All Hallows Eve:The Blood Moon

[werewolf]

Chapter 1:"A signpost up ahead" [Sunday, Sept.19,1982]

Lightning flashed.The Thunder cracked simultaneously.Cynthia jumped slightly in her car seat."Whew! That was a close one." She whispered to herself.Her gaze darted about warily.She gripped the Cougar's steering wheel tighter, peering anxiously in the murkiness beyond her windshield. Cynthia brushed aside a strand of her long pale blond hair which had fallen unbidden in front of her turquoise asise eyes.
Thick angry clouds hid what remained of the late afternoon sun. Rain came down in gray sheets, so heavy that she could barely see through it.Her windshield wipers couldn't swish the water away fast enough.The beat of the rain on the car's roof impinged upon her while outside she heard the repeated splashes as her tires went through the puddles on this lonely stretch of Route 9.Cynthia could scarcely discern the Hudson to the west.The Mercury's headlights were able to reveal little of the road ahead.
Cynthia prayed she wouldn't miss the turn off to the estate's private access road in this blasted downpour.lt just had to do this tonight of all nights, didn't it?She sighed in resignation , expecting no answer to her unvoiced question and receiving none.
It was to be her first night at the home of her new employers, the wealthy Blackthorne family.Cynthia had recently passed the exams to obtain her license in child psychology.After all the years of education, her doctoral thesis and two years of internship that she might not find a job waiting.What a naive idiot she'd been!
Since she got her license she had been unable to find a position.A few employers to whom she applied told her the jobs were already filled. One said outright that she was too 'green' to bother with.Most never responded to her applications at all.It had been just her luck to receive her license during a door recession when budgets were tight everywhere.
An unexpected phone call promised to change her life or so she fervently hoped. An alumni at Columbia where she got her Masters degree was informed by a favorite professor of hers that she was looking for a job.He offered her a position at his facility upstate.
Dr. Richard Marsden ran his own sanitarium in the country about two hours drive north of the city in the Hudson Valley.Though not insisting upon it he asked her to take on a case for him first as a favor.
His godson owned a nearby estate.A retired musician, Marsden's godson had recently gained custody of his fourteen year old son after years of separation due a divorce.A family tragedy not long before his parent's divorce had left the boy troubled.
Marsden felt the boy needed a therapist focused solely upon his case.That meant living at the estate as it was rather isolated.Later, when the boy required less intensive therapy Cynthia could move to the sanitarium's staff quarters until she found a place of her own nearby.
Though sounding a bit odd, it was not unheard of for the wealthy to have live in nurses or even doctors. So, why not a psychologist?After what she hoped was an appropriate pause Cynthia accepted the offer trying not to sound too desperate in the process.After all, it wasn't as if anyone was beating down her door with job offers.She had to pay off those student loans somehow.....
Dr.Marsden gave her directions over the phone, promising to meet her there for dinner to introduce her to the family.The estate, Falcon's Aerie, lay atop a buff overlooking the Hudson, in Putnam county, just south of Peekskill.Across the river alittle to the north was Westpoint and a bit further on the bridge between Beacon and Newburgh.
The town nearest the estate was a tiny unincorporated village called Corchester on Hudson.lt was a couple of miles from the estate , between Route 9 and the river.Although less than fifty miles from the Big Apple it might as well have been on another planet.lt was, Marsden said an quaint little town, where not much had changed in decades.A few tourists came in the summer and for the fall colors but the place virtually closed down in winter.
The locals were conservative, on the clannish side.Outsiders were tolerated as short term visitors but otherwise were not warmly welcomed.The town was slowly dying of attrition as the younger residents moved elsewhere for work or excitement.Cynthia joked that it sounded charming but observed that she wasn't going there for it's scintillating social life.
Falcon's Aerie had been built by the son of one of the Victorian robber barons roughly a hundred years earlier though the family owned the property for some sixty years before that. The last of the original family to dwell there, the builder's so, had died in the mid 40's. His only surviving cousin chose not to live there and allowed the place to grow derelict.Hence, it had come fairly cheap when the Blackthorne's bought it in 1973, though requiring a great deal of work to restore.
Cynthia hoped that she wouldn't get lost once off the main highway.What she had viewed of the scenery, before the rain set in was bucolic.She could understand why someone might chose to live here.
Yet, for a suburban girl, like herself, it was too wild and isolated.She found it daunting.
Intellectually, Cynthia knew that she was in greater danger at home in Queens than out here amidst the farms and small towns of the valley.Still, she knew better what to expect in the city, even if not always when to expect it.On this empty stretch of highway, surrounded by fenced off meadows and brooding woods, with houses few and far between she felt out of her element. Driving alone, in this freak storm,Cynthia found the lonely comparative wilderness disconcerting.
lf anything were to happen out here, on a night like this.....Cynthia shook herself forcefully.She could not afford to start thinking like that.lt was just the weather and her apprehension about the new job. At least so she tried to keep telling herself.....
Cynthia kept an eye out for the turn off to the estate. lf anyone mentioned to her that there was a signpost up ahead, even if it wasn't Rod Serling , she felt sure that she'd jump out of her skin. lt seemed too much like the Twilight Zone to her, as though she was leaving the normal workaday world behind for some strange alternate universe.The resemblance to a Gothic novel was not lost on her either.The question was would she ever return to the world she knew.
Shaking her head at her own silly notions Cynthia chuckled and drove on.

