prostitutes, helping women when they were not doing their Strega duties.

  “There is still one Strigoi left to find before we can leave,” Nea said.

  “Yes, he preys on the children here, I cannot help but think he means to stay here permanently now that the others are all dead. I cannot protect every child from this monster.” Ah Kum looked worried.

  “We will find and destroy him before Sabine and I have to leave.” Nea glanced around hearing a giggle and saw Sabine sitting rather closely with one of Ah Kum’s girls, their heads bent together as Sabine opened a box of pastries.

  “Sabine may not want to leave as soon as you do,” Ah Kum laughed.

  “Sabine could get into trouble in the middle of the ocean.” Nea rolled her eyes, “I will miss wearing this clothing, such a difference from Europe.” Women in the Qing Dynasty wore a one piece a line dress called a qipao, it had a tight collar and long sleeves. Nea wore one made of silk with pink cherry blossoms on it that formed stylized bats for good luck.

  “You shall take your wardrobe with you, a gift for the help you have brought me,” Ah Kum smiled.

  “That will make Sabine even happier, though the hairstyles I could do without.” Both women laughed. Nea hated how severely her hair had to be pulled back and some of the ornate things she had to wear on top of her head in public.

  “Zhufu, Zhufu!” A man’s voice rang out, Nea startled, a slight blush on her face as a awkward young man came running over to her. He was almost her height, tall compared to the other men Nea had met the past few years. His hair was black and cut close to his head covered by a black velvet hat with white crystal pearls.

  “Lok, calm down, what’s wrong?” Nea put out a steadying hand.

  “I have found the Strigoi, I know where he hides!” Excitement flushed the young man’s face.

  “Go get my whip and tell Sabine, quickly,” Nea told him and he darted off.

  “He is like a puppy, ever wanting your attention.” Ah Kum was amused. Lok was the son of one of her girls who had passed away. She employed him and had sent him to school; he was 18, but his mind was that of a child’s most of the time.

  “He is too young and innocent.”

  “Lok will be broken hearted if you don’t take him with you when you leave. He calls you mistress, he thinks you are his path, what he is supposed to do with his life, serve you.”

  “I hate that.”

  “Do no fight fate, Nea, we all have it. For Lok, it is being loyal to one person his whole life. At first it was his mother and for a time, me, now he has chosen you.”

  “I don’t want a servant nor a slave; for him to base his whole life around me. Even Marina and Ruxandra don’t do that,” Nea argued.

  “Things are different here.” Ah Kum went to get her weapon of choice.

  “Lok told me! Let’s hunt and then get out of here and back home!” Sabine bounded up to Nea, she looked too happy for their current task.

  “In a second. We will get him this time Sabine.” Nea glanced around and saw Lok coming with Sabine’s sword and her whip, “though I thought you were happy here.”

  “Oh, Jia is a great girl, but a distraction, nothing more…think I will give her a nice present before I leave…” Sabine trailed off as Lok came up to them holding out their weapons.

  “He is past the East Gate, I will show you!” Lok exclaimed.

  “Go wait for us, we’ll be right there,” Nea requested, Lok nodded and ran off.

  “You really should change Lok and get it over with, he’s been following you around for over a year now.”

  “And have him become another Costica, no way….I only change girls now you know that,” Nea sighed.

  “He’s not got the magic or mental capability to do what Costica did, he is faithful and handy.” Sabine admired Lok’s way with wood work, weapons and machinery.

  “I’ll think about it.” Nea said, begrudgingly.

  “Are we ready?” Ah Kum came back with her Gong, an ancient Chinese bow she favored as her weapon of choice.

  They ran off into the twilight and met up with Lok by the gate. Because of the recent horror everyone was already tucked into their houses and double the guards were out patrolling.

  “I don’t like to see my city like we are in a battle,” Ah Kum growled.

  “After tonight you won’t have to worry about it.” Sabine gripped her sword and they followed Lok into the trees towards the mountains that surrounded Qiao Pingyao.

