Eternal Night

(I) Chapter 11: Let's Go Hunting

It was late in the afternoon and the men were still seated around the dining room table in the Chase apartment. Danny and Rémy had made themselves at home as the daylight had waned, but Dracula remained the very model of self-restraint, despite his growing impatience... and exhaustion. He was a wall of unreadable expressions, his brow creased just slightly in thought as he digested in silence what he had heard.

What Rémy had divulged wasn't anything very explicit – let alone helpful in the grand scheme of things. If anything, it was borderline impressive how long the man could go on talking for literal hours without really saying much of anything, thus leaving Vlad with a wasted day, plus more questions than answers. But for all his vagueness, what Rémy did divulge left much to consider. For starters, there was a very real chance that Francesca was indeed the woman Dracula had been searching for and her brother's continued refusal to disclose anything explicit only added to the intrigue.

"So," Vlad finally said after several minutes of silence, "let me see if I have this right. Your sister was in a long-term relationship with a werewolf who broke things off with her about six years ago when he discovered she was in fact betrothed to some mystery man of great power and influence – though you won't tell me who that is..."

He paused for a moment to see if Rémy would change his mind, but the man was unmoved, so he continued with his recap.

"And while the split itself was civil and mutually agreed upon, the separation proved detrimental to her emotional state of being and she started to get careless, as you put it. Your aunt, Cecilia, who is now the late wife of your uncle, Armand, who lives in France and helps oversee a utopian society of vampires, humans, and werewolves – all of which are all not in the Budapest registrar – she came to the city against your uncle's wishes to check on you and your sister, and when she tried to leave, she was caught and executed for resisting arrest."

There was another pause in hopes of further clarification, but when none was given, Dracula finished,

"That same night, your friend, Derek, was murdered – though you won't tell me how or by whom – only that your sister feels personally responsible for what happened even though both of you here have insisted rather vehemently that whatever it was that took place wasn't her fault."

"And then she slipped into a nasty bout of guilt-ridden depression, coupled with some lovely PTSD which has made it difficult for her to feed, resulting in her weakened state so when she's... under pressure, for lack of a better explanation, she becomes more prone to losing control. Yes. Now you have the basics and you're all caught up," Rémy finished impatiently.

"But that still doesn't explain what happened at Carmen's this morning. And losing control? Losing control how and of what? And what does that have to do with her inexplicable relationship with a werewolf?"

Rémy held up his hand.

"No, we had an agreement. I corrected the false information Morene gave you and that's all you're getting. Believe me, Leinhart, as much as I'd love to just tell you about who Frankie is sworn to and all the fucking drama surrounding that, I can't. It's not my secret to tell, and honestly, I'm not even sure it would make much difference if I did. All you need to know is that there is more to my sister than what first impression suggests. We were in danger this morning, yes, but we are not in danger now, nor will we be ever again. I give you my word. Alright?" he snapped, clearly done with this topic.

They had exhausted it as far as he was concerned, but the remaining secrecy and newfound questions this information unearthed had only deepened Dracula's curiosity. But he had pushed his luck far enough today, so he remained silent.