To our relief, Tatyana gave us no difficulty in escorting her back to our room. She sat at the edge of the bed, calmly watching, and waiting. Bruce was awestruck by her pale skin and green eyes. They were a beautiful combination that were only accentuated by the burnt red hair that framed her face and cascaded down her back. He blushed when he caught himself staring.
“I sense vampire around you, but you are not vampires,” Tatyana said as she closed her eyes and cocked her head to the side. “You do not work for Wadim...” She opened her eyes and looked directly at Bruce. “Who are you?”
Bruce felt a wave of energy push from Tatyana and shove him in his chest.
“I... I’m Bruce,” he stammered.
I pulled a chair up close to her and sat down. After a brief moment of silent staring on both our parts, I questioned her softly.
“You seemed frightened when you looked at that man in the restaurant,&rdquo
The transformation to true vampirism was far easier for Osip than he’d anticipated. Dracula not only sympathized with his plight and agreed to allow him to stay with them, but he apologized for the abominable behavior of his bastard son. He took immediately measures to have Osip transformed into a respectable vampire.Dragomir volunteered to perform the task of transforming Osip and showing him the ways of a vampire. He did it partially because he took an immediately liking to the lad, but mostly because it gave him extreme satisfaction to undo the works of that bastard Wadim.Osip gave thanks to Dracul daily for his good fortune. Life in Dracula’s castle was such a pleasure. There was no butchering and consuming of human flesh performed there. The vampires, both male and female, carried themselves with an aristocratic air and wouldn’t dream of stooping to cannibalism. They considered themselves far above such barbaric actions. In fact, they rarely ki
It was almost dusk before the valet pulled our SUV out of the parking garage and we piled in. Shen and I climbed in the back seat, leaving Tatyana to sit up front with Bruce. Even if Tatyana seemed oblivious, it was clear that Bruce was more than just a little smitten with her. It was a long time since I saw my cousin so taken by a female. It saddened me that they met under such dire circumstances, but then no one really knows when or if the right person will come along. So, dire circumstances or not, we fully intended to give my cousin the space he needed to get to know Tatyana a little better. This was another reason why I had decided to pair up with Shen.Tatyana felt a sense of security and comfort while in Bruce’s presence. She hadn’t felt such peace since before her father died, but it was more than that. She felt something else as well. There was a sort of tugging deep inside her abdomen whenever he’d come close and lightly brush against her. She wasn
I followed Tatyana and Bruce through the alley door that led to the dungeon. I’d brought up the topic of the hairy beast that lived there when she mentioned this entrance. She identified it as a werewolf. Earlier, we would have laughed such a notion off, but now we huddled close together while staying prepared for action if we encountered it. Armed with only our crossbows and arrows, we hoped it would be enough. Crossbows worked on vampires, but what about werewolves?It took a moment for our eyes to adjust to the dimly lit dungeon. We crept along slowly, looking in all directions for the creature. We were almost to the bottom of the stairwell when he appeared out of nowhere. His enormous hairy hands yanked Bruce back, knocking him off balance and causing him to fall to his ass. Before we could register what was happening, the creature grabbed him by the throat and pulled him to his feet.To both Bruce’s and my surprise, it was Tatyana who reacted first. Wi
Fane paced the floor of his father’s study. Everything was such a mess. He’d gone off to find a new location for their den and returned very pleased with himself. He’d located a perfect spot in the Adirondack Mountains of New York. His father would have been proud of him.Returning only hours after the slaughter of his father, siblings, and many prominent vampires, Fane retreated to the recesses of the den to recover from the shock and to think of what to do next. With his father gone, it was up to him to pull things together and squelch the panic running rampant amongst the few fortunate vampires who happen to have either not been invited or not been able to attend his father’s ball.Since he and everyone around him considered themselves invincible, the revelation that there was someone who had the power to kill them was traumatizing. He was sure more than ever that they needed to relocate as quickly as possible. Before they did so, he needed t
Tatyana wasted no time leading Bruce and me directly to the breeding quarters.Shen was watching for us out of the doorway of his room. The vampire was stronger than he’d anticipated. He was forced to utilize his knowledge of pressure points on the body to keep him in tow until help arrived. Spotting us making our way down the corridor as inconspicuously as possible, he swung open the door and motioned us in.“Man, am he glad to see you,” I said.I’d kept my voice just above a whisper, but never-the-less my enthusiasm was apparent.“No more than me, but, first things first,” Shen said as he pointed to the unconscious vampire tied up on the bed. “Kill him, please.”Bruce smiled as he pulled an arrow out of his carrying case and gripped it with a firm hand.“Happy to oblige,” he said. Then he turned to Tatyana with a look of concern. “You might not want to watch this, they go sl
