The Vampire Keeper

by Sabrina Street

  “I haven’t been anywhere near Romania. How did you find me after all these years?”

  “That girl, she reawakened some intense emotions within you, so don’t tell me you care nothing for her,” demanded Theron.

  “That girl, you think means so much to me, stumbled onto my Memoirs. While reading them, she reawakened old feelings that I buried deep within.”

  “Admit it; she made you feel alive again.”

  “In a sense she did. Our bond forced me to recall my most intimate accounts with Isadora. It was those accounts that reawakened my soul.”

  “How dare you speak her name?” raged Theron.

  “I see. She is still the reason you search for me and call me out.”

  “What if she is?” asked Theron.

  “Brother, you really need to let this go.”

  “You would say that, you coward. Anything else you would like to ask me before you meet your ill-timed fate? Perhaps, you would like to hear an account of your dear friend Julius.”

  “One last question, since one of us is about to meet our demise,” said Larkin.

  “If you wish, since it is you who will meet your doom.”

  “How do you turn our telepathic link on and off?” asked Larkin.

  “Well, there’s no risk in revealing it now, since I know you will not soil your honor by fleeing.”

  Larkin tried to choke back his laughter. “I never ran, not even when you sent several men. Answer the question, so we can get on with it.”

  “Getting cocky I see,” said Theron. “Do you know why spider lilies were Isadora’s favorite flowers?”

  “Because they looked exotic,” shrugged Larkin.

  “Hardly. I discovered you can mask any link by grinding spider lily whiskers and a pinch of white snakeroot into a powdery mixture. Not to mention as an added bonus the white snake root serves as an aphrodisiac, which Jezalyn is soon to discover.”

  “What have you done to her?” demanded Larkin.

  “I only gave her a slight sedative,” and an eerie smile crossed over Theron’s face. “It’s a shame you won’t be alive to watch me really seduce her.”

  “What do you mean really seduce her?”

  “That little picture of me biting into her thigh was a hypnotic suggestion; it’s seemed terribly realistic didn’t it?” Without waiting for a response, Theron leaped off the porch landing a few feet from Larkin. “Let’s get on with it, so I can get on with it; a little herb, a little blood loss, will certainly make for an orgasmic delight. Don’t you think, brother?” asked Theron as he rolled his tongue over his razor- sharp dagger.

  Larkin brandished his fangs back at his brother, and they darted toward one another each hoping to send a significant blow. Theron, gaining more speed, pushed Larkin back several feet upon impact, yet Larkin’s stance remained grounded. Larkin swiftly grabbed Theron around the waist and tossed him into a tree. The force of the impact caused the top section of the tree to topple to the ground.

  Theron, back on his feet, lifted the fallen portion of the tree and flung it at Larkin as effortlessly as a twelve year old would skip a rock across a body of water. The blow sent Larkin flying backwards. He reemerged unshaken, but a blood trail staining his sleeve suggested he was injured. They lunged at one another again, this time trying to lock one another in a death grip, but each time one thought they had the upper hand, the other would slip away. Finally, Larkin was able to secure both hands around Theron’s neck and body slam him into the ground. The hard earth caved in around his brother’s body. Now on his knees hovering over Theron, Larkin reared back to send a fatal blow into his chest cavity, but he was distracted before he could propel his fist through the cartilage to Theron’s heart.

  ***

  Wyler had arrived to find Blaise standing in the middle of the road watching two vampires fight.

  “What are you doing here?” asked Wyler.

  “I followed Jezalyn here thinking she got kidnapped, but when she got out of the car with Larkin, I watched her body language and discovered she was with him by her own free will. I stayed not really knowing why, perhaps hoping she would change her mind, but this other guy showed up. I thought it was Larkin.”

  “That’s his twin brother.”

  “I moved closer to hear what they were saying and after a while they started fighting.”

  “I see that,” said Wyler as he moved toward the fight.

  Blaise caught his arm. “You can’t interfere with that. Those creatures are not human! They’ll rip you to shreds.”

