Anyway, feel free to rip this apart! ~
A cool wind floated through the open window, rustling the gossamer curtains. Elspeth Devereaux shivered and looked up from the book she was reading. The moonlight fell across her bed in a patch of bright silver and cast strange shadows on the walls. Judging by the position of the moon, it was an hour or so past midnight. She closed the book and rubbed her eyes. A human being could only go so long without sleep, and she was pushing the limits. The window would have to be closed, else she feared she'd catch her death of cold in the night. She pulled her thin nightgown tightly around her and stood.
The curtains rustled again, but something was different this time. Elspeth stopped in the middle of the room. There was something behind the translucent fabric. For a moment she thought her eyes were playing tricks on her.
Then a dark figure appeared in the open window.
Elspeth didn't scream. For a moment, it didn't even occur to her that she should. She was too entranced by the shape silhouetted against the moonlight--the tall, graceful shape of a man. He stood on the windowsill for a brief second, his body tense and poised as a cat's, then sprang lightly into the room.
He approached Elspeth, who stood rooted to the floor, wanting to run but unable to move. "You're afraid," he said, his voice soft and musical. She still couldn't see his face in the darkness.
"Who are you?" she choked out.
One hand caressed her hair, while the other pulled her against him. Even through his clothes, his body was cold as ice. "Someone who loves you," he replied, his face just brushing hers. "Elspeth."
"How do you know my name?" she whispered, beginning to tremble uncontrollably.
"I've been watching you." He inhaled slowly. "I've wanted you for so long."
With one swift movement, he pushed her onto the bed. Finally she tried to scream, but no sound came.
The moonlight illuminated his pale, beautiful body, but she never saw his face.
~
Most people come into being because their parents loved each other and wanted a child. Most people grow up with a father they can count on to support the family, to give them advice, to teach them how to fence or ride or climb. Most people aren't the result of rape.
I'm not like most people. And in far more ways than those listed above.
My name is Julian Devereaux. Elspeth Devereaux was my mother. Only seventeen when I was conceived, she was the daughter of a fairly wealthy Romanian famer. Rape or no rape, he knew that having a pregnant, unmarried daughter would soil his reputation. So he sent her away, six months before I was born, to live with her aunt in Oradea, a town near the mountains.
My father was a vampire.
My mother told me this when I turned thirteen. I suppose I was asking for it, since I'd spent all my life harrassing her with questions about him. But as soon as I knew the story behind my birth, I almost wished I didn't. It made me feel unwanted, in a way. I knew Mother loved me more than life itself, but in the back of my mind, there was always that little voice reminding me that I was the son of a vampire.
I was a hybrid, a mutation. I inherited a vampire's superhuman strength and speed, though Mother warned me never to reveal these powers to anyone. I also inherited the thirst for blood. Mother became the town doctor and was thereby able to provide me with enough blood to keep me alive. I drank it, and hated every moment of it.
In some ways, I was even stronger than a vampire. I was not affected by sunlight, and garlic was a joke. Unfortunately, I also showed up in mirrors. I didn't want to see myself. I didn't want to look into the glass and see that pale, beautiful, golden-eyed boy looking back at me.
I was the son of a monster. His flesh, his bone. His blood.
And that made me one.
~
The sharp pounding of metal on wood wrenched me awake.
I was a light sleeper anyway, but that banging was just about loud enough to wake the dead. And a knock on the door at three o'clock in the morning couldn't mean anything good. I scrambled out of bed and ran down the hall, my eyes adjusting just as quickly to the darkness as they did to broad daylight. "Mother, wake up!" I called as I passed her room.
I opened the front door to find a young man standing in the snow with an unconscious woman in his arms. Whereas his skin had turned purple from the cold, hers was a deathly white. A cloth had been wrapped clumsily around her neck.
"Please, my wife has to see the doctor now," the man said, his eyes frantic. "She's lost so much blood already, I don't know if she. . . . "
I reached out and took the girl in my own arms, trying to pretend I felt her weight. In my seventeen years, I'd grown fairly used to calls such as these, the villagers showing up at all hours of the night with cuts, burns, frostbite, seizures, broken bones, everything. Most of the time Mother was able to save even those who were near death. But one look at this girl's face and I knew there was no hope for her.
The man followed me to the kitchen, where I laid her on the table as gently as I could. Mother rushed into the room carrying a candle and wearing nothing but a wool coat thrown over her nightgown. She pushed both of us aside and bent over the woman, her fingers pressing in various places in search of a pulse.
"What happened to her?" she asked quietly.
"I don't know," the man said, stroking his wife's blonde hair with a shaking hand. "I came home late from a hunting trip and found her on the floor. The window was open, and her neck was bleeding. It looked almost like she'd been . . . bitten."
Mother looked sharply at him. "Bitten?"
The man nodded dumbly.
I carefully removed the cloth from around the woman's neck. Mother and I gasped simultaneously. Her throat was marked with two small, red incisions. Two thin trickles of blood leaked out, but not nearly enough as there should have been. It was clear they were bite marks.
Mother pressed her lips together and laid her head against the girl's chest. We all stood still for several moments, hardly daring to breathe. Then Mother straightened and shook her head. "I'm afraid she's lost too much blood," she said softly.
