BLOOD RELATIONS
(Caleb's Past as Prologue…)
By: FanOH
Chapter One
Angela Olivia Berenger married Colin Michael Morley at the age of 16, in the year 1864, in the small seaport town of Salieri, Transylvania. Colin, six years her senior, was tall, lean and muscular, with black hair and dark brown eyes, and had searched a long time before he found the right woman to call his wife. She was of medium height, and pleasingly curvaceous, with long, chestnut colored hair, soft, ivory skin, and her sapphire blue eyes danced with life whenever she gazed at him. It was love at first sight for them both, and they married within 8 months of their meeting.
The couple was infinitely happy together, despite the disappointment of Angela's miscarriage just one year into their marriage. Colin had little use for religion, but Angela was a devout Roman Catholic, praying daily to the Blessed Mother for the courage to try another pregnancy and for the blessing of a child. Her prayers were answered when in 1867 she gave birth to a son, Caleb Michael, on February 15th.
Caleb was a thoughtful, intelligent, charming boy, who respected his father and adored his mother. The threesome often enjoyed long carriage rides on Sunday afternoons, through the fruit orchards of the Morley estate, (which had been built by Colin's great-grandfather) and into nearby towns. At night, just before bedtime, Colin would read stories to little Caleb, and Angela would smile to herself and thank God for the man she had married. But when he turned thirty-one years old, (the month after his son's sixth birthday), Colin's personality and his feelings toward his son and wife seemed to take a different turn.
Colin Morley's thirty-first birthday celebration had been a pleasant, family dinner at home with a few friends in attendance. After retiring to bed that night, however, he was plagued by a fitful sleep. "COLin…COLin…" an eerily faint voice was calling his name from downstairs…It was the voice of a woman, and her exquisitely beautiful face appeared to Colin as if in a dream. Mesmerized by her, he suddenly felt himself silently rise from his bed, padding softly in his barefeet down the huge staircase to the spacious foyer below. She wasn't there. Instead, he heard her calling again, and this time, the voice seemed to be coming from outside the foyer window. He slowly opened the large, oak door and stepped out onto the cold stone front step. He sleepily saw her then, as he walked down the front path, away from the house. He felt drawn to her, as if he could not control the motion of his own body.
At last they embraced, and this mysterious, beautiful woman with raven black hair and piercing black eyes stared at him in the moonlight, her blood-red lips in a seductive smile. "And so we finally meet, my darling, sweet, Colin! Her long, slender fingers ran wildly through Colin's silky black, shoulder length hair. I've been watching you for many years now…waiting for this moment. Suddenly, they were transported to another place…a cavelike room filled with lit candles…it all felt like a dream to Colin. The gauzy black nightgown the woman was wearing evaporated, leaving her milky white skin exposed in the candlelight. Her supple breasts were so soft to touch that he felt his lips curving around them, gently sucking and tenderly licking the nipples until they were rock hard. Colin felt the woman untying his pajama bottoms so that when they fell to the ground, her fingertips touched him everywhere - on every inch of his lean, muscular body. His head was reeling now, and the excitement was too much to bear. All he knew was that he had an uncontrollable desire to have her immediately! She then took control and pulled him into her, so that the two became one entity, one being, until they were both totally spent. It was the most sensual experience of Colin's life, though he was barely conscious, feeling as if he was under a spell of some kind. "You won't understand what's become of you right away, my dear Colin - in fact, you won't even recall any of this in the morning. But you will come to understand, my sweet; very soon, you will be told…" And with that, she deftly leaned over him to sink her fangs into the large, throbbing artery on the side of his neck.
The next morning, Colin lay still as death in bed in a deep sleep, as Angela leaned over to kiss him. "Good morning, my love," she whispered. "Did you sleep well?" Colin stirred only slightly, and Angela spoke a bit louder. "Colin, my darling - are you all right? It's time to wake up - you have that business meeting this morning and it's getting late!" This time, he awoke, looking disoriented for a moment. But when his eyes locked on Angela's, the anxiousness that consumed him began to melt away as he felt for her hand.
