~V~V~
~Cast List of All Main Characters~
Characters from the 1790's:
Barnabas Collins: After the death of his parents, Barnabas is trying to hold his family together. He falls under the evil spell of a servant, Angelique Bouchard. When she does not win his love, she sentences him to a dark fate.
Victoria Winters: During a seance, Victoria returns to the year 1795. In a twisted chain of events, she is accused of witchcraft.
Todd Manning: He is the cousin of Barnabas Collins. He is set to wed Marty Saybrooke in a prearranged marriage orchestrated by her aunt Kiki and his aunt Abigail. Before he can find happiness with Marty, he must face eternal darkness.
Margaret 'Marty' Saybrooke: Marty travels across the ocean to marry Todd Manning. Although she falls in love with him, darkness and tragedy await the young lovers.
John McBain: John has been a vampire for many centuries. He's a very powerful, dark figure. He has a lust for beautiful women. He comes to love a woman but sacrifices his own happiness to let her find hers.
Quentin Collins: Cursed to live an eternal life without love, Quentin is angry and vengeful. All of his male decendants will pay the price of his selfishness. He is the distant cousin of Barnabas Collins.
Abigail Collins: Abigail is Barnabas and Sarah's wicked aunt. After the death of their parents, she is the guardian of young Sarah. Her best friend is Kiki Saybrooke.
Katherine "Kiki" Saybrooke: Kiki practically sold her niece into marriage to Todd Manning, Abigail Collin's nephew. She is viscious and cruel to her brother's orphaned daughter.
Reverend Trask: Reverend Trask enters Collinwood at the request of Abigail Collins to perform an exorcism. He is out to prove by any means necessary that Victoria Winters is a witch.
Sarah Collins: Sarah is the sweet, innocent little sister of Barnabas Collins. She will suffer greatly because of Angelique's evil plans.
Angelique Bouchard: Hateful and wicked, Angelique will stop at nothing to make Barnabas Collins fall in love with her. She consults the powers of evil and black magic to manipulate the man she longs to make her own.
Characters from the 1990's:
Barnabas Collins: After being chained for nearly 2 centuries in a coffin inside the family mausoleum, Barnabas escapes with a lust for blood. He ends up face-to-face with Victoria Winters, a woman he came to desire in the 1790's.
Victoria Winters: Found outside an orphanage in New York on a cold night, Victoria was given the last name Winters because that was the season in which she had been abandoned. A note had accompanied her which said, "Her name is Victoria. I cannot take care of her " She longs to find the true identity of her parents. Blair Cramer invites Victoria to serve as a nanny to her son Sam in the dark mansion on the crest of Widow's Hill.
Todd Manning: Haunted by his past love, vampire Todd Manning went to England nearly two centuries ago to escape the memories. He returns to his family's home in Collinsport to find that fate has returned his love to him...
Margaret "Marty" Saybrooke: Orphaned at a very young age, Marty works at the Collinsport Inn as a waitress. She lives with Dr. Wolek, her adopted father. Vampire Todd Manning takes an interest in her considering her striking resemblance to his past love, the original Marty who died in the 1790's. He soon discovers she is the reincarnation of the woman he loved.
Doctor Larry Wolek: Dr. Wolek is a devoted doctor and a caring adoptive father to Marty Saybrooke. He is searching diligently for a cure for vampirism.
John McBain: John and Blair are making a step toward commitment, but she doesn't know his darkest secret. He has an incredible thirst for both blood and sex.
Blair Cramer: Blair is fiercely protective of her family. She lives in fear that the shadows of her past will return to haunt her. She is the mother of Starr, Jack, and Sam Manning.
Sabrina Stuart: Sabrina returns to Collinsport after a long absense. She's greatly traumatized and eager to rebuild her shattered life. She's the love interest of Chris Jennings.
Chris Jennings: Chris Jennings had returned to Collinsport after the death of his twin brother Tom. Unfortunately, he's been unable to give proper care to his younger sister Amy. He lives in the Rose Cottage on the Collinwood Estate. He's just discovered the frightening secret of his heritage.
Starr Manning: Starr is the teenage daughter of Blair Cramer. She is rebellious and fun-loving. Her mother struggles to control her wild ways.
Cole Thornhart: Cole Thornhart is the boyfriend of Starr Manning. The leader of a motorcyle gang, he's not the type of boyfriend Blair would like for her daughter.
Jack Manning: Jack is the angry and trouble-making son of Blair Cramer. He hates Cole, his sister's boyfriend.
Sarah Collins: Sarah returns in the 1990's as a ghostly presence to protect and befriend Sam Manning and his playmate Amy Jennings. Her spirit cannot rest until her brother Barnabas finds happiness.
