Chapter 4

Carefully Giovanni and Gustav moved up to the front door. Finding Willie had been thorough and locked the door. They then moved to the windows and jimmied the lock. Opening the window they moved into the house and began their search. In short order they found their prey.

Entering Josette's room, they found Vicki in a light sleep. As she sat up and demanded what they wanted, "Who are you? What are you doing here?"

They quickly subdued her, "Quiet, you are going to the old country!" Giovanni placed a chloroform soaked hankie over her nose. She struggled for only a moment and then collapsed in Giovanni's arms.

"Quickly Gustav, we must be gone before the fair haired one returns."

Wrapping her in the blanket they lifted her and moved quickly with a sense of urgency out of the old house and to a waiting mobile vardo. Placing her on a makeshift bed, they moved with haste with a coffin and a drugged Vicki.

Moving with speed the van navigated through the roadways and over the country to a nearby private airfield. Giovanni and Gustav joined the others that were gathered inside the hanger arguing with the pilot about whether or not he could take off in the bad weather.

As dusk began to fall, Vlad appeared in the hanger. "Where is she?"

Giovanni pointed to the van. "Master we cannot take off in this weather. The plane will crash and the pilot says he cannot fly out until this passes."

Vlad frowned, "Do we know how much longer this storm is suppose to last?"

Gustav sighed and looked nervously around the hanger, "The weather man is saying at least another 12 hours."

Vlad moved to peer at the sleeping Vicki and shook his head. "Then we travel out of the path of the storm. We need another pilot and another plane, we need to travel inland further away from this storm and its path. Come. We need to go now."

"But can you not control the storm?" Gustav asked, knowing that Dracula was supposed to have control over the weather.

"This is something I never started, so I cannot finish, this storm is a storm of nature and another force at work, so I cannot control what another has begun. I said come, before Collins finds that his precious Vicki is missing and comes for us. We must be in my homeland by midnight tomorrow."

Barnabas awoke to the sound of the storm still lashing the house. He had hoped that the storm would have abated. He moved up the stairs to the drawing room. "Willie!" He called and Willie moved from the kitchen.

"Yes Barnabas?" He wiped his hands on his apron.

"How is Vicki?"

Willie shrugged, "I let her sleep. I left her things out in the hallway because I was afraid of waking her."

Barnabas nodded. "May I tell her when supper will be ready? You may set the dining room table and I will bring her down after she has freshen herself." Barnabas went to climb the stairs and Willie stopped him.

"Sure thing Barnabas, you can expect dinner in an hour."

Barnabas nodded and moved on up the stairs moving down the hallway he saw her suitcase outside the door. Going to the door he knocked lightly. "Vicki?"

Opening the door he paused and looked at the bed. It was empty and the room looked disheveled. Frowning he looked around the room. Moving to the bed, he found a handkerchief, lifting it he drew it to his nose and frowned and felt if he were not a supernatural being surly his vision would have blurred.

Josette's voice came to him from behind. "She has been taken Mon Cherie. Two men came and put that cloth over her face."

Barnabas turned and looked at the apparition of Josette before him.

"Who has done such a thing?"

Josette floated to the settee and folded herself upon its surface. "They looked like gypsies my love."

Barnabas crumpled the cloth in his hand and with controlled anger spat out. "Tepes!"

"He believes she is his dead wife Elizabeta."

Barnabas moved to sit next to Josette. "So, he has taken her." It was more a statement than a question. "I must get her back Josette. She has become important to me."

Josette leaned over and took his hand. "She has become important to all of us, Barnabas. She is a Collins and she needs our help."

Barnabas looked down at the tiny hand in his and smiled then her words brought his head up. "What do you mean she is a Collins."

Josette released his hand and stood, "My dear Barnabas, why is it no one notices how much Victoria looks like Elizabeth Collins Stoddard?" Barnabas watched as Josettes' figure stood and moved to look up at her portrait. "She is Elizabeth's illegitimate daughter."

Barnabas stood as well. "I really never gave it much thought my darling Josette. I just knew she was special and reminded me so much of you."

Josette turned to look at him sadly. "You know you made a mistake with Maggie Evans. You knew she was not me."

Barnabas sighed and nodded. "I know, and I was wrong to think I could make her into you."

From the hallway Barnabas could hear Willie talking with someone. "Yeah sure Julia, he is with Vicki now."

There was a light tap on the door and Barnabas knew Josette had disappeared. "Come in Willie." Willie opened the door and let Julia enter.

