Chapter Nineteen.
J ulia ran her hands through my hair and smirked.
“You’ve never cut this,” Julia murmured.
“No. I was frightened it wouldn’t grow back,” I replied.
“Yet somehow it does. And at a normal speed as well. How strange is that? We don’t age, our nails don’t grow, Vam’pirs don’t lose the shape we died in, yet our hair can still grow. Do you know scientists say hair is dead? Amazing creations, Vam’piric bodies.”
“That’s one word for it.”
Julia chuckled. “If you were mortal, you would have been mine with that body of yours.”
“Why, thank you, milady,” I parroted something that I’d said to Julia years ago, and we broke into fresh laughter.
Over the years, we’d become exceptionally close, and Julia was one of the very few I would trust with my life.
“Not sure why Inka—” “Don’t even go there, Julia,” I snapped.
Most of my good humour vanished as I briefly wondered about my now ex-wife. Well, what was there to think about? Inka never saw me after Egypt. She stuck to her guns despite Nathan telling them the truth. I’m unsure if Inka had used Egypt as a reason to free herself from me. Centuries passed before I got a grip and finally quelled the raging love I once had for Inka. No longer did Inka’s desires rule my heart.
With struggle, I changed my train of thought.
“These vampire vermin are getting worse.”
Julia asked, “How so?” while turning to rest her head on my stomach.
“Well, they are not being trained to use all their senses for one thing.”
“That makes it easier for us to get rid of them, doesn’t it?”
“Sure, but I’m looking for a genuine challenge. These creatures are also weaker. Most of them I staked tonight instantly turned to dust. The bodies didn’t last beyond a mere second or two. There’s no effort needed to kill them. Which makes a boring hunt.”
“The lineage must have been weakened somewhere, or else they have a weak Master,” Julia commented.
I chewed on that for a minute. It was the Vam’pir view that the curse was also a gift, and it shouldn’t be given out willy-nilly to anyone and everyone. When we came across vampires that did not deserve it, we killed them outright. In a way, Vam’pirs had become vampire hunters. Most of the vampires in history had needed murdering.
That meant staking them through the heart. This was a surefire way to ensure they stayed dead and turned to dust. But tonight’s ones had just turned to dust almost immediately. Usually, the bodies lasted a minute or two. That meant the vampire who’d turned them was from a much-diluted bloodline.
Although there were twenty-four first born, other Vam’pirs had been created. Mihal, Kit, Rahmon, Christa. They had blood directly from a Vam’pir, which made them almost as strong as a firstborn.
“Several of the others have discovered the same. Vampires are just breeding for the sake of it. The lineages are getting so diverse as the blood is passed from one to another that they are weakening. If they drank from a Vam’pir or a Master Vampire, they’d be stronger. But this infestation is not coming from an older being, so they are essentially weak,” Julia continued.
“That makes the job easier. A true Master Vampire is one who has lived for at least two thousand years. There aren’t that many about, say, a hundred in total, and so the line gets weaker unless they drink directly from a master,” I replied.
“That’s right. This Master must only be a few hundred years old as his vein is poor and not strong. Well, not enough to fight one of us.”
“Guess it doesn’t really matter as long as the vermin die,” I replied, kissing the tip of Julia’s nose.
Lazily, I rose to leave, and as I reached the door, Julia asked over her shoulder, “And just how is it going with Lady Caroline?”
“As good as it could be!” I answered, laughing, and left Julia’s house.
Luckily, it was only round the corner from mine, and I took a slow stroll. As I reached my door, I felt someone watching. Spinning quickly, I failed to catch anyone.
I frowned and extended my senses, but whoever it was had fled. Sighing, I let myself in. Marks met me as I entered my study.
“Sir, this was delivered.” Marks held out a note and left.
Unfussed, I walked over to the fire and opened the letter, breaking the wax seal on it. It was blood red, I noticed absently.
‘Father, the last vampire from the coven is dead. Michael.’
