by Lucas Thorn
“He’s older than me, Senka. Most likely he’s done this before. Many times. At least, I suspect so.”
“Done what?”
“Left the castle. His home. Like us, he is tied to this place. To this earth. You feel that as much as I.”
“I’m not tied here. I can leave any time.”
And recruit an army.
Fight across Europe.
Burn it all to the ground!
Show her sisters she wasn’t a kitten. She was a lion. Listen to her roar.
“You’re tied here. Why else have you stayed this long?”
There was no answer to that, so she tightened her lips and followed the eldest without further question.
Hailwic was right.
She hated the eldest for it. But she was always right. Though she thought about leaving, she’d never been able to go further than dreams. In her most secret of places, she knew she didn’t even want to. Not anymore.
At the top, they paused before leaving the tower.
Hailwic turned to the youngest and, though she didn’t quite smile, looked pleased by a stray thought.
Held out the mace and said; “Here, Senka. I’m giving this to you. I think you’ll enjoy using it. And you may need it soon.”
Senka ran tongue across lips and felt flame burn in her belly.
Reached slowly.
If it was Vasilja, she’d expect a trick. But Hailwic never played games.
Especially not with weapons.
Hailwic almost worshipped them. She could spend hours cleaning and oiling swords, axes, knives, and an arsenal of exotic weapons from all over the world. Even guns.
One lesson above all others had been drilled into Senka since she’d first arrived.
Never touch Hailwic’s weapons.
Ever.
“Really? Are you sure?”
“I am. You are youngest. And I’ve treated you as such. But I think it’s time we accepted the meaningless of doing so. You’ve been with us for a hundred years, Senka. More than a mortal lifetime.”
Senka took the weapon. Marvelled at the way moonlight formed silver sprays off the bladed head. It would look so much more beautiful if it was slick with blood and gore, she thought.
Smiled into the cool gaze of the eldest.
“I don’t know what to say.” Then serious. “I’ll look after it, Hailwic. I promise. And I won’t ever lose it.”
Hailwic reached first, pulling Senka close. “You’ve nothing to prove, Senka. Not to me. Not to Vasilja. And definitely not to him. Only to yourself. Now. Let’s find where he has gone and hunt him down. And, yes. You can bite him.”
“I want to hit him with this.” She swung the mace, relishing the swish as it howled through air. “Again and again. Over and over. Hit him with it.”
“I think I’ll let you.” She showed a wry smile this time. “It deserves to strike him at least once. That mace has killed a king, Senka. Two Cardinals, a Bishop, and a Pope.”
“A Pope?” Gasped. “Really?”
“Truly. Some nights, I’ve kissed its metal and imagined I can still taste his blood on its edge.”
“It sounds too hard to believe. Weren’t you afraid?”
“When I killed him?” She thought about it. “No. He was afraid. Too afraid to try and defend himself. He even forgot to pray to his god when he died.”
“How did he taste?”
Hailwic’s mouth formed a cruel curve. “Divine.”
“I want to bite a Pope.”
The library was sheathed in darkness. Candles, usually lit, lay cold and dead.
Papers strewn across the ground. Books, snatched from their shelves, lay amid the destruction of his desk. Splinters of which formed a sharp carpet.
Dracula must have blasted it with his magic, Senka thought.
No way he would’ve taken the time to tear it to so many pieces with his hands.
She could smell the lingering stink of brimstone.
The two vampires hovered above, feeling hope sink as their eyes were drawn to smoking remains choking in the fireplace. Secrets now protected by ash.
Other papers were shredded by his own hand. Torn and discarded.
A journal, open on his desk.
Last few pages already taken.
Burned? Ripped to pieces? Taken with him? It didn’t matter.
“There’s nothing here,” Senka said. “He’s left us nothing, Hailwic.”
The mace felt heavy in her hand, but she didn’t let it go. Despair was sinking in. And when she felt despair, she wanted to break things.
