Chapter 19: The Sins of the Past
"My name is Victoria Winters. They say that those who forget history are condemned to repeat it. There are those, however, who cannot forget their history - no matter how hard they may try. It haunts their every waking moment, and often their dreams as well. For these people, an additional line should be added to that old saying-those who do remember the past are simply condemned."
SCENE 1
Laura Collins sat on the couch in the caretaker's cottage. Looking around, she had to admit that the room looked much better now that it had been cleaned. Though she had spent the night here, it wasn't the most pleasant experience. Still, it had all the necessities, such as the large fire that continued to roar in the fireplace.
"Mrs. Johnson, you do excellent work," Laura said to the housekeeper as she came out of the bedroom. "No one would ever know this place hadn't been lived in for three years."
"Why thank you, Mrs. Collins. It's nice to know I'm appreciated. Honestly, I don't know how you slept here last night, in the condition this place was in."
Laura laughed lightly. "Well, I managed. But I am eternally grateful to you for giving the cottage a thorough cleaning."
"It was no problem at all. Just three years of dust to wipe away." Mrs. Johnson started wiping the mantle of the fireplace with her dust rag, more out of habit than any real need. "It'll be strange to have someone living here again, after it being empty so long." She paused for a moment remembering. "Poor Matthew, to have died so suddenly. It was a shame; he was so devoted to Mrs. Stoddard."
Laura looked at her sideways. "I don't know. I remember him as being rather surly…almost sinister."
"Matthew was just misunderstood," Mrs. Johnson explained. "He wasn't the easiest man to get along with, I'll admit. And I think he would have killed someone to protect Mrs. Stoddard. But he was basically a good man. I remember when he came to work for the family…oh, it must have been twenty years ago now…"
Mrs. Johnson continued her reminiscing, but Laura tuned her out. She stood and went to the window, staring up at the great house. It made her feel better to know her son was so close. She was sure she could get him to come away with her. Laura did her own remembering; the last time everything went so well. She smiled.
Suddenly, a chill ran down her spine, reaching to the depths of her soul. She spun around quickly to see Mrs. Johnson bent over the fire, a poker in her hand. "Mrs. Johnson," she said, trying to keep the panic out of her voice, "What are you doing?" Her arms were folded, as if she could stave off the cold.
The housekeeper didn't even turn around. "I'm tamping down the fire. You don't need all this heat in the middle of the afternoon." She continued poking the flames, slowly beginning to put the fire out.
Crossing the room in seconds, Laura snatched the poker out of Mrs. Johnson's hand. "Please, don't do that."
She looked at Mrs. Collins, surprised. "It's no bother, really." She reached for the poker, but Laura held it out of reach.
"That is not the point, Mrs. Johnson. I want you to leave the fire alone." Laura's voice growled dangerously. "You are not to touch that fire. Not now, not ever."
SCENE 2
Willie hummed slightly off-key as he prepared to take Barnabas his dinner. He had been in a lively mood for the past few weeks. Ever since Barnabas had become human. Willie had been freed from the vampire's power, but had stayed with Barnabas anyway. After all, where else would he go? Plus, so many people, unaware that he had had no choice, were impressed with how he had turned his life around; he couldn't disappoint them.
When the tray was ready, he picked it up and headed toward the drawing room. On the brief journey, Willie thought about Carolyn and Vicki. They had been released from Barnabas' power at the same time he was, but they didn't remember anything about it. Barnabas had told him that it was because the young women hadn't been affected as long as he had, but it still made him nervous. Every now and again it seemed that Carolyn might be on the verge of recalling what she had done as the vampire's slave, but it hadn't happened yet. Maybe he should suggest Julia hypnotize the young Miss Stoddard.
In the drawing room, Barnabas sat at the dining table. Candles flickered on the table, though they were hardly necessary yet. The curtains had been pulled back to let in as much sunlight as possible. Though the sun had begun to set, there was still plenty of light to see by.
Willie set the tray of food in front of Barnabas. "Here ya go, Barnabas. Can I get you anything else?"
"No, that will be all. Thank you, Willie." Barnabas had also gotten more pleasant lately, Willie noticed. In the old days, he never would have said 'thank you' to a simple servant.
Having been dismissed, Willie turned to go back to the kitchen, but Barnabas stopped him before he was out the door. "Oh, Willie?"
The servant turned back to his master. "Yeah, Barnabas?"
The ex-vampire concentrated on cutting his steak and eating it as he spoke. "Willie, do you remember Dr. Eric Lang?"
"Sure. He was the doctor that cured ya, right?" Willie stepped back to the table, wondering why Barnabas was asking about Lang.
"That's right, Willie. I owe him quite a debt of gratitude, and I was hoping you would help me pay him back." Willie gave him a quizzical look. Barnabas didn't notice it, but explained anyway. "Dr. Lang's assistant quit, and he is in the middle of an experiment that is important to me. He needs some help, and I thought you might be able to lend him a hand." Barnabas took another bite of his meat.
The request surprised Willie Loomis. He raised his eyebrows. "I'd be glad to help, Barnabas, but I don't know nuthin' about that medical stuff."
Barnabas waved off his concern. "Dr. Lang says you don't need to. He mainly needs someone to take care of the physical work while he concentrates on his research."
Willie shook his head. "I don't know, Barnabas. I mean, wouldn't Julia be better to help with this kind of thing?"
Barnabas tensed, but kept his voice calm. "Julia is much too busy with her own work. And your duties here, while appreciated, are hardly necessary. I can survive without your services for a while, as difficult as that may be."
Shuffling his feet, Willie didn't know the reason for his hesitation, but something in the way Barnabas asked it made him uncomfortable. "Really, Barnabas, I think that Julia -"
Now Barnabas lost his composure slightly. "No," he snapped. "I don't want Julia involved in this." He got to his feet and advanced on the stunned servant. "Under no circumstances is Dr. Hoffman to know anything about what is going on at Lang's house." His eyes flashed dangerously, as Willie took an involuntary step away from him.