I read the small note again and crumbled it in my hand. It’d been Mihal standing watching me. That was why I hadn’t found anyone. A Vam’pir could mask his presence from others. Also, the speed at which Vam’pirs could move would take us miles away in a split second.
Idly, I noted that he’d signed the note as Michael. Was that Mihal’s way of distancing himself from his roots—and me?
No… Mihal had written ‘Father’, so maybe that idea was wrong. The boy was damn confusing. Doesn’t want to know me but calls me father still. Ornery bastard.
Sighing once more, I flung the scrap of paper into the fire and went to bed.
◆◆◆
I saw Caroline the next evening, and she did her bloody hardest to ignore me. Amused, I allowed Caroline to get on with the game. As the night drew to a close, Davenport approached and whispered that Caroline hadn’t got a partner for the last dance.
Smugly smiling, I walked over and asked her mother’s permission.
“Of course,” Victoria agreed with a simper and waved Caroline over.
Caroline came unwillingly and with a scowl but publicly could not refuse, not without shaming her mother.
I led Caroline onto the floor, where she was decidedly chilly. Caroline refused my attempts to engage in polite conversation, and I left her to her sulky silence.
Finally, Caroline could bear the silence no more.
“That woman you showered with attention—who was she?” Caroline demanded.
“Julia?”
“Oh, you are on first-name terms with Julia !” Caroline spat quietly.
“Of course, I have known Julia since we were children. Julia is a very close friend of my family. Am I in love with her? Is that what you wish to know?” I questioned, and Caroline pouted.
A chuckle escaped my lips as Caroline’s eyes flashed with ire.
I bent my head to Caroline’s ear. “Yes, I love her. My feelings for Julia are not romantic, nor will they ever be. Not while you are around, my darling girl.” Caroline relaxed a little. “But don’t ever attempt to come between Julia and me. That is a mistake you’ll not recover from,” I warned.
Caroline stiffened before offering a tight nod. Pushing my luck, I asked Caroline to go for a walk in the garden. Caroline glanced over at Victoria and nodded as she saw her engaged in conversation.
Tonight was mild, and the moon hung bright in the sky. The scent of roses hung in the air, and I guess it was romantic. It gave me a chance to breathe, and we walked in silence.
Caroline stopped by a pool and looked alluringly at me.
Without hesitation, I took Caroline’s invite and bent, kissing her full on the lips. Caroline gasped before flinging her arms around my neck and tugging me closer.
I allowed Caroline to kiss me as my mind wandered, wondering when to make her mine and a vampire. Not tonight, maybe tomorrow.
Gently, I pulled away and sat on the ledge. Cheekily, I guided Caroline onto my lap and embraced her gently. Caroline leaned back, and I took her slight weight easily.
“Meet with me tomorrow,” I whispered in her ear.
Caroline brushed aside a ringlet, meeting my gaze.
“Where?” she asked.
Naughty girl. The chit should have displayed some outrage. Caroline’s boldness was amusing.
“At Lady Marchton’s ball. The Lady has decreed it is fancy dress, and no one will know who we are if we sneak away. Find me wearing a highway man’s outfit, and I shall have a purple rose.”
“Shall I tell you what I am wearing?” Caroline asked.
“You’d better, or I might ask the wrong woman to take a walk in the gardens,” I teased, and Caroline’s eyes darkened.
She didn’t like that idea one bit.
“Jacques, I’m wearing a pink ball gown made of taffeta. The mask is pink satin and lace,” Caroline said before rising from my lap and fleeing into the ballroom.
I saw James Hamilton looking in my direction, and I pulled back into the shadows so he couldn’t see me.
◆◆◆
The next night, we met as planned, and I dragged Caroline away into the garden at the first chance I got.
“Come on,” I whispered, pulling her by the hand towards the gate.
“What?” she asked.
“Let’s go for a walk,” I said and stopped to smile.
“My Lord, I cannot leave the ball. Mother will wonder where I am.”
“No, she won’t. Other girls are wearing pink, so you’ll not be missed for a while.”
