by M. K. ROZE
I didn’t know what was going on. I snapped out of it and watched Sorin as he carried Constin’s lifeless body up the steps, without struggling. He hurried past me, brought Constin into his bedroom and kicked the door shut.
I sat down still wondering if he was okay, and why I was needed there.
After some time, Sorin came out and sat on the couch next to me. “I apologize for yelling at you,” he said and handed me a tissue.
“Thank you. Is Constin all right?”
“Yes, he’s resting.”
I bit my bottom lip wondering if I should ask him why I was needed there.
He looked over at me. “As I was getting my son out of the car, I could smell the alcohol on his breath. Were you drinking too?”
I gulped. “Y-yes, but not a lot.”
“You must stay here tonight. I don’t allow people to drink and drive. Even if you’d taken only one sip, you should never get behind the wheel of a car.”
“Okay, I’m sorry.”
He got up and held out his hand for mine.
I took it and got up. “Your hand is freezing,” I said and rubbed it on my jeans, trying to warm it up.
His eyes widened. “My apologies. I had to cool Constin down.”
I smiled. “Oh, sorry, I forgot.”
“I understand.”
“Where would you like me to sleep?”
“You can stay in Constin’s room tonight.”
“Thank you. Can I say goodnight to him?”
“No, I’m sorry. He must rest.”
“Okay. Good night,” I said and started to walk away.
“Viata,” Sorin said.
I turned to him.
“We’ll be leaving for a job in the morning. Please stay here until we return tomorrow evening.”
“I would love to, but I have school.”
“Constin doesn’t want you to go tomorrow. Please respect his wish,” he said and walked into his room.
As I walked up the stairs, I wondered why Constin wanted me to skip school and why his father had him in his room.
I continued down the hall to his room and tossed myself on his bed. About to pass out from the silence that filled the house, I took a pill out of my purse and swallowed it without any water. As I fell asleep, growling and hissing started again. I cuddled with his vanilla scented pillow and passed out cold.
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
THE FIGHT BEGINS
When I woke up at Constin’s, it was already after 2:00 p.m. I couldn’t believe I slept that long. I got up and went downstairs. There was no food in the refrigerator or the cabinets, so I texted Constin, asking him if I could take his Dad’s car to get food. When he didn’t answer, I decided to take the car, hoping his father wouldn’t get mad.
After I had breakfast at Dunkin Donuts, I decided to go home for a while. When I arrived, I cleaned the house, took a shower, and Mom kept calling me. I was sure about missing school.
I heated up some leftover meatloaf that Liam’s mom cooked, and I watched some TV. Constin called soon after that.
“Hi, how are you?” I asked.
“Better now that I’m talking to you. Why did you leave?”
“I was hungry.”
“Our apologies. We eat out a lot.”
“It’s okay. Your father’s not mad at me, is he?”
“Just a little. We wanted you to stay here until we got back.”
“Why? Are there people after you?”
He sighed. “No, I want you close to me.”
“You’re sweet. How are you feeling?”
“I’m much better now. Please forgive me for last night.”
“You’re fine. I was concerned for your health and still am. Did you go to the doctor?”
“Yes, as a matter of fact, I went to one at lunch,” he said and cleared his throat.
“You could’ve called me.”
“I forgot my phone this morning. I’m sorry.”
“Oh. So, do you need to carry a cooler of ice around with you from now on?” I giggled.
“You’re hilarious. I would like you to return to my house,” he said.
“Okay, what time?”
“Come now. And drive that car how it’s supposed to be driven.”
I laughed. “Alright, be there shortly.”
“See you soon,” he said and ended the call.
I dashed into my room and changed into a cute romper, slid my wedges on, and doused my outfit with my favorite Victoria’s Secret perfume. I closed the door to glance in the mirror and smiled.
As I opened the front door, Liam came in, almost walking into me. He had Maria with him.
“What the hell is she doing here?” I said as I eyed her up and down.
Maria didn’t take her eyes off me.
“Whoa, chill out,” Liam said.
I walked past them. “I’m going to Constin’s house. Have fun with that nosy liar.”
“Where’s your car?” Liam yelled out.
I flipped him the bird and got into Sorin’s car.
Maria looked at me and smiled. I shot her a nasty look and drove off. On the way, I took a few deep breaths and called Liam.
He answered right away. “Why were you so rude to Maria?”
“Rude? You know that I hate her. Why would you even have her in our house?”
He sighed. “I’m sorry, but Maria and I have been seeing each other for a while now. I know that you dislike her, so I have her come over when you’re not around.”
“Please tell me that she’s not the one you had in my bed.”
“Sorry.”
“S-seriously?” I ended the call, stepped on the gas, and continued to Constin’s house.
When I arrived at the cabin, Constin was waiting for me outside. I rolled down the window. “Hey, handsome, you look a lot better now.”
He grinned. “For now, at least. Did you get lost again?”
“How do you know I got lost? You were passed out when I brought you here last night.”
“Just guessing. Come, I want you to meet someone special.” He opened the car door for me.
