“She’s under my control, boy,” Randolph said. “She does whatever I ask. She’s the reason why your magic no longer has a hold on me. Oh, I sensed it the night I was at your cottage, which is why I needed to find someone capable to counteract the magic. You and she seemed to hold an affection for one another.”
I shook my head. “You’re mistaken.”
She winced. Tears streamed down her cheeks.
“Am I?”
I nodded.
He released their hands and steepled his fingers together. “There is a grave lesson in all of this for you.”
My jaw tightened. “And what is that?”
“Never threaten the man who allows a roof over your head and a place for you to hunt. I warned you that your malevolence toward me was a deadly mistake. You have no power over me, as you so believed. I am the victor. I always shall be.”
I drew the dagger, gazed at the baron, and laughed. “You believe that Rose has the power to undo a gypsy witch’s spell? She’s a fraud. She cannot predict the future. You’re foolish to think she has any power over the magic that blesses my dagger.”
“Then, dear boy, why not use it then?” he asked.
I shrugged and flung it.
The dagger drove deep into Rose’s right shoulder. She wailed and staggered back away from the baron. I turned toward the dozens of vampires behind me, reached into my side pockets and hurled every glass vial of holy water and garlic juice at the ceiling above them. Glass shattered, showering harmful liquids upon the vampires. Some fled. Others dropped to their knees.
Dominus leapt for his crossbow.
I ran toward the baron, jumped the gap, and landed upon the bottom step. He was knelt beside Rose. Before he noticed me, I kicked him in the side of my head with my boot. The impact slung his head hard to right and knocked him to the ground. I held a stake in my hand.
Bodi looked at me, saw the stake, but didn’t approach. I motioned for him to move back.
I ripped a sleeve from Rose’s dress and wadded it up. Setting down the stake, I took the hilt in my hand and pressed the cloth to the side of the dagger’s blade. In one swift tug, I yanked out the blade and shoved the cloth down over the stab wound.
She screamed.
After her scream ended, I said, “Hold that tightly to stop the bleeding.”
Snatching the stake in my right hand, I came for the baron. I held the dagger, but I sensed no power flowing from it like I had at Glodrim. I came at Randolph, ready to stake him, but he turned and flailed his long nails across my chest. He ripped through the coat and sliced deeply. I winced.
The baron came at me, clutching both of my wrists. Although he was much smaller than me, he was incredibly powerful. He shoved me back, causing me to stumble over my own feet and fall. I fell a few inches from the ledge of the gap in the floor. He battered my wrist against the brick floor until the dagger dislodged from my fingers and dropped down into the deep hole.
He leaned back with a look of triumph on his face and laughed. Bodi stood at the ledge, looking down.
“You see, Bodi,” Randolph said. “Your father will always look out for you.”
Bodi looked at him, at me, and then back down into the trench to where the knife had vanished.
The baron cocked a brow at me. “My messenger gave you the message that you and I were even, did he not? And yet, you just won’t let well enough alone.”
“We are far from even,” I said, gasping.
I glanced toward Rose. She was no longer sobbing and lay quite still. Maybe she had lost consciousness. I hoped that she wasn’t dead. I looked for Bodi and didn’t see him.
The baron sneered and placed his hand firmly around my neck. “But you are so wrong, you foolish impetuous boy. I shall make you one of mine. Since you treasure your friendship with Bodi, how would you like to become his brother for all eternity?”
He pressed harder and flashed fangs. My pulse throbbed behind my eyes. I blinked, trying to clear my vision. He was so incredibly strong.
Something blue glowed above the baron. I thought I was seeing colors because of how severely he was choking me. In a flash the blue was gone. The baron stiffened, releasing his hold around my throat. I gasped hard. Bodi leapt off of the baron’s back and onto the casket lid.
Baron Randolph reached behind him, trying to pull my dagger out of his spine. I slowly pushed myself to my feet.
“How?” he stammered. He gazed toward Bodi. “Why?”
I walked toward Rose and knelt beside her. She was breathing, but barely.
Still fighting to get my breath, I reached into my coat pocket and brought out another stake. I grabbed the baron around the throat in the same manner he had mine. I squeezed tightly and forced him to his knees.
Bodi sat on the casket lid. His eyes peered at me, like he was lost and a little sad.
I pressed the stake against the baron’s chest.
Bodi nodded.
I cocked a brow at him, questioning him without saying a word.
He nodded again. He knew if I killed the baron, he died too, and he seemed at peace about it.
“Then rest in peace, my little friend,” I said to Bodi.
His small mousy face smiled.
I glared at the baron and spat in his face. “Now, we’re even.”
His eyes showed more fear than they had the night he had stood outside our cottage. The magic of the dagger held his body paralyzed where he couldn’t fight or resist, or even protest. I gave him a grim smile with slight satisfaction as I shoved the stake through his heart and almost through the other side. He crumbled to ash, as did little Bodi, and so did the other vampires in the room. Death was instant for them, but I didn’t feel I had true justice. But in a way, we had received exactly that.