[The Muse]

I like this a lot. I hope you dont mind, but after you mentioned that you and the computer don't precisely get along, I went ahead and ran this through a mini-edit for spelling checks, etc. ;D

Now...about the story. This was a great introduction to the story using Cynthia as the vehicle. I like how in giving her background, you manage to deftly give us details and mysteries about not only the other characters, but the story as a whole...it rather leaves me wondering what happens next!

Well done! I cant wait to hear more!

[werewolf]

Cynthia turned off onto the estate's service road as soon as she sighted the sign.She sighed ruefully.At the rate she was going she'd soon need a psychologist herself rather than functioning as one.How could she help her patient if she required analysis herself?
The rain was still heavy,the thunder now grumbling off in the distance instead of right overhead.Periodic flashes of lightning illuminated the sky.Glancing up at her rear view mirror Cynthia jumped, startled by what she saw there.
ln the back seat was a young woman, soaked to the bone, her expression sad, her skin deathly pale.Her long dark hair was bedraggled.She had delicate features and would've been quite pretty under better circumstances.She appeared to be in her early twenties perhaps.
From what Cynthia could tell the girl was slim and not very tall.Despite her attractiveness she made a distinctly eerie impression.She did not speak and her luminous violet eyes never once blinked. Yet, there was no malevolence about her only a profound sorrow.
Cynthia screamed, accidentally jerking the steering wheel to one side.Her car whirled out of control, the wheels screeching through the nearest puddles.She jammed on the breaks but the wheels could find no purchase on the wet road.The Cougar was half off the road before it careened to a jolting stop that left her dizzy and out of breath.
Once the car ceased to shudder Cynthia checked the mirror again. She saw nothing.Nobody was there as there could never have been anyone.The back seat was empty. She must've imagined it Cynthia thought.Too much morbid rumination amidst atmospheric surroundings.
Nobody could've snuck into her car without her noticing. There was nowhere in the backseat to hide and she hadn't stopped since before the ran began.
Since it had an hallucination , why that particular image now?Who could the girl have been?Cynthia couldn't recall ever having seen her before even in a photograph.Yet, she must have, without realizing when or where.Was it just the rain and the lonely road?
"They need you." said and unfamiliar voice, that of a young woman.
lt was full of aching sadness and concern."They're waiting. l tried to save them.l failed.You may succeed.Please....please help them....''
Searching for the source of the voice Cynthia checked the rear view mirror again.lt remained empty.She felt a chill, like the breeze off a glacier, beside her.Turning she gasped, her heart almost stopping.The hollow eyed girl sat in the front passenger's seat next to her.Cynthia stifled another scream.She nearly went off the road again before correcting herself.
"Beware!He waits there too.He caused all this with his hatred.He will try to stop you from helping them. You mustn't let him...or they will all die on the Blood Moon.''
Almost before she finished speaking the girl was gone as if she'd never been there.Maybe she hadn't.lt had to be an illusion, Cynthia kept repeating to herself over and over again.She'd become mesmerized by the road, preoccupied by the storm and nervous about her upcoming job.That was all it could be.
Curiosity aroused Cynthia ran her hand along the seat. Quickly, she pulled it away in surprise, as if stung.The seat was wet, almost slimy, like something from the bottom of the sea had been there.The dampness was icy cold to the touch.
The window must've been open a crack and the rain got in, Cynthia surmised.She'd been so preoccupied that it could easily have happened without her noticing.And yet the wind was blowing from the opposite direction, so it shouldn't have seeped in.Feeling the passenger side window she noted that there was no trace of moisture there not even condensation.There was no drip from outside.But how was that possible?
Cynthia checked the headliner in case moisture came through the car's roof.lt was a twelve year old car after all. Maybe it had rusted through beneath the vinyl and she had failed to notice before.But the headliner too was dry......
Cynthia didn't believe in ghosts. Something was real or it wasn't.lt wasn't as though she'd just read a gothic novel or watched a horror movie. lt was awhile since she had read any novels and longer since she'd seen a movie, at least in a theater. Her internship had kept her too busy.Had she gone without sleep for too long and so begun to experience dream s while she was awake?Yet, why had that specific imagery been planted in her brain?
Cynthia shivered involuntarily. She didn't know how to explain what just occurred. lt made no sense.The girl couldn't have been real. But Cynthia heard her speak, had felt the wet seat when there was nothing to dampen it.
Who was she supposed to save?From what or whom ? She aught to ignore the warning, given it's dubious source.But that was easier said than done.Cynthia was not about to back off if somebody needed her help.That's why she had become a psychologist.Yet, she prayed that she wasn't going crazy herself.People had called her that as a child because of those door nightmares.Cynthia didn't want to prove them right.
She wasn't stupid.Cynthia hadn't received any 'ghostly visitations' until she was well on her road to the estate.The warning almost had to relate to the Blackthornes in some way, if there was anything to it at all.But if so, how?lt seemed a fair bet that her patient was one of those that she was supposed to save.Who were the others, the boy's family?
Was it the entire family or only some of them?And who was the he whose hatred had caused everything?Cynthia guessed that she would soon learn the answers to the questions swirling through her brain.Was she up to the challenge?Should she turn back now while she still could? Cynthia continued driving, the answer never seriously in doubt.She'd just have to wait and see if the ominous warning was born out or if it really was just all in her head......

