Chapter 14

Old House Lab

They could see they were not going to win this argument that science had constantly prevailed and he was determined to find Josette in the persona of Vicki. But then the dawning realization came to them both about the same time. One turned to look at the other as if in silent communication.

"Wait a minute Barnabas, are you telling me that you feel Vicki is in danger?" Julia asked with concern as she looked from Eric back to Barnabas.

"I am telling you I know she is in danger. She is in terrible danger with a man that will kill her if he does not get what he wants from Quentin." Barnabas' voice cracked with his held emotions. With the release of the emotions he slumped against the cold sterile top of the lab table.

"How do you know this?" Julia questioned still not sure to believe what he had just told her. Barnabas sighed deeply then said softly.

"I know because the men that took her told Trask they would not return her until they got what Quentin has and that is an artifact he found at a dig in Egypt on his last visit. This man according to Quentin and Trask says that he is ruthless and once he gets the artifact that Vicki is automatically dead."

'But I thought she was in New York, I don't understand where is she and what is this man's name?" Julia held a look of genuine concern while she studied the bent head of Barnabas.

"Apparently they took her to Bucharest and she is there in this man's powers and unable to break free and if she did she is not in a familiar country she would be lost and helpless not knowing the language or have anyone to turn to for help." The sound of his voice was grave and sad he thought of what could happen to Vicki or has happened to her he spoke of her dire situation.

"Then what can we do to help? Surely, there is something I can do or for that matter Eric? We could send one of us to make sure she is well and not harmed?" Julia stepped forward and placed a comforting hand on his shoulder.

Eric was as eager as Julia, "Yes, I could get on the next plane to Bucharest if someone would tell him I wish to examine her as her doctor to assure there is proof of life before the exchange?" Both of them were throwing out options when Barnabas held up his hand. "Please I thank you both for your kind offers but these people would not hesitate to kill you Eric or you Julia once you called back to say Vicki was in good health and then kill her."

Both doctors were frustrated with Barnabas quashing the idea of them going to Bucharest or helping. "I am not saying we could perhaps use you later, what I am saying is we must take this in steps and then we can be assured that all parties are uninjured or worse killed in the process."

Eric leaned on the table looked at Julia then to Barnabas, "So you have a plan of sorts?" He waited for his answer he studied the man before him.

"I am saying that we have worked through the preliminary part of the actions I plan to take and thus would require me to use some of my powers as a vampire."

"So if we began your treatments before her return and you were in any diminished capacity this plan would not work?" Julia analyzed the situation then shot her glance to Eric who immediately understood.

"I am saying that part of my plan would require the diminished capacity of one Jeff Clark is how he is known to you and known to me as Peter Bradford. He lived almost two hundred years ago and was at one time a dear family friend and neighbor. Then he angered a witch and she put him under a curse, when he awoke from his death I was his first victim his second victim had been my beloved Josette."

Julia had a look of dawning realization she turned to Eric, "Now it all makes sense, so what do you propose?" She turned back to Barnabas.

"I am going to trap Clark and we are going to use him as your test subject, once you succeed in what you wished to do with me and he is adequately weakened, we can use him as barter along with the artifact in exchange for Vicki."

"Why would this man wish to have Clark?" Eric was the first to ask.

"Because he had an affection for Phyllis Wick, my sister's governess. She fell in love with Peter Bradford when they met in this house. Then when Bradford rejected the love of Angelique, she became enraged with him." Barnabas voice had grown softer and more sedate he spoke of that time so long ago.

"Why would he be involved with a witch? I thought they were a myth? " Julia asked while allowing her mind to absorb the information she had just been given.

"You thought I was a myth yet here I stand. I can assure you there are a lot of evil in this world; things that go bump in the night are there for a reason and not to scare children to stay in bed to sleep. They are there because there is a darker power that sits just below the surface of this world waiting to unleash hell on Earth. Those horrors were not some nightmare of an author while in his cups to sell books. They are there because they do exist."

Barnabas stepped to the huge chair Eric vacated earlier turned and sat heavily. "I was the one that asked my good friend Peter to distract Angelique, I had started an affair with her after she arrived as a maid to Josette. Do not get me wrong, I was in love with Josette before the moment she popped her head out of the carriage. I was patient at first but angry because the one woman I knew I could love so completely and absolutely, that woman was going to be the wife of my Uncle."