“... And may the good Lord be waiting as the gates of Heaven open wide to accept our dear sister. Amen.”The spindly priest’s voice blended with the gusts of wind and pelting rain. Water drizzled off the oversized canopy that was provided in anticipation of the storm to offer protection for the attendees. It was a futile effort at best. A small group of mourners gathered around the open grave. They bowed their heads in silence as Father Robert indicated he’d completed what he came to do by closing his bible and stepping back. His eyes bore into the crowd as if he was searching for something, but what?Although he’d never known Mei-Lien, he was a longtime friend of her uncle who entered his church asking for help after immigrating from China twenty years earlier. He knew there was a small population of Catholics in China, but he never dreamed one of them would find his way into his small congregation. Curious to learn more about the conditi
Long before Bram Stoker wove his tale of Dracula for the world to read as fiction, there existed a true creature of the night who went by just such a name. Did Mr. Stoker know this? I question if he might have, since much of what he wrote reads with remarkable accuracy.If Mr. Stoker’s intention was to write a biography of an unbelievable being under the guise of fiction he did a decent job but missed a great portion of significance. To withhold such information from the unsuspecting masses -to believe or not believe as their conscience allows- is a wrong I don’t want attributed to me.The story I’m about to share with you is a recount of true experiences of which I was a major player. It’s a tale of loving and finding love. It tells of family legacy and solidarity. It speaks of friendship, loyalty, bravery, compassion, and I’m sorry to say… horror. Because of this, I would like to point out that this story is not for the weak of st
You could hear a pin drop in the dojo as I listened intently while Shen, addressed the class. The students sat in neatly defined rows while giving him their utmost attention. I smiled as I recalled the first time we met, ten years earlier.It was early evening. I was seventeen and feeling my need for independence. I’d just had an argument with my parents about this very fact. I was in my final days of high school and my parents wanted me to focus on college -while I wanted time to discover who I was and what I truly wanted in life. I felt restless. It was time to strike out on my own -at least for the summer- and discover new people, places, and things while my parents thought I should be focusing on selecting a college and a career goal.The fact of the matter was that I didn’t know what I wanted to do with my life. I’d worked part-time over the years at the local gym to pay for my lessons in martial arts after my father became disabled and the
“... And may the good Lord be waiting as the gates of Heaven open wide to accept our dear sister. Amen.”The spindly priest’s voice blended with the gusts of wind and pelting rain. Water drizzled off the oversized canopy that was provided in anticipation of the storm to offer protection for the attendees. It was a futile effort at best. A small group of mourners gathered around the open grave. They bowed their heads in silence as Father Robert indicated he’d completed what he came to do by closing his bible and stepping back. His eyes bore into the crowd as if he was searching for something, but what?Although he’d never known Mei-Lien, he was a longtime friend of her uncle who entered his church asking for help after immigrating from China twenty years earlier. He knew there was a small population of Catholics in China, but he never dreamed one of them would find his way into his small congregation. Curious to learn more about the conditi
Tatyana wasted no time leading Bruce and me directly to the breeding quarters.Shen was watching for us out of the doorway of his room. The vampire was stronger than he’d anticipated. He was forced to utilize his knowledge of pressure points on the body to keep him in tow until help arrived. Spotting us making our way down the corridor as inconspicuously as possible, he swung open the door and motioned us in.“Man, am he glad to see you,” I said.I’d kept my voice just above a whisper, but never-the-less my enthusiasm was apparent.“No more than me, but, first things first,” Shen said as he pointed to the unconscious vampire tied up on the bed. “Kill him, please.”Bruce smiled as he pulled an arrow out of his carrying case and gripped it with a firm hand.“Happy to oblige,” he said. Then he turned to Tatyana with a look of concern. “You might not want to watch this, they go sl
Fane paced the floor of his father’s study. Everything was such a mess. He’d gone off to find a new location for their den and returned very pleased with himself. He’d located a perfect spot in the Adirondack Mountains of New York. His father would have been proud of him.Returning only hours after the slaughter of his father, siblings, and many prominent vampires, Fane retreated to the recesses of the den to recover from the shock and to think of what to do next. With his father gone, it was up to him to pull things together and squelch the panic running rampant amongst the few fortunate vampires who happen to have either not been invited or not been able to attend his father’s ball.Since he and everyone around him considered themselves invincible, the revelation that there was someone who had the power to kill them was traumatizing. He was sure more than ever that they needed to relocate as quickly as possible. Before they did so, he needed t
