Chapter 16

Dracula's castle

Vicki's bedroom

Marta looked relieved, going to the door; she ordered the trunk to be brought. When the servants brought the trunk in, Marta produced the key from her pocket and unlocked the lid. Lifting the lid, Vicki started taking out some of her clothing. Laying them on the bed. She watched Marta carry her things into the dressing room. Working quickly, Vicki found the I-pad, with as much stealth as she could, Vicki walked to her desk and opened the drawer placing the I-pad and charger in the drawer, she walked back to the trunk and pulled out her jewel case. The one spell she had used had given her a sense of empowerment over such a powerful witch.

Tucked neatly in the corner of the trunk laid the elements she would need to complete her other spells she would need. Working quickly she took the items and hid them in a large ornate vase decorating the corner of the room. Working as quietly as she could she secrete the items in the vase. Marta came from the dressing room and noted she had not put anything else on the bed, thinking she had grown tired, Marta stepped to the trunk and began taking the clothing and hanging them in her dressing room. Vicki walked from the bathroom, seeing Marta working on bringing out the items in the chest she sincerely apologized. "I am sorry Marta, I seemed to be remiss in helping."

Marta smiled at he mistress, "Think nothing of it madam. It is my job to hang up your things. I figured you were tired and still upset over Madam Angelique trying to hurt you. If the master knew this he would be very angry and she could face some serious punishment." Vicki walked to the chest and began to take more items out and laid them on the bed. She did so in a lethargic way half listening to Marta speak of her master and his anger made Vicki's stomach tighten. Marta walked back and saw she had most the trunk unloaded. "It looks like you did not pack very much my lady. I will have the servants take the trunk to the dungeon for storage."

Vicki affected a sigh "I really did not want to bring anything from my past life here. It would have been a painful reminder of what I had left behind." Turning she sat on the chair by the fireplace.

Marta looked sadden by the thought her mistress would be sadden by anything with her impending wedding to the Prince. Marta secretly liked this woman and pitied that she had been ripped from her apparently happy life to come and join the sickness that was the very essence of this castle. Only rumors had been spoken of what truly was the reason for this impending wedding. Marta found it did not pay attention to rumors and she would be better off just doing her job and attending to Vicki, who was to be her new mistress. "I wish that I could make this a happier time for you my lady Elizabeta."

Vicki felt a little hope; looking up from the fire she smiled and asked softly, "Really? Marta, may I ask a favor of you?"

Marta watched her mistress and sympathy, and with sincerity she walked to her and bent before her. "If it is something I can do, I will be happy to help. I don't wish to upset the master so please do not ask me to go against his wishes my lady. If it is in my power to help you then ask."

Vicki covered her hand and smiled at her, " It has nothing to do with the master. I have been sitting here thinking about Miss Angelique, and how angry she was with me and that makes me unhappy. Do you know if she owns a hairbrush? I would like some of her hair and perhaps a kerchief that belongs to her."

Marta studied her curiously and smiled, "It is not that hard to get something that belongs to her. But may I ask why? You don't have to tell me but you must admit it is a strange request."

Vicki thought of a plausible explanation, and then once again affected a sigh and spoke softly, looking down at her fingers covering Marta's. I wish to use her hair to put in a locket, the personal item well, I would like to wrap the gift in the kerchief so it will be a surprise when she finds the gift. You see if she is angry with me and wanted to attack me, well giving her this gift might mend things between us." Vicki found it was way to easy to look into her gaze with a look of sincerity.

Marta smiled and nodded "Ahh, a peace offering. Yes, I understand." She stood and held up a finger indicating that Vicki should wait just a moment. Marta left the room and then returned pushing a small cart. From the interior of the upright cart, she lifted up a trashcan and rummaged through the tissues then produced a ball of blond hair. "Madam Angelique cleans her brushes and combs everyday and gives them to us to dispose. She has requested that these items be burned. So, we take them to the incinerator and burn them. Personally, I think she could burn them herself but she is far to lazy." She handed the ball of hair to Vicki, then from the bag hanging from her cart she produced a small headscarf. "What about a scarf?"

