Chapter 10 – Sparing Lives
My plate was laid out for me when I arrived at the dining hall, as always. This night's meal consisted of fish, buttered corn, home-baked rice (my favorite) and a glass of merlot. Letting all of my troubles go temporarily, I dug into the food like a starving and famished child. As usual, the cooking was superb, and I found myself wondering yet again who prepared my food. I doubted the count, since he was an aristocrat; he had probably never been inside a kitchen his entire life. So it must be someone else…
My musing was interrupted when I heard a low, whimpering voice coming from behind what I guessed to be the kitchen door. I set down my napkin and went over, placing my head on the hard wood to hear what the person was saying. It was a male voice, but it was high and boisterous, a voice that I immediately labeled as annoying. Without a moment's hesitation, I swung open the door to find a sniveling, dwarf like creature crying on the dirty kitchen floor. He was rocking back and forth, muttering inaudible words, and in his gnarled little hands was an empty bottle that had once contained something along the lines of wine. Or so I thought.
He didn't even acknowledge my presence, but began to sob even louder. Not knowing what to do, I bent down and patted his arm. He looked up at me with tear-stained eyes; I couldn't help but feel sorry for him.
"What's your name?" I asked soothingly, trying to offer him some means of comfort. He sniffed and then gripped the bottle so hard it broke, slicing through his skin. He let out a moan and hunched his shoulders.
"Havard," he said, his voice barely loud enough for me to hear. "The master is going to be so upset…" he began to cry again, but I detected something else other than fear in his cries. It was concern.
"Why? Why is your master going to be upset, Havard? What happened?" I observed the surroundings and found that he was sitting in a large pool of blood. My heart hammered in my throat and I struggled to control my rapid breathing.
"Havard was clumsy and spilled the master's last supply. Now he must go get more. But the master is sick and can not go get more. He needs it but it is gone. The master is sick…" the creature's wails reverberated through my skull and I forced myself not to yell at him to be quiet.
"What does Vladislaus need?" I inquired, my brow furrowed in confusion. What Havard was saying did not make sense. It couldn't be…
"Blood," the creature sobbed. "That was the master's last supply of blood. He is too weak to go hunting and no one else can do it for him… The master will die without it. But poor Havard can't go get it, no, Havard does not know how to hunt. So Havard must go tell the master and sacrifice his life for the master. If not, the master will be gone forever…" Havard pounded his deformed hands on the ground, his tears mixing with the blood, making it watery and even stickier. I grimaced in disgust and got up, careful not to slip.
"You don't think…" the creature began, but then his incoherent sobs drowned out the words he was saying. He took a deep breath and glanced up at me with a pleading look.
"Could Miss give some of her blood to the master?" he asked ruefully, like he was ashamed. "It's just Miss is so much bigger and so much taller than Havard. The master would not be able to drain Miss dry. Miss would survive if she only gave him enough blood to get the master back to his old self. It would be so nice of her since Havard has been cooking Miss all those fine meals…"
"So you're the one who has been feeding me," I said, my heart going out for the creature's distress. But what he asked of me I would not, could not, give. I had made a promise to myself that I would never help Dracula ever again.
"Yes," he blinked. "Havard insisted upon it. Such a pretty girl as Miss could not function without food," he said like it was the most obvious thing it the world. Which it was.
I sighed. "All right, Havard, I'll do it. But make sure that your master understands that I am not doing it for him. I am doing it for your welfare."
Havard beamed and rushed forward, hugging and clinging to me like I was Jesus Christ himself.
"Oh thank you, thank you, Miss! Such a kind girl you are, Miss. Havard will not forget." He smiled, batting away tears with his extra large eyelashes.
"Give me a knife and a new bottle," I commanded and he did what he was told. I took the knife from him hesitantly, afraid of the pain the sharpened object would bring, but I knew that Havard would suffer much more pain if Vladislaus did not have his blood. Now it made sense that the count had looked so pale and feeble…
Without thinking anymore about it, I sliced open the palm of the hand that was not burnt and held it over the bottle. Havard smiled encouragingly, gratitude welling up in his eyes. I let the blood drip until the bottle was about halfway full. Havard then gave me a clean piece of cloth so I could bandage my hand.
