Chapter 5
-Rahab
In total, Integra had wandered the frozen Carpathian Mountains for four and a half hours with nothing but a simple suit and thin gloves to keep her warm. Her feet and hands were badly frostbitten, varying in shades of purple as the frozen gloves and socks were gently peeled away by equally cold hands. The same hands loosened and removed the soaked clothing, wrapping Integra's body in a thick down quilt. Not far away, another set of hands piled up logs in the room's fireplace, setting kindling underneath and slowly stoking the fire into a blaze.
'She may not make it,' a soft feminine voice commented from the hearth.
Looking down at Integra's ice-flushed features, a deep-voiced male replied, 'We shall see.'
Integra moaned softly in her delirium, her will torn between the necessity of duty and the desire to relax. She had no coherent thought as her mind hung suspended between conscious waking and fevered sleep. Her body had warmed past its natural temperature and soared above the level of safety. She lay still in her wrappings as sweat beaded up on her forehead, heat radiating from her skin.
Somewhere her mind registered a door opening and she opened her eyes. The unfamiliar room served to disorient her mind even further and she mumbled two incoherent names.
From beside her a voice hushed Integra, and the sick woman obeyed, trying to find the source of the voice. She felt the bed dip slightly to her side as a body sat down next to her. A cold hand gently brushed against her forehead, pushing away the wet strands of hair clinging to her damp skin.
'Alucard?' Integra asked, her voice quiet and hoarse.
'Shh, you'll be alright,' came the reply.
Integra tried weakly to pull away from the cold hand, not recognizing the voice. She managed to turn her head away, but her eyelids weighed heavy and threatened to close.
'Who-who are you?'
'Be still,' the voice demanded calmly. A damp cloth was suddenly laid across Integra's forehead, warm but feeling cold in her fevered state. Integra shuddered as the cold fingers again brushed against her skin, but her eyes slowly closed as a second cloth was gently dabbed against her temples. Her body involuntarily surrendered to sleep, shivering slightly as the cold hands continued to nurse her fever.
Once Integra was fully asleep her caretaker gave a deep sigh. The light from the warm fire sparkled on her golden hair as her blue eyes scanned the room once again. Turning her head slightly, the caretaker glanced fearfully at the door. Just a little more time, she pleaded inwardly.
Moving slowly so as not to wake the woman, she rose to her feet and took a large bowl from its resting place next to where she had been seated. She set the bowl near the hearth to keep the water from cooling to rapidly. She gently removed Integra's body from the nest of quilts and set about covering her nude form as best she could. She had taken one of her heavier dresses, a black velvet design from her own dark past, and slowly managed to dress Integra without waking her. Once Integra stirred, muttering a word the caretaker was unfamiliar with followed by the name 'Alucard' again.
Finished dressing the woman, she retrieved her bowl and watched Integra for signs of a chill. She left the heavy quilts off of Integra's body as her shivering had ceased and she seemed to be resting peacefully. The caretaker touched her hand to Integra's forehead, smiling slightly as Integra unconsciously pulled away from the cold. She had been nervous when the human had not reacted to her cold hands while she dressed her, but the fever appeared to be breaking.
Though there was no window in the small room, the caretaker knew night was coming. She had already taken far too much time, and her master could discover her at any moment. As Integra stirred, returning slowly to consciousness, she gathered the bowl of water and pulled open the door.
'Master!' she gasped, backing away from Dracula's suddenly appeared form in the hallway.
'You disobeyed me,' Dracula stated, unmoving.
'M'lord, the fever would have killed her,' she defended, trying to keep her voice low as moaned quietly, still half asleep.
Taking a quick step forward, Dracula grabbed a fistful of the female's gold hair and threw her against the wall across from the doorway. The sound of shattering glass in the hall startled Integra fully awake and she sat up groggily, pressing her hands to her temples to control a raging headache.
'I told you to stay away from her,' Dracula growled, lifting the female by her hair to her feet. She closed her eyes, biting down on her lower lip in anticipation of another attack.
Alucard? Integra thought, hearing the voice in the hall. Taking a deep breath, Integra swung her legs over the side of the bed and winced as her bare feet touched the cold stone. On the floor near her bed she found her damp clothes in a pile, her boots propped up next to them. Confused, she looked down at her legs, finally noticing the dark skirt of the dress she wore. Dear God, she thought in horror, quickly throwing on her boots, not caring to lace them before rising unsteadily to her feet.
'You've lost your fire, Katrina,' Dracula continued, backing off slightly and softly touching the female's face.
Katrina opened her eyes, surprised at the gentle caress she was receiving in place of violence. She nervously met Dracula's dark eyes, her back pressing against the wall.
'M'lord, I-'
Dracula cut her off, pressing his thumb to her lips and taking a step closer to her. For a moment, Katrina almost forgot about the sick human trying to stand in the room. She almost forgot about the years of abuse inflicted by the creature standing before her. She felt as she had centuries ago when her mortal life had ended. And as Dracula kissed her, Katrina closed her eyes and thought of nothing but the brief contact.
'You brought her back to life,' Dracula whispered in Katrina's ear. Katrina opened her eyes slowly and gazed into what she could see of the room through the partially opened door. 'Now make her one of us,' He commanded.
Katrina closed her eyes tightly, anticipating the command as reality returned her to her senses. She bowed her head as Dracula stepped away from her and pushed the door all the way open. She opened her eyes again to observe Integra trying to steady herself with one hand braced against the wall and the other pressed against her head. At the sound of the grinding hinges, the human looked up, forcing her still fevered mind to full attention and meeting Katrina's blue eyes with her own.
Dracula stood out of the way with his arms at his sides. Ignoring Integra, he stared hard at his bride. She glanced again at him, catching his gaze but unable to hold it. Turning back to Integra she started forward.
Integra glared at the vampire as she approached. She pulled her hand away from the wall in a vain attempt to mask her obvious weakness. Holding her head erect she clenched her fists.
'I'll die first, Dracula,' she spat, irritated that she had not solved the puzzle before this. She refused to give in to impulse and back away from the approaching vampire as Dracula's familiar laugh echoed in her mind.
Locking eyes with Katrina, Integra ignored the feeling of betrayal and stood defiantly as the vampire took the last step to reach her. Slowly Katrina took hold of the back of Integra's head, leaning toward the human and biting down.