Caroline remained undecided for a minute before following me through the gate. I led her away from the noise and laughter and into another garden, which was deserted. The occupants being at the ball. There, I took Caroline in my arms and kissed her.
“You need to understand something,” I said, and Caroline gazed at me.
Carefully, I explained everything to her about being a vampire.
Caroline’s eyes grew wider and more interested as I spoke. I ensured I explained Vam’pir rules and, how to feed and who not to kill.
“Will you be mine? I inquired, my eyes gleaming in the darkness.
“Forever and ever,” Caroline declared with no hesitation.
And so began my greatest mistake. For truth, I should have checked her eyes and seen the cunning and greed. That night, I failed the Hamiltons and caused untold grief.
Instead, I pounced and bit into her neck. I drained enough blood to make Caroline drowsy and then removed her clothes. Naked, Caroline stood in front of me as I flung them away into a pile. The girl faced me with no shame. When Caroline died, I didn’t want her to stain her dress as she would have to go back to the ball and face her mother and others.
I couldn’t risk anyone picking up something was wrong.
Gently, I held Caroline and finished what I’d set out to do.
Caroline’s death throes were almost immediate due to the strength of my blood. Once finished, I cleaned Caroline in a small pond and ordered her to dress as I explained once more what she had become.
Caroline wasn’t repulsed—thank God—but very hungry, and I took her down into the poor section of London. There, she fed on two thieves. Cautiously, I hadn’t given her much of my blood, so she was not incredibly strong. However, Caroline would need a stake through the heart and her throat slit should her death be required. Caroline took the transformation easily, and that boded well for our future together.
Aware of the time, I hurried Caroline back to the ball and warned her of the dangers. If Caroline met with any other Vam’pir, then she was to say she was my vein, and they would leave her alone. If only I had known what trouble Caroline would cause, then I wouldn’t have made her one of us.
At that exact moment, I had no clue about the chit’s potential actions.
Victoria hadn’t missed her, even though Caroline had been gone for over two hours. We entered the ball as if we’d been merely taking a stroll around the garden. I saw Julia, and she winked.
Winking in return, I took my leave of Caroline and left to go home. I was pleased with myself. And made a mental note to request Caroline’s hand in marriage so we could be together at night. However, the marriage was not to be.
After speaking to Caroline’s father the next day, my offer was accepted, and a wedding date arranged for in four weeks.
London’s weather was rather grim lately, so Caroline was able to be up and around during the day. But I needed her out of the Hamilton household. Victoria was rushed off her feet with making wedding plans, but dear little Caroline did not seem bothered.
Caroline had become cold and calculating in light of her immortality. Inadvertently, I overlooked those viscous traits.
At first, I didn’t allow Caroline’s behaviour to bother me. It was nice to have someone to go out hunting with and to have proper conversations for once. But then Caroline overstepped the line.
I’d been in my study all night when there was a commotion at my front door. Davenport and Barrington strode in without a by your leave. They entered the study as I rose to my feet, and both were unaccountably sombre.
“What is it?” I demanded, alarmed.
Davenport coughed to clear his throat and peered at Barrington for support.
“Jacques, you’ve not been informed?” Davenport, eyes downcast, inquired.
“What?”
Davenport looked away again and cleared his throat.
“For God’s sake, man, tell me!” I snapped.
“Anthony Hamilton is dead. Hamilton was found the early hours of this morning.”
The name didn’t register at first, and then I realised Anthony was the heir to Lord Hamilton. Caroline’s oldest brother.
“How?” I asked, sitting back in disbelief.
Poor sod, Anthony had been a decent chap.
Now, they both averted their gaze and avoided making eye contact with me. Their behaviour signalled serious trouble.
“Hamilton was drained of blood,” Barrington stated.
The stupid little bitch had murdered her own brother!
How could she?
This was going to cause big trouble if Caroline wasn’t careful.
“Sorry, I don’t think I heard you correctly,” I answered as my mind raced.
Davenport slumped down into a chair and lit a cigar. He exhaled smoke, meeting my gaze.
