by Amy Cross
"Fuck!" he shouted, kicking out instinctively. He heard a nearby squeaking sound as something, probably a rat, scurried to safety.
All he could do was wait and hope that Kate would have pity on him. The transformation from Kate Langley, diminutive and passionate anthropologist, to someone named Madeleine, had been as shocking as it had been sudden. Mike found it hard to believe that she could have been hiding her true self all this time, but he couldn't deny the evidence that had finally developed right in front of him. The huge painting was clearly an image of Kate herself, and the plaque clearly identified her as Madeleine LeCompte; quite how she could have lived for more than three hundred years, Mike wasn't sure, but out here in the hinterlands of the Bulgarian wilderness it seemed somehow more possible that such creatures could exist.
Besides, the revelation about Kate's true identity had at least helped to explain a few anomalies. Mike had always wondered how and why Kate had suddenly arrived at the museum to join the anthropological department, especially since she'd seemed far more interested in eavesdropping on the work of others. After the fire, Kate had taken a particular interest in the recovery of the Bulgarian bones, and Mike remembered noticing that she was the only member of the faculty who'd bothered to go and visit Andrew Marlowe at the psychiatric hospital. Then there was Kate's determination to bring a party out to the LeCompte castle; she'd said that she wanted to uncover the ancestral home of a long-forgotten European dynasty, but now it was clear that she'd actually been keen to return so that she could be reunited with her brother. The whole story was so incredible, Mike found it hard to believe, yet he couldn't come up with an alternative explanation.
Kate Langley had never existed. She'd always been a mask.
Hearing a noise somewhere above, Mike froze, and he quickly realized that someone was approaching the top of the hatch. Seconds later, there was a grinding sound, followed by a flood of light as the hatch swung open and someone loomed out of the darkness with a flaming torch in their hand.
"Come on," Madeleine said, reaching down toward him. "Time for dinner."
"You have to let me go," Mike stammered. "There's no way you can possibly think -"
"I don't have time to argue," she continued, sounding a little annoyed, "and you don't have a choice in the matter. Either you can come up willingly, or I'll come down there and get you. Trust me, it'll be a lot easier and a lot less painful if you just come up."
Mike stared up at the flaming torch, which was obscuring Madeleine's face.
"What's wrong?" she asked eventually, sounding annoyed. "Why the hell are you still down there?"
"People are going to be looking for me," he continued. "They're going to notice that I've vanished. They knew where I was coming. Do you think you can just keep me here and no-one's going to come looking?"
"Don't worry about that," she replied, moving back from the opening. "I'll deal with it all. For now, get your ass out of that damn hole. When you're told to do something, you need to do it. Understood?"
Hesitantly, Mike reached up and hauled himself up through the hatch, finally rolling across the floor of the room above while Madeleine pushed the door shut again.
"You probably have a lot of questions," Madeleine said after a moment. "The first thing you need to know is that Kate Langley never existed. Not really. She was just a role I was playing. Do you think I could have infiltrated the museum if I'd turned up and announced that I was Madeleine LeCompte, and that one of the bodies coming from Bulgaria was actually my brother?"
"Madeleine LeCompte," Mike said slowly, "was born more than three hundred years ago."
"I know," she replied. "I don't look it, though. Do I?" She lowered the torch a little, finally allowing Mike to see her face. Although her hair was messier than usual, it was still clearly her. "Come on," she continued. "Pay a girl a compliment. After the day I've had, any kind words would be sorely appreciated."
"What happened to your shoulder?" Mike asked, looking at the scar tissue just to the right side of her neck.
"Just a little playful fighting with my brother."
"That creature is your brother?" Mike continued. "Are you serious?"
"Deadly. I haven't seen him for a while, though. In fact, tonight is gonna be our first family dinner for such a long time. Don't you feel privileged to be invited?"
"This is madness..."
"No," she replied, "it's not madness. It's sanity. The world out there, the world with its museums and cities and busy lives, that's insanity. You've got no idea how much I hated every second of my life in London. When I was pretending to be Kate Langley, I had to put on a show all the time and pretend that I was comfortable. The truth is, I hate what humans are doing to the modern world. Here at the castle, though, everything makes sense. That's why I'm so happy my brother came back. It was hard living here alone, but now we're together again and we can put the family back on top. The LeComptes are going to rule again."
"But why did you drag me here with you?" Mike asked. "Just to torture me?"
"I wanted some company," she replied. "Is that so bad? It was lonely here without Edgar, and I didn't know how long it'd take him to make the journey. Of course, now he's back, I don't need you anymore, so..." She paused. "Come on. We need to go to dinner. Edgar's in a funny mood and it's going to take a while to make him calm down. He's got a bee in his bonnet about something, but it'll be fine. It's always fine eventually. People don't change. Even after three hundred years. I know my brother better than he knows himself."
Mike opened his mouth to argue with her, but no words came out. He felt as if he was going to wake up from this nightmare at any moment.
"Come on," Madeleine said, reaching out and taking his hand. "There's no need to be scared. What will be, will be. You're just an observer tonight. All you can do is watch."
