 Chapter 170 of Varni the Vampire, Volume 3 This is a LibriVox recording. All LibriVox recordings are in the public domain. For more information or to volunteer, please visit LibriVox.org. Recording by Eric Leach Varni the Vampire, Volume 3 by Thomas Prescott-Prest, Chapter 170 Count Polidori's palace, Senora Isabella, the Count's daughter, and the introduction. The stranger walked up to him and offered his services, saying, Are you hurt, Senor? You bleed. But slightly hurt, Senor. Thank you for that. You have saved my life. I had been called meet indeed, a bloody corpse for all Venice to look upon tomorrow, but for your valor and stout assistance. Name it not, Senor, but the Rascals have been well paid. There lies one of them. The others have escaped, but permit me, Senor, to say that the sooner you get away from this spot, the better, for the Naves may return in greater force than before. Or they will wait till you leave, by that time they will have rallied, and dart out upon you as you pass along. I do not fear that, Senor, much. But the fact is, I am almost too weak to walk unaided. Permit me to render you the assistance you require. I am a stranger in this place, and therefore unused to your ways, but say no more, Senor. I will accept of your services, if you will accept of a lodging at my poor home. I have that which shall make you welcome, heartily welcome, and the Senora, my daughter, shall make you welcome too. Senor, if I can be of service to you, I will do so with pleasure. Let me or I am, Senor. But your wound is not staunched. Let me bind it more carefully and securely. You ought not to bleed from such a wound when bandaged. Perhaps, Senor, you have had more to do with these matters than I. I am a peaceable Venetian of rank, and neither afraid nor unwilling to draw a sword in a good quarrel, shrinking not from some odds. But I have had no practice in these matters. Times and circumstances have not been propitious. It matters not, replied the stranger. You should what you were when you had nearly defeated one, and afterwards kept at bay three. He must be a man who can behave thus, sir. He must have the heart and conduct of a soldier. You would be one to occasion serve. No man can be more. But I have seen many climbs, and have, therefore, some knowledge in these matters beyond the mere inward power and courage. I have, from sheer necessity, been compelled to mix in malaise, and not from inclination. I thank you for your skill as a surgeon, for truly you have stopped the bleeding, which I had not been able to do myself. Lean on my shoulders, Senor. It will enable you to walk better. Have you far to go? inquired the stranger. No, Senor, but we will take a gondola. It will be the easier travelling, and moreover it will land us at my house, where you shall be most heartily welcome. If we turn down here, we shall soon obtain the aid of a gondolier. I had intended walking, but I have enough of that for one night, even if I were able to walk, which I am not. As you please, Senor. As the stranger spoke, he walked towards the place indicated by the wounded man, and in a few moments more they reached the grand canal. And finding a gondolier sleeping in his gondola, the stranger left his wounded companion to wake the sleeper to his duty by shaking him. Hello, said the stranger. Will nothing wake you? Get up instantly, and about your duty. Do you always sleep here? Oh, Senor, said the man sleepily. Well, then, are you engaged? Yes, Senor, if you engage me. Well, then I do. Where to, Senor? Come with me to bring a wounded gentleman into the gondola, and he will tell you where to. Come quick! Have you not yet awakened? I'm awake, Senor, and willing, said the gondolier, following the stranger to the spot where the wounded man was standing, and by direction of the stranger he aided the wounded Senor into the gondola. Now, Senors, I have but to know where you desire to go to. Roll on until I tell you where to stop, follow the course of the grand canal, and you will go right enough. There was some time spent in silence while the gondolier rode as desired up the grand canal, until they came to a large mansion, which the wounded man gazed upon, and after a moment's pause, as if he had a difficulty in speaking, he said, as he pointed to the building. There. Roll up to yonder steps. There I will land. That is my house. The gondolier immediately obeyed the injunction, and pulled for the stairs, and when they reached the place, the gondolier stepped out and secured the gondola. Call out some of my people, said the wounded man. Call him out. I'm very stiff and not able to get out. The gondolier obeyed, and in a few minutes more several men, all in livery, ran down the steps to the gondola, and lifted their master out, who appeared to be unable to do so of himself. The gondolier was rewarded according to his deserts, and the stranger followed the wounded man into his own house, which was a most extensive building, and filled with servants, and furnished in the richest manner, displaying magnificence and wealth to a degree that was scarce to be surpassed in Venice. They were shown into an apartment replete with every appointment that wealth or luxury could suggest, and the wounded man was placed on a sofa, and his attendance stood round him as if waiting his orders. Senor and stranger, he said, welcome to my house, as they preserved for my life. All I have here is at your service. I am obliged, replied the stranger, with a dignified acknowledgment of the courtesy. I am obliged, but I cannot recognize on my part any such right. If I have done you service, as I will not effect to believe I have not, still you overrate the amount of it. But I will accept of your hospitality for this night, for I am a stranger in Venice and have little or no knowledge of the best course to pursue. Remain here, but you had better dispatch someone for aid, interrupted the stranger. You are in pain at this very instant, sent for some assistance. You require the aid of a leech immediately. I am faint. Very faint, he replied. Hayson said the stranger, Hayson some of you to fetch a leech, instead of losing our wits in silent astonishment. The servants immediately bustled about, and seemed to have awakened from a trance, and were seen running in different directions. The room was soon cleared, and the tall stranger seated himself by his wounded host. In me you see the Count Polidori, the stranger bowed. I am not a native of this city, though, now one of her favorite citizens, I have left the land of my birth because I and my rulers could not agree, and I ran some danger in staying against their will, and I have settled and married here. Our adopted country is that which demands our care and preference, replied the stranger, that at least is my opinion. No doubt. I am now, he continued, a widower. Your lady is dead? Yes, I am sorry to say so. I have however one child living at home, and one who is serving his country and her fleets, and honor to our house. But my greatest comfort is the dear image of my lost wife, my daughter. Is she here now? Yes, in this palace. Senora Isabella is devoted to her father, and would not for the world do ought that would give me a moment's pain. Indeed, she would die for me rather than I should feel displeasure. Such a daughter must be a treasure. She is a treasure. And what an inestimable jewel would she be as a wife? She will be when the day comes when she will mate, which I hope will be before I die. For I should be too anxious respecting the worth of the man, who was to be her husband, to permit me to die happy unless I saw and approved of the choice, or chose the individual myself. I see you are more anxious, said the stranger mildly, in providing future happiness for your daughter, rather than in hoarding wealth or titles for her. I am, said the Count. And a most laudable ambition too, an ambition that few parents do not neglect in the pursuit of one of a different character, either some young love or someone who is endowed largely with worldly goods or titles. My Isabella will have enough of both, and therefore she will not need to seek for them, but she will not throw herself away upon any nameless adventurer who may love her fortune better than herself. That would be as cruel a neglect as the other, replied the stranger, and in my opinion more culpable of the two. So it would. At that moment the door opened hastily and a light step was heard, and before the stranger could turn round a lovely young female rushed to the side of the Count, throwing herself on her knees, saying, Oh heavens, my dear father, what has happened? Are you hurt? For heaven's sake, my dear father, what is the matter? Little or nothing, my dear Isabella. But you are wounded! Oh, there's blood! Oh my God, my God! Hush, Isabella, I am wounded, but not hurt seriously. I pray heaven it may be so, but what sacrilegious hand could be raised against you? You have wronged no one. I'm not aware of having done so, certainly, said the Count, but that does not always give any security to the wealthy. They will sometimes destroy them from motives apart from individual revenge. The monsters, but have the villains been secured? One has paid the forfeit of his life for his temerity and villainy, the rest fled. Ah, what will these assassins not risk? Well, my dear Isabella, I have answered your inquiries, and now perhaps you will see if you be alone with me. Alone with you, repeated Isabella, not quite comprehending the words, but she looked up and her eyes encountered those of the stranger, who was gazing earnestly upon her, and she started as she rose and said, Excuse me, Signor, excuse me. I knew not anyone was present. Nay, said the stranger, filial love and respect need no excuse, Signora. Do not think so badly of me as to imagine I can think otherwise, than you were actuated by the tenderest impulses. Your kindness, sir. Isabella, said the Count, interrupting her. But for this gentleman's timely and efficient aid, I should at this moment have been a corpse in the streets of Venice. You, my father? Yes, my child. This Signor came up just as I was wounded and beaten down, and saved me from death. He killed one of my assailants while he put to flight the other two, who left their dead companion in the streets. Thank him, my child, for he is my preserver, and he deserves thanks for the deed as well as for the bravery with which it was done, for he ran great risks in such odds. He must. Signora, I know not how to thank you or what to say. The greatness of the obligation paralyzes me, and I have not words to tell you how grateful I feel for your goodness and courage, but tis an obligation that can never be forgotten or ever repaid. It is impossible. My dear Signora, permit me to say you rate my services too highly. Nay, that is quite impossible. For my father's life I prize far before my own, before anybody in the world, and to save that is to lay me under the heaviest obligation it is possible to impose upon me. Say no more, Signora, I will not underrate it after what you have said, but you must say as little about it as you will. I am happy, however, to have done any act worthy of your thanks. End of chapter one hundred seventy. Recording by Eric Leitch, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Chapter one hundred and seventy-one of Varney the Vampire, volume three. This is a LibriVox recording. All LibriVox