"I - I'm not sure if I'm…I feel strange," he whispered. "It's nothing - really - just that I must have slept quite soundly last night! I have a slight headache, I think." "Well, I know the cure for that!" Angela said brightly. "A good cup of strong, hot tea should help you this morning! I'll go and make sure the cook prepares that instead of coffee with breakfast!" Angela left Colin alone in their bed. He couldn't help feeling like he was forgetting something…and he had a strange pain in the side of his neck that wouldn't go away…He got up and looked in the mirror. Must just be this headache traveling down the side of my neck, he thought to himself. His neck looked perfectly normal, except for two pale red dots along his right carotid artery, which were fading fast.
Colin hugged his young son goodbye for the day, as he was readying to leave for his meeting. "Now, be a good boy for your mother, Caleb, and do well in your lessons so you can tell me all you learned today when we review your studies after dinner tonight!" "Yes, Father, I will!" Caleb exclaimed. He was always anxious to please his father in any way possible.
A loud knock on the front door interrupted their conversation. A white-gloved messenger stood on the step outside. "Important message here for Mr. Colin Morley, would that be you, sir?" he asked. "Yes, I am he" Colin answered, while signing for the small, white linen envelope. He recognized the wax seal as that of his attorney, John P. Malvern. Suddenly, the family's butler, Andrew, who had served not only Colin but his father, Carson, too, hurried down the steps. "I'm so sorry, sir! I heard the door knocker from upstairs but I couldn't make it down here in time to answer the door for you! These old legs just don't move as fast as they used to, I'm afraid! Do forgive me, Master Colin!" "No problem, Andrew…I was right here speaking to young Caleb when the messenger arrived. Thank you, though, for your concern."
"I'll take you now, Caleb," Angela said as she appeared in the foyer. Let's get you ready for your tutor's arrival today! Colin, were you expecting something this morning?" her eyes settling on the envelope in her husband's hands. "Why, no, Angela, I wasn't. I'm sure it must be something to do with this meeting I'm having. I'll just take a minute to read it over before I leave." Colin kissed his wife goodbye and quickly took the envelope into the library, closing the double doors behind him. He had a strange sense of foreboding as he opened it.
Dear Colin:
I write to you as your dearest friend and not as your attorney. Please under no circumstances mention this note before, during or immediately after our regular business meeting today. Instead, do meet me in my office at 3 p.m. and allow at least two hours' time for our private discussion. It is imperative that you come.
John
What on earth does John want? Colin thought. And why can't I ask him about this before our meeting today? I'll do as he says but only because I trust him…this doesn't sound good, though! Colin had no idea that his silent comment was most probably the biggest understatement of his entire life.
Caleb dutifully read his geography lesson and eagerly answered his tutor's questions regarding it. Geography was one of his favorite subjects; he often dreamed of visiting the many far away lands he studied about: Africa, South America, Australia, and most of all, the United States of America. That's where the cowboys lived and the Indians, too. His mother's sister, (his Aunt Rosalind) also lived in America, in a place called Port Charles, New York. Caleb would sit and listen to all of Aunt Rosalind's letters to his mother - and was especially proud whenever she would send him one of his own. She had moved there after marrying a wealthy shipbuilder nearly two years ago, and he truly missed her. Maybe someday he would get to visit her…Mama always told him that someday, they would…
The business meeting between Colin Morley, John Malvern and several of the town's businessmen and attorneys, went quite well. Colin owned thousands of acres of land in Translyvania, and was now negotiating an acquisition of even more forest and farmland. He couldn't help but notice, however, the seeming difficulty that John (his oldest friend, as well as his trusted attorney) was having anytime Colin looked directly at him. It was almost as if John suddenly couldn't find the courage to look Colin in the eye…three hours later, Colin would understand why…
"Come and sit down, Colin - please - make yourself comfortable. I've just had my secretary bring in a fresh bottle of sherry and there's whiskey here, too, if you'd like." John was trying to sound matter-of-fact, but his hand shook ever so slightly as he poured two glasses of whiskey and set one down next to Colin. Here, you may as well have this to start off - you're going to need it". John closed the heavy wooden door to his office as he ordered his secretary that they not be disturbed for any reason.
