Vladimir Scott Bryan

Dedicated to my two inspirations: Adelma Budden and Scotty Gene Bryan.

Do you know the easiest way to hold onto a man? Publish a book with his name in it. Even if he leaves he can never get away.

Chapter 1--First Meetings

The mist of the ocean gently rolled in along with it a thick fog. It lay upon the ground as an impenetrable blanket. It was suppose to be a full moon tonight. If the moon was out you couldn't see it.

To some it may have felt dreary and dreadful, but I found this scene absolutely delightful. This was practically an everyday occurrence here. No one had ever been able to explain it though. The air was warm, damp, and calm. I could smell the airborne water-vapors. Even though you couldn't see the moon you knew it was out because the fog gleamed as it loomed in the night. The sand on my bare feet was cool and soothing. A light breeze came gently through reminding me of the beautiful trees and shrubs surrounding my house behind me. Then the breeze stopped as quickly as it began.

I could hear the ocean waves as they pull in and out, crashing and splashing upon the sandy beach before me. For some reason I felt compelled to come out here more than usual.

The fog seemed to have opened a little allow me to see a little way into it because I was just barely able to see the shadowy silhouette of a person walking toward me. Telling from its distance it appears as if it could be....Impossible! It's true though. I've lived here in this very house since I was a child. I inherited, it when I was seventeen. I know were the ocean comes in and out at. However, this figure seemed to have been walking on the very ocean itself and it was slowly coming towards me.

I have to admit, I was scared. No mortal human can walk on water. I was also curious. You know the old saying, "Curiosity Killed The Cat."

"Mary" came a chilling whisper from the fog, yet no one was around. I live alone on the grounds, and I'm certain no one was around. I would have blamed it on the wind, but there was no wind as of yet.

Sufficed to say, I stood my ground. I felt mesmerized, and terrified as the figure moved closer and closer. As it did, I was able to make out that the figure somehow looked like a man, but somehow still resembled the smokey fog that surrounded us. Every part of him resembled a manly figure made entirely of fog and mist. All but...his eyes. They seemed to glow through the mist somehow. It was eerie.

They seemed soft yet menacing, soothing but filled with intent and desire. Then as if pushed by a brisk breeze the silhouette vanished.

"I must be tired." I told myself, "I was imaging images into the fog itself."

I turned around, and made my way back to the house to lay down to get some sleep. It was just my imagination wasn't it, I ask myself. As I get to the steps of the patio deck, I hear a voice of a man call out to me from the large fountain of a large scorpion holding a bull in its claws over its head and stinging it in the ass.

"Good evening dear lady," he said to me. "I got lost in the fog, and hope you could direct me."

"Yes, I guess. "I replied, startled and uncertain as to what help I would be, given to the facts, I don't know this man, I live alone, and I don't think I want to let a stranger into my house.

"I was and still am looking for Pamela Angel." The gentleman said.

"My mother", I responded out of surprise. Then the sorrow hit. My hands rose to my head as I began to slowly kneel to the ground from the flooding memories of that fatal crash were I was left the only survivor, and both of my parents were killed.

Before my knees hit the ground though, the stranger had quickly managed to get to my side somehow without me accounting for his movements. He helped me to one of the black marble benches surrounding the large fountain.

"Are you ok?, "he asked gazing at me with those eyes...those eyes...those eyes from the mist. It is the same ones. I swear it.

Impossible, I told myself. That was a figmentation of my imagination.

"I'm ok." I told him re-assuredly.

I took his hand in mine, draw a deep breath. I didn't want to say it, but if he is looking for my mother, he needed to be told. I opened my mouth to speak. I paused for a moment and then I proceeded to tell him. "I'm sorry if your travel was far. Someone should have told you. I guess that no one knew that you knew her..." I had begun to tell him.

"What is it you are trying to say my dear?" he asked me gently and gazing at with worry as he brushed my firry red hair from my eyes.

"Sir, my pare...nts were killed last year, two months before my eighteenth birthday." I bursted out with tears in my eyes.

He glared at me in astonishment and the look of a broken man, as I began to ball my eyes out from the flood of emotions I was feeling.

He was sitting on my left. His left hand rested on my left thigh. His right hand started gently rubbing my right shoulder and around to the back of my neck. It was soothing, sweet, and felt nice.