recordings are in the public domain. For more information or to volunteer, please visit LibriVox.org. Recording by Mary Herndon Bell. Varney the Vampire, volume three. By Thomas Prescott Prest. Chapter one hundred and seventy-one. The opinions of Dr. Paleto, the stranger's account of himself, the welcome of the Signora. At that moment the door opened, and a servant announced the arrival of a leech, the famous Dr. Paleto, who forthwith entered the apartment and advanced towards the couch on which the wounded man lay. Oh, doctor, do what you can for my father, said Signora Isabella. I will, Signora, replied the doctor. I will, but what are his hurts or his disease, for I see he has been taken very badly. But why this paleness? You appear to have lost blood. I have bled, doctor, and I want you to dress my wound. I am hurt in the side here, and but for my friend here I should have been hurt mortally. It was not a duel, then, said the doctor. No, no, doctor, no, no. It was an attempt at assassination, and I have escaped the death of someone with more enmity than courage had doomed me to. But at the same time I am free, and one of his agents has perished. Tis but just, said the doctor. But I must now see the wound with your good leave. We'll strip the wounded part and apply bandages to it, so as to secure it, after which something else must be done. The wounded polydory was stripped, and after some exertion the wound was dressed, and all bleeding stopped. What is your candid opinion concerning my wound, doctor? inquired the count. What do you think will be the result? I would be truly informed of whatever probability of danger there may be, remote or immediate, as the case may be. Tell me. I beseech you, doctor. I will count. I have those things to do which are important, and the execution of them depends upon your answer, so do not mislead me. I will not. I cannot form so clear a judgment of your case, as I can in a few days hence when I may see the progress of the wound towards healing, though at present I see no signs of danger yet some may come. You do not consider the wound dangerous of itself, said the stranger. No, not of itself. But it is so close to a mortal part that it cannot be considered free from danger. Indeed, it may become so. A little more on one side would have made it quickly fatal, but as it is, if it heal well, there will be no danger. You must keep your couch for some days. That will be a lighter evil than any other, replied the count. You have lost much blood, and that alone will make you very weak, and it will take some time before you will be entirely recovered from your present state, and then your wound will probably be healed. And what you appear to think may be dangerous is only any possible interruption from the wound itself. It does so happen sometimes from bodily infirmity. It shows itself in healing, and the wound, which now appears healthy, may turn to gangrene, and then the worst may be apprehended. It may, said the stranger, but these things are only the worst things that may happen in extreme cases. Exactly, said the leech. And you have seen nothing in this case to induce you to dissipate any such result as this. It is only what may happen. That is all. It appears to me that all is well at present. Then I think the count had better be left to himself in quiet, and he may have a good mind upon his recovery. It will be best, said the doctor. I am fatigued and sleepy, said the count. I would be alone. Daughter, you must entertain this gentleman as I would do were I able to do so. Senor, the senora will do the office of hostess. Excuse so cold a welcome. Name it not, said the stranger. I am well cared for. A welcome from such a one is well worth the acceptance of a prince. Much less that of a stranger, unknown in Venice. I thank you for it. Say no more on that head, said the count. I came here almost a refugee, and quite a stranger myself. Will you come this way, senor? said senora Isabella. We will leave my poor father to himself. He will sleep. The stranger rose, and Dr. Pelleggio also, both following the senora, who led them into a separate but splendid apartment, and entreated them to sit down, and apologized for her own want of spirits to entertain them suitably. For that matter, said the doctor, I am by no means surprised, for such a mishap can never be heard of without producing lowness of spirits. And such a misfortune is always productive of grief, said the stranger. Senora, say no more. I would not interfere with your grief. I do not wish to stop it, and shall feel myself a bar to your own feelings, if you say any more. I am made welcome, and feel myself so. You are, sir. Your kindness deserves no less. But I pray you. Tell me how this affair occurred, in which you have been of such signal service to my father in saving his life. To tell you that, senora, I must first tell you who, and what I am. I do not wish to be thought unduly curious, replied senora. Not at all. I am bound to acknowledge you have a right to it. For you have no introduction with me, which usually supplies the place of an account of who and what we are. Therefore I'll tell you. Though I cannot boast of being more than a simple chivalier of now no fortune, having left my country because I raised my voice against the abuses of state, therefore I am but a nameless, unfortuneless stranger. Many a worthy gentleman has been in such a plight before now. Observe the doctor. I have known many such. And I am one. Not that I am without means, added the stranger. I have been lucky enough to provide against such a calamity as that which has befallen me. Though not to the extent I could have wished. You are fortunate, chivalier. I am so far. I came but this morning to Venice. I landed here, and agreed to meet the captain of the vessel, who promised to meet me on the Rialto, to conduct me to some quiet and respectable change-house where I could lodge. And he met you not? No. While I was waiting for him, I heard a cry for help, and found upon running up the Count Pallidori beaten to the earth, beset by three villains who had already wounded him in the manner you have seen, and I at that time stepped up, and being unexpected the men were confused, and one of them fell mortally wounded, and after a little further desperate fighting they all fled. It was fortunate you yourself were not beaten down, too, with such odds, for these men are usually desperate. True, but you see, one was gone, and they could not tell how it might be with the Count. They did not know how far he might be able to join in the fray again, and if he were to do so there would immediately be an equality between us, and such men do not seek such a fight. Truly not, Chevalier, replied the senora, truly not. When they are safe and secure in their deeds of blood they will perpetrate them, but in fair contests such men never shine, their deeds are of darkness. Most true, most true. But they have a deal of ferocity, said the stranger, and when they can will pour out blood like water. But what amazes me is that one like the Count, your father, should have been beset by such villains. They must have had some object to accomplish in getting rid of him by such means. Private enmity. Indeed, it must be a bad state of things. It is, Chevalier. It is a sign of great degeneracy in the state, but it is so. For gold you can procure the death of any man in Venice. Horrible, said the stranger. I have heard of such things, but I deem them fabulous, or at least overrated. No, no, I fear not. And yet who could have an enmity so deep as only to be healed by blood? And yet the good and the great have as many enemies as the wicked, for they are always opposed to each other. Undoubtedly, said the doctor, good and bad are always antagonists. Exactly. What, however, is the worst in these cases, is the bad very often get the better of the good, which is the reverse of what ought to be done. Because, you see, if we are to suppose that there is a power above that rules men's actions, surely we might expect to see goodness manifest in the majority of cases, whereas we usually see, to a much greater extent, the success of evil. Not always. Not always, certainly, said the doctor. But the exception proves the rule. Goodness ought to be the great object of men's lives, but it is not. Yet it ought to rule, and we must endeavour to be ruled by it, despite the way of the world, which is often, as we daily see, the reverse of what it ought to be. But, added the Chevalier, when ambition rules the minds of men, you will find that all other principles give way. It is so, but why I cannot see? Because, tis the master emotion of the mind, said the stranger. And ambition appears to possess the souls of those who govern, whether for good or for evil, said the Signora. Some are ambitions of being rulers, some of being conquerors, and some of politicians. But they are all moved to it by ambition. I, said the stranger, the lover is ambitious of the smiles of his mistress. Though ill-fortune will, now and then, deny him the good luck to win them. CHAPTER 172 THE COUNT POLIDORI'S RECOVERY THE INTERVIEW WITH THE SIGNORA ISABELA THE CONSENT A few days' confinement placed the Count beyond the reach of danger. His wound healed rapidly and favorably, but which was more than anticipated by the cautious leech, who abstained from saying so, but took his daily seat beside his patient's bed, and with his prosy and imperturbable gravity he continued to give his advice. Count, he said, your wound is healing. I feel it is so, said the Count, but you must be cautious. I would not have you be too sanguine or trust your feelings too much. I do not, but I may take wine. Indeed, I would recommend you not to do so, for wine is inflammatory and you are likely to suffer for it. And yet I took a bottle last evening. Last evening, Count, said the physician. Yes, I speak truly. I doubt it not, but it was very imprudent. Very imprudent indeed. For though half a bottle may do no hurt to a man in full health, yet a whole can do him no good, even if it do him no harm. But in your case it is dangerous. It might be, but surely the danger has passed now. If you have taken it over twelve hours, though four and twenty would be better, it is over twelve hours. Tis well, but it was hazardous. You are fast getting well, and as it happens you have no fever or other evil changes about you. Therefore you may continue your wine, but not in such quantities. I will be more cautious. But, Paleto, what is your opinion of my guest? Your preserver? Yes, the same. He is one of the most learned men I have ever met with. Even professed scholars have not been found so full of knowledge. That speaks something for his youth. Most undoubtedly. But what think you of him as a man of the world? I think he has a vast fund of information. He has had an enlarged experience of society and has visited, I think, all the continent of Europe. He understands their languages and manners too, and has the appearance of a traveller and of a man used to the best and most distinguished society. That is just my opinion of him. I understand he is from France. Yes. A refugee, in point of fact. I suppose without means. No. He appears to have means, and hopes that times may so alter to permit his return and the resumption of his former fortune. I understand as much. And he has spoken of people whom I know well in France that would not associate