1796 Old House

He sighed reliving that moment when the carriage arrived in front of Collinwood; the family was lined up along with the servants to meet the new soon to be mistress of Collinwood. He remembered he resented having to stand there when he could have been tumbling the woman's maid, then he saw her. The old feelings he had for her when he first met her as a young lady being prepped to be his Uncle's wife requiring English lessons. He remembered how they had grown from student tutor to lovers.

Except she was more breathtaking with those soulful doe eyes and that fall of long luxurious red hair, swept up in curls to tuck neatly beneath her small stylish traveling hat that held a half net over her face. She looked expectantly around and when her eyes landed on Barnabas she blushed, that lovely shade of red. He then watched as those long lovely lashes fluttered down and over her eyes hiding the startled look in them.

Barnabas felt his breath taken; he thought he would never breathe again unless she looked up and at him. Then Jeremiah stepped to the coach, took her hand and helped her down. Her slender form perfectly formed in the deep green velvet traveling coat. Her voice was as lovely as her form and Barnabas was smitten all over again from that moment.

Then there was Angelique who swept forward to hug her employer and take her small valise from her hand. "Mademoiselle, it is good to see you here, come I have your room ready for you and all is prepared." Josette turned laughing and hugged her friend and maid.

"Thank you Angelique, please come with me and tell me of this place." She then paused and glanced from Barnabas to Jeremiah. Remembering her manners she blushed deeply and spoke softly, "Oh my I almost forgot, I am so nervous." She had remembered her manners knowing it was expected for her to meet the servants and the family. So, Jeremiah took her to the family. Dropping her lashes over those deep brown eyes she smiled shyly.

"This my dear is my older brother Joshua."

Joshua gruffly bowed and answer, "Very pleased to meet you."

"This is his wife Naomi." He took her to the lovely lady that was as Josette surmised an ageless beauty. She was a lovely and kind as she had been told.

"You are lovely my dear welcome to Collinwood and may your life be as fruitful and happy as mine has been." Naomi had stepped forward and hugged the girl tightly, then stepped back.

"Oh Madame it is a pleasure to know you are here for me, thank you so much."

Then it was Barnabas' turn for an introduction, he stepped forward and took her hand, their eyes met and they could not part they stared into each other's eyes. Barnabas remembered how delicate her gloved hand felt in his. "This is my nephew Barnabas"

"Bonjour monsieur, I am very pleased to meet you." The tone of her voice had fallen she felt her own heart race with an unexpected excitement feeling his confident hand in her hand and the look was so penetrating she knew he could see in to her heart and surely must know she had fallen in love with him two years ago.

"My dear it is a great pleasure to finally meet you and to see all that was said about your beauty and your tenderness was not exaggerated by the blind eye of love." His words flowed from his heart he expressed his appreciation for a woman as lovely as this one that now stood before him. He glanced to his Uncle noting his studied look on the two.

Josette giggled uneasily as she caught the frown from Jeremiah from the corner of her eye. "You are way to kind monsieur, I must say it is a very great pleasure to meet and know you all." Her words gushed forward as she met the young girl named Sarah and the cousin named Daniel. Turning to peer at them all.

After the family was introduced she was taken down the line to meet the servants who all bowed or curtsied to her as she heard their names and shook their hands. Finally the introductions were over and she was ready to retire to this room that Angelique had spoken.

Current Time

Barnabas shook his head. Blinking the past from his mind he was brought back to the present. "I realize the past is that the past. But a part of me longs for the softness and gentleness that comes so naturally to Victoria. She epitomizes what was right with the generation I left behind and she holds to those old fashioned ideas with her heart and her soul is very old. So trust me when I say I see Josette in her and would be glad to have Josette back, but she is gone truly gone, so if I am to have her, then it must be someone from this day and age."

His speech was impassioned with the love he had felt for Josette from so long ago. He sighed softly even now he could see the way Vicki's eyes lit up when he spoke of something dealing with the past and how he would execute his idea to bring a part of that past back to the present. He could see the blush on her face when she was complimented and this showed she was undeniably unaware of how very lovely she was in his eyes.

With these thoughts the two doctors could readily see how he felt with the softness that edged the corners of his mouth to form a sad smile, the light in his eyes when he thought of the woman that was in his mind the perfect replacement for Josette. Julia's concern was that he looked at Vicki and saw Josette. That he still wanted to change her into someone she could not be. "You do realize that she is her own person, with her own desires, and thoughts?" Julia prompted.

