Rick raised his hand in greeting, then noticed Oscar looking at him with a poker face.
"Uh, Dad, he looks like the portrait from Collinwood."
"That's the idea, Rick." Barnabas had evidently caught what he said as he exchanged brief hugs with the two men.
"I'm glad you called me, Oscar. I've had an uneasy feeling that something was wrong, is this the same man who kidnapped Laurie before Robin's marriage?"
"The same. James Archer, he helped Laurie when she first started. He went crazy I guess, when she decided to stop writing about her Grandmother and concentrate on other stories." Rick explained how the former book chain owner had gotten out.
Both Barnabas and Oscar went white with fury when Rick told them what Laurie had just relayed to him. "He wants her to be Kasey, guys, I'm afraid what he's going to do to make her ….hell, I'm afraid he's going to kill her." Rick confessed, upset.
"Rick, we're not going to let that happen, I promise you that." Barnabas said in a menacing tone. Turning to Oscar, he added, "If she can make him go to get her medication, you guys can get in and free Laurie, while I take care of this monster. I'll give him the truth about Barnabas Collins."
Rick wanted to laugh. Archer didn't know what he'd gotten himself into.
As the three men left the airport, Rick's transmitter sounded and he turned it on, hoping it was good news.
"Rick, it's Ron. Bad news."
"What happened, Ron, did you get the warrant?" Rick was dumbfounded when the Chief of Police replied, "Yes, but it was useless. Rob and A.J. were casing the place when the okay came down. Laurie and Archer aren't there, the house has been remodeled and there's no sign that Archer's been there. Plus, ." he paused.
Rick waited for the other shoe to drop.
"I just talked to Dr. Allen. Cheryl Minor died in surgery an hour ago. She never regained consciousness."
"Damn it!" Rick swore; he knew they were close to finding Laurie, she was so near……
"Wait a minute, did A.J. check with the management company, is that the only house Archer wanted?" he asked.
A minute later, A.J. came on. "Rick, it's not, he also bought a property near Union Hills….an old frame house that's in bad condition, like no one's lived there in 80 years. It was purchased under the name of Mrs. Katherine C. Archer!"
As Rick and the others absorbed the news, Laurie paused, her throat tired and sore. She had related to Archer how Kasey had found out the heir to Augustus Collins had come to claim his abandoned home, and how it coincided with a mysterious attack on one of the local saloon "girls".
While I waited for Doc Walters to come by, there was a knock on the office door.
"Come in."
A stranger came in, wearing an English style coat and bearing a cane. This must be Mr. Collins.
"Sheriff Adams?"
I met his eyes, and shivered inside. It was as if he knew me, inside and out.
"Uh, yes, I'm Deputy Adams. Are you Mr. Collins?"
"Yes, Barnabas Collins. At your service." He said, then took my hand in his eerily cold one and kissed it.
"Thank you, Mr. Collins." At once I felt uncomfortable. Who was this man?
Laurie related how Kasey accepted an invitation to tea with the mysterious newcomer against her husband's wishes. The visit frighteningly turned into Barnabas Collins attempting to place her under his power, only for his spell to be broken with the efforts of Gene Adams and Doc Walters.
"I remembered nothing from the time I stood up to leave Collins House, to waking up in our rooms at the boarding house. Gene was next to me, holding my hand. "Easy, sweetheart, it's all right."
"Gene, what happened? Did I faint?" I felt weak and disoriented.
"Yes, Kasey. You came into the office, then told Pat something was wrong, and collapsed. He ran for Doc, then we brought you here. Where were you, we've been searching all night for you." Gene's face was so worried, it made me sorry to have accepted Mr. Collins' invitation.
"I….I was at Collins House, I had tea with Mr. Collins, it would have been rude, Gene, not to have gone." I added, seeing his disappointed look.
Suddenly Gene saw something on my shirt. "Kasey, there's blood on your blouse…." Doc pulled down the collar on my shirt, then gasped.
"Gene, look. She's been bitten by something, like the attack on Phyllis's girl." He quickly opened his bag then cleansed the bite mark with peroxide, causing me to draw a sharp breath. He covered the wound with a bandage as Gene demanded, "Kasey, who did this? Was it Barnabas Collins?"
As I opened my mouth, I heard his voice…"You will not tell anyone where you have been, you will not remember my being with you. You belong to me."
"I don't know, I …." I looked away from Gene, then his hand turned my head so that my eyes met his.
"Honey, please. Whatever he did to you, whatever he threatened to do…I'll protect you. I love you, Kasey."