with any beneath their degree. And he has told me things they would have divulged to none save their equals and families. It is my opinion of him. The doctor took his leave and the count was again left to himself. And he began evidently to ponder over something in his mind which appeared to demand his attention and he, for some time, sat immovable. My daughter, he murmured, is a rich reward even for such a deed. If I do not pit my life against her, no, no, she is by far the most valuable. She I love more than life and would provide for her in a manner that shall procure her future happiness rather than her immediate approval. The dear girl does not well understand these matters. She does not know that present pleasure may be followed by future pain. She knows not that we should forgo the present to ensure future happiness. He paused a moment and then he continued, but I cannot be mistaken in this man. No, he has done a deed which, though I value it, not at so high a price, yet gratitude impose upon me the necessity of showing the highest consideration. She is fancy free and I do not see that there will be any difficulty in the way whatever. At that moment the door opened and Signora Isabella entered and advanced toward the couch on which he lay. My father! Ah, Isabella, I was but then thinking of you. Of me, father? I come to see how you are. Our good guest and preserver had been telling me he was quite sure you are much better than Dr. Paleto will admit, for he is slow and cautious to a degree. My dear, he is quite right. I feel it. Oh, how joyful I am! What think you of our guest, Isabella? Do you think him a man well worthy of our warmest esteem and gratitude? Indeed he is, father. He is noble. I think so. The true nobility of soul can be seen in him. To such a man as the Chevalier would I see my Isabella united. To such a man could I confide my daughter's happiness for he would secure it. What mean you, father? That the stranger of whom you speak so highly is to be your future husband. The preserver of the father will not act unkindly by the child. My father! I am stunned! Yes, my dear daughter, I have fully settled this matter in my own mind. He has asked your hand. Go see him. You have my blessing. I am sure he will be happy. Isabella, you never disobeyed your father. Such an act would be the cruelest stab that ever was planted in my bosom. But when, said Isabella almost trembling, but when will this be? When am I to be given away, father, as you would a present of flowers? Isabella, when have I deserved? When have I had such an answer from thee? Let me have no more of this. But when have you fixed as a time, upon which I am to be sent away from home to strangers? You will not leave this palace, Isabella. You and your husband will always be here, and I shall have the satisfaction of seeing the happiness I have planned and made. He will be a father to the child, as well as a husband. I do not wish for any such change. I am happy, but shall be otherwise if I am compelled to wed. Compelled, Isabella, compelled! Do you speak of being forced when I wish it? Now that I have settled it in my own mind, love and duty to me, and gratitude to this gentleman, all conspire to point out how you should act. But when, father, when? Tomorrow. Tomorrow? repeated Isabella in mournful accents. Yes, my child, it is better done at once. Twill at all events save any of those unnecessary thoughts that might disturb you. My father! My father! said the young lady as she sunk upon her knees before him. Well, my child, pardon me for once begging a favour of you. What mean you by such words? I wish a longer interval to be allowed me before I am, I am. Married, said her father. Yes, father, that is the dreadful word. Isabella, mind my love, what my wishes are. I have heard them, father, but give me a week. Indeed, you cannot decently bring this matter to a conclusion before the end of that time. I have had no previous warning from you or this stranger that such a thing was in contemplation. If I grant it to you, my Isabella, I must be obeyed. You shall be obeyed, father, said Isabella with an effort. If it cost me my life, and it will be near it, but let me keep my room until that period is up, and then do with me what you will. Be it so, Isabella, though it will look ungracious to our guest, yet I will endeavour to excuse you with the best grace I can. The lady Isabella was deathly pale, and as she rose she staggered and could scarce support herself out of the apartment. End of Chapter 172 Chapter 173 of Varni the Vampire, Volume 3 This is a LibriVox recording. All LibriVox recordings are in the public domain. For more information or to volunteer, please visit LibriVox.org. Recording by Mary Herndon Bell Varni the Vampire, Volume 3 by Thomas Prescott Prest Chapter 173 The Wedding Morning The New Arrival The Disappearance of the Vampire Bridegroom The senora retired to her own chamber and remained there for many hours, but during that time two messengers had left the mansion secretly, and then all was still. The lovely and beautiful Isabella, however, was not to be seen in her usual walks or at her father's board, as was her want. She was only seen within the precincts of her own apartments, pallid, sad, and sorrowful. Your daughter, Count, said the stranger one morning, does not appear as usual. I trust she is quite well. Yes, quite well. I hope I have given no cause of offense. If so, I hope I may be informed of my error that I may speedily amend it. There is none, Chevalier. But my daughter Isabella has asked a week's preparation for the nuptials. Which week she will pass in her own apartments secluded, and at the end of which time she leaves them for your protection, and which, well, I trust, be to her happiness. It shall be my business to make her happy, and for want of goodwill and hearty endeavor she shall never lack content and bliss. I have every presage of a most happy and felicitous life in the future. I am sure she will be happy. It is my great hope, Chevalier. She is one object of my life. I would it were settled and the affair over. I should die unhappy if I thought poor Isabella in the hands of anyone who would not use her as she deserved to be. She is of herself a treasure. She is. She is. And when she is once a wife, she will not look for a father's protection. Neither will she need it. My death, when it does happen, will be a great and heavy blow. But it will be less when she has the comfort and consolation of a husband to console her for what would otherwise be irreparable. Yes, it would have the effect of deadening the blow and of shortening the duration of its intensity, though it will be by no means prevented. I cannot say I should desire it. No, certainly not. And Senora Isabella never could forget such a parent. I have done my duty, I hope. And many congratulate yourself, Count. But then, with regard to Isabella, she will meet me as usual here on the day of the ceremonial. Most assuredly. And I am to be denied her company till then. Yes, she will meet you on the morning at the altar. Be it so, but I could have been happy in her society. At any rate I must be so by reflecting that I shall soon be the favored happy husband of Isabella, for with her my happiness will be complete. And my happiness will be complete in knowing hers is so. I could have wished that some of those who have known me in France had been here to see my happiness. But that cannot be. Could you not send to them? There would not be time for their return. And moreover, if there had been, I question whether I ought to hold any communication with them lest I bring them under the ban of the government. And I may not do that. Truly you have the same feelings as I used to have. But I have long since ceased to feel any of that kind of interest. Time cures that. It does, and you will find that it will heal all those wounds. And you will find that it will heal all those wounds which such a separation from your country causes you. I hope so. My offence is there. They will never forgive. Thus converse the stranger in the Count. And thus six days passed. During which time the Signora Isabella was seen by none, save her attendants who were few, and most of her time was spent in tears and prayers. She had a heart full of grief. But she dared not disobey her father, he whom she loved so well, and whom she had never thought for one moment as being opposed to her own ideas of propriety and her own wishes. She had always been taught to suppress her own and submit to his. Thus it was now, at the eleventh hour, she had no means of fortifying herself in any preconceived liking she may have had. Submission was all she had learned, a blind and willing submission to a fond and doting parent. She knew no other course of action. Her heart, however, had other yearnings. She had loved another, but she knew not how to act. She dared not even entertain the thought of throwing herself at her father's feet and imploring him to save her from perpetual sorrow. Much less did she think of opposing him, but she had done this much. In the first moment of her terror and anguish she had written off to her brother informing him of her danger. But at the same time she had advised nothing and expressed no wish, only told him the fact and her fears. The wedding morning arrived and the house of the Count gave indications of the festivity and with the day came guests richly dressed and the bells rang a merry peal upon the occasion and the Count was in high spirits, but the bride was not seen. How is Senora Isabella your daughter? inquired one of the guests. She is as well as maiden modesty will permit. I have not seen her. Nor I. Nor you replied the guest astonished. No, she has secluded herself, but will appear presently when the bell rings for the service. The fact is, she cannot leave her father even for the arms of a husband without feeling a grief for the change. I hope she will be happy. I have no doubt of it, the man is worthy of her and capable of making her happy, I hope. I have no doubt of that. Hark! the bell sounds. Is that the signal? Yes, follow on. I will bring my daughter forth and as he spoke he left the guest who hurried to the chapel and found the stranger awaiting his bride with some impatience. He acknowledged the courtesy of those who came to him and looked towards a small door which presently opened and the count and his daughter appeared. She was of marble paleness and no signs of happiness were seen in her face. She trembled and her whole soul seemed to be intent on something afar from her presence. She lifted her eyes and gazed upon the throng, apparently saw none or not those whom she wished. Her father spoke to her. She heaved a deep sigh and appeared to be resigned to her fate. The ceremony commenced and Isabella stood but her eyes occasionally sought the chapel door and in a few moments more before the important part was concluded a bustle took place near the door and immediately afterwards some officers in Venetian uniform entered the chapel among whom was the young count Isabella's brother and with him a young officer into whose arms she instantly threw herself and fainted. Father said the young count Father this must not be Why not my son? said the count because my sister loves another and young man is a monster. What mean you, sir? said the Chevalier If you were other than what you are your words would be yet a different