Vampire in the Night: In Darkness We Must Abide, #1 Page 7

  “I’m not feeling well,” Alisha conceded.

  “Then come with us and let us take care of you,” Nicolau said triumphantly.

  “No!” Alisha shouted, then calmed herself down. “No, it is best if we stay here.”

  “Vanora, are you going to come with us or stay here?” Crystal asked in a gentle voice.

  Vanora stared upward into the face of her sister, who responded by turning cold eyes upon her. If she ran away, Alisha would become the same thing as that awful creature. Then everyone she loved would be gone. Vanora took a deep breath and said, “I have to stay. She needs me.”

  “I won’t let you take her anyway,” Alisha said in a harsh voice.

  Nicolau threw up his hands. “I don’t understand, Alisha.”

  Alisha seemed to go blank for a second, then nodded. “We are a family, Nicolau. I know you don’t understand that, but Roman was like a father to both of us. Now only I am left to take care of Vanora. If I take her away now, then we will both suffer because this is our home.”

  Their uncle exchanged wary looks with his wife but finally said, “Very well. I don’t see that we have a choice except to bow to your wishes for now. But if this erratic behavior continues, we may need to look into revising Vanora’s guardianship. We never protested Roman taking care of you and we didn’t argue when he had you added as a guardian, but if you don’t pull yourself together…”

  “My brother just died! You can’t judge me for being upset!”

  Nicolau sighed, rubbing his brow. “Very well. We need to get on the road. I wish you would come, but, I don’t see that happening. We want you to keep in touch with us, Alisha. We care about you and Vanora.”

  Alisha nodded briskly. “Okay, that’s fine.”

  Vanora stared at her worriedly. Alisha was being curt and rude. She wasn’t acting like herself at all. How was a little girl supposed to fight against this kind of brainwashing evil?

  * * *

  The long shadows thrown by the trees surrounding the Socoli home lengthened and caressed the great stone building as the sun sank below the horizon. The house was silent and no one moved with its walls.

  The eldest sister slept, haunted by terrible dreams that she could not wake from.

  The younger sister curled up on her bed, clutching a cross tightly in her hand.

  In the mausoleum, the vampires slept. Both dreamed of their plans for the approaching night. One dreamed of blood and victory, the other dreamed of murder and revenge.

  11

  Vanora stared out the hall window, toward the mausoleum silhouetted against the darkening sky. Dressed in jeans, tennis shoes, and a pink long-sleeved shirt, she kept watch over the fading sun from behind her dark sunglasses. Around her neck hung seven of the crosses Alisha had bought earlier in the week. The rest of the crosses Vanora had placed in Alisha’s room for protection. Vanora’s basic plan was to watch for the vampire and when she saw it emerge from its tomb, run into her sister’s room to defend her. She wasn’t quite sure if she could actually kill the vampire by throwing a handful of crosses at it, but the little girl was very determined to save her sister.

  Her small, elfin face was reflected on the window pane and she stared solemnly at her pinched, frightened expression. She had to be brave and strong like the vampire hunters in the movies and like Buffy on television. For Alisha’s sake, she just had to be.

  The sun’s rays faded from the sky and glimmering stars began to appear above the clouds. Vanora took off her sunglasses and narrowed her gaze on the mausoleum. It would happen soon. She raised Roman’s binoculars to her eyes. The heavy metal doors abruptly came into clear focus.

  It was only a few short minutes before thin, blue mist started flowing out from under the doors. It spread across the lawn like wispy fingers reaching for the house. At first, Vanora wasn’t sure what was happening, but quite suddenly it dawned on her. The vampire was coming.

  Dropping the binoculars, she ran down the hall to Alisha’s room. Her small hand rounded the doorknob and turned it. To her horror, it was locked even though she had left it unlocked earlier. Frantically, Vanora began to pound on the door.

  “Alisha! Alisha, open the door! It’s me! Vanora! Alisha, open the door, please! It’s coming, Alisha! Open the door! The vampire is coming!” Vanora called out fearfully.

