Mad Bride of the Ripper Read online

  He flinched, bringing his hands up in front of himself.

  Expecting her to leap on him and tear him to pieces.

  When she didn’t, his gaze flicked back to her and some of his bravery returned.

  “You’re a monster,” he said. “A parasite in human form. He needed to find out how you worked. That’s all he was doing. Then we can kill you and all your kind. It’s too much work to stick fucking stakes into you all the time. And sometimes we miss. And then you might bite while we’re trying to kill you. That’s how your corruption spreads. I had to kill two of my friends who took a vampire bite. Good men.”

  “Hunters.”

  “Yes.”

  “You hunt us so your species can survive?”

  “You know that!”

  “And we hunt you so ours can survive.” Smile. “What, then, is the difference between us?”

  “I watched my mother murdered in front of my own fucking eyes! He beat her. Beat her until she was just a mess of meat on the floor. He didn’t care how she felt. Or how I felt watching him do it. Then he drank her blood right in front of me. I was a goddamn child!”

  “You sound outraged by the way she suffered.”

  “You can’t begin to know my hate for you.”

  “Of course I can, William. Can’t you see the light above? That’s you. It’s your sanity. It’s your hatred. Your rage. Your fear. All wound up in one shining ball of fire. It’s always been inside you, but you kept it hidden. Repressed it. Your anger at how a vampire treated your mother has been nurtured by Van Helsing’s doctrine. You fell prey to his religion, William.”

  “He’s a great man. He’s sacrificed for the survival of mankind. He did what was right.”

  “He was there, wasn’t he? That night with your mother. He could have saved your parents. He was chasing that vampire for days. He told you as much. What held him back? What did he want, William? Did he want the vampire destroyed, or was he looking for another child with a mind ripe for plucking? A child he could raise to feel blind loyalty to his misguided cause?”

  “No!” He made to rush her, but the water was like cement around him. Holding him in place. He jerked at his legs, but was stuck. Hard.

  “Yes!” Her roar washed through him. The impact of it blasted his mind and the shining star of light flickered violently. “You obey him.”

  “I’m my own man. He always said we were.”

  “And you are sure you never doubted his methods? That you always agreed with him?”

  “Yes.”

  “But you said they should have destroyed me. You said you told him to do so. Did he listen?”

  “You’re twisting everything!”

  “So, you didn’t agree with him all the time?”

  Shake of head. “No. Sometimes. Most of the time. Look, I know what he wanted, alright? I know we had the same goal. We both want to protect the world from your kind so no one else has to die like my mother did!”

  “Do you think she’d be proud of you, William?”

  “What?” Confused.

  “Your mother? Do you think she’s proud of you for this crusade of yours?”

  “Yes.” Firm.

  “She’d be happy to see what Van Helsing did to me? Knowing how it felt to be ripped and torn by a monster, she’d have felt proud of you for letting him do the same to me?”

  “That’s not what it was like. I didn’t have a say in that.”

  “But you said you weren’t a slave. You’re your own man, William. You knew he had me at Whitby. You knew what he planned to do. Why wouldn’t you protect me from the monster Van Helsing has become?”

  “He’s no monster!” He clutched his head with both hands. Pressing hard. “I know what you’re trying to do! You won’t. I won’t let you.”

  “You said you didn’t want to be a slave, but you’re his.”

  “No. No, I’m not. Stop it. You can’t control me.”

  “I told you already that I don’t want you to be my slave, William. I just want to set you free. Let you be your own man.”

  “I don’t understand.”

  “I know. But you will. You see, when I was in my cell and my body was being hacked to pieces, my mind was free. And I saw the light. Like you see it now. I saw it in front of me. And I took hold of it in my hands. I felt its warmth. And I realised that I’d never known it was there. No one had done for me what I’ve done for you. No one showed me it was there. As soon as I saw it in myself, though, I could see it in everyone else!” She took another step, the black liquid washing up to her knees. She came toward him. Like a mother to a child. He let out a choked sob as her hands reached for him. “William, you’ve been afraid for so long. You’ve been killing my kind as much as mine killed yours. Can’t you see we’re the same? Two sides of the same coin. Only, he has you under his spell. He’s told you lies. He tells you that we want to control you. That we want to dominate you. But how many countries do we rule? None. It is Van Helsing who consorts with the Kings and Queens of this world. Kneeling to them. Gaining titles. He’s a Lord in Hungary, you know. Are you a Lord anywhere? Do you have fame and fortune such as his? Of course not. He seeks power. He seeks control. We just want freedom, William. Freedom to survive.”

  “You murder innocent people.”

  “Only when we must. The vampire who killed your parents was starving. Hungry. Pushed to his limit by Van Helsing’s hunt. Had Van Helsing not hunted him, he’d be in a city just like this. Perhaps spending his time in Whitechapel. There, he’d drink the blood of the lonely and dejected. A bite here and there. Many never remember what happened. There’s no need to kill them. We don’t need their death. Just some of their blood. The vampire bats in the forests don’t kill their prey, do they? Does the mosquito? The leech? We are the same.” She held her arms wide. “William. My darling boy. My beautiful boy. You were fooled. Let me set you free. When you wake, you can have your gun. Your hammer. Your stake. And you can do as you wish.”

