Nature Or Nurture Ch 12

And that night he plays a memorable show, his concentration so acute, his character so life-like that the audience sits in trance. He can see individual faces among them, Adison and Victor of course, filled with love and pride for him.

The American guy from the dangerous threesome, with an enraptured girl at his side.

Miss Yves in her usual spot on the balcony.

And an entire row of Chinese friends from the community centre, among which master Man and the rest of the council. Vincent enjoys himself hugely, playing the viewers' emotions as it pleases him. He feels incredibly powerful, and very humble at the same time. All these people are allowing him into their feelings, into their hearts, to make them laugh, cry, remember their dreams and their youths.

When the curtain closes and opens again, and they make their bows, he feels so incredibly at home in this place. This theatre, where the characters die like flies, only to come back to life again the next day. What better place for one who has sacrificed his own life, to come back to be a better person and to set things right. He wants to share this incredible rush with Adison, regretting that before they can be together, they will have to meet their friends first, to exchange information and make new plans.

And before that, there is the usual meet and greet with the audience, the hanging away of costumes and the removing of make-up.

This night, he first introduces his Chinese friends to the director, who immediately visualizes a whole new potential audience, visiting plays in Chinese style, with an all-Chinese cast and exotic costumes.

Vincent, knowing he will have plenty of time to talk his friends later, is introduced to a well-dressed, handsome young man whom he has seen before on one of the balconies. His name is Dorian Grey, and he says, 'I've seen you play before, Vincent, may I call you by your first name? But you absolutely outdid yourself tonight, what a performance!'

Vincent cannot help being flattered, this is clearly a developed man with a taste for the arts, so his compliments are valuable.

'Thank you, Mr Grey', he replies.

'Please, call me Dorian', the young man says, 'I don't have a talent like yours, I'm just an ordinary guy looking for a good time. Say Vincent, are you busy tonight? I thought you might want to join me and some friends in a little party.'

With the utmost politeness, Vincent has to confess himself engaged elsewhere.

'I'm sorry, Dorian, I have a prior engagement tonight with my business associates, but I'd love to join you some other time.'

Politeness forces him to say this, but in fact Vincent doesn't feel like getting closer to this man at all. Shaking his hand has given him a very uncomfortable feeling inside, fortunately the flashes seem to be exhausted tonight, but he fears to be touched by him again.

It feels tempting, as if the man draws people to him with a sexual energy, probably without even noticing it himself. Vincent feels pulled towards him against his will, acutely conscious of the tempting force of Dorian Grey and still barely able to resist it.

Dorian smiles. 'I'm very sorry to hear you are engaged already, but I'm looking forward to that time in the future when we will get to know each other better.'

On impulse, Vincent smiles at him sweetly and says, 'There is someone I'd like you to meet, my sweetest friend Adison.'

And he beckons her over from where she is, talking and laughing with Maud. She sees the urgency in his eyes and comes over straight away.

He quickly takes her hand, feeling the sexual pull of Dorian drain out of him, followed by a little squeeze from her.

'This is Adison, my room-mate and lover. She is a partner in Doctor Frankenstein's practice.'

Adison of course is not visibly affected by Dorian's temptation, but Vincent is very curious if she has felt it too. He'll ask her later. For now, Adison holds her hand out to Dorian, and he kisses it elegantly.

He is clearly pleased by this old-fashioned gesture, enabling him to reply much more gallantly than with a handshake.

'And when Vincent is finally able to visit, please come too, Miss Adison, I've heard a lot about your new practice. I've been told you have snatched Mrs Gould back from the brink of death, and that she is fit as a fiddle again. Bring the doctor too, I've heard he is a handsome man and very well-read. Please?'

Adison feels quite safe promising they'll come, there is no way she'd let Vincent or Victor into this man's claws without her, but it will be interesting and good promotion for their practice, and she is sure she can keep the boys from falling into Dorian's clutches.

