Blueblood 4: Dracula - 26. Halloween Attack

Lucian looked at my gun pointed at him but turned to Iilya’s unmoving body. Lucian’s eyes were full of conflict. The sound that came from Lucian was from deep inside his throat, a groan, and whimper. Loss. Did Iilya love Lucian? A little maybe, but Lucian loved Iilya, that much was clear. He slowly lowered himself beside Iilya and let out. “О, моя любимая.” My translator, which I almost forgot about said. “Oh, My Beloved.” Yes, Lucian loved Iilya. Lucian was a vampire, so without the serum, there would be no tears, but there would have been as he bowed slightly over Iilya.

I supported Colin who was still bleeding from the “flesh wound.”

“I’m sorry, Lucian,” I said softly. “He shot Colin.”

Did Lucian hear me? He touched Iilya gently. “We have been together for over fifty years.” He said sadly, touching Iilya more, gently. “He was…obsessed.” He said slowly. He shook his head. “I have nothing left. Do what you will with me.”

I lowered the gun. “I can tell you really loved him. I can’t know how you feel, but I was given no choice. You would have done the same for Iilya. I know that…but I can’t trust you can’t right now.” I looked at the others that had come with Iilya and Lucian. “That goes for you as well.”

“What did Iilya tell you about what we are?” Colin asked the other we hadn’t met a little tighter as he was hurting. “Why he was doing this?”

“That we would be coming out of darkness.” One said quietly. “That would get our true natures from those things held here.” He pointed to the cell that had been Repetate’s and Iustina’s home for decades.

Gaius walked over to them. “He lied to you.” He held his arms out. “Look at me.” He looked at a couple of them. “You knew me before. Your eyes tell you…you can sense I’m not like I was. He said they lied?” He pointed at Colin and me. “Look at the evidence.”

The others that had come with us, Dragon’s men stepped up behind these others.

Colin was beginning to shake as I held him. I place my lips against his head near his ear. Loving that he was still here with me. “I got you.”

Colin smiled nodding. “I know.”

“I need to take a look at that. We may not get sick, but will there be an infection if I don’t take care of it?” I said pushing him to a chair and helped him gently to sit down. We had a medical kit brought down before which one of Dragon’s men brought to me. I helped Colin get the sweater and shirt off. The bullet had pierced the skin, but just a little making a tear just below his armpit on his left side.

Colin chuckled. “Like with all germs, the venom won’t let me become infected.” He grimaced again. “It just…hurts.”

I got out what I needed. “That would slow you down. I’ll take care of that.” Getting out the Lidocaine, I stuck the needle in and injected it in the area near the wound. “This should help a little. I’ll stitch you up to stop the bleeding.”

Colin smiled kissing me. “I trust you like I do no other in this world. I know I’ll be fine.” He looked up at the roof of the cave. “We need to get back to the town,” Colin said as he breathing eased. The Lidocaine was working on the pain he was getting from being shot as well as my future suturing.

“Which you won’t be able to help with until I take care of this,” I said working as fast as I could but took the time to get him as cleaned up as possible and still do the best job. “This is a battlefield intervention, quick, but thorough.”

Gaius and the others put those with Lucian in what had been Repetate’s and Iustina’s cell.

“We’ll deal with them later,” Gaius said to me as I worked. “If it takes longer…as in the sun comes up, they’ll be fine here.” He looked at the two with us. “But they aren’t to be left unguarded. We…” he pointed to the other two with us, “will stay here.” He shrugged. “We’ll keep them…company.”

I nodded as I finished Colin’s stitches. “Whatever they decide…whatever side they choose to remain on…they are all getting the serum. Tomorrow!” I looked at Iilya’s body. “Can we move him?” I asked looking at Lucian as he was staring at Iilya with those eyes that could shed no tears. “He doesn’t need to see Iilya decay.”

Gaius nodded. “We’ll move him.”

I put the earpiece in. We wouldn’t be able to do anything until Iilya showed up, so we didn’t listen to the others on our team in the village. I helped Colin put his shirt and sweater back on as we both heard…a party with much conversation and laughter coming over the earpiece.

“There is no Iilya now,” I said. “What other side is there?”

“Has there been an attack?” Colin asked in his earpiece.

“Nothing yet.” Alex’s voice came back. “They are still just…partying. Are you two okay?”

“Colin’s been shot, not badly. He’ll be fine.” I said quickly, knowing Gabriella could hear that, too. I didn’t want her to worry too much. “We’re heading for you now,” I said as Colin and I hurried through the cavern.

