The Vampire Keeper (20 page)

Wyler, almost done closing Julius’s chest, said, “I need more blood.”

Larkin’s animalistic nature took over, as he snatched up a bag of blood and tore it open, but before he could hand it to Wyler. Julius’s piercing-blue eyes popped open.

“Look! He’s awake,” cried Ana.

At the sight of Larkin, Julius used all his might to push his body backward. Once out of Larkin’s grip, he used what energy he had left and jumped to his feet. Blood gushed out of the two-inch hole that remained open in his chest. Julius stood in a defensive posture, even as Larkin identified himself as he moved closer, but it was not until he saw Larkin’s scar-free hand that he relaxed and collapsed in his arms.

“Hand me another bag of blood, Ana,” demanded Larkin.

Ana twisted off the cap, making sure not to spill the fluid, before handing the bag over to him. Larkin snatched it and said, “Don’t move. Wyler is working on you. I need you to drink this; you already lost some of the blood he pumped into you.” Julius, too weak to hold the bag, let Larkin hold it to his mouth the way a mother would hold a bottle for her baby.

With Julius conscious and all stitched up, they had to wait until dusk before they could move Julius into the car.

“What happened?”

“Your brother happened. How could you not tell me about your brother?”

“I thought he was dead, but once Wyler told me that he had seen me at your house, I knew that fact to be untrue. Did he say anything?”

“He asked for a drink, so I provided one. You know that should have tipped me off, since you haven’t drank from a human, since me. However, I thought you were being pretentious for once, so I retrieved a red and a white aged about twenty-two years.” Julius grabbed his chest as he chuckled at referencing the girls as wine.

“Then what happened?” urged Larkin.

“He ripped her throat out, so I asked you, I mean him, to stop because blood was spraying all over my vintage rug. That’s when he informed me of whom he was and his plan to destroy everything that you hold dear.”

“Jezalyn,” blurted out Ana.

“Probably, her too,” said Julius. “Odds are if he knew about me, he knows about her, too.”

Ana jumped to her feet. “Larkin, concentrate, try to see if you can find Jezalyn.”

“Don’t you think I’ve been trying since I found out Theron was here? What time is it?”

Wyler checked his watch, “It’s five fifty-seven.”

“Ana, go see if it is dusk yet,” ordered Larkin.

She cracked open the gate and peered out into the abandoned cemetery. “Yeah, and we’re clear to move him. The plots are empty.”

“Wyler, grab his legs! Ana, you go open the back door.” Everyone moved on Larkin’s command, and they packed Julius to the car undetected. They had barely backed out of the cemetery parking lot and onto the road, when Larkin said, “Pull over! And don’t speak.”

They quietly watched Larkin, and surveyed the area until Ana broke the silence, “Babe, I don’t see anything.”

Larkin cut his eyes at her. “Let me see your hand.”

Ana timidly extended her hand toward Larkin. Disregarding the inconvenience of having another person’s thoughts in his head, Larkin tightly clutched Ana’s wrist and sank his teeth into her tanned skin. She jumped as his fangs pierced her skin, but soon found herself overwhelmed with a euphoric sensation and she did not want him to stop. Larkin released his grip, licked his fangs clean, and closed his eyes.

Wyler, who was looking on extremely concerned, grabbed his wife’s wrist, applied pressure, and reached for his medical bag. He pulled out the clotting powder, sprinkled it over the piercings, and continued the pressure until the powder dried. When he released her, the clot remained and the blood flowed normally through her veins. It took several minutes before the lilac tint of her fingers returned to normal.

Larkin’s eyes remained closed for about ten minutes, before he opened them.

“I found Jezalyn. Theron has her.”

“Where at?” asked Wyler.

“He is holed up with her at a little bed and breakfast in Winnsboro.”

“Is she safe?” asked Ana cradling her wrist in her other hand.

“For now.” Somehow, Theron had reestablished their brotherly telepathic bond; it had been a long time since Larkin had heard his brother’s voice ringing in his head. “He took Jezalyn to ensure that I would stand and fight.”

“We can set a trap and get her back,” replied an optimistic Ana.

“Watch your words around me; Theron can still read my thoughts. Your blood should help muddle them, but it may take a while.” Larkin pointed to Julius. “Ana, Take our supplies and secure them safely in the bookstore stockroom.”

