He walked behind the desk and looked at the full length mirror with disgust. I watched as he made sure his hair was carefully arranged to cover the right side of his face before turning back to me with a smile.
"Where to now?" I asked while he removed his long cloak from the coat rack.
"It will be drafty," he said softly, wrapping the cloak around my shoulders.
He took my hand and led me forward.
"We're going into the mirror?" I asked incredulously.
"Behind it," he corrected.
I watched as he carefully pressed about three different places on the ornate gold frame. There was a creaking noise, and the mirror opened just a fraction. We stepped inside and more torches were lit. Dracula held my hand as we began the descent to his castle. The hallway he led me down was long, and neither of us spoke until we reached a large section of stairs. The winding staircase led down into complete darkness, and a draft blew up from what looked like a hole in the middle of the stairs. The staircase was wide enough you didn't have to worry about falling, but if someone got pushed they were in trouble. I didn't know where the pit led, and I didn't want to.
"Watch your step," he said softly, still leading me downward.
Once we reached the end of the stairs the floor was still noticeably slanted, but not enough to cause someone to stumble. He lit more torches and stepped into the narrow gondola I had seen in my dream.
"You've got to be kidding me. You actually have one of these?"
"Of course," he replied with a smile. "Come on."
He reached for me, and I stepped down into the boat. Neither of us spoke as Dracula navigated us through the water. When the long corridor ended, I found myself staring at an enormous underground lake. The ceiling was so high it couldn't be seen from where I sat.
"These were all just caverns once," Dracula explained while I nearly tipped over trying to get a look at the ceiling.
The lake was very well lit. In fact, it seemed to glitter thanks to the dozens of moon flowers which grew all around it. This was only the second place I had ever seen them. These strange purple blooms only open at night, and give off a soft glow, much like tiny purple lanterns. They also grew outside the Council Tower back on Terra.
I was impressed with the lake, but when I looked at what was on the other side, I was speechless. Sitting there, carved from the rocks around it was a real castle. Original Sin was a castle and it was impressive, but not like this. The cavern was so large, there were actually towers and ramparts. Many of the towers were topped with golden shingles which glinted in the faint light of the flowers. The castle itself seemed to glow. It was made of an almost white-colored stone, and it was beautiful.
"You really have a castle," I breathed, as we stopped on the bank directly in front of the massive structure.
"Is there only one entrance?" I asked looking at the enormous drawbridge while he helped me out of the boat.
"Right this way," he said.
He led me to what looked like a rock. To my horror, he ran his index finger over one of his fangs, slicing open his skin before my eyes.
"Why did you …?"
But before I could finish the sentence, he let a drop of his blood fall onto the rock, and the boulder moved aside.
"To anyone else," he purred, "there is only one entrance."
He licked his finger and the wound healed instantly.
"Waste not, want not," he said with a smile.
We entered what looked like a small sitting room, though it was lushly decorated. The entire castle was lushly decorated. It was beyond my wildest imagination. The floors were marble. Massive columns lined the hallways, and rich tapestries hung from nearly every wall. I expected to see servants, but Dracula was completely alone.
"This is the keep," he explained. "I actually live across the courtyard."
The courtyard was an open area filled with all types of weaponry. I assumed he used it to train. Once we passed through another door on the far end, I knew we were getting closer to Dracula's personal quarters. The halls were filled with artifacts from various time periods. Many I recognized, but many I did not. However it didn't take a genius to know they were all priceless. It made sense to have these things closer to him.
We took a right turn into a much wider hallway. At the end of this hallway was a set of enormous mahogany doors. I knew without being told that those doors led to Dracula's bedroom.
?
Chapter Seven
He swung the doors open in welcome and I laughed.
"All of this security and you don't even lock your bedroom door," I said in amazement.
He smiled and walked over to an enormous white marble fireplace while I gaped at my surroundings. His bed was even bigger than Marco's. Where do they find these things? The bedposts also looked to be mahogany, and they supported a magnificent canopy of the most unusual color I'd ever seen. I stared at it for a moment and remembered where I had seen that color before.
I had a dream a few months ago about a rose. The rose was beautiful, and it was a color I could not describe. No matter how much I looked at it, I couldn't say for certain if it was red or pink. I had finally decided that if love were a color, it would be the color of that rose. I walked toward the enormous bed and ran my hand over his matching love-colored sheets.
By the time I had finished my inspection, Dracula had a blazing fire. The hearth was nearly as tall as he was, and there was a small round cushion in front of it.
I sat down beside him and we spent a few moments staring into the fire. As I rested my head on his shoulder I asked, "They've come to kill you haven't they?"
"Yes," he said softly.
"Why didn't you say anything?"
"I did not wish to worry you."
"Worry me? We're talking about your life."
"I would not ask you to risk what you have for me," he said.
"I know you wouldn't, but I didn't ask you." I stood up and stretched my hands toward the fire before asking, "Why have they come for you, who sent them?"
Dracula was the oldest and the most powerful vampire, but that didn't mean he couldn't be killed. It would take more than a few strong vamps to do him in, but he wasn't sure how many had been sent. Vampirism was only legal in the U.S. and England. In other parts of the world monster hunting is not only common, but completely legal. The members of the Vampire Council who reside in Europe were against coming out of the coffin, but their vote wasn't enough to control the majority.
They blamed Dracula for their public exposure. Most people didn't know they existed until he announced it, and they resented him for it. Many of them were in areas where vampirism wasn't legal, and were now being hunted with the blessing of various governments. He had acted in favor of the majority, and now the minority wanted him dead.
"How did Mason find out?" I asked. I wasn't about to drop the subject, so he might as well answer all of my questions. I didn't take a threat to Dracula lightly and I'd already made up my mind that I would stay the rest of the day if I had to in order to get the whole truth out of him.