Colin looked at John quizzically. "What in the world is going on, John? Why all the mystery? You barely looked me in the face today during that entire meeting and that just isn't like you! What's the matter?""Colin, there's no easy way to begin this conversation. I've lived here in Transylvania my entire life, as you know; my family has been here for generations. We've been your family's attorneys for generations…and I've heard all kinds of stories over the years, but I've never had personal experience…" John's voice trailed off as his eyes became wider and - could it be - yes, tear-filled.
"Colin, did you have any strange experiences last night after your birthday dinner?" John asked. "You came to my celebration, why didn't you ask me last night," Colin answered indignantly. "I said after your celebration…after you went to bed." John continued. Colin's eyes were wide with anger. " What the hell do you mean by strange?" Colin exclaimed. "John, give me a straight answer, damn it, or I'm walking out of here this instant!" His head was still throbbing from this morning…and his neck pain just would not subside either…
"Colin, I'm meeting with you right now because it's the day after your thirty-first birthday. And, evidently, we are meeting much like my father and your father met soon after your father's thirty-first birthday. There is a curse on your family, Colin, on the first-born sons only - and nothing can stop it short of your family ceasing to exist!"
Rolling his eyes, Colin started to laugh, "Preposterous!" he said. But when he looked into his friend's face and saw how flushed he was, with his brows knitted together in a look of deep consternation, Colin knew this was not a cruel joke. "Go on." Colin said. "Explain yourself."
"Well, I have letters here to prove all I am going to say. And you will read them when I am finished telling you about all this. The letters date back to your grandfather, Michael Caleb Morley, who committed suicide the night after your father turned thirty-one years of age." Colin moved uneasily in his chair and drank the glass of whiskey, which John had poured him earlier. He filled the glass again as John continued to talk.
"You knew your grandfather committed suicide, didn't you? Why, I even recall my own father mentioning it to me one day." John said. "Yes," said Colin. " He was distressed, so the story goes, over a love affair gone bad. His marriage had been unhappy which stands to reason because it was arranged - more of a business arrangement between two families than anything else." "Yes, well, I'm afraid your family's story is rather lacking in detail, and is somewhat…inaccurate, to say the least." John added. "You see, the woman Michael Morley had the affair with, Katarina Villonovich, turned out to be a vampire! And, beautiful as she was - she looked no more than 25 and yet claimed to have been a vampire for 135 years - he was shocked and utterly repulsed after he came to find out the truth about her. Their affair had lasted nearly two years by the time she saw fit to tell him." Colin stared in disbelief, unconsciously touching the side of his neck as he sat there, frozen in shock. But John kept talking. "Theirs was an extremely passionate affair, and your grandfather actually proposed to Katarina and had wanted to divorce his wife, Alexis. Apparently, from what your grandfather Michael wrote to your father, Carson, that was when Katarina told him the truth about herself and offered to make him a vampire, too, so that they could live and love through the ages. But Michael would have none of it, and immediately broke off the affair, leaving Katarina stunned and embittered. You know the old adage; Hell hath no greater fury than a woman scorned! Well, Katarina was scorned, sure enough, and she had the power to do something about it." John paused, staring at Colin for what seemed like an eternity.
"Are you about to tell me that Katarina turned my grandfather into a vampire?" Colin asked. "No, if that had been the case, there most likely would have been no curse - the story could have ended there" John answered. "No, Katarina was much too vindictive to simply turn Michael into a vampire. She knew a much more devious way to make Michael suffer, and that was to wait…wait until Michael's son, Carson, turned the same age as Michael was at the time…thirty-one…and then, she would turn Carson into a vampire, with Michael watching her every move, yet powerless to stop her."
John took a deep breath and quietly continued. "Katarina figured that thirty-one was a perfect age and she would happily wait until Carson and all of the first-born Morely sons became thirty-one to turn them; it would allow enough time for their probable marriage and procreation. As you may have heard, vampires cannot reproduce." "Yes, I've heard that" Colin said softly. "But I don't understand how you've come to know all of this, or why you didn't share any of this with me before. What kind of a friend are you?" Colin asked accusingly. "Colin, I trust that I am one of the most valuable friends you will ever know," John answered.
