The Caretaker of Showman's Hill (Vampire Romance) (21 page)

It was too late. She hadn't been able to save Basil after all. She felt the burning consume her body, and wondered if Basil was feeling the burning too as he passed on. She knew she was wounded, and hoped she was dying. Maybe in the afterlife she and Basil could be happy together.

She heard the pounding again, then a strange hissing and another gasp from Jay. That's the last thing she remembered before the warmth engulfed her, begging her to surrender into a peaceful slumber of which she no longer cared if she would ever awake.

Chapter 25

Cassie did awake, much to her dismay. Her eyes flickered open and she saw La Roux and the sheriff standing over her. She hurt like hell, but still felt the soft bed beneath her and knew she'd been removed from the attic.

She was in La Roux's room, not dead like she hoped she'd be by now.

"Cassie, you're awake." La Roux leaned over her as she spoke, and stroked her fingers through Cassie's hair.

"Wh- what happened?" Fog clouded Cassie’s mind, but it was all coming back to her now. The attic. Jay with the stake. The bats, and Basil curled up in a ball on the floor, bleeding and not moving.

She sat up in bed abruptly, her head throbbing and the room spinning as she did so.

"Lie down, Cassie,” said Jack quietly. “You need your rest if that arm's ever going to heal. Don't talk right now. Everything's going to be alright." He smiled faintly at her. It was a smile that said I'm sorry. It was a look that told her everything was not going to be alright even though his words said otherwise.

She slumped back into the pillow and realized for the first time that her arm had been wrapped in bandages and she wore nothing but a thin nightshirt that was probably La Roux's.

"What happened?" she asked again. She looked at her arm as she spoke, hoping to avoid the sadness that she picked up in Jack's eyes that now mimicked its way into La Roux's eyes as well. It was dark out the window. It had been morning when she blacked out. Now she didn't know how much time had passed.

When neither La Roux nor Jack answered, Cassie shot them another question. One she thought may be a little more casual for them to answer and hopefully lead into the whole truth.

"How long have I been out?"

"You've been asleep for twenty four hours," answered Jack.

"We wondered if you were ever going to wake up," piped in La Roux.

"How many of the bats did he kill?" She cringed as she waited for their answer. When they didn't answer, she straightened up in bed and looked them in the eye. "I have to know!" she shouted.

La Roux bit her lip to keep from crying, and Jack pulled her into his arms to comfort her.

"Hope, Faith and Charity are . . .  all dead," he answered.

Cassie's mouth went dry, and her heart broke at hearing this news. The anger inside her for what Jay had done was now growing. Three innocent women died because of one greedy, ruthless murderer who did it for a damned story.

"Who else?" She held her breath, waiting for them to continue. She knew they weren’t telling her everything. She cursed herself for sounding insensitive, but she wanted them to get to the point. In a way she didn't want to know, but in another way, she couldn't wait any longer. She had to know what happened to Basil.

"Antonio, too," wept La Roux.

Cassie couldn't say she felt that much remorse that Antonio was gone. The guy gave her the creeps. But still, she’d been getting used to him, and knew she would miss him.

Just then the door burst open and Andre and Basil's brothers, Sefu, and Louie, rushed in. Sefu's arms waved wildly and Louie translated.

"He says he's glad you're going to be alright Cassie. We all are."

"Yes," echoed Andre, following them into the room. "This old place just wouldn't be the same without you.”

"Thank God you three are still alive." She reached out to them, and all three came to her and gave her hugs. Though she was happy to see them, she couldn’t ignore the fact no one had mentioned a thing about Basil. This whole thing was so horrible. “I hate Jay!” she blurted out with tears in her eyes. Then she looked to the sheriff. “I hope you caught him and locked him up tight.”

"I didn’t have to," answered Jack. “Jay is dead too.”

Louie piped up with the rest of the story. "Antonio drained him of his blood just as he killed off every bat in the attic."

Cassie shook her head in confusion. “What do you mean? How could all the bats be dead, yet you three are still alive? I don’t understand.”

