Forrest Wollinsky: Predestined Crossroads (Forrest Wollinsky: Vampire Hunter Book 3)

by Leonard D. Hilley II

  I finally braved looking up and opened my mouth to speak but Madeline came through the door and closed it behind her. She glanced toward Penelope.

  “Where’s Varak?” Madeline asked, nervously glancing around the room.

  Penelope frowned. “I thought you had him?”

  Madeline shook her head and placed a hand over her heart. “No. The maid said that she’d give him to you while I bathed.”

  “I’ve not seen him,” she replied.

  Madeline became frantic, covered her face with her hands, and turned toward the door. She gulped deep breaths and kept looking around the room as though she had no idea what she should do. This was the first time in weeks that she had not kept Varak within her sight. She held him most of the time except whenever we stayed in an inn, like now. When she could, she placed him on the floor and let him crawl. He was able to hold himself up when he found something sturdy to hang onto and had even taken several steps but wasn’t able to walk on his own yet.

  She paced side to side for a few moments before she finally decided to reach for the doorknob. The door opened and a maid stepped in with the infant. Madeline snatched the child from the woman’s hands and hugged him close.

  “He’s a delightful little boy,” the woman said with a smile. “We gave him a bath while you relaxed in yours. He’s so adorable that I almost hate to hand him back. It’s rare for us to see infants, so when we do, we want to hold onto them and pamper them.”

  Madeline scowled.

  Varak held himself upright in Madeline’s arms, staring around the room with his bright eyes. She carried him across the room to one of the cots but kept a wary stare toward the maid. Her attachment to Varak troubled me. Could we even get her to part with him once we reached the Archdiocese in Freiburg?

  The child had already ensnared her to become his permanent caretaker. I wondered to what extent he controlled her or did he at all? Perhaps she had taken affection and sympathy toward him because he didn’t have parents. He was an orphan. It wasn’t impossible and seemed logical if I chose to ignore the possibility of the child already being able to tap into his charms.

  Father and Thomas came into the room. The maid showed us where the cupboard was before giving the pot of stew several stirs with the large ladle.

  “Should you need any assistance, ring that bell.” She pointed to the brass table-bell on the reading table. “Have a good night.”

  Father combed his beard with his fingers. He looked around the room, studying the walls.

  “Is something wrong?” I asked.

  He made an odd face. “No. After getting cleaned up so well, I’d just like to trim this wild beard. I don’t see any mirrors in here, either. You mind trimming it for me later?”

  “Not at all,” I replied. “You might want to eat first anyway.”

  “That only means you have to pick out bits of food, which is why it needs trimmed.”

  I shrugged. “It’s only food.”

  Penelope had found the bowls and stood at the pot filling them. She was far different than the night we had first met. I had seen the rugged side of her that night, but almost ever since, she had presented herself with more elegancy than what my parents had taught me.

  After we had eaten, Father set the map on the bed that detailed where the vampire resided in a small village in the Black Forest near Offenburg. Friedhof was the name of the village, according to the old man who had drawn it.

  “Friedhof?” I said, glancing toward Thomas. Being inside the coach while he drove, we seldom were fortunate to see any of the road signs. “Are we anywhere near this place?”

  Thomas paled and swallowed hard. He rubbed the side of his face. “We are in Friedhof.”

  Father frowned. “You’re certain?”

  The coachman nodded.

  Father looked at me. “Do you think this inn is where the vampire resides?”

  Everything about this room I recognized, even though I had never physically been here. I knew the details of this room, the bath pool, and some of the outside architecture looked familiar to me. From my dreams?

  “He’s here,” I said in a near whisper. “I think he’s the one who holds the deed and title to this castle.”

  Penelope sat on the edge of the bed and placed her hand on my arm.

  “You’re sure, son?”

  I nodded.

  “How do you know?” Thomas asked.

  “I’ve dreamt vividly about this place several times since we left London.”

  “So the owner hasn’t extended his open invitation to us to hire you?” Father asked.