answer. You are a vampire! replied a young Neapolitan who stepped forward. I knew you before. No you not the holy father whom you murdered. Tis false! I will bring one to prove it. As the Chevalier spoke he crossed the chapel and left the place but he did not appear again. And upon inquiry he had quitted the palace in a gondola and never reappeared. Chapter 174 The Two Highwaymen The Murder at the Jibbit's Foot The Ride to the Golden Pippin The evenings set in a stormy mood sudden gusty showers rattled against the traveler whilst the wind swept over the country bending the tall trees and whistling round the peasants' cot and making the chimneys appear over the residences of imprisoned spirits which moaned and groaned most dismally to hear. The clouds came rapidly across the sky now darkening the earth and now they fled past leaving the moonbeams pouring a flood of light upon the fields and roadways but this was soon followed by another darkness a cold rain and rushing wind the night being inclement and very boisterous not to say a night too bad to permit traveling. It was late on such a night when down a lone cross-road a single horseman might be seen to ride slowly and carefully. He was wrapped up in a large cloak and rode a powerful horse and appeared to be somewhat tired. There was much difficulty in traveling over a bad road that was loose and shifty with here and there a slew of some magnitude. In a very wild and desolate spot stood a mound of stones that had been heaped at the foot of a gibbet and had been collected there in consequence of the unpopularity of the occupants of the instrument of punishment. On the gibbet swinging to and fro was the body of a malefactor hung in chains an awful and disgusting spectacle whose death no one regretted in as much as he was the terror of the whole neighborhood. It was the body of a highwayman or of a robber who had committed all kinds of depredations and several murders. He was the son of a person of property but addicted to vicious courses and to support them he had recourse to robbery and murder. Several of his former friends were robbed and at length his own father fell by his hands when he refused to give up his purse in the road at the spot. His own son shot him through the heart. This was the last crime he ever committed for he was taken and tried when enough was proved that would have hung a hundred men and there was not one man who could or who would speak one word in his favor. He was executed and so detested was he by all that everyone who came by the spot threw a stone until it grew by these means a goodly heap which remained a memento of their hate. It was this spot the stranger was nearing and to which he appeared to look up with some degree of either curiosity or interest but before he got there there was another horseman riding along the country lane and who would arrive there about the same time as the first but when he came there it was easy to perceive that he was not alone but another horseman was in waiting beneath some trees and hidden from the traveler. In a few moments more the traveler reached the spot and looking up at the dead body that was swinging to and fro in the night air the other horseman rode up upon which the traveler was about to push his horse forward at an increased speed when he found that there was not space enough. Which side do you take? he inquired of the stranger. Stand and deliver was the reply. That is uncivil replied the stranger to the request that I do not feel at all disposed to consent to. Deliver your money and a pocket-book or you are a dead man. Nay, said the stranger, I have means of defense too. And as he spoke he pulled out a bright double-barreled pistol which he leveled and cocked saying as he very leisurely did so beware you are playing with a determined man I am not disposed to play. Get out of my way or you are a dead man. Ha ha ha! laughed the other and made way at the same moment thus bringing himself alongside the traveler leaving him room to go on. You are not to be frightened. Well, well, go on. The traveler put his spurs to his horse but at the same moment received a bullet from the treacherous highwayman. Ha! cried the traveler putting his hand to his side and in a moment more he staggered and fell over the side of the horse onto the ground. Ha ha ha! said the highwayman who immediately dismounted but before he could search the body the other horsemen came up at a gallop. Well, Fred, have you quieted him? I have. Resisted then? Yes, have you got your lantern? Yes, but it is not yet lighted but that is soon done. Then let us have it as quick as you can for he has fallen down here in a slew and I should like to get the money without more mire than I am obliged to put up with. Here it is, said the other, handing the lantern a small one which he had lighted by means of some chemical matches. The highwayman took the lantern and after some examination he secured the pocketbook and the purse and having done this he examined the fingers but saw no rings and no watch and he said to his companion just come here did you ever see such a set of features as these they are truly strange and singular I could never forget them indeed I must have a look at them said his companion dismounting and bending over the body and when he looked at them he said I saw that man today where I dined and thought he took the other road and there waited for him did you though yes till I was tired and then I came across the country in search of you but did not expect you to have any quarry did you ever see such a countenance it is most strange and ghastly yes it is but he has died a violent death you see and therefore there is much to be done by way of allowance yes yes I know all that but the nose mouth and teeth they are not the most disagreeable in the world certainly well well it don't matter you have done all your business with him have you not I have got it all I believe said the other he has no watch or chain not even a ring has he got on his finger perhaps you'll find enough in his purse and pocketbook to console you though I must say Ned that he dined very sparingly but no matter the amount ride on for you know it is not a good plan to stand longer here than necessary for we may have other riders down upon us not very likely on this road and at this hour but tis bad I'm off and he will remain behind till found by some frightened peasant or other who will go to the nearest market town with a frightful account ride away I hear horses feed I think I am ready forward hoe the two highwaymen rode off at a rapid rate conversing as they went but yet it was in suppressed tones for some distance and after some riding one of them pulled up his horse partially saying well I don't think it wise we should thus wear our steeds out there is no need of our riding for life our horses never ought to be put to their metal unless there be plenty of occasion which there is not no all is right tonight have you done much lately net no I have been rather upon the seek than find I have been looking out brightly but have not been successful I have myself only done moderately but I have done better than I should have done because I was fortunate enough to come across a fat grazier who had more money than any three or four persons that I have met lately your fortune is somewhat like mine you have met with little good then net indeed I have not but it is a long lane that has no turning yes indeed it is however I hope this queer looking customer will reward one for one's pains if you can but keep the game of going you are sure to succeed in the end tis only two years are better since I first began to ride that is put a period to other people's rising exactly well then where do you intend to put up for the night for I suppose you do not intend to stay out all night any more than myself no I think of going on till I come to the golden pippin where I intend to stay for the night the landlord can wink hard at his friends and not know they are in the house or he can tell them a thing if they want to know anything at all to their interest he is the sort of man I know him I was thinking of going there I don't know better or snugger quarters than are to be had at his hostel then we'll have a good supper and a bottle at the golden pippin with all my heart but you don't think there'll be any danger of our being pursued for this matter oh dear no the direct road lies another way and we shall be quite fifteen miles from the spot where the body lies so far yes we have come over the ground very rapidly and have gone more than two thirds of that distance when we get there we shall be safe easy and comfortable and right good wines are there to be had at the golden pippin End of Chapter 174 Chapter 175 of Varnita Vampire Volume 3 this is a LibriVox recording all LibriVox recordings are in the public domain for more information or to volunteer please visit LibriVox.org Varnita Vampire Volume 3 by Thomas Prescott Prest Chapter 175 The horrors of the night the discovery in the road contention between man and horse comfortable quarters in the golden pippin the malefactor's body swung to and fro on the gibbet and the chains squeaked and groaned as the wind impelled the body's motions the wind itself whistled heedlessly by and the transient but heavy shower passed on heedless of the deed of blood that had been perpetrated beneath its monetary shadow now and then there was a little light and then the body might be seen heaped up and lying in the mud and mire which was all discolored with the blood of the fallen man he was motionless the rain fell on him but it mattered not the body felt it not the wind blew the cloak about but the body remained quiet and nothing appeared to spare the body there was no one nigh that was a lonely spot and that was tenanted by two dismal gypsies the body of the malefactor swung to and fro while the body of the murdered traveler lay quiet enough the clouds traveled across the face of the moon and intercepted her light from the earth but yet it was light enough at intervals to enable the traveler to see his way on foot or on horseback about two hours after that in which the traveler had been stopped and murdered there came another individual riding towards the scene this was a country man, a grazier who was well mounted and came along at a rapid rate having a stout trotting nag under him when he neared the spot where the murder had been committed he gave a look up at the disagreeable object, the gibbet and when he had done so he put the spur to his horse's side with the intention of going by at a quickened pace exclaiming as he did so this is no pleasant place at nine o'clock at night I wish I were at the golden pippin instead of here as he spoke he pushed his horse as he manifested a design to stop but the animal instead of going past reared up hillaw, brute, what art after now, eh? the spur was again applied but the animal only became more and more unmanageable and the rider near losing his seat but he was, nevertheless, the more anxious to get onward for the neighborhood was not pleasant added to which it was a wet and dismal night and late for a cross-road curse you, muttered the grazier what the deus is the matter with you did you never see the gibbet before if thee hadn't I should not have been surprised at thee shying at the man swinging on the gibbet but thee hast done so and now thee art frightened