  “I am not concerned,” replied Wyler as he yanked his arm free.

  Wyler could not distinguish the difference between them, so he called for Larkin, which distracted him, as he ran toward the fight.

  Theron used this distraction to his advantage, for in that critical moment Larkin, with his fist raised above Theron’s chest, flinched at the sound of Wyler’s voice allowing Theron a split second to twist his body to the side so that the punch would glide past him into the already sunken earth. Theron retaliated and elbowed Larkin in the side causing him to propel several feet. Both vampires instantly leaped to their feet. Theron, not even somewhat amused, said, “You brought a human to the fight. I told you if you didn’t come alone I would kill her.” He bent backwards to realign his spine.

  “He came on his own accord,” replied Larkin popping his shoulder back into place.

  “Now instead of an execution, it will be a slaughter,” said Theron letting out a menacing cry as he ran toward Wyler, but before he could reach him Theron felt a sharp pain in his back that ran through to his chest. Theron stopped, glanced down, and saw a wooden arrow with jagged edges sticking out of his chest. He turned to find Blaise releasing another arrow, but before it could make contact, Theron snatched it out of the air. Upon catching the arrow, he flung it back like a dart guided at a bull’s eye, but it miraculously bounced off Blaise’s chest as he reached for another arrow.

  “What’s this, brother? Now you have a hunter on your side?” asked Theron as he took a step back to let Blaise’s next arrow glide past him.

  “He is not with me, but it looks like the odds are on my side tonight.”

  “You will reap the consequences for this betrayal,” roared Theron as he dashed off into the nearby woods. Everyone will pay for your cowardice, brother, was the last thought Larkin heard from Theron.

  Larkin darted over to Wyler, “What are you doing here?”

  “You left the address on the computer, so I took it as a sign to follow you. Are you alright?” inquired Wyler taking note of blood dripping from a gash on his forearm.

  “It’s only a scratch. Did you bring your bag?”

  Before Wyler could retrieve his bag, Blaise ran up to them with his bow still drawn in Larkin’s direction, “Where is Jezalyn?”

  “I suppose she is on the porch or in the house,” replied Larkin.

  “I have sworn to protect her, so I suggest you stay out of my way while I collect her,” said Blaise stepping around Wyler, placing him three feet from the porch.

  Larkin’s first response was to Wyler. “Go and get the bag,” he said, and after turning to Blaise he continued, “oh really, you think so?”

  “Don’t move,” ordered Blaise.

  Wyler put his hands up and froze.

  “Look, boy, you don’t know who you are dealing with,” announced Larkin. Again, Larkin commanded Wyler to get the black bag, but this time he told Wyler not to respond to Blaise’s demands.

  “I said, don’t move,” bellowed Blaise as the bow released with a snap. Blaise had targeted Wyler’s calf, but before he could blink Larkin had Blaise pressed against the porch railing with one hand and holding the tip of the arrow in another.

  “My patience is running thin with you, boy,” said Larkin clenching his teeth exposing his fangs. A clinking sound was heard as Larkin tapped Blaise’s chest with the arrow, “You don’t seem scared,” said Larkin as he released him.

  Blaise taking the
arrow replied, “No, not particularly. Hunters in our division are well trained.”

  “I figured as much from the first day I met you. The smell of lighter fluid and poison gave it away.”

  Blaise grimaced at him, and Wyler interrupted them as he returned with his bag. Wyler rarely gave commands even to his own wife, but the war medic side of his life made him more forceful. He sharply instructed Larkin to sit down and roll up his sleeve.

  “How can you help such a monster?” Blaise questioned.

  “I think you have him confused with his brother,” replied Wyler.

  “All vampires are monsters.”

  Wyler did not even acknowledge him as he responded, “Really, do you care to explain why he saved Jezalyn’s life twice in a month and a half? Since he is a monster I suppose he’s going through all this trouble to devour her later.”

  Larkin released an enthused howl as Wyler finished sewing him up. “Perplexed, are we?” uttered Larkin rolling his sleeve back down over Wyler’s sloppy stitch work.