Ana acknowledged his command with the tilt of her head, and looked to her husband for protection. “Honey, are you staying with us?”

Larkin answered for him, “Yes! It’s too much of a risk. The plan is to remain in the shop, until I return and give you the signal.”

“What’s the signal?” asked Ana.

“The usual,” replied Wyler, and Larkin nodded at his response.

“Do not under any circumstances go downstairs,” warned Larkin.

When they arrived at the shop, Larkin punched into the computer the address Theron had provided him. “I’ll go on foot; it will be just as fast.”

Larkin cut through the woods and fields, as he rushed to Jezalyn’s aid. He opted to leave off the threat of her imminent death to the others if he did not show up alone. The location was almost over an hour away, but by taking a detour through the woods, he would shave about a quarter of the time off. Consequently, the more ground he gained the stronger his link to his brother became. Larkin was about to jump a creek, when he heard Theron in his head,
I am getting bored, brother. I wonder if Jezalyn could help keep me entertained, but for how long will be up to you
.

Theron, immobilized by Jezalyn who was slumbering onto of him, decided to make good on his threat and use her as his entertainment. He leaned over and whispered something in her ear.

Jezalyn stirred at his words, and before she knew it, she found herself in the bedroom with Larkin. She pulled off her pants, reached for his hand, and silently guided him to the bed, but when she did, she felt something rough. Jezalyn flipped his hand over and examined it, “what happened?”

“Oh, I burnt myself a long time ago.”

“A long time ago? It wasn’t there last night,” said Jezalyn.

He gave her a sinister smile and said, “Perhaps on Larkin it wasn’t.”

She jumped back against the headboard out of his arms as she realized that it might not be Larkin sitting in front of her, but to ease her fear she exclaimed, “Larkin, this isn’t funny!”

He produced a snarling laugh, and she cried out, “Stop, Larkin! You’re scaring me.”

“Well, I suppose I could, if I was Larkin,” replied Theron.

Without hesitation, she jumped out of bed and twisted the doorknob, but before she could get it open, Theron grabbed her by the waist and flung her onto the bed. She watched as his fangs extended, and she tried to squirm away; it was in that instant she knew Blaise had not lied to her— vampires were real. She cringed as she felt his tongue moisten her right thigh before he let his teeth penetrate her.

Theron heard Larkin approach, so he whispered into Jezalyn’s ear once more, stood up, and waited for him.

When Larkin finally arrived, he spotted a truck parked across the way. He snuck into the yard, but found Theron waiting for him on the front porch.

“Nice of you to show up, brother,” said Theron in a taunting tone. “We were just getting to the exciting part.”

“Well, I like to oblige,” replied Larkin, ignoring Theron’s last comment. “Where’s the girl?”

“You request her as if you have no interest in her,” he responded with a sinister smirk that Larkin could not see.

“Please, you need something more concrete to lure me in,” replied Larkin.

“Then perhaps, if I drug her out into the yard by the head of her hair and snapped her pretty little neck. Would that get your attention?”

“Certainly not, you would be doing me a favor.”

He let out a robust laugh, “What do I owe the pleasure of your company?”

“Curiosity, I suppose.”

“What could you be curious about?”

“For starters, where have you been?”

“Well, let’s see, I think we parted back in 1906, and I last read your mind in 1907; I thought your mind had betrayed you when I heard you request everything to be shipped to Transylvania. I even laughed to myself as I thought how cliché it was for a vampire to retreat to Transylvania.”

Larkin quietly chuckled. “Let me guess: not quite the betrayal you had hoped.”

“I went to the dock to ambush you, but instead I found an unwelcoming surprise.”

“I suppose that surprise wouldn’t be the Hunter, now would it?”

“He thought he had the best of me, but I showed him. Then I hopped the next available ship to Romania thinking I would beat you across, but I waited for a week and nothing. Neither you nor your belongings had arrived. I quickly realized my error in presuming I had made it over before you. I ventured into the city, checking every castle and cave, but it had been several years since I received a connection from you, so I gave up my pursuit on the thought that you might have perished in the icy waters as you made your voyage to…,” he paused and finished with a mocking tone, “Transylvania.” With a loathing air, he said, “I retreated to the Carpathian Mountains, where I made an old kingdom my home. Unsure of your demise, I sat on my throne listening for the day I would find you again.”