whoa, damny he made another attempt to force the horse by but it was fruitless and he was at length unseated into the mire dum, muttered the man the first time I have been thrown these ten years drunk or sober, and now I am sober this was apparently the first reflection that came to his mind after the first effect of the concussion he then scratched his head, adjusted his hat and was getting up when for a moment his eyes rested on something dark lying in the middle of the road and at which his horse had in reality shied oh, he exclaimed with a visible alteration in his demeanor that's what pig shied at, eh? what the devil is it as he muttered these words his hair began to stand on end and the more he looked, the greater his apprehension for he began to think what he wished was farther from the fact though his notions were far from being definite and he did all he could to dispel the rising terror why, it ain't no, it can't be and yet it must be makes him lay there, he must be dead surely thrice he scrambled to his feet and then walked a little towards the object against which his horse stood smelling and snorting with evident signs of fear whoa, brute, what's the matter with thee confound thee, but I suppose thee was frightened as the man spoke, he walked up to the animal and taking the bridle, he passed it over his arms and then approached the body I, sure enough, he's insensible if not dead, poor fellow what can be done, there's no one near at hand to lend assistance he paused to consider what was to be done when it occurred to him as being the most likely thing that could be done was to probe the unfortunate man he could not say whether he was dead or alive from his position in the middle of the road if one ain't dead, he argued he would come to no harm for it wasn't every horse that cared as much for a man as Peg did they might get run over or cause some desperate accident having made up his mind what to do he secured Peg and turned his attention to the body of the stranger which had been left on its back with its face upwards but the wind had blown the cloak over it and it was not seen by the Grazier who now assayed to move the body after some trouble he succeeded in dragging him there and propping him up against the bank upon which grew a stunted hedge and when there he opened the cloak and looked upon the features of the dead man well, he muttered I never yet saw such a face I am sure I can never forget that of all the ill-looking thieves he is the worst but much I suppose must be set off on the fact that he is a dead man and a murdered one to boot there was a strange marketness in the style of features in the dead man that gave no pleasing impression to the mind it was one that could not easily be forgotten especially accompanied by all the horrors of their place in circumstances he has been shot no doubt he muttered this must be all blood I in the breast or thereabouts oh, he is dead well, I'll ride to the golden pippin and then I'll give them notice of it he was just about to turn and mount his horse when the clouds parted and the moonbeams for a few moments came upon the body without any hindrance and the grazer thought he saw a movement it must have been gammon he muttered I'll be off, I'm quite cold and shivery here I'll go to the golden pippin and get some good cheer for I'm terribly shaken eh, what was that? the devil the latter exclamations were uttered in consequence of the figure turning towards the moon's rays and then opening its eyes which had such an effect upon the unfortunate man that he staggered back terrified Lord have mercy, he ejaculated what's that? he's coming too hello, friend, how are you? the figure turned his large motionless eyes upon the terrified man and they had such an effect upon him that, despite all he could do to rally himself he sprang involuntarily onto his horse's back and galloped off furiously it was scarce an hour before this occurred when the two highwaymen rode up to the golden pippin hello, hello, Osler here! shouted one of them and in a few moments more the Osler came out willing enough hello, gem, you are sharp tonight, how is it you are not asleep? I was just going to roost, master, but I shall have a job instead, I can see you will, but not an empty-handed affair this time take care of the nags, and there's a crown for you thank you, master, you are always generous when I can, gem, but what company have you in the house? little to speak of, said the Osler about three or four people as lives about here but nobody that I know anybody or anything only people that have to earn their living, they are in the kitchen good fire? yes then we'll go there too, said the highwayman it's a raw cold night and one in which a good supper and a good fire will do one good the two highwaymen then entered the house locked into the kitchen which was a large room with beams across the top and a variety of utensils proper to the place but the grand feature was the large fireplace in which burned brightly some good logs and threw a glowing warmth and bright light over the whole apartment in which however was one candle as if to be mocked by the light of the fire the use of the solitary wick was to enable the smokers to light their pipes without stirring and also to be taken away at a moment's notice for any purpose that might be needed the three guests turned their attention to the newcomers without however exchanging one word and the landlord himself arose oh landlord said one of the highwaymen I'm glad you have a good fire it is one of the best things after a cold ride a man can have met with except a good hot supper and a cup afterwards said his companion all these are very good things in their way gentlemen said the landlord emptying the ashes of his pipe out into the fireplace by tapping the pipe on the toe of his shoe and thus dropped the ashes out of danger you are right landlord said the other but I always think gentlemen said the landlord gravely that they are always a great deal better when they can be had together they are better for their company's sake the one helps the other so they do well then let us have them all old cock as soon as you please for we are both cold tired and hungry and they are the best accompaniments you can have as a preparatory for all that is to follow amen and about it said the highwayman the two new guests sat themselves down in one quarter of the kitchen and near to a table facing the fire where they could enjoy its genial warmth which they appeared to do with much gusto having opened their coats and taken off their shawls removed their hats and sat down in a comfortable manner they began to look about them well Ned we have made a good exchange how do you mean why we have exchanged the road to comfortable quarters which you will at least admit is all the better yes much better though I have ridden many a long and weary night before now with the runners at my heels I so have I but hush say no more of that here I have no idea of letting these blacks suspect anything they are what you call honest men and men who would give a clue in a moment if they thought it was wanted I dare say it is so Ned but what are you going to have for supper I don't know landlord what can we have for supper anything hot why said the landlord I can kill a couple of chickens and brander them for there is some chicken pie and a cold ham well what do you say Ned can't you make the chicken pie warm it is warm now said the landlord I can't make it quite hot without doing too much it is uncommon good and has not been long put by from supper it was made for supper but there's a good half left a what do you say to chicken pie Ned with all my heart chicken pie let it be then replied Ned well then landlord put the chicken pie on flanked by the ham some of your foaming October you know I I sir some with a head on that would take a blacksmith's bellows to blow off it is so strong ha ha ha that's the strike for us the landlord now arose and set about getting the necessary articles and spreading them upon a table before the two guests who were nothing loath to see the expedition that he had made to please them I think said the landlord you will say you never eat such chickens they are my hatching and have been well fed they have been well killed cooked and I hope will be well eaten that is our part of the business landlord and if they are such as you speak of why you may depend upon our doing our duty by them and the ham is my own breeding and curing better and better and the October why I am just going to get that what say you to a tankard yes a foaming tankard yes gentlemen I will obtain what you want it is in beautiful condition and when chilled will give you a cream as thick as new cheese and as mild as new milk End of Chapter 175 Chapter 176 of Varney the Vampire Volume 3 This is a LibriVox recording All LibriVox recordings are in the public domain For more information or to volunteer please visit LibriVox.org Varney the Vampire Volume 3 by Thomas Prescott-Prest Chapter 176 The Grazer's relation and his first terrors the effects of good cheer and the sudden interruption to a pleasant party The landlord was not long gone for the October he came back with a placid smile and a smacking of his lips when he shut the door behind him and then deliberately placing the candlestick down he said handing them the tankard there gentlemen if you find any better brood than that in the three adjoining counties why you may take measure for my coffin for I won't live after I am told there is any so good anywhere else we will not take your word landlord said one of the highway men putting the tankard to his lips which act produced an approving nod from the jolly landlord who said with much encouragement that's right never trust nobody that's my motto that I chocks it up over the fireplace and acts upon it try for yourself and then you won't be deceived what's your opinion upon that now sir never drank its equal ever here I thought you'd say so it comes out of a particular cask one as I put spy for myself but you have ridden hard and I thought a brew of an extra strike would be an acceptable drink you are right it is cold and very wet I'm as tired as if I had ridden far the wind has blown me about so ah don't you hear how it roars in the chimney so it does what do you think of the brunette ain't it first rate indeed it is I never had any equal to it I tell you what landlord it will make an excellent nightcap for a man who has taken a glass or two of this would not be better able to keep his saddle no it's lucky we intend putting up for the night here you have beds yes good and well aired that is capital well your chicken pie is good landlord your ham good and the October excellent and now what's that at that moment there was a sound of horses feet galloping furiously towards the houses and they had not listened long before they came close to the door and then there was evidently a sudden pull up hello what's that said his companion I think it is somebody pulled up at the door said the landlord whoever they are they have come in haste the two highwaymen half rose but a look at each other caused them to resume their seats and in another moment there was a loud shouting and a call for the Osler there was no one at hand where is that Jim got to I must go and see after him at all events he won't come if I don't so saying he walked away while the guests remained silent