“I can’t,” replied Larkin. “I have to save her.”
“You did well with your brother today, but let me take over here.”
“No! I won’t risk it. Besides, you owe me, old man.”
Julius listened with great interest, a hunter indebted to a vampire.
“Maybe I do, but she owes you nothing, so you will release her.”
“Don’t give me demands! I saved your life when Theron left you for dead at the shipyard. It is time to cash in a favor, so you are going to walk away and let me save her.”
“You did, and it’s one of the reasons why all of you are still alive.”
“But not for much longer,” replied Larkin as Julius thought, one, what is the other? How scandalous this is all turning out to be; a vampire saving a hunter and a hunter indebted to a vampire. There has to be a deeper connection!
Luther ordered Falken, the hunter who detained Maurice, to throw a bag of Wood Aven’s to Julius, which in turn broke Julius’s thoughts as he instinctually extended his arm to catch the bag that was hurled toward him. Luther also ordered Falken to release Maurice to Julius for Larkin to deal with in whatever way he saw fit.
“Now hand her over, and don’t worry. I have survived for centuries as a human. I think I can help her safely sustain her human life better than you,” replied Luther.
Larkin nodded in agreement even though he did not want to release her. Luther’s logic was too great for him to deny, so he toddled over to Luther and gently relinquished Jezalyn.
Jezalyn who slipped in and out of consciousness blurted out as she left Larkin’s arms, “Grandpa, help me! He’s a vampire!”
Everyone stared in disbelief as Luther responded, “Just hold on, Baby Girl; everything is alright.”
Luther produced a vial from his pocket and as he popped the top off, Jezalyn whispered, “I wanna go home.”
“We are going home, but first you need to take this medicine,” replied Luther.
He hoped she would not deny herself the one thing that could keep her alive, and he knew she had consented to take the potion when she opened her mouth like a baby bird for him to pour it in. Relief moved over everyone as she closed her mouth to swallow.
Upon swallowing it, she responded like a child, “All gone,” sticking out her tongue, “can we go home now?”
“Yes,” he said as he cradled her in his arms. Pointing at his bow, Luther ordered, “Falken, gather my things; it’s time to go.” Falken obeyed, picked up the bow, strolled over to them, and stood defensively.
Larkin stared at Jezalyn’s face and saw no resemblance, and even so he could not deny the regard in Luther’s eye or the feeling of safety that swept over Jezalyn when Luther held her close, so he stepped aside and let them pass.
Wyler was the first to break the silence as they watched the hunters climb the levy with Jezalyn’s body. “Julius, toss me the Wood Avens. I need to make a mixture for Larkin.”
He tossed the baggy across the ship, but Larkin caught it in his hand, tore open the bag, and emptied the contents in his mouth.
Julius watched him gag on the herb as he tried to command them on what to do next. “Take the bodies below.”
“And put them where?” asked Julius.
“If I know my brother, there are several crypts or cells below. We need to voyage this barge up river away from society until we decide what to do with them and him,” said Larkin pointing at Maurice.
Wyler’s gaze drifted toward Maurice as he cradled his dead wife as gently as possible. “Good idea! We can torture you over and over until you tell us how to find Isadora,” he said, before lightly kissing Ana’s head, like someone would a sleeping infant, not ready to acknowledge she was gone.
Julius was surprised to hear such spiteful words escape Wyler’s mouth, but then again he could understand the reasoning, so he nodded in agreement. Maurice tried to flee, but his attempted was unsuccessful. Julius had caught him by the neck and snapped it to incapacitate him for awhile so that he could move Theron’s corpse downstairs.
While they moved the bodies downstairs, Larkin closed his eyes and took a deep breath letting a smile slide across his face as he felt Jezalyn’s once faint heart beat increase to a steady pace.
Wyler’s voice broke Larkin’s meditation as he called out, “Julius, keep the heart. We may need him if Maurice doesn’t talk.”
Julius nodded and as he strutted over to the body and thought, Someone must know the secret! What could connect Luther and Larkin? Why would they try to save each other; it’s not as if they are blood. I must know how they ended up bonded. Julius plucked the heart out of Theron’s hand before mumbling, “You might come in handy after all” as he drug the heavy, limp body across the stained deck and into the corridor.
The announcement of Isadora’s death as a sham coupled with the possibly that she could save Ana was all the hope Wyler needed and he clung to it fervently.
“Let’s go,” said Larkin and as he walked to the helm to take the wheel, he knew that not only had Jezalyn survived his brother, but she had also survived him. He only prayed that her revelation of this cruel world would not alter her spirit. However, his thoughts did not linger on Jezalyn’s potentially shattered innocence for long, for he still sensed Wyler’s overwhelming sorrow, an agony that radiated intensely through every fiber of Larkin’s body. He could barely move and at that moment he acknowledged the internal strength of his faithful servant, for Larkin could hear Wyler’s determination to find Isadora and resurrect his sweet bunny. Larkin knew Wyler would not be quieted.
Need More?
Thank you for reading the first instalment of Sabrina Street’s new series The Vampire Keeper!
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
SABRINA STREET is a Secondary Teacher in Louisiana. Street earned a BLS in English at Louisiana State University at Alexandria before obtaining her Master of Arts in Teaching from Louisiana College. Street added author to her list of accomplishments with her debut novel, The Vampire Keeper. She continues to educate adolescents as she works on her next novel.
Table of Contents
Chapter 1: Mirror of Desire
Chapter 2: Moving In
Chapter 3: My Bloody Tea
Chapter 4: The Storm …
Chapter 5: It’s Only a Book
Chapter 6: The Memoir
Chapter 7: The Introduction
Chapter 8: Checking In
Chapter 9: To Be or Not to Be…
Chapter 10: A Moment of Weakness
Chapter 11: A Domestic Disturbance
Chapter 12: It is Cold Outside, In
Chapter 13: Julius Visits Larkin
Chapter 14: Tea for Three
Chapter 15: The Call
Chapter 16: A Party of Callers
Chapter 17: The Last Caller
Chapter 18: A Romantic Feeling
> Chapter 19: He Loves Me, He Loves Me Not
Chapter 20: The Morning After
Chapter 21: Astonishing Responses
Chapter 22: Tryst or Trap
Chapter 23: A Brotherly Squabble
Chapter 24: The Devil’s Cherry and Black Bat Surprise
Chapter 25: A Cocktail and a Conflict
Chapter 26: Exposed
Chapter 27: The Chase
Chapter 28: Revelation
The Vampire Keeper Page 24