Daughters of Dracula (The Stoker Sisters #1) (16 page)

Sadness filled Keegan’s eyes, but his jaw tightened with bitterness.

“You need someone in your life.” She cupped his cheek. “You can’t live this kind of pain alone. The grief you feel and the anger; you need to have someone to share it with; someone who’ll understand you.”

He tried to turn away, but she kept him from escaping her gaze. “Let me be the one you can turn to. Let me help you.”

After a quiet sigh, he took a hold of her shoulders and held back. “I love being with you and you're no doubt the girl I most enjoy being with. You bring out something in me that I thought had died. I’ve come to care for you so much, which is just another reason why I can’t allow you to get too close.”

“But, Keegan…”

He shook his head, refusing to hear her out. “I have obligations and I can’t let anything or anyone get in the way. I know you mean well, and I appreciate your concern, but I need to be alone to get through this.” His thumb played tenderly with the skin at her neck. “I can’t risk getting you involved, getting you injured. And now with my mentor gone, the danger will be increased.”

“I understand.” It was a ball-faced lie. She didn’t understand at all and wanted desperately to argue with him. She forced a smile, clinging to his admission that he cared about her.

That was worth something.

Reluctant to release him, she stepped closer and wrapped her arm around his waist while the hand at his cheek worked its way through his hair where it took a solid grip and pulled him closer.

She peppered his neck and cheek with kisses, reveling in the almost imperceptible release of his shoulders. He wanted her; she knew he did. His hold of her – his hand, his arms, his fingers – tightened and grew hard, but not with anger. His every touch was now filled with passion; hot, irresistible and filled with his need and pain.

Chapter 17

Keegan walked out of the funeral home with his head hung low. The service had been short and to the point. Few had been in attendance adding to Keegan’s chagrin. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d felt such pain.

Like a flash, the pain of hundreds of years prior stabbed at his heart. Yes.
His parents’ death.
The pain of losing them felt like a fresh wound.

As an eight-year-old boy, his love and adoration for his father had been immeasurable. And his mother; she’d been an angel with a sweet disposition and never a harsh word.

Keegan still remembered the day they were hired to tend to Stoker Manor.

“You're going to love it out here, son,” his father said. “The ocean air, the expansive and elegant home, and I’ve even heard the owners have two young ladies who live here.”

“Perhaps you’ll become friends.”

Keegan doubted it. At eight he had little interest in playing with girls, but the thought of the nearby ocean did appeal to him. Every morning, after helping his father in the stables, he ran to the thundering waves, reveling in their power.

Within weeks he knew every inch of the beach, as well as the immense grounds that surrounded the impressive manor. He loved life at Dorset; simple, easy and joyful.

“Keegan,” his mother called as he rushed into the hall and prepared to run to his room. With a broom in one hand and a dusty rag in the other, she gestured to the strange man standing beside her. “Dr. Franz appears to have lost his way. Would you be a good boy and show him to his room in the west wing?”

The man was imposing, in an awkward way. Keegan hesitated just a moment, sizing up the funny-looking man. He had an old leather briefcase in one hand and a monocle that added asymmetry to his already lopsided face.

“I’d greatly appreciate it, young man.” His eyes were intelligent and he had a way of looking at Keegan as though he were an older and more responsible boy than he actually was. “Perhaps a sixpence would make you a little more eager.”

Keegan’s eyes fixed onto the coin in the doctor’s hand. Pulling back his shoulders and marching off like a little man with a mission, he led the strange man to the opposite end of Stoker Manor.

“As promised.”
Dr. Franz dropped the coin in Keegan’s hand when they reached the door to the good doctor’s room.

With the coin heavy in riches in his nubile hand, Keegan turned to skip away, visions of the delights he would treat himself to already filling his head.

“Perhaps I’ll see you again during my stay,” Dr. Franz called out.

Keegan stopped and turned to the man. Though he politely bowed and grinned, he couldn’t imagine the circumstances in which he would see the doctor again.

**********

That night Keegan’s sleep was troubled. He could hear sounds from the distance and none of them made sense. Screaming and hollering as though it were midday.
A loud roar that was neither man nor beast.
The heavy fog of sleep was long in releasing him and when he finally opened his eyes, the distant screams began to make sense.

His room was clouded in smoke and when he rushed to his tiny window to get air, he saw the flames that spilled out of so many windows. Struggling to get his window open, he squinted and coughed, eager to get fresh air into his lungs.

When it refused to budge he ran to the door and threw it open. The flames in the hall were quick to push him back into the room. Reaching to the high ceiling the inferno engulfed the corridor, leaving no escape route.

Panic gripped him and he wanted to call out for his mother, but he reached for his bed sheet, wrapped it about him and slid under the bed. With his eyes shut tight to keep the charring smoke from burning and his fingers plugged soundly into his ears to keep the ungodly sounds from haunting him, he curled up and waited.