She handed the scarf to Vicki and Vicki was elated. "Thank you Marta, you have been very helpful." Vicki tucked the hair into her dress pocket; taking the scarf she smiled and then very carefully folded the scarf into a tight little square. "When will I be expected for supper?" Vicki stood from the fireside chair and walked to the window to peer out at the snow that was falling in heavily over the grounds. It was depressing to watch the fall of the snow and know that would be a reason for them to be trapped longer than hoped.

Marta watched her mistress grow melancholic watching the snow. Walking to her side she laid a gentle hand on her arm a show of her understanding and comfort. "Not until 8:00 p.m. Would you wish me to draw you a bath? I know the Prince will expect you down in the grand drawing room around 7:00 p.m. for pre dinner drinks."

Vicki glanced at the clock; it was 2:30 so she had a little time. "No that is fine; I will need help to button up my dress. So you might wish to come back around 6:00. I guess I will need my hair dressed." Vicki commented as an after thought.

Marta looked at the empty trunk closing the lid she commented to Vicki, "Do you wish me to have the trunk removed immediately?"

Vicki shook her head. "That can wait until later when I am downstairs for supper. I think I would like to take a small nap before I have to get ready. I really did not sleep well last eve."

Marta looked truly concerned for her mistress. "Here allow me to turn down your bed." She pulled back the covers and came back to unbutton Vicki's dress, laying out a chemise for her to slip on. "Will Madam need me for anything else?"

Vicki hugged her, "No, I just need to rest. Thank you for everything Marta, you have no idea how much I appreciate your help." Vicki slipped on the chemise, and then crawled upon the bed, pulling the blankets over her, she lay down and closed her eyes. The moment Marta left the room; Vicki threw back the covers and was out of bed. Scrambling to her dress, she fished out the hair from her dress pocket, and then taking the scarf, she wrapped them together. Walking to the vase, she pulled out the incense and a white candle. Looking around Vicki walked into her bathroom, lighting a blue candle she put it in the candleholder. Carefully, she began to take out all the components she would need. Feeling nervous and excited, she closed her eyes and took a deep breath and let it out slowly.

Lighting the incense, she sat and breathed in deeply. Clearing her mind she began to chant, "For good there is good, for evil there is evil, take this and return the evil that had been delivered to the good and return the evil ten-fold. Let the evil feel the evil returned each day evil does not repent." Vicki pulled out the wad of blond hair, "Here I make the offering an offering I make binding the evil back to the evil." Vicki took a few strands of Angelique's hair and held them over the fire, watching the fire catch the hair. Catching the tiny flecks of ashes in her palm, she closed her hand over the ashes and continued to chant, "For all the evil, return the evil this one has visited upon others, let her feel the pain she has caused others. Let any evil she continues to visit upon anyone be visited upon her and bind her evil to her." Clinching her hand so the pressure was more pronounced by turning her knuckles white. "So let it be." She opened her hands and saw there were tiny flecks of blood, she looked curiously as her hand and saw no open wound. Standing she walked to the sink wear she washed her hands.

Angelique's bedroom

In Angelique's bedroom, she sat on her bed with her arms crossed glaring at Nicholas. "I am telling you Nicholas, that woman is not the Vicki Winters I remember. That woman has some power, she was able to stop me from clawing her face."

Nicholas laughed, "Surely, you do not wish me to believe that some do goody little milk toast like Victoria Winters was able to stop you. If that is the case, Angelique, then you need to rethink your powers. How could someone like Victoria Winters possibly use a spell on you when she is hardly a witch."

Angelique slipped from the bed walking to the window she looked out and shrugged. "Unless Diablos had some reason to assist her, I would not have believed it possible. She did say she had read some of Professor Stokes books." Suddenly Angelique gasped and grabbed her throat, bending over she let out a scream of pain and collapsed onto the floor. Nicholas rushed to her side and bent over her. He watched in amazement as her throat began to show signs of being bitten and was bleeding.

"Angelique! He lifted her to the bed and began to chant softly closing the wounds on her throat. Angelique sat up looking at Nicholas with absolute fear in her eyes. "It hurts." She wrapped her arms around her body and began to shiver violently. Her head beaded with fever and she shivered violently. Then her body was racked with coughing spells, coughing so hard she felt her stomach revolt. Once again, Nicholas began to chant to take away the raging fever that was attacking her body. In her minds eye, Angelique was standing before a tribunal and she was being tried as a witch.