“I haven’t been anywhere near Romania. How did you find me after all these years?”

“That girl, she reawakened some intense emotions within you, so don’t tell me you care nothing for her,” demanded Theron.

“That girl, you think means so much to me, stumbled onto my Memoirs. While reading them, she reawakened old feelings that I buried deep within.”

“Admit it; she made you feel alive again.”

“In a sense she did. Our bond forced me to recall my most intimate accounts with Isadora. It was those accounts that reawakened my soul.”

“How dare you speak her name?” raged Theron.

“I see. She is still the reason you search for me and call me out.”

“What if she is?” asked Theron.

“Brother, you really need to let this go.”

“You would say that, you coward. Anything else you would like to ask me before you meet your ill-timed fate? Perhaps, you would like to hear an account of your dear friend Julius.”

“One last question, since one of us is about to meet our demise,” said Larkin.

“If you wish, since it is you who will meet your doom.”

“How do you turn our telepathic link on and off?” asked Larkin.

“Well, there’s no risk in revealing it now, since I know you will not soil your honor by fleeing.”

Larkin tried to choke back his laughter. “I never ran, not even when you sent several men. Answer the question, so we can get on with it.”

“Getting cocky I see,” said Theron. “Do you know why spider lilies were Isadora’s favorite flowers?”

“Because they looked exotic,” shrugged Larkin.

“Hardly. I discovered you can mask any link by grinding spider lily whiskers and a pinch of white snakeroot into a powdery mixture. Not to mention as an added bonus the white snake root serves as an aphrodisiac, which Jezalyn is soon to discover.”

“What have you done to her?” demanded Larkin.

“I only gave her a slight sedative,” and an eerie smile crossed over Theron’s face. “It’s a shame you won’t be alive to watch me really seduce her.”

“What do you mean really seduce her?”

“That little picture of me biting into her thigh was a hypnotic suggestion; it’s seemed terribly realistic didn’t it?” Without waiting for a response, Theron leaped off the porch landing a few feet from Larkin. “Let’s get on with it, so I can get on with it; a little herb, a little blood loss, will certainly make for an orgasmic delight. Don’t you think, brother?” asked Theron as he rolled his tongue over his razor- sharp dagger.

Larkin brandished his fangs back at his brother, and they darted toward one another each hoping to send a significant blow. Theron, gaining more speed, pushed Larkin back several feet upon impact, yet Larkin’s stance remained grounded. Larkin swiftly grabbed Theron around the waist and tossed him into a tree. The force of the impact caused the top section of the tree to topple to the ground.

Theron, back on his feet, lifted the fallen portion of the tree and flung it at Larkin as effortlessly as a twelve year old would skip a rock across a body of water. The blow sent Larkin flying backwards. He reemerged unshaken, but a blood trail staining his sleeve suggested he was injured. They lunged at one another again, this time trying to lock one another in a death grip, but each time one thought they had the upper hand, the other would slip away. Finally, Larkin was able to secure both hands around Theron’s neck and body slam him into the ground. The hard earth caved in around his brother’s body. Now on his knees hovering over Theron, Larkin reared back to send a fatal blow into his chest cavity, but he was distracted before he could propel his fist through the cartilage to Theron’s heart.

***

Wyler had arrived to find Blaise standing in the middle of the road watching two vampires fight.

“What are you doing here?” asked Wyler.

“I followed Jezalyn here thinking she got kidnapped, but when she got out of the car with Larkin, I watched her body language and discovered she was with him by her own free will. I stayed not really knowing why, perhaps hoping she would change her mind, but this other guy showed up. I thought it was Larkin.”

“That’s his twin brother.”

“I moved closer to hear what they were saying and after a while they started fighting.”

“I see that,” said Wyler as he moved toward the fight.

Blaise caught his arm. “You can’t interfere with that. Those creatures are not human! They’ll rip you to shreds.”

“I am not concerned,” replied Wyler as he yanked his arm free.

Wyler could not distinguish the difference between them, so he called for Larkin, which distracted him, as he ran toward the fight.