  I shook my head. “It doesn’t seem so. Maybe he has invited me for a challenge?”

  “What kind of challenge?” Penelope asked.

  “To see which one of us survives our conflict.”

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  “How is there contention between the two of you when you’ve never met?” Penelope asked.

  “Easy. He’s a vampire, and I’m a Hunter.”

  “That automatically defines it?”

  “Sums it up nicely in my book,” I said.

  “You’ve never pardoned a vampire?”

  “Have you ever let a demon go free?”

  Her eyes narrowed, and she quickly looked away.

  “You have?” I asked.

  “A few,” she replied.

  “Why?”

  “It’s difficult to explain.”

  “Try.”

  She huffed and her lips tightened. “I’ve allowed some to live in order to glean useful information.”

  “In what way?” Father asked.

  I frowned. “How can you trust they’ll even tell you the truth?”

  Penelope sat on the edge of the bed and folded her hands on her lap. “I have the ability to enslave a demon under my control if I choose. Not a powerful demon, but an imp or some of the lessers. I link my mind to its, which is why I choose one with less strength. A mightier demon could reverse the link to enslave me or drive me to insanity or kill me.”

  “But how does that guarantee they tell the truth?” I asked.

  “When I enslave them, they cannot lie or they burst into flames.”

  “What about those plague demons?” Thomas asked. “The ones trying to kill me. Can you enslave them?”

  She shook her head and bit her lower lip. “Good Heavens, no. That’d be suicide. They’d infect me with the disease.”

  “Through your thoughts?” Father asked, perplexed. “How?”

  She shrugged. “I don’t know, but I’ve been warned never to do so through strong intuition, so I understand partly why Forrest reacts to some of his premonitions. But, Forrest, why do you consider all vampires to be evil and unworthy to be pardoned?”

  “They have no soul. They’re ruthless and feed upon other humans.”

  “You’re blanketing all vampires to be exactly the same?”

  “When it comes to how they stalk their prey and sire offspring, I see no difference in any of them. There’s only one I’ve protected,” I replied.

  Her eyes flicked toward Varak and quickly back toward me.

  I nodded. “And that’s only because I swore to do so and you know the reason I cannot.”

  “Fair enough,” she said.

  “But the vampire in this village,” I said. “There’s no reason he should know me yet or that I’d even be headed—”

  It dawned upon me.

  “What is it, Forrest?” Father asked.

  “Albert.”

  Father frowned. “You think he’d alert this vampire that you’d be passing this direction?”

  “I can think of no other.”

  Penelope gave me a worried look.

  “What’s wrong, Penelope?” I asked.

  “Then everything unfolds here tonight.”

  “What do you mean?” Thomas asked.

  “The demons that had been sent after you have hidden, but I have a feeling they will emerge again soon to kill you.”

&n
bsp; A gentle rap came at the door. We all turned. Someone rapped again.

  “Yes?” I asked.

  The door opened promptly.

  Jensen, who had led us to the men’s bathing pool, entered. In his arms was a neat stack of clothes. He acquiesced a slight nod and a friendly smile. In his elegant voice, he said, “I’m afraid your old coat is in tatters, Hunter, and all of your clothes were … shall we say, are not even useable as filthy rags. But your host has a gracious heart, offering new clothes his tailor fashioned well before your arrival.”

  “We can’t accept these,” I said. By accepting the apparel, in a sense he assured we were indebted to him. No words needed to enforce it. It was implied.

  “He insists. In fact, he’s offered his invitation for all of you to dine with him tonight at midnight.”

  “So late?” Father asked.

  He laughed softly. “The night is just beginning for him.”

  “Who exactly is our host?” I asked.

  “You don’t know?” Jensen asked somewhat amused. “There is no mistake for your arrival here. He has been expecting you for quite some time, and this is the exact day he predicted you’d arrive.”

  “Who?”

