Chapter 2

Appearing in the center of the drawing room of the old house Barnabas surprised the new tenants. The male a heavyset gypsy stood and blustered. "How dare you enter our home!" Barnabas was quick and grabbed him by his throat lifting him off his feet he dragged him to Barnabas' chest, bent his head and bit deeply into his neck. Barnabas only took enough blood to get him under control. Releasing him Barnabas stepped back. "Now, who else lives here?" Barnabas stepped to the fireplace and looked with disgust at how badly the house had deteriorated. It had seen far better days than now.

Sandor Rakosi shifted uneasily and weakly on his legs. "My wife Magda. She is over at the big house because the proud lady of the house Mirs Harriett wanted her cards read." Barnabas turned looking around at the condition of the house. Walking to the stairs he cringed at the thought Josette's room was a wreck. Turning back he walked to the cellar and noted it was locked.

"Where is the key to the cellar?" He demanded. Looking around he knew he could not allow Victoria to come back here until this place was cleaned from top to bottom. He spun around and glared at Sandor. "Well, what happened to the furnishings and the key to this door?" Barnabas forcefully walked towards Sandor and noted he huddled back from him.

"I . . . I don't know. Magda were given permission to live here for a while as long as we were here in this dark place." Sandor turned around and walked to the entrance to the drawing room. "The furniture was taken to the third floor attic. The place was filled with spiders, wild life, and rats. We only took three rooms upstairs at the back of the house." He watched the dark one pace back and forth as he spoke.

"I want you to come with me, you will need to bring a wagon, do you have one?" Barnabas needed to move Vicki back here as soon as possible and out of the mausoleum and he needed his coffin hidden and knew he could temporarily use the secret room behind the bookshelves in the drawing room. He looked at Sandor and waited for his answer.

"Yes, we have a wagon and a horse. I will go hitch the horse to the wagon and meet you out front." Sandor lumbered towards the rear of the house, and from Barnabas' sight but not his control. Barnabas took time to walk up the stairs and to Josette's room, opening the door he was surprised to find the room was one of the only rooms he had seen in the house that only held cobwebs and fifty years of dust. Ripping the bedding from the bed, he walked to the linen closet and in quick order made the bed up. Turning he looked the room over and knew the room would need a good cleaning and then this could be Victoria's room. He did not need people in the house that he could not trust so he was beside himself as to how he could control his safe keeping through Sandor.

Going to the fireplace he laid tenders and started a fire, hearing the wagon and horse out in front of the house, Barnabas turned with a dramatic flare of his cloak and paused standing in the door way was a gypsy woman. She was dressed in garishly loud colors draped with silver jewels around her neck and wrist, she was skinny, with brown eyes and long black hair and he immediately surmised must be Magda. She now narrowed her eyes and glared at Barnabas. "Who are you? And what do you want 'ere!" She swished into the room skirts flying about her ankles and the jingle of her jewelry. She put her hands on her hips and glared at Barnabas.

Barnabas drew himself up and glared right back at her. "I am the owner of this house and you my dear woman are trespassing on my property." Barnabas had lowered his voice and his eyes glowed an intense bluish color. He watched her gasp drawing the back of her hand to her mouth. Turning her back she reached into her pocket and withdrew a cross holding it in front of her.

"Strigoi! Be gone devil! Sandor! Sandor!" She skittered past Barnabas watching him cringe at the sight of the cross. Magda Rakosi made it to the door when Sandor appeared and took the cross from her hand.

"Give me that Magda, he is our Master now." Once again Magda Rakosi gasped covering her mouth, eyes wide, looking at her husband wearing a cloth around his throat. Breaking free of her husband's hold she reached forward ripping the cloth away from his throat and saw the markings on her husband's throat.

"NO! NO! The monster marks you. The strigoi has you in his hold. I will find a way to fix this Sandor my love I promise!" She laid her head on his chest and was glad to hear his heart beating normally. Turning she flashed eyes filled with anger and outrage. "What you want with us 'ere dark one?" She blocked Sandor from entering the room and even appeared to be trying to protect her husband from further attacks from the man in the room with them.

"I want this room cleaned, and I need clothing from this time for myself and my friend. She deserves better than this, she is a lady of some breeding and she will be my bride some day." Barnabas looked over the head of the dark haired wench and locked his gaze on the man that was her husband. "We will need people here that can be trusted and the woman that accompanies me must be protected. She is here for a reason and it will be up to her to tell you what will be that reason."