My eyes filled with tears, and I held out my hand. Gene gripped it firmly in his.
"Gene, I'm so sorry, it was Barnabas ….Barnabas Collins. He said … oh, God…". My throat felt like it was going to close up. Gene reached into his pocket and took out a chain with a cross on it.
"Miss Phyllis said you were to wear this, now I know why. Here, sweetheart." Now the tears ran down my cheeks as he put the chain around my neck, then took me in his arms and held me close.
"Don't stop, Laurie. What did this Collins do?" Archer practically bounced in his seat as she heard, stronger then before, Rick's voice.
"Laurie, darlin'. We know where you are. Just keep talking, we'll be there soon."
Heartened, Laurie continued, telling how Kasey remembered Barnabas Collins biting her, then trying to hypnotize her. Somehow she had broken free just as daylight came, and managed to stumble to the sheriff's office. At once Gene ordered Barnabas Collins and his handyman brought in, but when the other deputy and Pat Thomas broke into the house, they found only Fred Loomis, drunk.
Bringing him in, Gene found he was remorseful for what Collins had done to Kasey, but refused to tell where her attacker was. As the day turned into night, Gene himself went looking for Barnabas, then disappeared. Frantic, Kasey demanded answers from Loomis, only for him to cause a distraction and take Pat's gun and escape.
"I went after Loomis, furious that he had gotten away. I feared what would happen to Gene if Collins knew what I had told Gene. As I met with the other deputies and sent them out in twos, I thought I spotted Loomis heading to the street behind Collins House.
I ran, calling out to Pat and Higgins to cover the front. I rounded the corner and was surprised to see fog blowing in. I called out "Gene!", then unbelievably, heard his voice.
"Kasey, I'm over here, hurry!"
Relieved beyond words, I ran toward the sound. As I approached the alley behind the house, there he was, my beloved husband. Desperately I yelled, "Gene, I'm coming!" Mistakenly, I didn't wait for the others.
As I approached, I saw a curious thing happen. The fog seemed to settle around him, and he held out his arms to me. I reached for him, then was horrified to see his features change, he got taller and thinner, and he turned into Barnabas Collins.
I started to scream "No!", but he was too fast for me, grabbing me and putting a hand over my mouth.
"Sleep!" I heard his voice echo in my mind, and everything went black.
Laurie stopped, her voice aching and scratchy. "May I have a drink of water, my throat hurts."
"Yes, yes." Impatiently Archer held out a glass of water for her to drink, then snatched it away after she had only taken a couple of sips.
"All right, now what happened?" he ordered.
"When I next opened my eyes, I saw a glow of light around me. Trying to sit up, I found I was tied hand and foot, laying on a cold marble table or…pedestal of some kind. On one side of me was a coffin, open as if to receive someone. Turning away in horror, I was shocked to see Gene, his wrists handcuffed in front of him, stirring on a table next to me.
"Gene, darling. Wake up, hurry, please!"
At once he opened his eyes, as if afraid of what he'd see "Kasey?"
"Gene, thank God! Did he hurt you?" I was angry, then he allayed my fears.
"I'm alright, sweetheart. Let me try to get loose. How did you get here?"
"We were searching for you, then I heard you call me. When I came toward you, ….well, it was Barnabas in disguise." I explained, upset. Gene swore, then told me Collins had played the same trick of throwing his voice to sound like Pat, then knocking him out.
"Kasey, it's going to be okay, I won't let him hurt you." Gene furiously tried to loosen his cuffs, then succeeded in managing to slip one wrist out. Just then footsteps halted his efforts.
"I'm glad to see you are awake, Sheriff. That's good, for you can watch Kasey become mine."
Barnabas Collins stood at the foot of the table I was on, and somehow I struggled into a sitting position as Gene barked, "You touch her and I'll kill you!" The man only laughed. "How, Sheriff, how can you kill one who has eternal life!" He then turned and gazed at me. I tried to control my emotions.
"I'll never be yours, Barnabas. I love Gene and nothing you do to me will change that. You might hypnotize me, but you'll never have my love." I told him. Suddenly I realized I was no longer in my shirt and split skirt, but had been dressed in a white gown, like a…wedding dress.
"Come now, my dear, to save your precious sheriff? That's the cost of your love, if you do not willingly become mine, I'll kill you both, starting with him." Barnabas warned, picking up a large knife from the foot of the table.
"No! Please don't hurt him!" I begged, then out of the corner of my eye I saw Gene pull something from his pocket.
"I knew you'd see reason, my dear." Barnabas said. He pointed at the chain on my neck.
"Take that off, and throw it away, now."
