Page 27 of The Doctor and the Devil
I looked pointedly at Charlotte.
“Daphne and I have been cautious about how much we revealed to the Order ofles DD’sactivities. I regret how much of my time and energy I’ve given to them thus far, but trust that from now on, everything changes. As soon as Daphne and Étienne arrive, we’ll figure out what our next move shall be,” she insisted.
Antoine’s face darkened. “Whatever we do next, we must proceed with caution. The Order still has the ear of the king, which makes defying them akin to treason.”
Charlotte nodded. “This betrayal truly is horrible news. Both the vampires and the human peasants are already at their breaking point. If tensions increase, I fear an outright war. If only we knew more about what the Order knows and plans…it seemsles DDwill be embarking on our most dangerous missions yet.”
Worry swirled in my stomach. For so long, I’d refused to join my friends in their secret organization because I thought myself separate, somehow—neutral. It seemed I would be taking a stand after all.
“Mina,” Charlotte said lightly. “Is there anything else?”
She pinned me to my chair with a knowing look. I swallowed, the lump in my throat full of emotion.
“Ah, I do believe I’ll have some lunch after all,” Antoine offered awkwardly. He tipped Charlotte’s face up to his and kissed her softly on the lips. Her cheeks flushed pink.
“Go easy on her,” he murmured to her as he left the room.
His departure made me feel uncomfortably exposed, and I folded my arms across my chest.
“Long ago, Rafael and I were in love,” I finally admitted. “We had plans to elope, but the night we were meant to leave, Laszlo’s absence was discovered.”
Charlotte sat forward on the edge of her seat, eyes wide in surprise.
“At the time, I wasn’t aware of Laszlo’s disappearance. That night, I was told that Rafael had been found in bed with another woman. I was devastated and angry, and because of his reputation, I believed it—too readily, perhaps. When I told my father, he was furious. He packed me up and sent me back to Amsterdam the very next day. My mother considered that the end of my ambitions for becoming a physician and tried for ages after that to marry me off. It was fortunate that she gave up after a while.” Memories tightened my chest and tears threatened.
“After she and my father died, I had the time and freedom to pursue my career. I would hear occasional things about Rafael’s family, but nothing substantial. I nursed a broken heart for a long time—years. Then news of the blood plague reached me, and I knew something had gone wrong in the House of Dracul.”
“Oh, Mina,” Charlotte breathed. “I’m so sorry. I couldkillhim for what he did to you!”
I shook my head, and the tears started to spill. I dashed them away with the back of my hand, but they would not stop flowing.
“I knew it was him in the cave outside Gévaudan, Charlotte—I realized he’d been the one to turn you. I’m so sorry, my friend. I have failed you!”
Charlotte rushed over and threw her arms around me.
“Hush, Mina! You havenotfailed me. I might not have chosen this fate, but it is mine alone. And without this curse, I would not have the gifts that allowed me to save Antoine. It is not your fault!”
Her kindness only made me cry harder. “Yes, it’s my fault. My father and I should have found a way to cure the plague before it could spread. I should have gone after Rafael when I first heard about the blood plague outside Wallachia, but I didn’t. And I should have told you about him sooner.”
She wiped my tears on her handkerchief and clasped my hands.
“You’re telling me now, Mina. These things are hard things to bear alone, and it grieves me that you have had to hold them within yourself for all this time. Rafael is certainly a villain for his behavior and what he put you through. To say nothing of turning me into some sort of hellish wolf monster with a taste for flesh,” she added wryly.
“He came for me the other night,” I said. “And again when the Order tried to take me. The things he told me, Charlotte…I don’t know what to believe anymore. I don’t know what to think.”
“What do you mean?”
“He said he has returned for me. He’s loved me all this time. He revealed that the night we were meant to elope, his father found out about Laszlo and forced Rafael to stay…that if Rafael tried to run away with me, he would come after us and kill me,” I blubbered. “Rafael says that in order to protect me, he had the servants lie about him sleeping with another woman—that he wasn’t untrue to me that night.”
“Oh, what rot,” Charlotte scoffed. “That’s it, Mina—I am going to cut off his head.”
“He has been in France for almost ten years—just outside of Rouen. He has been looking for Laszlo and trying to find a cure for the plague on his own, and…” I swallowed nervously. “Waiting for the right time to make himself known to me in the hopes that we could finally be together.”
Embarrassed with the display of far more emotions than I normally allowed, I buried my face in my hands and waited for my dear friend to pass judgment. The only sounds in the room were the soft crackle of the fire in the hearth and the steady tick of the clock on the mantle. After what felt like an eternity, I peeked at Charlotte through my fingers. Her face was a curious mixture of anger, confusion, and sympathy.
“Charlotte?”
“I can’t decide if I want to cut off his head or bring him here and watch him grovel until you two can run off and rut like wild animals. Possibly both, but not in that order,” she grumbled.