They part with the utmost politeness and friendliness, and they watch Dorian Grey looking for and finding Miss Yves, and see them talking together for some time. Noticing that the public has more or less left, Vincent wraps his arms around Adison, and they stand together for some moments, not speaking, just feeling. Then he whispers in her ear, 'Did you feel that Dorian Grey's pull as well?'

'I did feel it, but wasn't affected. Were you?'

'I was, I saw myself going with him, doing everything he asked, I couldn't believe it. So I touched you and all was fine. Do you really think we should visit him?'

Adison is thoughtful.

'We cannot refuse, and anyhow, it'll be good for our practice, and I am sure I can protect both of you from him or his other guests.'

They decide to go to the doctor's house for Vincent's account of his flashback, master Man coming with them to meet the doctor and to hear the news.

For Victor also has some new insights to share, having been to doctor Van Helsing for a consultation over the creature's blood, and to Sir Malcolm to check on the possessed boy and to discuss the results of the blood work.

Vincent starts relating his flashback.

'I was in a coach, and I had control of the body this time. So I checked everything to see if I could find out my name. I had a gold watch with an inscription by a Cathy, and a dagger signed by a London maker. There was nothing more, no labels or heraldic signs. We arrived at a seedy bar, I went in, met a blonde woman called Mina that I knew well but wasn´t intimate with. I hoped she would use my name, but my body warned me of danger instead.

I reacted too slowly and got hit from behind. I knew this was the blow that killed me, and I knew that had I not been in that body, the old me would have survived the attempt, for he was aware of it and would have been able to fight it off. The more I think about it, the dizzier I get, so I prefer not to try to understand how this could happen and what the implications are. Was this on purpose, or accidental, did the enemy orchestrate this?'

First to react is Victor, crying out, 'But, the girl that Sir Malcolm is looking for, his daughter who is under the influence of the enemy, she is a blonde woman called Mina. If this was her, your old self was almost certainly killed by the enemy! She was clearly distracting the old you from looking behind him.

But you say it would not have been enough if you hadn't kept the body from reacting. Did they underestimate your old self, or did they know you would be there controlling him?'

Master Man observes, 'We have heard of instances like this before, like time doubling up on itself. We'll have think it through, that may take a few days. Will you be all right, Vincent?'

Vincent nods.

Then the Master addresses the doctor.

'Good to finally meet you, doctor Frankenstein. We have talked about the creature this afternoon and we'd like you to fill in some of our blanks. Did you find out what those hieroglyphs on the body mean? And is it true that Miss Yves is possessed sometimes? And is there someone in that household that might be a dormant well of power, a powerful, stable person, probably in a low position, where his or her power would be stagnant?

Here, Vincent intercedes.

'I know who that last person is, it's Sir Malcolm's manservant. When I shook hands with him he felt firmly grounded.'

And Victor adds, 'I do know what the hieroglyphs mean, they are a kind of prophecy, that if the male snake god, who is immortal because he devours souls to renew his body time and time again, comes together with an Egyptian Goddess, the world will come under their domination.

And Miss Yves does indeed observe things from the unseen, and sometimes she fights possession, and she tends to know all kinds of bad deeds people have committed. They still have the possessed boy there too.'

'Hearing this', the old man says, 'I can see one thing we can do in the very least, to make life difficult for our enemy. If you accompany Victor next time he visits, Adison, you can wake the powers of the manservant, it is but the one formula you have to speak whilst touching him.'

Adison agrees, and observes, 'Both the boy and Miss Yves will come into contact with him, then the magic is drained, and the possession loses much of its power.

Miss Yves will most likely win the battle with his help, the boy is probably lost. But he may yet escape his cruel master in death.'

'And', Victor adds,' through my contact with doctor Van Helsing I have learned that what ails the creature, and all his servants, is vampirism. They suck blood to stay 'alive', though they are technically already dead because the vampire that sired them also killed them. They cannot stand the light of day, and can be killed by decapitation and a stake through the heart.

