desperation, I looked to Elisabeth for help.
What I saw quite surprised me.
She, too, stood in the doorway and, with a vehement Hungarian curse, stomped her small slippered foot. As I watched, the whites of her eyes reddened to scarlet, ruby against sapphire, the contrast eerily pronounced against the paleness of her skin. It was the only time I have seen her look unlovely, and it quite startled me.
Indignant, she wheeled to face me. He fears us! And so he has taken to this pitiful magic She waved in disgust at the doorway.
But I had utter faith in her abilities; had she commanded me to walk upon water, I should have. I waited for her to stride past me, to step boldly outside, then permit me to do the same.
She did not; she lingered beside me upon the threshold, her expression indignant. She could go outside no more than I. My disappointment was complete, for I had honestly believed her omnipotent.
Because of the doorways angle, I could not see the sun rising in the rosy clouds, nor the snow on the distant mountains; with these, I should have to content myself by gazing through the window. But I leaned forward as far as I could, extended my arm through the doorway, and turned my palm to the sky.
There I felt sweet, soft rain, cool and gentle upon my upturned palm; the drops splashed upon black velvet upon which they beadedand deep blue satin, which they darkened. There is something soothing about rain during the day, and something mournful about it in the dead of night.
At last, I slowly lowered my arm and turned sadly to Elisabeth. We are trapped.
Her expression was one of poorly repressed outrage, though the red in her eyes had faded somewhat. Indeed not!
Then why can we not go outside?
She frowned, as if my question had been highly impertinent, and with exasperation explained: Because Vlad has pulled an unexpected trick. Dont worry, Zsuzsanna. I shall soon set it right. But for now, come. Let us amuse ourselves in other ways.
She led me back to the Englishmans room, from whence, once again, the sound of snoring emerged. Elisabeth turned towards me, a cream goddess in sunny silk, and reached forward to lightly trace the outline of my collar with her fingertip. I shuddered slightly at her feathery touch against the skin of my collarbone, my breast, and was at once on fire.
He is not so strong today, she said, with a coquettish tilt to her head, and the shine of pure desire in her eyes. But perhaps you could enjoy a small drink
I wanted her more than him, and was about to say, No, let us go to your chambers, and spend the day in your bed . But she had already pushed open the door and entered.
I followed with only partial reluctance; the thought of dining again was not altogether disagreeable, as yesterday I had not been able to drink my fill. Even so, I was by no means overwhelmed by hunger. Thus I entered without haste, but with mild curiosity: who was this Englishman, and how had he come to be here? Obviously, on the nights Vlad went to hunt for us, he had gone instead to Bistritz to post letters to this man
Rather than go at once to the bed to claim my sleeping victim, I instead passed by the armoire, where a number of papers were neatly arranged in stacks. I glanced at the top letter, which was apparently a legal document of some type, prepared by a certain Peter Hawkins, Esquire and signed by Count V. Dracula. So! I said, with a glance at the man snoring beneath the. canopyonce again, with the bed curtains left open. I took no care to keep my voice low, for Elisabeth had shown me how to prevent others (including Vlad) from hearing me. Our young Englishman is a solicitor employed by a man named Hawkins. And he has been transacting legal business on behalf of a certain V. Dracula.
Elisabeths eyes narrowed with intrigue; she at once moved away from the bed to stand beside me. Whilst I riffled through one stack of papers, she examined another, then picked up a small leather-bound diary and began to
What I saw quite surprised me.
She, too, stood in the doorway and, with a vehement Hungarian curse, stomped her small slippered foot. As I watched, the whites of her eyes reddened to scarlet, ruby against sapphire, the contrast eerily pronounced against the paleness of her skin. It was the only time I have seen her look unlovely, and it quite startled me.
Indignant, she wheeled to face me. He fears us! And so he has taken to this pitiful magic She waved in disgust at the doorway.
But I had utter faith in her abilities; had she commanded me to walk upon water, I should have. I waited for her to stride past me, to step boldly outside, then permit me to do the same.
She did not; she lingered beside me upon the threshold, her expression indignant. She could go outside no more than I. My disappointment was complete, for I had honestly believed her omnipotent.
Because of the doorways angle, I could not see the sun rising in the rosy clouds, nor the snow on the distant mountains; with these, I should have to content myself by gazing through the window. But I leaned forward as far as I could, extended my arm through the doorway, and turned my palm to the sky.
There I felt sweet, soft rain, cool and gentle upon my upturned palm; the drops splashed upon black velvet upon which they beadedand deep blue satin, which they darkened. There is something soothing about rain during the day, and something mournful about it in the dead of night.
At last, I slowly lowered my arm and turned sadly to Elisabeth. We are trapped.
Her expression was one of poorly repressed outrage, though the red in her eyes had faded somewhat. Indeed not!
Then why can we not go outside?
She frowned, as if my question had been highly impertinent, and with exasperation explained: Because Vlad has pulled an unexpected trick. Dont worry, Zsuzsanna. I shall soon set it right. But for now, come. Let us amuse ourselves in other ways.
She led me back to the Englishmans room, from whence, once again, the sound of snoring emerged. Elisabeth turned towards me, a cream goddess in sunny silk, and reached forward to lightly trace the outline of my collar with her fingertip. I shuddered slightly at her feathery touch against the skin of my collarbone, my breast, and was at once on fire.
He is not so strong today, she said, with a coquettish tilt to her head, and the shine of pure desire in her eyes. But perhaps you could enjoy a small drink
I wanted her more than him, and was about to say, No, let us go to your chambers, and spend the day in your bed . But she had already pushed open the door and entered.
I followed with only partial reluctance; the thought of dining again was not altogether disagreeable, as yesterday I had not been able to drink my fill. Even so, I was by no means overwhelmed by hunger. Thus I entered without haste, but with mild curiosity: who was this Englishman, and how had he come to be here? Obviously, on the nights Vlad went to hunt for us, he had gone instead to Bistritz to post letters to this man
Rather than go at once to the bed to claim my sleeping victim, I instead passed by the armoire, where a number of papers were neatly arranged in stacks. I glanced at the top letter, which was apparently a legal document of some type, prepared by a certain Peter Hawkins, Esquire and signed by Count V. Dracula. So! I said, with a glance at the man snoring beneath the. canopyonce again, with the bed curtains left open. I took no care to keep my voice low, for Elisabeth had shown me how to prevent others (including Vlad) from hearing me. Our young Englishman is a solicitor employed by a man named Hawkins. And he has been transacting legal business on behalf of a certain V. Dracula.
Elisabeths eyes narrowed with intrigue; she at once moved away from the bed to stand beside me. Whilst I riffled through one stack of papers, she examined another, then picked up a small leather-bound diary and began to
Similar Books
