Good morning and Happy Hump Day! If it's Wednesday, then it must be time for more flash fiction from the Wednesday Briefers! We're a group of authors who bring you our finest flash fiction every week, 500 to 1000 words, inspired by one of our prompts.
Avram and Dracula are forced to hide in an underground area beneath the church, while Gunther tries to find a way for them to leave the village safely. Avram has to keep Dracula calm for both their sakes. See what's happening in this week's chapter of Dracula. Don't forget to visit the other Briefers and see what's up with them. Their links follow my tale! Enjoy!
Avram was
impressed. Gunther was possessed of a great deal of chutzpah to dare to talk to
the vampire in that manner. Of course he didn’t realize what Nico was, but he
knew enough to not antagonize him, and normally he was the mildest of men,
filled with priestly goodwill and all. The
interactions between Gunther and Dracula over the years had been limited, and
usually concerned with Avram, but Dracula had not always come across as someone
of infinite patience. Rather, one might even say he was demanding. Not
surprising that the villagers steered well clear of him on the rare occasions
when he came to Bistritza, and why he seldom came anywhere near them. Gunther was a very protective friend… and
Dracula was a very protective guardian. They clearly had not liked one another
almost from the beginning but had tolerated each other for Avram’s sake.
Avram
understood Gunther’s frustration over the current situation—Dracula’s ill
manners weren’t helping anything—and he couldn’t fault him over that. At the
same time, he was well aware that Dracula could have flown up the stairs and
ended Gunther’s life with little to no effort. He was grateful, albeit
surprised, that the vampire had not done so, considering how angry he was. That
showed he was still in control of himself, for which he was grateful. At least they still had the candle Gunther had
provided, for as long as that lasted. Perhaps the illumination would help to
pacify Nico.
He didn’t
even have the heart to chastise the man for his lack of manners. If only he
knew what was causing such stress, perhaps something could be done about
it. Other than the obvious reason, which
was that he wished to leave this small space immediately. Who didn’t? But that
didn’t seem to be happening now, and perhaps wouldn’t be possible for a while.
Avram could only hope their confinement would end before Dracula’s hunger
began. He didn’t know what the vampire would do should that occur, and he had no
real wish to find out.
Dracula
began pacing again, but not with the almost frantic stride he’d employed
before. Once he reached the farthest limit of the space, he suddenly and
without warning slammed his fist into the stone and howled, not with pain but
vexation. Avram started to ask him if he wanted to be heard but thought better
of it.
“Nico,
don’t do that, you’ll hurt yourself,” he fussed. Hastening to the vampire’s
side, he took his hand and examined it. No real damage, but he’d managed to
tear the skin a little. Blood seeped from the barely visible wound. Avram
reached into a pocket and drew out a square of linen which he wrapped about
Dracula’s hand. He could hear the vampire struggle to control his breathing.
Considering his poor circulation, he needed to be more circumspect with respect
to his blood pressure. His energy was not infinite, either, which was why he
usually rested during the day.
“I’m fine,
Avram,” Dracula protested, but he made no move to remove his hand from Avram’s.
Avram
peered into Dracula’s eyes, as well as he could in the limited light of the
flickering candle. He could sense a great pain there. At some point in his
life, Nico had clearly suffered a trauma to his soul. A scarring of his psyche
that had left indelible marks, although he usually kept these well-hidden. But
to be fair they’d never found themselves in this type of situation before.
Avram’s heart ached for him.
There was
so much he wanted to ask, so much he wanted to know. But he didn’t think he’d
receive an answer to his questions and only risked upsetting Dracula more. They
would have time to talk later, on their travels, under less stressful
circumstances.
“We’ll
leave here as soon as possible,” he finally said. “Gunther will find a way, I
am sure of it.”
Dracula
withdrew his hand. “I hope that your trust is well-founded. If not, there will
be consequences.”
Discretion
being the better part of valor, Avram wisely held his tongue. “In the meantime,
Nico, you should rest. Once Gunther returns, I will be able to find you blood,
but until then, you should conserve your strength.”
Unfortunately,
in this limited space, there was nowhere for Nico to stretch out, as if he were
in his own bed, and he knew better than to ask him to lie upon the dirt floor.
As fastidious as the vampire was, that was not an acceptable option.
“Why don’t
we move the trunk closer to the wall?” he suggested.
Dracula
glanced at him inquisitively. “Why would we do that?”
“So I can
lean against the wall, and you can lean against me.” He hoped that was a more
acceptable alternative to placing his own head against the undoubtedly cold
stone. He could endure it better than the picky vampire.
“Very
well.” Dracula moved the chest without further questioning, to Avram’s relief,
and they situated themselves upon it. The slop of the lid didn’t facilitate
matters, but there was nothing he could do about that. Dracula leaned back
against him and closed his eyes, lapsing into his version of sleep.
“So you
can be reasonable if you want,” Avram said softly. His companion made no
response.
to be continued
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