Silver incapacitates them, and supposedly a well-aimed bullet can also end them. They are strong and fast.

The dangerous three are planning to clear out another nest tomorrow night, and though Sir Malcolm does not want me along, I plan to convince him to take all of us, so we can surround it and make sure nothing escapes. Could you send a delegation as well, master Man?'

'I can ask which foolhardy boys want to risk their lives to do some good, yes. I'm sure I'll find volunteers. I'll let you know, also, any conclusions we have come to with the new information.

I'm going home now, take some rest, it has been a hard day again for you. Goodnight!'

And with this, he leaves, giving Adison, Victor and Vincent some time to spend together. They move to the four-poster with some snacks and a calming tea.

Victor looks exhausted, and they ask him what the problem is.

'Well, Sir Malcolm's daughter is probably turned, so she can be found, but she cannot be saved. Vampirism is incurable. I had a hard time trying to convince him, but I didn't succeed.

And the possessed boy is still quiet, but nothing I can do will save him, dying would be a mercy compared to what he is going through.

Then Miss Yves flirted with me incessantly, as if I am too naive to understand her game. I asked her to be not quite as tactile towards you, Vincent, if you should meet again, and she laughed at me. Gave me one of those knowing looks, asked me if I was jealous. She didn't say of whom, which disappointed me a bit. I'm starting to seriously dislike her.'

Vincent is affected by Victor's comments.

' Imagine you asking her of whom you were supposed to be jealous, her or me. You can be very funny when you feel like it.'

Seeing how shaken and tired Victor really is, Adison holds out her arms in an inviting fashion.

'Want to make someone jealous?'

Victor gladly accepts the invitation and moves towards her, resting his head on her lap and letting himself be spoiled a bit. He immediately relaxes a little and says, 'Doctor Van Helsing says I need to look up from my work and get me a girl of my own. Do you think I should?'

'Of course you should, if you feel able to give her the attention she'll need. Girls do cost a lot of time, you know. And money. And you'll need to find one that can stand us, for you cannot get rid of us anymore.'

Vincent is also very tired, the day is catching up with him and he just wants a little love, too. So he moves as well, settling himself behind Adison, and letting go of the things he has learned that day. And when the doctor moves to his own bed, they crawl into theirs as well.

But not to sleep, not yet. They lie awake together, trying not to think of anything, and failing miserably. So Adison decides to choose the cheeriest subject to think and talk about.

'You were so good today, I just couldn't believe it. I cried right through the whole show, I was just so happy to see you triumph.'

He moves right on top of her, supporting his weight with his arms, but totally covering her with his body. It feels so comforting to have him this close, enveloped in his scent, feeling his skin and muscles touching her everywhere.

'I felt invincible, on top of the world. It was as if everything revolved around me for the duration of the play.'

She teasingly strokes his face, his hair, of course moving towards the scar on his temple.

'Was it as good a feeling as making love?'

His body tenses and his temperature rises the instant she touches it, but he can still answer feelingly.

'Nothing feels as good as making love to you, except the memory of that one moment that you accepted me.'

Her fingers trace downward, her voice no longer teasing.

'That moment was the best moment of my life too.'

Vincent loses his fervour for one moment.

'Would you believe that I doubted you for one moment today? That I thought your love might be a compulsion put on you?'

She shakes her head.

'No, I wouldn't. Do you still doubt me?'

He moves towards her to kiss her.

'When you held my head and looked into my eyes just after I came out of the flashback, I knew. I knew that you love me as much as I love you, of your own free will.'

They kiss longingly and Adison feels her heat rising again. She continues her stroking of her lover's scars, finally getting the explosive reaction she wants. No more talk of feelings, and no tender loving for now. There is a part of him that needs some release too, and she is only too happy to initiate it.

Feeling his glorious strength envelop her, she gives herself up to her passion completely, and together they sate their lusts, forgetting everything but each other. Then they fall asleep, still totally entwined, and sleep dreamlessly until the new day.