  * * *

  Alisha stood in the center of her room, the crosses that Vanora had hung about her room dangling from one hand. Her eyes were wide and dazed, completely unseeing. She did not hear her sister’s frantic cries, only the whispering voice calling to her softly. Oblivious to all but that haunting whisper, she walked into the bathroom and dropped the crosses into the commode.

  * * *

  “Alisha, please, Alisha!” Vanora screamed in horror. “It’s coming to get you! I need to protect you! Oh, please, Alisha!”

  * * *

  The mist flowed in waves, undulating toward the house as the first feathery tongues licked up against the stones of the manor. The bluish haze swirled and pressed along the house. Deliberately it snaked upward, toward the balcony where a young woman stood in a long flowing black nightgown.

  * * *

  Roman awoke with a start. In the distance, he heard Vanora calling out in terror. Without thinking, he sat up and smacked his head against the lid of his coffin. Grunting, he flipped it back and leaped out. One swift glance informed him that the old man had risen.

  Roman ran toward the doors and passed through the crack between. Then he was rushing toward the house, his feet slipping on the dew-drenched grass. If the old man touched his sisters, Roman knew he was capable of ripping him apart.

  * * *

  Vanora suddenly realized that Alisha was not alone in her room. She heard a man’s voice speaking in a language she did not understand but was vaguely familiar. Chills flowed over flesh, raising goose pimples, and Vanora stepped back fearfully.

  What had happened to the crosses she had placed in the room? Why weren’t they working?

  She glanced about anxiously, unsure of what to do. She was very much alone and the aura of the house seemed menacing now.

  “Alisha,” she whispered fearfully. “Please, Alisha.”

  There was silence beyond the door.

  Vanora slowly backed away, clutching the crosses over her heart. “Alisha!”

  * * *

  Roman reached the house and tried the first door he came to. It would not yield. He rushed to a window when he heard Vanora screaming their sister’s name.

  “The balcony!” Roman muttered under his breath and ran toward the corner of the house.

  An intense, savage anger mixed with desperate fear churned within him when he saw Alisha’s pale form draped over the stone railing of her balcony. The old man stood behind her, gazing down at Roman. His gray hair was now shot through with black and his face appeared more youthful.

  “You bastard!”

  “Now she will join us. My blood is in her veins. Soon my Bride will join us, my son,” the old man declared.

  “Alisha, open the door! I need to help you!” Vanora’s faint voice called from within the house.

  “Ah,” the vampire said, lifting an eyebrow. “The young white one.” He moved purposefully into Alisha’s bedroom.

  “No!” Roman shouted.

  Grabbing the thick ivy growing up the wall, he easily crawled to the balcony. His eyes fell on the still, pale form of his sister for a moment before he hurriedly pursued the vampire into the room.

  The old man stood by the door to the hall. He pivoted about to face Roman, his eyes dark and intense. One long, slender hand settled on the doorknob. “Join me, Roman. Let us bring her over together. Then we shall truly be a family.”

  “Never!” Roman stepped purposely toward the old vampire.

  “You will change your mind,” was the confident response. “The hunger will come soon. Then you will have no choice.” The old man yanked the door open and pounced on the little girl standing outside.

/>   “No!” Roman shouted, rushing forward.

  A wild scream sliced through the air and the old man staggered backward, his charred face illuminated by the pale moonlight spilling into the hall. Vanora stood before him defiantly, her crosses held before her, her eyes hard and determined.

  “Leave me alone!”

  “You little bitch,” the old man roared in Romanian, cringing away from the little girl.

  With a surge of confidence, Vanora held up her crosses and moved toward the injured vampire.

  Roman seized the vampire from behind in an iron grip and yanked him into Alisha’s bedroom. Vanora screamed in terror when she saw her brother. Grunting, the old man struggled against Roman fiercely.

  “You will not hurt anyone else!” Roman hissed through clenched teeth.

  Roman strained to keep hold of the writhing vampire as he reached out to grab the stake Vanora had left next to Alisha’s bed. His fingers curled around the smooth wood shaft.

  “You cannot kill me! I am your Master! My blood is within you! You will obey me!”