Chapter Thirty-six
I picked up my dagger from the pile of baron ash and returned to Rose. She was breathing but still not awake. Power gushed through me, similar to the few moments after I had killed the other master vampire in Glodrim, but much more powerful. I placed my hand upon Rose’s bleeding shoulder.
The power surged down my arm and through the palm of my hand with a glowing, radiant heat. Rose’s body jerked. Her wound stopped bleeding. When I removed my hand, there was no mark where the dagger had pierced her. Placing my hands beneath her, I lifted her, and jumped the gap in the floor with her in my arms.
I looked at the rest of our hunting party.
Dominus was worn out, bleeding from several bite marks on his shoulders. His left hand was bent and twisted quite severely. He limped, gathering up his crossbow, arrows, and stakes scattered across the floor.
Rusk wore his medallion and had returned to his human form with slash marks all across his torso, but the cuts were knitting themselves shut. He knelt beside Zsolt and shook his head. Zsolt’s throat had been ripped out. There was no surviving that mortal wound. Apparently the baron hadn’t had the power over his children as well as he thought he had.
Hoval lay still on the floor beside Volya, staring at her face and caressing her cheek. Her eyes were glazing. He wept, but silently. Dominus noticed and hurried to her, setting his equipment down on the floor. In spite of his twisted arm, he lifted her to him and cradled her in his arms.
“Dear lady,” he said, shaking his head and then kissing her forehead. “This is not meant to be.”
But it was. Loss came at heavy costs whenever we fought our enemies.
Volya tilted her head slightly, recognizing his voice, but her eyes were already blinded by her impending death. As hardened as I had viewed Dominus to be, I never thought I’d see the man in tears. He dropped to his knees, holding her, and sobbing. I turned away.
Jacques had few cuts on him. He was with my father. Father had several bruises and lacerations on his face. He was slow getting to his feet, but he was alive, for which I was grateful.
I sat down on the edge of a casket, holding Rose in my arms. We had won, but we had also suffered losses. Rose’s eyelids fluttered. She s
tared up at me with her brilliant blue eyes.
“I’m sorry, Forrest,” she said.
“Why did you do this?” I asked. “Why did you betray me?”
She shook her head. Her moist eyes surfaced fresh tears. “I didn’t. Not intentionally. I told you that you’d be betrayed, remember?”
“Quite well.”
“I also told you that I didn’t know by whom. I told you the truth.”
“And yet, you came?”
Rose reached up and touched the side of my face. “Forrest, I came for other reasons, none of which was to betray you. Honest.”
“So tell me.”
“After you left, I decided to see what else I could learn, and I discovered something about the baron that I had not known before. He . . . he had killed my mother. I came here to kill him. For two reasons, actually. One, to avenge my mother. And the second reason was so, you . . . didn’t have to. I didn’t want you to begin transforming into what I know you’ll become. I thought by killing him that I could spare you that.”
“You cannot change my destiny, Rose.”
She nodded. “I realize that now. But when I snuck in to find the baron, he found me first and compelled me. He found out about my feelings for you and used that against us.”
“He tried to.”
Rose cried. “While you may not believe I can use magic, you are incorrect. He forced me to block the magic on your dagger.”
“I said those things to distract him, Rose. I didn’t mean them.”
“They hurt just the same, but not as badly as you throwing the dagger at me and stabbing my shoulder. Why did you do that?”
“To break his hold over you. I guessed that enough pain should sever his compulsion control over you. Once that was broken, you were free. After you lost consciousness, your spell lessened or dissolved, granting back my dagger’s power.”
“Did it work?”
I nodded.
“So you killed the baron?” she asked.
I hesitated in answering. Something had occurred to me that I had almost missed. The dagger never granted me the control over the baron. It was Bodi. When he had retrieved the dagger, he held the power over Randolph. Not I. Chills shot through me. Had the child chosen to, he could have had every one of us slaughtered by the vampires. Instead, he granted me the right to stake the baron. He wanted to be free. Why exactly, I wasn’t certain. But from the moment we had noticed one another, he still regarded me as his friend. Perhaps he remembered all the times I had protected him from those who picked on him at school. Perhaps he remembered me as his true friend, and real friendship stood solid through almost any tribulation.
“The baron is no more,” I replied. I looked to Jacques. “It’s time we leave.”
He nodded.
Dominus carried Volya up the stairs. His broken heart weighed on his face. Hoval followed behind him.
Rose pressed her face against my chest and closed her eyes. I couldn’t wait to get out of these catacombs and see the sunlight once more.
Chapter Thirty-seven
Several days passed and I, along with my father and Jacques, were traveling by horse and wagon into a bordering country. As we rode, I reflected upon the aftermath of our battle against Baron Randolph.
Zsolt . . . Rusk had buried him in the catacombs where the baron had died. Afterwards, Rusk returned to Ploiesti. He never discussed any future plans for slaying vampires, and I didn’t press him for such information. I doubted our paths ever crossed again.