The man just stared at his wife's still form, almost as motionless as her.
I turned away, unable to look at those little marks. Because both Mother and I knew what had put them there.
~
One often heard rumors, whispered stories of vampires haunting villages throughout Romania. Some people even claimed to have seen one. But Oradea's last actual attack had occured in 1738, over a hundred years ago. Vampires had never been viewed as a distinct threat; and indeed, they hadn't been. They tended to leave the mountain towns alone. Many of the villagers were even to the point of renouncing them as a myth, a campfire story made up to scare children.
But those bite marks could not be argued with. They clearly had not come from any kind of animal; and besides, what animal would drain that much of the woman's blood and yet leave the rest of her body untouched? I knew this, and my mother knew this. Neither of us knew what the bereaved husband thought; he was too distraught at his wife' death and distracted with the funeral preparations that followed. They were careful to bury her in a high-collared dress, in an attempt to keep the wounds hidden. But of course the word leaked out, and within the week it was spreading like wildfire.
The poor girl had barely been in her grave twenty-four hours when my best friend Raul--the only human besides Mother who knew my secret--accosted me on my way to the town's school, where I had managed to find a job teaching the village children.
"Julian!" he yelled, nearly knocking me over as he rushed out the front door of his house. He wasn't quite as tall as me (hardly anyone was, actually), but he could pick up a good deal of momentum when he was excited. "Did you hear about that girl? They say she was bitten by a vampire!"
Sometimes I wondered why I had ever entrusted my secret to Raul. He was great friend and all, but at times he was as scatterbrained as a beheaded chicken. "I'm aware," I said dryly. "She died in our kitchen three nights ago."
"Oh. . . ." He coughed uncomfortably. "I--I'm sorry. But a vampire! Do you think it really could--"
"I don't know," I snapped. I had never enjoyed the subject of vampires. It reminded me of my paternage, as well as my own identity. Just hearing the name brought the taste of blood to my mouth. And delicious as it was, sometimes it nearly made me sick.
Raul looked at me out the corner of his eye, and something in his expression had changed. He wore a look I could only describe as suspicion. "Julian," he said in a much quieter voice, "you didn't--didn't do anything, well--"
I spun around, seized his collar, and shoved him against the side of a building. "Are you suggesting I did this?!" I snarled.
"Julian, calm down," he gasped. Looking down, I realized that his feet weren't even touching the ground. "I'm not saying you did. It's just, I know sometimes it's hard for you to--to--"
I let go of him and turned away. I didn't even know exactly why I was so angry. All I knew was, Raul's accusation--or at least, what I interpreted as an accusation--had struck a raw nerve.
"I'm not one of them, Raul." I turned to him as he struggled to his feet, his eyes still wide. "I swear to you, I'll never be one of them."
"Hey, take it easy, Jules," he said, managing a shaky smile. "I--I was only kidding. You may have a slightly . . . er . . . unconventional diet, but deep down inside, you're still good old Julian, who teaches a bunch of kids and helps little old ladies cross the street. Right?"
I tried to smile back, though it was just as strained as his. "Right. And speaking of which, I have to run or I'll be late for my own class." I clapped him on the shoulder. "Just don't worry about me, okay?"
"I won't," he said, though we both knew that wasn't entirely true.
~
The class was in a mild uproar when I walked in. All twenty-six of the students, who ranged in age from five to fifteen, seemed to be talking about the vampire attack. The younger boys chased the girls around, gnashing their teeth and flapping their arms, as if they thought vampires could fly or something. The older children debated amongst themselves whether it had actually been a vampire and not some kind of giant man-eating bat, and a few even took bets on who would be bitten next. Gretel, one of my youngest pupils, approached me with eyes as round as twin moons.
"Headmaster Devereaux," she said in a small voice, "is there a vampire somewhere close?"
I didn't make a habit of blatantly lying to children, but neither was I willing to frighten them unnecessarily. "Of course not, Gretel," I said reassuringly. "That's just a silly story someone's made up. There's no such thing as vampires."
She didn't seem convinced. After tugging shyly at her dark braid for a moment, she looked back up at me. "But, if there was a vampire, you wouldn't let him get us, would you?"
I swallowed. Today was growing more uncomfortable by the hour. But I got down on one knee and looked her straight in the eye. "Never," I said.
~
As it turned out, my efforts to alleviate the children's fears were all in vain. Because that very night, another woman was bitten.
This time the victim was Clara Malkov, the wife of Oradea's mayor. Her maid found her the next morning in the same position as the first woman--on the floor, with the window open. By then it was far too late for a doctor to save her. Mayor Malkov was on a trip to the city and had to be informed by telegram of his wife's death.
By now the entire town was growing slightly panicked. People shut and locked both their doors and windows--something almost no one had done before--and wouldn't set foot outside after dark. As I passed through the marketplace on my way home, I overheard the villagers' various conversations, all of which dealt with the alleged vampire attacks. And under all the gossip and seemingly thoughtless chatter, I knew everyone was wondering the same thing: would their wife--or girlfriend, or sister, or daughter--be next?
I thought of Mother, and walked a little faster.
