Lengths For Love (6 page)

“He burned it into your brain?”

“You could say that.” She sat down. “Anyway, I think I’m done for now. If you want, I can get Jenny to show you around Vienna. I don’t think you have had time to do any sightseeing, have you?”

I shook my head. “It was the farthest thing from my mind. Normally, I’d be excited that I’m in a country I’ve never been to. But with all that’s happening, I can’t help but feel a little unhappy.”

“It’s understandable,” she said. “Your girlfriend is suffering. Nobody knows exactly what’s going to happen. So it makes a lot of sense if you’re not happy right now. You’re worried and you just want what’s best for her.”

“What’s best for us,” I corrected her. “Right now, I’m not sure what that is or if I’ll even find it here.”

“She wants to be turned. Are you all right with that?”

I shrugged. “What do you think?”

“You still believe this isn’t real.”

“I can’t. Sorry.”

She laughed at this and shook her head, heading out the door and leaving me baffled.

“Oh, you will. You will.”

It wasn’t long before Kristine became one of the few people I could talk to here. She was the only one that didn’t make me feel uncomfortable. There were times that I found Alexis talking to Vince and assumed it was about her “eventual transformation.” So while they were in conversation, I would take Kristine away from her chores and ask her about everything. He never did know about it until one day when he found us laughing a little too loud. Kristine had told me a hilarious story and I began doing that booming laugh that I had inherited from my father.

Needless to say, it was enough for him to fling open the door and the two of us to stop. He looked nice in his suit and all, but I could tell he wasn’t very happy. If anything, the expression on his face was downright ugly. I swallowed down a mouthful of saliva and looked up.

“Ian.” He inhaled my name and I knew I was in trouble. I never liked it when anyone inhaled my name. Granted, only two people had ever done that, and he was one of the two. All the same, it got me worried. Had I stepped out of bounds? Was I saying stupid crap? Did I eat the cookie that he wanted? I took one step and stopped.

“Hey there,” I greeted him, trying to act like everything was normal. “How’s it hanging? Loving the weather?”

He ignored me and turned to Kristine. “Weren’t you supposed to be outside? You have quite a few things to do.”

“Yes...” Kristine bobbed her head. “I’m sorry, Mr. Augustin. I’ll get to work immediately.”

“Good. Now leave.” He pointed to the door and she scurried out, dragging the basket with her. Before she left, she gave me a look and I could have sworn that she was almost about to cry. Funny.

Vincent turned to me. “What were you doing?”

“What do you mean?”

“I mean what were you doing with her?”

“Nothing,” I shrugged. “We were talking.”

“Oh. You were talking about nothing?” He went to his wine cellar and took out a bottle. “Care for a drink?”

I blinked. “Did you poison it?”

He chuckled. “You are so paranoid. But if it worries you, I’m going to have a drink myself. Now why would I want to poison myself?”

“Um... you’re suicidal?” I joked, praying that he would see it as a joke. “I mean that’s one reason you’d poison yourself, right?”

His chuckles turned into loud laughter. Good, I wasn’t the only one with an annoying laugh. However, he also had one of those awful smiles, one where you got to see all his teeth. Holding back my disgust, I just grinned. “You are a funny man, Ian Choi. But rest assured that I have no desire to kill myself.”

I joined in the laughter and took the glass of wine he handed me. “I guess that’s a little bit of comfort there. All right, you’ve convinced me that you won’t kill me.”

“Good. Now let’s get to some matter of business.” He sat down in his armchair, drink in hand. Reaching over for a box of cigars, he asked, “Smoke?”

“No, thank you. Not a smoker. Anyway, what is it that you wanted to tell me?”

“I wanted to talk to you about the residents of this place,” he said. “Now your girlfriend will be fine. I will make sure no one goes to her until they’ve cleaned themselves up first. Jenny is going to be her main helper throughout it. I believe you met her on the train.”

“Yeah,” I agreed, remembering the blonde in all the black makeup. “You’ll make sure she has an escort for wherever she goes?”