"I'm sorry, I didn't know. No one would have been able to contact me because no one knows about me, or how to get in contact with me." He explained and proceeded to tell me, "My name is Vladimir Scott Bryan."

I looked up as he caresses me gently sweetly, lovingly, as he tries to calm me. "I was a friend and dear companion of your mother."

What? She never told me that she was having a....the words echoed in my mind. My mother had a secret lover? She was having an affair? Somehow the words must have escaped to my lips. They must have slipped from my mind to my mouth, because he decided to speak as if to answer the questions in my mind. He can't read minds can he?

"Yes your mother was very dear to me. She was having an affair, but not with me, but your father."

Now I was mad. I was pissed. I wanted to leave. When I tried to he grabbed my hand and farced me to stay.

This was absurd. "How can my mother be having an affair with my father? They were married. You weren't married to her." I tell him furiously thrashing about trying to get away until the last sentence that was said was more of a question than a statement. "Were you?"

"No. I come with the inheritance of the house to tell the truth." He explained. "I'm a ghost, and your mother's first love." He continues as he pulls me in closer.

"What are you doing?" I asked half scared half wanting, hoping for him to kiss me to hold me. I didn't know what had come over me. I knew I shouldn't. If he truly was a ghost and my mother's first love he could be ancient. Why..why didn't I not care about any of that? Why..was I drawn..to him?

Vladimir kissed my mouth sweetly, tenderly, softly. "I come with the house my dear...precious...sweet." He whispered as he nuzzled my ear, then kissed my earlobe, as he said in an ever so soft whisper. "I have made love to each and every woman of this home that inherits it. I am their prime prize. Very few of them lost had ever lost their virginity to anyone but me."

My eyes opened wide at this announcement. His left hand at the time, was making his way down my pants and into my panties. His right was caressing my shoulder lovingly as he blew, kissed, and gently licked my neck. I found him strangly arousing, but I wasn't certain I wanted to play his game.

"What if I say, No?" I asked.

"No." he chuckled. "No one has ever refused me, and no one ever will. You can try, but you will never be able to resist me completely. You will eventually submit to me, and you will never be able to get enough of me when you finally do. You are destined for me, as soon as you inherited the house or rather as soon as you were born seeing how only the eldest daughter of the house can inherited the house and land. It is the blessings and curse that binds me, this house, and all the women together."

"Curse? What curse? What blessings?" I asked very curious.

"The blessing was set written in blood ensuring that no matter what, none of the women in your family that inherit this home and land will die lonely. That is what I am here to make certain of. The curse my dear is something you need not worry of." Vladimir told me gently removing his hands from me and as he got up slowly to bid me farewell.

"What, I'm confused." I looked into his eyes as he started to disappear. He didn't move. His body just gently disappeared changing into the fog around us. "I thought you said you made love to all the women, you aren't going to make love to me tonight."

"Not tonight my dear. You need time to think about what has been said, and about our future. Later my love. Later we will be together. You will be ready then, I assure you." He sayed as his body faded into a mist. Only his eyes were seen with his last words, and then the mist began to fade away and clear till you could see the ocean through the trees and shrubs filled path leading to it.

I felt woozy, tired, and half faint by all the new information, by the memories of the past all hitting at once. Possibly, also from seeing a grown man turning into the foggy mist and fading away. It must have been too much for me to take in all at once, because I collapsed right there in my own backyard.

I woke up early in the morning still lying on the cobblestone walkway in front of the Scorpio and Taurus fountain. My head hurt. I must have hit it on something when I fell, because my head hurt real bad.

It would have been tragic if I had died there. No one would have even known about it until the body reeked. No one comes by that often. I'm a bit of a loner. I usually like it that way, but last night I was feeling a little lonely and wished to have someone...beside me. He said that he made certain that none of the women in my family felt alone. This must have been the reason he just barely appeared to me.

Crazy but true, even when my parents died, I refused to allow myself to feel lonely. It was something my mother said to me when I was younger and was turning ten or so. She said never allow myself to feel lonely, because it would only bring me troubles and misery.