Both paused looking at the empty bed and Barnabas holding a crumpled cloth in his hand. "Barnabas, where is Vicki? I was going to examine her and check her dressing."

Barnabas held out the cloth in his hand. "She has been kidnapped and this was laying on the floor next to the bed."

Julia took the cloth and sniffed it and blinked. "Chloroform. A nasty drug used to sedate."

Barnabas looked at Willie, "I will need a plane Willie and a pilot. Julia I hope you will help me."

Julia frowned and nodded. "Of course. Do you know who has taken her?"

Willie looked at Barnabas, "Tepes?"

Barnabas nodded.

Julia looked from one man to the other.

"Tepes? Surely you do not mean Vlad Tepes, the same Vlad Tepes that Bram Stoker wrote about?"

Barnabas nodded and walked to the settee, sitting down he sighed and nodded again. "It was not a book of fiction, Dracula did exist. He gave up his soul for eternal life when his wife killed herself and the priests refused to bury her on sacred ground. They damned her so he damned the church and made blood his life."

Julia moved to sit across from Barnabas. "Then Vicki is in danger. We must act quickly or she will be doomed to the life of a . . ."

Barnabas finished her sentence. "A life of the undead." Rising he turned to Josette's picture. "He thinks she is his wife reincarnated in Vicki and I truly believe he plans to take her as his eternal mate."

Julia gasped and stood tugging on her jacket and moved to Barnabas' side. "And here I came back with hopeful news. I suppose in order to battle Tepes you will not wish to continue with your treatments."

Barnabas looked at the woman across from him. In her own right Julia Hoffman was a stately and attractive mature woman with short stylish red hair, penetrating blue eyes and a slender build.

His thought had been she smoked too much for her continued good health. He was not only fascinated by her brilliant mind but her directness unnerved his sensibilities at times.

She had come from being an adversary to a dear friend. Whenever danger had presented itself to his family or him self, she had without thought or hesitation been there to support and help when she could.

Which was what Barnabas suspected had kept her from pursuing her own happiness for marital bliss. Looking down at his hands he studied his fingernails as he thought about her question.

Barnabas nodded. "I will need all my supernatural powers. My abilities compared to his are like an infant. But you said you had hopeful news?"

Julia smiled and spoke confidently. "I found some new studies on blood disorders at this convention and it even hypothetically spoke of a particular destructive cell that takes over the blood and causes a disease like vampirism. "

Julia shifted in the chair and slid her hand into her pocket, "It offered a plausible cure for this destructive cell. However, because no one there had a vampire to try and cure, they put it out there as only a hypothetical cure."

Barnabas looked down at his fingers as he played with them and sighed. "That would have been good news in deed Julia."

She looked over at Willie, "I brought some blood back with me Willie, and you can store them in the refrigerator in my work room in the cellar."

Willie looked at Barnabas. "I will see about hiring a plane and pilot for you in the morning Barnabas." He quietly left the room closing the door behind him.

Julia folded her arms over her chest and pursed her lips. "Barnabas, I think we are going to need Elliott Stokes help on this. I really think we can get Vicki back and deal with Tepes."

Barnabas looked hopeful. "I suppose I am hampered by only being able to travel during the night. I know Tepes is as hampered as I am in that respect. I think he intends to take her back to his home in Romania. I hope he will not decided to bring her over as soon as he arrives. I feel he will want to woe her and then he will bring her over."

Julia began to pace. "If he does convert her, at least we will be able to work with the both of you to bring her back and you back to human form. What I have at this time is only a temporary fix. It would at least allow you to move in the day light."

Barnabas looked up hopefully. "It is as you said Julia, we may need Elliott's help. I know he would do it for Vicki, he is quiet fond of her."

Julia nodded, "I will go over to his house tonight."

Barnabas sighed and shook his head, "Sheriff Patterson said the roads are swollen with flood waters. I know Tepes cannot leave the country until this storm passes completely. All air traffic I am sure is, as one would considered grounded. He would not wish to go by ship, it would take too long."

Julia smiled and moved to the door, "Faith Barnabas, we will get her back where she will be safe and sound."

Barnabas sat back down on he settee and steeple his fingers together. Then he smiled, a rather deliciously devious smile and stood up, moving to the door he turned to look at Josette.

"Perhaps it is time to teach an old vampire a new trick." With a lighter step he moved out into the hallway and called, "Julia! "

Julia paused at the head of the stairs and turned to face Barnabas. "Yes?"

Barnabas moved to her side and cupped her elbow. "I have an idea and I think I know how we can defeat Tepes and get Vicki back home safely."