Memoirs of an Immortal Life (13 page)

11:20 in the evening

The opera was so much more than
I expected. Dr. Littleton attended the performance before and was kind enough to explain it to me in detail. They had a brief intermission, which allowed us to step outside for a breath of fresh air. Dr. Littleton is very much a gentleman. If only I knew, I could look forward to creating more memories such as this one however, that decision is not mine to make. Perhaps, here in London, the world shall unfold and reveal itself to me in ways never dream imaginable. Perhaps, should father lessen his grasp, I might begin to live before it is too late.

Chapter Sixteen

Vladimir Dracul’s Journal

19 August 1893

London

I stood before the stained glass window of the Abbey as the fog rolled across the unkept gardens. A figure long absent yet familiar came into view across the cobblestone street. My solitude, I know, will not be long lasting. Ahbrim had located my whereabouts with little difficulty. I welcomed him into my home with great reluctance.

He stood in the parlor surveying the contents without speaking until I could stand the silence no longer.

“What is it you desire, Ahbrim?”

“I come only to warn you of the dark days that come, old friend. You are in great danger.”

He handed me a piece of paper, which had a single address written upon it.

“Meet me late tomorrow and I will explain.”

As abruptly as he had reappeared in my life, Ahbrim was gone. There were no formalities between us. His motives are ulterior. I know it is not solely based on his former intent.

20 August 1893

His choice of a meeting place I found most peculiar; a cemetery. Surrounded by the dead, I found some peace and familiarity. Ahbrim stood waiting next to the crypt of the Westerna family. I hardly thought his choice was appropriate, though it was fitting. He told me I am in great danger once more and that pursuing this folly of repossessing my Elisabeta will lead only to my death. He spoke of those who surround Miss Westerna and their loyalty to her. She is beloved my many. Ahbrim believes they will not stop their search for me, until they have consummated me to the grave, no matter the cost. I posed how it could be they even knew what had happened to her without his willingness to explain. Ahbrim laughed at my
words, which only confirmed my suspicions. He desires some task from me that he has not yet revealed. Why else would he warn me when he is the one who has betrayed me?

Eleven in the evening

Her presence fills me with feelings I have not known in so long, I nearly weep. My wealth precedes me, as does my title of nobility as Prince. I found it was with little effort I secured a private room at one of the finest dining establishments in England. Watching the pleasure she derived from the succulent after-dinner pastries they served was greater for me, perhaps, than they were to her palate.

I gave to her a small token of my affection, a ruby choker to match the gown she wore. How beautiful it was as it laid against her milky white skin. How much pleasure her mere company gives me. The delight in her voice as she speaks about the less fortunate children she tends as a schoolmarm and the simple joy she feels as they learn is blissful. Each moment I am granted, I am a fortunate being.

She spoke of her dear friend, Lucy, this night, and her concern for her. How I was filled with remorse for what I have done. Yet, in a twist of fate, I would not have been able to procure our time together, had I not chosen to sicken her beloved friend with my curse. I provide her with contentment in her hour of despair. I wish it had not had to have been so.

Mina makes no mention of her betrothed as though in my company he has slipped from her thoughts. If it is as Ahbrim has said, then I shall have little time to make use of in my courtship and will have to reveal the truth much sooner than anticipated. I cannot speak falsehoods to her. She must know the entire truth about the creature I am if I am to offer her eternal life. I cannot condemn a creature so pure to a life such as mine without her consent.

21 August 1893

His arrival was unannounced and unwanted, but given the news Ahbrim brought me, my gratitude was reluctant.

“You must leave the Abbey at once. Jonathan and the others plan to destroy Carfax and the sacred ground within that you hold so dear,” he said.

“Do you believe me a fool? Other properties have been secured throughout London, not all of which Mr. Harker’s firm is privy. You forget, Ahbrim, what my former profession was,” I replied.

“I have come to warn you of the peril surrounding you, Vladimir. For once in your life, listen to me.”

“Why should I cower to them? You have pursued me now for four hundred years and still have not found the courage to do what your oath to Pios dictated.”

“My oath was first to serve you, which I have faithfully upheld. This is a different matter, Vlad. You have taken one of their own. This is not some peasant from a dark and dreary village or some unnamed whore from the bowery; this is a woman of refinement and wealth you lured into your clutches.”

His expression was grave and fearful as he gazed at me.

“They have seen the Book of Vampyre. All the knowledge of years past is in their hands, every shred of information collected is in their possession.”

I paced before Ahbrim knowing the only means they had to acquire such information was through him.

“Then let them come and they shall meet the same fate as all the others who sought to lay waste to me and my kingdom.”

“Have you fallen deaf? Has a single word I have spoken meant anything to you?”

Silence was my answer. In his frustration, Ahbrim stormed from the alcove and into the night. His consuming desire to save my soul, I find perplexing. His desire to right the wrongs of the past mean nothing to me now. No matter his actions, he cannot right what he has done. I will not allow Mina to slip from my grasp; it is the only chance I have at being reunited with my Elisabeta.

Claudia Van Helsing’s Journal

22 August 1893

Father is saddened deeply this day at the passing of Miss Lucy at such a tender, young age with her life barely begun. How distressed her family must be; with the loss of their Lucy so suddenly and unannounced, when she was so young and vibrant, and without a day of sickness before she fell ill. Dr. Seward spoke so fondly of her and with such heartfelt emotion. He must be troubled by her death. She was stricken so suddenly, I can hardly imagine the difficulties she faced. I have suffered with this affliction all of my days and cannot fathom would it feel to be struck down so suddenly in the prime of my life with little to no hope of recovery.

Father seems very complacent about her death. It is difficult to discern if Miss Lucy’s death has impacted him or if he has been forced to face the inevitable, that one day I, too, shall die, and there is not a single thing he can do to prevent it. Acceptance of my own looming mortality was a vision I had to embrace long ago. There is no miracle cure. No amount of experiments and serums can change my fate. Be my life long and grand or short and adventurous, it is time I embraced life with a sense of vigor to live it to the fullest. Miss Lucy’s short life taught me this if it taught no one else the importance of fulfilling a dream.

Vladimir Dracul’s Journal

19 October 1893

Enroute to the Carpathians

In this life, I have cared for many yet never did I experience a love so deeply it changed me, changed my soul, and stirred within me the desire to be a better man, to embrace life with a kinder side until Elisabeta became my loving wife. Four hundred years of lament were faced, knowing she could never come back to me, until Jonathan Harker came to be in my employment and her picture sat before me. A likeness so deep and memories so strong within her confirm my beloved has been returned to me despite what has been done.

Now, Mina lies next to me, sleeping at the grace of Ahbrim’s warning. His words were stern and unyielding just as they have been so many times before when he warned me of the Vatican’s assassins and other perils, which I consciously ignored. How strange our lives have become in this tangled story that has become our existence and yet, somehow, I understand that this was how it was meant to be, he my valiant guardian through the ages and I his loving brother in silence.