I did so, pretending obedience, then Barnabas came towards me. His eyes drew me in, and I was unable to resist. As he put his hands on me, I silently begged him not to take me.
Abruptly he let out a howl, then let me go, as Gene shoved a crucifix in his face. Instantly he backed away, then Gene knocked him down, sending the big man crashing onto the floor.
Before Barnabas could get to his feet, Gene went towards him, slugging him, then shoving Collins into his coffin. Slamming down the lid, he jammed the crucifix into the lock, imprisoning him.
"Gene, you did it!" I let out a deep breath, then fought back tears as Gene untied me, then picked me up and kissed me.
"We did it, sweetheart. Now I'm going to get you out of here, then I'll be back to finish him once and for all!" Gene told me.
"No, please leave. He'll never harm you again!" Fred Loomis stood at the top of the basement stairs.
Gene shook his head. "Loomis, he's a threat, he doesn't deserve life after what he's done!"
"He can't ever get out of that coffin as long as the cross is holding it closed, I swear. Let me take him back to Maine, I promise he'll never be back." The young man pleaded.
Realizing he was right, plus knowing the questions and uproar that might lead to trouble, I put my hand on Gene's arm.
"He's right, my love. Leave him to God's mercy, that he might find the peace he's never had."
Bowing to my pleas, Rick carried me out of the basement, then behind us a glow covered the house, as it suddenly caught fire.
Gene gently put me down, then we stood arm in arm as the horror of what we had faced burned down in front of us.
Laurie finished her story, then saw the sick satisfaction that Archer had on his face.
"That was great, I knew you had more stories to tell, Laurie. I'll go fetch your medication now, my dear."
He smiled as Laurie replied weakly, "Thank you, James. Then I'll feel better."
The older man stepped forward, holding out her glass of water. "Here, my dear. You must be thirsty."
Taking the glass in her hands, she drank thirstily, then handed it back. At once he seized her by the hair, and drew her face against his for a kiss.
Furious, Laurie turned her face, pushing him away with her bound hands. "No! Don't touch me!"
"Shut up! You will not tell me no!" Archer erupted, slapping her viciously. As she cried out in pain,
he angrily took a scarf from his pocket and stuffed it in her mouth, knotting it behind her head.
"You will learn to love me, Laurie. You are mine. When I come back, I want to hear only yes from you, understand?" He grated, pinning her down on the bed.
Seeing the madness in his eyes, Laurie tearfully nodded. As once he released her.
"That's more like it, my dear. I'll be as quick as I can, then you'll be more like yourself." Archer beamed at her, then left the room and closed the door behind him. A click sounded, and she knew she was locked in. Frantically she yanked at the gag in her mouth, feeling like she was about to choke. After several minutes she was able to pull it off her face, and took several deep breaths.
Fearing Archer's return, Laurie concentrated on reaching her husband. "Rick? He just left, please hurry!"
Rick was on his way to the Union Hills area with Barnabas and Oscar when he felt Laurie's "call".
"Is she alright?" Oscar startled him as he tried to answer her, then Barnabas shook his head.
"I can never get used to your connection with my cousin. It's an amazing gift."
"I don't know what I'd do if I couldn't reach her now, it wasn't this strong when we married, but now….wait a minute, is that Archer?" Rick saw a familiar dark van whoosh through a stoplight and head toward their destination.
"Ron, what's the license plate number of the car Archer was driving?" Rick called on his transmitter, then the chief of police verified the vehicle they saw was the same one photographed dumping Cheryl Minor on the highway.
"Hang a left on this street, it'll get us to the house just before Archer does!" Oscar told him, then Rick followed his instructions. A few minutes later they pulled up in back of a run-down old frame, paint peeling and weed-strewn.
"Go ahead and wait for him in the carport, Barnabas, I'll back you up and Rick can go in through the back and Ron…." Oscar signaled on his own transmitter. "Can you and A.J. come in through the side window, looks all broken out to me."
"There in a minute, be careful, guys!" Ron returned, tension evident in his voice.
Rick dropped Oscar and Barnabas off, then parked his truck on the street facing the back of the neighboring houses. Jumping a gate, he got to the back door, then tried the doorknob.
It turned in his hand, then completely came off the door. Startled, Rick managed to catch it before it clattered to the broken concrete steps. He pushed the door open, then froze, looking through the broken windows of what once had been a kitchen, out to the carport.
There was Barnabas, facing a terrified James Archer, pale as a ghost.
"James Archer, I understand you want to know my story?" he thundered.
