He waited until the small group was miles from anywhere. Then he swooped. He flew down at speed from the night sky, his target the larger of the two riders. Radu felt the blow knock all the wind out of his victim. The rider did not resist as the vampire lifted him up over the trees. Only when Radu set him down against the trunk of a fallen oak, did he get his breath back.
“What was that?” the second rider asked.
The merchant looked at the riderless horse. “Where is Matei?”
“I do not know,” his bodyguard said, confused and more than a little afraid. “He vanished into thin air.”
His words seemed to spook the merchant. “That is not possible.”
“I thought I saw something fly down out of the sky, but I could not have.”
“Then where is he?”
“I really do not know, sir. He was here, and a moment later, he is gone.”
“I saw nothing.”
“I am not certain of what I saw, but I do not see Matei.”
“Then ride back and find him. It is a dark night. Perhaps he fell from his horse.”
Both men knew this was not the case. The rider drew his sword and rode closer to the merchant’s wagon. With each moment that passed, he felt certain he had not imagined it. Something had swooped down and whisked Matei off.
Radu did not take the man right away. It was the first time he had felt a mortal’s fear. He could smell it, and even taste it.
The man could see the faint outline of his face. Is it a face? It was a grisly sight, and it terrified him.
His thoughts filtered through to Radu. For the first time, he felt conscious of how he looked. Before now, he could only tell by touch. Even when he had gazed down into the surface water of a pool, he could not see his reflection. Perhaps it was because he no longer had a soul. Either way, he had no idea of how awful his face looked, but the reaction of the man told him all he needed to know.
It angered Radu. He grabbed the man’s arm and twisted, causing him to cry out in pain. Radu pressed his cheek against that of his victim. He felt the faint throb of a heartbeat through his skin. The sound excited him, as did the scent of his blood. It was stronger now than ever before. Radu felt as though it actually called out to him, and he needed to taste it.
He grabbed the man by the hair and pulled his head to one side. His heart raced when it exposed the man’s neck, and though his victim tried to resist, he could not. Radu held him there with ease, and gazed down at the throbbing jugular. It looked so inviting.
Radu still did not bite him, but held him firm. The man’s thoughts flashed through his mind as though he were reading the words off a page. It was the first time he had done such a thing. He liked it that he could. It gave him a real feeling of power. He had enjoyed the same while ruling in his mortal life. The fear power induced in men had always excited him. In that moment, he realised he could take it to a new level, and the prospect excited him no end.
The man wondered about his fate, sensing it was his moment to die. His mind wandered from his fear of death to his wife in Brasov. That was where they had met and made their home. He knew he would never see her again, the thought filling him with despair.
Radu felt no compassion for him. “You would be right to think that.”
The man tried to turn his head, but could not. With Radu’s forearm against the side of his face, he found it hard to speak. He did manage to ask, “What?”
“You shall not see her again.”
Radu felt the jolt of fear race through the man, and drew pleasure from it. The man realised this beast was reading his thoughts. He struggled for a moment, but Radu just tightened his grip.
He pressed his mouth against the man’s neck. The man trembled as he felt Radu’s tongue there. In the next moment, his whole body tensed. Radu punctured the skin with his fangs. When the first drops of blood transfused into his body, he clamped his jaw hard against the man’s flesh.
The man screamed, the pain of the assault worse than any he had known. The pressure tugged on the arteries around his heart, stretching them to their absolute limit. He wavered on the brink of consciousness and was helpless against it. All he could do was succumb to death.
For Radu, the sensation was electric as the blood transfused from the man’s veins into his own. It flowed to every muscle in his body, and brought his every nerve to life. He felt his muscles grow taut where his heart pumped the blood through him. It made him eager to drink faster, and he sucked hard. He felt more alive now than at any time in his past life. Light-headed and giddy, he closed his eyes to savour it.
He allowed the waves to run through him, but still he sucked. Even his toes tingled. But more than anywhere, he felt it in his genitalia. His scrotum stretched as his testicles swelled. His penis grew solid and throbbed.
Radu sucked the man’s blood long after his heart had ceased beating, taking every last drop from him. He then stood up with his eyes still closed. The muscles rippled and twitched all over his body, straining against the material of his clothes. He had never felt so good. Even the nagging pain in his face subsided for a moment. It was the greatest feeling he had ever known.
The merchant and the other rider had heard Matei scream.
“What was that?” he asked his man.
“It was Matei,” the rider said, his sword poised. “The thing that took him is sure to come back for us.”
“Then we must leave at once.”
The rider looked at him. “There is no point. Did you not see the speed with which it took Matei away?”
The merchant did not answer. He sat there and trembled with fear.
“It would catch us with ease. Our best hope is to make a stand here and fight.”
The merchant was ashen-faced. “How can we hope to fight it?”
“What more can we do?”
The men fell silent when they heard a roar from the forest. Radu lolled his head back and cried out at the top of his lungs. A thousand birds fled to the night sky. Every animal in the area scurried as far away as it could, the beast that lurked close by terrifying every last one of them.