“I can explain,” said Andre, stepping forward. "You see, my son Antonio wasn't all bad. He found you in the attic along with Basil just as the sun started to rise. Basil couldn’t help you, and when he saw that Jay was about to kill you, he stopped him. I guess Antonio liked you after all, Cassie.

Antonio bit Jay, only taking some of his blood, which would have turned him into a vampire. But right away, he also stabbed him with a wooden spike to the heart, the way Jay had done to the bats, to let him see how it felt. The bat connected to Antonio, and Antonio, died right afterwards.

Cassie reached out and took Andre's hand. She felt the loss of his son the way she felt the loss of her own sister and mother. “I’m so sorry, Andre.”

"I'm not," answered Andre. "You see, he's free now of his damned eternal life. After he took some of Jay’s blood, Jay would have become a vampire too. But by killing Jay, a would-be vampire not connected to a cursed bat, he broke the witch’s spell. Antonio might have had revenge as his intent, but without knowing it, he saved the rest of us.

"So you mean, you three are what now?"

"They're not vampires anymore," Jack finished for her. “Their bats were severely wounded by Jay, but still alive when Antonio killed him. Antonio’s bat died at the exact time of Jay’s death, hence taking Antonio too. Though their bats died right after Jay -Andre, Sefu and Louie didn't. Only their vampire forms were the ones to die. They're now human like you, me and La Roux." He smiled at La Roux, and she returned his warmth. Cassie was happy for them but knew this wasn’t the end of the story.

Nobody had mentioned Basil. Nobody had said whether he survived or not. They were keeping something from her and she had to know what it was.

"Where's Basil?" she finally asked, a fear coursing through her.

Nobody answered.

"Someone tell me what happened!" she demanded to know. "Where is he? Did he survive?"

"She has a right to know," said Andre.

The sheriff nodded his head, giving Andre the signal to tell her.

"Basil wasn't as lucky as us three," said Andre.

Cassie couldn’t breathe, and she felt a shiver run down her body.

"Explain," was all she said. He had to be alive. She wouldn't believe that he'd died. She'd lost too many people in her life and she wasn't going to accept the fact she'd lost the man she loved. "Tell me!"

"He's still alive," piped in Louie.

Cassie closed her eyes and breathed a sigh of relief. So he hadn't died after all. Happiness flooded her body. “I want to see him. Where is he? Take me to him, please.” She tried to get out of bed, but the sheriff stopped her.

"He's wounded, Cassie. Actually, he was the one to tell us what happened, as he’d seen the whole thing. But now, he won't let anyone near him. He's also very sick with the spasms. You see, he didn't die, but for some reason his curse wasn't broken either."

“We’re not sure,” said Andre, “but we think his curse wasn’t broken because he had been sipping from the bottle of Madra’s potion.”

"So you're saying he's still a vampire?" She wasn’t sure what to think at this point.

"Exactly." Andre nodded his head.

"It’s ok,” reassured Cassie. “I don’t care. I want to see him anyway."

“No, Cassie,” La Roux said, sitting on the edge of the bed. "Basil wants to die, and he doesn’t want you to see it happen. He says he can't go on living forever while people he loves will someday die."

"Basil said that?" Cassie felt the air knocked out of her by this statement. Basil told her himself he no longer knew what love was. That a vampire wasn't capable of love. She'd already accepted the fact that as long as she loved him, he could never love her back.

"Cassie, I know he loves you.” La Roux smiled at Jack. “Just like the way Jack and I love each other. He may still be a vampire and think he’s incapable of emotion, but don’t let that fool you.”

"I've got to see him,” Cassie announced, feeling as though nothing else mattered. “Where is he?" She swung her feet over the edge of the bed and stood a little too quickly. The sheriff grabbed her arm to help support her and keep her from falling.

"You need to rest," he said.

"Where the hell is he, Jack? And don't lecture me again. I need to know."

"I guess you're right," he apologized with a slight nod of his head. "He's out in the cemetery waiting for the sun to rise so he can burn up and die."