[werewolf]

That ends chapter 1. l thought you'd want to read at least that far. lt is a very long tale. l'm currently at chapter 55 in my revision of the novel and just before page 700 in the handwritten manuscript, nearing the climax but still with a few chapters left to go.As noted elsewhere l have written many versions before the present one several completed. l dropped a lengthy prologue that described events seven years before from the boy's perspective but l plan to reinsert most of it probably as an hypnotic regression sequence in her attempts to treat him.lt was good and exciting. But l've come to feel that her arrival at the estate is the best way to 'enter' the story.
lt is a rather traditional gothic romance in alot of ways but given my own spin on the genre which l hope is enough to make it worthwhile.lt was inspired by my childhood love of the soap opera Dark Shadows. ln part the idea sprang from a quote in an interview made by the series creator, Dan Curtis, in relation to the 1991 remake of the show.He said werewolves were inherently less interesting than vampires so l set out to prove him wrong at least to my own satisfaction.
ln the process l ended up paralleling several of the show's plots including that involving the werewolf.But l hope l added enough of my own ideas to turn it into more than a pastiche of what was already a pastiche.lt's obvious that Cynthia plays the equivalent of the traditional governess role though l also bring in a secondary character who literally is the tutor for the boy.l tried to tread the line between updating/upgrading that type of character, making her strong but not impossibly brave and competent so that she would have an arc to follow as the plot developed.
l do rather often harp upon the characters incredulity at what they experience since it is so fantastical.But it's hard for me to know if that skepticism gets repeated too often.l tried to make the character's growing belief plausible since l feel some similar stories seem to me to let their characters believe the seemingly impossible too quickly and easilly.
l'm a bit embarrasssed to admit l've put so much work and more than twenty years into what most would see as just a horror/romance potboiler.But maybe this is finally the 'right' version and someone other than me will at last get to read it.l had begun to diepair that anyone would.l've let a freind read the first few chapters and he liked it an a coworker once read the entire earlier version around four years ago.Knighthood has read bits and peices over the eight years we've known each other as well as numerous plot descriptions and ruminations
. He's been very encouraging all along.

[John Reid]

My word! Has it really been 8 years already? We met on a site called "Barnabas Undead" which was set up to discuss the 2004 remake of Dark Shadows that never came to be. The pilot was not bought and so it died before it was ever given a chance. From there I invited werewolf to join my on fan fiction Dark Shadows site and we discovered just how much we had in common, Not only a love of gothic horror but also both aspiring writers trying to get published. Anyway as a lover of "Gothic potboilers" I was hooked from the get go. I'm glad he's come here to get others opinions.
Knight-Hood

[werewolf]

ln a few months it'll be nine years......

[The Muse]

ok..i have been working like an idiot all day and just popped in for a moment...I havent even got a chance to read your next part of the story or your personal comment because I am pressed for time. I will be looking at it this evening as soon as I get home and can breathe for a moment!

;D

[werewolf]

lf l seem to sush you, sorry. Just thought you'd like the rest of chapter 1 where things begin to happen. l would've put it all up at once but it takes me awhile to type so l broke off at what seemed a natural resting stage. l guess they could even be two shorter chapters save that following that model l'de end up with well over 100 chapters by now instead of the 55 l have.[most are 10-12 handwritten pages but broken up into still shorter segments depending upon the scene and character perspective involved.Cynthia's remains the primary viewpoint but others begin to proliferate later in the story particularly for things where Cynthia was not present to witness.

[werewolf]

above l meant 'push' not sush.

[The Muse]

No, You were not pushing. I Didnt take it as such. I typically am not quite as busy as I have been lately. It does pull you in quite quickly. I will be honest....it creeped me out. Well done. It is an interesting story and this seems like a good place to introduce your audience to it.

[werewolf]

Chapter 2:"Falcon's Aerie"