  “Count Lorcan,” he replied. Jensen set the clothes on the cushioned bench. “Please be prompt arriving at the banquet hall. Not a second too late. Going through this door, you’ll find the banquet hall straight down at the end of the corridor. Ladies, the wardrobe against the wall opens into a small changing room.”

  “How is it he knew of our arrival when we had never sought to come here until a few days ago?” I asked.

  Jensen studied me with his brow raised for several moments before offering a polite smile. “My guess is you already know the answer to that question, dear Hunter, but if you haven’t figure it out by the time you arrive at his table, certainly ask him. Lorcan is a man who greatly treasures the company of others and loves intriguing conversation. I’m certain the two of you will get along splendidly. He’s talked for days about how he longs to meet you.”

  I could not ascertain whether that was intended as a threat or not. I had hoped Jensen would tell me how Lorcan knew such details as to validate my suspicions. I held no doubt that somehow Lorcan had reached through the netherworld of my dreams and tethered to my thoughts and plans. He could see me, but he had veiled himself where I could not visualize him. It proved he possessed a great deal of power and possibly more than any other vampire I’d faced prior. While these matters were imposing, my curiosity outweighed my fear.

  Still smiling politely, Jensen walked to the door, grabbed the knob, and turned to face us before he closed it. “Remember, promptness, midnight.”

  I nodded.

  Jensen closed the door.

  Father’s brow furrowed. “Son, I feel uneasy about this entire situation.”

  “As do I,” Penelope said.

  “There’s not anything else we can do,” I said.

  “We could leave,” Thomas suggested, glancing nervously to the door.

  I shook my head. “How? We have no idea where those men took the horse. I assume it was the stables where they had gone, but we don’t rightly know. And if we found the horse, we’d still need to find the wagon, hitch the horse to it … His guards or servants would apprehend us well before we could succeed in doing all of that.”

  Father sighed and wadded up the map. “You cannot exactly slay a vampire when he knows we’ve come to do so.”

  “Or since he’s invited us to eat with him,” Penelope said softly. “Not proper etiquette, now is it Forrest?”

  I gave her a pretend stern glance, and she crinkled her nose, smiling. Even though we hadn’t known one another long, I could tell when she was being playful. I chuckled.

  Regardless of the dinner invitation, she didn’t need to question my intent. She knew I’d not leave this former castle without attempting to stake Lorcan. I imagined he was thinking the same. I was quite certain he knew.

  “Perhaps he wishes to eat us for dinner?” Thomas asked, and I knew his question was not in jest. I tried not to smile.

  “But he’s predicted your arrival for longer than we’ve known he existed,” Father said. “You mentioned you’ve seen this place in your dreams? Have you ever seen him?”

  “No. He’s kept himself hidden from me. I sensed his power. He’s strong. I sense him now. The most disturbing part of those dreams was the amount of bloodshed.”

  “You’ve witnessed him killing people in your dreams?” Penelope asked.

  “No. I suppose what I’m trying to say is that I detected the volume of blood he’s shed and drank from the numerous people he’s killed during his lifetime as a vampire. My guess, it’s in the hundreds.”

  Thomas looked uneasily. “Then we’re nothing more than fodder.”

  “We have plenty of stakes,” Father said. “We tuck them into our pockets, behind our belts—”

  “Then he immediately views us as a threat,” I said.

  “And you don’t him?”

  I shrugged. “He is, but nothing in my dreams indicated he seeks to harm or kill me.”

  “Then what, son, would he want?”

  I thought about his question for several moments. The answer came as if prompted to me, but not from a previous Hunter’s wisdom. Lorcan whispered it to me.

  “I think you were right earlier, Father. He wishes to hire me.”

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  “Hire you?” Father said with a most curious stare. “I’ve never known a vampire to hire a Hunter. The thought is preposterous.”

  “Even though you were the one who suggested it?” I asked with a wide grin.

  He frowned and waved me off. “Just an old man foolishly thinking out loud, son. Wisdom comes with age, but so does senility. It was an absurd thought.”