~
At home, I could tell that Mother was anxious, despite her proficiency at hiding such things. She slipped around the house locking the windows, and even sprinkled a little garlic in the bedroom doorways when she thought I wasn't looking.
I pulled a small jar of blood from the cabinet where Mother kept her array of medicines. It seemed to glow a murky red in the dimming light. I tried not to think of the dry, white bodies of the two dead women as I drank it, down to the last repulsive drop.
"Mother," I said, gazing absently into the empty glass, "why didn't he bite you?"
She knew I was speaking of my father, though I would never refer to him as such. "I don't know, Julian," she said. "I've wondered that myself for many years. Perhaps he didn't want to kill me. His way of showing it was certainly horrible, but perhaps he truly did love me. . . ." She trailed off and continued lighting the candles scattered throughout the house.
The glass distorted my reflection, enlarging my scarlet-tinted lips and slightly pointed teeth. I pushed it away.
~
Teaching the next day was miserable, both for me and my students. I had barely slept the previous night, and it was clear they hadn't either. It ws quiet, too quiet. The girls, who usually spent their time either passing notes or flirting with me, just stared blankly at their books. The boys did the same; and the air, for once, was entirely free of spitballs. I would have liked to believe it was because they were concentrating on their lessons, but I knew that wasn't true just as well as they did. How could anyone concentrate under the circumstances?
I dismissed class early for Mrs. Malkov's funeral, which the whole town would probably attend. As the village schoolmaster, I was somewhat of an important figure and would therefore be one of the pallbearers. I didn't want to be. I didn't want to go to the funeral at all. Not that I didn't have a deep respect for the deceased--she and her husband had helped pay for Mother's education and provided her with lodging after her aunt died. But it was just that. I didn't want to see her once smiling face still and expressionless in a narrow coffin, and just below that, the inevitable lace collar to hide the bite marks.
I followed the children outside and locked the door behind me. A gentle but steady rain drizzled down from the somber gray clouds. A perfect day for a funeral. I took a deep breath and headed for the cemetery, the last place I wanted to be right then.
I could have easily carried the casket alone, and certainly it would have made things a lot faster, but I dragged through the procession along with everyone else. I took on last look at Mrs. Malkov's face before they closed the coffin.
"Tragic," someone beside me said. I turned to see a handsome young man who had a city look about him. Dark-haired and dressed in black like the other mourners, he cut a striking figure. "How did she die?" he asked me.
I considered the wisdom of telling him, then decided he'd find out eventually anyway. "They say she was bitten by a vampire."
He raised his eyebrows. "A vampire? Like in the old stories?"
"I know it sounds crazy. But there was a similar attack just a few days ago."
"It's not crazy at all. I've encountered a few vampire attacks in my day, and I could wager that I know a thing or two about them." He frowned thoughtfully. "I'm sorry; my name is Victor Klaussen." He extended his hand, which I politely grasped, hoping his thick gloves would mask the unnaturally low temperature of my skin. There was a unique scent about his blood; almost like an exotic perfume.
"Julian Devereaux," I said.
"Devereaux?" He paused and looked closely at me. "Interesting. This is only my fifth day in Oradea; I just moved here from Marghita. I'm a doctor, and I heard this town was in need of one."
"I don't know why anyone would say that," I said, a little annoyed at this. "My mother's a doctor, and a good one too."
"She is?" he replied with an imperturbable smile. "I'd very much like to meet her. Between the two of us, it would be a relief to speak with someone cultured after five long days of adjusting to such a . . . rustic environment."
This was adding insult to injury, and I'd never had the best temper. There's no telling what I would have said to him if Raul hadn't joined us at that moment, followed by a girl about my age.
"Jules!" he said, putting an arm around my shoulders. "I'd like you to meet my cousin Mary. She came all the way from England to visit us." He smirked. "Just goes to show you what happens when you have a crazy aunt who insists on marrying a foreigner."
"You must be Julian," the girl laughed. She was small and pretty, with blonde hair and blue eyes, which were rarely seen in Oradea. "Raul's told me so much about you."
"Not too much, I hope," I said lightly, at the same time giving Raul a warning look.
"Who's your friend?" Mary asked, indicating Victor, who had been standing there quietly the whole time.
"Oh, he's not--" I began.
"Victor Klaussen, at your service," he interrupted, taking her hand and kissing it. "I couldn't help overhearing that you're a newcomer like myself."
"Why, yes I am." She blushed, which made her twice as pretty as before. I ground my teeth. "Isn't it beautiful here?"
"Uh, Julian would be happy to show you around," Raul offered.
"Would you really?" she smiled radiantly. "That would be lovely. And Victor, you could come too."
Fortunately, he declined. "I'd like to, but I'm afraid I'll be busy the next few days, what with all the blasted unpacking to be done." He donned his hat and flashed her a rakish grin. "But I'd be happy if you're join me for dinner sometime next week, once I get settled."
"I'd like that," she said, while Raul and I exchanged helpless glances.
Victor inclined his head, then left along with most of the other townspeople. The rain had increased, and now thunder was rumbling in the distance. Raul opened his umbrella, and he and Mary huddled beneath it. I slipped my hands into my pockets and looked up at the sky. There would be a storm tonight. Maybe that would keep our resident vampire from causing trouble.