Radu then stopped, his bladder suddenly feeling like it might explode. He freed his aching erection and relieved himself against a tree. As the ruckus made by the fleeing birds faded, he looked through the trees and saw the two men were waiting for him. The rider remained astride his horse, his sword in hand. The merchant looked to the trees, frozen with fear.
The rider also looked up into the trees. He saw a faint blur career towards him from the darkness. In a bid to save himself, he raised his sword. Radu was much too fast, and caught the man high across the chest, lifting him from his mount.
The horse reared up on its hind legs, whinnying out loud and striking out at the air. Its rider was gone. The merchant saw him vanish just as Matei had done and, in a panic, he cracked the whip. His team of four horses lurched forward. He cracked it again to prompt them to take him away from there as fast as they could.
Radu let the merchant go, knowing he would catch up with him in a while. For now, his interest lay with the second rider. He found this one a lot feistier than the other. The man tried to gouge his eyes with his thumbs.
The man cried out when his abductor let him go, but the fall of twenty feet to the ground silenced him. He landed hard on his back, the impact shattering his pelvis. When Radu touched down beside him, he lay prostrate on the hard earth.
Radu grabbed both his feet and swung him around. The man cried out in agony before the vampire dumped him down again.
The merchant heard his bodyguard scream. He brought the whip down harder to urge his team on faster.
Almost paralysed with the pain, the man gazed up at Radu. He found the image of the beast horrifying. Radu saw the look of revulsion on his face, and dived on him. He ripped away the rider’s hosiery, before biting hard into his exposed inner thigh. The man screamed, but could do nothing. He fell silent as death took him.
Radu dropped the dead man’s le
g when he was done. His pulse surged from the blood of his two kills, the ecstasy arousing every primal instinct within him. With his bladder close to bursting, he took the time necessary to empty it. While he urinated, he listened to the sound of the wagon in the distance as its wheels bounced against the frozen ground. Already, the consuming of human blood had heightened his senses tenfold. Wiping the blood from his mouth, he took to the air.
The seams of his clothes split as the blood he had consumed took full effect and his muscles expanded further. His penis grew to a new length and strained to be free. It thrilled him beyond measure, but with the exhilarating sensations came urges he needed to satisfy. He now looked to the merchant for that, and grew eager to meet with him.
Radu caught him with ease. He flew just above the merchant’s head for a time, listening to his thoughts. The merchant drove the team on, wondering what kind of horrors had claimed the lives of his men. He had no clue that his pursuer was so close. Radu was content just to listen, and saw that the man was truly terrified.
He dropped a little lower. When he was only inches away, he whispered into the merchant’s ear. “Good night to you, young sir.”
The merchant looked around. He shrieked with terror when he saw Radu there, in the air above him. In his panic, the reins fell free from his grip. The team careered on with no one to guide them.
Radu grabbed his collar, and lifted him clear of the wagon before dropping him on the side of the road. The merchant tumbled over several times before landing in a heap, suffering cuts and bruises to his arms and legs. He looked up to see Radu standing over him. From the sheer terror he felt, he burst into tears. “What do you want with me?” he managed to ask between sobs.
Radu looked him over. Here was an even younger man than he had realised, and one who looked pleasant on the eye. “A little sport, perhaps.”
“Sport?” he asked, confused. “I can give you plenty of coin, if that is what you want. I have enough.”
“Is that so?”
“There are twenty thousand ducats in the wagon.”
“And only two guards?”
The merchant still trembled. “I do not like to draw attention upon myself.”
“Why carry it across the country? That is a foolish thing to do.”
“I lost two ships but a month past. I did not want to risk my fortune on another.”
“So you are worth more than that which you have on the wagon?”
“Yes.”
“Would you give it all to walk away from here alive?”
The man perked up at the notion that he might yet survive this. “Yes, of course. I would do anything.”
“So, where is it?”
“What, my fortune?”
“Yes.”
“It lies in a vault in my home in Sibiu. Look, here is the key. Take it.”
The man removed a key from around his neck, and tossed it at Radu’s feet. Radu ignored it and gazed at him instead. The look in his eyes scared the man more than at any time before.
“What is your name?” Radu asked him.
“D-D-Daniul.”
“Well, Daniul,” Radu said, grinning to reveal his blood-stained fangs. “You might want to try and run.”
Daniul’s bottom lip quivered. He was too afraid to move, and tears streamed down his face. When Radu stepped forward, though, he scrambled to his feet. Without as much as a glance at the vampire, he turned and fled.
Radu stayed no more than a pace behind him. “Run, Daniul,” he said again. “Run for your life.”
The young merchant cried louder when Radu reached out and grabbed the back of his collar. It slowed his run, and his coat and shirt ripped down the middle. Daniul fell to the ground from the force exerted by his pursuer. The rest of his clothing hung from his shoulders in tatters. As he tried to get up again, Radu pulled on his hosiery. It shredded like paper in his hands.
He scrambled clear of his pursuer once more, the rest of his clothes falling to the ground. Naked, he ran away shrieking. Radu undressed and gave chase. The feeling of the cold air against his penis made him gasp. It slapped against his belly as he moved. Straining so much that it physically hurt, he had to have a release. He had to have it now.
