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There are many levels of pain. Some are physical injuries that heal slowly over time. Those brutal inflictions to the heart and mind and soul seldom heal enough to completely vanish. They might fade, but often memories jar and bump the bruise again, causing the tenderness to swell. An anguish soul never heals. One just has to deal with it the best way possible.
The first two days aboard the train were steady but slow. I believed we could have ridden on horseback to our destination faster than the steam engine train traveled, but not during the harsh winter weather.
Father and I sat across from one another. He read a couple of books he had purchased before our departure in Freiburg and seldom spoke while I stared out the window thinking about Penelope. I was thankful for the quiet and enjoyed the scenery outside the window.
I reserved crying until after he had fallen asleep. Tears seemed the greatest comfort, and I wondered about Penelope and how she was faring. I felt absurd, wondering if she had already forgotten me. Her absence hurt so much.
I stared at my Hunter box between my feet and thought back to the night when the vampire had attacked Father, and I had learned my fate. While I had faulted my father for several months for not having told me sooner, I understood why he had not and his purpose for not doing so. I was his son, his only child. All he wanted was to protect me from the grief and agony that came from being a Vampire Hunter. His delay had not been strictly from selfishness or jealousy, as I had believed. It was parental love in its purest form.
The train pulled into the Schaffhausen station a few hours before sunset. As we stepped off the train, Father said, “Did you enjoy the ride?”
“It was pleasant enough,” I said, tightening my coat collar and straightening my hat to brace myself from the harsh cold wind.
He tapped tobacco into his pipe and smiled. “I tried not to disturb you since you have so much on your mind.”
“I appreciate that, Father.”
Father lighted his pipe and puffed small streams of smoke. “Shall we find an inn first?”
I nodded. “That would be good. We get settled first, find somewhere to dine, and then follow that map to where Ambrose’s lair is. Provided Lorcan has been honest with us.”
“You’re skeptical about everything, son.”
“It pays to be if you wish to live a long life. Besides, he’s a vampire, and I will never trust one of them.”
“When do you wish to attempt to slay him?” Father asked.
“If his lair is where the map indicates, we do it while it’s still daylight. I’d rather stake him while he’s resting in his coffin. Quicker, quieter, and easier.”
Father grinned.
“What?”
“You only want to get this done faster so you can take a ship to catch up with Penelope.”
I shrugged. “I do, but we still have to collect the bounty from Lorcan before I can consider sailing to Seattle. We cannot afford to leave any loose ends. Besides, such a trip will be costly since we have no idea how long we’ll need to reside in America. We’ll need the rest of the money.”
“That’s true.”
By the time we found an inn and put our belongings inside, the sun was an hour from setting. We happened upon a man who had a horse harnessed to a small wagon. He was young, probably still in his late teens, and lanky. He offered us a ride near our destination for a small fee. I gladly accepted because with Father’s stiff legs, it’d take us three times longer on foot.
After a half hour, the driver turned toward us. “From where have you two traveled?”
“London,” I replied.
“You’ve journeyed far,” he replied.
“We have.”
He frowned. “What’s your interest in this old mountain trail? Most folks in the city won’t come anywhere near the trail. They believe the surrounding woods are haunted. A lot of tourists have come to this trail but most have never returned.”
“Really?” Father asked.
“Yes. Near the top, I am told, is a cave that overlooks the Rhine River. But with all the stories, I’d never attempt walking along the trail. I certainly would never enter the cave.”
He stopped the wagon near an old cemetery. Most of the carved grave markers were crude crosses. “This is as far as I will take you. My old horse, if he gets spooked, I’d never catch him. I could, however, wait for your return down the mountain, if you’d like. Money upfront, of course, being as so few ever return.”
I smiled and shook my head. “No, thanks. We might be here for a while.”
His eyes widened. “Overnight?”
I shrugged. “Depends upon the circumstances.”
The young man shook his head. “No amount of money could tempt me to stay out here in the dark.”