watching the actions of the two highwaymen it is but a single horseman said the first no said the other but still he may be mischievous and yet I can hardly think he would venture here at such a time besides it can't be known we are much better here than anywhere else I think so we have nothing to fear nothing at that moment the landlord retired and at the same time the door was suddenly opened and the Grazier entered the kitchen he glanced around him much confused the fire and light no doubt had some share in that but he stared and appeared terrified and all splashed over where's the Osler he cried out here I be said the worthy behind look after my horse he is very hardly ridden see to him that's a good fellow said the Grazier yes I'll see to it said Jim who departed with the animal landlord landlord yes here I am master green here am I give me something strong I'm half dead I'm cold and I'm frightened and that is the truth where's the fire why master green I never saw you in this state before give me your hand master green I'll show you the fire said the landlord holding out his hand to green why you are cold what has happened you shall hear you shall hear said the half terrified green only give me a toss of brandy and get me a supper and I shall be able to tell you more about it at present I can say nothing well that is pretty well for a man that can't speak said the landlord you are getting better Mr. Green I hope I shall the fire is comfortable here is some good brandy take a gill man it won't hurt you on such an occasion as this I have seen you do as much before but as for supper why I can't say much the gentleman have had the only thing I had in the house and save the ham I doubt much if there will be any left if the gentleman will join us he is welcome to take a share of what we have said one of the highway men here will be enough for us all I dare say sir if you do not object to our company thank you thank you said green I will accept of your offer gladly for I have had a long ride comfortable to put up with to see and to fear Lord have mercy on me say I well what is the matter Mr. Green why said Mr. Green as he between his words poked in large multiples of food and now and then washed it down by the 8 of the October you all of you know the highway men's corner about 15 miles from here yes said the landlord I know it well there's a chap hanging up in chains there now at this present day that is if nobody hasn't run away with it or it hasn't been blown down exactly well that's the spot there's been another dreadful murder been done there oh it was dreadful well did you see it yes I did what the murder said both highway men at once no the body I only saw the body where was it lying stop stop a bit not so fast said Mr. Green who was eating very fast indeed but paused a moment you must not ask too many questions at once because I have one way of telling a tale and you'll spoil it well go on your own way well then listen I was coming along at a rattling pace I can tell you for I was late and tired as it was when I had reached the gallows I looked up at the body swinging in the wind and creaking and screaming on its rusty swivels but I had scarcely done so when my horse shied and very nearly landed me in the mud but I contrived to keep my seat though not without trouble what at the dead man inquired one of the highway men I replied his companion I am sure they ought not to put men up there like scarecrows to frighten horses with for my part I never pass it but my horse snorts in bolts and I am obliged to be wary I don't know much about that I have come by without my nag being any the worse at all events I thought there was something in his shying at the gallows and I tried to push him by but he would not go what did you do why I was obliged to get down said the grazer thrown forced to get down you mean said the highway men why in some sort of way I did feel myself compelled to get down because the brute wouldn't go ahead and I saw something on the ground as the clouds cleared away a little and showed me that there was something suspicious in the middle of the road very much like a bundle of clothes indeed said the landlord what was it I'll tell you in course now you see I saw the animal would not move so I got off to see what was the matter forced off added the highway men damn it man what can it matter then I got off said the grazer getting into a passion and then after a pause which he employed in taking a long pull at the October and then wiping his lips he continued what is the matter now thought I so I went to the object and found it was a man rolled up in a cloak in the middle dead I dead as a door nail lower said the highway man why then he must have been murdered I suppose you may take your Davey of that said the grazer but I tried to wake him up but he was not to be disturbed so I dragged him to the bank where I left him where was he hurt shot right in the side or stabbed I don't know which but that's where the blood came from so I was sure he was dead but when I removed the cloak from his face I saw he had as ugly a set of features as a man can desire a long peculiar face large but thin nose an awkward set of teeth with one or two projecting in front and oh such eyes that is when he opened them opened them said the highway man both opened them repeated the landlord why did you not tell me he was dead I but when the moonlight came upon him he opened his eyes oh what eyes why they were like a pair of enormous great fish eyes cod's eyes that had become suddenly lighted up or the moonlight reflected back from the bottom of a new tin saucepan and then you have them the devil said the highway man and what did you do why I came away as fast as I could I wasn't to be done by a dead man I didn't wait to see more than that he turned round and stared at me he was so horrible that I got upon my horse the best way I could and came on here as fast as the animal would come the body I dare say rolled over and you thought it moved of itself I know better besides it opened its eyes the moon shone on them and you thought he looked at you you were terror-stricken and that's the truth of it then I know better said the grazer doggedly it ain't nothing of the kind I know it ain't a matter that happens every day and that's why you don't believe it and don't understand it but I know I'm right house here house outslur shouted a loud authoritative voice without the door of the inn which caused them all to start to hear the sounds to prove that they were not a loosery End of Chapter 176 Chapter 177 of Varni the Vampire Vol. 3 This is a LibriVox recording all LibriVox recordings are in the public domain for more information or to volunteer please visit LibriVox.org Varni the Vampire Vol. 3 by Thomas Prescott Press Chapter 177 The mysterious stranger's arrival the consternation of the guests the grazer's terrors and powers of identity the landlord's daughter Hilla house house shouted the strange voice on the outside but in a tone that seemed unearthly whether it were merely a fancy or reality yet it had its effect and the landlord sat staring vacantly with his two hands resting on either knee leaning forward as if he was staring some imaginary object out of countenance well said one of the highway men ain't nobody going to the door no one answered but Gem the Osler was hastening by another passage to the door and then they heard some confused speaking as if the stranger was giving some directions for the care of his horse the grazer was fixed in his attention to what was going on and appeared petrified and held a morsel on the end of his fork halfway between his mouth and the plate with his eyes directed towards the door in a few moments more they heard the steps of someone approaching the door and one of the highway men said to his companion Ned there are people laid on the roads tonight yes it appears so but it is very uncomfortable traveling the night is bad and the roads no better who's this I wonder we shall now see said the other but their backs were turned towards the door and they could not see who entered the door so well as the grazer who sat in the same attitude without emotion or movement even to wink his eye when the door opened and in walked a tall man wrapped in a horseman's cloak the expression of horror in the grazer's face and the swelling of his eyes almost out of his head at once showed them there was something extraordinary and they both eventually turned round and to their extreme terror they perceived the very man or his double they had left dead upon the spot where the grazer had seen him neither were they alone surprised for all present were able at once to recognize the same man without any difficulty it's the same man I'm dimmed said the grazer as if he had made an effort to speak and when he had so he couldn't help himself the lord who would have thought it it's it's the the what do you call it the devil suggested the landlord no said the stranger no I am merely a traveler somewhat weary and tired do not disturb yourselves I am cold very cold the fire will do me good it is a very cold night the roads are bad very unsafe very said one of the highway men voluntarily did you speak inquired the stranger suddenly turning to the highway man who had spoken with a look of such a peculiar character that he caused the bold roadster involuntarily to start but he suddenly recovered himself and said I did what did you say sir the same as you replied the highway man the stranger made no reply to the highway man whose natural effrontery and the he always had for presence of mind in circumstances of peril gave him a greater superiority than most men possessed under such circumstances I'm not well said the stranger perhaps you've ridden far I have replied the stranger landlord will you have the goodness to let me have some supper I am weary I have only the remains of the chicken pie and some ham said the landlord looking back at the already referred to chicken pie which thanks to its being made of great size had already sucked three hungry men and there is but little of that it is not much that I want a small matter will suffice a little ham and something warm and then I will to bed tis late very well sir said the landlord here's some good October will you like that or is there anything else I have French spirits then let me have some brandy yes sir I'll fetch my daughter downstairs said the landlord she's young and her hand is steadier than mine I shall upset the bottle my hand you see is always unsteady after I've drawn the October somehow or other I always get out of order what is the reason of that inquired the highway man why it's so strong I believe it's nothing else whatever as the landlord turned to go he gave another look at the guest and appeared greatly disturbed and certainly thought him a strange and unaccountable man for he believed that he was in truth the very man spoken of who had been left for dead on the bank near the foot of the gallows Mary said the landlord when he had ascended half a dozen stairs which led out of the kitchen Mary yes father was the ready answer in a clear pleasing voice I want you my dear bring the brandy down the French the sealed bottle the others out I took the last this morning before breakfast ho ho said the highway man hark at our landlord how early he must begin no wonder his handshakes ah said the landlord as he came back with a