Chapter 16
At that moment, the heavy wood door to the room swung open and banged against the wall. As Maeve grabbed the gold plated handle and slammed the door shut behind her locking it, she screamed at Barnabas.
"BARNABAS NO! You must stop, NOW!"
"Maeve, stay out of this," Barnabas growled, as his offering stood motionless in his arms. He gazed down at Max's smooth neck and observed the artery pulsating steadily. Feeling as though she was purring to him, he got ready to strike.
"I will not allow this," the slayer demanded breaking his concentration. "Take me to satisfy your 'need'. Now set her free unharmed and we will resolve your problem immediately."
Barnabas hesitated before he set Max on the bed and rushed towards Maeve. Looking into her eyes as his hunger intensified, they surrendered to each other. The pressure of his fangs penetrated her skin while he sucked the blood that flowed smoothly into his mouth. Sensual feelings overwhelm them and they embraced. Sitting on the bed fully aware, Max turned her head and watched.
After what seemed like an eternity to Max, Barnabas released Maeve and kissed her passionately. As they open their eyes, Maeve quietly reminded Barnabas what he had to do next.
"You must convince Max to forget, Barnabas, now." Maeve said, bringing him back to the present. As Barnabas turned to go to Max, Maeve heard a voice in her head.
'Now is the time for you to step back and not interfere. This does not concern you.' Maeve had heard that voice in her head for centuries so she knew what it meant. It continued to instruct her. 'You will be allowed to watch but not interact. Time will stand still for everyone in Collinwood. We will not rush them into realizing their destiny. You have been foretold long ago that this moment would arrive.'
Meanwhile, Max watched Barnabas intently. "Yes, of course." Barnabas replied to Maeve and turned his attention to the bed where Max sat quietly. He was surprised to see Max looking up at him and following his every move. "Listen to me careful, Max," Barnabas said, sitting down on the squeaky bed, staring into her big green eyes. For a moment, her eyes look very familiar to him, but he ignored the possibility of any similarity to his deceased wife. "You will forget coming into this room and anything you saw here," his voice reverberated, "do you understand?"
"NO!" Max said coherently.
"What's going on here?" Barnabas said as he squinted at her, shocked. He grabbed her by the arms and pulled her closer to him. Glaring into her eyes, he reached deep into her subconscious mind and sensed the familiar presence again. A glowing white light flashed into his awareness at that moment then disappeared. Deep within the abyss of her mind, Barnabas spoke silently to her. 'You will listen to my voice and nothing else. You will forget everything you saw and you will leave this room, returning to the others. You will tell them nothing.'
'I will tell no one what I learned tonight, father,' Max's mind sang out to him.
"What?" Barnabas mutters aloud, jerking his head to look at Maeve. Seeing her eyes closed, Maeve then opened them to look at him. She nodded at him to continue, so Barnabas gazed into Max's eyes again and returned to her subconscious mind. 'Max, can you hear me?' Barnabas began to speak to her telepathically.
'Yes.'
'Explain yourself. Why did you call me 'father'?'
'Because you are,' her subconscious mind revealed.
'How do you know this?'
'I read about you in my mother's journal. She wrote about her experiments on your condition and her life with you from 1967 to 1973. She also mentioned there was only one Barnabas Collins originating from the eighteenth century.'
'And who do you think your mother is?' Barnabas asked aware that he was not alone but unaware who else was there with them.
'Dr. Julia Hoffman.'
Barnabas was stunned. He was married to Julia for a short time between 1971 and 1973 before she died of cancer. However, they never had any children. Remembering Julia did have a journal, he never found it in her belongings.
'You are wrong, father, you did have a child but mother chose to keep that secret from you,' Max's mind corrected his thoughts.
'WHY? Why would she do that? It doesn't make sense, Max.' However, before Barnabas could think further, he started to feel a familiar spinning sensation in which he and Max shared. He realized he is unable to release her from his grasp, knowing now that the 'Powers-to-be' were in control.
Barnabas and Max were aware of everything people said and thought but were unable to interact with others in their vision. Barnabas recognized the kitchen in the Old House. On the wall opposite the doorway, a calendar hung with the date 1972.
Julia was standing over the kitchen sink, washing dishes and daydreaming, 'That was a wonderful night last night. We made love for hours, but I still can't tell him. What should I do?' she wonders. Just then, Barnabas walked into the kitchen, snuck up behind her and placed his arms around her waist. He kissed and nibbled her neck affectionately.
"How are you feeling this morning, my dear?" he whispered as he continued to kiss her neck and earlobe. Looking over her shoulder, he watched her clean a dish. "What ARE you doing, Julia? Why don't you leave that for Willie? He doesn't mind doing the dishes."
"Barnabas, I find domestic work very relaxing. It allows me to think."
"What are you thinking about? Last night?" Barnabas chuckled and turned her around to kiss her on the lips. "Could you put that sponge away and show me how much you love me?" Barnabas asked looking at her hand that held a soapy sponge that just jabbed him in the chest.
"Sorry," Julia replied, placing the sponge in the sink and wiping her hands dry. Kissing him quickly, Julia replied, "I have to go to Wyndcliff today to do some work, Barnabas. I'll only be a few hours." Julia thought how much she hated to lie to him but it was necessary at least for now. She must be sure that her suspicions were correct before making any decisions about his future. "It's necessary for me to take more blood samples also, dear."
"Julia, do you really think that is necessary after all this time. It has been so long and I'm still human. Except for an occasional light sensitivity and dizziness, I'm fine."
"We can't be too careful about this. We know that Angelique lifted your curse but you have become a vampire in the past by other means. Remember Petofi's hand and Jeb's curse. I have to check your blood for any traces of the virus. Viruses can sit dormant for years before reactivating itself."
"But Julia, you said you haven't find anything since we got back from 1840," Barnabas said looking into her beautiful eyes. He was so tired of these blood tests.
"I still have to go to Wyndcliff, Barnabas. It's very important." Julia walked past him and into the other room, preoccupied with her thoughts.
"Julia, are you telling me everything?"