“Hamilton was drained of blood. It is one of the most bizarre murders that the Peelers have encountered.” (Peelers were the Metropolitan Police, named so because of Sir Robert Peel, who created them.)
“How do you know this? The news couldn’t have spread this quickly?” I asked, twisting my hands.
“One of my maids knows Lady Caroline’s. The girl told mine, and mine informed my housekeeper. I spoke to an officer, and he said it was true. Jacques, all hell is going to break loose. The fact that nobility has been killed will not be taken lightly.”
“Where did it happen?” I asked.
“Hamilton left Whites and was discovered in an alley nearby. There were two tear marks in Hamilton’s neck where he had been drained of blood. The police think some sort of equipment was used to drain him. It’s all very bizarre. But rumours make mention of a monster.”
Thank God Caroline hadn’t murdered Anthony at home.
Barrington stood next to me and put his hand on my shoulder.
“Sorry, Jacques, the wedding will have to be cancelled for at least a year. I thought you should know straight away so you could visit.”
“Is my attendance acceptable?”
Luckily, it was another cloudy day, so I could attend the Hamilton’s and give my condolences if need be.
“Of course it is, man, you are Caroline’s betrothed, and should be with her,” Barrington agreed.
I rose to my feet and asked them to let themselves out as I left the house and made my way to the Hamilton’s. I walked instead of riding, as I needed the fresh air to clear my thoughts.
The murdering little bitch.
Hadn’t I instructed Caroline only to take the guilty or diseased? Why had she taken Anthony’s life? What had he ever done to her?
The butler admitted me, and I waited in the morning room. Caroline herself came to greet me, eyes downcast and red with weeping.
Cheeky madam.
“Why did you do it?” I snarled when she motioned the maid to leave.
“Why not, I never really liked him? Anthony was too stuck up,” Caroline replied, sitting down.
Angrily, I dragged Caroline to her feet and shook her violently. “You stupid bitch! Only take the guilty or dying. Not the innocent! Have you got a death wish? I can’t protect you from the Vam’pirs if you take innocents lives.”
Caroline freed herself and flung away from me. “Anthony was guilty, guilty of being a stuck-up prig. No one will touch me, you said if I claim your vein. They’ll think that I had your blessing. Anthony was in my way, and I wanted him gone.”
“Foolish girl, nobody who knows me will think that I condoned this. You may have signed your death warrant. The Vam’pirs will avenge an innocent’s death, and I won’t defend you against my kind,” I snapped, pacing the floor.
How could I have missed the calculation in Caroline’s eyes?
Had it always been there? What a bloody fool I was. Well, I can’t say I wasn’t warned.
“ Do not touch another innocent! Do you understand?” I grabbed Caroline and shook her again. At the same time, Victoria entered, and I pulled Caroline into my arms and held her there. My hand gripped her firmly against my chest, fingers digging into her head and hurting her. This was a warning, and Caroline needed to heed it. Our closeness should have scandalised Victoria, but she was too far into grieving.
“Marquis Du Mont, my maid said that you had come. How kind of you to think of us at this time,” Victoria announced, sinking gracefully onto a chair.
“It is nothing, madam. We are to be family. I could not let Caroline grieve alone. You have my most sincere condolences and abject apologies. Lord Anthony had been most admired myself and others of our set.”
Victoria nodded. Her hands wouldn’t keep still, and she trembled all over. Her face was paler than mine, and her eyes were red-rimmed. Victoria was trying to desperately hold herself together, and I cursed Caroline for doing this to her own family.
“Mark, my second son, has been recalled from the country estate, and James is here, of course. My fourth son should be joining us as soon as the news reaches Scotland. Edward is touring and seeing the country. He always was a curious child,” Victoria continued.
Victoria’s voice broke as she spoke of the fourth son, and she began to weep into a handkerchief. Awkwardly, I rose and patted her hand as I knelt in front of her.
Caroline dropped down the other side of me, and we comforted her heartbroken mother. Victoria cried only for a few minutes and then pulled herself together.
“Please excuse my tears, Marquis Du Mont, I fear I have only just begun to grieve.”
