Chapter 30
"I don't think the man is evil," Ruthie remarked the following evening as the vampires prepared to go out and once again find Reverend Williams.
"We already are quite aware of that, Ruthie," Amy answered patiently as she pulled her cloak on.
"How long do we plan on following Reverend Williams?" Susie asked, "maybe we should consider other victims if the drunken alley dwellers are too dangerous. Who did you feed on before, besides my husband?"
"We've told you," Amy replied, "strangers just arriving on the late train, cruel husbands like yours, cruel employers."
"Slave hunters!" Ruthie exclaimed, "Those are the only people I've killed that don't weigh heavy on my conscience."
"As long as our victims are not prominent citizens," Amy said, "people whose deaths would be investigated. The people we kill don't merit a murder investigation. Their deaths are assumed to be accidental or an animal attack or an illness. The authorities don't want to waste their time investigating deaths that won't bring them profit or prestige."
"How sad," Ruthie shook her head.
"Sad yes," Amy said, "but advantageous for us."
Susie was looking pensive as she pulled on her cloak, "I know of a very cruel employer who deserves to die."
"Really?" Amy asked with interest, "who would that be?"
"Mr. Smith, the owner of the cotton gin mill."
"Where those men trampled the workers in the street?" Ruthie asked.
"Yes," Susie replied, "and then fired me and prevented me from being hired at any mill in town."
"Yes, I agree, Susie," Amy said, "he certainly deserves to die. He was responsible for much death and suffering."
"Even I can agree to that," Ruthie was ready to leave for the evening as well, "after seeing it with my own eyes."
"But he is very prominent and his death would be cause for outrage and investigation," Amy warned.
"We could kill him slowly," Susie explained, "the way you killed my husband. It would appear to be an illness."
"Do you know where he lives?" Amy asked, "We would have to be extremely careful not to be seen. I'm sure a rich man like Mr. Smith lives in an area that doesn't see much activity at night."
"Like your father's house?" Ruthie asked, "We were never seen there. Maybe he lives nearby."
"I don't know where he lives," Susie said, "but I'm sure it won't be difficult to learn."
"It's better than feeding on animals," Amy frowned, "besides, the stable boy will be paying closer attention now that we've stirred up the horses so often."
"I prefer to feed on animals," Ruthie remarked, "one man isn't enough blood for the three of us anyway."
"Suit yourself, Ruthie," Amy replied.
"Finding his address will be more dangerous than finding his house," Susie declared, "we will have to go to his office at the mill."
"But the mill he owns remains open at night," Amy said.
"That is why it will be so dangerous."
"Good Lord," Ruthie groaned.
"I know exactly where his office is," Susie offered, "and that part of the building is closed at night. It's set away from the main workrooms. As long as we stay in that part of the building we should be safe."
"Well, let's get this over with," Ruthie sighed as she led the way out of the lair.
Moonlight filtered through the clouds as the girls moved silently toward the mill staying deep inside the shadows of the trees and buildings. Dim light glowed through the filthy windows of the massive brick building and the din of machinery could be heard from inside. People passed quickly along the street on their way home to escape the chilly air while the three vampires remained unaffected by the weather enjoying the aroma of the warm blood of the passersby.
"Do you know where the least used entrance is?" Amy asked Susie.
"It's around the other side," Susie pointed toward the far side of the building, "there's a narrow alley there that's only used by the supervisors. There will only be one supervisor working at night. The entrance should be deserted and locked."
Amy surveyed the area from under her hood, "We must not be seen. Follow me," she led them down the far side of the street past the mill and waited in an alley for a small group of homebound men to pass. Then she led them across the street and back toward the mill slipping swiftly into the narrow alley Susie had described.
"I hope no one is living in the alley tonight," Ruthie whispered as they made their way toward the door.
"I'm very hungry," Susie replied, "I tend to hope there is a meal here."
"Is this the door we must use, Susie?" Amy stopped in front of a heavy wooden unmarked door.
"Yes," Susie stepped forward and tried the knob finding it locked as suspected. She turned herself to vapor and seeped under the door with Amy and Ruthie behind.
Once inside they could make out a long corridor traveling in either direction. There was very dim light at the end of the corridor to the left suggesting the busy production area was in that direction since the end of the corridor to the right was dark. Susie led her companions through the dark to the right, then up a narrow flight of warn wooden stairs to the second floor. During the busy workday clerks worked along this corridor keeping the books. At the end of this row of offices was Mr. Smith's office, which was locked. Once again the vampires turned to mist and slipped under the door.
"How will we find his address in the dark?" Ruthie asked, "We didn't bring a candle."
"I have some matches," Amy replied as she went to the large desk at the far end of the room.
The others joined her as she lit a match and held it over the desktop and they scanned it for an envelope or card that might have his address.
"Here!" Ruthie snatched a card from the scattering of papers and envelopes, "this is it."
"Amy read it from over Ruthie's shoulder: "I thought he would be away from the noise and odor of the city."
"What is his address?" Susie asked anxiously.
"It's the address of our first lair," Ruthie replied, "well, the first lair I ever had."