  “How did you find him?” Ah Kum asked, quietly.

  “I asked the Penghou.” Lok said simply, like it was no big deal he had asked a dog shaped tree spirit.

  “Lok, you didn’t.” Ah Kum sounded disappointed.

  “Had to, we needed to know and I knew the Penghou would answer my summons,” Lok shrugged.

  “Am I missing something?” Nea whispered her question as they passed into some dense foliage and Lok began leading them up a narrow path.

  “Four years ago Lok traded money I had given him for the grocery shopping for the life of a tree in the woods. A man was going to chop it down and instead Lok bought it. I was angry with him, but then he told me a Penghou appeared and offered him a boon for saving his home,” Ah Kum explained.

  “I had hoped he would use it to find a wife, but apparently he chose a different path,” she said the rest under her breath so Lok wouldn’t hear.

  As they came up to a cliff they saw a cave, it was dark but Nea could smell fresh blood and death as they neared.

  “The Penghou says it is inside, that it doesn’t come out until the moon is high.” Lok grinned in the dark.

  “Stay here Lok and hide; you did such a good job!” Sabine patted the boy’s head and the three women disappeared inside the cave.

  “Screw surprise. I’ll block the exit and you two go forth and kill,” Sabine wiggled her eyes brows and took up stance.

  Ah Kum and Nea went deeper into the cave, their preternatural eyesight giving them an upper hand, they found a doused fire and a sleeping roll, as well as what looked like several birds and rabbits, raw and gnawed on.

  “Feral Strigoi are the worse,” Nea complained. She had half a second to respond as suddenly something leapt at her from the dark, a crazed watery looking Strigoi with flashing teeth and rank stench.

  “I will kill you!” it screeched, nails digging into the skin in Nea’s neck. It howled and sprung off her, Nea eyes found Ah Kum’s, she was holding her bow, having wounded the Strigoi.

  “I doubt that you shall succeed,” Ah Kum taunted.

  “I helped kill your sisters,” it hissed from farther back in the dank cave. Nea could see its eyes, red and murderous tracking them.

  “Fight like the man you once were.” Nea demanded. “Behind you!” She shouted at Ah Kum, Ah Kum didn’t have time to turn, the thing was on her, it bit into her shoulder, gnawing at the wound. Ah Kum tried to shake it off but she couldn’t. Nea flicked her wrist and her whip snaked out and wrapped around the thing’s neck, strangling it, she snapped back, dragging it off of Ah Kum.

  The Strigoi fought the leather around his throat, he tore at it with his dirty broken nails, but to no avail. Ah Kum straddled his hips, pinning him to the ground.

  “Sabine!” Nea called out, her friend came running.

  “Goodie, the
best part.” She unsheathed her sword and raised it above her head right as Ah Kum nocked her bow and pulled her arm back. Nea struggled to contain the Strigoi, holding tight to the handle of her whip she wrapped it around her arm a few times to help steady herself.

  “Hurry, he’s strong.” The words had barely left Nea’s lips when Sabine swung her sword and Ah Kum let her arrow fly. The things’ head went rolling, the tension on her whip lessened and the arrow pierced the heart. It was dead.

  “Now we burn it.” Ah Kum stood up.

  “Damn thing stinks up the place, doesn’t it?” Sabine wrinkled her nose. They dragged the corpse and head outside, all pleased that Lok had already created a pyre.

  “Congratulations on a good hunt my friends.” Ah Kum bowed to them after they had put the Strigoi into the flames.

  “We will come back and see you soon,” Sabine grinned, holding out her hands towards the fire, in a mock search for warmth.

  As they watched the burning body, Lok came up to Nea, “I want to come to Europe with you.”

  “I know.” Nea prepared to turn him down.

  “As a Strigoi” Lok said, surprising her.

  “I don’t let my normal Strigoi stay with me Lok, I let them be who they were meant to be, go where they want to go.”