  “I’ll destroy you,” he murmured.

  She wrapped him in her arms. Holding him tightly. Cheek pressed to his. Mouth to his ear. Whispering. “And I’ll love you anyway. Always.”

  He shivered in her arms, his own slowly going around her.

  As he did, the sobs pulled from somewhere deep inside and he burst into a fit of weeping. She patted his back.

  “I’m sorry,” he cried, slumping. “Mother, I’m sorry.”

  “It’s going to be fine, William. You’ll see. Everything will be fine.” She ran fingers lightly through his hair. Smile spreading wide across beautiful face. “Just look up. Look to the light. And let it go. Let everything fall away. You don’t need it anymore. The light will fill you. And when the cage of sanity has crumbled to ash, all that will remain is the joy only madness can bring.”

  In his ears, his pulse beat to the sound of a clock.

  Tick tock.

  Tick tock.

  He nodded.

  Blinked tears free.

  And looked up.

  “My God,” he breathed. “It’s glorious.”

  “Yes,” she said, fangs driving deep into his throat. “It is.”

  CHAPTER FIFTEEN

  William staggered down the tight alley. Had to press against a muck-covered wall to avoid slamming shoulders with a larger man coming the other way.

  There was a brief moment when both men wondered if the other was about to attack, but then they passed and moved on. Forgot each other. William scraped at his face with his hands, wiping sweat away.

  He felt nauseous. Like he’d been drinking too much the night before.

  In the pocket of his long coat, he had the pistol. It felt heavy.

  In the bag in his left hand, the stake and mallet. Small bottle of holy water. Bible. Crucifix. Some garlic. Everything he might need.

  Only, he’d forgotten what each was for.

  The gun, he knew he could kill with.

  But the rest?

  It seemed silly to carry it all with h
im.

  He dropped the bag and reeled away.

  Didn’t notice a boy scoot from the shadows and scoop it up. The little vulture sneered at his back; “Stupid old sot.”

  Then darted away, bag swinging across his shoulder. Unaware for now of the strange nature of his newfound treasure.

  Eventually, William found the little narrow townhouse he’d been looking for. Front walls smudged with coaldust. Sturdy door tightly bolted. Leaned against the frame. Wiped his face again. Sucked a deep breath.

  And then rapped on it. Three times. Pause. Twice more. Pause. Three again.

  Waited.

  When the door opened, a frightened man peered up at him. He’d put a handkerchief to his face as though was about to cough. “Sloper?”

  “Hurry up, Doctor,” William growled. “Let me the fuck in.”

  “Of course!” Doctor Seward opened the door just enough for the other man to come inside. Looked quickly up and down the alley, and then shut the door again.

  Bolted it quickly and led the way down a dark set of stairs to the basement.

  There, he used a key to open another door.

  The basement had been dug into the ground and walled with old stone. The floor was just as crude, but they’d tried to hide its primitive construction beneath an assortment of rugs whose finery had faded in the distant past.

  A table was set in the middle of the room. Three small cots. Only two in use.

  A little workbench pressed against one wall. Small burner keeping a glass bowl bubbling steadily. Steam captured through a knot of glass tubes which fed other bowls and orbs.

  In the far corner, a cage. Big enough for one person. Solid. It had to be. It was built to hold a vampire.

  Empty for now, but fresh blood hinted it hadn’t been empty for long.

  Seated at the table, the austere old man who’d virtually raised him.

  “Abraham,” William said. Rushed to the old man, arm out. Forcing himself to be steady. “What’s going on? I’ve heard some dreadful things this past few days, and I came as soon as I could.”

  “I’m sure I don’t know what you’re talking about,” the old man said. Just as clipped and cold as he’d always been.

  “The police are showing pictures of you to everyone in all the pubs. And you, too, Doctor. They’re sweeping Whitechapel for you. Crawling over everything like ants, they are. There’s talk of brutal murders. Girls with their bellies cut open.”

  “Oh, God,” Doctor Seward dropped onto his cot and lay an arm across his face. “It’s all coming undone.”

  “Our work cannot be interrupted,” Van Helsing said. “Not now. Dracula’s Brides are in France and will soon be coming here. We must be ready for them. In just a few days, Dracula was able to infect almost half a dozen with some form of his contagion. Imagine how swiftly his Brides would work. Our only advantage with Dracula was his unfamiliarity with the territory. He couldn’t easily work his way into society. I believe, with Lucy’s assistance, his Brides would have no such challenge. For this reason, Lucy must be our priority. We have to neutralise her immediately.”

  “It won’t be easy to get close to her,” William said. “And, with the Ripper on the loose, the police are searching every home in Whitechapel. They’ll find you soon. You can’t stay here.”

  “I gather by your tone, young man, that you have somewhere in mind?”

  “I’m not sure.” He took a seat with some reluctance. Grabbed a small cup and filled it from a half-empty bottle of wine. Took a swallow before continuing; “Maybe. I’m not sure for how long it would be safe, but it’d be better than here.”

