Author's Notes: This chapter seemed a little short and unsatisfactory to me, so last night I wrote an extra scene to go in here. Hopefully, it doesn't stick out like a sore thumb. I don't usually add entirely new scenes less than twenty-four hours before a chapter goes up.
Actually, I've never handled my stories like this before. They are almost always nearly set in stone before the first bit goes up, not in the process of heavy revision all the way through. I'm not sure I'll ever do this again, but the one thing I've found useful is all the reviews which remind me of what questions I need to be sure are answered (since I know the answers, sometimes it's easy to forget to make sure they're clear to other people) and plot elements that have got to be properly untangled. I really am grateful for all your reviews. Besides being encouraging they've also been incredibly helpful.
Chapter 16
Gathering Forces
Grabbing his sword and telling Victoria to go up the stairs, Diego headed for the cave entrance, hoping that more of Dracula's men weren't there. Looking through the spy hole, he was relieved to see Solomon standing still, looking patiently at the entrance. Diego opened the door from the inside and let him back in.
"It's done," Solomon said. He looked drawn, and his arm had started bleeding again.
"Do I dare ask what you did with them?" Diego asked, once they were back inside and the door disconnected again.
"I made sure they would be found by those most concerned," Solomon said.
"So Dracula will know they failed and think I killed them?" Diego asked.
"No, he'll know that I did," Solomon replied. "He knows your weakness as well as I do. You're going to have to overcome it tonight."
"Why tonight?"
They had walked back into the main part of the cave. Victoria came back downstairs.
Solomon looked him in the eye. Diego wondered how the shorter man managed to make him feel small with just a look. "Because he no longer has to disguise what he is with you. He also knows that I'm here, and that I'm not going to stop until I've finished my work. There's no point in taking his time anymore. And you need to understand that this is life and death. More than life and death," Solomon said.
"I'm not sure I can do that," Diego said. He went to get some bandages and something to clean Solomon's arm.
"You will have to," Solomon hissed insistently. He stepped closer to Diego and now stood only inches from his face. "These aren't simple villains who can be locked away. They are monsters who will kill and worse than kill— turn others into creatures like themselves."
"Perhaps killing doesn't come as naturally to me as it does to you," Diego replied, not bothering to hide his growing agitation.
"And that is your opinion of me, is it?" Solomon spat. "You think I enjoy doing this? I've spent most of my life in the dark. I haven't done it because I want to. I've done it because it has to be done. I don't expect you to relish the task any more that I have. Would you like your lady to be as those creatures last night?" Solomon asked, taking off his coat and sitting down at Diego's quiet insistence.
"His lady is standing right here and would prefer not to be ignored," Victoria said, in irritation. "What happened? Diego didn't tell me much."
"He was attacked by three vampire women. I'm not sure whether they were planning to kill him or turn him." Solomon barely managed to hide his reaction to the pain as Diego cleaned his arm. It didn't need stitches, but it was slightly inflamed. "It didn't matter. I staked them through the heart. It's either that or beheading. We are fortunate that it is four days until a full moon. Otherwise, Boris would be even more formidable. As it is, silver is still necessary." He looked at Diego. "I suggest you get as many of your servants out of the house before this evening. This will be Dracula's primary target, and I doubt you want to risk their lives."
"I've already taken care of that," Diego said, finishing tying the fresh bandage around Solomon's arm. "I did that last night. I wasn't even sure why then." Diego looked at Victoria. He should take her back to Los Angeles; he wasn't about to send her on her own. He pulled her away from Solomon and spoke to her quietly. "You don't need to stay here. I can take you back to your tavern."
"And leave you two alone to face this? Not a chance," she whispered. "You need me."
"I need you to be safe more." If anything happened to her, he couldn't go on.
"Felipe isn't here, and I don't trust anyone else to keep you safe," she said, glancing over to where Solomon was watching. "He's injured and has his own agenda."
"Victoria..."
"Don't fight me on this, Diego. It will be better if we're together." She held on to his hands. "I may not be able to fight like you, but I know I can do something. There is strength in numbers no matter how few they might be."
