Dracula
He waited until he could no longer detect his daughter’s heartbeat and sighed softly before looking at the woman in disdain. Her neck was starting to fix itself, but her eyes were still locked on the sky as she snorted. “My… who would have guessed the great and powerful Dracula would have such a soft heart for his line.”
“And who would have guessed the sole Childe made by Carmillia would turn out to be such a fool.” He retorted, dragging her closer, and smirked when she tried to tear his arm off. The once perfectly manicured nails scraped his skin yet failed to break it. It was a sight that would have stirred something in him once. But the only thing the Count could feel now was a slow, simmering rage. He lifted her, cradling her head so she could meet his gaze, and asked. “Do you know why I’m here?”
She had the audacity to roll her eyes, and he was tempted to rip them out. She didn’t need them to answer his question. But the thought of Carmilla stayed his hand. It wasn’t her fault things had gotten out of control, but he knew she would be devastated once he killed her Childe.
All Sires are, but his patience was not without limits, and the Countess was still staring at him. He raised an eyebrow, tightened his grip hard enough to hear her bones grind, and paused to see if she would need more encouragement. Thankfully, she was smart enough to understand that.
“To protect your daughter.”
“That’s part of it. But do you know why I’m here?” She attempted to pry his arm away again, and Dracula sighed again. “I’m here, in this clearing, because you touched my son. Do you understand now? Lilith gave me the right to hunt down Klaus’s killer, but I’m going to execute you for touching what is mine.”
She laughed, a short, guttural laugh that made him question her sanity and intrigued him. It wasn’t every day that he met someone who could laugh in the face of death. It was only a shame she would die regardless.
“You–” She coughed, and he loosened his grip slightly to hear her words. There was a slight chance she was related to him, after all. The least he could do was pay attention to her final moments so he could give Carmilla a proper record of them. “You don’t care about any of that. You should have stayed out of the way, Count. Then–”
“This is not about what I should or should not do. Don’t forget yourself, Elizabeth Bathory. It was you who started this game. And now, you’ve lost. Do you have anything you wish to be passed on to your Sire? She’ll be devastated enough without knowing how you managed to get yourself hanged.”
She snarled, eyes burning red in her rage. “You’re not going to hang me for beating your boy and the abomination!”
“Of course not,” Dracula mused, boredom swiftly overcoming his rage as he crushed her neck, ripped out her heart, and watched as her blood sprayed everywhere as she twitched helplessly. “That was a pun, I believe? You’ll have to forgive me. My children’s mannerisms sometimes rub off on me. It’s almost like we’re speaking different languages sometimes.”
He waited, but the silence only continued to stretch. “Oh… silly me. She’s dead already.”
Dracula tore a piece of her heart with his teeth and quickly devoured the whole thing. He didn’t watch Elizabeth’s body disintegrate into dust. She was nothing more than a minor annoyance that failed to dispatch a child that wasn’t worth protecting.
But now that she was dead, a whole new set of possibilities arose. Theresa would not forgive him, but he would make her see in time. Dracula wiped his hands and face on a silk handkerchief and smiled. This game is only beginning.
Antione
To say he was confused was an understatement. He’d just helped Clay fight off a monster cat that somehow killed a vampire. Not only was he a half-vampire, but he was also related to Dracula… and Clay. Antione wasn’t ready to call the other teen “uncle,” but he was still happy to know that not every vampire was an insane monster.
Some of them could be dorks and his mom… His mom was terrifying. Antione could feel her rage grow with every step they took into the mansion, and he reached a room he knew Robert was in. The Alpha’s scent seemed to be the same; it wasn’t as bad as the last time Robert had gotten into trouble.
But Antione didn’t think Theresa would care, even if he’d been beaten. She didn’t knock on the door. She smacked it with her palm, and it neatly fell inwards in a cloud of splinters. He stared at Clay and wasn’t surprised to see the other boy backing away. “Um… Father told me to feed, so…”
Theresa didn’t look at him. “Just go, little brother. Try not to get killed on your way there.”
Clay opened his mouth, but either something happened that Antione couldn’t detect, or the young vampire was smarter than he gave him credit for. Either way, Clay shut his mouth, sent Antione an apologetic look, and ran down the hall.
Antione wanted to go with him, but his father’s voice immediately seized his attention. “Hello, Theresa–”
Smack! Antione winced, watching as Robert rubbed his cheek, staring at Theresa in confusion. “What was that for? I’m the one who got kidnapped–”
“This is your fault,” Theresa hissed. “You know how vampires are. You know how my father is. And yet you did the one thing I asked you not to do. You put our son. My son. In danger. Again!”
“Do you think I like doing that?” Robert countered, letting his hands fall to his sides as he glared at her. “Do you think I like being told that it’s either me or my son’s life–”
“He’s not your son. You left us!” Theresa’s words echoed around them, and for a moment, Antione could have sworn he heard Robert growl. But if Theresa heard, she either didn’t care or didn’t see him as a threat. “You left me with our newborn son. You promised you’d come back when it was safe. And what did you do? You ran around like a whore and got three other women pregnant!”
