Vincent Beauchamp released a contented sigh as he pulled apart the outer casing of the mold he’d left to set. The prize inside popped out and hit the surface of the metal desk with a tiny clang. Vincent picked up the cube of clear Lucite and held it up to the fluorescent light. Encapsulated inside were the fangs he’d extracted from the vamp young Dominic had slain. Vincent turned the small block in his hand, taking the fangs in from all angles. He nodded his head in appreciation. “A clean set of ivories on this one,” he mumbled to himself. He took a moment to stare through the hollow, syringe-like stem of each fang, through where the venom flowed freely. The very thought of having both of them sink deep into one’s flesh was a sickening prospect. One he’d hate to ever experience. He pitied those that had.
He looked away briefly and shivered. He then turned his attention back to the preserved fangs and sighed. It was strange. There was this seemingly unending satisfaction in extracting vampire fangs that he couldn’t quite explain. Fascinating things. What was even more fascinating was the fact that they are the only part of a vampire that doesn’t dissolve in sunlight. Most curious. The brain, the heart, the bones, the blood, all evaporate under the UV light, but the teeth were made of sterner stuff. And that was why he chose to keep hold of them.
As for the corpse. Well, the weather forecast for the next day was dry and sunny. He’d lay the body out on the back porch and watch it frazzle away into dust, glass of mineral water in hand. He had nothing on tomorrow.
He chuckled to himself as he stood up from the desk and made his way toward the door at the back of his lab. He triggered the voice recognition and the metal door slid open to reveal his secret room. His personal trophy room. He stepped inside with a spritely gait, happy for young Dominic, glad that he pulled through and managed to kill his first vamp. Vincent had been worried he wouldn’t see or hear from him again. Unfortunately, that had happened in the past and he quite liked the young man. He had spirit. An inner strength. Vincent appreciated that.
He fully entered the small room and flicked on the light switch. The overheads came on, illuminating both the small chamber and his trophy cabinets, along with their contents. Now, hundreds of similar blocks of clear Lucite resin stared back at him, each with a pair of fangs encapsulated within them. He scanned the rows and rows of trophies, seeking the perfect spot for his latest addition. Space was at a premium and Vincent suddenly realized he’d need a whole other trophy room pretty soon to store his prizes. He managed to find a space on the top shelf of the cabinet nearest the door. He carefully placed the block down amongst the others where it fit nice and snug. Vincent took a step back and stared up at it, pride and nostalgia surging through him. Years and years of hard work, good work stared back at him. Necessary work. Work that had earned him the moniker of the Dentist.
Fearsome vampire slayer.
But, he needed new blood. An apprentice to take up the mantle. His creaking bones were no longer up to the task. Dominic had passed the first test with flying colors, now it was about him overcoming the next hurdle: separating oneself from the normality of life. It all came down to how much he wanted to change things.
And only time would tell.
A satisfactory smile spread across Vincent’s wizened face. It had been a good day. He turned and left the room and his prizes alone, flicking the light off. He stepped through his underground lab and up the stairs that led back to the hallway of his mansion. From there he entered the lounge where he and Dominic had been sitting just a day or two before. Was it a day? Two? Vincent found himself having a senior moment; his memory wasn’t what it once was. He shrugged. It didn’t really matter. A day or two, what difference did it make?
He moved over to the sideboard where he poured himself a glass of mineral water. He went to pick it up when something popped into his mind. “Oh!” he said aloud, before digging a hand in his trouser pocket. He pulled out a chain with silver pendant dangling from it. The one he’d noticed hanging around the dead vampire’s neck. He removed it from the corpse, only just remembering he’d placed it in his pocket. That vampire must have thought it valuable to hang it around his neck in such a fashion. He held it up to the light coming in through the window. The pendant gleamed and glittered as it swayed idly to and fro on the air. Vincent stared at it in confusion. He swore he could feel something emanating from it as it swung this way and that. Something... not good. He got a tingling; it crawled up his spine and branched out into the very marrow of his bones. He shivered. And the more he stared, the more he found himself transfixed. He watched it sway back and forward, its effect akin to a hypnotist swinging a watch whilst attempting to put someone under. Vincent felt his eyes half close that tingling continuing unabated. Something wasn’t right. And then he could hear a faint whisper; the ancient recitals of a forgotten past. They uttered in the hushed tones of creatures skulking in the shadows. The darkness is coming... they said among other things.
Vincent listened to them, his jaw slack, his eyes now slits, while that pendant swung to and fro. To and fro.
The darkness.
The dark.
Fear. Spite.
Hate...
Can you feel—?
A noise behind him made him start, breaking his bizarre trance. He spun, eyes widening, to be faced with the young lady jumping in through the open window. He quickly jammed the pendant into his pocket, its effects quickly dissipating, becoming a memory. He cleared his throat and then narrowed his eyes in disapproval. “I wish you’d use the door, Patricia” he told her as she strode up to him.
“Doors are boring, Daddy...” she replied. “And I wish you’d stop calling me Patricia.”
Vincent huffed. “And I wish you’d stop calling me ‘Daddy’.”
“Sorry, Dad...”
Vincent groaned under his breath. “It’s just not normal to be jumping through windows... Trixie,” he then said.
“Says the man who collects vampire fangs...” Trixie retorted.
Vincent sighed. “They’re a reminder of what needs to be done,” he said with a dark glare.
“Speaking of that, I found another one,” Trixie told him.
“Where?”
Trixie checked her nails. “South Side. Need a new ad? I’ll get the tech guys on it.”
Vincent turned his mouth down and looked to the side. “Maybe. So, how did our boy do today?”
“Not bad. Had to step in at one point when a fanghead tried to throttle him to death.”
Vincent chuckled. “Sounds... interesting. Funny, he never mentioned that...” He narrowed his eyes. “Protégé material?”
“If he can avoid almost get himself killed...” She shrugged. “He might be okay.”
“I hope so, Trixie. We need new blood, especially as the Great Unveiling is nearly upon us.”
Trixie widened her eyes. “Ooh scary.” She wiggled her fingers on the air. “Great Unveiling! Pff, whatever, Dad...”
Vincent let out an exasperated sigh. “You’ll see for yourself soon enough.”
“Can’t wait...”
Vincent put on a pleasant smile, before changing track. “I have to say I quite liked young Dominic. How about you? What did you think of him?”
She smiled. “He’s cute, in an innocent kinda way...”
“If only I had a son,” Vincent lamented. “Then I wouldn’t have to outsource for my replacement.”
Trixie cocked her head to the side. “Thanks, Daddy.”
“Well, you refuse to take on the challenge.”
“I told you, Dad, I don’t like to get my clothes dirty.”
Vincent pointed at her. “Yes, we must look after the clothes, of course...” He held up his glass. “You know, I’m really beginning to think that with young Dominic we might have just solved our problem. I’m seriously considering bringing him into the family. Okay with you?”
Trixie shrugged. “Okay, as long as I don’t have to keep bailing him out.”
“Don’t worry, he’ll get good over time. It’s all about experience, my dear...” Vincent gave her a grin before he drained the last of his water. He let out a satisfied gasp afterwards. Indeed. Youth coupled with experience—a killer combination.
He poured another glass of water and toasted his daughter. “Cheers,” he said with a cunning grin.