The mace would break things so much easier.
“He was in a hurry. He didn’t have time to hide anything from us.” Hailwic pressed the sword’s brass pommel to her chin. Thinking. “He rushed here. Found everything he thought we might find and burned it. The rest he left for us to sift through. Knowing there’s nothing there we can use. But, the important thing to remember, Senka, is he was in a hurry. Which means he may have missed something. Maybe something small. Something he didn’t think was important.”
“How do you know?” Waspish.
Pause.
Sigh.
“I don’t know. Not really. Sometimes, he’s too clever.”
The admission made Senka shiver rather than want to celebrate Hailwic’s confession.
Vasilja slid into the room with a whistle. Arched a brow. “Senka, did you damage his desk? He’ll be very cross with you. He liked that desk.”
“It wasn’t me,” Senka said. Couldn’t hide the sorrow in her voice. “I wanted to, but he broke it first.”
“You know what I think? I think he knows you very well.”
Hailwic frowned. “He knows us all too well. I’ve decided we’re wasting time in here. Is Harker secured?”
“Of course. I have asked him very nicely not to leave. And if he doesn’t want to listen to me, then the chains should keep him from going anywhere.”
“We’ll question him after sunset.”
Senka crossed her arms.
Almost stamped a foot, but she was hovering above the ground so it was pointless.
“Why not do it now? I want to do it now. I’m hungry, Hailwic. I need to bite. I have to. I think we really should bite him now.”
“There’s not enough time. Can’t you feel the cursed sun? Already it pushes at the night. My skin is crawling.”
“You always feel it first.” Senka said. “You’re sensitive.”
It wasn’t quite an accusation of weakness.
“To look upon its light is to accept death and eternal damnation,” Hailwic said. “I want for neither of these things. The better I feel its chase, the less I need to worry about being surprised by its sudden appearance.”
“You’re very wise when you talk like that, Hailwic.” Vasilja took Senka’s hand. Gave a small squeeze. “It’s why you make the decisions. You always make good decisions. I can’t worry when you are around. Senka, we should learn this ourselves. We should always know where the sun is, too.”
“All I want to know is where he’s going.” Senka scowled. “And I want to know why he left.”
Hailwic sighed. “We will know, in time. For now, return to the crypt. Wait for night. Then we get what answers we can from Harker and decide whether to wait. Or to follow.”
“And bite him. Jonathan, first. We have to bite him.”
“Yes, Senka. Then we bite.”
CHAPTER TWO
Jonathan Harker was gone.
“Where is he?” Senka gripped the mace. “He should be here! I wanted to bite him, Vasilja. You said I could. You both said so. Why isn’t he here?”
“I don’t know, Senka,” Vasilja said. Didn’t look very concerned, though she made a show of examining the broken hinge on the door. “I put him in our best chains and everything.”
“He’s more resourceful than he looked,” Hailwic said.
“I don’t want him to be resourceful,” Senka hissed. “I want him to be here!”
“Who would sell him a horse? If anyone tried to sell him a horse, they know we’d bite them for it! They’d have to be stupid.”
“If Mister Harker had money in his pockets, Senka, he’d get himself a horse. Maybe not a good one, of course, but it would still be a horse.”
Senka reeled. “Well, let’s go get him. He can’t have got far.”
“We don’t know which direction he’s going.” Vasilja tapped on the broken hinge. “Do you know, I think he actually kicked it open. He must have been very desperate. I think I’ll need to speak to the blacksmith. And the carpenter. We’ll need them to fix the door and make sure it never happens again. It’s not very nice when people run away like this, is it?”
“If you don’t want to look for him, I will!”
“We’re not looking for him now,” Hailwic said. “He’s most likely too far ahead of us. Let him go, Senka. Let’s not waste time.”
Small voice. “But I really wanted to bite him.”
“And if we see him again, you shall. But tonight, there’s more important things to worry about than that worm.”