“Absolutely. But Alexis is not the one I’m worried about.” He lit his cigar and started to chew away at the end of it. “You, my friend, are my bigger concern. You and I are the only people here who won’t be vampires before this year is over. You’re a snack to them. The only reason they haven’t killed you yet is because of me. I make sure they stay in one place, eat what I provide, practice what I preach.” He dumped a long bit of ash into the ashtray.

“You’re kind of young to be running this place, aren’t you?” I couldn’t help myself from asking. He raised his brow and I was quick to add, “Not that it’s bad to be young and independent, of course! But I’m curious how you are able to run such a big house.”

He relaxed at that. “My father taught me everything. That’s him there.” He pointed to a picture of an older man on the wall. It was basically an older version of Vince from his warm eyes down to his strong jaw. Unlike Vince, he looked a little more friendly. “I’ve been learning about vampires before I could even walk. They’ve always been a part of my life.”

“They’ve been a part of mine since Alexis and I started dating,” I explained. “It’s vampires this and vampires that. I don’t know when she started believing they were real, but...”

“You don’t believe they are real?”

“Oh, it’s just that... ,” I sighed. “No, I don’t. I’m trying to, but it’s hard.”

“I’m not surprised.” He put out his cigar and stood up. “I come from a family that believes in nothing but vampires. They believe in the fear and danger they bring. They believe they can be tamed. They believe in bringing a balance to this world.”

“So all vampires live here?”

“No, the number here is small. These are the ones who wish to be saved. The ones who don’t think they are monsters underneath it all,” he went on. “Sadly, that’s not the majority. I can only help those that want to be helped.”

“And you believe there’s a vampire who can change my girlfriend?”

“Yes, but this is a process that’ll take time. I have to bring him over here.”

“He’s not even here?” My face fell. Our trip was obviously for nothing.

“Calm down, my friend. Keep your chin up. The vampire I chose for this job is doing another job for me. He should be done soon, though, and he’ll be here before it’s time for you guys to go,” he explained. “But you are welcome to stay here until he arrives. I must warn you, though. Be careful of where you go and who you talk to.”

“Why? Will they suck my blood out if I get to close?” I joked.

“They might.” He wasn’t joking. “I know your kind, Ian. You’re a skeptic and it’s understandable. I mean, vampires are not creatures you expect to be friendly or close with anyone. You don’t think they’re real. But just because you’ve read about them in fiction doesn’t make them fiction. Are you following me?”

“Sort of. Are you trying to convince me that the vampires here really drink blood?”

“They do a lot of things. Whether you believe it or not is up to you. Now knowing this,” he leaned across the table, “are you sure you want to stay here?”

I sunk back and wanted to say “no”. I wanted to run from this place and this well-dressed fool and his band of “vampires”. I didn’t care if they were real or not. I didn’t care if Alexis got turned. A premonition had appeared before me and I could tell this wouldn’t end well. I wanted to go home and go back to school and go back to the life I had before. I wanted to call my father and tell him that I had changed my mind. I wanted to finish my degree early and become a vet as soon as possible. All of that sounded pleasant compared to where I was. Even the statues here were giving me looks. Each one accused me of a different crime and I felt like slipping through the crack on the floor and disappearing.

But then there was Alexis. My Alexis. She only wanted this, and I promised to give her all that she wanted. As ridiculous as all this sounded, I had to give in and let her have it. She wanted to be a vampire, so that’s what she would get. Would she be successful? Probably not. But at least she would get her thrill and fun from visiting this place. If that made her happy, so be it.

“Well?” Vince prompted. “Having doubt?”

I shook my head. “We’re staying.”

“Really?”

“Yes, really.” I made sure I looked him in the eye and he cracked a smile. “My girlfriend is getting treatment here. She wants it here. So we’re staying and we will be here until August, which is when our school starts again.”

He nodded. “I guess that sounds good.”

“You don’t want us here?” I asked.

“Oh no! No, don’t get me wrong! You’re welcome to stay here as long as you want. It’s just that... I worry about the other occupants. Other than you two and me, there aren’t very many humans,” he explained. I started to protest, but he silenced me. “All right, there aren’t many of them who think they are human. They may not be as friendly to you as I am.”

Friendly? I didn’t see him as friendly, but chose not to get mouthy then. “In short, you just want me to be careful around them.”