"Get under the umbrella, you idiot," Raul admonished. "You're gonna get sick." He knew very well that my vampire blood made me immune to all human illnesses, but I guess he was trying to cover up for my behavior, which must have seemed odd to Mary.
"There's room," she said, giving Raul a playful shove.
"In fact, why don't you have dinner at our house tonight?" Raul suggested. "We've been meaning to invite you for weeks, ever since we got that new mahogany table Father's so proud of."
"I can't leave Mother alone."
"Why not?" Mary asked, looking puzzled.
"Uh, nothing," Raul said quickly. So apparently she didn't know about the attacks. "Not a problem, Jules; you can bring her too."
So I found Mother and the four of us went to the Lizst's house, an impressive two-story structure which rivaled the mayor's in size. Mr. and Mrs. Lizst welcomed us over and over and half pushed us into our seats at the table. Mary sat across from me and tore happily into a chicken leg. My mother watched her in something akin to shock, and I stifled a laugh.
Fortunately, being only half vampire, I needed food as well as blood. I felt almost prim as I picked carefully at my meal, while Mary and the Lizsts consumed theirs in a matter of minutes and managed to talk while doing it, too.
"So Julian," said Mary, "Raul told me you teach the children here. Aren't you rather young? I mean, I'm sixteen, and I'm still attending the girls' school back home."
"Oh, Jules wants to be in school," Raul answered for me, "but the old headmaster died and there was no one else who knew enough to take his place."
"Julian wants to be a doctor," Mother said proudly.
"Why don't you go to a university?" asked Mary.
"Yeah, I'm going back to England with Mary in the spring," Raul said. "I hear Oxford has a great school of law."
"We don't have enough money for me to go," I sighed. And there was no way I'd leave Mother, especially not now.
By the time we had finished dinner, the rain was coming down in sheets, and lightning streaked across the sky every few seconds.
"I guess we'd better go before it gets any worse," said Mother, as if it could get any worse.
"Are you out of your mind, Elspeth?" Mrs. Lizst chided. "You can't go out there, let alone walk all the way to the other side of the town."
"Stay here for the night," Mr. Lizst offered. "We've got a guest room."
"Oh, well, I'd hate to--" Mother began.
"Sleepover!" Raul yelled, tackling me from behind like he used to do when we were children. That was the only way he could beat me in a fight, after all. "You're sleeping in my room!"
Mary put her hands on her hips. "You boys had better not keep me up with your carousing."
"Perhaps you'd like to carouse with us," Raul suggested, then winced when she slapped him.
~
That night I dreamed that I was lying on a cold stone floor, the ceiling miles overhead. Victor, of all people, stood nearby with my mother. He suddenly pulled her to him and kissed her. A trickle of blood ran from her mouth as she kissed him back. I struggled to get up, but was unable to move. Then Victor and my mother vanished and in their place was Mary. She leaned over me and shook me, saying things I couldn't hear. There was terror in her eyes. I tried to speak, but some force other than my own lifted my head and sunk my teeth into her warm neck. My entire body convulsed.
But the scream that woke me was not my own. It was too shrill, and too far away, as if it were coming from behind a wall. . . .
Almost before I knew what I was doing, I was out of bed and charging blindly down the hall. Her door was locked. I threw myself against it and crashed into the room.
A dark figure had Mary pinned to the floor, one hand pulling her hair back to expose her throat. "Help!" she screamed, reaching toward me.
I didn't need an invitation. I ran full force into her attacker, and the two of us rolled over the floor, grappling for each other's necks. I was caught off guard by his strength, which not only matched, but outdid mine. He slammed me against the walls again and again, knocking over furniture each time. A shard of broken glass sliced my hand as I scrambled off the floor. "Mary, run!" I shouted, right before he grabbed me again and snapped at my throat, missing by a hairsbreadth. I managaed to throw him off and stumble backwards.
A flash of lightning illuminated the room for a split second. The hood he wore obscured most of his face, but I caught the glimmer of sharp teeth that bore an eerie resemblance to my own. A gunshot shattered the air, then another. The vampire looked down at the bloodless holes in his chest and snarled. Then he leaped onto the windowsill and was gone before I could recover my wits enough to stop him.
Raul stood in the doorway, holding a rifle in his trembling hands. Mother and the Lizsts crowded in behind him, each trying to see over the others' shoulders. Mary, who had pressed herself into the corner farthest from the fight, now sank to the floor.
Ignoring the cascade of questions, I knelt beside her and touched her hand. "Did he hurt you?" I asked, trying to keep my voice steady.
"I--I'm fine," she whispered, then burst into tears.
"What happened?" Mrs. Lizst demanded for the umpteenth time.
"What's more important is what didn't happen," Mother said firmly. "Mary's safe, and that's all that matters. Now, if Raul will be so good as to lock that window, I think we should all go downstairs and give the poor girl some time to recover."
"Don't leave me," said Mary, clutching my hand as Mother half led, half pushed Mr. and Mrs. Lizst out of the room.
"I'm right here," I said, even daring to put my arms around her.
Raul reexamined the window several times before he was satisfied. "I think I'll hang onto this," he said, stroking the rifle. "Call me if that bastard decides to come back."