"Uh, I know …know your story, you're a vampire! But, you can't be here, you're dead." Archer babbled, verging on hysterics.
"If I am here, how can I be dead? You wanted to know me, well, why don't I show you why I am here!" Barnabas came toward the kidnapper, then Rick heard Oscar yell, "He's got a gun! Down!"
Frantically Rick turned to search for his wife, only to find the kitchen door locked. Infuriated, he leveled a hard kick at the door and knocked it down.
Instantly a series of gunshots rang out, then Archer's voice sounded, "I shot you, you should be dead, no!"
Following the sound of footsteps, he raced down a hallway, then heard a cry, "Rick!"
As he barreled through a doorway, Rick saw Laurie struggling helplessly as Archer threw himself onto her. "He can't have you, you're mine!" Archer screamed.
"NO!" Rick yelled, furious. Pulling his weapon, he saw the madman turn with a knife in his hand. Rick fired at the same time another weapon discharged next to him.
The force of the bullets drove Archer off Laurie, sending him crashing to the floor. For a moment there was silence.
"Laurie, Laurie…" Rick shoved his gun into his holster, then rushed to his wife's side. Hurriedly he gathered Laurie into his arms as she sobbed, "Rick."
Behind him Ron holstered his weapon. "Never again." He grated, the fury that drove him subsiding. "Rick, he'll never terrorize anyone again, I'll get the paramedics."
Rick nodded briefly at him as he worked on freeing Laurie.
"Thank God you came.." she wept, as he tore at the tape that held her wrists and ankles fast. Gently rubbing her arms and legs, he held her for several moments, whispering "I love you, Laurie, you're safe."
"I …love you too, my darling. You saved me.. he was horrible…." She cried.
"I know, sweetheart. I won't leave you, Laurie." He reassured her over and over, until her tears stopped.
"He was going to force himself on me, Rick. He said he wanted what only you had had, I tried to fight him off, he was so brutal …" Laurie sniffed, her breath still coming in fits and starts.
"You are so brave, my sweet princess. Never again, I'm not going to let you out of my sight, ever." Rick reassured her, gently kissing her bruised and swollen face.
"I want to go home, my love." Laurie begged, as Rick picked her up and carried her out of the room.
"First I want Rudy to check you out, darlin'." Rick told her, then kissed his wife again.
"All right, anything you want, Rick." Laurie sighed, resting her face against his shoulder as he carried her out of the dilapidated house. As they got outside he said, "We had a lot of help in saving you, sweetheart." She raised her head to see her relieved cousin waiting.
"Laurie." Barnabas said, as he gently took her hand. "I was afraid he had shot you or Rick."
"Barnabas, it was you. I thought he had gone mad, saying you were back and a vampire…." She managed to smile as he said, "You'd be surprised at what a little hair dye and makeup can do, my dear."
Suddenly Rick saw him wince. "Barnabas, we heard the shots, did he hit you?"
"Yes, but Oscar provided me with a little protection." his own smile gleaming in the morning sun as he opened his coat and showed them a Kevlar vest underneath.
Just then A.J. and her father and Ron Johnson joined them, having returned from seeing the body of James Archer sent to the Coroner.
"Laurie, baby, did he hurt you?" Oscar asked worriedly. Laurie met his eyes, then nodded. "He didn't want to hear no, Dad. Then he went…. mad." Laurie managed to blurt.
"The bastard…..when I find out who let him out, …" Rick's voice trailed off as he saw the fear in her eyes.
"Oh, sweetheart." he caught himself from boiling over, and brought her fingers to his lips. "I'm sorry, I'll leave the anger to someone else so I can spend my time with my princess."
Laurie smiled for real as she leaned her face against his. "That's my brave knight."
"We'll take care of things." Ron promised as he and A.J. hugged her. "You're always there when I need you." She told them, beaming.
Oscar stroked her hair. "Time we got you to the hospital, baby. I'll call Cecilia and the kids. Ride with me, Barnabas?"
"Certainly. Laurie, I leave you in good hands." The older man said, squeezing her hand then walking away.
"Thank you, Barnabas." Now it was Rick's turn to feel emotional at what his wife had gone through. As he carried her to the waiting Paramedics, Laurie reached out and stroked his cheek.
"I love you, Rick. It's going to be all right." She murmured, then wiped a tear off his face and kissed him.
"As long as I have you, darlin'." He whispered back, not trusting his voice. He lifted her onto a gurney, then settled himself next to her in the ambulance as they readied her for transport.
As the rescue vehicle took off, A.J. watched it go, then breathed a sigh of relief.
Their nightmare was over.