"So, Mr. Smith is the man who rebuilt that house," Amy said with a growing smile, "I wonder how he reacted to the body in the cellar?"
"What?" Susie asked with interest.
Amy giggled, "We arrived at the lair to find a stranger inside the house which was otherwise burned and deserted. I hoped it was Robert returning to me, but it wasn't, so we killed the man to protect ourselves from discovery."
"But you left his body there?" Susie inquired, "Did you leave a dead animal nearby?"
"No," Amy replied, "we were in great haste. We had only returned to the lair to retrieve our belongings and move to a new lair. We had awakened that evening to find someone had done some yard work while we slept. Another night spent there would have cost us our lives, I'm sure."
"We should leave here for the same reason," Ruthie suggested as she moved toward the office door.
Once they were out of the building and on their way to Mr. Smith's house Amy cheerfully said, "I will hang another ribbon on the tree in addition to the ribbon that already hangs to welcome Robert's return to me. Since we will be visiting that house more often, I may bring a ribbon to add to the tree each time. Robert will be sure to get my message that way."
"Won't too many ribbons draw attention to the tree by others?" Susie asked, "Someone may begin watching to find out exactly who is tying all those ribbons."
"Oh," Amy's smile faded, "do you think that might happen?"
"It's very possible," Susie answered, "what do you think, Ruthie?"
"I think I agree with you," Ruthie replied, "I think one or two ribbons will be enough," Especially since Robert was likely never to return anyway, she thought.
"Fine," Amy pouted and then regained her smile, "One ribbon to represent Robert and the other to represent me."
Susie rolled her eyes unseen by Amy in reaction to Amy's blind faith in a man who Susie was certain had coldly abandoned the foolish Amy and prob
ably never thought of her at all.
"How do we proceed from here?" Susie asked, "Do we go to Smith's house now or wait until he's had his supper and gone to bed?"
"Yes," Amy replied, "he may not even be home at this early hour. It would be better to wait until the city has quieted for the night and he's full and drowsy."
"That shouldn't be much longer," Ruthie gazed up at the moon peeking out from behind a clump of thick clouds.
"We can find out what Reverend Williams is doing this evening," Amy suggested, "I would be interested in overhearing one of his sermons."
"You would?" Ruthie asked in surprise, "you've never been interested in sermons before."
"We may still find proof that he's not the man of God he claims to be."
"Wouldn't that be lovely if he were organizing his drunken congregation to do evil deeds?" Susie laughed.
"How could a sermon be evil?" Ruthie was annoyed with her companions' cynicism, "you insist on thinking badly about a man who wants to deliver poor wretches to Jesus and introduce them to the glory of heaven."
"Those men are sinners who neglect their families and selfishly drink themselves to death," Susie replied.
"Yes," Ruthie agreed, "and I'm certain Reverend Williams is trying to make them atone and become responsible people."
"Let's find out for ourselves," Amy stopped and stood in the shadow of the old sycamore tree they used for cover the previous night.
"Let's continue to the alleys where I can find a rat or other animal," Ruthie suggested, "the good reverend has probably left his room by now."
"Fine, Ruthie," Amy said, "you're probably right."
"At least we have an idea of the route he takes," Susie said, "we may come upon him if we follow his route of last night."
"Good idea," Amy agreed and they moved toward the main street.
Cautiously peering into alleys before entering, the three vampires looked for Reverend Williams as Ruthie feasted on the rats, which remained plentiful in the whaling city. No matter how many she killed, there were a seemingly endless population scampering along alleyways and searching the waterfront scavenging for food.
After passing through several alleys Susie became impatient, "We're not going to find him tonight. He must take a different route each night."
"Perhaps you're right," Amy agreed, "that could be why he seems so elusive. I suppose we must follow him from his hotel nightly to discover his routine."
"Yes," Susie replied, "and I'm thirsty for the blood of Mr. Smith. Let's go to his house."
"Fine," Amy said, "I am very hungry myself."
"I'm sure I've had my fill," Ruthie said as she followed her companions.
As they neared their former lair Amy whispered, "Whenever I come here I become so nervous and hopeful that Robert will be here waiting for me and we'll see each other from across the street and our eyes will meet and the longing and sadness will be gone. We'll be together forever never to part again."
"That's a wonderful story," Susie muttered, "It sounds like a dream." Susie believed that's all it was. A dream that would never come true.
"Did you bring a fresh ribbon?" Ruthie asked Amy with a twinge of sadness for her friend's desperate and impossible dream accompanied by a wave of guilt for helping to encourage the dream by suggesting a fresh ribbon. A ribbon that will at first be tied as a bright shiny banner of hope and rot away neglected and unfound by the man for which it hangs.
"I just happen to have one with me," Amy smiled and felt the smooth velvet ribbon in her pocket.
"Good," Susie said, "we should be able to get a closer look at the house from the tree. We need to be sure which room Mr. Smith spends his night."
"Susie," Amy asked after attaching the ribbon to a cold dry branch on the tree, "are you sure you have the control to only drink a small amount of Mr. Smith's blood in order to keep him alive?"