  “I know.”

  Nea turned to him, even more surprised, “you do?”

  “I want to serve you, forever…but I know I’m….not right….being a Strigoi will make me…right.” He was focusing very hard on his words.

  “Yes, it will,” Nea smiled.

  “Then I can go do whatever I want and still serve you!” He beamed like a small child.

  “Okay Lok, you can come home with me,” Nea agreed and she put an arm around his waist as they finished watching the pyre burn out.

  Chapter 22

  1909

  English Countryside of Erewash near the City of Derby

  Nea watched from the sparse woods a few yards away from the large stone manor house as her granddaughter studied at one of the windows. It was dark and Stasi had already gone to bed. Ella was 16 now and had turned into a beautiful young lady. Nea felt a pang in her heart that she wasn’t able to go up to the house, knock, and be allowed inside. She wrote to her granddaughter, but she never heard back, could it be that, like her mother, Ella blamed her for the separation?

  Nea felt she deserved such blame. Had she listened to Mihail and Stasi’s concerns and not been eager to show off to her mother, they would all still be together. Mihail was still staying with his father and she had rarely seen him, both her beloved children were angry with her and she couldn’t stand it. She knew things would only be right when the curse was broken and they could all be a family again.

  She and Sabine had been together off and on the past six years, as they had in the beginning, Ruxandra had gone back to her own home and Renata was busy creating her own life as well. She had tried to keep busy, doing her part as a Strega and counter balancing the dark with the light. Aside from her time in China, she stormed British Parliament with English Suffragettes, was in Baltimore with Marina tending the wounded when a fire destroyed more than 1,500 buildings, and went and saw the first horror movie ever made, “Jekyll and Hyde”.

  Nea created two more Strigoi, and spent a year in their combined company teaching them everything they needed to know about surviving and was currently teaching a third. Sabine felt it silly to spend that much time with them, but after having to hunt down and destroy Alin and Afrina she felt it necessary.

  In 1907, she discovered that while the twins had been in Russia feeding off the hopelessness of the poor, they had begun to enjoy more than just eating the emotion. Strigoi were supposed to be the dark presence, the devil on the shoulder, adding darkness where they went and feasting off the negative emotions helping the balance. They were NOT supposed to engage with humans. Alin and Afrina had begun benefiting monetarily from people who were poor and starving.

  Nea’s thoughts were interrupted as she watched her granddaughter lift her head and look around. Ella stood and Nea watched her go through the house to make sure the other occupants were asleep. The girl smiled and went into the drawing room, Nea lost sight of her for a few minutes, when she came back she had a large glass and was greedily gulping it.

  “Kato, Lok?” Nea whispered for her companions, the beautiful Hungarian noblewoman, had been one of her Strigoi for so many years now and her newest Strigoi, from China.

  “Yes?” Kato materialized next to Nea.

  “Did you need us, Zhufu?” Lok asked, much more mature and subdued since his change.

  “Find out what she’s drinking.” Nea had a bad feeling, she had been compelled to come check up on her granddaughter, a ringing she hadn’t heard in many years had alerted her to a Bathory woman’s curse coming to life. She had been in France, shopping with Kato and Sabine when it happened and had instantly bolted to England.

  “She’s stealing from the brandy bottle.” Kato’s words were a whisper as she shimmered back into view. Lok nodded in agreement.

  “I do not think Ella was allowed spirits yet.”

  “I didn’t get the impression she was supposed to have it,” Lok shrugged.

  “All girls rebel a bit, I suppose it’s normal. I shouldn’t see more than a simple answer.”

  “Not all girls have Bathory blood running through their veins,” Kato commented

  “True.” Nea frowned, a sound caught her attention and she saw a shadow creeping towards the house, she took a step forward.

  “Nea, you are not supposed to be here. You can’t interfere, if Bendis finds out you are breaking her command, who knows what she’ll do,” Lok reminded her.

