“Weather’s getting worse,” he replied.
I slid aside the curtain and tried to scrap away the thin layer of ice that had formed on the inside of the glass. The dimming brightness of the day had not completely disappeared, but the sun was shrouded by thick grayness. The fir tree branches were bent harshly, covered by several inches of snow. From what I could tell, the only reason our horse could still pull the coach was due to the groove other carriages ahead of us had cut through the deepening snow. With the giant wet flakes dropping, the entire road would soon disappear beneath a blanket of white.
Two feet of snow or more covered the edges of the road. The forest on both sides of the road was so thickly coated that even the needles and bark of the trees gleamed white. No browns or greens were visible.
Penelope shivered, pulled the heavy rug we used as a blanket up over us, and pressed against me for additional warmth.
“Father, rap on the top of the carriage to get Thomas’ attention. We need to stop at the first possible place. We’ll freeze to death if we get stranded on the trail.”
He nodded, turned, and hammered his fist three times.
Thomas stopped the coach.
A few seconds later, he opened the door. Outside he shook himself, knocking off several inches of snow from his hat and shoulders. He peered down the darkening road before glancing at me nervously. “Yes? Daylight is fleeting.”
“I didn’t mean for you to stop,” I said.
He shook more snow from his heavy coat and broke away icicles on his moustache and beard. He tapped his hat against his fist to shatter a thin layer of ice and raked it off. His face glowed cherry red. “Sorry, but with this howling wind, I’d never hear a word you said from out here.”
“Any idea how far from a town or village we are?”
“There’s a clearing ahead, Forrest. Looks like maybe a village or small city perhaps.”
“You think it’s a place where we can stop? We can’t go much farther. It’s far too cold for you to keep driving.”
He nodded. “Yes, frightfully cold out here. I’m stopping there anyway. That had been my plan all along. Demons or not, if that snow keeps falling at the rate it is, the ol’ horse won’t be able to keep pulling. I’m surprised he’s lasted this long.”
Thomas slammed the door shut and returned to the box seat.
Madeline wrapped Varak in another blanket and then covered both of them with a thick wool blanket. When the door had opened, what little heat we had generated amongst ourselves had been sucked out. I hoped the clearing ahead was a village where we could find an inn to spend the night.
About a quarter of an hour later, the coach wheels rattled when we reached the cobblestone street. Without knowing whether our accommodations would be mediocre or lavish, I didn’t really care so long as we were able to get out of the extreme cold.
Exiting the coach, we stood inside a dark recess beneath the arch of a massive wall. The rock building looked to be an old castle and the long wall went for as far as I could see. Mortar between some rocks was cracked and pieces of the wall had shifted over time. Along the adjoining walls, awnings covered narrow walkways. And the archway where we stood was also shielded from the wind. Glass boxes shielded the flames of the gaslight streetlamps.
Snow continued to fall but not as heavily as it had been along the road. In some areas of the sky, the evening stars twinkled. The worst part of the storm seemed to have passed.
I watched the lingering snowflakes pelt softly, quietly, and like I’d always noticed during heavy snow there was a different type of silence when the snow began forming drifts. It seemed nature slept, seeking shelter and warmth in places where the snow couldn’t penetrate.
Deep in the forests several wolves broke the silence with long wailful howls. Madeline turned toward the forest with a start, holding Varak a bit tighter.
Several watchtowers with pointed gothic gables were in view and spires rose off other buildings in the near distance. Some of the smaller houses had round tower roofs and others polygonal dormers. The angles prevented the heavy snow from staying on the roofs. The place didn’t seem to be a large village but more a cluster of tall houses and buildings displaying gothic architecture.
Two men dressed in long dark overcoats and dark hats retrieved what little baggage we had. They looked like brothers and stood around my height. They were broad in the shoulders with long arms and very large hands. Their faces were extremely thin, making their delicate skin hug their skulls in a firm outline. One offered to take my Hunter box from me, but I shook my head and held it tight in hand. Two more men came and took the horse by its bridle and led it through an open door to what I suspected was the stables. These two men were almost identical to the others, and not a one had spoken a word of greeting to us.
Two rotund women with bunt gray hair offered meek greetings from a door beneath the awning and motioned us to follow them inside. Their smiles enhanced their chubby cheeks. Of all the inns Father and I had stayed at during our journeys, this was perhaps the most unusual. We glanced toward one another with uncertainty and were reluctant to readily obey. Father glanced toward me since I was the largest I suppose, but he hugged himself for warmth as did Thomas. It was foolish to stay out in the horrible cold any longer. This was a place for lodging. I took the initiative and headed toward the door.
After we stepped inside to a large room where a fire burned inside a wide hearth, they closed the door. They showed us where to remove our coats, hats, and boots near the door. I shed my thick overcoat and hung it on a large peg at the side of the door. Thomas and Father did the same. We hung our hats closer to the fire where they’d dry. I set my Hunter box and crossbow beneath my hanging coat where they were partially hidden.