  “Maybe, but I am not leaving here without her.”

  “You could take her now and expose me, but if you do, it will shatter her innocence. She will never be able to trust anyone or anything again,” replied Larkin.

  “A cruel awaking to this harsh world might be just what she needs,” retorted Blaise.

  Larkin shook his head and said, “Maybe your world, but not mine. She will live the rest of her life looking over her shoulder fearing that everyone and anyone is a monster, if you expose me here tonight.”

  Wyler closing his bag said, “There is an easier way to secure her safety and innocence.”

  “How?” asked Blaise.

  “She thinks she came with Larkin, not his brother, so we will leave them here until morning. With Larkin she will be safe, and remain in the dark about vampires and of the kidnapping.”

  Blaise had listened to the proposal, but was not ready to concede. He designed several scenarios in his mind, but nothing would allow for Jezalyn’s mental state to emerge unscathed in some way. He knew they were probably right that if he exposed any part of the night’s events, then Jezalyn would never feel safe again. “I don’t like this plan, but it might be her best option for now,” said Blaise finally agreeing with Wyler. In a way, Blaise wanted Jezalyn to discover the truth so that they would have a shot at getting back together. However, at the same time, he did not want to destroy her sense of security for a chance at regaining her affection, so he drove away on the agreement that Larkin would return her to the bookstore and Wyler would send her home the next day. Wyler was happy to suggest such a scenario, for he had wanted to evict her for some time now, ever since Larkin showed signs of interest.

  “I am going to go, too,” said Wyler as he watched Blaise’s truck drive off down the street. “Do you need anything else, before I go?”

  “No, I am good. I will drive Theron’s car back into town in the morning.”

  “Are you sure? What if he comes back tonight?”

  “He won’t. That arrow Blaise shot into him had serrated edges from tip to feather. He will be too weak from blood loss to do anything else tonight.”

  Wyler said, “Oh,” as he turned and sprinted to his car.

  Larkin stepped onto the porch and found Jezalyn asleep on the swing with her legs still covered by the blanket. He scooped her up, brought her into the room, and laid her down on the bed. He stood there elated watching her chest slowly heave for several minutes, which reaffirmed that life was circulating in her lungs before lightly lifting her to remove her pants as a necessity to check her for bite marks. A feeling of gladness overwhelmed him as Larkin found none. Instantly, he concluded that his brother was not lying to him about manipulating her mind. Flinging her jeans to the end of the bed, he knew that his joy was only secondary to the euphoria he had felt upon finding her still alive.

  After a moment of staring at Jezalyn’s quiet, petite fair face, Larkin felt a deep pang in his heart. His face twisted as the pain brought back the faded memory of his beloved Isadora, for the knowledge of her death was the last time he had experienced such an emotion. Not able to discern if this current sensation was for one or the other, Larkin bent over and kissed Jezalyn’s check. His lips drank in the warmth of her being and the agony began to dispel. Rising from the depths of his ardor, Larkin slightly lifted his head and whispered passionately in her ear, “I think I love you, too.”

  Chapter 24: The Devil’s Cherry and Black Bat Surprise

  Theron ran through the woods until he started to lose speed. He stopped at a large boulder near the creek to rest. Theron inspected the barbed arrow sticking out of his chest, took several large steps forward, and hurled his body backward. A loud thud radiated in the air accompanied by a pop. It took Theron a moment to pick himself up out of the rubble that was once the boulder. Looking down, he saw a large portion of the arrow had broken off, so he grabbed the tip, being sure not to grasp the barbs, and pulled. He let out a gut-wrenching wail that echoed through the foggy forest as he stumbled into the frigid creek water, stirring up the mist that rested on top before he collapsed. As the water settled down, so did the haze covering the exposed portion of Theron’s body. Several minutes after Theron’s cry, which felt like an eternity to him, someone grabbed his leg and pulled him out of his frozen watery grave.

  “What happened to you?” asked the somewhat stocky figure.

  “Maurice!”

