Chapter 5
Julia and Barnabas had managed to drag Willie into the drawing room and set him in one of the chairs before the fire. His face was deathly pale and his breathing was labored. Julia checked his pulse on his wrist and frowned.
"How is he?" Barnabas asked her.
She set his arm over that of the chair and looked down at him before she shook her head. "I don't know. His pulse is fast-unusually fast-and he seems to have lost a great deal of color."
The pair started back when Willie puffed out his chest. His eyes shot open and a great gasp escaped his lips. He clutched onto the arms of the chair as his body twitched.
"Help me hold him down!" Julia ordered Barnabas as she grasped one arm.
Barnabas grabbed the other, and together they pinned him to the chair until the tremors stopped. Willie fell back against the chair and his eyes became half-lidded. They stared at the floor, but there was a lack of focus in their depths.
Julia set a hand on Willie's shoulder and leaned down to examine his face. "Willie? Willie, can you hear me?"
A childish smile slipped onto his lips. "Willie. . ." he whispered. "Willie is nice." Willie's head drooped backward and his eyes closed.
Julia shook his shoulder. "Willie? Willie?"
"He's out cold," Barnabas assessed.
Julia straightened and studied the pale young man. "I don't like this."
"Do you think it could be some trauma from his fall?" Barnabas wondered.
She shook her head. "I'm not sure, but let's get him to bed. I have a feeling he's going to be out for a while this time."
The pair hefted the young man up the stairs and to his third floor bedroom. They gently set him atop the mattress and Julia made sure to cover him with a heavy dose of sheets. She stepped back to admire their work, and the young man.
"I don't think Willie should be left alone," Julia mused.
"Why?" Barnabas asked her.
She shook her head. "I can't say, but I just have this feeling that something bad is happening."
"Then I'll stay with him until sunrise," Barnabas offered.
Julia sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose. "If you don't mind I'll go lay down myself."
Barnabas nodded. "Of course. I'll call you if there's any change."
She reluctantly left the room. Barnabas drew up the only chair in the bedroom and seated himself beside the sickbed. Willie's chest moved up and down at a healthy pace, though his face was still pale. Barnabas drew the sheets up to Willie's chin and leaned back to await the end of another long night among many.
The mood in the woods was not so serene. Miss Messenger stood before the tree with the book open in one arm and her other arm raised above her. "I command you to return, Sarah! I command it!" Her reward was silence and an empty black circle. She looked down at the book and flipped the pages. "Why isn't this working?"
One of the headings caught her attention. She set her finger on the line below the header and scanned the lines with the tip of her fingernail. Her black mood soured further as she ground her teeth together.
She slammed the book shut and growled. "Damn it! How the hell could she-" She stopped herself and shook her head. "It doesn't matter. I'll just have to find out where she is." She raised her gaze to the white forest around her and cleared her throat. "Ben!"
The dark figure of a man shambled out of the deepest shadows, but remained mostly hidden by the night. His arms hung limp at his sides, and at face-level were a pair of empty white eyes that glistened even in the dim light.
Messenger stalked over to him and grabbed one of his listless hands. She raised his hand so the palm was turned upward. The skin was as pale as death. She extended her index finger on her empty hand and stabbed her long, red fingernail into his palm. The man didn't even start back.
Messenger dragged her fingernail along his flesh, and with each cut she drew the outline of a pentagram. The gashes were deep, but no blood poured forth. She finished her drawing and pricked her thumbnail against her middle finger. A drop of blood appeared from the wound. She smeared the small quantity over the pentagram. The man groaned.
"Hold still," she snapped as she finished her job. Messenger slapped his wounded hand and the pentagram came alive with a red glowing light. She looked up at the figure and pointed at the woods. "Now find her again."
The figure turned and walked away into the night.
Julia sat in one of the high-backed chairs before the dead embers of the fire. Her head was lolled to one side and her chest moved up and down in the comfort of deep sleep. The clock above the mantle showed the time to be a mere hour into the night. She sat up and stretched her arms above her head. Movement at the windows caught her attention and she looked in that direction.
A horrible rotting face stared at her through the glass.
Julia screamed. The face vanished from the window. Footsteps clambered down the steps and Barnabas appeared in the doorway of the drawing room. "Julia, what's happened?"
She pointed a shaking finger at the bay window. "S-someone was there! Just now there was a face looking in!"
Barnabas raced to the door and Julia followed. He flung open the door and glanced to his right at the windows. No one was there. Barnabas cautiously stepped out to the end of the portico and searched all around the area. He saw nothing.
"There doesn't appear to be anyone around," Barnabas commented.
"There was someone there," she insisted.
Barnabas set a hand on her shoulder. "Let's go back inside."
They reentered the house and Barnabas shut the door behind them. "Perhaps your mind imagined the face."
Julia pressed her hands together against the center of her face as she walked a few paces into the house. At his question she stopped and shook her head. "I'm sure I saw a man, and yet-" she paused and furrowed her brow.
Barnabas came up to her side to stand between Julia and the staircase. "And yet what?"
Julia turned to meet his gaze. "And yet something was wrong with him. His skin was so pale."
Barnabas' eyes widened. "Another vampire?"
She shrugged. "I don't know. I didn't have enough time to-" She paused and frowned. "Do you hear that?"
Barnabas tilted his head to one side and listened. A tune came to his ears. The notes combined to create a soft, playful song. The kind children would sing to one another.
Barnabas hurried from the room and raced up the stairs. Julia followed on his heels up the two flights of stairs and both of them halted in the open doorway to Willie's room. The snow reflected a soft light into the room so that they could see onto the bed. Willie sat up with his back against the headboard. He tossed a ball into the air and caught it. Time and again he tossed it up and caught it down, and while he did so he sung a familiar song.