On the threshold of consciousness, Keegan said a prayer.

“Keegan.”

For a moment Keegan remained motionless. Had God responded so soon?

A claw-like hand reached under the bed and gripped Keegan’s nightshirt. “Get out from under there.”

Barely able to see through the thick cloud of smoke, Keegan made out the unusual features of Dr. Franz.

“Let’s get you out of here.”

Keegan blacked out before they reached the threshold of the door and awoke in the cool early morning air. His face was in the grass, dew licking away the soot that clung to his lips and nostrils. His lungs still ached, but every breath left him stronger. He focused his eyes on the dark shadow sitting beside him.

“Father?”

Dr. Franz turned to him. “I’m sorry, but I was unable to save your parents.”

Tears sprang to Keegan’s eyes, rinsing away remnants of burning smoke, but also carrying so much pain. How could something like this have happened? Anger quickly replaced the pain and he wanted to retaliate. The manor was modern and meant to house the rich. It should have had the means of controlling such an inferno.

“What happened? How could this have happened?”

“Vampires stormed the manor late last night. They attacked and killed many residents, including your parents. They then set the manor ablaze.”

The news was too much of a shock. The thought of his parents dying in a fire was something he could wrap his head around. But to think they’d been attacked by vampires, left
him
filled with rage.

“I understand your anger, Keegan. To lose someone you love to these retched creatures is unbearable, certainly for someone so young.”

Keegan sat up and took in his surroundings. High on a cliff that overlooked the ocean, the remnants of smoke could barely be seen in the distance. How had the doctor been able to save him?
Had he dragged him this far?
These questions tickled his brain, but there was only one question he truly needed an answer to. “What will become of me now?”

Dr. Franz ruffled Keegan’s hair. “I was fond of you from our very first meeting. I felt an instant kinship to you. In light of what has
happened,
that kinship has only intensified.”

Through the weight of the pain that clung to his heart, Keegan felt a wave of relief sweep over him. The thought of an orphanage scared him beyond reason, and though the kind doctor seemed a tad odd, Keegan felt safe in his presence.

“Have you heard of Blood and Bones?” Dr. Franz asked after a long and thoughtful silence.

Keegan shook his head and looked expectantly at the doctor.

“They are a sect of vampire hunters. Their mission is to kill all vampires. With what has happened, I’m sure you can understand why.”

“I’d like to help.”

Dr. Franz cocked a brow as a crooked grin warped his lips. “I thought you might.”

**********

His years spent at Dr. Franz’s side taught Keegan a lot. If anything the student had almost surpassed the teacher, with Keegan often getting Dr. Franz out of a tight spot.

Hunting vampires had become Keegan’s way of working through the pain and the loss of his parents. With every vampire that died at his hand, he felt his parents’ death was avenged that much more.

They had drained his parents of blood and he now reveled in doing everything possible to stop them from taking another life.

Dr. Franz had taught him well and Keegan’s abilities with a stake were well-known. Few vampires escaped Keegan’s clutches once he’d tracked them down. His reputation soon had him feared by the blood sucking society and revered by the many members of Blood and Bones.

Walking through the streets of London, Keegan felt pride in his accomplishments, but also the seeming futility of killing a beast that so readily reproduced. For every vampire Keegan lay stake to, dozens were born. Dr. Franz never failed to lift his spirits and encouraged him to continue with his work, and today Keegan felt he greatly need to talk to his mentor.

Each step brought him closer to the office the doctor had set up as a front. His hands fisted with nervous energy and he tried to shake the sense of doom that had awakened with him.

London had had a sudden rash of brutal murders bringing the hunters to the large city. Rumor had it
Strigoi
vampires were on a rampage. While Keegan had had his share of run-ins with the most vicious of all vampires, the thought of so many running wild in London left him apprehensive.

Reaching out for the door to the doctor’s office, Keegan’s instincts took over. Before he’d even pushed the door open he knew something was wrong. He rushed in, prepared for battle, but what he came upon left him shocked and frozen in place.

Dr. Franz lay in a heap in the corner of the front hall while
Skars
Svengaard
stood over him, relishing the pain he’d inflicted. With unhurried moves, the
most vile
of all
Strigois
turned to Keegan.

“Well, well. Has the little boy come to save his mentor?” His grin was lined with dark blood. He gave a quick kick to the doctor’s leg. “I think you might be a bit too late.”

“The little boy is now a man of eighteen,
Skars
.” Though Keegan’s voice sounded strong and self-assured, he wanted to retch. He took a step closer.

Not only had
Skars
fed off Dr. Franz, but he’d visibly tortured him. His eyes were two swollen mounds of blue flesh while his lip had been cut and now hung open, exposing his teeth and gums and leaving the doctor with a perpetual grimace.

Though the largest of the blood stains was at his neck, his slacks, shirt and even socks had splotches that indicated small cuts over the doctor’s entire body.