Antione flinched. He’d never heard her say things like that before. Theresa hated swearing. She always scolded him for doing it. But he didn’t dare to say anything as his parents continued arguing. “Your father was willing to kill me.”
She snorted and folded her arms across her chest. “Don’t be so dramatic. He’s wanted to kill you for some time.”
“Is that supposed to make me feel better?”
“I don’t care how you feel about anything anymore, Robert. You lied to me far too many times. And what’s worse, you’ve been lying to those poor women. Do any of them know what you are? What they gave birth to?”
“They…” Robert sighed, rubbing the bridge of his nose before noticing Antione. “Hey, son. How’d you enjoy meeting your grandfather?”
“It went over about as well as when you showed up on our doorstep.” Antione quibbed. It wasn’t meant to be an insult, and thankfully, Robert’s lip curved into a small smile.
“Yeah, he can be a real piece of work. How are your siblings? Are they here, too?”
Antione shook his head and began feeling his pockets. “Do either of you have your phone? I need to call Daymond to check on Camille.”
“What happened to your sister?” Robert asked, but Theresa was already handing Antione her phone.
“Thanks, Mom. ” He quickly kissed her cheek, hoping that small gesture would keep her calm as he ran into the hall… and straight into Dracula, who stank of blood and dust. The older vampire stared at him with an unreadable expression before pointing at the phone.
“You won’t get any signal here. This place is meant for training. Not entertainment.”
“Oh. Is there a signal outside, then?” Is it a good or a bad thing that he’s talking to me? If he was willing to kill Robert, then why wouldn’t he want to kill me? Antione waited, but the Count started to walk around him.
“There should be if you go far enough. However, your mother may dislike you wandering off in our territory. Take care you don’t wander into a dining room by mistake. There are some who enjoy drinking from exotic sources, and I don’t have the time to clean up another mess.”
“Um, wait.” Antione didn’t know why he did it, but his hand was loosely wrapped around his grandfather’s arm. The man stopped instantly and looked at him, eyes unreadable, but Antione didn’t feel any hostility, so he pressed on. “What was all this about? You didn’t seem surprised to see that cat thing, and Clay said he was taking me to meet you to do the trade. What was the point of all this?”
Dracula continued studying him silently for what felt like an eternity before saying. “Mercy.”
“What?”
The vampire raised his free hand and gently removed Antione’s. “Mercy, boy. This was an act of mercy. You were never supposed to be born. Your kind often kills your mothers and arrives in this world dead. It’s a miracle that you’ve survived this long. I can only think that’s because of your mother. She wanted you more than anything, and even now, I still can’t find the will to deny her… But, you must understand one thing. Your life is an abomination. You may find acceptance with the werewolves and a few others. But it won’t last. Sooner or later… you’ll wish for death…”
He paused then, studying Antione with something that might have been regret as he slowly touched the teen’s face. “… and on that day. I hope you’ll come to me. For I will end you quickly rather than make you suffer.”
Antione shook his head and stepped back, legs bracing to run, yet Dracula made no move to stop him. “That won’t happen. I don’t know why you hate me, but–”
“I don’t hate you, boy. I don’t feel anything toward you. You are your mother’s son… be proud of that and consider my offer. It will always stand.”
“I’m not going to ask you to kill me!” Antione declared, but Dracula had already turned and entered the room his parents were in. Antione didn’t waste any time. He ran down the hall, found some stairs, and eventually exited the house. The fog that was covering everything looked thinner, but Antione still felt like he was the only one in the world.
It took him a few miles before finally getting a signal, and he immediately called Daymond. The phone rang for a minute before Daymond’s voice answered. “Hello?”
“Day, it’s Antione. We got Robert back, and the killer is… well, they’ve been dealt with. How are you? Did Bernard, Longnose, Bruno, and Rose find you guys? Is Camille ok?” Daymond whimpered, and Antione thought he could hear shouting in the background. “What’s going on, Day? Where are you?”
“We’re at the hospital. Camille is… she’s going to be fine. That Rose lady gave her some medicine. But we had to get her to the emergency room as soon as possible, and…”
Something crashed, making Antione jump as he tried to focus on his brother. “And…? Come on, Day. Don’t leave me hanging.”
Daymond sniffed and whispered. “Her mom’s here.”
Antione froze and sighed. “Is that her screaming?”
“Yeah… she’s not happy with me. She blames me for what happened to Camillie and…”
“It’s not your fault, Daymond. You know that.”
“Can you come here and pick us up? Please, Antione. Bernard and I don’t want to stay here when her mom is like this!”
“I’ll be right there,” he promised, hoping his voice sounded more convincing than he felt. “I’ll talk to my mom and get her to bring me. My car was… kind of hit by lightning. But we’ll figure something out.”
“Thank you. I have to hang up now, but I’ll tell Bernard you’re coming.”
“Ok, I’ll be there soon.” Antione was already lowering the phone and jogging back to the vampire house before the line went silent. He didn’t know what was going on with Camille’s mother. But his parents owed him some answers, which they could give while helping him and his brothers get home for the night.