Theron used this distraction to his advantage, for in that critical moment Larkin, with his fist raised above Theron’s chest, flinched at the sound of Wyler’s voice allowing Theron a split second to twist his body to the side so that the punch would glide past him into the already sunken earth. Theron retaliated and elbowed Larkin in the side causing him to propel several feet. Both vampires instantly leaped to their feet. Theron, not even somewhat amused, said, “You brought a human to the fight. I told you if you didn’t come alone I would kill her.” He bent backwards to realign his spine.

“He came on his own accord,” replied Larkin popping his shoulder back into place.

“Now instead of an execution, it will be a slaughter,” said Theron letting out a menacing cry as he ran toward Wyler, but before he could reach him Theron felt a sharp pain in his back that ran through to his chest. Theron stopped, glanced down, and saw a wooden arrow with jagged edges sticking out of his chest. He turned to find Blaise releasing another arrow, but before it could make contact, Theron snatched it out of the air. Upon catching the arrow, he flung it back like a dart guided at a bull’s eye, but it miraculously bounced off Blaise’s chest as he reached for another arrow.

“What’s this, brother? Now you have a hunter on your side?” asked Theron as he took a step back to let Blaise’s next arrow glide past him.

“He is not with me, but it looks like the odds are on my side tonight.”

“You will reap the consequences for this betrayal,” roared Theron as he dashed off into the nearby woods.
Everyone will pay for your cowardice, brother,
was the last thought Larkin heard from Theron.

Larkin darted over to Wyler, “What are you doing here?”

“You left the address on the computer, so I took it as a sign to follow you. Are you alright?” inquired Wyler taking note of blood dripping from a gash on his forearm.

“It’s only a scratch. Did you bring your bag?”

Before Wyler could retrieve his bag, Blaise ran up to them with his bow still drawn in Larkin’s direction, “Where is Jezalyn?”

“I suppose she is on the porch or in the house,” replied Larkin.

“I have sworn to protect her, so I suggest you stay out of my way while I collect her,” said Blaise stepping around Wyler, placing him three feet from the porch.

Larkin’s first response was to Wyler. “Go and get the bag,” he said, and after turning to Blaise he continued, “oh really, you think so?”

“Don’t move,” ordered Blaise.

Wyler put his hands up and froze.

“Look, boy, you don’t know who you are dealing with,” announced Larkin. Again, Larkin commanded Wyler to get the black bag, but this time he told Wyler not to respond to Blaise’s demands.

“I said, don’t move,” bellowed Blaise as the bow released with a snap. Blaise had targeted Wyler’s calf, but before he could blink Larkin had Blaise pressed against the porch railing with one hand and holding the tip of the arrow in another.

“My patience is running thin with you, boy,” said Larkin clenching his teeth exposing his fangs. A clinking sound was heard as Larkin tapped Blaise’s chest with the arrow, “You don’t seem scared,” said Larkin as he released him.

Blaise taking the arrow replied, “No, not particularly. Hunters in our division are well trained.”

“I figured as much from the first day I met you. The smell of lighter fluid and poison gave it away.”

Blaise grimaced at him, and Wyler interrupted them as he returned with his bag. Wyler rarely gave commands even to his own wife, but the war medic side of his life made him more forceful. He sharply instructed Larkin to sit down and roll up his sleeve.

“How can you help such a monster?” Blaise questioned.

“I think you have him confused with his brother,” replied Wyler.

“All vampires are monsters.”

Wyler did not even acknowledge him as he responded, “Really, do you care to explain why he saved Jezalyn’s life twice in a month and a half? Since he is a monster I suppose he’s going through all this trouble to devour her later.”

Larkin released an enthused howl as Wyler finished sewing him up. “Perplexed, are we?” uttered Larkin rolling his sleeve back down over Wyler’s sloppy stitch work.

“Maybe, but I am not leaving here without her.”

“You could take her now and expose me, but if you do, it will shatter her innocence. She will never be able to trust anyone or anything again,” replied Larkin.

“A cruel awaking to this harsh world might be just what she needs,” retorted Blaise.

Larkin shook his head and said, “Maybe your world, but not mine. She will live the rest of her life looking over her shoulder fearing that everyone and anyone is a monster, if you expose me here tonight.”