About a mile up the service road Cynthia came to a stone wall and high wrought iron gates between tall peirs..Those were topped by weathered marble urns.Above the gate, amidst the florid iron tracery, was a bronze oval incised with the name Falcon's Aerie in old english script. Eight feet up were a pair of brass lanterns.Though obscurred by the rain they glowed softly in the darkness.A small lamp rested atop the oval aimed downward to illuminate the name.
A few feet from the gates was a metallic box about two feet in height. On it's raised bevelled surface was a speaker and several buttons. Just beneath the lanterns Cynthia spied a couple of cameras angled down at incoming vehicles
Reluctantly,she rolled down her driver's side window.Since the Mercury was facing west the rain struck her windshield rather than her arm as she reached out to hit the buttons.Cynthia was greatfull for small favors.
She pressed the button signalling that she was there, then waited impatiently, fingers thrumming the steering wheel.For a moment she wondered why the gates were closed. She had been told she was expected.Then, she reprimanded herself.The estate was out of the way and the Blackthornes were wealthy.That made them a tempting target for criminals or worse, the press.They couldn't just let anyone wander in without warning could they?
"ls anyone there?" Cynthia asked with an annoyed sigh.." My name is Dr. Cynthia Akers.....l'm expected."
"Hold on , doc.....l'm getten' there." answered a male voice. "We expected yuh.We just didn' knw when yuh'd get here."The speaker sounded relatively young.
The gates slowly swung inwards. Relieved, Cynthia put her window up and took her car out of park. As she drove through the gates clanked shut behind her. lt was a feintly omminous sound given her present mood.
Ahead of her was an L shaped two story building with a turretted round tower where the wings met. On the ground level were multiple arched opennings. Cynthia guessed that they were the old stables and carriage house, which were now the garages.
She pulled towards the entrance where she saw a light.lt was a set of double doors parting.A tall figure was sillouetted against the light.Cynthia drove into the gaage and put her car in park, switching off the ignition.Taking out the keys she thrust them into her purse and pushed the button to pop her trunk. She grabbed her purse as she got out of the car.
She did not bother to lock it.lf it was nt safein a closed garage beyond locked gates the car's lock would do little good.She headed for the back of the car to retrieve her luggage.Only then did she get first clear look at the man who just admitted her.
Tall and athleticly built, he had logish wavy auburn hair and a full beard. She estimated that he was in his mid to late twenties. He wore a red and black flannel shirt over a tee-shirt and aded rumpled blue jeans and Dr. Martin's workboots. He had warm hazel eyes and a broad smile. His hair and shirt were wet from just having open and shut the garage door against the storm.
" Hi doc.....Sorry it ook me a couple o' minutes l just got back from the house. Lhad'a bring Mrs. Jeffers some groceries for tuhnight's dinner an' help her put em' in the pantry.lt's a bit of a drive tuh the store n' back 'specially in this mess.All we got in town's a convenience store. Closest supermarket's over in Garrison.l'd'a been down sooner but l was dryen' off upstairs. l'm Mat......Matthew Hunter. l work here as a sort of jack of all trades....groundskeeper, chauffer, handyman....sometimes even mechanic. Harlan....Harlan Jefers.... is getten' on in years. He's no up tuh as uch as he used to be...but don';t ever tell 'imm l sad so."
" Nice to meet you, Mr Hunter."Cynthia offered him her hand which he shook."Then you're security her too?"
"Fer now." Mat grinned in self deprecation. " We're between companies at the moment. The last one raised it's prices.So, Mr. Seth fired em' last week.He and Lisa Ramirez, the secretary, are gonna' be interviewen' new companies in a few days.ln the meantime l gotta' open the gates."
"Do they really need the walls and gates, and cameras and all that?"Cynthia asked something that she'd immediately wondered about.
"Probably not so much these days." Mat chuckled good naturedly. "But the Blackthorne's like their privacy. They don';t want anybody wanderean' in without em' knowen' about it, specially reporters.Mr. Holderness don't tour no more. But he still sold millions'a records. People are nosey 'bout celeb'rties, even retired ones.The walls an' gates was already here when the Blackthorne's moved in. But they added the ground lamps, motion detectors, cameras n' stuff after a break in years back....before l was hired.There were alotta' reporters nosen' around in those days, from what l heard. lt was a real fucken' mess....excuse my french.lt'd take awhile fer the cops uh get out here if hey had tuh since Corchester don't have it's own force.."
"Then the owner is the lan Holderness.... of ODYSSEY ?l'de heard that the owner was a retired British musician. But l never guessed it was him.L was told the family's name was Blackthorne."
" Yeah, l didn't know either when l first got hired." Mat nodded, scatching his head half conscioussly." l heard that his dad was an American, that died over there in World war 2.L'm not sur a' is dad's name. Mr. Holderness' mom married intuh the Blackthornes after the war when he was a coupla' years old.Mr. Blackthorne....Seth is Mr. Holderness step brother but thy was raised tuhgether.Mr. Blackthorne's mom baught it in one o' them German rocket attacks.... the door thing blew up a Woolworthe's at Christmas time l heard.Doc Marsden was a buddy o' Mr. Holderness' real dad.He helped em' all move here an get their residency cards.Mr. Seth's dad didn' approve a' rock so Mr. Holderness changed his last name so's not tuh emarras the ol' man. He used his old hometown in England fer he name.."
" l had no idea."'Cynthia admitted in surprise. "My brother, Danny, used to have some Odyssey albums before he went in the marines."
"Jarhead huh?" Hunter aised an eyebrow, his tone cryptic.
"Danny was in the marines from 71' to 75'." she noted offhandedly.
" l was in the army from 74' tuh 76'." Mat stated, his face unreadable.." Couldn' wait tuh get out. Too much crawlen' 'round in the muck....getten' yelled at att the time....too much nitpicken' fer me thank you."
" Danny's a detective down in the Bronx now, my family lives in Queens." Cynthia ignored what Mat said about his stit in the service. He had a right to his oppinion and it was not her place to dissapprove of it,though Danny was proud of his time in the corps.
Admittedly, he did not talk about it often.
"So he's a pi.....a cop."Mat corrected himself in mid word."
"Yes" Cynthia pretended not to notice his slip of the tongue or tone of voice.lt wasn't he first time she'd heard the police calle pigs and she doubted it would be the last.Both she and her brother had heard far less polite terms used. Cynthia herself had been called a shrink and worse.... someimes even by Danny.. But at least he usually said it in jest.Not everybody did.
"Do you have an umbrella?" she asked, changing the subject."l should've brought a raincoat. But it wasn't raining when l left the city so l didn't think of it."Cynthia hadn't wanted to overpack.They might fire her if they saw a U-haul pull up in front of the house with all of her thngs.....
Cynthia started to reach into her trnk to unload her luggage." Let me help yuh, doc."Mat offered, grasping one and lifting it out for her."Then l'll get yuh an umbrella when l get my raincoat. l'll carry you bags up tuh the house for yuh." He took out he other two suitcases and set them on the ground. Cynthia closed the trunk, greatfull that Mat had done it for her.Despite her best intensions she had still over packed and Danny had had to ligft them into the trunk for the trip up during one of his rare breaks.
"Thanks" Cynthia replied, with genuine gratitude.. "Sorry, they're so heavy." She blushed slightly.
"

[John Reid]

Love it. I'm hooked already. I know we've discussed plot outlines many times via email but it's not the same as reading the novel. More please.