“Who?” I asked as he helped me out.
He ignored me. “You look and smell delicious,” he said, followed by a wink.
“Ah, that’s a new one. Are you going to eat me now?”
He took my hand. “Maybe.”
We walked inside. “Father,” Constin called out.
Sorin came out of the dining room with another man following behind him. The older man resembled Sorin, except he was taller and looked like he worked out a lot. He had a long narrow mustache, which tapered and drooped down to his chin, curling at the ends.
“Good evening, Viata,” Sorin said as he walked toward me. He kissed my hand as he’d done in the past.
“Hello, how are you?” I replied in a shaky voice.
Sorin nodded. “I’m well. Thank you.”
“Viata,” Constin said, “this is my grandfather, Dragos.”
“Hello sir, it’s very nice to meet you. You and your son have unique names. Does yours mean anything?”
“Dragon,” he said in a much deeper voice than both Sorin and Constin.
“You and your son look alike,” I replied.
“Well thank you, my dear. I delightfully accept your sweet words.”
Sorin grinned. “Please come join us for some delicious wine.”
I followed them into the dining room. It was an eerie feeling. They had tall candelabras lit up that sat in the corners of the room.
I nudged Constin.
Constin pulled out a chair for me.
“Thank you.” I looked at the glass of red wine that was in front of me.
“You’re welcome.” He pulled out the chair and sat to my left.
Sorin and Dragos sat at each end of the long wooden table.
“Viata, please taste the wine,” Sorin said. “It is ancient, but it is as sweet as you.”
I didn’t want to drink again, but I didn’t want to
be impolite, so I took a few sips. It tasted like the wine Constin, and I had on the yacht.
Dragos was staring at me from across the table as I took each sip. I tried to act like a lady, but for some reason, I wanted to gulp it down quickly. However, I didn’t dare.
After a few more sips I felt more relaxed. “Do you have any plans for tomorrow or the rest of your stay?” I asked Dragos. “I can take you around if you would like when I get out of school.”
“No, that’s quite all right,” Dragos replied, “but I thank you for being so kind. We’re going to relax here and talk about the exciting events that are coming up.”
“Events?”
“It’s nothing,” Dragos replied as he twirled his wine with his long index finger. “So, I’ve heard that you’ve been to Romania. How did you like it?”
“It was amazing! Have you ever been there before?”
“No,” Dragos replied. “But I’ve heard many pleasant things about it.”
I looked at Constin, and he placed his hand on my lap under the table.
“Were there any specific sights that interested you more than others?” Dragos asked and took a sip of his wine.
“Y-y-yes,” I said as Constin rubbed my inner thigh. I removed his hand. “At first it was the Black Church, but when I got home, I couldn’t stop thinking about the Bran Castle for some odd reason. I guess it was—”
Dragos’s brown eyes widened, and he leaned forward with his long black hair resting on the table.
I gnawed at my bottom lip and looked over at Constin and Sorin, not sure if I should mention that someone who wasn’t there had whispered, remember in my ear.
“Please, carry on,” Sorin said, “we would love to hear the rest.”
I held Sorin’s gaze. “Okay, but please don’t think I’m weird. An unseen force whispered ‘Remember’ in my ear when I was looking at Vlad the Impaler’s picture.”
“Did you, now?” Sorin said and looked over at Constin.
Before I could answer, a loud thump came from the roof.
I looked up. “That’s the same sound I’ve heard at my house.”
“I despise those filthy animals,” Dragos said.
“I heard them last night after I fell asleep here too.”
“Don’t worry, we’ll get rid of them soon,” Sorin said.
“When you do, tell me how you did it so that I can tell animal control. They never could catch them.”
Sorin nodded.
Constin was leaning back, staring out the window.
“Son,” Dragos said, “Will you please show me the guest room? I’m a bit fatigued from the wine. I need to rest.”
Sorin got up. “Yes, Father.”
Dragos came over to me and kissed my hand. “Please forgive me for cutting the night short. I’ve been up for many hours.”
“I understand. It was nice meeting you.”
Sorin and Dragos walked away, leaving Constin and me alone.
“That was odd,” I said.
“Why is that?” He sipped his wine.
“Um, probably because I just told them that I heard a ghost whisper in my ear.”
“You’re fine, love, they won’t judge you. They’ve heard much creepier stories than that.”
My body froze, and I turned to him. “What did you just say?”
“What?”
“You called me love. Why did you say that?”
“I’m sorry. I won’t repeat it. Come on. Let’s go and sit outside.”
“Okay.” Maybe he was just trying to be romantic.
He helped me up, and we walked onto the porch.
“Don’t be offended when I say this, but you don’t look like your dad or grandfather.”
“I’m not insulted. I look more like my mother.”
“Where is she?”
We sat on the porch bench.
“My mother died when I was young,” he said in a low voice.
“I’m so sorry, Constin. I didn’t know.”
“It’s okay. Come with me. I want to show you something.”
“What?’’
He got up and took my hand and guided me through the woods.”