  “Where?”

  “A townhouse.” He took another drink. Wry smile. “There’s a problem with it, of course.”

  “Of course.”

  “There always is, with you,” Doctor Seward moaned. “You just can’t do anything easy, can you?”

  “Speak for yourself, Doctor. I wasn’t stupid enough to let her get loose.”

  “We could hardly expect her to run back to her father, could we?”

  “Well, where the fuck else was she going to go? They always return to their homes.”

  Van Helsing cut through what Doctor Seward might have said; “Be reasonable, William. We thought the village would be her first destination. It made sense at the time. We’d starved her for the duration of her time with us. She would have needed to feed. We didn’t expect her to have such maturity of restraint.”

  “Made sense,” William snorted. “I told you. Didn’t I tell you? Destroy her, I said. Experiment on the little ones. She was too dangerous to leave alive.”

  “Alright. That’s quite enough. Just tell us what we need to know.”

  He didn’t quite snap, but the tone was father to son and it cut a sliver of irritation down William’s gut. He lifted his cup to hide the twitch of his lips. Spoke over the wine; “I was watching her. Like you told me. Looking for a chance.”

  “I told you not to approach her. She’s too dangerous. Much too powerful for just one of us.”

  “I know. And you don’t need to worry, do you? I couldn’t get in anyway. Old Man Westenra’s got himself a couple of strongarms. Big bastards with jaws made of stone. Solid fellows who’ve locked up the place real tidy. I couldn’t get in from the front, so I looked to try the back. There was a house in the street just behind. Little place. Nice and cozy. Only, there was a little old lady in there. Bit too nosy for my liking. So.” He pulled the gun and put it on the table. “I didn’t want to. You know that. I’m not the kind to run around killing helpless old people. But there weren’t any choice I could see. I hoped to skip out the back and over the fence. That’s where I saw the second fellow guarding the rear.”

  “Did anyone hear the shot?”

  “No. And I were there long enough for someone to find me if they had.”

  “Lord.” Doctor Seward shook on his cot. Kicked out a leg. “Abraham, we need to pull back. This is too fast. Too much. We’ll see a hangman’s noose if we’re not careful. We were never about murdering innocents, were we?”

  Van Helsing’s gaze was on William.

  Steady.

  Like he was measuring the young man’s heartbeats.

  “Are you sure she lived alone?”

  “I didn’t do anything until I was sure. I’m not an idiot.”

  “I never said you were, William.”

  “Good.” He tucked the gun back into his coat, annoyed at getting too defensive. “Look. It’s all I’ve got. The only other place we had in England is Whitby, and the policeman’s been there. You should be honoured, Doctor. You warranted an Inspector, no less.”

  Doctor Seward sat up. “Inspector? They’ve already been to the Sanitorium?”

  “That’s what I said, didn’t I?” Hard exhale. “Look, Doctor, I haven’t slept in two days. I’m sorry if I’m a bit short with you, but my nerves are a tight. Every minute I spent in that house at night, I lay awake waiting for her to come floating into the room or something.”

  Van Helsing raised an eyebrow. “She didn’t go out at all?”

  “Not that I could see.” He pushed a wince. “But I admit she could’ve gone out by the front. Not my fault if she did. I can’t be covering the whole fucking house by myself, can I? And you didn’t send me anyone. You promised you would. But you didn’t.”

  “We had to leave Whitby in quite a hurry, William. We had no chance.” The German’s voice left no room for emotion. Flat. “But we have another here with us. He’ll be back shortly. The four of us should be able to keep a close watch on Miss Westenra. And others will come soon.”

  “Who?”

  “Jonathan Harker.”

  “Oh.” William nodded. Then, blandly; “Good man, that. In a pinch.”

  “Yes. I like to think so.”

  “Shame about Mina, of course.”

  “Yes.” The old man pursed his lips. Hiding anger? “A very unpleasant business.”

  “You destroyed her though, right? Did
n’t leave her lying about inside the asylum?”

  “Never you mind about her, William. Mina’s fate is none of your concern.”

  “Oh, shit. You didn’t.”

  “I said it’s none of your concern!”

  “Alright, alright.” Shook his head. Held palms out. “You’ve always known what you were doing, Abraham. I never questioned you.”

  “Then why start now?” Didn’t hide the sourness. Or the spark of suspicion.

  William stared back at the old man. Returning cold for cold. “You never let one loose before. That’s why. You were always careful.”

  “Yes.” Van Helsing shot a withering look at Doctor Seward. “It seems security at the Sanitorium wasn’t as good as I had hoped.”

  “They didn’t know what they were facing,” Doctor Seward growled. “Don’t you blame them, Abraham. You didn’t tell them. And I still can’t see how she got out in the first place. She shouldn’t have been able to open the lock.”

  “It was that wretch, Renfield,” Van Helsing hissed. “She got into his mind! Twisted him like a puppet. With Dracula’s touch so fresh in his mind, it stands to reason he would be swayed by her promises.”