When he left, Mary buried her head in my shoulder and cried. I let her, partly out of sympathy and partly because I didn't know what else to do. Truth be told, I had never been this close to a girl before. The scent of her blood was distracting, as I hadn't had any all day and was beginning to get hungry. But I refused to even let myself think about that.
After a few minutes, she sat up and rubbed violently at her eyes. "I--I'm sorry," she said. "I don't know what's gotten into me."
"You're sure you're all right?"
She wrapped her around herself and nodded. "I was just so scared. If you hadn't come right when you did. . . . who was that, anyway?"
So I told her about the vampire, even about the two other women whom he'd killed. I hated to frighten her, but she had a right to know. when I finished, she sat in silence for several minutes, staring down at her hands.
"You saved my life," she said at last. "I just met you a few hours ago and you've already saved my life."
"Well, you know what they say," I replied with a slightly forced grin. "You don't get a second chance at a first impression."
She laughed a little, actually laughed. "I don't know exactly what my impression of you is. You're certainly . . . well, different."
How right she was. "Different in a good way?"
"You just saved me from getting stabbed in the neck and sucked dry. I don't think I'm in much of a position to be judging you."
I took that as a yes. "Well, now that I've saved your life and all, will you do one thing for me?"
She leaned her head on my shoulder and looked up at me, her eyes luminous in the darkness. "Anything."
"Then get some sleep," I said. "I think we've had enough excitement for one night."
She bit her lip uneasily, even as her eyelids drooped. "I honestly don't know if I could sleep, Julian. . . . I guess I'm still a little scared."
"Hey." I tentatively brushed a strand of golden hair away from her face. "The window's locked this time; Raul made sure of that. And I'm here. I won't let anything happen to you."
She smiled and closed her eyes. "Promise?"
For some reason, just holding her in my arms, feeling her warm body against my cold skin, made me feel like I could do anything. Just let that vampire come back. I'd teach him to pick on someone his own size. And I certainly wasn't going to let anything hurt Mary while I was still alive and breathing.
"I promise," I whispered.
~
Mary had barely escaped with her life that night, but I learned the next day that two more girls had paid for it with theirs.
Eighteen-year-old Gretchen Blonsky and her fifteen-year-old sister Katrina had fallen asleep on their front porch, and the only other person in the house was their deaf grandmother, who likely didn't know about the vampire. And some time in the night he had found them--no doubt after his failed attempt on Mary.
When Raul told me this news at the midday meal, I felt as if someone had stabbed a red-hot brand straight into my stomach. The vampire had been in my grasp, more than once. I had him, but I lost focus and let him escape. After which he had proceeded to murder two innocent girls, both friends of mine. Gretchen I'd gone to school with, and up until today I had been teaching Katrina. She was a brilliant artist and had dreamed of becoming a painter. . . .
I excused myself from the table and walked out into the street. I had slept late; it looked to be about one o'clock in the afternoon. The ground was still damp from the storm, but the sun had finally come out and was shining warmly on the wet rooftops. Many people passed me, but there was a marked difference in them, just as I had observed in the schoolchildren the day before. Their faces were almost haggard, and no one spoke.
An enormous sense of fatigue washed over me, and I realized for the first time since last night how badly I needed blood. I stumbled down an empty side street and leaned against the wall of a building. I closed my eyes and tried to shut out the images of that fanged, hooded figure that kept flashing through my mind. That was what my father had been. And that was what I could very well become.
Due to my heightened sense of hearing, I knew it was Mother approaching before I ever saw her. She came and stood next to me in silence.
"This is all my fault," I finally said. "If I hadn't let him get away, those girls would still be alive." She didn't deny it, and I was thankful for that. "That makes four dead, and almost five. If something isn't done about this, and fast, this vampire--whoever he is--is going to kill every last female in Oradea, right down to the five-year-old girls in my classroom." I slammed my fist into the wall, ignoring the sharp pain in my already injured hand. "Somebody ought to do something!"
"No one can do anything, Julian," Mother said quietly. "No one except you."
"Me?!" I exclaimed. "What do you mean?" I knew very well what she meant, but I was too afraid to accept it.
"You saved that girl's life last night," said Mother. "And you have the power to save others as well. Think about it, Julian. You fought him off single-handedly. How many here could have done that?" She cupped my cheek in her hand and gently turned my face so that I had to look her in the eyes. "You are the only person in this entire town who can stand up to him. Perhaps . . . perhaps you were gifted with the blood of a vampire for just such a time as this."
I swallowed hard. "Tell me what to do, Mother."
She laid her hands on my shoulders. "What does you heart tell you?"
To say I wasn't afraid would have been a flagrant lie. But I was tired of running, tired of hiding, tired of watching my world crumble around me and doing nothing to stop it. It was time to change, to take a stand.
"To fight," I said.
~
I ran all the way back to the Lizsts' house, mentally going over everything I knew about vampire hunting, which wasn't much. They were vulnerable but usually hidden during the day. They could only be killed by a stake through the heart. And I'd read somewhere that half-bloods, or dhampirs as they were sometimes called, made the best vampire hunters. Of course they had the advantages of superhuman strength and speed, but according to the source, they could also sense when a vampire was close at hand. I thought of my dream the night Mary was attacked. Had my sixth sense been warning me?