On the surface, we hurried toward the sounds we were now hearing without the need of our earpieces. Loud music could be heard. I looked at my watch. It was after midnight now. The problem was the attack could be widespread. Dracula’s castle was open and doing tours, while the town was crowded with people enjoying the party and made a better target. On the outskirts, there were a few people, but the closer we got to the square, maneuvering through was a problem. Vampires we now felt. They were here, but I sensed them among the people, not one sensation for anyone specifically. They were in great numbers from what I sensed. The Vampire Death Squad was here as well. I couldn’t feel them as they were not vampires and we wouldn’t know who they were until they attacked a real vampire…not on the serum. Also, there was nothing to tell about those enjoying the party…as make-believe vampires and their friends that were hunters complete with wooden stakes that threatened their friends with them in play.

Then we heard a scream in the crowd. We both turned to see a girl screaming that was truly horrified at something. Turning to in the direction of the scream, a young woman dressed provocatively as a vampire was watching as a man with her, also a dressed as a vampire was being bitten by a real vampire. The man was grabbing the vampire to get him off him, but…

I reached down and pulled my serum gun and fired at the real vampire’s leg. The vampire let out a shriek, startled at the pain that shot through his leg. His mouth open to show his fangs as he hissed angrily. I quickly got a syringe we had all packed, ran to the man who was now falling a little. “I have to do this,” I said to the girl that screamed who was still looking in horror and I said it to the man. I jammed the syringe into his heart through his sweater and shirt. I’d worry about any infections later. “You don’t know me,” I said to the man. “But if I don’t do this now, you’ll die.” It was a simple and untrue statement, but easier than explaining he would become a vampire if I didn’t. I watched as the real vampire slinked away into the crowd, but was limping.

“What’s going on!?” The girl shouted in a British accent.

“He was attacked,” I said quickly. “You saw it. What I just gave him is to save his life.” I said. “He won’t be able to get up or go anywhere!” I pointed at her. “If he means something to you, you don’t leave him!”

I watched her kneel by…whatever he was to her.

“It’s starting!” I heard my mother say in distress. “We’ll never catch them all!”

“We knew we couldn’t,” Willie said equally upset by what was happening. “We’ll just have to deal with it.” Then I heard the discharge of the serum gun go off through the earpiece.

“Keep track of victims as much as possible!” Colin warned. “They will need help before the sun begins to rise! If it’s a fresh bite, use the serum; as we did with Devon when he was bitten the first time preventing him from becoming a vampire.”

It was a few minutes before the laughter and merriment changed to screams of terror and horror as more were being attacked. Then there was pandemonium as people started to try to get away, screaming as they began to flee. Then the music suddenly stopped.

“People!” We heard a voice boom over the speakers that had been sending music in the crowded streets. I recognized Dragon’s voice and he was putting his natural mesmerizing talent on full as his voice reverberated. “Stop! You know who I’m speaking to.” He said in accented English. That was the one language almost everyone in Europe spoke. “You have been lied to by Iilya!” We tried to see him, but the tone of his voice said he even now hesitant to admit the truth about himself. “I am…Vlad Dracul or otherwise thought of as the real…the true one…they call…the real Dracula! And I command and you all to stop!!” That one word seemed to reverberate through the air more than all the others. I watched as most everyone stopped; the people there for the party and the real vampires. We finally got close enough and the rushing crowd slowed so we could see. “You, that I’m addressing, know me as Dragon!” He said on the raised platform. He was now dressed, not as he had been since he started the serum, but dressed like he had been when we first saw him all in the black leather. He looked every bit…a vampire! There were a lot of others here dressed as vampires, but…somehow, he was convincing. “You have known me for a long time. I do not lie! Iilya does! He doesn’t want you to create new vampires as much as he wants control! Of you! This attack will probably mean our deaths! I beg you to stop.” How he did this, I have no idea, but he said that one word again that just…echoed in my mind!

“Maybe there is some magic being a vampire,” I said as I looked at all those here that were listening, even the ones that had been panicked had stopped and were listening.

Colin shook his head but grinned. “I think there’s magic in being Dragon, not the vampire thing at all.”

“That may be the one thing Bram Stoker got right about him,” I muttered. I looked as the cameras that surrounded this party were now facing Dragon.

“Yes.” Dragon said sadly. “There are real threats for us, but not vampires, but men like Iilya that prey on us. Use us. There is a way out! Look at me! You know what I am. You can sense it. There is a way back to life. If we can live through this, you could get back to real life again. I am pleading with you. Go back to where you came from. Do not force others…innocents to suffer as we have. Go back. You know where to find me. There are people here to help you, not hurt you and you know who I’m talking about. They helped me. You know it! You sense it! Believe it! Believe me.” He shook his head. “I am Dragon. Trust me.”

“There’s going to be trouble after this,” I said to Colin.

All the people were still staring at Dragon. What ability he had was beyond description. No one was running or even discussing amongst themselves about what was happening. They just stared silently.

“But they’re listening to him,” Colin said looking at all those around us caught up in Dragon’s words.