Lamar Trask was shouting at her, "You are a witch, you will be hanged as a witch! She screamed at him, and then she was transported to the gallows where she was bound, hooded and she felt the ladder being pulled out from beneath her feet, her throat was constricted and she was choking and gasping for air.

Nicholas watched in amazement as he saw marks appear on her throat that looked like rope burns. "Angelique, you are being paid back for every evil you have done, it is coming back on you. Who in this castle could be doing this?"

Angelique gasped reaching for Nicholas, "It is Vicki Winters. She is doing this."

Nicholas began to chant rapidly brining to mind unbinding of spells. His attempts were met in vain. So he attempted to do another spell to block the spell. Again failure met his attempts, finally he tried to shelter her around a protection spell and alas, for Nicholas that was a spell that should have been put in place prior to the attack. "NO, that is impossible, I would be able to break anything she did, if it was her. This is far more powerful than any normal white or dark witch could possibly conceive."

Angelique was in tears, "Nicholas you have to help me. I tell you go and see for yourself it is Vicki." She clutched Nicholas crying and begging. "I cannot face going through all the things I have done!" In the room appeared another image and both turned watching her walk to Angelique; it was Angelique as a doppelganger approaching. With a wave of his hand Nicholas did make that one vanish. "Did you see, she had a knife in her hand she was going to stab me!"

Nicholas was as near to a panic as he had ever been. Taking his hands to pull Angelique's clutching hands from him he turned and walked to the door. "We will see." He was angry and he wanted to see for himself if it was Vicki Winters and if it was he would put a stop to this nonsense once and for all!

Vicki finished her spell, cleared up her incense and sprayed some of her perfume in the air to cover the smell, then putting her components along with Angelique's hair and scarf back in the vase, she bound the vase from any evil eye that might wish to find her items. Putting everything back to as it was, she went to lie down in her bed. Closing her eyes she felt her body relax and soon found with the spells she had woven had exhausted her to some degree. She reasoned it must have been the excitement of being able to protect herself and her family or the anticipation whatever it was she was now deeply asleep.

Victoria's Bedroom Dracula's castle

Nicholas crept into her room. Walking to her bed he peered down at her while she slept. Looking upon the perfection of her beauty he saw only the sleep of a complete innocent. What he saw was someone that had been through a lot of anguish. If anything she looked vulnerable. Playing with the ring on his little finger he studied her as she slept. Looking around the room, he began to chant and waved his hand, he nodded satisfied he had not found the evidence for which he had searched. Speaking softly he said, "Whoever is doing this to you Angelique it is not Miss Winters."

Vicki sighed in her sleep and called softly, "Barnabas." She rolled over and curled into her pillow.

Nicholas smiled, "That is right sleep my dear. There is a witch at play here but it most certainly is not you. You are to be the bride to a very powerful vampire. Your time will come and Angelique will laugh and dance at your wedding to Dracula the Dark Prince. Turning he walked from her room, he needed to go to his room and search through his mirror he had brought.

Diablos suspended time as he stepped into the room and looked down at Vicki Winters, "Who are you?" He whispered softly, "Will you benefit me?" Just as he reached for Vicki's brow, another figure stepped into the room; his armor was brilliant and shone like a thousand suns. Which annoyed but did not destroy the dark one that stood at Vicki's bed.

"She is not for you Diablos, you will leave her be." His words were strong and filled with conviction, his hand rested lightly on the bastard sword he wore at his side. His Angelique features appeared stern but filled with hope.

Diablos looked up and smiled, "So the mystery is solved, Michael. She is one of yours a white witch for good. Do you not think she should have a choice as to which side she belongs? After all she will become the bride of Dracula and that is nothing that you will be able to stop or interfere with those plans."

Michael bowed to the dark one and spoke with conviction. "True, I cannot interfere and neither can you. This one is for the light and will bring good to this earth."

"You mean the child she carries? That will remain to be seen." Diablos walked around the bed so he had Vicki between Michael and he. He looked at her and saw the light of good shining forth in her innocent sleep. "So, she is the carrier of the sentinel for the gates of hell. A time folder that can produce the child that had been foretold of coming."

"She is special and even you can see that Diablos. Now you should leave here, I know that your time in this room and on this earth is limited unlike mine. You have not been invited in by this one. So you should leave this room now."