Amy Jennings: Young Amy is traumatized by the early loss of her parents. She's the sister of Chris Jennings. She lives at Collinwood with Blair Cramer.
Sam Manning: Sam is the adorable adopted son of Blair Cramer. His parentage is a mystery.
~V~V~
~Chapter One~
(1993)
On a dark and dreary night, grave-robber Willie Loomis stepped into Eagle Hill Cemetery. Rows of withered graves were to his left and right as he walked toward the Collins family mausoleum. Moonlight shone brightly upon a tall, narrow stone in a almost ghostly-white light. Willie's flashlight's beam had landed upon the letters engraved in the stone. "Margaret Anne Saybrooke Manning - Born 1767 - Died 1795" it read. A shiver ran up Willie's spine as a fog rolled in from the distance. He had to hurry with the task at hand before daylight came to Collinsport.
Using tools from his case, Willie broke the lock on the stone mausoleum. He stepped inside to find three stone caskets. The interior of the room was dark and damp as he shone his flashlight upon the names engraved before each of the caskets. "Joshua, Naomi, and Sarah Collins," Willie spoke aloud. As though the ghosts of the past were angry with his trespassing, the door swung to and fro in the breeze, striking loudly against the stone outside the mausoleum. Willie was scared, but his greed was much stronger. In the caskets, the family was supposed to have been buried with their jewelry and all their treasures. Willie had seen pictures, and he wanted those jewels.
Willie tried to pry the cover off the middle coffin with his crowbar, but luck wasn't on his side. The stone cover would not budge. In his desperation, he tied a length of rope to the iron ring in the lion's mouth over the center casket's plaque. He tied the other end of the rope to the matching iron ring on the top of the center casket's lid. Using all his stength, Willie used the crowbar to tug upon the rope, hoping to free the lid from the bed of casket. A terrible scraping sound met his ears, but it was not the sound of the lid raising as he had hoped. He had opened a panel which lead to a hidden room in the back of the mausoleum. The room had originally been used to store weapons and ammunition during the Revolutionary War, but now it had a far different purpose. As Willie stepped into the small dark room, he discovered a large black coffin with chains wrapped around it tightly. Curiosity got the better of him, and Willie decided he would open the casket and see what may be inside.
"I am gonna find that onyx ring that belonged to Barnabas Collins after all," Willie predicted, although Barnabas had been said to have gone to England with his cousin Todd Manning around two hundred years ago. Barnabas was believed to be buried in England somewhere, but with the discovery of this coffin in the mausoleum, Willie wondered if the rumors had been true. He had a feeling that this coffin within this hidden room had something to do with Barnabas Collins.
Willie used his metal cutting tools to break through the links of the chains. It wasn't long before the chains broke free from around the casket. As they fell to the floor with a crash, Willie was excited about what he though would be his good fortune. He just knew he was going to find the missing Collins jewels. Little did he know that something far more frightening awaited him inside the casket.
With a creeking sound, Willie pulled open the lid of the casket. There, lying on it's velvet interior lay the man he had seen in all the portraits at Collinwood. It was Barnabas Collins himself. He looked pale and frightening as Willie stared at his oval face. As Willie reached out to nab the onyx ring upon his finger, Barnabas's eyes snapped open as he stared at the intruder who had stepped into his tomb. He had been imprisoned in the hidden room of the mausoleum for nearly two hundred years and he had an insatiable lust for blood. As his fangs sunk into Willie's neck, only the sound of the grave robber's terrified screams could be heard.
(Three Nights Later)
Blair Cramer lived at Collinwood, the looming forty-room mansion located near Widows' Hill. She had just gotten her son Sam to bed for the evening. She kissed his little cheek, then went across the hall to check on adorable little Amy. Amy was sleeping peacefully as well, hugging her porcelain doll. "Rest well, sweetie," said Blair as she tucked the blankets around the orphaned little girl. Ever since Amy's parents had died, and her brother Chris hadn't been able to care for her, Blair had become Amy's guardian. Chris came by to see Amy often, but the little girl often seemed incredibly sad and alone in the world. Who knows what may have happened to little Amy if Blair hadn't given her a loving home.
Blair walked downstairs to the foyer as there was someone knocking persistently at the door. "Who could that be at this hour?" Blair gasped as she rushed over toward the front door. The road leading up to Collinwood was a steep and treacherous one with a great deal of turns. Blair didn't generally receive many guests at this time of the night.
Blair threw open the door to see a man standing in the doorway. Shock registered on her face as she stared at him. "Barnabas Collins?" came her gasp.
"How did you know my name?" he asked her in his rich English accent.
"I- I have seen your face in all the portraits."
