Subj: What if Julia Instead of Vicki? ch. 5
Date: 5/22/99 4:53:35 PM Central Daylight Time
From: Beverly LaCroix

Confrontations

1967 The Old House

"David! Roger, what a pleasant surprise!" Barnabas exclaimed.

"Barnabas, I hope you don't mind us barging in here, but we were worried about you. We haven't seen you since the seance. Are you okay?" Roger asked sincerely.

"Why, yes, Roger. Why wouldn't I be?" Barnabas answered with false cheerfulness.

"David! What are you doing?" asked Barnabas, as he watched David going through the cellar door.

"David, come here at once!" Roger cried, following his son through the door, and down the stairs.

"Barnabas! What is this?" Roger yelled from the cellar.

Barnabas feeling trapped as he heard Roger's question, knowing they had found his secret, feeling threatened, his eyes changed to red, and his fangs descended, and with a whoosh of air he was in the cellar.

1795 The Old House

Julia felt helpless to do anything as she watched the horrifying events unfold around her. She knew that Angelique had been very busy while she had been entertaining Nathan in Collinsport. At that thought her mouth curled upwards in a smile.

"Aaah, a woman with a secret," she heard the voice of the Countess, and she felt the irritation coursing through her.

"Oh, why do you say that?" Julia asked innocently.

"The look in your eyes, the pleased look on your face," the Countess shot back.

Laughing nervously, hand at her throat, Julia said, "that's nonsense."

"WHO do you think you are talking to, Ms. Hoffman? I've been suspicious of you since you performed that black magic on Barnabas. You may fool these people in this backward place, but I warn you, I know what you are." the Countess retorted.

"Oh, that's just silly," Julia mumbled and made her way up the stairs to find Sarah.

She had to be careful. She may think of the Countess as a silly and foolish woman reading her tarot cards as if she had some kind of power to read a person's future, but she was a formidable, and could be powerful enemy. The word "witchcraft" was being whispered, and Julia didn't want to be the one accused if this type of hysteria got started. She had read all about the Salem Witch Trials, and wasn't foolish enough to believe that it couldn't happen again. And thinking of that brought her mind back to what was going on between Jeremiah and Josette. She had watched Josette the night before walk wantonly into Jeremiah's room. Well, maybe I should just let her go ahead and marry him, that's what the family history said happened. Oh,
I should have gotten Barnabas, that would have been so much fun just to see the look on his smug face, watching his precious Josette walking nearly naked into his Uncle's room. Julia laughed wickedly at the thought of the look on that monster's face in 1967 if he had seen that. Stop it, Julia, think.

Julia knew two things, one, she was running out of cigarettes since she had introduced them to Natie, and she didn't know if there was such a thing in this time. Maybe snuff would work. Oh yuck thought Julia. Well, you never know what you will do she thought with a grimace.

Then there was Natie, she was getting as addicted to him as she was cigarettes. How could she ever presumed to have loved one as selfish as Barnabas. She shuddered at the thought of how she had humiliated herself because of her love for him. But that was before the handsome god she was becoming more and more smitten.

An idea came to mind as she was despairing over what was happening here so fast. She knew that Barnabas had once again thrown Angelique to the back of the burner when Josette had arrived, and that Angelique was like a simmering pot ready to boil. She knew what she had to do, and it would serve everyone's purpose, especially hers she thought greedily thinking of her last moments with Natie, and he had called her Hoffsie. She blushed as she found what she was looking for. Found it! "Good!" She said aloud.

Walking down to the servants quarters she walked into Angelique's room without knocking, just in time to see Angelique shove the little figures in the drawer. Julia could only guess they were supposed to be Josette and Jeremiah, because as a doctor she knew those pitchforks were not bruises, but caused by something else. Of course, they didn't know she had seen them, by accident, and that's when she noticed the oddness of their behavior, and hidden affection.

"Julia! What are you doing in here? You didn't even knock." Angelique exclaimed angrily.

Here goes thought Julia, to what should be one of the best performances of my entire life, and I haven't even had an entire lifetime yet. Julia was stabbed with fear all of a sudden, she could feel the black evil power and hate for her from Angelique. She forced herself to continue.

"Oh, I'm sorry, Angelique. I was so excited at what I found I wanted to show it to someone I knew that would appreciate the true beauty of this medallion," Julia gushed showing Angelique the round green medallion.

"Oh, it is beautiful," Angelique said reaching out to touch it.

Julia pulled it back saying, "if you look into it's center you can see the colors coming together, it is so beautiful. Look, Angelique. Do you see the colors? Look at the center".... At the sound of my fingers snapping, you will awaken, and do everything I said. But you will not remember my ever being here or ever seeing the medallion."

Julia was very pleased with herself as she put the medallion away, and went to find Sarah to begin the afternoon lessons. Smiling broadly when she saw Angelique walking out the door to search for -- Julia heard her calling the name, and she couldn't help feeling euphoric!

To be continued...