  “No, I won’t!”

  Roman rammed the stake straight through the old man, blood spurting into the air. The vampire screamed, wrenching himself away from Roman. Thrashing about, the creature screeched in horror as his blood poured from his body. It pooled on the floor for a moment, then began to move swiftly toward Roman. Fascinated yet repulsed, Roman watched his ancestor’s blood rapidly flow to his feet, then snake over his shoes to soak into his soaks and start to absorb into his body. Already the blood that had sprayed out over him had disappeared into his flesh. Roman experienced a sudden rush of pleasure just before he was almost completely overwhelmed by the power he felt escalating within him.

  The old vampire shrieked, his body wasting away into a grotesque, gaunt creature. It cursed Roman in Romanian, spitting his words out with fury. Finally, his body wasted, his blood power absorbed into Roman, the vampire threw himself against the mantel of the fireplace. A fire erupted within his chest and with one last great shriek, he was consumed. The fire burned brilliantly, then nothing remained but ashes drifting across the floor.

  Roman stared at the remains of his tormentor before falling to his knees, overwhelmed. He knew he was free from the creature’s power, but he was still a vampire. He’d hoped that perhaps his mortality would return with the death of his creator, but it had not. He was now a greater, stronger vampire than before, the blood of his Master giving him power above that which he had before.

  Then he remembered Vanora. He was almost afraid to look up and see the terror in his sister’s eyes. The fact that she was afraid of him was almost too much to bear. He heard her small footsteps run past him toward the balcony. Roman stood and moved toward Vanora, who was trying to pull Alisha’s body off the balcony railing.

  12

  “Alisha!” Vanora whispered, tugging on her sister. “Alisha, wake up!”

  “She can’t hear you, Vanora,” Roman said gently.

  Vanora glanced at him fearfully. “Stay away, Roman!” She had seen him slay the vampire, but she didn’t trust him. The blood shed by the old vampire had pursued Roman and soaked into his skin. Vanora doubted that was a good thing.

  “I won’t hurt you. I’m your brother.”

  “I can’t trust you. You’re a vampire!” Vanora answered, large tears dripping from her white lashes.

  “Vanora, I’m your brother!” Roman responded fervently.

  “You’re dead!” Vanora’s voice was a wail.

  Alisha’s body slipped off the balcony rail and fell into Vanora. The little girl tried to catch her, but her older sister’s weight dragged them both to the floor in a heap. Vanora cried out in fright when she saw the long rivulets of blood that flowed from the gaping wound in Alisha’s neck. She pressed her hand against her sister’s wounded neck, attempting to stop the bleeding.

  “You can’t help her,” Roman said gently, his eyes filling with tears.

  “No! She just fainted!” Vanora responded firmly.

  “She will be what I am,” Roman whispered. Despair filled him and he edged closer to his sisters. “Let me check on her.”

  “No!” Vanora fumbled with her crosses.

  “I won’t hurt her and I won’t hurt you, Vanora,” Roman said earnestly. The look of horror in Vanora’s eyes pierced him to his very core. “If I do anything strange, you can use those crosses on me.”

  Vanora stared at him pensively, then at her sister. She didn’t know what to do. Alisha felt so cold in her arms. Vanora was afraid she really was dead. She loved Roman with all her heart and she had always trusted him completely before, but now things were different. He was something other than human, transformed into a monster from her silly horror movies. Even his dark eyes seemed different, penetrating and intense. Vanora stared at him through her tears, wanting so desperately to throw her arms about him. But she couldn’t believe Roman. In fact, Alisha had told her to run if she ever saw Roman again.

  Vanora bent down low. “What do I do?” she asked her silent sister.

  Roman knelt beside them. “Please, Vanora, let me check her. I’m worried about her. I won’t hurt you or Alisha. Please, Snow Pea.”

  “Don’t hurt her! If you do, I’ll burn you with these!” Vanora scooted back from him and sat cross-legged a few feet away, her crosses held out defensively.