Vladimir must have caused momma a lot of trouble, or she would never have said those things, I am certain. Now, how was I supposed to get rid of this weirdo, freak-out dead guy. I didn't want to loose my virginity to a ghost. What if he is related somehow? What if he was my great, great, great grandpa or uncle or something? Yuck, that was and still is just a disgusting thought.

"You are not having incest with me buddy boy. This is the last bitch in this house you are going to sleep with in this family. I'll make certain of it." I said out loud as if to defy heaven or hell itself. "My cherry is for the man I marry or I choose fit, not someone straight out of a mist."

I began once more up the cobblestone walkway to the beautiful cherrywood finished deck leading into my home to attend to the bump on my head. I picked up a dish and a glass that I left outside on a table next to the jacuzzi and pool, to took them inside and made my way to the kitchen door, when a young man popped up around the corner and frightens me half to death. I dropped both the glass and the plate onto the ground with such a loud clatter you would have thought they broke, but they didn't. I bent down to pick them up, however I am stopped.

The gentleman told me, "No, let me." as he bends down to get them. He was a nice looking young man, with wavy brown hair down to the center of his back pulled up in a ponytail. He wore a black leather jacket, with a white t-shirt, and black levi pants. He had beautiful blue eyes that made me think of pools that lead to the soul. A feeling of ease was nestled into his very stance, essence, and nature somehow.

"Your aunt Ellen asked me to come by and check on you. She called last night but couldn't get an answer. She would have stopped by herself but she was busy. Are you ok? Is there anything I should tell her?" he continued.

"I'm ok. I must have been outside when the phone rang. I don't normally ask strangers in, but if you know Ellen, you must be ok. Why don't you come in and have something to eat? Are you hungry?" I asked him. Wow, I was a bit embarrassed by my behavior. There I was, I asked a complete stranger into my home. I didn't even know this guy, but at least he wasn't a ghost wanting to have sex with me. At least, I was what hoped he wasn't. I wasn't even going to approach that subject with him. I would have sounded crazy.

"By the way my name is Michael Angel and no I'm not related to your Aunt. We just happen to share the same last name is all. I just thought you would like to know my name seeing how we just met, and you are asking me in." he told me.

"Gee, I don't know what to say." I have to say, I was very embarrassed now. I couldn't believe I forgot to ask his name. I walked into the kitchen with him, and made my way to the center island with the stove, sink and other culinary needs. I'm Mary O'Conner. The women in my family retain their last names when we marry in order to keep the house in the family we have to. Just some weird guidelines written into the first will written dating a long time back to the original Mary O'Conner who owned the house. "I'm certain that it sounds crazy, but any man who marries me has to take my name or we forfeit the rights the house and the lands."

"Just a bit, but whatever. I wouldn't mind changing my name. Mine aren't that great anyway, given the problems with my family right now, but that isn't any of your concern. I'm sorry, I shouldn't have said any of it." He said and changed the subject rather quickly. "This is a very large kitchen. I can't believe I'm actually here inside the O'Conner Manor." He told me as he looked around my kitchen a little, picking up a knick-knack or two, then quickly but gently placing them back almost hesitant to touch them afraid I might snap or bite his head off I guess.

"You've never been in here then?" I asked.

"No, no." he said, excited and taking a slight step back, "it is said this place is haunted. I've walked past it many times as a kid, but never had the guts to visit. As a kid, because of the ghost stories, I well huh... you promise not to tell." He says.

"What, that you are afraid of ghosts? No I won't tell. I'd probably stay away too, if I hadn't grown up here, but I never heard about any ghosts." I told him. He looked trapped and tense. "So, what can you tell me of these hauntings? Who is supposedly haunting these grounds?" I asked real coy like. I didn't want to scare him off by telling him that there really was a ghost and that it, rather he said he was going to have sex with me whether I wanted to or not, or that he claims to have done so with everyone of the first born women who inherited this place.

"Well, he began, "It is said that Mary O'Conner was a witch, and to ensure that her only daughter wouldn't end up spending her days as alone as she did because her husband was a sailor that she wrote a will in blood stating that no one but the eldest daughter of the house could inherit it, and that an odd piece was added stating that the she would never be lonely. It was believed that she may have made a second parchment giving each of the eldest daughters who inherit this land to a demon, a vampire of some sort, to care for them and see to their needs, to ensure that they would never be lonely. Crazy huh." He told me beginning to chuckle a bit and scratching his head.