wink when you have been a father and an innkeeper as long as I have you'll do many things you don't now dream of but no matter I ain't as young as I used to be at that moment a very pretty and gentile girl about 18 descended the stairs with a spirit bottle in her hand and advanced to the table how will you take it sir inquired the landlord mixed make a glass my dear said the landlord is that your daughter inquired the stranger fixing his eyes upon her and they were such leaden eyes that the girl shrink from him in dismay yes said the landlord anymore none replied the landlord and then there was a pause of some moments during which the stranger watched the young girl's motions with a greedy jealousy as if he feared to lose one movement and in a manner that especially annoyed the old landlord who however could say nothing he having been quite proud by the strangers superiority and station and demeanor besides which there was something very strange and peculiar not to say superhuman about him that gave weight and caused a kind of odd to pervade all present and they looked upon him as something fearful or terrible it was not long before the stranger ate his supper it was soon done he ate but little and when that was done he turned to the brandy and water but there appeared an air of compulsion upon his part as if everything he took was taken under the feeling that it was absolutely necessary to take something which did not escape the discerning eyes of all present especially the landlord who felt it a slight upon himself and his cheer if I had known you were coming here said the landlord I would have got something ready for you but as it was I had nothing but pot luck for you that inquired the stranger what is that I never heard of such a dish before I am a stranger in these parts oh it only means you could have anything what is in the house it will do said the stranger quietly will you have anything more that we have in the house nothing I came by the jibbit not far from this place and I met with an accident there that has left me but little stomach gosh I should think not muttered the grazer it would have settled my stomach all together and anybody else's well muttered one of the highway men it would have left me no stomach save what would be in a fair way to become food for the worms what kind of accident was it sir a terrible blow in the side it seemed to go through me well well I imagine there could be but little comfort in a man's bowels after he had anything go through his side it depends upon the constitution said the stranger quietly the what inquired one of the highway men incredulously the constitution replied the stranger quietly there was a pause of some minutes during which the strangers exchanged glances at each other when one of the highway men said perhaps a bullet put in your side might be no hindrance to your animal and would in the course of nature become digested why I dare say it would not hurt me so much as many but it would take me some little while to recover the shock which would be great but I am unwell and perhaps had better retire will the young female your daughter act as my chambermaid and show me my room yes said the landlord mechanically here Mary show the gentleman into number six and leave the light good night said the stranger rising and walking away erect but slowly from the group who gazed after him with amazement good night sir said the landlord which was echoed by those present and when the stranger was gone there was a general release in their conversation from the constraint which the presence of the last comer occasioned well what do you think of him Mr. Green inquired the landlord the very same man I saw on the bank of the gallows corner are you sure quite there was a general pause as if there was something for them all to think over and their thoughts appeared to be so unsatisfactory that those who lived close at hand left the house and those that remained there went to their respective beds and in half an hour the house was quite silent end of chapter one hundred seventy seven chapter one hundred seventy eight of varni the vampire volume three this is a LibriVox recording all LibriVox recordings are in the public domain for more information or to volunteer please visit LibriVox.org varni the vampire volume three by Thomas Prescott Prest chapter one hundred seventy eight the midnight cry of alarm the vampire's meal the chase across the fields the death of the landlord's daughter the old inn was in the state of repose its various parts were no longer vexed by the busy tramp of men the noisy voice of the topper or the untiring hands of the housewife who does not spare any part of its edifice from her ablutions the brush and the broom are sad intruders and disturbers and yet they are in perpetual requisition however the inhabitants were all steeped in slumber among those who lay in that house there was not one except one indeed who did not lie down to rest and fall into a deep sleep but that one exception was the stranger who appeared to have other views he threw himself into a chair and there appeared to meditate upon the clouds which passed across the sky in endless variety of shape and form he sat motionless and still his large lusterless eyes were fully opened and he was gazing earnestly nearly an hour without motion at length as if his attention was of itself rearing to continue so long he moved then sighed deeply or rather groaned how long is this hated life to last? he muttered when shall I cease to be the loathsome creature I am there was some reflection in this that was very bitter to him he shuttered and buried his face in his hands and remained in that for some minutes but then he lifted his head up again and turned towards the moon's rays muttering but I am faint I feel the want of my natural slumbers blood alone will restore me my strength there is no resisting the dreadful appetite that goads me on I must I must I will satisfy it he arose suddenly and drew himself up to his full height and threw aloft his arms in his face words with frantic energy but in a few seconds he became more calm and said I saw the maiden enter the room next to mine I can enter it by the same door for I have the key and that will place her at my mercy good fortune for once avail me and then my wants will be satisfied he walked softly to his own door and undid it stealthily and listened for some minutes they are all asleep he said I'll save one I alone walk through the place all are in peaceful slumbers while I like the creatures of prey seek those whom I may devour I must on he crept into the passage and advanced to the door of the young girl who lay soundly sleeping in innocence and peace little dreaming of the fate that awaited her much less did she think that the destroyer was so close at hand indeed have dreamed that there was someone in the house who was scarcely of her nature one that was loathsome and dreadful one who in fact lived upon the blood of the innocent and fairest she sleeps he muttered she sleeps he listened again and then he gently put the key into the door and found that it was not locked and then turning the handle he found there was some impediment to its opening but of what character could not tell tis unlucky but this must be moved he placed his hand and foot close to the door and pressed it gradually and hardly against it and he found that it gradually gave way and that the impediment gave by degrees and that too with hardly any noise fortune favors me he muttered she does not hear me I shall win this chamber and shall before she can wake up upon the dear life stream that is no less precious to me than to herself he now had succeeded in effecting an entrance into the room and found that it was only an easy chair that had been placed against the door because there was no other means of securing it the key having unaccountably disappeared and left her without any other means of securing her door I will lock it he muttered if I be disturbed I shall be better and I shall be safe my meal will be undisturbed at least not before so much has been taken as will revive my strength he now approached the bed and with eager eyes devoured the fair form of the youthful and innocent sleeper how calm and how unsuspicious she lies he muttered to her a pity but I must, I must there is no help he leaned over her his head till his ear almost touched the lips of the sleeper as though he were listening to the breathing of the young girl something caused her to start she opened her eyes and endeavored to rise up but she was immediately thrust back and the vampire seized her fair flesh with his fanged teeth and having fleshed them he was drawing that life current from her which ensanguined them both horror and fright for a moment deprived her of strength and the power of uttering a sound of any kind but when she did do so it was one wild unearthly shriek that was heard throughout the whole house and awakened every human being within it in a moment help! murder! murder! she shrieked out as soon as the first scream subsided and she regained breath these cries she uttered rapidly as well as attempting a desperate resistance to her persecutor but she was growing gradually more and more faint the landlord had just got out of an uncomfortable dream about some strange adventure he was having with some excise men when he was young when the heart-piercing shriek of Mary came upon him God bless me he muttered what's that? I never heard anything so horrible in all my life what can it be? he sat up in bed and pulled his nightcap off while he listened when he heard the cries to help issuing from his daughter's room good God it's Mary he muttered what can be the matter? he did not pause a moment but huddled on his clothes and then rushed out of his room with a light to his daughter's bedroom what is the matter? inquired one of the highway men who had been disturbed by the dreadful shriek I don't know but but help me help you to what? my daughter's room and the noise comes from that place help help said a faint voice damnation said the highway man something's wrong there somebody's sucking surely the stranger is not there burst the door open then lend a hand it must give said Ned and they all three made a rush at the door and in it went for their weight carried it all before them they all three went into the apartment without any hindrance for the frail lock gave immediately and the other impediment only served to add to the noise though they went in easily yet they did not do so quickly enough for they all rolled over each other and before they could rise they distinctly saw the figure of the stranger start up and rush out of the room with Mary in his arms help help mercy she shrieked out to she said the landlord Mary yes after her boys after her for heaven's sake after her we will not leave her said the highway men in concert and at the same moment all three rushed after her the stranger has made his way down into the kitchen and I think he has her with him said the landlord I will after him said Ned I saw her in his arms she was all over blood good heavens what can he mean does he want to murder her help help murder shouted the girl and at that moment they heard the stranger attempting the kitchen door below in a moment they all three ran downstairs as fast as they could to seize the villain before he could escape but they had hardly got into the kitchen before