Knight-Hood

[werewolf]

"Don't sweat it , doc."Mat laughed."They're not that bad.Heavy work's what l'm here for." Hunter winced a second as he lifted them, then adjusted the way he held them a little to make the weight easier to carry.Cynthia could barely budge them on her own.Maybe she aught to have brought a few less shoes, she chuckled at herself.
"Let's get goin'" Mat said , as he took a raincoat and put it on."They're expecten' yuh up at the mainhouse.Sooner we get through this fucken' rain the better."
Cynthia nodded, sighing internally.She dreaded the walk, certain she'd look a fright before they reached the house.But there was nothing for it....no other way to get there.Wordlessly, Hunter handed her the umbrella he'd promised.Steeling herself, Cynthia openned it and raised it above her head, striding out onto the main drive. The rain continued relentlessly.
The main drive ran straight from the gates for about one hundred yards,with a modest curve as it approached the house.lt was perhaps twenty feet wide, capable of handling cars going either direction at the same time. Tangled oaks overshadowed it, their twisted branches interlaced above the pair.
The trees had been specially planted almost a century before to line the drive, obscurring the view of the mansion, like a natural curtain.The canopy shielded them somewhat from the rain, through the dripping from the trees themselves was nearly as bad.The wind tugged at her umbrella, threatenning to pull it from her grip as they walked.
Cynthia turned up the collar of her brown suede coat against the damp cold.lt was chilly for a late summer evening.She wished, idlely that she'd worn gloves, her fingers feeling like ice.Her boots clattered on the cobblestones of the drive.Cynthia winced briefly when passing through the unavoidable puddles. The boots weren't cheap....
Wind whistled through the trees, rustling the leaves, which were just on the edge of turning color.The branches groaned in protest.Thunder added to the eery atmosphere.Dny would've loved to have been there to rag her about it like he used to when they were kids, with an exaggeratedly villainous laughter and a few winks and nudges .
When the branches finally thinned out the great mansion loomed ahead of them.Cynthia caught her breath at the first sight of it. Falcon's Aerie was a vast gothic confection, seemingly more at home in Enland or perphaps Newport than here in the rural Hudson valley.She'd never seen anything quite like it in person before.lt equaled the grandest 'cottages' of the gilded age enclaves of wealth and priviledge.
A phallanx of chimnies reared up against the wroiling sky, occaissionally illuminated by dramatic arcs of lightning.Pointed iron combs ran along the ridges of the high peaked slate rooves with their carven dormers.Turretted drumlins out of a Scottish castle were at each corner and matching round towers nestled on the outside of the hiphen of each wing.Their peaked conical rooves soared high into the night.
Smooth ashlar masonry alternated with rusticated quoins at the corners. lvey clung to the gray walls, surrounding the mullioned windows set mith myriad diamond panes of leaded glass.Most of the upper windows were dark, though those of the main block on the ground floor were brilliantly lit.
At the center of the main block was a massive rectangular tower, whoes crenellated parapets rose sixty feet over the drive. A large port corchere' crouched at it's base protecting the principle doors from the elements.The stone tudor arches were high enough to admit a carriage with plenty of room to spare. ln front of that was a three tiered marble fountain, whoes gurgling was temporarilly lost in the stocatto beat of the rain.
To either side of the main block were eaqual hiphens with tudor half timbering beneath the eaves.A lower more asymetric wing was to the north, while on the south stood a one and a half story extension that openned on the terrace via french doors.On the south side of the main block was another one story extension with translucent floor to ceiling windows, it's roof a balconey for the second floor.
A pair of brass lanterns glowed beside the main doors of polished oak, inlaid with gothic tracery in aged green bronze.The door knobs and antique knockers, the latter grasped in the beaks of birds of prey, were all of polished brass.lt gleamed like gold in the lamp light.A great gilt lantern hung on a draped chain from the wooden roof of the port corchere'. Three broad low steps lead up to the main doors.
"Wow!" Cynthia gushed in amazement."When Dr.Marsden mentioned an estate l never expected anything this spectacular.lt's right out of an old movie!"
"Yeah" Mat agreed, chuckling."Castle Dracula or the house of Frankenstein..."Hunter rolled his eyes theatricly. "Leese....Miss Ramirez, the secretary, says it gives her the creeps.But it's just a big ol' house tuh me.....more to take care of.That's why l'm here, basicly.Harlan and his wife, Aida, the housekeeper are both in their sixties. They been caretakers here since the original family lived here back in the 40's.They could never handle this place alone anymore.Mr. Holderness let em' stay on 'cause they'd been here so long and probably couldn't find work anyplace else.
Even with me here half the house is locked off, unused. The family's too small an' there ain't no other full time servants 'cept Mr. Seth's attendant, Jeremy Hutchinson an Leese, who l told yuh 'bout before.Mr. Seth's in a wheelchair from a car accident beack in the 70's.Crazy that they run it like this huh? door place must have fify fucken's rooms."
"Fifty?Really?" Cynthia was fascinated, gazing up at the mansion in unconcealed wonder.
"That's what l heard."Mat shrugged. "Not that l ever bothered to count em'."
"What about the family?What are they like?"Cynthia asked trying to sound innocent, though her curiousity was killing her.
"They're OK , l guess."Mat replied, this time made uneasy by her question and trying to be diplomatic."Mr. Seth runs the place, though it belongs tuh Mr. Holderness.Mr. Seth's nice enough l suppose. But that chair creeps me me out though l shouldn't admit it.Mr. Holderness ain't around much.He stays in his rooms alot or goes over tuh see Doc Marsden at the nut hou....sanitarium.Don't get me wrong. He's a cool dude mosta' the time....has his own studio over the garages an' lets me ride his Harley sometimes.l'de love tuh own one a' those babies some day. l'm saven' up.He's usually pretty freindly an' easy goin'.But he does get moody once in awhile.l guess he's got more reason than most for it though."
What about Mr. Holderness' son?"Cythia interjected, trying to learn more about her patient.
"Don't really know the kid well yet."Hunter shook his head negatively."Mr. Holderness an' his wife split up a long time ago an' she took the kid back tuh England with her.She's getten' remarried now so she pawned the kid off on us about two, three weeks ago.l heard the kid's afraida' his own fucken' shadow....been to a dozen doctors over there, Leese said.He's haven' trouble adjusten' here....New country, new school...The local kids bully 'im cause he's different.You know how kids are.l feel kinda' sorry for 'im but there ain't much l can do about it."
"l know what you mean."Cynthia answered succinctly remembering her own childhood.'Freak' they'd called her....'cry baby'.Danny used to defend her. But sometimes he slipped and did it too when he got mad at her, though he would usually apologize later.Like her he had his own bad dreams, yet was too stoic, even as a boy to tell anyone except her.
"l guess that's why l'm here."Cynthia concluded.
"Yep."Hunter nodded in assent. "That'd be why.They're talken' 'bout bringen' in a tutor for 'im too since he's been haven' problems at the local school with bullies. Poor kid."
"So, doc, ready tuh make the grand entrance?"Mat asked, winking at her wryly.
"As ready as l'll ever be."Cynthia inhaled deeply, in preperation."Let's get this over with."