I sighed. “But all those cameras!” I pointed to them out to Colin. “This is one time I wish those movie myths were true; where vampires don’t reflect in mirrors and they can’t be filmed. I wish that was true.” I waved at Dragon. “He can!”

“You’re right. We need to get to him.” He said hurrying me forward. “Guys! Keep up with any victims! They will need serum! They can’t stay out after the sun rises.” He said into the microphone on the earpiece.

While everyone was captured by Dragon’s words, no one was preventing us from approaching the platform. We climbed up, seeing the various band members were also enraptured in Dragon’s words. Colin and I reached Dragon.

“You did it,” Colin said to Dragon quickly. “You stopped most of the attacks.”

I nodded quickly. “But you’ve got to get out of here!” I said to Dragon grabbing his arm. “Now!”

“Colin!” We heard Sorin call from below and in our earpieces. “This way!” He motioned for us to come down. We rushed down to join him as the people began to come back to themselves as if becoming awake. “Your people are gathering the victims and taking them to the caverns.” He said quickly as we moved through the crowd. “What happened with that one called Iilya? Did you stop him?”

“Yes. He’s dead.” Colin said.

Sorin didn’t even react or stop, but just nodded. “Okay. I was afraid this was going to be a lot worse.” He marveled almost excited. “No deaths!”

“Inspector!” A voice called out as a uniformed officer came up through the crowd with a struggling young man about twenty with a heavy coat and knitted cap that covered most of his head, but his face said young. “We caught this guy trying to look at all the vampires in the eyes!”

The young man pulled angrily to free his arms. “I had one!” He spat. “A real vampire! I had him.” He said in English with an American accent as looked angrily at the police officer. “You let him get away!”

Colin looked at the young man. “A real vampire.” He cocked his head at the young man. “Why the eyes?”

“You can tell by the eyes!” The young man said. “They have this…” he thought of what to say, “dry look like they have no moisture in them.” He hurried to explain. “I’m telling you, they are real!”

Colin grinned at him. “Is that a fact?”

“Yes!” The young man declared. “They are real!”

“We know,” Colin said.

The young man looked startled. “Then tell him to let me go, I can stop them.”

“All of them?” Colin asked. “Do you know how many there are?”

Dragon stepped closer to the young man but had his ability turned on again. “What’s your name?” He said pulling the cap off the young man and a lot of blonde hair was underneath.

I groaned. “I should have known.” I don’t need to tell you why anymore. Blondes do nothing for me.

The young man looked at Dragon and then his eyes grew. “Cody.” He answered softly but recognized Dragon. “How…but you’re…”

Dragon nodded. “That’s right.” He leaned in closer. “You saw me, on that…what was it….broadcast?”

Cody nodded. “How did…you’re not…”

“Not what?” Dragon asked quietly. “A vampire?” The rumble of his voice was just on the safe side of threatening and almost growled.

“You can’t be,” Cody stated looking in Dragon’s eyes, the message was received and fear was in Cody’s. “You look…normal.” He said incredibly. “That’s impossible!”

Dragon smiled. “And yet…here I stand.”

Colin chuckled as he mocked the broadcast we all knew he and his…friends sent out. “We know who you are.”

I walked up next to Colin looking at this…kid. “Do you?” I asked Cody. “Do you know who we are? Do you know what we are?”

Dragon inched even more toward Cody. “There are dangers in the world.” He said again using his talent. “Dangers that are very real. I am not one of them.” He looked at me and Colin. “Neither are they. This danger requires a…” he smiled, “more adult approach. An approach that you aren’t ready for. Believe me.”

“You’re part of this Vampire Death Squad, aren’t you?” I asked knowing the answer before I asked.

Cody looked at me, his eyes saying he shouldn’t answer the question.

“Answer him.” Dragon said quietly, but his voice echoing in all our minds, including the officer standing there, transfixed on Dragon.

“Yes,” Cody answered.

“How many are you?” I asked.

“Worldwide? About twenty.” Cody answered.

“How many of you are here?” Colin asked.

“Including me? Five.”

Dragon came even closer to Cody, only an inch from Cody’s face. “Go home.” He said. “Get your friends and go home. My friends are handling this.” He looked at the officer. “Let him go.”

Cody took off running.

Colin, Sorin, Dragon and I were now moving again through the crowd.

“Everyone,” Colin said to his earpiece. “All the victims need to be brought to the caverns. Now.”

“We’re on it,” Mark said over the earpiece.

“There will be coverage of this,” I said looking at the cameras, manned by people that were searching, having been caught up with Dragon’s voice, realizing who they focused on was gone.

“Yes.” Colin nodded. “But even the best computer can’t find you, Dragon. No facial recognition program could find out who you really are, but we need to get you away.”

“That voice you used,” I commented smiling at Dragon. “That was some talent! Hell, Bela Lugosi had nothing on you.”

Dragon looked confused. “Who?”

I chuckled. “I’ll show you later.”