The low ceilings kept the heat of the roaring fire concentrated around us, and made it difficult to breathe. A few minutes earlier, I had nearly gone numb from being inside the cold coach, and now sweat rolled off my body. Not that I was complaining. I could tell by the smile on my father’s face that he was more than satisfied being surrounded by such warmth. Cold weather was his nemesis ever since he had suffered horrible injuries to his legs.
Over the fire a black pot bubbled with a fine aroma lofting into the room. Finely polished chairs with plush pillows were set beside small reading tables and one roll top desk. All were hand-carved from maple.
Beveled dark paneling covered the walls and the ceiling. The lit candles at each table flickered, reflected off the polished wood. A hand-carved cuckoo clock hung on the wall with such detail. One cherished the artwork more than an object that depicted the proper time of day. I walked closer and observed it. Strange as it seemed, the clock looked familiar to me. The little carved people were joining hands, dressed in lederhosen near a painted stream where a carved bear peered into the water, looking at the fish.
“Gorgeous,” Penelope whispered, standing beside me with a broad smile.
I nodded.
This room was more elegant and larger than the cottage I had grown up in. Several single cots were lined against the wall, covered with designed quilts. A strange sensation came over me, and everything held familiarity like I’d been here before. I became dizzy, my stomach nauseous, so I placed my hand against the wall to steady myself. The feeling passed a few seconds later.
Penelope placed her hands on my arm. “You okay?”
“Yes. Fine.”
One of the women smiled at Penelope and Madeline. “This way, ladies.”
Penelope gave me a strange glance. I shrugged.
The woman noticed her concern. “I imagine after your long journey, you’d like to bathe and change into fresh clothes?”
Penelope smiled and nodded graciously.
A fine dressed gentleman stepped through another side door and motioned us to follow him. The extraordinarily thin man led us to a large room filled with hot humid steam so thick it looked like fog. He walked with stiff posture. “My name is Jensen, and I’ve been asked by your host
to make certain everything is to your satisfaction. Have you need of anything, do not hesitate to ask.”
“That’s kind of you,” Father said.
“You’re quite welcome, sir. Leave your clothes here,” Jensen said with a haughty proper tone, and with a wave of his hand, he pointed toward a narrow bench. His short black hair looked glossy and combed to perfection. He sported a thin moustache, also glossy, and curled the ends slightly upward. “I will see to it these are cleaned and pressed. When you have finished bathing, there are robes in the corner for you to wear.”
“We’ve not yet checked in,” I said. “Is there somewhere for me to pay for our stay.”
Jensen turned on his heel and faced me, clasping his hands behind his back. He offered a reassuring smile. “You’re a Hunter, are you not?”
I nodded with a confused frown.
“Ah, sir … Forrest, is it?”
“Yes? How’d—”
His smile widened. “Your name isn’t unknown in these parts. Our host has graciously extended his hospitality to you. We’re to accommodate your every need. As his guests all is taken care of, and there is no charge to you and your party. Enjoy your hot bath in this fine mineral water that rises naturally from the hot springs below. Some insist it has healing properties. But if one is skeptical, perhaps it does not?”
Jensen left the room and closed the door behind him.
I cocked a brow and looked at Father. He grinned. “How did he know my name?”
“Jacques told you that Vampire Hunters have reputations that often precede them.”
“True,” I said, still frowning. “But, I’ve done nothing worthy of drawing attention to myself.”
“I wouldn’t worry too much over it,” he replied. “Enjoy the notoriety. Everything’s free.”
“Nothing’s free,” I whispered. “There’s always a price.”
He chuckled. “Tonight it is, son. I don’t know about you, but I want to wash all this sweat and grim off my body.”
Father began undressing and looked at the large pool of water. He grinned and his brow rose. Eagerness brightened his eyes.
The water was white in color with thick steam rising off the surface. Although I had never seen anything like this in other cities, I felt like I had been here before. Most of the major cities we had traveled through had bathhouses, but never any that were filled with steaming white water. I supposed the minerals were the reason the water was white, but I found myself like Father and wanting to wash away days of sweat, grim, and in my case, dried blood from my cuts.
After I undressed and placed my filthy clothes on the bench, I slipped slowly into the hot water. I winced and gasped. At first it seemed too hot, almost like I was going to boil myself, but after I adjusted to the temperature, I leaned my back against the pool wall and closed my eyes.
The heat of the water soothed my aching muscles, bruises, and seeped into the healing cuts on my back. I took a deep breath and slowly exhaled. I felt so relaxed that it wouldn’t have taken much to drift off to sleep.
Father sighed and splashed water as he sank. “They might have to pry me out of here, son. I’ve never felt this good since … before my legs were severely broken. This hot water … my legs aren’t hurting at all.”
Hidden by a curtain of steam, Thomas slipped into the pool at the other side.
“Have you been here before?” I asked the coachman.
“No, I haven’t.”
“What is this place?” Father asked.
“An inn,” he replied. “That’s what the sign said at the end of the lane. Based upon its structure, though, I think it must have been a castle prior.”
Father glanced at me with a sly grin. “Probably quite expensive then? That is, of course, if we had to pay.”
I shrugged. “Even if that wasn’t the case, Father, we have more than enough to stay for a night.”
“We might be here longer if the snow continues,” Father replied.
“The sky was starting to clear before we came indoors,” I said.
