Disclaimer: All recognizable characters from Dark Shadows belong to Dan Curtis Productions Inc. All original characters belong to me.

Chapter 1

"Welcome to the Collins Hotel. If I could just have your name I will let you know what room you're in and have Bowles here show you to your room," the desk clerk said.
"Cunningham. James Cunningham.. And be sure that my room is exactly seventy-five degrees before I go in," the guest said, in an extremely high and mighty tone of voice.
"Yes sir," the clerk replied with much disdain. "Here we are. Room 53. Bowles will show you to your room. Thank you for staying at the Collins Hotel, and enjoy your stay. If you need anything, anything at all, simply call down to the desk and I will be sure to accommodate you."
Mr. Cunningham nodded, and, sticking his nose as far into the air as his neck would allow, he followed the bellhop down the hall and to the elevator. Mr. Saul, the clerk at the desk, knew even before he offered, that within five minutes in his room, Mr. Cunningham would be ringing his phone. He was used to it. The Collins Hotel had become a luxury and distinguished hotel ever since it made the Travel Channels 'Top 5 Most Luxurious Hotels' list, as well as Home and Garden Magazine's 'Most Striking Lawn and Garden Award' for its wonderful gardens and paths throughout upstate New York's forests.
Quentin Collins, who was behind the visage of the hotel, had built a lavish mansion, which was quite massive at first look, but rather homey at second. The main house was 15,000 square feet, with east and west wings of 10,000 square feet each. The wings of the house were connected to the main house by long, enclosed walkways, approximately 180 yards in length. In walking these long breezeways, one could gaze out into the gardens, or across the vast fields of the estate. There was also a smaller cottage which housed very rich guests who valued privacy in a measly 9,000 square feet. The cottage was about a mile away from the main part of the estate, nestled in the middle of a semi-circle formed by the forest. Through the windows in the back of the cottage, one could observe the wildlife in the woods or in one's private garden, and through the windows in the front, one could watch the sunrise or set across a gigantic lake.
Quentin, along with wife Kathleen and sister Carolyn, lived on the upper two floors of the main house. The first floor of the main house was used as the lobby for the hotel, while the east and west wings were used to house the guests. Quentin and Kathleen Collins, who had been married for nearly 4 years now, lived on the uppermost floor, in the 5,000 square foot penthouse. Carolyn, who lived on the second floor of the main house, lived also in 5,000 square feet of space, but had converted her area into a less modern, more cozy home. One would never think that behind all the happiness, luxury and wealth portrayed by the hotel, there would be many secrets, much pain and fear, and a never ending realization that one day, it would all end.
It had been five years ago when the nightmare that haunted Quentin's dreams every night had happened, something that he and his sister Carolyn would never forget. Kathleen knew a little about what had happened, but not the entire story. The media attention to what had happened in the small town of Collinsport, Maine, had been great, but many of the reports did not dare to get within a mile of the town, which once had been bustling and full of life, but was now nothing more than a large black crater. Everyone had heard one story or another of what had truly happened there, but no one knew that what had happened there was entirely Quentin Collins' fault. Only Quentin and Carolyn knew that. And neither acknowledged it. Carolyn didn't want to make her brother feel guilty, and Quentin wished not to think of it. In fact, he had forbade any kind of talk of anything about Collinsport on his property, and anyone who had spoken of it, faced severe consequences.
A series of murders had taken place in Collinsport, committed by the spirit of Maggie Evan's mother, who every night would emerge from her immortal painting to do the devils work. Quentin Collins had disappeared for quite some time, living in the state of Georgia, only to be driven back home by his ruined reputation there. Invisible to everyone except for Quentin, were a sort of ghost. These ghosts haunted Quentin day and night, and he could not escape them, so he left his home in Georgia only to return to Collinsport in horrible mental health. Quentin soon found out that his heavy drinking habits were not only costing him his liver, but costing other people there lives. The devil had been using Quentin as a vessel, cursing any and all liquor that he drank. Every bottle of liquor that Quentin downed was representative of all the blood in some innocent civilians body. When the bottle was empty, the innocent's body was empty of blood, and they died. The devil then collected the souls. He needed a certain number of souls in order to return to the human realm of earth, to wreak his evil havoc, and make earth his playground.