Magda wanted to spit at his feet but knew better, so she begrudgingly walked further into the room. "Is she your eternal mate?" She saw he must care for her because he had changed the bed and attempted to clean things.

"No, she is living and breathing like you and she is important to you and your people if you are of the Romano tribe." Barnabas let her think about that for a moment. If this woman thought Vicki might be important to them she might make and effort to make her welcome and not mistreat her and if she did, he would bite her too."

"Why you say that? What she got to do with the Romano family?" Magda was interested. Anything that had to do with Johnny Romano was of import to her and she would go directly to Johnny to tell him. She could not see a member of the people becoming attached to a strigoi. She walked closer to Barnabas narrowing her eyes holding that glare.

"Because she is a Romano." Barnabas said softly. Leaning down and close to Magda forcing her to back away from him with a hint of fear but more anger filling her. She swished those skirts around and looked at Sandor.

"If she be of people how come she with you? No one of the people would be with a strigoi." Magda curled her lip showing the thought of such a thing as one of the most disgusting things she could imagine.

Barnabas was growing tired of her detaining him from Victoria and he needed to get back to her. He did not want her dying on him or getting sick from lying on the floor of the mausoleum. "You may ask her once I bring her back, now clean this room and do a good job and I might let you and your husband stay and pay you for your services." Barnabas looked to Sandor. "Are you ready to bring her back?"

Sandor had stepped into the room, handed the cross back to Magda and spoke softly to her. "Here Magda for me do this, please. He said he has coin and will pay and if she is truly Romano we will be in King Johnny's good graces. Now I go with him to bring back the woman and his coffin." Magda looked with the evil stinkl eye towards the walking dead one and growled low to her husband.

"I do this for you because I love you and if she is Romano I will know they all bear the mark." She turned and began to strip the bed he just made. "If a member of Johnny's family come here she has to have clean bed linens and a clean room. At least you made a fire now go bring her back."

Collinwood Drawing Room

Daphne sat before the fire, Joanna going missing had worried her and now she had no memory of where she had gone. She knew that an argument between her and Edward had set off a chain reaction of events. It culminated in Joanna being observed in the arms of Quentin in the gazebo. In shame and obviously a panic Joanna had disappeared, run off and was missing for over a two weeks. Daphne had been so upset over her missing sister that she had paid little attention to Quentin and his antics. He had tried to cajole her and then convince her that the kiss that was observed was nothing more than a stolen kiss against her will. Daphne sat there remembering that night she had caught her sister and Quentin together.

Two weeks earlier late evening Collinwood gazebo rear garden

Daphne had gone looking for her sister. She had heard the argument earlier between Joanna and Edward in the drawing room. He had accused her of sneaking around with Quentin and he was belittling her to the point she had dashed from the room in tears. No matter the denials she had tried to utter in her defense, Edward had been ruthless in his condemnation of her little sister. Marching into the drawing room she stood eyes flashing, beasts heaving and color high. "How dare you Edward! How dare you condemn my sister for what your first wife did! Are you that insecure that you would rather think the worse of Joanna? I think sir, you owe my sister an apology. It is you she loves and you she chose to marry!"

Edward had turned on her and snarled, "Then why did Gabriel say he saw them together? What has he to gain from telling me such lies." Edward had marched to the liquor cabinet and poured himself a stiff drink and downed it quickly. "My brother is notorious for taking advantage of sweet innocent women like your sister. Why I even heard he had you in his bed chambers not long ago."

Before he realized it she was in front of him slapping his face, narrowing her eyes and snarling at him. "I can honestly say I have never been in his bed chambers. I was in your bedchambers to help a maid clean your room because her help had become ill and was taken to her room. However, would you dare say my actions by being in your bed chambers were any less honorable than my sister being in his bed chambers to assist the same maid?" Daphne was on a rant and was not about to give up; or to make Edward to see what she had to say was the truth. "So perhaps your brother was mistaken as to the intention of either of us being in your bed chambers or his bed chambers. You would condemn her for being charitable and giving? Shame on you Edward shame on you!"