Looking down at her body, Mike saw that she was completely naked.
"Naughty boy," she continued, leading him along the corridor, holding the torch out to guide the way. "We do things a little differently in the LeCompte family. You'll see soon enough. There used to be so many people living here, but now it's just the two of us. We try to keep to the old traditions alive as much as possible, but of course there are always a few problems. You know how it is, right? The classic fight between tradition and modernity. Think about what it's like for those of us who live for centuries."
Mike kept quiet. He was waiting for a chance to run. After all, the jeep was still parked outside, and he figured he could maybe get out there, get it started, and drive away without either of these freaks spotting him until it was too late. First, though, he'd need to lull them into a false sense of security and make sure that they believed he was willing to stay. He'd have to gain their trust, and then later, when they were distracted, he could sneak out to the jeep.
"So," he said eventually, trying to sound as casual as possible. "What's for dinner?"
Chapter Three
"This place has gone to ruin," Edgar said darkly as he sat at the head of the table. "What have you been doing all these year, Madeleine?"
Sitting at the other end of the table, Madeleine glanced nervously at her brother, while affecting a carefree tone of voice. "Oh, this and that," she said eventually, picking her words carefully. "Three hundred and fifty years is a long time. You can't expect me to have just sat around here, waiting for your return. The world has moved on. History has been in flux. You missed so much, Edgar. The industrial revolution, the great wars, the dawn of the atomic age, the internet... Gothos fell, and Sangreth -"
"So you've been neglecting our home," Edgar said firmly, interrupting her.
"I've been out exploring," she replied, the tension evident in her voice. "I considered coming to dig you up, of course, but I thought you'd consider that to be rather patronizing, as if I didn't believe you could get yourself out of your own grave. I can't tell you how many times I felt certain that you were due to show your face, only to be disappointed. It never occurred to me that those
foolish little men would actually be able to keep you in your grave for any substantial period of time. Obviously, it's now clear that you would have liked me to have given you a hand, but at the time, I thought we were still playing the game."
"You took the game too far."
"So you keep saying."
"The state of this castle is a disgrace to our family name," Edgar continued. "On my way here, I didn't encounter a single human who'd even heard of the LeCompte name. It's as if we've been erased from history. We might as well tear the place down."
"We're the last, Edgar. You know that."
"Meanwhile, you were off in London, pretending to be someone else."
"That was for you -"
"Keep lying," Edgar said darkly. "It suits you."
Sighing, Madeline set down her knife and fork. "I don't know what you want me to say, Edgar. I'm sorry. Is that enough? I mis-judged the situation." She paused. "I thought you had a sense of humor," she muttered under her breath.
"Humor?" he asked. "How can there possibly be any humor in such a fate? You left me down there to rot for more than three hundred years. You obviously struck some kind of bargain with the alderman who presided over my execution. Did you truly believe that I'd find the whole experience amusing? Did you think I'd emerge refreshed from such a long rest?"
"I'm sorry," Madeleine said. "That's all I can say. I know you'll forgive me eventually, dear brother. After all, we're the only members of our family left. We shall have to get onto more practical matters at some point. The blood-line must continue, and there are only so many ways such a thing can be achieved when there are just the two of us." She paused for a moment, smiling as she fixed her brother with a determined stare. "We might have to be inventive, my dear. We might have to try something new."
"And what of this weakling?" Edgar asked, glancing over at the far corner, where Mike was chained to the wall. "You brought a pathetic human to our home. You allowed him to see us at our most vulnerable, to hear our arguments, to understand our curse. He can't be allowed to leave."
"I can!" Mike said nervously. "Really, I won't say a thing!"
"Did you bring him here for sport?" Edgar continued, turning back to Madeleine. "As a pet? I can't possibly fathom why you'd waste any time dealing with such a miserable wretch."
"I was lonely," she replied. "You've no idea what a bad time I had in London. It's such a busy city, but there was no-one I could really talk to. I just couldn't face the prospect of coming all the way back to the castle without some company. Granted, it might have been better if I'd found a more impressive specimen, but you know what humans are like. Besides, I had to get things together rather quickly." She paused for a moment. "These are just details, dear brother. We must focus on the bigger picture. You're right when you say I've been acting frivolously, but now's the time to get on with the important things."
"You haven't changed, have you?" Edgar replied with a sneer. "Three hundred and fifty years after I last saw you, you're still an immature child."
"Of course I haven't changed," she said, her hands shaking a little as she sipped from her glass of wine. "No-one ever changes, Edgar. We're born with set souls, and nothing can alter that, not even the passage of time. By our very nature -"
"I've changed," he said firmly.
"Superficially, perhaps, but -"
"I've changed," he said again. "Can't you tell? When you look into my eyes, do you see the same young fool you saw all those years ago? Or do you see someone who is older and wiser."
"But..." She paused, clearly a little disturbed by his glare. She wanted to tell him that she saw no change at all, but she wasn't sure if such a claim would be true. "I was afraid you'd say something like that," she continued eventually. "The absolute worst thing in the world is when someone thinks that he's achieved change, even though such a thing is impossible. You'll see. We can restore the castle to its old glories. We can put things back to how they were and defy the changes that have begun to take place in your absence. Of course, in order to do that, we need heirs. We need children. We have few options, my darling brother, and in the circumstances -"
"Why is this creature staring at me?" Edgar asked, turning to Mike.