With the help of an ally, Andron, Quentin slowed his drinking habits, prompting the devil to call upon his servant, Maggie's mother, to commit a few murders in order to fill up his soul bank. However, Andron's efforts weren't quite good enough, and the devil was able to coax Quentin into murdering John Crosic, the only man that Maggie Evans had loved since her husband, Joe Haskell was killed. In a final confrontation, Maggie's mother was unable to kill John Crosic because a small amount of decency found it's way into her, and made her feel guilty for killing Joe Haskell 5 years earlier. So, the devil sent Maggie's mother to Quentin to persuade him to kill John Crosic. Quentin agreed, believing it would free him from all the damage he had caused, only, Quentin couldn't go through with killing John or Maggie, and left John, nearly dead, on the floor of his home for Maggie to find.
However, the devil managed to collect enough souls, and Quentin while he was at it, trapping Quentin, and the witch turned angel Angelique, in his hell dimension while he ascended to earth. Angelique, in a last ditch effort to serve her Lord, and make up for the enormous amount of damage she had caused while she was a witch, erected a barrier around the town of Collinsport, successfully holding nearly all of the devil's evil, vaporizing energy, within the boundaries of Collinsport, and saving the planet. Only a few small towns were barely hit through holes split in Angelique's shield. Sadly, Angelique did not make it through the fight, and the entire town of Collinsport was vaporized, everyone in it killed instantly. Only Carolyn and Quentin escaped, somehow, with their lives.
Quentin and Carolyn did not bother looking for survivors for they knew there were none, given that everything in the town had been turned to nothing more than a pile of ash, and the great house of Collinwood itself had imploded, sinking into a huge crater. Quentin moved to upstate New York and bought 200 acres of land, on which he built the massive mansion. Carolyn never understood why he had built such a large mansion when, at the time, it was just she and Quentin, and possibly their cousin David Collins, who would be staying there. Quentin offered no explanation to his sister. When Quentin and Kathleen met and became engaged, Kathleen suggested the Quentin invest into turning the mansion into an exclusive hotel, and in doing so Quentin would not have to worry about income. He agreed and with Kathleen's decorative assistance, made the mansion the luxurious hotel it became.
Quentin Collins met Kathleen Pennock through a lost cat. Kathleen had come home from work in the local country store one evening, only to find her cat, Buttons, waiting for her at the door. Buttons ran out as soon as Kathleen opened the door, and wouldn't come back when called. Kathleen searched through the woods for hours, only to run into Quentin who was holding and scratching a purring Buttons, who looked casual as ever in Quentin's arms. A look into each other's eyes was all that was needed before they knew they would have to see each other again.
Six months after they began dating, Quentin proposed in a lagoon date. They were both sitting in a blue canoe, surrounded by falling leaves and candles floating in the water, which Quentin appropriately arranged. The ring which Quentin gave to Kathleen was a 32 karat blue diamond with a gold band. Kathleen instantly said yes, and four months later they were married. Kathleen designed a very traditional wedding ceremony. Quentin wore a black tuxedo and Kathleen wore a flowing white dress which was strapless, and frilled out between her hip line and her knees. The ceremony was outdoors, and Quentin had a pier built especially for the occasion, which was vast enough to seat 300 people with ample room for the bridesmaids and groomsmen as well as the bride and groom and pastor. The honey moon was in Alaska, and lasted two weeks.
Now they led the high life, with invitations from the who's who among businessmen and those in Hollywood, flowing into their mailboxes. Quentin knew Kathleen enjoyed it all, whereas he was used to all the glitz and glamour to a certain point, being part of the richest family in the northeast.