Victoria took her leave and left. I followed suit a few minutes after threatening Caroline with dire repercussions should she do anything like this again.
Caroline had seemed suitably contrite, so it was a shock when, three weeks later, I had another visit from Barrington. This time, Mark was dead, and the Hamilton household was in uproar.
I visited and informed Caroline that she had gone too far. The bitch was on her own from now on in, and if she crossed my path, then I would kill her.
The evil little wench grinned. I honestly felt that Caroline didn’t believe my threat. I didn’t publicise the news of the ‘break up’ such as it was. Therefore, it was no surprise when, three days later, Davenport visited with more sad news.
James had been stricken down with a mysterious illness, and it was thought he was dying. On asking after James’s symptoms, I rushed around to the Hamilton’s immediately.
Caroline had tried to make James a vampire, and now he was lingering between death and life. The Hamilton’s couldn’t afford to lose another child, and so I resolved to help James become a vampire.
Victoria was sedated in bed when I arrived. Caroline and her father received me.
I requested a visit with James and was shocked when I saw him. One look told me everything. Caroline had botched the change. Trying not to throttle the bitch right there and then, I offered to stay with James a while and give them a break.
Lord Hamilton nodded his agreement, and I sat in the seat that had been vacated by him. Caroline refused to leave her darling brother, and so her father left the two of us alone. The minute Lord Hamilton was gone, I was out of my chair and holding Caroline by the throat.
“Why are you doing this? What harm did they do you?”
“None. However, they stood in my way.”
“Of what? None of your brothers harmed you. Actually, they doted on you.”
“Oh Jacques, I want the money, the estate, everything. Everything should be mine, not theirs.”
In disbelief, I gazed at Caroline. Is that what this is all over? Money?
Stunned, I stared as James made a noise from the bed. I glanced over and noticed him trying to rouse.
“Stay away from Caroline, Jacques!” James croaked with sweat running down his forehead, “Caroline is the cause of all this…”
James pulled himself out of bed and collapsed on the floor. Concerned, I bent over him and saw that James was too far gone to recover his humanity. Sadly, I laid James gently back on the bed.
“You didn’t even do this right!” I snarled as I bathed James’s face.
“I did not intend to. Honestly, I wanted James to suffer,” Caroline quipped.
I forced down the urge to scratch Caroline’s face off and looked at James, fighting for his life.
Caroline stood like an avenging angel with her hair tumbling down her back and her eyes glinting in the daylight. Black suited her and made her look even more fragile and delicate. But Caroline was evil through and through, and I hadn’t seen it till it was too late.
Well, I had created this mess, and it was mine to end.
I waited until it was night, refusing to leave James’s bedside with her about. Then, when it was dark, I finished what Caroline had begun. Once again, I found myself explaining to a Hamilton what he had become.
It broke my heart telling him and watching the disbelief on James’s face appear and then the hatred.
“You should have let me die,” was all he said before leaving to feed on his first victim.
I stared at Caroline, hidden in the shadows. There was no emotion or guilt, just sheer discontentment, and finally, she left.
James recovered from his mysterious illness overnight, and the Hamilton’s household rejoiced in that one small mercy. Only three knew the truth; this number soon dwindled to two.
I guessed Caroline would try and destroy James and Edward, and I had to stop her. With her father’s permission, I obtained the chance to take Caroline down to my family’s estate. The easy excuse was that she needed a break from all what had gone on. We arranged for chaperones, and James would also accompany us.
We left at night, and on the way, I organised an accident that broke her neck. I knew Caroline wasn’t strong enough to recover immediately. This provided the Hamiltons with a corpse for burial.
For one last time, I brought grief to the Hamiltons, but I swore to try and make it up to them.
Caroline was buried in the family crypt two days later, and I snapped her neck twice more. There was awareness in Caroline’s eyes as she awoke one last time, only to discover me standing there.
In the end, Caroline was bitter and frightened, but I knew she wouldn’t stop on her own.