"London Bridge is falling down, falling down, falling down. London Bridge is falling down, my fair lady. Take the key-"
"Willie?" Julia spoke up. Her voice broke the spell.
Willie caught the ball and stared ahead as he blinked his eyes. After a moment he swayed a little and clutched his head. "J-Julia?" he whispered.
Barnabas remained in the doorway as Julia strode over to his bedside. "Yes, Willie, it's me. How are you feeling?"
Willie shook his head to clear the fog. "Like something's stuck in my head." He glanced down at his lap where he clutched the ball in one hand. The young man raised the ball even with his face and studied the old toy with confusion written across his face. "Where'd this come from?"
Julia leaned over the bed. "Don't you remember anything about what just happened?"
He shook his head. "No. What happened?"
"You were singing London Bridge," she told him.
Willie scoffed. "That's crazy talk, Julia. Why would I be singing that?"
Julia slipped her hand into her pocket and drew out her talisman. "I don't know, but I think we should find out."
"A moment," Barnabas spoke up as he joined Julia at Willie's bedside. He held out his hand. "Let me see that ball." Willie handed the toy to Barnabas who inspected the ball with extreme interest. His lips tightened. "This is Sarah's ball."
Julia sat side-saddle on the bed and held the medallion in front of Willie. "That's an interesting observation, but it doesn't tell us what's going on."
"And you believe hypnotizing Willie will?" he returned.
"Wait wait wait!" Willie spoke up as he tried to scuttle away from Julia. "I ain't gonna be hypnotized by no one!"
"This won't hurt a bit, I promise," Julia assured him as she began to swing the medallion back and forth.
Willie's eyes naturally followed the moving object. "I don't wanna. . .be. . .hypno-" His eyes closed and his head drooped.
Julia knelt on the floor beside the chair and set a hand on his arm. "Willie, can you hear me?" Willie shook his head. Julia leaned back and frowned. "But you just did, Willie."
"I'm not Willie," Willie mumbled.
"Then who are you?" Julia asked him.
An innocent smile slipped onto his lips. "Me."
"What's your name?" Julia persisted.
"I'm Sarah."
Barnabas started back before he narrowed his eyes. "Willie, if this is some sort of game you're playing then I find it in bad taste."
Julia squinted at Willie's face and furrowed her brow. "I don't think this is a game." Her eyes flickered up to Barnabas." What color were Sarah's eyes?"
"Brown, but what does that matter?"
"And Willie's eyes are blue, correct?"
"Yes."
Julia straightened and gestured down at their unconscious companion. "Because Willie's blue eyes are now brown."
Barnabas furrowed his brow as he glanced from Willie to Julia. "I don't understand. What does that mean?"
"It means something's happened to Willie, and Sarah appears to be involved," she mused.
Willie shut his eyes and his face scrunched up. "Barnabas. . ." he moaned.
Barnabas laid his hand on Willie's shoulder. "I'm here, Willie."
Willie's eyes flew open and he shrank away from Barnabas' touch. His voice was high-pitched and frantic. "No! Go away!"
"Why should Barnabas go away?" Julia asked him.
Willie turned his face away from them and glared at the wall. "Because I don't want to see him! That's his punishment!"
Barnabas' mouth dropped open as he fell to his knees beside the chair. "Sarah. . .Sarah, is it truly you?"
Willie shut his eyes. "Go away!"
Julia glanced over across the chair at Barnabas. "Barnabas, I think you should leave."
He looked up and frowned at her. "If Sarah is involved than-"
"Then that's exactly why you should leave," she insisted. "She obviously doesn't want to speak with you, and if we're going to find out what's happened we're going to need her help."
"But I'm not the same as I was before!" Barnabas insisted as he returned his attention to the figure before him, the figure that contained the essence of his younger sister. "Sarah, I've changed! I swear I've changed!"
She shook her head. "No! Go away!"
"Barnabas!" Julia warned him.
Barnabas' face fell, but he reluctantly rose to his feet. His gaze remained ever on the small form in front of him. "All right, Sarah, but please remember that I still love you."
Willie squeezed his eyes shut and a few loose tears slid down his cheeks. Barnabas turned away from her and ventured downstairs to his coffin. At the last echo of his footsteps Julia inched closer and slipped her hand into one of Willie's.
"Willie-Sarah, can either of you hear me?" she whispered.
Willie's eyes opened. They were still brown and still full of tears. "Is he. . .is he gone?"
Julia nodded. "He's gone, now can you tell me what happened?"
She shook her head. "I can't because I don't know. I was called somewhere in the woods, and there was a woman waiting for me. She wanted me to do something, but I was scared, so I went to Willie. Willie's always been kind to me, so I knew he'd help me."
"You went inside Willie?" Julia asked her.
She nodded. "Yes, but I'm sort of sorry now that I did it. He was so frightened when it happened. I didn't mean for him to be frightened."
"Do you know what the woman wanted you for?" Julia wondered.
She scrunched her face up. "I'm not sure. She said something about freeing me, but I didn't believe her. She looked like a liar. You know what I mean, don't you?"
Julia nodded. "Yes, I know. What did this woman look like?"
"She. . .she-" Sarah's eyes rolled back and Willie's form slumped down in the chair.
Julia's pulse quickened as she looked them over. "Sarah! Willie!"
Willie's eyes fluttered open. They were a brilliant blue. He raised himself up in the chair and looked around himself in bewilderment. "Where's Barnabas?"
Julia knelt beside his chair and studied his bright eyes. "Do you remember anything that just happened?"
He shook his head. "No, why? What's going on?"
Julia pursed her lips. "I wish I knew, Willie, I wish I knew."