The Strain: Another Season
Episode 7
Osculation
Chapter Four
Stoneheart building
Atrium
Dutch Velders has won the argument with her mother. She passes through security without interference because Ken recognises her and attends personally. Fitzwilliam or Sandra must have alerted him because Dutch looks totally different. Her hair is dark brown and in a sophisticated up-do; she's wearing an expensively classy black gown and her makeup is completely un-Dutch.
The bald badass guard from Fitzwilliam's old team announces her into the ballroom as Mr and Mrs Mark Walker while Sandra and Palmer are still dancing, chatting and, yes (may God forgive her) - flirting. To take her mind off that horrible spectacle, Dutch accepts the hand of the first man to offer and is swirled away to the strains of New York, New York, still looking out of her element.
Stoneheart building
Ballroom
Dr Ephraim Goodweather and Professor Abraham Setrakian enter the ballroom next, resplendent in dinner suits and black bow ties. With them is Dr Nora Martinez, even more stunning now that the FinchCorp stylist has worked his magic but she and Eph still look all kinds of nervous. Setrakian glances around like a marine entering an enemy stronghold.
The orchestra strike up Barbra Streisand's "Woman in Love" as Kelly Goodweather prowls in from the anteroom opposite. Her eyes fix on Eph and do not waver as she approaches.
…When eyes meet eyes
And the feeling is strong…
She looks completely human and exudes a dangerous sexuality. The young bucks disappointed by Sandra's choice of Eldritch watch but daren't intrude.
…I am a woman in love
And I'd do anything
To get you into my world
And hold you within…
Eph, in turn, seems paralysed until she closes him down and takes a firm ballroom hold. She doesn't seem interested in his blood at present, just nestles her head on his shoulder and gently twists her fingers in the hair at the back of his head. Now neither of them pays attention to anything or anyone else. A camera focuses in tight and follows faithfully but, eyes closed, the Goodweathers might as well be on the moon.
…With you eternally mine…
Setrakian and Nora make to intervene but Setrakian catches a flash from Sandra's eyes and hesitates, stopping Nora with a gentle hand. 'I believe he will be OK, my dear.'
Dr Everett Barnes eyes the heartbroken Nora from across the room and advances but Setrakian rescues her.
'Come along, Nora.' He dances her expertly away.
Sandra, dancing close to Palmer suddenly looks surprised and grins. 'Oh Eldritch! You are feeling better, aren't you?'
Eldritch smirks. 'I feel thirty years younger.'
'I won't say I'm not flattered,' she simpers. 'But I have a date tonight.'
'You won't get that response from him,' he says bitterly.
'I know it,' she laughs. Then she asks thoughtfully, 'Do you still covet his immortality, now you've had a taste of what you'll have to give up for it?'
Palmer scowls.
'Ah, here he is,' announces Sandra. Her back is to the anteroom from which Eichhorst enters, shortly after Kelly.
The aspiring trophy wives amongst the escort girls look Eichhorst's way. They can smell wealth and power when it enters wearing a tux that costs more than they do. But, unlike their male colleagues, they don't approach.
Palmer is sarcastic. 'Can you sense each other?' he sneers. 'Or does the room change when he enters?'
Sandra laughs easily. 'I felt your body tense in my arms.'
'You are in my arms, surely.'
'A matter of perspective, only. Plus - your first trumpet played the intro to "Uptown Funk",' she adds. 'Cheeky, perhaps – kill him if you must but don't give Eichhorst the satisfaction.'
With that, she slips out of Palmer's hold and she and Eichhorst partner as if by right - in silence except for the song in the background and a bit more disgruntled muttering from the spurned young hotties along the lines of 'What is it with her and old guys?'
Some young studs gather to gripe about it. 'She's barking up the wrong tree with that one. He was at my audition - he undresses you with his eyes.'
'Undresses? I felt like he was skinning me too.'
'Yeah, well, he sniffed me.'
'And I heard him asking the host about his manservant…'
'Are you nuts? That's the Well Dressed Man?'
'Ooh,' says the first, sarcastically. 'Who ever heard of a well dressed gay man?'
Sandra's heart rate increases and she flinches very slightly as Eichhorst takes hold.
He raises an eyebrow. 'Really? Just for a touch?'
She is dismissive. 'I'd forgotten how hot you were - that's all.'
'But you remember everything else?'
