"VAMPIRE" Book Two: CARRIE
A fellow blogger sent me this song for use with the "VAMPIRE" books.
INKUBUS SUKKUBUS "Vampire Erotica"
"VAMPIRE" Book Two: CARRIE
CHAPTER 33
Carrie`s Journal
I must forgo much reporting of my personal experience over the past hours to chronicle Dr. van Helsing`s account of the activities of last evening. Vlad and Elaina left for the opera without incident, arriving there just before dusk. The rest of our group were in their assigned places around du Chatelet and saw Vlad and Elaina enter the building.
Shortly after dusk, a limousine pulled up to the front entrance and a woman who perfectly fit the description of Mondrian exited the vehicle, accompanied by a young man in evening clothes. They were immediately escorted inside by an anxious functionary of the Opera House. Wagner`s "Die Walkure" was of such length that it required an early curtain, yet Vlad later reported that the overture was not started until Mondrian was seated. Such power does money bestow on us!
At first intermission Vlad and Elaina approached Mondrian`s box. They stood silently as Vlad awaited Mondrian`s sense of him to invade her consciousness. Without facing him, she spoke, "Ah, Vlad. I`ve been so looking forward to seeing you again. But, I notice a certain something about you, your essence. Don`t tell me! You`ve allowed yourself to be stripped of your power. Oh, this is wonderful!"
"My dear Mondrian, I am who I am. May I introduce my companion Elaina?"
Mondrian turned to face the couple,"And the full name, Elaina?"
Elaina smiled and replied, "I prefer the one name, Countess. I don`t expect that we`ll become friends."
"As you wish, my dear. And may I introduce Maurice, one name only. Maurice, this is the former Alucard, now merely Count Vlad Tepes." Maurice stood and bowed, saying nothing.
"To save a tiresome conversation, Vlad, do you really have the temerity to face me as a human being? And is that old man with you?"
Vlad smiled, "My dear, I have no need of aid in destroying you. Remember it was I who made you vampire. Only I have the knowledge of who you are, your weaknesses. And I will have you."
A darkness veiled Mondrian`s face as she replied, "Be careful what you wish for, Count. You wouldn`t want to be deprived of that cherished humanness."
Vlad bowed, took Elaina`s arm in his and withdrew.
Outside the Opera House, the three teams were meeting as van Helsing wanted to confirm Mondrian`s identity. Lucinda had contacted Interpol and had the license plate of the suspected limousine traced to a rental company. The company confirmed that the vehicle was leased to a Countess Bluczek, Mondrian`s real name. Armed with this information, the three teams went back to their waiting vehicles.
After an interminable wait, du Chatelet`s doors opened and the opera goers began to leave. The teams could see Vlad and Elaina enter their vehicle and shortly afterward Mondrian and her companion were driven away in their limousine. James and Lucinda were perfectly positioned to follow and they quickly but unobtrusively took up the chase.
Van Helsing had cautioned against using radio communication so he and John as well as Claire and Sean slowly followed using GPS. It took some 15 minutes to get a clear fix on Lucinda and James` vehicle. By the time they had GPS communication with the first team`s car it was not moving! The teams sped to the position identified and found an empty vehicle sitting at the entrance to the famed cemetary, "Cimitiere Pere Lachaise". Wearing crosses, carrying weapons equipped with bullets made from silver, the four of them cautiously entered the cemetary.
Van Helsing led his companions slowly forward down the central path of the cemetary. It was simply too dangerous to separate into groups. Even the four of them may prove no match for Mondrian, but he knew that his companions were willing to take the risk if it meant rescuing Lucinda and James.
He could feel the palpable anger in Lieutenant Kelly, could feel it ever since they arrived at the entrance of "Pere Lachaise". It took all of his control to dampen that emotion in himself. Van Helsing was well aware of John`s love for Lucinda, yet knew of the man`s professionalism; John would react cooly when the time came, he was sure.
As the Doctor`s flashlight led them deeper into the cemetary, he motioned for the group to stop. Bending closely to the cobbled walkway, he silently called the group forward. There were fresh drops of blood on the stones, seemingly leading off to the right. He gestured to John to follow him off the pathway, leaving Sean and Claire to guard the rear.
Concern and anxiety increased with the volume of blood in the trail they were following. The two men quickened their pace and, in the distance, saw what appeared to be a body lying on a stone monument. John rushed past him, stumbling in the dark, then reaching the body. "Abe, it`s Lucinda! Hurry!"
When van Helsing reached them he could see Lucinda`s body in John`s arms and he silently said a prayer as he bent over to check the pulse in her neck. "John, she`s alive! Her pulse is weak and she`s in shock, but she`s breathing!"
"To hell with the noise, Doc. I`m getting her right out of here. Where`s the nearest hospital?" John picked Lucinda up and the two men returned to their companions. Van Helsing spoke, "Claire, you know Paris, drive John and Lucinda to the nearest hospital. Just one moment."