“He really was a worm,” Vasilja said. “I don’t think he would have tasted very nice. I think he’d have tasted like a stableboy.”
“You don’t know that,” Senka growled. “I almost bit him. And I would have killed him, too. But Dracula stopped me. Why did he stop me if he never meant to have Jonathan for himself? I could have bitten him and then we could have all gone away together instead of Dracula sneaking off on his own like that. Now they’ve both gone and I’ve got no one to bite.”
“I think he wanted something from Mister Harker,” Vasilja. “Somewhere in the worm’s cunning little mind was something Dracula wanted very much to know. That’s why he didn’t want you to bite him. Because he hadn’t got what he wanted yet. Now he has. Which is why he left him for us.”
Senka frowned, trying to work it out.
Hailwic nodded. “Did he tell you why Harker was here?”
“No, Hailwic,” Vasilja said. “I thought he would have told you, though. He trust you the most.”
“He didn’t.”
“He’s not very good at sharing secrets, is he?”
“Which is why we need to be better in digging them out.”
Senka planted her feet at last. Lifted the mace and brought it crashing down onto the bars of the door. “That’s what I wanted to do! Dig them out! With my teeth. With my fingers. I’d have dug out all his little secrets and piled them by the door. But you wouldn’t let me! Why won’t anyone let me bite?”
Vasilja put her arms around her sister.
Pulled her tight. “Don’t cry, Senka. It’s useless to try. You don’t have tears anymore, remember? All it does is make your eyes feel dry and give you a headache.” She hugged the vampire. “Listen, we promise next time you can bite. Don’t we, Hailwic? Next time, you can bite as much as you like, and we won’t stop you. How does that sound?”
Hailwic shrugged. “Well, I suppose my way didn’t achieve anything this time.”
Senka wiped at her dry eyes. “You promise? You’re not just saying it?”
“Of course not.” Vasilja smiled wider and stepped away. “Now, I think you should let out some of your frustration on the door again. You’ll like that, won’t you? Hit it with your thing there and I’m sure you’ll feel much better.”
“I’m hungry.”
“We’ll go get something soon. I promise.” Pointed at the bars. “Go on. Hit it.”
Senka tapped the iron with the mace.
“Tsk, Senka. That’s not nearly hard enough. How’s that supposed to make you feel better? Hit it harder.”
Senka howled her fury and beat at the iron bars with her mace.
Again.
And again.
The clang of metal echoed in her shrieks.
Vasilja and Hailwic left her there. Threaded their way into the courtyard and stood in the chill wind. Pale white dresses still stained from their feast the night before.
There had been no time yet to change.
“She’s still a child,” Vasilja said. “He took her too young. Don’t you think so?”
Hailwic snorted. “She was older than you were.”
“That’s not a nice thing to say, Hailwic. You know what I meant. I was not as young up here.” Tapped her forehead.
“She’s full of passion. That’s all. It’s what drew him to her.”
“That’s a very pretty way of saying she’s impulsive. I don’t understand it sometimes, Hailwic. I can see what he liked in Senka. But what was it he loved about me? He picked you because you were strong. And he likes you. You spend more time in his rooms than any of us. And lately, you always come out with a swollen neck. Sometimes he doesn’t even look at me for weeks. It’s almost like he doesn’t know I’m here.”
“He once told me he loved your sense of humour.”
“That’s very flattering.” She didn’t sound flattered. Sighed. “Well, if Mister Harker can’t give us answers, how do we know where he’s going?”
“He’s following Harker’s trail. Do you remember where he was from?”
“I’m not sure. He sounded English. But everyone speaking English always sounds English to me. I’m not sure if he came from England at all. He might as well be Belgian for all I know. Or Sardinian.”
“He can’t be that. It’s called Italy now.”
“Is it? When did that happen?”
“I don’t know exactly. All that matters is that it happened. Besides, you know about it already because I’ve told you before.”