  Roman crawled quickly over to Alisha and gently turned her head so he could better see the wounds on her neck. Already the ragged punctures were fading away and her skin was cool to his touch. With his fingers, he carefully pried her lips apart and exposed her teeth, which looked longer and sharper beneath her pale gums. As he was examining her, Alisha’s face suddenly seemed to grow fuller, rosier. He placed his hand over her heart and felt nothing.

  “What’s wrong, Roman?” Vanora asked softly, her hands fidgeting with the crosses.

  Roman took a deep breath and yanked off his coat. Laying it over his sister’s still form, he looked up at Vanora. “Snow Pea, don’t be scared. I’ll take care of you.”

  “But you’re a Vampire!”

  “I’m still Roman Socoli, your brother,” Roman said passionately. “I will always take care of you like I promised. Remember, family honor. Do you understand?”

  Vanora’s bottom lip was trembling and long streams of tears rolled down her face and dripped off her chin. “I want to believe you.”

  Roman smiled at her and suddenly, beneath his hand, he felt Alisha’s heart start to beat and her chest heaved. She was now breathing peacefully, the blue tinge gone from her features.

  “She’s alive! I knew it!” Vanora exclaimed happily.

  “Snow Pea, alive the way I am,” Roman corrected. “She’s now a Vampire.”

  Vanora’s face crumbled with despair. She slumped forward, the crosses hanging loosely from her slackened hand. “Are you going to kill me, too?”

  “I didn’t do this, Snow Pea,” Roman said defensively. “That old man did this to her and to me. I killed him to protect you.”

  “You’re really not going to kill me?” Vanora asked hopefully. Roman, who now seemed so dark and powerful, was beginning to seem like more her brother. It was becoming harder to believe that he would actually harm her in any way.

  “I could never do anything to you or Alisha. When she wakes up, she is going to be very scared just like I was.”

  “Was it icky?”

  “Yes, it was. I want to be here for Alisha.” Roman drew back Alisha’s top lip past her gums and saw the twin, razor-sharp teeth beginning to grow out above her regular teeth. He lifted one of her slim hands, the hands of a gifted artist, and studied her nails. They were longer and sharper just like his. “I’m going to put her in her bed now, Snow Pea.”

  Vanora just stared at him in awe.

  Roman lifted Alisha into his arms and carried her into her bedroom. Her face was serene, but it gave him no comfort. Tenderly, he placed Alisha on her bed and covered her with the satin comforter. He turned and saw
Vanora standing on the threshold.

  “What are you going to do?” she asked softly.

  “Stay with her until she wakes up,” Roman responded.

  “And she’ll be like you,” Vanora whispered.

  “Yes,” Roman answered. “But she won’t hurt you. She will be Alisha, but different. Like I am.”

  “How?”

  “You’re very young and I don’t know how to explain this to you. I am Roman Socoli but I don’t feel any of the inhibitions I did when I was mortal, physically, mentally, emotionally.” Roman noticed his sister’s confused expression. “Okay, Snow Pea, it’s like waking up like Superman. Strong and powerful, but you can only come out at night.”

  “And you drink blood.”

  Roman rubbed his eyes wearily. “I’m trying to forget that part. I’ll find a way around it or something. Now, listen carefully. Tomorrow, I want you to tell Miss Robbins that Alisha isn’t feeling well and does not want to be bothered. Then tell Ryan and Miss Robbins to come to my study at seven o’clock for a meeting with Alisha.”

  “You’re going to bite them?”

  “No, no. I need them to help me. I’m not sure what I am going to tell them, but I’ll think of something. If I’m to survive and take care of you, I will definitely need their help. And tomorrow night, when you see Alisha, don’t be afraid of her. She’ll probably be more frightened and upset than you will be.” Tears filled his eyes and he struggled to contain them. The intensity of his emotions was difficult to deal with, but he would have to learn to adapt.

  “Don’t cry, Roman,” Vanora said worriedly. “Please, Roman, don’t cry.”

  Roman smiled at her tenderly. “Vanora, I am going to take care of you. I promise. Now, go to your bedroom and make sure your crosses are in place.”

  “I thought you said you wouldn’t hurt me,” Vanora said, her eyes narrowing.