[The Muse]

I dont know WHAT you were worried about....You really are a good story teller.

[werewolf]

Chapter 3:"Homecomings" Sept.19,1982

Colin stared out his window forlornly.lt was a nice enough room, his old one in fact.But he hated it.This place could never be home to him again.Rain pelted the window, leaving beads and rivulettes behind.He had turned off his bedside lamp, so that the water cast weird shadows on the wall of his room.Thunder grumbled outside.
At fourteen he was too old for a nightlamp or so he tried to tell himself.He wasn't a ruddy baby anymore....no matter what his taunters called him.Besides, a mere nightlight could not make him feel safe.Nothing could do that.What he feared would never be deterred by any lamp since bullets had failed to stop it.
He aught to be excited. He was with his father again after almost seven years apart.Most kids would love to live in a mansion like Falcon's Aerie, with a rock star as a father.But they were idiots.Colin knew better though he wished that he didn't.
lnstead of joy it was all that he could do to hold down the lunch he'd eaten a few hours ago.His stomach was queasy' all wroiled up. Not only was he dreading his tormenters at school tomarrow but the terror of this place increased every second he was here.His head hurt too, his heart pounding far too fast.lf he did throw up it wouldn't be the first time since he was told that he had to come back .
Too much had occurred here....too many things Colin could never forget.He'd tried so often to tell them....to explain to them.But they refused to believe him. They insisted that he only imagined what he saw, because he'd been young and upset.But they were wrong though Colin had no way to convince them of it.
His mother was preoccuppied with her wedding plans....pretending that she didn't remember what happenned that night.Yet, if he imagined it all what put her in the hospital for a bloody month with the doctors unable to diagnose her ailment?Kate had never been quite the same since much as she tried to deny it.
She had put Colin in therapy and the doctors used all sorts of drugs on him to 'cure his delusions'.But it hadn't worked anymore than her own attempts at self medication via alcohol, pills and cocaine.Kathryn acted as though she didn't realise that he knew what she was doing.Yet, they both knew the truth perfectly well.Colin openly acknowledged it, though he feared it.His mother hid from the memories, as if they did not exist.
Dealing with Colin's 'problems' had become too much for her....too time consuming, emotionally draining and frustrating.Now that she'd met somebody new she needed a break from it all; time for herself she called it.Kathryn had carried the burden alone for seven long years.Now it was his father's turn.
Colin senced that her fiance', Phil something or other, was just her latest attempt at distraction.Her fiance' would doubtless succeed as well as the drugs or booze.Although angry with her for denying the truth and for sending him back here Colin didn't....couldn't hate his mother.She wasn't a bad person really, just wounded and coping as best she could.
Once Kathryn remarried the allimony and child support stopped.Her fiance though not s rich as Colin's father was no pauper.But he refused to foot the bill for another man's 'troubled' son.Kate could never afford to pay doctors or fill the perscriptions on her own.
They'd just barely made it before on her allimony and child support.All those doctors and drugs did not come cheap. Kathryn's tastes had also frequently been above her means....especially some of her own chemical
assistance.She claimed that she could not work in order to take care of him.Yet Colin had no doubt she loved him in her own selfish distracted way.
Besides, as she never tired of saying, his father was rich and she wasn't. lt was time that lan share the responsibilities for Colin's upbringing.
lt was also time for Colin to face his fears, she said,or he would never deal with them and be able to lead a normal life.lt was all, she insisted, for his own good.
"What a joke!"Colin thought bitterely."Normal?!None of them would ever be normal again, no matter what they did or how many drugs they took. Kathryn just couldn't bear to see the truth staring back at her through his eyes.That was threal reason she sent him back here;so that she could go on pretrending.
Outside the rain finally ceased and the clouds began to dissipate. The moon peaked out from behind them at last. Colin stared out at the slender crescent, where it hung over the estate like the scythe of the Angel of death.lt seemed to mock him."Welcome home" it said. "l've been waiting for you."
Tears on his cheek, Colin thrust the curtins shut, though he knew the moon was still out there.Fighting a dispairing sob, he crawled into bed beneath the covers.lt helped a little. But there was no escape for him there or anywhere else.Nobody could help him and no place was really safe.Just as he'd always known.He hadn't gotten away seven years ago.
He'd merely postponed the inevitable.