“And you’re all just going to let him do it?” Cassie rushed to the window and threw it open. The birds were singing their morning song, and the whole world was coming to life in a mystical, magical sort of way. The sun was just poking its head above the horizon, the sky getting lighter and lighter every minute. She spied Basil sitting atop her sister's grave. His head was in his hands and he stared at the ground as spasms wracked his body.

"Why doesn't someone help him? Are you all so insensitive that you'll just let the man die?"

"We tried," wept La Roux. "He won't let any of us near him. He's still a vampire, remember. Though he's sick and weak, he still has his powers. Cassie, do you think you can help my father? I don’t want him to die this way."

"Well, just let him try to stop me from getting close.” She rushed out the door, not bothering to change out of her nightgown.

She ran as fast as she could over the hard earth with bare feet, not caring that stones and sticks were bruising her tender skin in the process. She didn't run for Basil, but instead had an idea how to help him and went to the mausoleum instead.

* * *

Basil knew Cassie was coming even before she made it close enough to him for him to pick up her scent. He'd felt her awaken in the house, and he'd felt her fear and her love for him as well. He didn’t want her to see him die, but he did want to say goodbye. Saying goodbye and seeing her one last time was the only thing that had kept him from killing himself yesterday. That, and the fact he wanted to make sure she was going to be all right before he left this earth forever. Cassie was conscious now, and headed right for him. He would do nothing to stop her.

He squeezed his eyes closed tighter and tried to make it through the wave of another spasm. They were getting worse, and his body was so weak he could barely sit up. His throat was parched, and the wound in his side was still oozing.

"Drink!" Cassie appeared in front of him, holding a bottle to his lips. He moved his head, and opened his eyes. The sun was getting stronger, and soon the burning beneath his lids would stop him from seeing at all. He selfishly wanted one last glimpse of Cassie before he died.

He peered out of squinted eyes at her in the strengthening morning light. She was an angel in that thin flowing nightgown. An angel he would like to make love to if he only could.

"Drink this, it’ll help ease the pain,” she said, holding a bottle up to his mouth again.

His vision was so blurred he could barely see her. His eyes burned so badly now that he barely noticed the pain in his side or the convulsions in his stomach. His senses were so dull that he felt he was going to lose consciousness soon. Maybe a drink of whiskey would prolong his dying long enough for him to tell Cassie he loved her.

"You know I forgot those damned sunglasses again," he said, trying to make light of the situation.

Cassie didn't answer, just helped him raise the bottle to his lips, more forceful than he thought she should to a dying man.

He knew after the first swallow it wasn't whiskey she'd brought at all. He'd recognized the taste of heaven once again. He tried to push the bottle of his mother's potion away, but he was weak and Cassie’s will very strong.

"I can't drink it," he ground out. "If I do I'll need the blood of a virgin - all of it."

"So, you've got it, Basil. Take my blood. All of it. I won't live if you're going to die." She managed to get another swallow down his throat before he could protest.

"But if I am to live I have to drain you, Cassie. In the process you'll either turn into a vampire yourself or die. Either -" he gritted his teeth and waited for another spasm to pass. "Either way I'm left without you.”

“So, I’ll be the vampire this time around and you’ll be human.”

“Or dead,” he reminded her.

“It’s a risk I’m willing to take,” she explained. “Now just do it.”

He couldn't fight her any more. He was losing the will as well as the strength to stop her from raising that damned bottle to his lips one more time. The taste of heaven sliding down his throat was taking away his pain. His vampire cravings were starting to take control of his mind.

"Cassie, I won't be able to stop myself. "

"Then don't." She'd forced the liquid - all of it down his throat, and he could do nothing but sit back and let her do it. He felt his senses immediately, his body going into a relaxed state as the spasms lessoned, and eventually stopped.

This wasn't so bad. His pain was gone, and he wasn’t craving her blood. Maybe when Antonio broke the curse, he’d altered the effects of the potion as well. He could only hope the liquid cured him without having to partake of a virgin’s blood. If not, he knew his healing was only temporary and the pain would return soon.