“That’s good news,” Thomas said. “Three days of traveling and we’ve not encountered another one of those demons. Has Penelope any theory for that?”
I shook my head. “No. She thinks she might have killed all that Albert had sent, or the river has been a deterrent. Who knows? Maybe his power doesn’t extend this far.”
“I keep looking when we’re traveling. I’m too fearful to think there’s no more.”
“Don’t let down your guard because we haven’t.”
“I don’t plan to.”
Father placed his face into the water and vigorously scrubbed it. Then he looked at me. “You think maybe the owner’s generosity stems from him needing your services as a Hunter?”
I had not thought about that. “That might be possible.”
“Seems a good barter, if that’s the case,” Father said.
Depends upon the vampire.
Father slumped deeper into the water until his head was fully submerged. He stayed under for nearly half a minute, and then he blew out long streams of bubbles before pushing himself above the water’s surface again. Streams of water rolled down his face. He ran his hand through his beard, laughing, and then he wiped his eyes and stared at me. I had never seen him act so jovial before.
He pressed his back into the corner of the pool and rested each arm atop the bricked pool wall, lounging. “Forrest, you seem quite comfortable with the young lady. Penelope has taken a liking to you. Have you expressed your feelings for her?”
Even though my skin was already red from the heated water, I imagined that my cheeks had probably gotten redder. “We’ve talked. But most of our time we’ve kept ourselves more focused on keeping Thomas alive and killing ghouls and gargoyles, but those are things you’re aware of.”
“I’m not trying to embarrass you, son. Honest. I’m happy for you. I was simply trying to see if you’ve come to the place where it’s not so difficult to tell her your feelings.”
I nodded. “It’s easier. A lot easier. I appreciate the advice you gave me, and for abruptly running off that morning and leaving us all alone when I was scared out of my mind.”
He laughed. “It’s like a bird teaching its young how to fly. It nudges the young one out of the nest. But they learn to fly on the way down, most of them.”
“In my case, you kicked me off the side of a mountain with jagged rocks at the bottom.”
“You’re alive, aren’t you? She’s still traveling with us. If she didn’t share your interests, you’d have parted ways well before now. She’s never been uncomfortable around you.”
“She’s a little too close at times,” I replied.
“And that bothers you?”
As much as I enjoyed traveling with Penelope beside me in the coach, I still struggled internally about things Father insisted I shouldn’t. “I suppose not, but then … as I told you before about my age—”
“Given what you are, son, and the knowledge you’ve attained, that isn’t a relevant point for you,” he said, pointing his finger at me. “And, not a matter that needs expressed right now.”
He pointed toward where Thomas was hidden in the fog.
“The point is, son, the two of you are interested in one another. There’s the courting process—”
I shook my head. “That’s a bit premature.”
“It needs considering.”
“Maybe after all the dangers are past.”
“Those never end for you, Forrest. You know that. Or her, either, considering the creatures she slays.”
That was true.
“One step at a time,” I said.
Father grinned. “You’ve never followed that route.”
“What do you mean by that?”
“You never crawled as a child. You were walking quicker than others your age. And the next thing we all knew, you were grown.”
I wondered what I had missed from bypassing my youth and immediately becoming a man at the a
ge of eight. I had to admit I had to adapt rather quickly. In retrospect the hardest part was ignoring the childhood fears most children experienced. When you had to fight and slay vampires, you didn’t have any choice except to quash those fears without allowing them time to fester and grow. In my situation the three major fears I contended with were: losing family members or friends to the undead, getting killed, or getting turned into a vampire. How did I deal with those? By slaying the vampires before they had a chance to act on any of those circumstances.
Chapter Twenty-Two
I stayed in the hot water until the skin on my hands resembled a wrinkled plum. I’d have remained in the pool until deep in the night but I didn’t know if Penelope and Madeline had returned to the room yet. I didn’t want Penelope to feel uncomfortable. She had already expressed how Varak made her feel. I marveled that she, who killed demons, held an uneasiness toward the child like I did.
I grabbed one of the thick robes, put it on, and tied the belt around my waist. Already I missed the soothing warmth of the water. I could have stayed several more hours. At least the room was steamy and hot. Once I stepped back into the narrow hallway and headed to our room, I expected the temperature would decrease quite a bit. It wouldn’t be as harrowingly cold as outside the castle for which I was thankful.
I returned to the room, opened the door, and entered at the same time Penelope came through the other bedroom door that led to the adjoining hall. Our eyes met and widen with shock. Neither of us had expected anyone else to be in the room, and she seemed as surprised as me that we were the only two here. Just us. Alone together. She was wearing a robe over a silken gown that flowed to her ankles. Even though we were fully covered, we both became uncomfortable and stared at the floor.
While gazing downward, I causally glanced up to watch her without raising my head. She was blushing, and she cupped her hands together and held them at her waist. She was overcome with shyness, as was I, but I noticed she was sneaking glances toward me, too. I had never felt so awkward. I was more at a loss for words than when Father had left us alone together at breakfast.
Forrest Wollinsky: Predestined Crossroads (Forrest Wollinsky: Vampire Hunter Book 3) Page 14