I ran into the kitchen, where Raul and his parents were still sitting at the breakfast table. I grabbed Raul and dragged him upstairs to his room.
"What on earth is this about?" he demanded as I shut and locked the door.
"I need your help with somehing."
"What?" he asked suspiciously. "And if you think I'm going to continue trying to set you up with Mary, you are--"
"I need you to help me catch this vampire," I said.
His jaw dropped. "Vampire hunting? You don't mean you want me to--"
"Yes, I do," I interrupted. "He has to be stopped before he kills any more, and I don't know if I can do it alone. Please, Raul."
"He took a deep breath. "I'm gonna regret this. . . ."
"Not if I can help it," I said. "Now, the first thing we need to do is go see that man we met yesterday. He said he knew a thing or two about vampires."
"Victor Klaussen?" Raul grimaced. "I thought you hated him, and with good reason."
"I do hate him," I said wryly, "but he might be able to help us track our vampire friend. Do you know where he lives?"
"No, but I can ask. Father!" he called over the banister. "Where did that Victor guy move in?"
"Right next to the herb shop," Mr Lizst replied. "In fact, Mary just left for his house fifteen minutes ago. Victor invited her and Mrs. Devereaux for a drive."
Raul rolled his eyes. "Obviously he's trying to court her and needed a chaperone," he muttered.
"Maybe if we hurry we can catch them before they leave," I suggested.
So we took off down the street, though I had to slow my pace considerably so as not to leave Raul behind. when we arrived at Victor's house and knocked on the door, it creaked open. Apparently he'd forgotten to close it, something my mother was always doing. Perhaps it was typical of doctors.
I glanced inside, but there was no one to be seen. "Hello?" I called. "Mr. Klaussen?"
Still no answer. I stepped inside, followed by Raul.
"He must not be home," he whispered. "We should probably go."
Normally I would have agreed to this, but something caught my eye: a gold and emerald bracelet that lay on the floor.
Raul saw it too. "Hey, isn't that the bracelet Mrs. Malkov always wore?"
It had to be; no one else in Oradea could have possibly afforded it. I picked it up and examined it. "Why would Victor have this?"
Raul was sticking his head into various rooms and closets. "And that's not all he has," he said, showing me a small white glove with a small brown stain on one finger. "Look familiar?"
My breath caught in my throat. "Katrina. She burned it at school a few months ago when she was trying to light the fire."
Raul and I looked at each other, then simultaneoulsy raced into what looked like Victor's bedrroom and began tearing open drawers, boxes, suitcases, anything we could get a hold of. In his closet I found a silk box full of women's accessories: jewelry, gloves, hatpins, even a pair of slippers. There was a dark red stain on one necklace. I knew by the intoxicating scent that it was blood.
"Found anything?" Raul asked me.
"More than I wanted to." I handed him the box. "Either he's a master thief, or . . ." My voice trailed off as I saw the corner of a painting peeping out from under a swath of velvet cloth. I ripped it away, and my heart almost stopped.
It was a portrait of my mother at the age of seventeen, an exact copy of the one that hung in our living room.
"It's him," I whispered. Then I was screaming. "It's him! He killed all those people and raped my mother!"
Raul caught my arms. "It's okay, Jules. It's okay, we'll find him. We'll stop him."
I clutched him, my entire body shaking. "Raul, it's him. It's him. He--he--" I shut my eyes and clenched my teeth. "He's my father," I whispered.
Raul held me for a moment, talking soothingly and trying to calm me down. My thoughts and emotions mingled and tumbled over each other, so that I could hardly even think straight. But somehow one thought managed to make itself heard above the rest. "Raul." I stared at him as the horror of the situation crashed down on me. "My mother and Mary are with him."
"Oh my God. . . ." He looked desperately at me. "How are we gonna find them in time?"
I looked toward the window. The sun was already nearing the horizon. A vampire was strongest under cover of darkness. But would Victor even wait that long?
I closed my eyes again and did my best to just stand still. There had to be some way I could sense him. . . .
There. I caught a scent, a sweet, subtle fragrance like an exotic perfume. . . . My mind flashed back to the previous day, when I shook hands with him at the funeral. If I could just follow that . . . .
I grabbed Raul's arm. "Follow me."
"But how--" he began, stumbling after me.
"I can smell him," I said as we ran out into the street.
A set of hoof marks were imprinted in the mud, leading away from the house. We followed these out of the town, all the way to the edge of the forest, where they stopped. Sure enough, a black horse was tethered to a nearby tree, still harnessed to the carriage. I cut it loose and swung myself onto its back.
"Get on," I said, extending my hand.
I pulled him up behind me and snapped the reins, and we were off. I wasn't the most skilled horseman, and we had several close calls with tree trunks and low branches. Just running would have been both easier and faster for me, but I wasn't willing to leave Raul with a vampire close by. And Victor had to be close. His scent was growing stronger as we plunged deeper and deeper into the forest. I even spotted a piece of torn lace hanging from a bush, no doubt from the hem of the dress Mary had been wearing.