[The Muse]

And the suspense grows....

[werewolf]

l'm glad you like it so far. While l've been posting these first thee chapters here l've been plugging away at the later ones in my notebooks. l'm into chapter 56 now and past page 700. The climax is very near.l did my best to capture the gothic atmosphere. lt's one of my favorite genres though many see it as passe' these days. Urban fantasies are great in their own way but l yearned for all the traditional trappings few bother with anymore.So, l recreated as much of it as l could whie trying to make it convincing in a moderntime frame.But l did not feel tat today's digital world of smart phones laptops and tablets, the internet etc. meshed well with the quasi Victorian flavour so l left it at the cusp of those things. l'm also fond of the cars , fashions and pop culture of the 60's and 70's so l could not set it too much later. That's why the recent Dark Shadows remake badly dissappointed me as it parodied both the gothic original and made fun of the early 70's as well. lf l thought there would be new more serious versions of the series l would have been more forgiving of the paraody but most of the humour fell flat for me. Alot of people see the genre as laughable but l'm not one of them.

[John Reid]

Me either. I have not seen the new DS movie and probably will never see it out of protest. 40 years I waited for a big screen DS and this is what I got? A parody? Anyway love your tale as it has all of the elements I loved about DS but within a entirely new story and characters.
Just my 2 cents
Knight-Hood

[The Muse]

I must admit...now that I think of it, there IS a DS feel to this!

[John Reid]

DS was the original gothic/soap opera/horror story and the root of so many spin offs. Every sympathetic vampire from Louie in the Anne Rice novels, to Nicholas from Forever Knight, to Angel from Buffy the Vampire Slayer, to the current Vampire Diaries and of course the Twilight saga were all spin offs of Barnabas Collins. Also every series that combines the legendary monsters be it vampires, werewolves, ghosts, witches and so forth owe a nod to Dark Shadows. Yet when the recent parody movie came out I read very little criticism of the movie and plenty of criticism about the original TV show which just added insult to injury. I was around when the show first aired and it not only was not criticised then it was highly praised and the only day time Tv series to have higher ratings than most prime time shows of the same era. So my favorite tv series seems to be forever maligned and at the same time copied endlessly. If it was so bad why all the imitations?
KH

[werewolf]

my hope was to reflect what l loved about DS without being just a cheap knock off of it.With luckl'll succeed.One problem the genre has is that those who arent fans consider the whole thing too rediculous to bother with. For tem it aoght not to even exist.Meanwhile some horror fans sneer at the romance/ soap opera aspect because the scare or grossout are not the stories primary goals.They see it as a bastardization or watering down of the genre,The proliferation of paranormal romances and teen supernaturals annoys and disgusts them.These days any attempt at the horror romance gets compared to Twighlight usually by people who hate the latter though someyimes by it's fans who jealously descry what they see as immitators.To them the unfamiliar DS is the copy! So, it's a genre that rarely gets respect [as Rodney Dangerfield might've put it.]Aside from DS l was raised on the old Universal horror films and later Hammer and AIP'a Poe inspired films from the 60's. Each was considered horror within it's own day though not especially terrifying now after all the bloodbaths of the last 40 years.Whether one liked it or not most had more story not just the modern scare of the minute approach.Still, some cannot see any worth in tales involving vampires, werewolves, ghosts or the supernatural in general.SciFi can aspire to prediction of future technology or social trends, Supernaturals like much of fantasy often seem to require defensive ascessments due to the scorn so often directed their way.[and l write sword and sorcery too so l'm a glutton for punishment l guess. At least these genres have grown popular despite the many criticisms. So, somebody likes them whether they admit it or not.l obscess over this stuff but l keep writing because it's how l express myself [along with the art when l get around to it.]

[John Reid]

The way I look at it, with your tremendous vocabulary, you have taken the subject and elevated the material to classic status. Vocabulary in a novel is really what separates the sheep from the goats. Your tale reads like DS if it had been written by Emily Bronte of Wuthering Heights fame. That's what makes it really exciting to me. That someone, namely you, is finally treating this sort of story with some dignity and respect. So carry on. I look forward to reading the whole thing one day.
Knight-Hood

[werewolf]

you will if we both survive long enough for me to type it out. l had near ly ompleted chapter 3 this morning when some glitch or button wrongly pushe wiped out an hour and a half of typing and this is about the third time for that since l began..... Oh well, l'll do it as fast as l'm able [slower than glaciers move.]