"Thank you," I said.
"No, Miss, thank you. I never knew humans could be so kind." He grinned at me and then put a cap on the bottle. "I will deliver this to the master. He will be much pleased." Havard nodded at me, and then left the kitchen. I sighed and followed him out, regretting what I had done to help the count but content with the satisfaction that I had spared an innocent life.
The fire in the library was burning brightly when I entered. I went straight over to the bookcases and browsed amongst the various genres until I found a book called Holy Immortals. On the cover was a painting of the chief of the archangels, Michael. Hoping that this would provide some information on the swords that Vladislaus owned, I sat down and flipped through the creamy pages until I saw a heading that read: The 12 Lost Swords. I shivered with excitement and was about to read the first word when Vladislaus entered, bringing a cold gust of wind with him. He stopped in front of me, his eyes glowing, but I kept my stare focused on the page number of the book. 24.
"You gave me blood," was the first thing out of his mouth. His voice was smooth, but I detected that he was just coating it with honey to reassure me. I wasn't going to fall for his traps anymore.
"So?" was my harsh reply. I made up my mind that no matter what, I was not going to look into his eyes. He had hypnotized me so many times that I felt used and cheated. If I didn't look at him, I could keep my sanity.
"I was under the understanding that you hated me," he said, chuckling.
"And I do," I retorted. According to the Book of Enoch…
"LOOK AT ME WHEN I AM SPEAKING TO YOU!" he screamed, his voice shaking the chandelier on the ceiling and rattling the windows. I was able to keep myself from expressing fear on my face, but inside, my heart was thumbing frantically and my skin was prickling. I took a deep breath to answer his demand.
"I will not. Go ahead and kill me, Vladislaus. If I'm dead, you're dead. God knows I want it since I will never see Gabriel or Tynan again." … 12 of God's most trusted and venerated angels were given swords that were forged in the fires of…
"It has stopped snowing," he commented, catching me totally off guard. "Gabriel will be coming soon."
"I told you," I sneered, my voice rising, "that Gabriel thinks he has killed you. He will not look here."
The count smiled wickedly. "This is the first place he WILL look. And he will come. I am hosting a ball in the honor of your 17th birthday that is approaching, Isabelle. When he sees your name on the invitation he will have no choice but to come. And then I will kill him." I wanted to throw my book at the snarling bastard, but I regained my self-control and instead expressed my volatile hate for the count with words.
"I'm really surprised the devil hasn't punished you already. From what I know, the Grim Reaper was one of his darkest agents of evil. Why hasn't he come for you yet?" I inquired, my eyes never leaving the page. ...hell, which made them indestructible. God forged the swords in such a way that no mortal could not wield them, for if in the wrong hands, the swords would become lethal to the entire human race. However…
"Contrary to your belief, the Grim Reaper did not mean that much to Satan. And the reason he is keeping me here is because he knows I am the only one who can bring down Van Helsing. He hates that man almost as much as I do."
"Gabriel will kill you again," I said, my voice dripping with animosity. "And I will not weep." … God also made humans the only beings that could withdraw the swords from their sheaths. By speaking the word "to come" in Latin, the sword would be released from its sheath to do the bidding of the beholder. But since that beholder was always a human, its power remained dormant and hidden…
"Don't be so sure this time. I intend for you to aid me in my plan to murder him. The ball is such a splendid idea, don't you think? You will have to think of a costume…"
"I would rather die than help you," I spat. Was the count really that arrogant to think that I would help him in the killing of my own father?
"Don't be boring. Everyone who says that dies. Besides, Isabelle, I can force you to do anything. Most of the time, however, you are very cooperative." From the tone of his voice I knew he was referring to my first piano lesson. What a fool I had been then…
"I was naïve and thought that you actually cared. Now I am graced with the ability to see right through you. I despise you more than any other creature on this earth." … and the sword would burn the hand of the human who had unsheathed it. However, many people took the risk of withdrawing the swords, for they were the only weapons that could destroy demons and angels alike. It has been said by many…
"Then why did you give me your blood?" he inquired, his eyebrows rising incredulously. "I was greatly surprised when Havard told me of your donation."