It disturbed me how careless Victor was being. It was almost as if he wanted me to find him. It occured to me that perhaps that was what he had wanted all along: to eliminate the only person standing between him and total control of Oradea. His son. His heir. His mortal enemy.
If that were so, then Mary and my mother must be the bait. Horrible as it was, this provided me with a glimmer of hope. They were there to lure me in, and he wouldn't kill them until he had first killed me. And I had no intention of letting that happen.
Still following the scent, we galloped a narrow mountain path. Twilight had fallen by now, and with it came snow. The icy flakes whipped against my face and got into my eyes, briefly obscuring my vision. Already weakened from hunger, I swayed and would have fallen if Raul hadn't steadied me.
"Julian," he said suddenly. "Stop."
There was something in his voice that made me pull the horse to a halt immediately. Walls of stone rose up on either side of us, but just ahead the girge opened up to a broad cliff. Beyond it was a steep drop-off, a chasm in the chain of mountains. A single, leafless tree with claw-like branches stoof near the edge.
I breathed in the cold air. The frangrance was almost overpowering now. Then I saw the dark figure standing in the snow, not ten yards away.
"It's him," I said again, staring blankly at his elegant form silhouetted against the whiteness.
"Julian, remember, you have to be careful," Raul was saying, but I hardly heard him.
I slid off the horse and walked slowly forward, my breath turning to pale smoke in the air. Victor stood unnaturally still and watched me.
I stepped out into the open, then stopped. There we stood, father and son, vampire and half-blood, barely ten feet apart. But right when I expected all my conflicting emotions to rush forward and consume me, all I felt was a strange calmness. No, not calmness. I was far from calm. But a sense of determination overrode everything else that fought for attention in my heart and head. The moment of truth.
"So you've come," Victor said.
"Where are they?" I asked.
"Oh, don't worry," he replied. "They're quite safe . . . for the moment, at least."
"Raul! Julian!" I heard Mary scream. She seemed to materialize out of the snow as she ran toward us.
Victor reached out and caught her, pulling her effortlessly to him. She struggled frantically as he carressed her hair. "You see?" he said to me. "Alive and well."
Suppressing my anger, I said, "And my mother?"
"I believe she fainted not too long ago." The hint of a smile played on his lips. "The cold must have been too much for her."
Sure enough, I could now make out my mother's slight form lying in the snow. She didn't appear to be hurt, but the sight still fanned the flames that were beginning to burn inside me.
"What do you want, Victor?" I asked.
"Well, I want this pretty little trinket, for one thing," he said, slipping one hand under Mary's chin. She jerked her head away. "I also want your mother. I've waited long enough for a taste of her blood. If the scent is anything to go by, it'll be delicious."
If it hadn't been for Raul's restraining hand on my arm, I might very well have attacked Victor right then and there. "What else?"
He thrust Mary behind him and slowly approached me. "To be honest, my son, I want to kill you."
"Raul, get back," I murmured.
"But I'll give you a choice," Victor continued. "Get out of here nw, leave Oradea and never return, and I'll spare not only you but these two lovely ladies as well. Oh, and let's not forget that ridiculous friend of yours."
"And if I don't?" I said quietly.
He raised an eyebrow. "That would be unwise." There was a faint growl in his voice. "Must more innocent people die for you?"
I said nothing, refusing to let him see how he had stung me.
"You needn't try to play the hero," he sneered. "I can smell the blood in you. Human blood, but not all your own. Admit it, Julian. You and I, we're more alike than you want to believe."
"I'm nothing like you," I retorted.
"Are you not?" he said softly. "Then you must choose. Leave me in peace and everyone lives happily ever; fight back and you all die." He and I were practically face to face now, so that I had nowehere to look but straight into his golden eyes. "Make your choice, my son."
"Never," I said.
For one instant, I caught a glimpse of his eyes as they narrowed to glittering slits. Then he hurled himself at me.
I was thrown backward into the snow and landed with him on top of me. We clawed at each other like wild animals, his sharp nails slashing my face. I wriggled out from beneath him and ran to Mother. She was breathing; that was all I had time to look for. I pushed her limp body out of the way just as he charged at me again. I met him head on, and this time I kept my footing. His teeth clamped down on my arm. I yanked it away, tearing a gash in the skin, and swung at him. He ducked, then came back up and hit me on the cheekbone. The force of the blow sent me reeling backwards, dangerously close to the edge of the cliff. He grabbed me and attempted to push me over, but I threw all my weight against him and carried us both away from the chasm. He jerked free and danced out of my reach, laughing maniacally.
"You know, it's been so long since I tasted Elspeth's lips," he said. "That was one night I'll never forget. Of course, I might not have enjoyed it so much if I'd known it would bring you into existence, but once you're out of the way, I'll be sure to relive it--again, and again, and again. . . ."
I knew he was trying to make me angry so I would lose control and do something stupid. And it was working, at least partially. I was furious. But I knew that if I didn't stay rational, if I gave in to the vampire within me, I wouldn't stand a chance against him. So as we circled each other, I attempted to set my thoughts in order. Then I remembered something. A stake through the heart, the only way to kill a vampire. My eyes flashed first to the dead tree, then to Raul, who was holding Mary and anxiously watching the fight.
"Raul!" I shouted hoarsely. "Get me a branch!"