[werewolf]

Mat oppenned the double doors and motioned for Cynthia to enter.She followed him in and closed the dripping umbrella as she crossed the marble threshhold.Hunter turned and shut the outer doors behind them, cutting off the waft of cold damp night air.Mat removed his raincoat then took her umbrella and hung both over a small metal grate in the floor of the niche whiuch held the coat wrack and umbrella stand.The grate collected run off via a drain beneath the floor.
Stepping into the foyer Cynthia saw that it had a very high ceiling.lt's shiny marble floor was made up of alternating black, gray and white tiles in a repeating geometric pattern.Here and there antique Persian throw rugs covered the arabesque designs of the tiles.
At the center of the far side of the foyer was the grand staircase tothe second floor, with red velevetine carpetting and ellaborately carved mahogany balustrades.At the base of each bannister stood classicly inspired statues of a man and a woman in gilt bronze upholding lit globes.
Beside the stairs to the north was an old fashioned Victorian style wrought iron ellevator.On the other side of the stairs were the doors to the formal dining room.Next to the outerdoors were a pair ofsmall marble topped tables on which sat vases with fresh cut flowers.Above each table hung large mirrors with gilded baroque frames.
On the southside of the foyer lay a short hallway that lead to the library.The doors to the study were on the northwall next to what she guessed to be Seth Blackthorne's room.Between Seth's door and those to the study was another antique table upon which sat an ellegant 1920's vintage phone.
The panneling of the foyer was in a lighter warmer hued wood than the mahogany bannisters.Beyond the ellevator was a corridor to the kitchen, pantry and the Jeffers private rooms.South of the maindoors was the entrance to the solarium, where the family usually had breakfast and lunch.
High above them glittered the impressive chandelier of handcut imported austrian crystal. lt brilliantly lit the foyer.Once again Cynthia was awestruck.Having just come in from the darkness and the storm the effect dazzled her. lt took a moment for eyes to adjust.Dr. Marsden had once mentioned that the chandelier was a gift to the builder of the house and his wife when they'd visited Vienna on their honeymoon a hundred year before.The mansion's inerior proved just as incredible as it's exterior.
"This place is unbelievable!" Cynthia whispered softly under her breath."lt's like a movie set! l keep waiting for the director to yell 'cut'.How do you take care of all this without an army to help you?"
"Ain't easy doc." Mat sighed, with a weary grin. "Takes a goddamned ladder tuh keep that thing clean."He pointed up at the chandelier."l'm the one that's gotta' do it now.lt's too fucken' dangerous fer Aida....l mean Mrs. Jeffers.She might fall..."
"What's too dangerous, Matthew?"asked a male voice from behind them, in an upper middle class British accent. Neither had heard anyone approach."And who is our lovely guest? You must introduce me..."
Turning, Cynthia saw a middle aged man in a wheel chair coming toward she and Mat.She guessed, based upon the chair, that it must be Seth Blackthorne, stepbrother to the owner and uncle of her future patient.Mat faught a frown yet trie to hide it.
Blackthorne looked to be in his forties, although his condition made him appear older than he was.His moderately long brown hair was swept back from his forhead, with gray at his temples. He wore a brown jacket, with patches at the elbows, over a dark green sweater vest.A colorfull blanket hid his legs. He must've been quite handsome when he was younger and healthy and was still distinguished looking.But he'd grown pale from being indoors most of the time as well as guant.Fine lines creased his fine featured face.Yet his eyes were full of life, an extraordinarilly brilliant amber. They glowed lke flames in the light of the chandelier.
"This is doc....Dr. Akers, Mr. Blackthorne." Hunter replied stifly, as if caught unawares. As he'd noted Seth made Mat uncomfortable."l was just explainen' how l used a ladder tuh clean the chandelier."
"Yes, l see. lt is a bit of a nuisance but it's such a gorgeous piece it would be a shame not to maintain it."Seth smiled broadly."We've been eagerly awaiting you , my dear"He extended his hand to Cynthia in greeting. She reciprocated. "l'm pleased to finally meet you , doctor.Dear Richard....Dr. Marsden recommended you to lan in glowing terms.But he neglected to mention how attractive you are."
"Thanks for the compliment, Mr. Blackthorne. lt's nice to meet you too. With the way the weather's been this afternoon l was afraid l'de be a total mess by the time l got here." Cynthia responded with a wary smile.
She had been told before that she was pretty but always assumed it was just idle flattery or politeness.When she looked in the mirror she saw hair a little straighter than wished it was and lips that could be fuller, skin in need of a deeper tan.....Yet, maybe she was being too critical....and vain.Seth struck her as an inveterate flatterer.So, she took his effusive greeting with the proverbial grain of salt.
"You look fine, my dear."Seth chuckled, in mild amusement, eyeing her with the merest hint of mockery."But you're right. The weather is attrociouss tonight.We don't usually get this bad a storm at this time of year. lt does rather remind me of home though.lnclement weather is so common there it's a cliche' if an accurate one."Blacthorne laughed softly."Yet, in season we can compete with England for fog as well as rain. Perhaps that's one reason lan chose this place....all the comforts of home with better wine and lower taxes."He grinned mischieviously at her. Cynthia could tell he was going to prove a real handfull to have around.But he would certainly keep things interesting.......

[The Muse]

For some reason the idea of Seth having amber eyes immediately made piqued my interest...it hints at somthing....