"I didn't do it for you," I snarled. "I did it to save your servant's life. Poor thing. You scare him to death."
"Fear always used to grant me respect," he said nonchalantly. "But it doesn't seem to work with you. Most of the time, anyway."
"Humph," was my vague reply. … that the swords came into the possession of a Romanian warlord around the end of the 15th century. However, most people believe that the story of the 12 swords is a myth and that they don't exist. Catholics consider the story blasphemous because of the power that it is contained within them, and the fact that God himself forged the swords in hell. They say that God would never risk creating such dangerous and precarious weapons…
"By the way, what were you doing with Tynan's body? I can't believe you would have the nerve to take it without asking me." I did not remove my eyes from the book.
"For your information, Isabelle, I was granting him a passage into heaven. Jovan was the one who gave me the idea. Since animals do not have souls, they are damned to wander aimlessly after death. Tynan seemed to deserve better." I could not help it. I glanced up at him and my mouth fell open.
"Why would you care about Tynan?" I asked, not trusting him. "You always talk about how he is just a horse."
"Tynan was the son of Amadeus, who just so happened to belong to your mother." Vladislaus said, scowling at the memory. He looked a lot better than when I had last seen him, but the scowl marred his fair skin.
"I've always known that," I said, feeling bold. "Tell me something I don't know," I challenged, focusing my gaze back on the book.
Vladislaus tore Holy Immortals from my grasp and threw it into the fire, his eyes glittering with anger and fangs bared.
Oh my God, now I've done it, I thought as I started to sweat profusely.
"You try my patience, Isabelle, you try my patience. If you had been the daughter of someone else you would be dead by now. I should kill you, for it would make my life so much easier."
"Then why don't you?" I whispered softly, scared to raise my voice above minimum level.
"Because of what you are," he said, as if that explained everything. He bent down and ran a long finger across my neck. I did not comprehend the gesture.
"I do not understand you," I said, basking in the pleasure of his cold skin brushing my own.
Give in, my conscious told me. Aren't you tired of fighting? Remember how easy it was to give in last time? He won't harm you...
NO, I told myself firmly. He is going to attempt murder on my father. How would Gabriel feel if he knew his own daughter slept with his archenemy? I could NEVER do that to him. The risks are too great.
You only live once.
"Maybe you've never attempted to understand me," he said indifferently as he kissed my neck. I shrank away from his grasp, fearing another bite. Or something even worse.
"Mmmmm… no woman has been able to resist me before," he said dramatically. He sounded impressed, which made me question my hearing.
"I'm not a woman," I said defiantly. "I'm only 16."
"Almost 17, which is considered your coming of age. This leads us back to the masquerade ball that I will be hosting. Funny that Gabriel will die on the day you become a lady."
"How did you know of my birth date?" I asked, trying not to think about the death of my father that he was planning, even though I knew there was no way he could succeed. Gabriel WOULD kill him.
"I know more about you than you know about yourself," he said, grazing the two puncture holes on my neck with his fingertips. I shivered under his touch. He smiled. This was the reaction that he wanted.
"You knew my mother, right?" I said randomly. It had been a question at the back of my mind, but now, for some reason, it had resurfaced and I was dying to ask it.
The count's eyes flickered before he replied. "Yes."
"What was she like?" I pressed, seeing how much information I could pry out of him.
"She was… she was a lot like you." He smiled and left my side.
"I am going hunting Isabelle. You wouldn't want to accompany me, would you?" he asked, knowing what my instant reaction would be. I decided to surprise him.
"Sure. Do you need to go get your sword?" I said innocently.
Vladislaus, an accomplished speaker and quick of mind, wasted no time in answering, even though his eyes were wide with disbelief.
"No. I have it here," he said, motioning under his cape. "But I doubt I will need it, for I speculate that tonight's feast is going to be easy prey." I nodded and stood, not fully understanding what I had gotten myself in to.