The Doctor took out a pad and pencil and scribbled a message. "John, this is the private number of the General Secretary of Interpol. Call him from the car and have him call the French Foreign Office. When Lucinda is examined, if there are two bite marks on her neck or at any other access to her bloodstrem, I want her blood to be completely replaced! I`ve written a message to the attending physician addressing the same issue. With the general secretary being involved I will have no worries about my instructions being questioned. Hurry now and Godspeed."
As Claire and John left the cemetary, Sean and van Helsing ventured back on the bloody trail, pausing at the monument where Lucinda was discovered. As they were about to continue, the soundless evening was pierced by the roar of a wolfen wail, then another. The men stood silently, waiting for the growls to repeat themselves. Once again, the two wolf howls, and the men were able to orient themselves to the general direction of the sounds.
"Sean, we must hurry! James must be with them. If we have any chance to save him, we must find him immediately. And, did you hear the pitch of those howls?"
Sean nodded and replied, "Yes, Abe. There are clearly two of them."
As the two men prepared to continue deeper into the cemetary, van Helsing`s flashlight revealed a Catholic rosary lying where Lucinda was discovered.
"Sean, I think I know how Lucinda`s life was spared. The wolves must have been repelled by the power of this rosary as they drew close for the attack. And yet, they were able to get close enough to cause her great harm. I can only assume that the rosary was not immediately visible to these fiends."
Sean was a few steps ahead of the Doctor and he replied "I think I may know what happened, Doc. Right in front of me is the beginnings of another bloody trail! I`ll bet that`s James` rosary and that he threw it on Lucinda as he saw the wolves worrying her. He must have sacrificed himself to draw the wolves away from her!"
Van Helsing joined him and said "Sean, there`s no time to lose, we`ll follow the bloody trail as quickly as we can. Keep your gun in your hand and make sure the cross around your neck is clearly visible. If we can get close enough, the consecrated silver bullets we have in our Glocks will destroy them."
The two men followed the trail deeper into the cemetary. They stopped twice at places where James had either stumbled or been thrown to the ground. "Damn them. Doc, they`re playin` with him. They could have killed him whenever they wanted. Especially here, where he fell a second time."
"You`re right, Sean. It`s almost as if they wanted to leave a trail, to draw us in. Well, they might have been overconfident in their frenzy. If we can get close enough....."
At that moment both men recoiled as they heard loud squeaking above them and caught the sight of two large bats soaring away from them towards the cemetary entrance.
"That`s them, dammit" said Sean.
Van Helsing nodded and the two men rushed forward. Directly in front of them was a large crypt with the name Cartolome chiseled above the doorway. On the two steps leading to the entrance they found James` body. It was a sight so gruesome that both experienced investigators had to turn away for a moment in order to gain control of the upset raging in their bodies.
James` body seemed a mass of entrails; the monsters had been feeding on him. Lying next to the body was his head. His spinal column lay exposed, his neck had been eaten, destroyed. Van Helsing removed the cross from around his neck and placed it on the body where James` heart would have been.
"Sean, before we call the police, let us kneel and offer a prayer over his body. His suffering must have been indescribable but he died a hero and he died as a human being. We must thank God for that and ask for his assistance in exterminating the evil that caused this."
After Dr. van Helsing and Sean finished their silent prayers over James` body, the Dr. called his contact in the French National Police, Chief Inspector Solon, requesting his presence at the cemetary. Jean-Claude Solon was a man with whom van Helsing had shared many adventures and he was the driving force in persuading the Foreign Office to request Interpol`s assistance in the mysterious deaths about Paris. Solon had also discretely phoned van Helsing in advance of the Foreign Office`s request so that the gravity of the situation was made quite clear to his friend. It was evident to the Chief Inspector that he was dealing with a series of deaths that urgently called for the Doctor`s singular talents.
Solon wasted no time in responding to van Helsing`s phone call and within fifteen minutes he had arrived at the cemetary with his two most trusted assistants. Sean escorted them to the murder scene where they found van Helsing guarding the remains.
“Good evening, Chief Inspector. The body you see is of my head of security here in Paris. James Lacorte died a hero protecting the life of Lucinda Williams. As you can see from the remains, his was no ordinary death. Such destruction could only be caused by giant animals in a feeding frenzy.”
“They were wolves then, Abraham?”
“Yes, my friend. James and Lucinda were on the trail of our known vampire and her consort. You must have faith in my judgement, Jean-Claude. Count Tepes identified her at the opera this evening and we were prepared to follow her to her lair. However, it is evident that I underestimated her abilities. She evidently sensed our trap and led Lucinda and James directly here.”
As van Helsing lit a cigarette, it was obvious how the night`s events had effected him. Sean spoke, “Abraham, you mustn`t blame yourself. We took every precaution.”
Van Helsing shook his head in thanks, then bent over James` body as he spoke “My dear friend, the least that I can promise you is that your sacrifice will not be in vain. Upon my soul, Mondrian Bluczek and her consort will be destroyed.”
c 2006 Deabler, V.T.