The night of the funeral, I crept back and drove a stake through her heart. Her eyes opened. For a brief moment, Caroline stared at me with such hatred that I cringed as I slit her throat. She erupted into dust, and the Hamilton curse was over.
As I left, I confronted James, who was standing outside.
“You killed her,” James announced emotionlessly.
“I had to. Caroline would have murdered your whole family. She had to be destroyed,” I said, putting my hand on his arm.
James shook it off and stared at me. Hatred radiated off him in great waves, and I backed away a little.
“Caroline need not have been destroyed if you hadn’t changed her. Did you consider that?” James asked.
I nodded, fully aware of the part that I had played. I harboured my own guilt at destroying a well-liked and admired family. London gossiped about the tragedies that had hounded the Hamiltons, and a few rumours claimed they were cursed. In a way, they were—by Jacques du Mont.
“However, James, you must understand one thing. Your personality did not change, neither did hers. What Caroline became was always inside her, just well hidden,” I retorted.
I would chide and punish myself. James did not need to add to my guilt.
“Caroline was my sister,” James said simply.
“James, I wanted a partner, someone to share life with. I underestimated Caroline. If I had known, do you really think that I would have given Caroline such power?”
“In all honesty, Jacques, I don’t care, and I do not want to hear excuses. I ask you politely to stay away from my family, or I shall kill you. Never darken Hamilton lives again. And I thank you for my new mission in life.”
“What is that?” I whispered.
James’s stare pierced me straight through the heart. “To hunt down monsters and rid the world of them. Vampires and Vam’pirs alike are evil creatures, they must be killed. We cannot be allowed to destroy any more lives.”
James turned and fled into the night. I stood in the same place till dawn came, and I was forced to leave for my own sake.
James had a point. However, unlike his sister, we weren’t malevolent.
Caroline’s beauty had blinded me, and that was entirely my fault. I had been very selfish and stupid changing her. Three months was the entirety of the time I had known Caroline, which was not enough to get to know her properly.
Yes, I’d been a big fool, and there was no excuse for the grief that I had brought to the Hamiltons. Although Caroline herself had killed her brothers, I held responsibility, too. Recklessly, I had given her these new powers and invincibility, and that was my guilt.
Indeed, I was lonely and had searched for someone with a brain and beauty to keep me company. Hell, I wanted to be admired and doted upon, looked at as if I was someone’s hero. I had wanted to be worshipped, but Caroline had fooled me.
I neglected to learn Caroline’s personality and I accepted responsibility for that failure. Caroline was an evil, psychotic bitch. Even if I hadn’t changed her, Caroline still might have found a way to rid herself of her family.
While I am not passing the blame and accept full responsibility, the fact remains that Caroline had murder running through her veins. I didn’t give her that. Even after changing, you stay true to your original self. Caroline’s personality is not my fault. Changing her was.
My actions were inexcusable. An explanation, yes, but not an excuse. Caroline had been only sixteen. Now, I recognise she was too young to handle the power that I had given to her. I doubt, though, that Caroline would have been able to handle it if she had been older.
There had been something twisted and nasty inside her. Nothing James or I could have done would have stopped Caroline and made her change her ways. Caroline was the one thing that I had managed to fool myself over, and I swore not to do it again.
Another Vam’pir had been created, and I had made James strong, unlike I’d made Caroline.
As a direct descendent of mine, he was a Vam’pir, not a vampire. That was the least I could do, and the strength I gave James would be recognised as coming from a Vam’pir.
Vam’pirs would recognise him as one of us.
I gave James every last drop of blood that I had within me and made him incredibly strong. I felt James would need strength over the years, and this is the one gift I could offer.
James now hated me with a passion, and I couldn’t blame him.
He left London to travel around England, Scotland, and Wales, seeking out vampires and killing them. James became known as the Hunter, and he was feared wherever he went.
James could not kill Vam’pirs, but he could find and wipe out vampires. Which he did with relish. It felt like he was killing me every time.
I didn’t mind that as James helped us out, as we killed the same as him. Vampires were not to be tolerated. Especially those who wrapped up their existence in myth and black magic.