Diablos bowed then a narrowed eyed look with a smile with no humor attached was presented to Michael. As an after thought when he half turned from Michael he spoke more as a promise. "So, you command Michael. Just one more thing before I go. I give you fair warning that I will do all I can to help my minions. I may have her before all of this is over. Once she crosses over to the land of the undead, she becomes fair game for me."

Michael nodded, "I expected as much from you Diablos. That is why; where she is concerned no one will know who or what she is. My powers are stronger than yours Diablos, should she fail herself or find she needs you more than me, then you will be able to do what you will. I will warn you, she is protected by strong magic herself, she just has now tapped into it at this time."

Diablos laughed, "Then we will see who fails or falls first." Fading from view, it left only Michael standing at Vicki's bed.

"Yes, we will." Michael lifted his hand and waved it, As the hand completed it's half circle wave his figure began to fade from view. With the disappearance of the Michael and Diablos time was returned to its normal flow. Vicki sat up with a gasp. Did she just dream that absolute evil had been in this room with her and a golden light that had just saved her? She thought about the figure she had seen in her dream. He was a glorious creature and left her feeling of absolute peace and harmony. Rising from her bed, she went to the I-pad. Accessing her reference pages she looked up description of spells. 'Ethereal Light,' she read the description, 'This spell is used to make a solid form appear in apparition form.'

"No, that was not what I saw in my dream." Running her fingertip down the page she scrolled down further, 'Guardian's Light,' A golden light that protects those within a 20 foot radius. It will allow the caster time to get away from evil, if it is used to free others a penalty will be paid by deducting five years of life from the caster for each person that is protected by the guardian light' Vicki weighed her options and filed that spell away for later use if it would be needed. Sitting up she heard another sound outside her door. Looking at the clock she noted she had napped for 2 hours, the time told her that she would not be expected for dinner for a while. Rising from the desk, she hide her I-pad she wondered if Angelique had any more of her own mischief visited upon her. Smiling to herself she nodded, "This is working out better than I thought."

Angelique's Bedroom

In her bedroom, Angelique looked at her hand and saw the sign of a golden sun rising, she frowned, "What does this mean?" Nicholas walked into her room stopping thunderstruck by the beauty of Angelique as she stood in a radiant light of sunshine. The two stared at each other, they rushed to embrace each other passionately, Nicholas broke the kiss stepped back and looked at Angelique, "I don't know what came over me I saw you and had to be with you. To hold you in my arms, to kiss you and feel you close to me."

Angelique curled her cheek to his hand then noticed a golden sun rising on his hand. "Look!" She lifted her hand to show Nicholas she shared the same mark. "What does this mean?" Nicholas pulled away from Angelique and shook his head.

"I don't know. It would appear we are both spell struck. Perhaps it is a pay back for what you did to Josette and Jeremiah."

Angelique shuddered and shook her head. "I do not know who is doing this, but it seems they wish to make me suffer in the same manner as I have made others suffer. It is Victoria Winters I just know it is she. Nicholas it has to be her! Who else would know what I did?"

Nicholas laughed, "Don't be ridiculous Angelique, I went to her room and found she has no powers or instruments to create spells. She is a victim as much as you. Do you think it is Professor Stokes, or maybe even Barnabas doing these things? He did have knowledge of spells and he was at one time a super natural being himself."

Angelique gave Nicholas a contemptuous look, then glanced down to see the rising golden sun was now gone. "Nicholas looked at your hand the sign is gone."

He looked, and then looked back to Angelique puzzled. "We do have a problem, and it will require us to pay careful attention to what is going on."

Angelique looked around her room, she was feeling extremely tired, "You investigate, I need to lie down. All this stress has exhausted me." She walked to her bed and stopped, "I want you to double your efforts Nicholas, I bet if you dig further into this, you will find, Victoria Winters is behind all of this.

Nicholas, played with the ring on his pinky finger and smiled, "I really think you give her more credit than you should." He turned and left her room. He would allow her to rest and he was going to search this castle from battlements to dungeon. He would find the witch if it was the last thing he did.

