𝐂𝐚𝐫𝐩𝐞 𝐍𝐨𝐜𝐭𝐞𝐦

Act III, Scene IV

"No one but a woman can help a man when he is in trouble of the heart."
~ Bram Stoker, Dracula

___________

Color returned to the world as Lucy's corporeal body and voice returned to her. She fell back with a greedy gasp of air, feeling more drained and exhausted than she had after her turning.

Dr. Reed knelt by her side, leaning over her like a protective roof. He laid an arm around her shoulders, and she could feel that he was trembling the same as she. Lucy buried her face in his chest, clinging to him the way in which he had clung to Enola mere moments and many years ago.

She did not know how long they sat in reflective silence, before the hearth, their arms around each other. There were respects to be paid. There were wrongs to be acknowledged. As they had shared the nightmare of a memory, no words of explanation need pass between them.

"So much pain," Lucy whispered, at last breaking the silence. "So much pain you have endured."

"And no one can understand that pain quite like you can." His voice was quiet and soothing in her ear.

Lucy wrapped her arms around his torso, and together they created a cocoon of serene safety.

"You are so strong, Lucy," Dr. Reed murmured. "This guilt...your sorrow...it will fade in time. I cannot promise you salvation. Finding my own has proven a painstaking challenge. But I can promise that I will be here for you in any way that I am able, for as long as you will have me."

Lucy sighed into his chest, contented, savoring the sensation of being cradled in his arms. A drowsy calm enveloped her. The gruesome scarlet stain upon her dress was momentarily forgotten.

"Despite what you said, I think you have helped me find my salvation," she told him.

No more than an hour ago, she had been all-but determined to march herself into the sunlight the second dawn broke over the horizon, convinced that burning to ash was the only punishment befitting of her transgressions.

But now, in his arms, Lucy felt the most astounding peace.

If Dr. Reed could continue after the horrors of his past, then so too could she.

"It was an act of great bravery and fidelity to share your memories, Dr. Reed," she said. "I shan't ever forget your trust in me, nor your boundless effort to ease my guilt. You are my lighthouse on the foggy shore. My beacon. I know, without ever having met her, that Enola felt the same way. And you must know that you are not to blame for her death."

She felt him shake his head, the action rueful. He combed his fingers gently through her hair.

"There are many things I do not know," he confessed to her. "Many things of which I am and will continue to be uncertain. But one thing I can say with absolute assurance is that I had not really smiled, or laughed, or felt like there was hope in this world, until you walked into my life. There is something magically tender and untainted about you. Something alive. You have saved me in ways you cannot imagine. You are the sun after a twelve-year monsoon, Lucy."

She expelled a happy sigh. "I love hearing you call me Lucy."

"And I would love to hear you call me Thomas."

She pulled away, shifting to take in his handsome and earnest countenance. "You would?"

"I would."

Lucy smiled. "Nothing would make me happier. Thomas."

He placed an affectionate hand on her cheek and leaned forward as though he meant to kiss her again. Her heart fluttered, and she tilted her chin up to meet him.

A loud, insistent banging on the front door disrupted them before their lips could touch.

Dr. Reed shot to his feet, posture rigid.

Lucy felt panic rise inside of her. She cowered behind the sofa. "The police?"

"No. It couldn't be."

A voice shouted through the heavy door. A voice they both knew.

Dr. Reed sighed in relief and frustration. "It's Virgil. Stay here."

The physician crossed the room and went to the door, yanking it open in exasperation. "Stop that obnoxious pounding! Humans don't appreciate being awakened at this hour."

"You're lucky I took the time to knock at all!" Virgil retorted. "Where's Lucy?"

"I beg your pardon!" Dr. Reed said, affronted. "Virgil, why are you here?"

From her sanctuary before the hearth, Lucy could hear every word. Virgil's tone rang with vehemence, while Dr. Reed's was brisk.

"After I found her not at home, I tracked Lucy's scent here," the dhampir said. "Please, Thomas, I must speak with her immediately!"

"I'm afraid she is in no condition for conversation."

"You do not understand! The news I bring is urgent! It's the Marasim Alwahda!"

"The what?" Dr. Reed asked. "What are you on about?"

"The Ceremony of Unity," Virgil clarified with an exasperated huff. "I know what the third rite is. It is the Autonomy. The Nosferatu will not come for her as long as she remains bound to him by abstaining from living blood. I must speak with her at once!"

Lucy's chest constricted. Of course. The Autonomy. Just as Stoker had explained in Dr. Reed's memory.

Of course the moment she managed to purge her mind of the death she had caused, it proved to be her demise in ways she could never have foreseen.

Of course she had unwittingly performed the third and final rite. She was Autonomous now. Independent of her maker. And the properly cooked and seasoned prized pig the Nosferatu needed her to be in order to consummate their unholy union.

Lucy stood and walked to the door, presenting herself in front of Virgil.

"I'm afraid it is a little late for that," she stated.

She saw his eyes widen in shock and dismay as he took in the blood on her face, hands, and dress.

"Lucy..." the dhampir said. "Tell me you didn't."

She stared up at him, her gaze forlorn but resolute. "I did. It's done. So tell me, Virgil, what does this mean for me?"

Virgil's chest visibly deflated in a sigh. "It means, that as soon as the sun sets tonight, the Nosferatu will come for you."

~ * ~