Eric stepped forward to put a protective but secure arm around Julia. It was his way of showing her support while she spoke of who and what Vicki was. "I realize she has her own endearing qualities that closely match what I wanted to find in Maggie Evans but was sadly lacking. Vicki is smart, articulate, and very loving, she would no more harm another than she would run off or elope. She would want a large wedding, with everything that surrounded her being her family and her friends because that is what means the most to her and that is how Josette was on her wedding day."

Again he was comparing the close proximity of how Vicki reacted to events and occasions as Josette had also reacted. Julia tried one more time to make him see the dangerous situation he was placing himself and his intended bride in by comparing them so closely. "Barnabas, Vicki is a woman that was raised in this day and age, she has her own mind and you are right she is very intelligent though she constantly says she does not understand, I think it is because she wants it plainly spelled out so she can analyze it and lock it into a category that she has set up in her mind."

Julia referenced the constant use of "What do you mean?" That Vicki had a habit of saying when they were conversing. It had annoyed her until she realized they all; the whole Collins family had the habit of saying "What do you mean?" Then it dawned on her that this was not a learned pattern behavior this was something the whole Collins family had done since her arrival and she had found herself falling into the habit of wanting clarification on certain thoughts or expressions brought up by the Collins family.

"I know Julia and I respect the fact that she is an individual separate from Josette, she does still possess those qualities that I so admired in Josette and that is why I was willing to wait for her to come to me willingly." Barnabas had looked up and in defense of his position he had stated what he had told Willie. That he would wait for her to come to him willingly, now he wondered how he could obtain such a compromise if she were away from him and he was unable to control the situation around her. "Now if you will excuse me, I am going to prepare for the arrival of Peter Bradford to this house, you can assist me in this process by doing something I cannot do." This immediately caught their attention and both looked expectantly to their host.

"And what is that?" Eric asked expectantly.

"That is to obtain something that I can not tolerate being around and is my downfall should I ever be placed in this very same situation. Quentin has left to obtain the items needed, I have sent a message to Peter to join me here, I will need you all in place when he does arrive so we can effectively block him from escaping the trap I have set.

Barnabas walked up the stairs; he had left the two doctors to discuss his plan and he entered the drawing room, where Willie stood pacing the floor. Barnabas watched the young man shifting back and forth in phrenic motion . "What the hell does he want now? I aint done nothin wrong this time, I have been careful and done all he wanted." He pushed his hands through his hair in agitation and then he heard him and his body froze.

"Well now Willie, I must commend you this time you did do everything I told you and did not manage to mess up the simple things I had laid out for you. Now, this is going to be a little more difficult, but I am sure this one task you can handle." Barnabas pushed past the young boy sat in the fireside chair and glanced at him. Willie had seen that look before and it usually meant he was planning on killing someone.

"Wh, wh, what do you want me to do?" He stuttered shifting his weight from one foot to another. He shoved his hands into his coat pockets.

Barnabas studied him for a moment and found him lacking in all respects and a pathetic excuse for a human being but he was his slave and he needed him for now.

"I want you to go and find a coffin in the cemetery, bring it here and put silver crosses on the inside and crosses on the outside and chains with heavy locks. Then I want you to find some holy water, if you must break into the Catholic Church to steel it just do it and do not get caught. Finally, Doctors Hoffman and Lang will need to get them some silver chains they will need them taken to their lab. They also said something about ultraviolet lights, that might be used in their lab, they will explain it to you, but we will be having a guest and this guest is going to help us get Miss Winters back."

Willie looked up less pensive and more hopeful while he listened to what he was suppose to do. "O… o … o kay, I can do that." Willie started to turn to leave.

"Hold it Willie, I am not finished. You are going to make a trip tomorrow." Barnabas watched the young turn and a part of him wanted to stand and shake him to make him less jittery and to listen to him. "Now, there is a crate arriving in Bangor tomorrow at the central postal service. You will need to drive and pick it up and bring the crate to me is that understood?" He looked up with a degree of patience but more out of cold determination to make this simpleton understand how important this was.

"Why would they let me have something for Quentin Collins?" Willie asked innocently enough but saw that Barnabas had just taken a pause before continuing with his part of the conversation. He gulped and then lowered his eyes he watched Barnabas lower his gaze to the floor and sigh heavily. "Willie, I am not about to go over this more than once, just listen and keep quiet."