they saw the door swing to after him he's gone said the landlord he's gone we'll after them come on never mind a chase she's in white and the moon's up so we shall have them in sight away after them lads save my girl save my Mary away they went with great speed but the stranger somehow or other kept ahead of them his great height gave him an advantage in length of stride but then he bore the landlord's daughter in his arms which was more than enough to balance their powers so she was not heavy comparatively speaking yet she was heavy to be born along in this manner but the stranger appeared to possess superhuman strength and moved along safely until they lost sight of him among some haystacks for which they made there he's gone into Jackson's rickyard said the landlord get up push on we may be yet in time to prevent mischief the highway men ran hard they had been out of breath for some time and could hardly move their feet but they made a sudden effort or spurt in the way they ran and in less than a minute came up to the rickyard they rushed into the yard and then beheld the stranger seated upon some partially cut hay with the helpless maiden on his lap but his fanged teeth were fleshed in her fair neck and he was exerting himself in drawing the life stream from her veins as soon as he saw the highway men rose and the unfortunate girl rolled to the earth and he started up and fled the highway men firing a parting shot after him with pretty good aim yet it took no effect the landlord's daughter was picked up warm but lifeless whether it was in consequence of her wound and loss of blood which was doubted or from sheer fright is not known but the latter was considered most probable End of Chapter 178 Chapter 179 of Varni the Vampire Volume 3 This is a LibriVox recording All LibriVox recordings are in the public domain For more information or to volunteer please visit LibriVox.org Recording by Gesine Varni the Vampire Volume 3 by Thomas Prescott Pressed Chapter 179 Can it be true and if so how horribly strange that a being half belonging to a world of spirits should thus wander beneath the cold moon and the earth bringing dismay to the hearts of all upon whom his strange malign influences cast How frightful an existence is that of Varni the Vampire There were some good points about the man we're going to say and yet we can hardly feel justified and bestowing upon him that title considering the strange gift of renewable existence which was his If it were as indeed it seems to be the case that bodily decay in him was not the result of death and that the rays of the cold chaste moon were sufficient to revivify him Who shall say then when that process is to end and who shall say that walking the streets of giant London at this day there may not be such existences Horrible thought that perhaps seduced by the polished exterior of one who seems a citizen of the world in the most extended signification of the words we should bring into our domestic circle a vampire But yet it might be so we have seen however that Varni was a man of dignified courtesy and polished manners that he had the rare and beautiful gift of eloquence and that probably gathering such vast experience from his long intercourse with society an intercourse which had extended over so many years he was able to adapt himself to the tastes and the feelings of all persons and so exercise over them that charm of mind which caused him to have so dangerous a power At times too it would seem as if he regretted that fatal gift of immortality as if he would gladly have been more human and lived and died as those lived and died whom he saw around him but being compelled to fulfill the order of his being he never had the courage absolutely to take measures for his own destruction a destruction which should be final in consequence of depriving himself of all opportunity of resuscitation Certainly the ingenuity of such a man might have devised some means of putting such an end to his life that in the perishable fragments of his body there should linger not one spark of that vitality which had been so often again and again found into existence Probably some effort of that kind may yet be his end and we shall see that Varni the Vampire will not, like the common run of the world's inhabitants be changed into that dust of which is all humanity but will undergo some violent disruption before ever blotted out from the muster role of the living creatures that inhabit the great world But to cease speculating on such things and to come to actual facts we will now turn over another leaf in this strange eventful history of Varni the Vampire One stormy inclement evening in November a travelling carriage draggled with mud and dripping with moisture was driven up to the door to the London Hotel which was an establishment not of the very first fashion but of great respectability situated then in Burlington Street close to old Bond Street then the parade of fashion and, as some thought, elegance Although we of the present day would look with risability upon the costumes that were the vogue although the period were but fifty years ago but fifty years effect strange mutations in dress, manners and even in modes of thought The Écoupage if not of the most dashing character was still of sufficiently aristocratic pretensions to produce a considerable bustle in the hotel and the landlord after seeing that there was a coronet upon the panels of the carriage door thought it worth his while personally to welcome the guests who had done him the honour of selecting his house These guests were considered of an oldish man and woman a young man of frivolous and foppish exterior of about twenty-two years of age and a young lady who was so covered up in a multitude of shawls that but little of her face could be seen but that little was sufficient to stamp her at once as most beautiful The whole party evidently paid great court to this young lady but whether they did so from affection or from some more interested motive it would not be proper just now to say as those facts will come out before we have proceeded far in this little episode Mind how you step, Annette said the old gentleman as the young lady descended the carriage Mind how you step, my dear Oh yes, yes said the old lady who was not so very old either although entering upon the shady side of fifty Yes, oh mind, my dear, how you get out The young lady made no reply to all these kind injunctions but pushing aside the prophet arm of the younger gentleman she tripped into the hotel unaided The old lady instantly followed her Now Francis said the old gentleman to the servant who got down from the rumble of the travelling carriage Now Francis you perfectly recollect, I hope what my brother Lord Lake said to you Yes, sir said Francis but there was not the most respectful intonation in the world in the voice with which he returned the affirmative You remember continued the old gentleman You remember Francis that my brother told you you were to wait upon us just the same as upon himself with the carriage Oh yes Oh yes What do you mean by saying oh yes to me Do you want me to say oh no Francis this won't do you are discharged That for you and the discharge too said Francis as he snapped his fingers in the face of the old gentleman I never meant to serve you Mr. Lake I'm Lord Lake's groom but I ain't going to be turned over to a canting fellow like you so you have only took the words out of my mouth for I meant to discharge myself and so will George Yes reply the coachman what is it Are we going to be at the back and call of Jonathan Lake See him damned first was the laconic reply of the coachman Now Mr. Lake added Francis you know what we think of you you as a humbug we only came so far because we wouldn't put Miss Annette our young lady to the inconvenience of a post chase while my Lord her father's carriage here was so much more comfortable we shall take that to the coachmakers where my Lord's other carriages are standing till he comes to England and then you won't see us no more you rascals oh go on you're a humbug ain't you George oh a wriggler one a numbug he is said the coachman and what's more we don't believe a word of all what's been going on Lady Annette is Lady Annette bless us sweet eyes come on Francis I'm wet and I'm damp said Francis as he shook himself and made as much splashing round him as a great newfoundland dog who has just had a bath I'm ready now Mr. and he knows our minds and we ain't the sort of folks to alter them we serves our master but we doesn't serve a humbug some of the waiters at the hotel had come to the door to hear this rather curious colloquy and not a little surprised were they at it at all events whatever other effects it had upon them it did not increase their respect for the new arrivals and one of them named Slopp ran after the carriage and called out to Francis I say I say well what I say young fellow just tell me where you will be staying and I'll come and see you and stand a glass Francis lent over the roof of the carriage and said George, George here yeah said George he's one of the waiters at the hotel wants to make an acquaintance it won't be a bad thing to know him as you see he can tell us all about Lady Annette and what the ladies are doing what do you say to it George a good idea Francis very well hello what's your name old fellow Slopp, Solomon Slopp they called me well you can come any evening to the King's Head in Wellbeck Street you'll find either me or George and we always likes good company and shall be very glad to see you whenever you like suppose you say tomorrow I will I will tomorrow I can come easily at eight o'clock so you may expect me good night good night Slopp pleasant evening ain't it drive on George I shall be in an egg you presently come back to you and let's get a change of things whatever you do I never was so wet I do think in all my life nor me nor me said George who would will be perceived was not very particular about his grammar but that didn't matter much he was paid for a knowledge of horses not of moods, tenses and cases leaving the servants then of Lord Lake as they had announced themselves to be let us return to the hotel the family party had by this time got into comfortable enough quarters as far as the landlord of that establishment was concerned Mr. Lake had won him over completely by ordering the best rooms as supper as good as the house could afford regardless of the price the best wines and altogether showed a right royal disposition as regarded expenditure but the waiters who had often found by experience that the most extravagant people for them did not forget what had passed at the door and many a whispered Sir Maize passed from one to the other regarding the circumstances that had induced the coachmen and groom to treat the family so very cavalierly and so obstinately to decline serving them when Slopp returned he got some of his companions round him in the hall I shall know all about it I'm to go and take a glass with them to-morrow night on the street and you see if they don't tell me what it's all about I wouldn't miss knowing for a trifle nor me nor me well I'll of course tell you all when I come back you may depend upon it it's something worth knowing have you seen the young lady any of you I caught just a look of one eye and the end of her nose and I should say she's an out and outer and no mistake end of chapter 179