'Of course I bloody remember,' she snaps.
There's a very brief pause.
'There,' he asks. 'Is that better?'
'Oh, how did you do that?' she asks with uncharacteristic naïve surprise.
'Control,' he whispers slowly in her ear. Then more naturally, 'I've had to shake many hands over the years – in my role as the Master's liaison.'
'No,' she says.
'Excuse me?'
'No,' she repeats. 'It's not better. Now it's merely sweaty and clammy – unpleasant,' she says, squirming for emphasis. 'Go back to normal. Please.'
Dutch can't help staring over her partner's shoulder at her mother and Eichhorst. Eldritch Palmer had been bad enough but this…
After a second or two Sandra recovers her poise and she and Eichhorst dance a beautiful foxtrot smiling into each other's eyes with apparently genuine delight. Probably they are both contemplating what each believes will be their imminent victory.
Eldritch watches them with open distaste but it means he's distracted from Dutch…
…Who now looks like she should have taken the Dramamine option. She'd really only been baiting her mother before - she wasn't expecting the horror of seeing them together in the flesh. How can she let him touch her without her skin crawling away? How can she be so close and still smile? She gags.
'I can hardly believe you're here,' says Eichhorst. 'I could smell you, of course, even as you arrived. And you brought me an offering. How is he? The Jew? Does he speak of me often? It has been so long, Sandra.'
Sandra smiles sweetly. 'You think you're going to drink me tonight, don't you Eichhorst?'
'Well, here you are - literally within my grasp,' he points out.
'Yes, and a smart vampire would realise that I'd put myself here and wonder why.'
Eichhorst shrugs, unperturbed. 'I presume you've put your trust in the publicity of the live television cameras. Mistakenly.'
'Your influence is growing rapidly but can you really risk full exposure at this point?'
'You won't be drinking me, Eichhorst,' she adds definitely. 'Tonight, I'm going to hurt you.'
He laughs. Cameras turn.
'Listen to my heart if you don't believe me,' she says calmly.
His smile vanishes and he cocks his head.
She repeats, her voice even. 'Tonight, I will be the one to hurt you. That's a promise.' Her heart does indeed beat slowly and steadily now. And she smiles serenely at him as she continues. 'And when I do – know that it is only the beginning of my plans for you.'
He is only at a loss for a fraction. He shrugs. 'You've made promises before – and broken them. You swore you'd never fight me…'
She scowls.
'And you should beware of encouraging me to use your heartbeat to read you,' he adds.
She looks puzzled.
'I could ask you about the child, for instance,' he says smoothly.
Her pulse increases.
He detects her fear and smiles very slowly.
Her heart begins to pound.
He stares.
Now the heartbeat is no longer physiological. She's not dancing but clinging on for dear life as he turns her around and around to disorient her.
He stops suddenly, his back to a side exit. 'Where is…'
Over his shoulder, she spots Dutch sneaking out the door and has a horrific vision of Keane Luss, turned and giving up her secret to the Master and Eichhorst.
Her heart skips a beat exactly as his next syllable lands. And she stumbles.
Dutch has excused herself to her partner and staggers, horrified and nauseated to the ladies' cloakroom.
She takes some deep breaths and splashes her face with cold water. She removes the brown wig and examines her reflection in the mirror. Blonde hair, blue eyes, high cheekbones, defined jaw – just like Mum. She observes her face from either side and then shakes her head as if dislodging an unpleasant idea.
She splashes her face again, dab-dries so as not to remove her makeup and replaces the wig. She smiles at her brunette self.
She disappears to the end cubicle for a second or two, makes some ceramic grinding and splashy noises and returns, snapping her clutch bag shut.
When she sneaks back out to the corridor, instead of returning to the ballroom, she continues to the service lift at the far end of the corridor. She checks that she's alone and is invisible to any security cameras, then she removes the drop from her left earring and hacks the simple swipe-card lock with it. The earring drop inserted in the lift's control panel enables her to descend to the basement, which is surprisingly nicely decorated. There are no cameras down here and only one door leading off the hallway. It has a security pedestal to one side. A display asks for the code and she starts to type in A230385 as her mother advised earlier. However, as soon as she puts her finger to the keyboard, a manacle fastens her wrist in place and a stylet pricks her index finger.
The display says ANALYZING DNA and is echoed by a pleasant female auto-voice.
A horrified Dutch struggles in vain.