Hoval had taken Volya’s body in their covered wagon to bury her in the cemetery where their family members were buried. According to Hoval, Volya had sacrificed her life by casting a powerful protective spell over all of us, apparently after she had witnessed Zsolt’s gruesome death. She had given her life to save the rest of us.
Dominus had said his goodbyes in a few words. He told me, although I had figured it out myself, that I didn’t need any further training. He had been a hardened man when I had met him, but his eyes held greater rage as he was leaving. I wasn’t sure how Volya’s presence had affected him so quickly, but he seemed to have taken rather fondly to her. Perhaps her death angered him in that he had not been able to keep her safe. I don’t know. But I guessed he’d spend a long time taking his anger out on any vampire he happened upon, making them suffer before he finally staked them.
Jacques had set the bones in Dominus’ wrist and wrapped it with tight cloth. They also boiled his bite marks with holy water. Dominus didn’t show any pain at all while the process was being done. He told me that being bitten didn’t turn someone unless they had ingested the vampire’s blood. But, if the vampire was still alive, a bite could turn someone into a human servant who had not partaken of the vampire’s blood. Regardless of either, infection could set in, so it was advisable to cleanse any vampire bite with holy water.
Before Dominus left the cottage, he opened his hunter box and handed me a pistol when Jacques wasn’t around.
“Use only silver bullets,” he had said.
“Why?”
“They won’t kill vampires. I know. But they hurt them and slow them down. Also, not every werewolf is like Jacques and Rusk. Silver bullets can kill werewolves. Trust me, the time might well come when you’ll need this.”
And after that brief conversation, he had traveled on down the road. I hated seeing his departure. In spirit and our calling, we were brothers. But to me, he was more than that. He was like a second father, and I sorely missed him.
My father ended up trading our cottage for a young horse and covered wagon. We said our goodbyes to Bucharest and decided to travel into another country that Jacques indicated had a severe vampire infestation.
As we rode away on the wagon, I kept my gaze on our former cottage. Memories flooded through me. Some good. Others, not so much. A boy never really became a man until he had left home for good. As we left, my childhood innocence and grief for the loss of my mother remained behind. Some things, like the scarring cuts on my back and chest, I’d keep with me until the end of my life. I’d always be reminded of Baron Randolph each day when I dressed, as he had left the worst scars.
Thinking of his demise, I shook my head. I rubbed my chin and cheeks. Short dark stubble was growing on my face. Manhood had arrived.
Jacques handed me a round box that Dominus had hidden at the front of the wagon. Lifting the narrow lid, I saw the leather hat inside. A narrow belt around the hat held six silver bullets; three on each side, and a small corked bottle was also strapped onto the leather belt. One bottle held holy water, and the other one contained garlic powder—Dominus’ special combination. I put the hat on my head. It fit.
Jacques remained with Father and I, more as emotional support due to the loss of Momma. Father was hard-faced and seldom spoke or smiled. I distanced myself from him. I figured when he was ready to talk to me, he would. Healing from loss differed from person to person.
Instead of all of the calamity occurring after Baron Randolph’s death, the city officials decided to start renovating and rebuilding the buildings in the slums. While that was good for the poor people, it only moved the other lair underground where Randolph had reigned.
As much as I wanted to see Rose before leaving, I knew better than to go. I had made the vow that after I killed the Baron I was leaving Bucharest for good. She knew my ultimate goal. I didn’t want to add to my grief by seeing her again. Deep inside I longed to be with her, but such was too dangerous. Not for me, but for her survival.
With the other lair untouched, I doubted I could justify staying out of Bucharest for too long. Those vampires needed exterminated like the preying vermin they were. But I’d return later, once my pain over Rose faded, and I estimated that might take several years.
I am a vampire hunter; one of the Chosen, and sadly, my losses in life have always outweighed the gains. Sorrows had already come, and more waited over the next horizon, which would make me wiser, and yet, I became ever colder inside. No one ever adjust
ed to misery, not even I. The only good I’ll ever have is in removing the growing pestilence of the undead across the land. I’d never kill all of them, but I’d die trying.
The End
About the Author:
Leonard D. Hilley II currently lives in Ohio. He earned his B.S. in biology and an MFA in creative writing. He is the author of the sci-fi Predators of Darkness Series. Predators of Darkness: Aftermath, Beyond the Darkness, The Game of Pawns, and Death’s Valley.
Mr. Hilley is also the author of the epic fantasy series: The Chronicles of Aetheaon, which includes: Shawndirea [Book One] and Lady Squire: Dawn’s Ascension. Devils Den follows this series twenty years later.
Mr. Hilley is the author of the PR/UF novel, Succubus: Shadows of the Beast.
Author’s note: Forrest Wollinsky’s first appearance is in Succubus: Shadows of the Beast. He was such an interesting character that I knew he’d have a book of his own. However, while writing this novel, I know several more will follow this one. Thanks so much for being a part of this adventure. Please leave a review. Reviews help others in their search for a story to take them into another world. And, they also encourage me to continue writing. Thanks!
Forrest Wollinsky: Vampire Hunter [Book One] Page 26