Radu dived on him, and they tumbled to the ground. Daniul cried out again as his knees scraped against the hard earth. He hit his head, but was aware enough to know that the body pressing against his was naked also.
“Are you a girl, Daniul?” Radu whispered in his ear. “You cry like one. I wonder if you might scream like one, too.”
“I shall give you anything,” Daniul pleaded. “I beg you, leave me be.”
“You have but one thing I want,” Radu said, his voice as cold as ice.
“The location of my home in Sibiu?” he asked.
He blurted out the details in the hope that it might save him. Radu took it all in, though he did not speak again. That was something for another day. Daniul only screamed from that moment on. Radu was not gentle in taking him. His cries echoed for a long distance, but no one could hear him.
The young merchant lay paralysed on the ground. Radu had damaged him beyond repair. He looked down to see his victim unconscious and haemorrhaging badly. Exposed like that, the cold would kill him soon.
Radu left him there. He closed his eyes and extended his arms to either side before roaring at the top of his lungs. Only one thought occupied his mind now, and that was of how he might avenge himself against his brother. He dressed again and picked up the key from the ground. In Sibiu, he found a fortune tucked away in the vault just as Daniul had said. He took it, and made his way to England.
He bought a plush residence in an affluent area close to Greenwich Palace in London. A craftsman moulded him a mask, which he wore about his face. It was early summer now in 1504. He stood on the London docks and watched his two ships set sail for Rome.
This was the beginning. However long it took, he would build his fortune. He would harness his strength and use his time to learn more about and develop his powers. Then he would go after his brother. Everything he did was to serve that end. Dracula would see him again, and he would pay.
If you enjoyed Bound By Blood, would you please consider leaving a review. I ask for reviews in three locations, and any or all would be very much appreciated.
Amazon US
http://ow.ly/zOLQE
Amazon UK
http://ow.ly/zOLTr
Goodreads
https://www.goodreads.com
I acknowledge that in the 15th Century the New Year fell on or around March 22nd. I only use January 1st for purposes of simplicity.
I would like to thank my editor, Melissa Gray.
Shane O’Neill
The Dracula Chronicles
The Lamb of God
(Prequel to For Whom the Bell Tolls)
Book 1
For Whom the Bell Tolls
Book 2
The Path to Decay
Book 3
The Gates of Babylon
(Available late 2014)
Book 4
Reign in Blood
(Available 2015)
Book 5
Seasons in the Abyss
(Available 2015)
Birth of the Monster
(Prequel to Bound By Blood)
Book 7
The Headless Cross
(Available 2015)
Tales Of The Black Sabbath
Orchid
“Bound by Blood is an amazingly clever novel with depth, drama, warmth, and one helluva bite. Pun intended!”—A.K. Kuykendall
People in the know say writing a foreword means you’ve accomplished something, you’re already published, and your name is well known. Though this is all true, it was I who was perusing the literary landscape in search of new vampire tales; hoping to stumble upon a dark and tasty plot-driven morsel, a complete 180 from the sparkly teenybopper shit of today that has consumed our planet like a systematic plague attempting to curve our percepti
on of these blood-thirsty creatures.
It was I who happened upon the cogent works of author Shane KP O’Neill, and was so moved by what he had written that I was compelled to reach out to the author in some way. And therefore, I composed a review to which many of you may remember:
I couldn’t stop reading—from the Birth Of The Monster short that was simply a tease, to Bound By Blood - Volume 1, and lastly Bound By Blood - Volume 2.
Author Shane KP O’Neill’s novel encompasses all of my favorite niches: folklore, historical, facts, myths, etc. A probable and possible piece of memorable literature that, though different in every way, mirrors, in feeling, that of the infamous Bram Stoker’s Dracula. Yet the story the author creates, here, of the Dracula legend is definitely darker, more descriptively captivating, and truly more plausible.
Though I love to read and am fascinated with expanding my vocabulary; I was a little shaken with many of the names used, method of descriptions, etc. to which I overcame pretty easily, though it did slow my reading of the manuscript to a tiptoe. Then I thought—I also had this problem when I read the works of Dan Brown. I figure it has nothing to do with the authors approach to his creation, as his choice in narrative was flawless.
Very good, extremely good—Shit, your work was fantastic Mr. O’Neill. If you ever need a fellow author to write a foreword to your next book or chronicle—give me a ring. I’d be honored!
It would seem that a year or so later, the author has come to claim the endorsement highlighted at the tail end of my review to which I’m ecstatic, because both he and his literature are hardly forgettable.
I’m quite honoured to have this opportunity, but given the love/hate relationship I have with this man; agreeing to accept this task was a rather stressful undertaking. You see, I love him because I’m a huge fan of his work. On the flipside of things, I hate him because the uniquely original concept of The Dracula Chronicles is so captivating that it now has my fingers trembling atop the keys of my Underwood typewriter and second-guessing myself as a writer.
The Dracula Chronicles: Bound By Blood Page 35