“I don’t think you have. And besides, I think it does matter. I mean just because someone stops calling your home by its name doesn’t mean it’s not yours anymore. You should know this better than anyone, Hailwic.” She pursed her lips. “I suppose you’re right. It’s not very important right now. I mean, I don’t think Jonathan Harker is a Sardinian name, anyway. It doesn’t even sound very pretty when you say it. And Sardinian names always sound pretty, don’t they? They’re very musical. That’s why I like Sardinians so much. They’re very musical. That and they taste as delightful as they sound. Don’t look at me like that, Hailwic. Oh, very well, I will call them Italian if I must. Honestly, you’re so silly about these things sometimes. Anyway, I suppose Mister Harker could have come from Munich. Do you remember we had to go to Munich before he arrived? We had to rescue him, didn’t we? Dracula didn’t want poor old mad Elizabeth to bite him first. Terribly selfish of him.”
“Are you trying to say you want to go to Munich?”
“Well, it’s a place to start. But I think I’d prefer to go to Italy now. It sounds much more exciting. And Senka would like it, though I do think she’d prefer it when it was Sardinia. It sounds nicer.”
“Munich,” Hailwic said. A decision made.
“And Munich is so very close to Prague.” Vasilja’s tone was only slightly mocking.
“I have no interest in Prague.”
“I don’t believe you. You can lie to Dracula, Hailwic, but please don’t lie to me.” She prodded Hailwic’s arm. “You lived in Prague for such a long time. It was almost like home to you. It’s normal to miss your home. I shan’t tell him if you say it, you know.”
“This is home.” Back rigid, but her eyes slid away.
“You know what I mean. We all miss parts of our lives, even if we can’t recall why. It’s why Senka talks too much of Belgrade. Belgrade this. Belgrade that. As if it’s the only city in the world.”
“It’s the only one she knew.”
“That’s what I was trying to say earlier.” Vasilja’s eyes glinted momentarily. A small triumph. “He took her too young.”
“We took her.”
“We didn’t have a choice.”
“In this, we have more tha
n you think.”
“Munich, is it?”
“It will be nice this time of year.”
“It will be cold. There’ll be little fun to be had on the streets. I can’t think there will be more than a few lost drunks or stray dogs. And they smell. I would need to wash much too often. That’s assuming we get to bite at all.”
“I’m sure you’ll manage to keep us fed.”
“I have always tried my best. But how will I keep Senka entertained? She needs entertaining, Hailwic. If we don’t entertain her, she’ll be intolerable. You know what she’s like when she’s bored.”
“You’ll think of something, Vasilja. You always do.” She looked again to the doorway where Senka’s howls were finally subduing. “When she’s finished, set her to work packing. We’ll need to be ready.”
“And you?”
“I’ll arrange our wagons.”
“What’s wrong with a train? It would be faster, you know. And I always wanted to try one.”
“I don’t trust trains.” Grunt. “I should be back before dawn.”
“Well.” Crooked smile and show of fang. “At least you know when that happens.”
CHAPTER THREE
“I don’t think you should take that much, Senka.”
“But you said we’d be gone for months, maybe a year!”
“I know what I said. I was the one who said it. Which is why you shouldn’t take that much. Would you really like to carry all of that around with you?”
“But Hailwic is getting more than one wagon. You said that, too.”
“Of course she is. Our coffins can’t fit on just one. It would have to be very wide. And the beasts pulling it would need to be strong. And I’ve not seen a strong ox in many years around here. They all look thin and wasted. Much too brittle, really. I don’t know how they pull a wagon to begin with.”
“So, I can still take my clothes.”
“If you want to take it, you can take it. I never said you can’t. But I really don’t think you should.”
“Well, what are you taking?”
“I’m taking my coffin. And some of Transylvania’s finest dirt, of course.”
“That’s it?”
“It’s all I really need, Senka. There are plenty of cities along the way. I shall buy new clothes in Vienna. And Paris.”