I followed Tatyana and Bruce through the alley door that led to the dungeon. I’d brought up the topic of the hairy beast that lived there when she mentioned this entrance. She identified it as a werewolf. Earlier, we would have laughed such a notion off, but now we huddled close together while staying prepared for action if we encountered it. Armed with only our crossbows and arrows, we hoped it would be enough. Crossbows worked on vampires, but what about werewolves?It took a moment for our eyes to adjust to the dimly lit dungeon. We crept along slowly, looking in all directions for the creature. We were almost to the bottom of the stairwell when he appeared out of nowhere. His enormous hairy hands yanked Bruce back, knocking him off balance and causing him to fall to his ass. Before we could register what was happening, the creature grabbed him by the throat and pulled him to his feet.To both Bruce’s and my surprise, it was Tatyana who reacted first. Wi
It was almost dusk before the valet pulled our SUV out of the parking garage and we piled in. Shen and I climbed in the back seat, leaving Tatyana to sit up front with Bruce. Even if Tatyana seemed oblivious, it was clear that Bruce was more than just a little smitten with her. It was a long time since I saw my cousin so taken by a female. It saddened me that they met under such dire circumstances, but then no one really knows when or if the right person will come along. So, dire circumstances or not, we fully intended to give my cousin the space he needed to get to know Tatyana a little better. This was another reason why I had decided to pair up with Shen.Tatyana felt a sense of security and comfort while in Bruce’s presence. She hadn’t felt such peace since before her father died, but it was more than that. She felt something else as well. There was a sort of tugging deep inside her abdomen whenever he’d come close and lightly brush against her. She wasn
The transformation to true vampirism was far easier for Osip than he’d anticipated. Dracula not only sympathized with his plight and agreed to allow him to stay with them, but he apologized for the abominable behavior of his bastard son. He took immediately measures to have Osip transformed into a respectable vampire.Dragomir volunteered to perform the task of transforming Osip and showing him the ways of a vampire. He did it partially because he took an immediately liking to the lad, but mostly because it gave him extreme satisfaction to undo the works of that bastard Wadim.Osip gave thanks to Dracul daily for his good fortune. Life in Dracula’s castle was such a pleasure. There was no butchering and consuming of human flesh performed there. The vampires, both male and female, carried themselves with an aristocratic air and wouldn’t dream of stooping to cannibalism. They considered themselves far above such barbaric actions. In fact, they rarely ki
To our relief, Tatyana gave us no difficulty in escorting her back to our room. She sat at the edge of the bed, calmly watching, and waiting. Bruce was awestruck by her pale skin and green eyes. They were a beautiful combination that were only accentuated by the burnt red hair that framed her face and cascaded down her back. He blushed when he caught himself staring.“I sense vampire around you, but you are not vampires,” Tatyana said as she closed her eyes and cocked her head to the side. “You do not work for Wadim...” She opened her eyes and looked directly at Bruce. “Who are you?”Bruce felt a wave of energy push from Tatyana and shove him in his chest.“I... I’m Bruce,” he stammered.I pulled a chair up close to her and sat down. After a brief moment of silent staring on both our parts, I questioned her softly.“You seemed frightened when you looked at that man in the restaurant,&rdquo
Mei-Lien’s body was placed in the care of a local funeral home and arrangements were made for her husband to receive her body in Queens. Las Vegas was a city filled with homeless people, so it wasn’t difficult to pass her death off as that of a starving and homeless woman. The police accepted the story willingly and didn’t bother to detain us.Shen sipped on a cup of strong tea while he waited for Bruce and me to return to our hotel suite. Although eager to be reunited with Dao-Ming, he couldn’t stop thinking about the innocents left behind after the vampire’s destruction. Would they know where to go and what to do? Many of them were held captive to breed or to serve for so long he questioned if they’d be able to find their way out of the den to rejoin society. Did they have any money? With Wadim no longer there to provide them with a fresh supply of food, would they kill each other when their food supply ran out? They’d become cannib
Evening came and the room slowly filled with vampires decked out in their best eighteenth century ballroom attire. The musicians tuned their instruments while servers walked around with trays of blood filled glasses for the guests.When they started the evening with a waltz, fabric swirled and jewels glittered while the men twirled the ladies around the dance floor. Several dances took place before Wadim made his grand entrance. The music stopped, giving his climb onto a small platform next to the musicians the dramatic entrance he thrived on.All eyes were on Wadim when he said, “Tonight is a very special night. Not only did we have an exceptional year in trade...” His attention went to a server walking by with a tray of blood filled glasses and the vampire who took a glass off the tray and drank from it greedily. “Ah, I see some of you have already begun to partake, very nice.” He was silent for a moment as he looked around the room with a dev