“Then you had best hurry,” Father said.
The driver laughed nervously. He tapped the reins several times and made the horse turn around. “When you return to the city, if you need my services again, you can find me at the same place.”
I waved. “Thanks. Be safe.”
“Worry more for yourselves!” He snapped a whip over the horse’s head, making the horse move even faster.
Father glanced toward the narrow road that wound along the river’s edge and then abruptly cut upward through tall leafless trees. The steep incline looked to be more than Father could handle. He gave me a nervous glance.
“I can go inspect it, Father, if you’d like?”
He sternly shook his head, which I expected. “I’ll be fine. Ever since that hot bath at Lorcan’s castle, my legs haven’t hurt as badly.”
“Is that so?”
He nodded.
“Let’s see if we can reach the area where the road levels off. That might be where the cave is.” I placed my crossbow into a holster on the back of my coat, picked up my Hunter box, and walked ahead of him.
After fifteen minutes of brisk walking, sweat rolled off me in spite of the cold. Somehow, Father had managed to keep up with me. He panted and puffed, wiping profuse sweat from his face with his handkerchief.
“Are you okay?” I asked.
He leaned forward, placing his hands on his knees, and took several deep gulps of air. “Never better.”
I grinned and released a deep laugh.
Father frowned and pointed a shaking finger. “Since my legs were crushed, I should add.”
“Okay,” I said.
“I did keep up with you, and considering everything else, that’s pretty good for your old man.”
“You did great. At least going down will be easier,” I replied.
Father glanced at the steep descending path and wiped his brow again, shaking his head. He mumbled curses under his breath.
At the sharp curve of the road was a clear view of the Rhine River. Roaring water echoed where the falls cascaded. Clouds of water spray hung in the air, and even though the winter air was frosty, I almost wanted to swim after the exhausting climb we had endured.
The road split to the left and the right at the top of the hill. The tall leafless trees forked their way into the darkening sky. At the end of the left path was a dark oval cut into the side of the rocks. If the map was true, this was Ambrose’s lair.
I thought it odd that Ambrose would choose a cave for a lair when Lorcan had an entire castle. Of course, from what the young driver had told us, people believed the area to be haunted, which allowed more privacy, but still ... a cave?
I sat on a large boulder and patted the area beside me. “Let’s rest for a few minutes. That climb took a lot out of me.”
“Me, too.”
Wiping sweat from my brow, I said, “The morning would be better for us to slay him, Father.”
He panted and shrugged. “But we’re here now. Why ride out tonight if you wanted to wait until morning.”
I chuckled. “For one, I didn’t really believe a cave existed up here. And if we didn’t find one, we could easily camp the night and catch a ride back to town in the morning.”
“So what now? Inspect the cave or camp out?”
I stared at the cave entrance for several moments. It seemed quiet. Even though it was dark enough outdoors, most vampires didn’t tend to rise until closer to midnight. I suppose there was no hard tenet for that, but it would be best to know the size of the cave ahead of time and since it was still early, I doubted we’d encounter vampires near the opening.
“I want to look inside the cave.”
“Now?” Father’s brow rose and his eyes widened.
I nodded.
Father took his handkerchief and wiped sweat from his face. The fear in his eyes was evident even in the darkness. His breathing changed, too. He was nervous.
I opened my box, took out my revolver, and checked the chamber. Loaded. I slid it into my coat pocket. I grabbed two weighted stakes.
“Here,” Father said, placing the sack of gold marks into the box. “I don’t want to lose them if we’re forced to run.”
I nodded.
“That’s a lot of holy water,” Father said, still wiping sweat from his brow.
“Let’s hope we don’t need to use it all tonight.” I slid several bottles into my pocket.
He glanced nervously toward the cave opening. “You think we will?”
“I really don’t believe we’re going to encounter any vampires this early in the night, but we need to prepare ourselves, just in case.” I handed him two vials of holy water. Dusk was settling over us. “Let’s go.”