  “Perhaps, but I don’t think so,” I replied. “The impression in my mind about tonight’s invitation is the same gut feeling I’ve gotten in the past, and they’ve never been wrong before.”

  “So you’re proposing that we go to his banquet room without any weapons at all? And what happens if we’re not right about his invitation?”

  “It’s insane,” Thomas said, shaking his head.

  Penelope shook her head. “I think Forrest’s right. Jensen insists that we’re guests here. Lorcan’s gifted us with new clothes, a lavish bath and room, and food. Why go through all that trouble only to kill and feast upon us?”

  Thomas frowned at her. “Read Hansel and Gretel sometime. He’s made us more presentable before he kills us. Could all this just be a part of his ritual?”

  “Son, don’t forget the most important issue of this argument. He’s a vampire. It’s too great a risk for us to enter his chambers or dining room without some sort of way to defend ourselves. Besides, I know you. You’d never allow yourself to be hired by a vampire.”

  I frowned and rubbed my bearded chin.

  “Forrest?” Penelope said. “You wouldn’t?”

  “I’d like to hear his proposal,” I replied. “He’d be hiring me to slay another vampire anyway.”

  “But what about what you said earlier?” she asked.

  I placed my index finger to my lips and shook my head.

  Her eyes and Father’s widened, realizing the Count was possibly hearing everything we had said.

  “When we reach the banquet hall,” I said, “Remember not to gaze directly into his eyes or he can compel you.”

  They nodded. Thomas paled and visibly shook.

  I slipped my hand around Penelope’s. “You and Madeline need to change into the clothes Jensen brought.”

  Father walked to Madeline and took Varak from her. He smiled. “I can watch him while you dress.”

  She smiled with gratitude.

  Penelope took the women’s clothing and opened the wardrobe doors. The room on the other side was in complete darkness. She took a burning lamp off a table and walked through the hollow wardrobe. The lamp lit up the small room
and she smiled at me before pulling the doors closed again.

  I found my clothes easily since they were so much wider and larger than anyone else’s. I hurried and slipped into them while the women were in the other room. Thomas did the same with his across the room near the hearth. Father sat on the edge of the bed with Varak on his knee. The child smiled and giggled and Father smiled in return. The largest part of my heart wanted Varak not to be what he was probably destined to become. I truly did.

  While I buttoned my shirt, I wondered what Lorcan’s motive was. I agreed with Penelope that Jensen kept insisting we were guests and according to him, Lorcan had been eagerly awaiting our arrival for some time. That was the same sensation I had felt in my dreams.

  ***

  We arrived at the banquet hall a few minutes before midnight. In spite of the long room, the table was modest with ten finely carved high-back chairs positioned on each side. Count Lorcan’s chair was at the far end and regal like a king’s. The back and seat were thickly padded.

  On the opposite stone wall were six large life-size paintings. Three were beautiful women dressed in ballroom dresses and wearing different gemstone necklaces, bracelets, and rings. The other three paintings were men dressed in elegant, if not regal, attire. They resembled one another enough for me to believe they must be siblings, perhaps Lorcan’s own children?

  Lorcan was already seated. He sat stiff and proper. His pale complexion glowed in contrast to his solid black long sleeved shirt. By the way the cloth shimmered beneath the candle chandelier, I assumed it was silk. He wore a ruby ring on his right hand and a sapphire ring on his left. He motioned to us and smiled. “Welcome guests! Please, come and be seated. And Forrest, please, sit here beside me. We’ve so much to discuss.”

  Thomas hurried to the farthest chair from Lorcan where place settings were. For some unexplained reason, he couldn’t hide his nervousness in the presence of the vampire. I didn’t quite understand his anxiety. Upon his first encounter with the plague demon, before Penelope had arrived and killed it, he had bravely accepted the potential fate of death from the plague demon calmer than whatever suspicions he believed he’d be dealt at the hands of Philip.