I almost choked on the orange juice I had poured as I waited for the bacon to fry. "I guess, but I guess crazier things were said back in those days, right." I said a little hoarse, still trying to clear my air passages enough to speak. The bacon had started to smoke a little, and I was still choking a little. Michael took over cooking for me. He looked worried about me.

"Do you live here alone?" he asked.

"Ya," I told him sitting down on one of the stools across from him watching him take over the cooking. I liked watching him cook for some reason. "I like normally it here that way, but..."

"But what? I don't read minds." He teases me.

"I'm just realizing how big this place is now. You don't have a girlfriend do you?" Man, how direct could I get. What was I, some sort of whore?

"No, I don't have a girlfriend. Now that you mention it, I hate to say it, but your Aunt said that you had a place on the grounds. She seemed worried about you being here by yourself. She didn't just send me down here to check on you. She thought you could use some help with the grounds. Also, I was hoping that we might, could work out a deal with an unused garden house she said. I feel kind of silly asking or even bringing it up. I do need a place to stay though, and if I'm going to be stupid enough to back my old man into a corner for hitting my mom, well I need to be man enough to find a place to stay of my own."

"You what! Cool, you're a hero. Good for you." I told him.

"That isn't what my mom said." He told me looking a little sad. "She told me to get out, that it wasn't any of my business. She said that I should show my father more respect than that, but..."

"What! You're their son. That makes it your business." I threw my hands up in the air and told him, "You know what? This is your house too now. I can't understand how anyone can let another person get away with hurting them like that. Then to tell you, her own son, that you... You can stay here, and that way I won't get lonely. Also, we won't have to worry about any curse, because as you stated the curse or whatever is, was written up to keep the eldest daughter from being lonely. Well with you here, you can protect me from any bad old ghost, and I won't be lonely, because I will have the pleasure of your company. Now do you know my name or do I need to introduce myself" I told him point blank.

I think he was extremely taken back at my response, because he didn't know what to say but yes and thank you. He was still hurting inside though. Who wouldn't be after having his mother tell him it wasn't any of their business when all they were trying to do was save them from getting hurt.

I did believe I had taken care of Vladimir though. I didn't believe he should be popping up now that I wasn't going to be lonely. At least I had hoped everything was going to work to my advantage, but it didn't.

CHAPTER 2

Two months had gone by, and no Vladimir. I was certain I had broken the curse until one night Michael had been gone an awful long time. I was starting to get worried about him. I believe I might had began to fall in love with him. We hadn't done anything with each other. He had been the perfect gentleman and perfectly business like around me at all times. He cleaned the pool, mowed the grass, and trimmed the trees and hedges. Not once had he made an advance towards me, and that was the reason I think Vladimir finally made his first appearance in two months.

I believe my first mistake was that, I allowed myself to become lonely, by not professing my love for Michael. I should have said something, but I didn't.

I hadn't met his family yet. I didn't want to after what he had said about his mother, and what she had said to him about showing respect to his father who was beating her. I was alone at the house that night, and the fog rolled in, while Michael was out visiting his mother for the day. The unusual part was I hadn't seen fog for the two months that Michael was here. This made the fog seem very strange. It was almost as if the fog had strangely been a part of Vladimir. Even stranger was that it was only during the fog that night and many more foggy nights to come that I felt lonely. These thoughts and feelings came up hard and strong just as the fog came in. I just couldn't understand why it made me so tense.

I was out on the beach again, looking out to the ocean as I watched it come rolling in. I had grown up with the cloudy haze laying upon the ground day after day, and it never bothered me before. Why does it bother me now I wondered, but the answer began staring me in the face. Those eyes.... Those eyes from the night before I met Michael were dancing in the thick white and gray swirling overture as they come slowly across the ocean waves with the misty night fog. It was a fog as thick as pea soup, and it was bringing him back to the house to me. I felt frozen. I couldn't move. I didn't dare breath. I felt dizzy. I thought I was going to faint, and then I heard what I thought was a voice from out of the mist. It was so faint. He is coming for me. "NO" I shouted. "I won't have sex with you."