Diego considered this. He couldn't be sure what would happen, and the truth was with his father and Felipe out of town, there was no one else that he really trusted to protect Victoria. Mendoza was a good enough man, but he or his lancers wouldn't be able to do anything against Dracula even if they knew what to do. Perhaps it would be better to keep her close; after all, it was better than wondering what trouble she might have gotten into. If only he had any idea of what to expect.
"All right," he said reluctantly. "But I'm going to need you to be willing to hide and stay out of the fight if it's starts getting too bad. I can't have anything happening to you."
Solomon walked over to them. "It is safer keeping her with you, especially if there's no one else here with your caliber of fighting to entrust her protection to. Dracula seems to sense when a loved one is particular vulnerable. Now, do you think you can prepare yourself for this?"
"I don't have much choice, but first I want to know what is so important about the book. Also why does Dracula want it and why is it vital to keep it away from him?" Diego had enough of not knowing why the book was important. Even if they never found it, he had to know why it was wanted.
"You are a curious man," Solomon replied.
Diego was not going to be put off of the subject. "I'm a scholarly man, and the more I know the better I can plan."
"I can understand that though I'm a pragmatic man," Solomon said. "While I've never seen the book, I know it fell into your great-grandfather's hands back in his demon-fighting days. I'm not sure who he took it from. It was one of a kind, obviously. There were a lot of obscure spells, but I think what Dracula is interested is in the mention of rare artifacts. It's rumored that the book contains detailed information about a certain amulet that's supposed to have the power to banish evil into limbo, as well as what is needed to either destroy it or unleash its powers, and this is the only book that I've heard of that describes it in such detail. I've always concerned myself with more practical weapons, but I know enough to realize that Dracula could do even greater harm with the information in that book. Any other questions?"
"Yes," Victoria interjected. "Do you have any idea where Diego's grandfather might have hidden this book? It's not in the trunk."
"I'm afraid not. I had very little to do with Don Sebastian, and Don Alejandro thought it would be best if neither Teodoro nor I knew what had happened to the trunk or its contents," he said, before turning back to Diego. "You would be in a better position to guess what he would have done with it. Now are you ready to prepare?"
"Now, I am," Diego replied.
~Z~Z~Z~
It was late afternoon. Solomon had finished instructing Diego on the strengths and weaknesses of the foes he was going to face and leaving him with a supply of weapons had disappeared outside to survey the area. Victoria had brought out garlic cloves from the kitchen after Solomon had told of their efficacy, and even dropped a couple into a small bag that she'd fastened to her belt. After she'd done that she had insisted on continuing to try to find the book.
Diego took the opportunity to go to his room to change into darker, less noticeable clothing. Since he had no idea what the evening would bring or where he would be going, he had decided against dressing as Zorro again. This was not a night to meet overly enthusiastic lancers. He pulled out a heavy black shirt that he hadn't really worn since his return from Spain and his darkest blue pants and vest in order to better blend into the night. The last thing he grabbed was an old leather coat, which, while it might inhibit his maneuverability, should offer him greater protection.
As he turned to leave, he was startled to see Victoria standing at his door. Nervously, he wondered what brought her to his room. She didn't seem upset though she'd been anxious most of the afternoon. Not knowing what to say, he just stood there for a moment as she looked him up and down.
"I've always liked you in black," she said with a smile, "but blue suits you as well. It brings out the color of your eyes." She ran her hands up to the collar of his shirt. "I haven't seen this shirt before."
Swallowing nervously, he said, "I always thought it would be a bad idea to wear black as myself." He took hold of her hands and stepped back slightly, trying to hide his nervousness. "It seemed like it would be pushing my luck even if the style was different. But was there something else you wanted other than to approve my wardrobe choice?"
Her smile turned a little wicked, and he realized that what he wanted say had come out differently than he intended.
"I meant is there something you needed?" That sounded wrong too. He tried again. "Is there something wrong? Or did you find something?"
Victoria shook her head. "No, not yet," she said. "But I thought you might want something to eat. We don't know what's going to happen, and well..."
"That sounds like a good idea," Diego said. He looked down at her clothes. "And I think I need to find you some kind of jacket to wear. It's chilly this evening, and I want you prepared."
"All right, and maybe you can think of some other place for me to look for the book," she said, anxiety returning to her face.
"I'm not really sure," he said, leading her away from his room.
"We need to find it," she insisted. "I don't want anything to happen to you, Diego."