"They knew we were associated and were showing up at The Dungeon in the hopes of capturing me. But Mason has ways of finding out things without people realizing what he is doing. He made an excellent spy."
"How long have they been here?"
"Three weeks and they are growing anxious."
He moved behind me and wrapped his arms around my waist as he whispered in my ear, "I fear they would do you harm if given the chance, my angel. You take a great risk in coming to me. You are safer with the werewolf."
I turned in his arms and rested my face against his chest. "But here I am."
"Yes, here you are," he whispered.
Several minutes passed. Dracula hugged me more tightly and rested his chin against the top of my head.
"Stay with me tonight," he said softly. "It is the full moon, you will not be missed."
To my discredit, it took longer than it should have for me to say, "I can't."
He sat back down on the cushion and looked at the floor. His hair still covered his face, but the side I could see was obviously disappointed. And I could tell he had misinterpreted my reasoning.
I walked over to the vampire and hugged him to me. With him sitting down, he was at chest level, and I kissed the top of his head while I explained, "It has nothing to do with your face. It's the one I'll see in the mirror that concerns me."
"I understand," Dracula said as he rose to his feet. "Come, I will show you out." He paused to read my expression. "That is unless you wish to stay?"
His comment let me know that he'd read more than my expression.
"No," I said softly, "I should go. I didn't even tell Alek where I was going."
"Let the wizard wonder," he said.
He took one step toward me, completely closing the distance between us. The scent of his cologne rose to meet me as I looked up at him. His emerald eyes glowed with magic and the promise of many wicked things. Even with half of his face covered, he was the most ravishingly handsome being I had ever met. His beauty was different than Marco's rugged manliness. Though beautiful isn't a word which describes most handsome men, it was the first word that came to mind as I looked at him that afternoon.
How much more would he tempt me? Because I wasn't sure how much more I could take.
"No, Vlad take me back up," I said with much more conviction than I felt.
"As you wish." With these words he bowed slightly and I followed him back out of the bedroom.
We didn't speak as we made our way back to the surface, but he held my hand the whole time. The only exception was when he had to navigate the boat. I hardly noticed he was holding my hand until he let me go. Dracula was so much a part of me that I didn't notice him some times until he was gone. He lead me back a slightly different way. I hadn't known there was more than one tunnel out, but apparently I had a lot to learn. We were underneath the trap door to his office at the theatre when I was nearly paralyzed with fear. Cold stabbing pains ran through my body and I clung to him.
"What is wrong, my angel?"
I couldn't express it. I was suddenly terrified of what would become of me if Dracula was taken from my life. They couldn't kill him. What kind of life would I have if he was gone? I suppose I had thought he was untouchable before then. But what if he wasn't? The thought was too horrible to entertain. He had been a part of my life since I was sixteen years old, ever since I first dreamed about him. It didn't matter that I had never laid eyes on him in person until a few months ago. He was a part of me. He was mine, and God help anyone who tried to take him from me.
I took his hand and ran it up my shirt, pressing his palm against my heart. The pain in my chest was just as real as if my heart was being torn out. I knew then that Marco was everything I had ever wanted, but Dracula was everything I had ever needed. Since he first spoke to my great, great grandfather, he was destined to be a part of my life. And from the first moment I laid eyes on him, so was Marco. I couldn't live without either of them. I dropped my shields and let Dracula feel all of this.
"You would die for me," he whispered in astonishment.
Tears slid down his face as he withdrew his hand.
"I should never have told you," he said. "If I had known …"
"You can't stop me from dying for a worthy cause."
"And you find my life worthy?"
I could tell by the tone of his voice that he was truly amazed at the thought of anyone being willing to die for him.
"Yes," I whispered fiercely, "You are mine, and I protect what's mine."
He didn't bother to correct me or to insist that he could protect himself. Instead he helped me through the trap door and walked me to the front of the theatre. I cried all the way home. It was late afternoon by now, and when I walked in I explained to Alek what had happened. He poured us both a cup of tea and I continued to cry. I wasn't sniffling or sobbing, but tears kept spilling from my eyes while I spoke of Dracula's assassins. They had come to murder someone I loved, and they would either accomplish that task or die trying. They'd better be ready to die.
* * * *
After talking to Alek, I ascended the stairs and prepared myself to do something I had deliberately been avoiding. I took Mathias's journal from the shelf and opened it. He told me once that I would "turn to these pages many times and find wisdom that was not here before." But when I opened the book, nothing was there. Nothing new anyway.
I put the journal beside me and prepared to meditate. Mathias had given me some meditations to practice in order to gain more control over my abilities. I followed his instructions and a staircase appeared before me. I saw along this staircase many colors that stretched upward and wrapped around the steps. The stairs I visualized looked very much like the stone steps leading down to the dungeon. As I approached the first step I looked down, and through my mind's eye saw my right foot with the dragonfly tattoo on the big toe. This was my way of visualizing me without detaching myself from the surroundings.
The lower portion of the staircase was surrounded in a beautiful, almost jewel like red. I stepped into this red and let it embrace me. I breathed in the color and let my anger and frustration flow out of me. As usual, it took several deep breaths before I felt calm enough to continue.
The red faded into a beautiful orange that I passed through next, followed by a magnificent sunshine yellow that I stopped to breathe in as well. The yellow became a green which spilled over into a blue and from there a glorious purple. The purple gave way to a blinding white, beyond which there was a garden. This was my safe place, the place in my mind that I went to in order to practice my skills, to release my worries, and if possible, heal my heart.
The garden was awe inspiringly lush and vibrant. The plants never stopped growing. Flowers bloomed before my eyes as if in fast motion, and vines continued to spread while I walked across them. It wasn't long before I was inside what I called "my room" and I heard Mathias's voice echoing in my head.