Edward had the good graces to look contrite, turned mumbling softly to him self and left the drawing room to slam out the front door. That is when Daphne had went in search of her sister. Walking out the front door she checked the front patio and not seeing her there had stepped to the back garden. Walking into the garden she heard her voice coming from the rear garden. Quietly, she approached the gazebo where she was riveted. Her eyes growing wide, clutching her hand over her mouth, her face burning with shame she stood watching Quentin hold Joanna in his embrace kissing her deeply. She could not stop herself from gasping.

Joanna hearing the gasp turned and seeing her sister feeling her shame she pushed against Quentin and dashed from the gazebo disappearing into the night's shadows that surrounded the garden crying out. "Oh no, please Daphne do not look at my shame complete!" Daphne started after her and felt her arm grabbed and she was pulled back against Quentin. Turning she slapped him hard across his face.

"How dare you! How dare you take advantage of her! Let me go you monster!" Daphne felt the sting of tears in her eyes watching her sister disappear from view. "Let me go! I need to bring her back!" Quentin held her close to him, his eyes locked to hers and he smiled dropped his lips to hers and kissed her deeply." Once again Daphne slapped him pulling her arm loose and turned backing away from him. "Do not ever do that again! Do not touch me again do you hear me!" Pulling her skirts around she had dashed off in search of her sister and hearing the mocking laughter of Quentin following her every step. Her face was burning with anger and her heart was racing and she had to admit once her anger began to clear she liked the feel of his arms around her and the press of his lips against hers.

Current time in 1846 Drawing Room Collinwood

Daphne stood walked to peer into the fire and sigh, Joanna had returned but with no memory of where she had been. She had been very withdrawn and locked in her room now for almost two days. Hearing someone enter the drawing room; she lifted her head and peered over her shoulder. Quentin leaned negligently against the door watching her. Daphne felt her body grow taunt she did not know what he would do. He had the graces to stay out of her way over the past two weeks and now here he was again in her presence. "I thought you might like to know I thought I saw your sister today walking from the woods wearing a very old fashioned dress."

Daphne folded her arms defensively across the front of her body and continued to watch the fire. "Really, she does not own any old fashioned dresses." She shifted her weight and kept her voice coolly polite. She did not look at him or turn to face him she just kept her self stiff and correct watching the flames in the fireplace. How they danced around the wood, shifting in color with an occasional sound of hissing as the wood was devoured by the flames, the crackling noise and the way the red embers danced up the flue.

"I am aware of that." Quentin advanced into the room walking to the liquor cabinet and poured a generous portion of whiskey, walking to the chair nearest the fireplace he slumped down and took a long drink from the glass then coughed. "Smooth" he rasped and laughed then set the glass down. "I think you find me a cad do you not? That is why you won't look at me. Well, it matters not there is a woman that has come and says she is a Mrs. Collins and she says her husband owns the old house. Which we find that an impossible statement. Because the old house, which we know has always belonged to Daniel."

Quentin reached for the glass on the table lifted it and took another long drink once again gasping slightly and chuckling hoarsely, "I would hate to see a rough cut of whiskey." He glanced at Daphne and noticed that she had finally turned her attention to him. In her eyes he saw she held nothing but contempt for him. Ignoring that look he spoke softly while gazing into his glass of whiskey. "She does look amazingly like your sister although now I think of it, she has more back bone than Joanna." He shifted his gaze sideways to peer up at her with mocking hidden amusement dancing in his eyes.

"Excuse me, I must go check on my sister." Daphne started past him only to feel his hand grasp her wrist halting her leaving the room. He felt her tug her wrist from his hand and huffed. "I told you to not touch me again and I meant it. Next time, you might find a bullet pressed in your body you did not expect." Daphne with skirts dancing wildly about her feet walked quickly form the room and again from that mocking laughter following her out the door.

Old House Josette's Room

Vicki lay pale and limp in his arms. Barnabas walked into the room and noticed that Magda had cleaned the room and now it held a cozy clean smell to it. Gently, he laid her down on the bed and stepped back. The blood had soaked her gown and dried on her neck. He could hear Magda grumbling about him taking what did not belong to him. Fussing enough to get him from the room, she began to work by drawing warm water to bathe her face and neck. Running the cloth down to her palms, she lifted her hands and ran her fingers over the story that lay in the lines of her hands. Frowning deeply, Magda looked up at her face and a look of awe filled her. Lifting one eyelid she gasped again. This night had been filled with firsts. Sliding from the bed, she rolled Vicki on her side and lifted her hair to look at her neck.