"Your grandfather Michael, didn't want to believe this curse at first - or even acknowledge the possibility of Katarina's powers. So he made the decision to ignore it, and resumed his life with his wife, becoming as devoted a husband as he could be. He never came to really love Alexis, of course, but he found a certain solace in the marriage until Carson's thirty-first birthday. And then, that night, after the birthday festivities had ended and everyone was asleep, Katarina beckoned your father, luring him from his bed to the woods outside his home - your home-and she "turned" Carson that night, mingling her blood with his. Michael did witness the entire thing, having been pulled from his bedchamber by Katarina's incredible powers, and yet he was powerless to do or say anything."
"The next morning, Carson awoke not remembering what had happened, but Michael had never returned to his own bed. Instead, he had anguished in his library all night, drinking, and writing his entire story down in a letter to Carson. But he didn't have the courage to face his son to explain the curse. Instead, that day he delivered the letter personally to my grandfather, and they talked for hours. By the end of their conversation, your grandfather entrusted my grandfather with the Morley family secret. Later that day, Michael hanged himself."
"My grandfather was extremely distraught over his suicide, and kept thinking that maybe he could have prevented it somehow, since he was the only person besides Katarina who truly understood what had driven Michael to do it. Anyway, immediately after the funeral my grandfather met with Carson and told him everything. After that took place, Katarina changed the parameters of the curse slightly, so that no one in my family can ever share any of this information with anyone at all…not even in your family." "Anyone, that is, except for the first-born son after he has turned thirty-one?" Colin asked sarcastically. "Exactly", John said stonily. "Katarina's powers are astounding. In order for this information to pass along from generation to generation, we Malverns apparently have knowledge of the Morley curse for only a period of one day - this day - the day after a first-born Morley son turns thirty-one years old. And we, of course, are compelled to sit down and meet with you about it. Tomorrow, you will remember this, but I will not. If you choose to tell me about it, then the curse shall spread to the Malvern family as well. So far, that has not occurred. The letters I will show you now are from Michael to Carson and also Carson's letter to you. Your father wrote to you a few years after he was turned. Once you read them, I'll show you where the secret safe is located - the one I'll store them in, because tomorrow I won't even know it exists. No Malvern will know it exists until your son, Caleb Michael Morley turns thirty-one, and the curse continues."
Colin felt numb. John's last words hit him like a gigantic wave of ice-cold water, and his entire body froze. He hadn't even thought of Caleb before this. And then, suddenly, he said in astonishment, "She came to me last night - or actually, I came to her." The headache and neck pain were now gone. They vanished as his memories of last night rushed in, and the mind-numbing wave receded.
"Then Katarina turned you?" John asked. "Yes, it is done. I remember it all so clearly now. Her beauty was incredible…the unearthly hold on me…the hot touch of her fingers on my skin…the ecstasy of her fangs sinking into my neck - it was totally orgasmic! And then the next thing I knew, I was awakened by Angela this morning, and my head hurt along with this strange pain in my neck. But the pain has vanished - just vanished now that my memory about last night has returned!" Colin sat in utter bewilderment. "Now what?" he asked.
"Now, you will slowly become a vampire," John explained. "Your father's letter will, no doubt, answer most of your questions. You will experience, for instance, heightened senses, and gradually lose your taste for food, craving only blood…you'll most likely need to start "feeding" on small animals at first, but eventually, once you've made your first human kill, you'll develop strength and powers that will totally astound you. Your father had come to terms with his powers and his fate by the time of his unfortunate "hunting accident". His was no accident, of course. He was killed by a Kovich - a member of the legendary vampire slayer family. No doubt, you've heard stories about them."
"Oh, yes" Colin answered. "I've heard that their silver arrows rarely miss their target. No wonder my mother acted so strangely when my father died. I had thought it was just grief…but I was only twelve at the time, and had just begun boarding school, actually. I didn't talk with her at length about any of it. I wonder if she knew my father's secret? She might have, or at least she suspected…after all, he was 40 when he died so he had lived as a vampire for nine years. Much of that time, though, he spent traveling abroad on business, so I do wonder just how much mother knew. She never mentioned anything during her long illness. I was devastated losing her just two years after father…" Colin's voice drifted away as his mind raced, filled with memories of the past, and visions of his future.
End Of Chapter One
Click here for Chapter Two