Willie shut his mouth and stood sullenly before Barnabas. "In my library on my desk are forms of Identification, they will identify you as Quentin, they will not question you. Once you have obtained the crate you will bring it back to the mausoleum and put it in the secret room." Barnabas stood. "Now I am going to Collinwood to visit with Elizabeth and Roger, I will leave the rest of this evening to you to obtain what I have requested." Willie started to leave. "Oh Willie." Barnabas spoke softly turned to watch the boy's body stiffen and then he once again froze with his back to Barnabas, his bottom lip quivered,

"Yeah?" He stood shivering wondering if he was going to go off and then heard him once again in his mind.

"Do not disappoint me Willie, be sure you return with the object and any monies that you do not require on this trip will be expected to be brought back. I want receipts for everything." The words in his mind were cold and demanding. Willie just nodded his head then headed out the front door.

Collinwood Quentin's bedroom

Quentin sat at the desk in his room. His mind was trying to wrap itself around what he had learned earlier from Barnabas. He knew it all and he knew it compliments of that bitch Magda. Rising from the desk he stepped to check the picture hidden in its tight little cubbyhole and sighed deeply seeing the frame poking its head out. Closing the secret panel he walked back and sat down. Rubbing his fingertip over his bottom lip he thought a moment. What Barnabas had proposed earlier just may work, if they timed it right and then perhaps Trask and he would never have to worry about Knightwing again.

Rising he walked to the dresser he opened the top drawer and pulled out the picture of a lovely young woman with long dark hair and open sparkling brown eyes that had a soulful look to them. "Ah Daphne how would I have felt had it been you that Alexandru had taken? I think I would react the same as my cousin." Putting the picture away he turned to stand in front of his window and peer out at the shadows that appeared to come alive in the light of the moon.

His mind had gone back to that night that he first changed into that hideous monster that was a werewolf. The pain and the loss of memory and waking up in shredded clothing and covered in blood. The sickening realization that he had killed someone and not know whom it might have been. He recalled how he had read about the hand of Petofi and how it could heal or kill then one that was allowed to wield such power. Something that would easily alter his life and he had begun his search, knowing that on the full moon he would need to be locked up or sequestered somewhere he could not harm another.

But no matter what was done, he had always managed to break out and had sought his kill, to wake up disoriented, his clothing shredded and the taste of blood in his mouth and blood on his clothing. The Petoffi hand had been thought to be a godsend but they were unable to use it because it seemed to back fire on him and the others that had tried to help. It had not been until Petofi himself had offered him a solution to this problem.

A knock on the door had interrupted his reverie of those times in the past and now he wanted to just face the future and have some fun. That was why he had taken up writing and had become very successful at it. Opening the door he peeked out to see David standing in the middle of the hallway. "David my boy what did you need?"

David shrugged and then said softly, "Sarah says Vicki is in trouble because of you. I want to know if that is true. Sarah says she may not be coming back and she may die."

Quentin shot his glance around the hallway and then jerked the young boy into the room "Now who is this Sarah and what would she know about Vicki or for that matter where Vicki went?"

David walked to the desk and looked at the sticks lying there. "These are I-Ching sticks, do you know how to use them?" He turned holding up one to the ninth parallel. Stepping to him, Quentin took the stick from his fingers and laid it down with the other sticks.

"Yes, I know how to use them and how they can be dangerous if misused. Now answer my question David. Who is this Sarah?" Quentin slid the roll top down on his desk then turned leading David to the chair by his fireplace.

"Sarah is a friend of mine, she says she used to live here a long time ago." David sat back on Quentin's sofa and his feet did not touch the floor so he swung them back and forth. "She died a long time ago when she was young." Quentin studied the young man and had heard rumors he was endowed with the abilities to see and speak to the dead, he knew he could be a medium to some degree, but all he had read and researched he knew that children were more susceptible to the appearance of those that had passed over but were not ready to leave and were earth bound. Because of some unresolved issues.

"Do tell me more David, I am very interested in this Sarah." Quentin pulled his chair over and sat in front of David. "So you are telling me Sarah is a ghost?"

David nodded slowly and then frowned, "But she is more than just a ghost Quentin, she knows things. She knew that Maggie was not really dead, she knew that Vicki needed to go back in time to save the Collins Family and now she says that Vicki is in danger and could die." David folded his arms with a decided nod with his arms crossing his chest. Taking up a defensive pose.