Except for some minor bruising where the monster had bit her there were no marks. Looking her neck over she frowned deeper until she saw something at the back of her neck; lifting her hair more she dropped to the bed and studied the heart shape birthmark on her neck. "King Johnny must be told. The future has come." She carefully ran her fingertip over the heart shape birthmark and she smiled. "Our people live on, I wonder to who she belongs?" From the corner two figures shimmered into view.

Magda nose wiggled smelling the scent of jasmine fill the room, shivering she felt the draft turned over the bed and froze in her place. The two ghostly figures hovered in the corner the outline of their ethereal figures lighting the darkness of that corner. "Magda Rakosi, that woman is the great grand daughter of your niece Julianka. Her grandmother is Juliana and she married a man named Patterson, they will have children and those children will have children. They will not be pure but they are of the people. Victoria Winters comes to right a wrongs of Count Petofi, and you must keep her safe so she can correct what she could not correct in 1796."

Josette floated to the center of the room paused and peered around the room. It was not much different from when Barnabas would make it a shrine to her. The only thing missing was her portrait and it rested now over the fireplace in the drawing room downstairs. She was sure that Barnabas would correct that and put her portrait where it belonged. Sarah walked towards Vicki paused in front of her and smiled. "Miss Winters is resting because she allowed Barnabas to feed from her. He really took too much but she will be all right, she cannot die that way and she will never become as he." Sarah gently stroked her face. "You will like her she is very giving and generous and she is a part of your family and a direct descendent of King Johnny."

Magda looked at the sweet face of the ghost child and frowned. "How come you die so young did that monster kill you?" She was suspicious because Sarah was of a more solid form than Josette. She reached out to touch Sarah and found her hand passed right though Sarah's small body. Sarah turned and smiled.

"I did not let you touch me. No, he was my brother and I died from what they called pneumonia." She sighed softly. "You are a very suspicious woman you should learn to trust more it would make your life a lot more happier than it is now."

Magda turned to look at Josette, "And you how did you die?" She could feel the sadness that seemed to permeate the air around them both so it had to be because of some darkness that had claimed them both. She could not believe that pneumonia was the only reason this small child had died.

Josette drifted to the fireplace, "Another like Barnabas will come. He is the reason Barnabas is the way he is. You must watch him carefully he will bring a witch that has a grudge against the Collins family and this woman. They may try to harm her and Barnabas. They will not hesitate to hurt you or your husband should they feel they are not getting what they want,or they feel threatened. I promise you they will hurt you." Josette heard voices out in the hallway looking to Sarah they both faded from view.

Barnabas entered the room, holding a bag of coins and a rolled old paper in his hands. Stopping he lifted his nose and sniffed looking around the room he could not feel the chill in the room but knew Josette must have paid them a visit. Not showing he knew this had happened he walked to the beside and looked down at Vicki noting Magda had rolled her to the side and exposed her neck. Frowning he laid the bag of coins on the bedside table, the rolled document on the table and gently returned Vicki to her back and brushed her hair from her neck. He was amazed to see the marks were gone and only a light bruising was all that was left of his feeding from her.

"Tomorrow, you will go and buy us clothing befitting a Lord and Lady of this time. You will hire a maid for my future wife, and you will find someone that can help with the upkeep of this house. You will make sure they are not the type that are too nosey and would wish to steel from me because I will punish them quickly and without regret. Do you think you are capable of doing this?" Barnabas had straightened up, reached for the rolled document and the bag.

"Of course I can, I am not stupid. But I can not do this without." She rubbed her thumb and finger together. Indicating she needed money. Barnabas dropped the heavy bag of gold coins into her hands. He watched her open the bag and run her fingers into the bag and was noting she was counting the coins and the slow spread of her lips into a tight smile she looked up and nodded. "I do not need all of this but I use most of it what then?"

Barnabas leaned into her and smiled his eyes glinted and his lips compressed then he spoke very slowly and softly for her to hear him. "Then keep it but do not cheat me or I will take your husband's life first and make you watch me make him into one like me then I will take your life and let you die." He watched the color drain from her face, the fear etched her gaze and she dropped her eyes.

"You no need to worry, I take good care of her, she is family. You I spit on you are monster and you no more drink from her eh? You understand I will curse you more than you already are." She took the coins, with a swish of her skirts she walked from the room with a decided slam of the door leaving him alone with Vicki.