“What can possibly be out here? It’s nothing but tall itchy grass.”
“You’ll see,” he said and continued.
“How can you see where you’re walking, its pitch black?”
“I have excellent night vision,” he joked.
I giggled.
Growling came from behind us, followed by something smashing into the ground.
I stopped and hid behind Constin. “What was that?”
“It’s animals fighting again. We’re fine,” he said looking in that direction.
“Are you sure? I don’t want to die the way Kaylee did.”
“Viata, I’m not going to let you die unless you want to.”
I stared blankly at him. “That was sweet but way too morbid for me. And I don’t want to die anytime soon. Let’s go.”
“I was kidding. I won’t let anything happen to you.”
“Prove it.” I pulled him further into the woods until he stopped me and went to the right.
An old building that looked to be at least three hundred years old was sitting in an open field, surrounded by trees.
“Wow! What’s in there?” I asked.
“Patience.”
I rolled my eyes.
Inside, I covered my nose with my free hand from the musty smell. There was no light except the moonlight coming from the cracks in the ceiling. We walked down the never-ending hall. Unlit sconces lined the stone wall with spider webs everywhere.
“This place is creepy but beautiful.”
“It sure is.”
He continued down the hall that led to a dark room. “Stand here,” he instructed, and let go of my hand.
“Constin.” I felt around for him in the pitch black.
He set light to a series of torches, and the room came to life.
“Is this a ballroom?”
“Yes, it’s been here for over four hundred years.”
“This is amazing!” I looked at a painting on the ceiling with men dressed in armor, fighting one another.
I walked to the center of the room to get a closer look at the huge diamond chandelier that was sparkling from the torches.
“This is gorgeous.” I twirled around and looked down at the white marble floor.
“It was…at one time,” he replied with his head down.
“Are you okay?”
“Yes.” He stood there holding the torch.
“I swear I’ve been here before,” I said, as I walked around touching the old goblets that sat on a wooden table. I brushed the spiderwebs off on my romper.
Constin’s eyes opened wide, and he walked over to me, placing his arms around my waist. “What makes you think you’ve been here before?”
“I’m not sure. Maybe I saw it in a movie or something.”
“Would you want to live here forever?”
“Live here?” I replied. “How could that even be possible? And even if it were, it would need a lot of work done before I ever thought of moving in.”
“Anything is achievable if you want it badly enough,” he said.
“True.”
He pulled out his iPhone, and music I’d never heard started playing. The room made it louder than normal. He placed it down on the table next to us. “Dance with me,” he asked softly.
“To this? Who is it?”
“It’s One Man’s Dream, by Yanni”
“I’ve never heard of him before.”
He pulled me in close and started to move slowly. “I will teach you many things.”
My heart fluttered, and my eyes were unable to leave his. As we danced, I felt like I was floating in his arms again just like last time. He spun me around slowly and faced me. “You’re beautiful,” he said and kissed me passionately.
I didn’t want it to end. I wanted to stay in that moment forever.
> He placed his face against mine, and my cheek became cold.
“Constin,” I said and stepped back to look at him. “Mihnea?” I stumbled backward and fell onto the floor, shaking my head.
He rushed over to me and helped me up. “What’s wrong?”
As I pushed him away from me, it was Constin’s face again.
He stood there. “Are you okay?”
I got up and rubbed my eyes. “I’m sorry. I guess I’m seeing things again.”
“It’s okay. We better get going,” he said.
Constin grabbed his phone, and I helped him blow out the torches, still wondering why I saw Mihnea.
We walked hand and hand to his house and stood out front. Sweat poured down his face.
“Are you okay?” I asked.
“Yes. Would you like to stay with me again tonight?”
Butterflies took over my stomach. “Yes, but I need clothes. Can I run back to my house while you go inside and get cooled off?”
“No, I’ll take you. I wouldn’t want the wild animals following you home.”
I smiled. “Is that your way of telling me you can’t be without me?”
He looked toward the woods. “Yeah, that’s it.”
“Are you sure you’re okay to drive?”
His eyes met mine. “Positive. Come on. Let’s go.” He held my hand as we walked over to the car and opened the passenger door.
“Thank you,” I said and got in.
He nodded.
On the way home, he was quiet.
We pulled up, and he froze, his eyes fixated on my front door.
I waved my hand in front of his face, but he didn’t blink. “Hey, what are you looking at?”
When he didn’t move, I shook him, and he snapped out of it. “You can’t stay here,” he said, with a sense of urgency to his voice.
“Why, what’s the problem? You’re all sweaty. We need to get you back home before you overheat and pass out again.”
“Stay here,” he said and jumped out the car, leaving the door wide open.
I got out and ran up to him. “Constin, what are you doing?”
He turned to me. “Go back to the car, now!” he ordered.
Liam opened the door. “What’s going on?” he asked.
Constin ignored him and fixed his attention on Maria, who was standing beside Liam.
I pulled on Constin’s shirt. “Tell me what’s going on, now!”
Constin ignored me like he couldn’t hear me.