"Of course," Susie was insulted that Amy would question her self-control.
"You are still very new and inexperienced with this," Amy defended her question, "we've already discussed how dangerous it would be to kill such a prominent man in the city. I will drink from him first and you can follow my example."
"Fine," Susie was still insulted but understood Amy's concern, "lead the way."
"What if he sleeps with his wife?" Ruthie asked.
"Then we must wait until both of them are asleep," Amy replied, "let's go inside and investigate."
Amy turned into mist and the others followed creeping up the back of the house and in through a window on the second floor where heavy draperies could be seen from the outside. They materialized behind the long drapes and stood deathly still listening for human breathing and sniffing silently for the scent of blood. When humans couldn't be detected Amy peeked around the drape and found that they were in a cold dark bedroom. The room was dusty and sparsely furnished, probably a guest room or the former room of a grown child who was away or living independently.
Moving to the door she pressed her back against the wall, listening for movement in the house still searching the air for the scent of blood. With none to be detected yet, she motioned to Ruthie and Susie to follow and she turned to mist again and drifted into the hallway outside the room where she detected a faint aroma of blood and followed it to the next bedroom along the hall.
The three soft trails of vapor traveled under the door of the bedroom where one settled and materialized between an armoire and the far wall, another behind a window drape and the third behind the drapery of a second window. Mr. Smith slept in a large bed with the curtains tied to the four posts. He wore a lightweight sleeping cap that matched his nightclothes. Lace trimmed his pillowcases and sheets. Light blankets protected him from the late autumn chill as he slept peacefully on his downy mattress. The sight of him slumbering in luxury maddened Susie even more when she remembered the punishment and suffering his greedy business decisions had caused her and her children. He gladly paid for the ruthless horsemen to intimidate and even kill her coworkers for demanding improved working conditions, then used her as an example by having her fired and blacklisted to frighten the remaining workforce into passively working from dawn to dusk six days a week to keep himself rich and pampered while his workers were exhausted and barely making ends meet.
She wanted to throw herself on him and tear his throat out with her hands catching his warm blood in her mouth, bathing in the runoff, laughing at his final facial expression of surprise and terror. Then she gradually calmed herself enough to think rationally and used all of her strength to control her urge to kill as she followed Amy to his bedside and watched as she silently and smoothly pulled back the sheet to expose his neck. Amy gave Susie a steady serious look as a reminder to heed her early instructions before bending forward and slowly feeding on Mr. Smith. As her teeth punctured his skin, his body stiffened slightly and he inhaled sharply. After a moment his body went limp and Amy rose and made room for Susie to feed.
Susie stepped forward, using all of her strength to restrain her violent impulses and slowly bent over Mr. Smith, seeing the two shining wounds Amy left and smelling the alluring aroma of the exposed warm blood. She paused a second and began to drink. The desire to drain him dry was extremely difficult to resist, but she pulled away just as Amy was about to intervene. The three of them returned to mist and exited the room through a window and met behind the ribbon-trimmed tree.
"You showed an amazing example of self-control," Amy said to Susie in admiration, "that was wonderful."
"You don't know how difficult it was not to tear that evil man to pieces," Susie replied still trembling with fury.
"Good Lord," Ruthie muttered, "not even he deserves that."
"And more!" Susie turned sharply to Ruthie.
"Perhaps," Ruthie whispered when she thought of all the families he had devastated with his greed.
"I'm looking forward to the night when I drain the final drop of life from his body," Susie walked toward the street with her companions behind. br />
"Let's hope we're rid of Reverend Williams by that time," Amy said cheerfully, "we will need our alley dwelling blood supply liberated to us by then."
"Unless we find ourselves another prominent man to feed off for a while," Susie suggested, "perhaps the good Reverend himself."
"Oh, no!" Ruthie exclaimed, "that is not going to happen. Remember our agreement."
"Yes, yes," Susie impatiently relented, "we need to prove his motives evil in order to kill him."
"Don't anyone forget it," Ruthie demanded.
"Mr. Smith will be drained bloodless in a matter of days, so we need to be more diligent in our pursuit of the Reverend," Amy said, "maybe the evening newspaper will give us some news of him."
"I'll find a newspaper," Ruthie volunteered.
Later, as the three vampires sat in the candlelight with the newspaper spread out in front of Ruthie, Amy brushed her hair while Susie sat impatiently waiting to lay herself to rest. She was anxious for the next night when she could once again feed on the man she hated, destroying his life as he had damaged hers and destroyed many of her former co-workers.
"I don't see anything relating to the Reverend," Ruthie announced as she folded the newspaper and opened her Bible.
"That is probably a good sign," Amy surmised, "Without the deaths of any of his congregation, he has nothing to complain about."
"I hope Mr. Smith doesn't notice those bite marks on his neck," Ruthie worried, "he may have a doctor examine him in the morning when he finds he isn't feeling well."
"Oh, Ruthie," Susie sighed, "you worry too much. Why would he relate bite marks to being unwell?"
"Even if he did," Amy added, "he would assume he is sick from spider bites or some other insect."
"I hope you're right," Ruthie began her evening prayers.