Angelique waited for him to leave her room, Stretching out across her bed and fell into a deep sleep. Falling into a deeper sleep she began to dream. She stood on the hilltop of Widows Hill; she felt desolate and at a loss because she knew that Barnabas would never love her and that the only way she could be with him would be to embrace what he was. The thought of this made her feel physically ill. When he appeared on the hilltop she turned and screamed at him, and then she turned and leapt from Widows Hill, falling, falling, tumbling down to the rocks below where she landed with a sickening thud. The pain of dying was incredible. The impact of the fall had winded her and she lay gasping trying to scream out her pain. She tried to scream; she knew some how she had screamed it was loud enough to wake her up. Sitting up she felt her whole body drenched in sweat she was clutching her throat, gasping.

Hearing that heart-rendering scream Nicholas dashed into her room and stopped dead in his tracks. "Angelique? What is wrong with you? You were screaming so loud I could hear you downstairs in the drawing room!"

Angelique slid from the bed, "My dream, I was on top of widows hill and I jumped to get away from Barnabas. What next? I cannot go on with this! This is ripping me apart Nicholas! Why is someone doing this to me? I fear I might loose my mind if it continues."

Nicholas stepped further into the room and took a seat in a chair near the fireplace. "What is left? Is it only what you did while you were at Collinwood in 1796?"

Angelique paced, "I have not been made into a zombie as Jeremiah. I have not been forced to be a puppet for another or had my breath choked out of me because of a doll I made. Nicholas it was so long ago! I did so much because of my anger! I cannot go on like this! This is unfair!" Angelique was becoming hysterical at the thought of what she might still have to face.

Nicholas glanced around the room, when he was thinking he would twist the small ring on his little finger as he tried to figure out what was going on. "What else have you done that you might be forced to be visited upon you?"

Angelique sighed and began to pace back and forth. "I don't know, I can not think of what else I might have done."

"If you are to be punished for all you have done, you are in for a rather long day and night my dear, the pay backs seem to be coming every hour. That might give me time to discover where the talisman is and destroy it."

Angelique went to Nicholas and lay her head in his lap, "Oh Nicholas, please you have to help me. I cannot tolerate much more of this. I shall go mad! You must find who is behind this and stop it!"

Nicholas gently stroked her hair, "There, there my dear. We will see where this will lead us. Now you must try to rest."

Angelique was plainly in fear of what would happen next, "Please Nicholas, please do whatever you can to help me. I fear this may kill me."

Nicholas smiled, "Yes, I am sure that the spell is intended to make you wish you were dead. However, so far, it has done nothing more than to frighten you and cause you some discomfort. My fear is that the next round may be more powerful than the prior visits."

Angelique pushed away from him, "Oh Nicholas please you have to do something, I do not know how much more of this I can tolerate. It is horrible." Tears filled her eyes and they were already full of fear.

Nicholas led her to her bed, "You try and rest, my dear while I go and investigate."

Angelique let him guide her to the bed, at this point she did not know what else to expect. All she knew was she now the target of her own spells she had put on others in the past and she did not know where it would go from here. She searched her memory on everything foul and evil she had ever done to the Collins Family and it was beginning to mount up against her.

Closing her eyes she fell asleep. As she slept once again, she was trapped in a coffin and she could not get out. She felt panic building in her as she pushed against the lid of the coffin. From the exterior she could hear what sounded like chains being placed around the coffin. "Oh no! I am being chained in a coffin, I can't breathe!" Pounding on lid of the coffin she screamed, "I am alive, I am in here! Let me out! Let me out!"

Siting up she gasped again, "I can't sleep, I have to stay awake, and every time I sleep something more horrible happens." She began to pace as she tried to think of some way to undo what was happening. "Think Angelique! Think, what can you do?" Going to the chair by the fireplace she collapsed. "Maybe I can do a reverse spell and wait to see what happens." Closing her eyes she began to chant, "From Receiver to Sender, I send back the spell that is now upon me. Reverse the spell and let it fall where it may." Before her words were finished, Angelique felt an over powering vibration as her own spell turned inward on her; sending waves of nausea and electrical shocks through her body. Gritting her teeth, she bit her top lip to keep from screaming out. Gasping she vanquished her spell and closed her eyes. "This is monstrous, who has such power?"

Diablos appeared in the corner of her room, "What is good is always just, what is evil will feel its touch and be burned. Look to your old teaching ways and the prophecy of one to come. There you will follow the path to lead you to what you want to know." As quickly as he appeared he disappeared leaving Angelique lots to digest. "Why can you not tell me who it is? Why must it be in a riddle?" Not receiving a response she sighed deeply closing her eyes and began to meditate.