"Ahhh, yes. He was my ancester, the orginal Barnabas Collins. He moved to England nearly two hundred years ago, and I am his decendant. I am your cousin from England, and I have come across the ocean to visit you," he said as he shook her hand. "I am pleased to make your acquaintance."
Blair remained in a state of shock as the man introduced himself. Finally, she remembered her manners. "Please do come in," she said as she lead him into the living room of the mansion. "I did not know that any of the Collins family still existed in England."
"There are a few of us left, but not many. Most of the family has died or moved away, so I chose to move back here to the family's place of origin so I could meet my relatives who live here in Collinsport. Your home is quite beautiful," Barnabas spoke charmingly.
"Thank you," Blair said with a smile. "How long will you be staying in Collinsport?"
"Forever I hope," said Barnabas with a deep laugh.
Just then, two beautiful young women entered the room. One had flowing dark hair and exotic bright blue eyes, and the other had hair of spun gold and amber eyes matching Blair's. "Your daughters, I presume?" Barnabas said as he lay his hungry gaze upon both of the lovely young women.
"Uhhh.. actually, this young lady is Victoria Winters, my son's nanny," responded Blair as she introduced Vickie to Barnabas.
She then put her arm around the beautiful blond teenager. "This is Starr, my daughter," Blair stated.
"You are both quite lovely," Barnabas spoke as he took Vickie's small hand in his and raised it up to his lips. Vickie felt her heart pounding wildly in her chest when Barnabas brushed his lips across the back of her hand.
"Barnabas, you will be staying with us here at Collinwood?" Blair offered.
"No, I should like to stay at the Old House, if that would be alright with you. It's in a terrible state of disrepair, and I would like to live there and restore it to it's former beauty. It was once the home of our cousin, Todd Manning and his bride Margaret Saybrooke two centuries ago. The original Barnabas lived there as well," he said to Blair.
Blair was surprised by his request to live at the Old House and restore it back to it's original form, but he was very charming and persuasive and she found herself unable to say 'no.' "You may stay at the Old House if you would like," Blair responded. "It's in terrible shape, but maybe you can keep it from decay. It's such a beautiful old home and I'd hate to see it destroyed."
"I'd hate that as well," Barababas agreed.
"Well, I must be going," he then said. "I have taken up enough of your time." He kissed Blair's hand, then Starr's as well. Finally, he settled his gaze upon Vickie. As she stared into his eyes, she was mesmorized by him. What kind of power or hold did this man have over her? She did not know, but she only longed to get to know him better.
"Come by anytime," he said as his gaze remained on Vickie.
"Good night," said Blair as she walked him over to the door.
After he had gone, Blair turned to look at Starr and Vickie. "What do you make of that?" she asked quietly.
"He seems like such a lonely man," Victoria responded. She decided to make it a point to go and visit Barnabas at the Old House very soon.
(Nearly One Month Later)
Todd Manning arrived in Collinsport. So much had changed in the past two hundred years since he had set foot upon the soil of New England, but many of the landmarks remained the same. He arrived at Collinwood in the darkness of night and knocked upon the door. Moments later the door opened and there stood Blair Cramer.
"Who are you?" she asked.
"I am Todd Manning... and I am back," he responded.
"Todd Manning? As in THE Todd Manning, my ancestor who moved to England nearly two centuries ago?"
"Yes. I am his decendant."
Blair stared at him with visible shock. "Wait..." she said in a gasp. "Barnabas Collins, a decendant of the original Barnabas arrived in Collinsport about a month ago. He's staying at the Old House and he-."
Before she could get the words out, Todd was gone. She shook her head to clear it. It seemed a lot of strange things happened here in Collinsport- like the odd disappearance of the grave robber, Willie Loomis. For over a month, the authorities had been looking for him.
Todd arrived at The Old House and stepped through the front door. As he walked into the parlor, he felt as though he had come home. The room was beautiful in the dancing candlelight, but something was missing. Her portrait was missing from over the fireplace.
He turned swiftly, seeing Barnabas standing directly behind him. "You've come back," Barnabas said as a smile overtook his face.
"And I thought they destroyed you," Todd responded.
"They nearly did, but I don't go down that easily."
Todd sank down in a chair next to the fire as he stared into the flames. "Something called me back here. I had to return..."
Barnabas stared into his cousin's eyes knowingly. "She isn't here. She has gone."
"I can feel her here; her presence. She haunts these halls."
"You went to England to forget her."
"Yes, I know... but I haven't. And I never will," said Todd as he reached for the chain he wore around his neck. For two centuries he had carried her wedding band upon a chain around his neck. Barnabas just shook his head, for he feared Todd would never let her go.