"What?" Mike asked, his eyes wide with horror.
"You're staring at me," Edgar continued. "Are you scared of me?"
"No!"
"Why not? Don't you know who I am?"
"I..." Mike paused. "I just want to get out of here," he continued, tugging on the chains that held him in place. "I only came to see the castle, and I swear to God, I won't tell anyone about either of you. I'll just go home and get on with my work, and you'll never hear from me, I promise! Please, just let me go!"
"Be quiet," Edgar said dismissively.
"Look at me!" Mike continued, trying to crawl toward the table before the chain tightened and held him in place. "Do I look like someone who wants to cause trouble? If you let me go, I'll forget that any of this ever happened!"
"Humans haven't changed while I've been away," Edgar said, turning to Madeleine. "They're still, for the most part, a whiny, pathetic species. I fail to understand why they haven't died off and been replaced by a more fitting animal. My journey home was uneventful, but I encountered many humans, and without exception they filled me with disgust."
"You see?" Madeleine replied. "Nothing changes. Humans haven't changed, and we haven't changed, and the world still spins just as it always did. We're still Edgar and Madeleine, only this time we're all alone. Don't you see? We have to go back to the way things used to be. Don't waste time being angry. If I took the game too far, I apologize, and I certainly won't do it again, but the important thing is that the game is still so much fun. I want you to get revenge on me, Edgar, and then I shall do the same to you. We can keep playing forever, in-between certain other duties." She paused, waiting for him to say something. "Oh, Edgar. Tell me you understand. Tell me you're not really mad at me. Aren't you even slightly impressed? I mean, think about it. I managed to trap you underground for three hundred and fifty years. That's quite an achievement, is it not?"
Pushing his plate away, Edgar sat in silence for a moment.
"You're still the same Edgar from all those years ago," Madeleine said softly. "You have the same needs. The same desires. I'm the only person who understands you, and you're the only person who understands me. We belong together. We're still Edgar and Madeleine, we're still..." She paused, as if she was considering the perfect word. "You know what we're like together. You know why people always trembled at the mention of our name. Can you walk away from all of that? Think of the possibilities. Think of the world, waiting to fear us once again. If you reject me, you reject power and strength. You reject love. You reject life itself."
She waited for him to respond.
"Can someone set me free?" Mike whined from the corner.
"What do you propose?" Edgar asked eventually, keeping his gaze fixed on Madeleine.
"We must plan carefully," she replied, with a hint of a smile. "We must focus on rebuilding the LeCompte bloodline. There might be some difficult decisions to be made, but..." Standing up, she walked along the side of the table until she was behind her brother, and finally she placed her hands on his shoulders. "We know each other so well, Edgar. I understand that you're angry with me, but this, too, will fade. I know that deep down, in your heart, you're impressed with what I managed to achieve. Now it's time for us to work together again. We need a family, Edgar. A bigger, stronger family. The LeCompte dynasty must continue, and there's only one way for us to achieve a true and noble bloodline." She leaned closer, until her mouth was close to his ear. "We can't dilute our family. Not yet. We need pure children."
"Madeleine -"
"Don't reject me, Edgar. Not again. Don't you remember how sorry you were the last time? Just because you're tired of one of our games, you don't have to stop playing with me altogether. We're a team. We're all that's left of the LeCompte bloodline, but we're enough. We'll
start a whole new dynasty."
"You disgust me," Edgar replied darkly, staring straight ahead.
"I don't think so," Madeleine whispered. "I didn't disgust you all those years ago. I seem to recall that you liked me very much indeed."
"You've had more than three centuries to produce offspring," Edgar said. "In all that time, could you not find one human who was willing to mate with you? Were there not others of our species who could be tracked down and persuaded to offer you their seed?"
"Of course," she replied, "but I don't know what happened, really... None of them tickled my fancy, if you know what I mean. A few of them were amusing, but nothing more. I need a real man. I need a man who smells familiar."
"What about him?" Edgar asked, looking over at Mike.
"Don't make me nauseous," Madeleine said with a sneer.
"I must consider your suggestion," Edgar said after a brief pause. Standing up, he walked over to the door, before turning back to his sister. "I've been away for three centuries, Madeleine, and I've returned to find that the world is very different. You might not believe that people can change, but I see the evidence right in front of me. You have changed -"
"No!" Madeleine called out, as if horrified by the idea.
"You have changed," Edgar said again. "We can't simply go back to our old ways. When I've made a decision, I'll let you know. Until then, I must be alone." He paused for a moment. "This whole place has become a symbol of our family's fall, and of your failure to protect our legacy."
"It's still our home," Madeleine said meekly. "It's where we come when we need to be safe, and together."
"Perhaps," Edgar replied. "Or perhaps even this rocky, dead place has changed over the years. Either way, I must be alone while I make my decision."