  “Yes,” he said bending down to offer Theron his hand.

  Taking his hand, Theron divulged, “A hunter—shot me.”

  “Where is the arrow?” asked Maurice.

  “Over there,” he replied pointing to the broken boulder.

  He walked over and kicked around the ruble until he spotted the arrow. Maurice squatted down, picked up the arrow by its feather, bought it to his nose, and inhaled. He sprung up and spun around holding the stick away from his body as if it was a snake ready to strike. “Boss, we got a problem.”

  “What’s that?” said Theron.

  “The arrow has been poisoned,” replied Maurice dropping the broken arrow at his feet and quickly moving toward the creek to wash his hands.

  “I suspected that when I could no longer keep my speed. I need you to tell me what kind of poison and how to cure it,” replied Theron edgily, but trying to come off coolly.

  “It looks like Devil’s Cherry.”

  “Are you sure?”

  “Yes. I couldn’t pick up on a scent, but there was a blue tinge to the wood. Whatever they added to the poison must have masked the smell.”

  “Clever,” replied Theron in a rather exasperated tone, “but not clever enough. Do we have what we need to draw the poison out?”

  “Yes, all it takes is some Broom Snakeweed and Calabar Beans, but that’s not the problem.”

  “I know the poison will make me susceptible to light, but if I stay in the murky shadows of the night, I’ll be fine.”

  “True, but that’s not it.”

  “What! Stop beating around the proverbial bush and lay it straight,” replied Theron.

  Taking a deep breath, Maurice said, “The problem is the hunter wrapped the barbs with tentacles from a Black Bat flower.”

  “Impossible,” roared Theron. “That flower has been extinct for centuries; I destroyed them myself.” Theron picking up the broken arrow that laid next to his foot in disbelief. He tossed it into the creek and mumbled under his breath “There is only one man that could know this lethal combination.”

  “Who?” questioned Maurice trying to extract more information.

  “Luther,” bellowed Theron in a fit of rage and shook his head as he found the thought incomprehensible.

  Watching Theron’s unfathomable response at his own conclusion caused Maurice to question his declaration. “Well, is it Luther or not? Whose house do we need to visit?” said Maurice with a menacing smile as he kicked the stick baring the arrow tip into the water.

  “It has all the tell-tale sign
s of Luther, but it can’t be. I left Luther for dead, bleeding out at the shipyard.”

  “He must have survived. I heard he was a resourceful man,” responded Maurice.

  Grabbing Maurice’s arm for support, he said, “I got a good view of the hunter and it was not Luther.”

  “Well, looks like not only did Luther survive, but he has undertaken an apprentice.” Feeling the heat rise on his skin where Theron’s hand lay, gave him cause to worry. “We need to move now. The bat flower is keeping you from healing, and your temperature is rising.”

  Theron released Maurice’s arm and jumped back into the water.

  “What are you doing?” he screamed, leaping in the water after him.

  “I have to slow down the process,” replied Theron. “The flower reverses our ability to heal, thus causing our body to go into shock and run high fever. It is a death sentence because the fever triggers a chain reaction making the blood boil, and we burn from the inside until the heart explodes.”

  “What’s the cure?” said Maurice pulling him back out of the water.

  “Broom Snakeweed and an ancient herb called Wood Avens.”

  “Wood Avens?” replied a confused Maurice.

  “Don’t worry. I think I know where to find some. Go retrieve the Broom Snakeweed and get some Saltbush too. I will meet you at location B in an hour.”

  “The herbs are already there; I never removed them from cargo.”

  “Alright, then it’s on me,” replied Theron as he tipped his head to his companion and ran off.

  Theron ran back to the town of Transylvania, and when he reached the town’s water tower, he propped up against it clutching his chest. He grimaced at the heat he felt inside, closed his eyes, and fell to his knees. Trying to compose himself enough to regain his footing, a breeze blew past, and his nose caught a whiff of aged blood. His eyes sprung open, and he found himself staring at a black and white dress loafer only a few inches from his face.