VAN HELSING - A Short Story

Part Three, Chapter Fifteen: Visitors at Night

COLLINWOOD 

I could have had her if it had not been for this bloody door. I do not really know what had stopped me from trapping her. Perhaps the prospect of collecting more than one victim tonight. Perhaps also the thought of those being more potent Vampire friends that came to save her.

Using humans as a source of my elixir proves to be more difficult with each day that passes. Creatures of the Night share a much higher potency than those meagre beings. But now that they were all gone, I had to take what I could get.

The girl and I had reached the door and unlike earlier today, I just yanked it open without any thought. The Van Helsing hunters' existence had been wiped from my brain while thinking about my prey.

For months, I had managed to protect myself with caution and tactic but the one day that I had lowered my defences and let the Vampire girl wander into my home, it was those monsters standing at my doorstep.

"Can I help you madams? Sirs?"

Pretending to be a weak old man could work. It had worked earlier today. Yet I had my doubts that it will work with these people. After all, the hunters of family Van Helsing did their homework.

"Cut the chatter, Collinwood!"

And they truly did their homework.

"I am surprised to see you act so civilized and knock."

The woman that had spoken before – Lily Van Helsing – let out a loud laugh. She and I had an agenda. See, my wife never died. My wife was standing right in front of me, hating me for who I was. Saying that she died made a lot of things a lot easier.

"I'm surprised you came down to open the doors and not run like the coward you usually are."

She sneered but I was long past her. The love that had once burned bright like the fire of a black candle was now nothing more than a grain of sand within the desert. Lost.

"See, I felt inspired today. What the Downworld cannot achieve will be done by me. See it as my final act of goodwill towards them. And my final act of dealing with you."

I stomped my cane against the floor. A blast of red cloud shot from the lion's dark red eyes, glowing for as long as the magic flew through it. They were all blasted into my yard and remained on the floor for a while, paralyzed by the pain of thirteen souls. The souls in the paintings. Those who made my powers what they are.

"You there, fight with me!"

I could hear her thoughts while she was in my thrall. I could hear how she panicked about not knowing anything about that yet. How she was only freshly turned. But she should not worry about that. After all, I was the one who controlled her and who had access to her true, Vampire potential.

The Van Helsings began to stand up, panting and at ease to be rid of the screams of agony in their heads.

"Fetch!"

I snapped at the girl, commanding her like a dog. As a matter of fact, she began to behave almost animalistic as I had her under my thrall. As if the beast that the Van Helsings feared was unleashed by our combined hatred towards them. To both of our benefit, of course.

She jumped from person to person, slashing throat after throat, spilling blood all over my well-maintained petunias. I did not even have to lift a finger and just watched her channel my hatred that had unleashed hers as well.

Many of the hunters fled after the girl's rabid episode, Lily among them. But a larger number had fallen prey to her attack. Abraham Van Helsing was among them. My former brother in law and the one who had despised me. Last thing I heard was that the other – Vettle – had left them to help the Downworld. I had always liked him better of the two.

"Come, girl. You have to clean yourself! Tomorrow we'll deal with the mess here and go out into the city. You said that you had some acquaintances to visit."

I said to her almost as calm as when we first met tonight. This had eased a lot of my pain. And I will finally be free when the last hunter of that family dies! They have ruined all of our lives.

With a stomp of my cane, the lion's eyes grew once more and a thick red mist draped itself over the dead bodies. I had to collect them while they were fresh or I risk their souls to have already left and moved on. Dead people may be less potent but they would suffice for now...