Victor's face contorted. He leaped at me and slammed my head and shoulders against the ground over and over. My vision blurred, and I tasted my own blood in my mouth. I groped blindly for his neck, but he found mine first and began squeezing. I gasped for breath.
There was a loud crack. Victor's grip loosened, and he jumped to his feet. Raul stood behind him, wielding a straight, sharp stick. Victor lunged at him, but Raul backpedaled and threw the stake to me.
Victor looked at me with murder in his eyes, but this time he didn't attack me. Instead he turned suddenly and seized Mary around the waist, carrying her bodily to the edge of the cliff. Raul and I both froze.
Victor laughed again, the sound reverberating off the mountainsides along with the howling wind. "You can just stop right there, gentlemen. One more step and she's gone."
"Let her go!" Raul shouted.
Victor smiled. "As you wish." And he let go.
I was moving before she had even begun to fall. Hardly knowing what I was doing, I fell onto my stomach at the edge and caught her wrist with my left hand, still clutching the branch in my right. I pulled her up and into my arms. Vistor threw himself at us, teeth bared in a soundless snarl.
And I stabbed the stake into his heart.
He sank to his knees, the branch still protruding from his chest. He locked eyes with me. THe baleful amber light glittered once more, then went out. He fell forward into the snow.
I sat there for a moment, breathing heavily. Then I too collapsed.
Raul and Mary knelt beside me, inquiring anxiously if I was hurt. My arm was indeed bleeding, and for that matter most of my body was cut and bruised, but what I felt worst of all was the desperate thirst for blood. During the fight my adrenaline had been too high for me to notice it, but now I had barely enough strength to speak.
"Raul," I whispered. "Get Mother onto the horse. She'll freeze to death if we leave her there."
When he left, Mary touched my forehead carefully. "Julian, you're cold as ice."
"Mary, there's something you should know," I said. "I--I'm--"
"Half vampire? I know." She smiled sadly. "I figured it out somewhere between the blinding speed and Victor calling you his son."
Well, at least that part was out of the way. "Mary, I know this sounds horrible, but I can't go very long at all without blood. I don't know when the last time I drank was. . . . You'll have to go on without me. The horse can't possibly carry four, and I won't last much longer anyway."
There was no fear or revulsion in her eyes as she looked at me. Only pity, sadness, and something else I couldn't quite define. Whatever it was, it made her whole face glow even in the darkness. She slowly unlaced her collar. "Drink mine," she said.
I stared at her in shock. "I might not be able to stop."
"You've saved my life twice, Julian," she said softly. "And so help me, I'm going to save yours." She lifted my head and pressed it to her warm neck. "I'm not afraid."
I took a deep breath and sunk my teeth into her flesh.
She winced, but no sound escaped her. She even laid her hand on mine and held it tightly. And I drank, long and deep. It was like life rushing back into my veins. Everything in me wanted to keep drinking, to drain every last drop of her vibrant blood until there was nothing left of her but a dry husk. But I thought of my mother, of Mrs. Malkov, of Gretchen and Katrina, of the girl who died on my kitchen table, whose name I still didn't know and probably never would.
And somehow that gave me the strength to stop.
Mary pressed a hand to the small wound in her neck, as if to assure herself it was real. Then she took the hem of her dress and gently dabbed the blood from my lips.
I leaned forward and kissed her in the falling snow.
~
The people of Oradea called me a hero.
Maybe it was true. After all, there was no telling how many lives had been saved by Victor's death. But a hero is someone who does good even when they don't have to. I had to. I couldn't have done anything else and lived with myself. So I never felt exactly comfortable when they referred to me a hero.
But I must admit, whenever Mary kissed me, I could almost believe I was one.
When she and Raul left for England in the spring, Mother and I went with them. Mary's father was a professor at Oxford, and upon hearing a likely magnified account of how I'd saved his daughter's life, he insisted on granting me a full scholarship to the university. I accepted. After all, I couldn't pass up the chance to be with Mary and attend the best college in Europe.
It hurt a little to leave Oradea. But there was some comfort in knowing that the people--everyone from old Mrs. Lizst to little Gretel--were finally safe.
Sometimes, I guess, you have to almost lose something in order to find it.
And somewhere in there, I realized that maybe, just maybe, I could be a vampire and a human being too.
After all, I am bound to both by blood.
~
). Or SOMETHING. Having this kind of power at your fingertips (while surrounded by beings that are, in every single way, inferior to you) and not using it is absolutely and completely unbelievable, and there is no way in heck I can ever connect with the character (and this is a very bad thing when you're writing in first person, because the whole point is to create a more intimate connection between the reader and the POV character). Is his mother stopping him? Wouldn't he be bitter about having these powers and not being able to use them? Wouldn't this create tension between him and his mom? The only thing he does with his powers is he acts all passive-aggressive about them, slowly and lovingly rubbing them in my face ("...pretended to feel her weight...", "...I would've been faster if I was on foot...") and never using any of them until the very end. Then, just to top it all off, he actually acts as if it is a great tragedy for him that he's a half-vampire. Whyyyyy. I wouldn't mind super strength. I wouldn't mind intelligence. I wouldn't mind disease invulnerability. What makes it so bad?