  Nea stopped herself and watched as the shadow came into a circle of light from the window and she realized it was a boy, he tapped on the window and Ella went to open it. She couldn’t hear their words but both parties seemed excited to see each other. Ella left the room again and came back with a bottle, Nea watched as she snuck out the window.

  “No….if someone sees them her reputation will be ruined,” Nea hissed.

  “I’ll go in a little closer and see what’s going on.” Kato patted Nea’s shoulder and disappeared. Nea could see Ella and the boy hunker down under the window, behind a bush and she lost sight of them. The seconds passed by so slowly, she had to stop herself from rushing forward several times. Finally Kato appeared.

  “She and that boy are simply getting drunk and kissing.”

  “She should know better!” Nea said.

  “If she does, she isn’t acting like it.”

  “What if Stasi found her; what if that boy tells everyone that Ella is a hussy who will kiss without a proper beau and gets drunk like a prostitute in a gentleman’s club?”

  “It would be bad, though I’ve seen you drunk a time or two,” Kato smiled.

  “Yes, well…I am over 300 years old, I don’t have a reputation to worry about.” Nea rolled her eyes.

  “What are you going to do about it?” Lok asked, agitated that his mistress was upset.

  Nea thought for a few minutes, “Kato you go back to shop with Sabine, I’ll meet you in Paris in the morning. Lok stay here and keep an eye on things. I am going to visit my son.”

  “Be careful.” Kato bowed and then was gone, looking forward to more shopping, Sabine had excellent taste.

  “Whatever you say.” Lok smiled and faded from sight.

  Nea thought herself to Vlad’s castle instantly, she knew Mihail and Vlad were both in residence. She walked through the ruined and abandoned section and then came to the part hidden from mortals that had been fully renovated and restored.

  Pushing open the doors she was surrounded by warmth from the fire and the familiar smells of her homeland.

  “I thought I felt you coming,” Vlad’s deep voice came from the sofa, he uncrossed long legs and stood up, smiling, teeth white and perfect.

  “I have to speak to Mihail.”

  “He’s upst
airs, I will summon him. Do I not even get a kiss hello? I haven’t seen you in almost seven years.” Vlad almost glided to her side, cape swirling behind him like something alive. Nea gazed into his dark eyes and her face relaxed for the first time in a while.

  “Of course, hello.” She leaned up and placed her lips against him, he smelled like the woods and tasted rich against her mouth. His arms snaked around her waist and pulled her closer to him, hand roaming down to cup her backside, he growled against her.

  “How is the sword working out?” Nea asked, pulling away, whispering against his mouth.

  “It seems to help. As long as I do weapon training with it every so often the need to kill and for blood is not like it once was.”

  “Good, I am glad.” Nea pressed her mouth against his again.

  “Ugh, even after all these years I could do without seeing that,” Mihail laughed, coming down the stairs and finding his parents kissing like young lovers.

  “Mihail, you look well,” Nea said, pulling away from her husband.

  “Thank you, did you hear about the peasant revolt two years ago?” Mihail asked.

  “I did. In one of your letters you mentioned you and your father had been working behind the scenes politically to help improve the quality of life here at home.” Nea sighed, so this is how it was going to be, impersonal talk.

  “Mihail, this is your mother, not a stranger,” Vlad admonished. All three of them stared at each other for a few moments.

  “It doesn’t matter, I have already apologized to Mihail and Stasi for my part in their family being destroyed. I am doing all I can to fix it. If he cannot see past that to the mother who has loved him for centuries there is nothing I can do, Vlad.” Nea leaned into her husband’s embrace, placing her head on his chest, he tightened his arms around her, unhappy with the way their son was treating her.

  “I’m not getting into this again with you mom, I can’t help but be angry and will stay that way until I can be with Daniela and Stasi again.”

  “Son, you see Stasi every month, though I wish she’d let the girl come here for vacation. I am not ruled by your Goddess,” Vlad said.