"Nothing will," he said. "I don't think the book affects my safety one way or the other. Wait here a minute." He ducked into the room that held some of his mother's things. In a trunk, he found an old jacket of his mother's that might work for her. He reappeared in the hall and handed it to Victoria.
The jacket was loose and the sleeves slightly long, but otherwise it fit well enough. "Thank you, Diego," Victoria said, standing on tiptoe to kiss his cheek.
Diego closed his eyes a moment, then kissed her lightly on the forehead, determined to be more careful than he had been earlier. He hadn't been in proper control of himself, and he loved Victoria too much to treat her carelessly just because he was feeling overly emotional. He cleared his throat and said, "Now about that food."
"Right this way," she replied, holding his hand. "It's all ready, and then we can get back to work."
~Z~Z~Z~
Boris returned to the hacienda near sunset. With all his guile and cunning, he had managed to find but one replacement for the fledglings Dracula had lost. Fortunately, she was a small thing he could easily hold on his horse. There had been no sign of Solomon on his journey, but he found one on his return.
Directly in front of the gate of the hacienda lay the bodies of Emilian and Cezar, silver coated spikes sticking out from each chest. Placing his unconscious prize on the ground, Boris drew a knife as he approached the house. Inside as he expected, he found the bodies of the three men left behind. They hadn't managed to put up much of a struggle. He was relieved to see that the panel to the secret passage was still firmly locked and appeared untampered with.
Once he locked the girl securely in one of the rooms, he went back to carry the bodies of the men inside to another. While the chances of someone visiting were slim, Boris was not going to take any chances this evening.
"Solomon is a very determined man," Dracula's voice echoed off the walls.
Even with his keen hearing, Boris had not heard his master emerge from his sanctuary and slink up behind him. Surprised though he was, Boris did not betray any sign of it. "We already knew that," he said dryly.
Dracula sidled up beside Boris and took a closer look at the bodies. "Pity. This will make things go less smoothly than I would have hoped."
That was an understatement to Boris's mind. While he feared few men, he knew it was time to start planning their exit, but he had to ask, "What of the book, my lord? Do you think the woman has found it?"
"Ah, the taverness. Well, either she knows where it is and will tell us..." Dracula paused for a moment.
"And if she doesn't?" Boris asked. He hoped that Dracula would forget the book in favor of concentrating on their primary enemy or their escape, but once Dracula was fixated on a goal, it was hard to get him to see reason.
Dracula's look told Boris that he knew exactly what he was thinking and that he was going to ignore him as usual. "Then she will become a hostage... and de la Vega will most certainly tell us."
"You assume he knows where it is," Boris said somewhat pointedly.
Smiling condescendingly, Dracula said, "As long as he believes he can save her, he will find it for me without delay."
"As you say, my lord. Shall we go?" Boris asked. He would follow Dracula wherever he willed, but he didn't have nearly his faith in either the book's existence or the success of his plan.
Dracula cocked his head to one side, he could hear the faint moans of the girl regaining consciousness. "Make things ready. We'll depart after supper."
~TBC~
Saturday: Chapter 17 - Ultimatum
End Notes: I'm glad that in the previous chapter Victoria came off as a little off. She was meant to be just a little out of it. Dracula wasn't lying about what he was after or what he had done. I was a little nervous about all of it. I will say this though. There are certain lines in my stories that I don't cross, and Victoria and Diego won't be going any further than intense kissing while they're either unmarried or one or both of them are not entirely in their right minds. So what I've written is pretty much as far as I will go.
Also, there's finally an explanation of the book, though I'm afraid it was a bit anticlimactic. It actually was a bit difficult for me to come up with something that Dracula would want badly enough to travel so far for it, though I did add in Solomon's pursuit of them to give them some sense of urgency.
I did want to tie it into Monster Squad, but the timing was all wrong for the amulet itself, and frankly I didn't want to copy Monster Squad though I've been paying homage to many of my favorite bits (almost all of them Dracula-centric— Duncan Regehr's Dracula was just so beautifully wicked). So I settled on a book that would give Dracula all the information he would need on the amulet including how to destroy it. Besides, Diego is a scholar, and a book seemed a very appropriate choice.
And thanks again to Ghetto Outlaw for helping with Solomon, Boris, and Dracula this chapter.