“Now you’ve got it!” he slapped my back. “I knew you were smart, Ian. I just need you to watch your step, try not to piss anyone off, and be an all-around good person. There’s nothing to fear here if you know what to do.”

I didn’t know it, but I had a feeling he was trying to control me. That were things in this house that I didn’t need to know about. Even his smile was starting to give me the creeps. It wasn’t genuine at all. He was daring me to try and search the place out. Well, I could play his game as well.

“You made it all crystal clear,” I grinned. My lips were hurting at this point. “As long as I don’t wander off, I’ll be okay.”

“You’re a very smart man, Ian Choi. I know I can count on you.”

He winked at me before getting out of the room and heading down the hallway. I stopped smiling at that point and let out a deep breath. I felt like I had just missed a razor blade that was coming down on me. The more he talked, the more I wanted to get away. Maybe Alexis had been wrong about this. Maybe we needed to leave and go back to the States and let her get chemo there.

I stared up at the picture of his father again. And even though I did not know a thing about him, I strongly wished he was here instead of his son.

Mornings were becoming interesting in Vienna. The two of us got over our jetlag fast and were used to the time changes. The weather was getting colder now so I was glad I had packed some warmer clothes. Alexis went to bed early and was quiet for the most part. I noticed she went to the bathroom a few times, but she never alarmed or woke me up for it. She had a few muscle spasms due to the medication she took, yet she was never concerned about them. They went away after awhile.

So this morning, when I heard her groan, my concerns came back full force. It was the day Jenny was taking us around town. She rolled over on her side and looked at me. “Morning.”

“How do you feel?” I asked.

“Like throwing up,” she murmured. “God, chemotherapy hurts. I thought I could deal with it, but it’s painful. It’s like they bored into my bones and broke them or something.”

“You wanna stay in, then?” I suggested. “We can make the trip another time.”

“No, let’s go today,” she said, sitting up. “Who knows how I’ll be feeling later. I may not be able to leave bed again. So let’s do it while I’m okay and moving. And as long as we’re back before dark, things should fine. Vince told me that staying out too late while vampires are roaming about is never a good thing. A lot of them get restless and hungry and may mistake friends as food.”

I looked up. “Vince told you that?”

“Yeah, I’ve been talking to him about this whole vampire-changing plan. He knows a lot about them despite not being one. I don’t know how he doesn’t freak out near them, but maybe he’s got balls of steel or something.” My face dropped and she added, “Relax! I haven’t seen his balls for real to know if they are made of steel or not!”

“No, it’s not that, it’s just... how come you didn’t tell me about it?”

She shrugged. “I didn’t think it mattered to you. You’re so skeptical about everything.”

“Why wouldn’t I be? You want to turn into vampire and you think it will happen.”

“You don’t believe it will?”

“I have to see it to believe it,” I shrugged. “Sorry. I guess you can say I’m a skeptic.”

She waved this off and went to the bathroom to change. “You can go ahead downstairs and eat breakfast. I’ll be there.”

“You sure?” I asked. “I’d rather wait until you were done.”

“I’ll be okay. My feet don’t hurt today so that’s a plus.”

I gave in and decided to go down, but I waited a few minutes and made sure she was okay, first. When I didn’t hear anything happening in the bathroom, I went down and saw someone leaving breakfast out for me. It was a simple meal of scrambled eggs, sausages, and fried tomatoes. I thanked them for it and sat down to eat. Alexis arrived at that point, a pink scarf around her head. I shuddered inside and it felt real now. The scarf. The exhaustion. The cancer was very real and I couldn’t do anything about it. Struggling not to start crying, I stared down at my eggs while Alexis took her place at the table.

Lucky for both of us, Jenny showed up this moment with plenty of eyeliner around her eyes. It was so strange. She had been so depressed and unemotional on the train ride, but she was smiling here. I was grateful that she showed up because I didn’t want to start crying in front of Alexis. At least Jenny could distract me.

“Mr. Augustin said we can go whenever you’re ready,” Jenny told us.

“Go where?” I asked.

“He told me you guys wanted to see the city,” she said. “Well, the good news is that I am free for the day. So we can take a ride through the place, stop by at some of the attractions, and maybe have time for a little shopping and eating?”