Subj: Shadows Return Chapter 13
Date: 6/8/99 8:17:37 PM Central Daylight Time
From: Kim Monroe

The storm at Collinsport was mainly torrential rain that beat mercilessly on the man out in the horrible night. Occasionally a bolt of lighting would illuminate the path on which he was taking. The woods in Collinwood were overgrown, and in each of the shadows, Fox Mulder felt as though someone or something was standing there watching him. He ran blindly, trying to see, but the night hid everything, like there was a blanket tossed over his eyes. A dog collar and leash were in his hand, and he was deeply regretting the suit and dress shoes he was wearing. Mulder slid, falling hard on the ground. He sat up, and reached out and grabbed at something to help pull him up. A shock ran through him, pain searing his arm. A bolt of lighting revealed that he had grabbed hold of an electric fence. He laughed at himself for a minute than slid under it. A pasture, and he saw movement. Squinting, he realized, he had hit it pretty good, cows, goat, goats, and chicken. He listened carefully, and then upon hearing goat he began to run towards them. He saw them and reached out towards one that was lying down. He tried to slap it, waking it up so he could slid the collar over its head, but instead of fur, his hand something wet and gooey.

"Shit!" he said, wiping his hand off in the grass. That did pretty much summed it up though. He grabbed a goat that was sitting nearby and dragged it toward the Old House. After that, they had went on fairly successful considering the rabbit holes, and the stubbornness a goat has. A surge of thunder that shook the ground rumbled, and a bright burst of lighting hit precariously nearby, startling the goat, sending him running the opposite direction.

Mulder, not on good footing, lurched backwards directly into a EXTREMELY large pile of cow poopie. The slick wet gooey stinky stuff covered his whole right side. He felt it on the side of his face. Mulder swore long and loud, grabbing the goat, he carried it to the Old House. On his way, through the overgrown woods, he thought of ways to kill a vampire a lot slower and more painful than staking.

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Callista Blair was also out on this night. The rain was now blinding and she ran to the Old House, knowing the vampire was awake. She grabbed her raincoat, wrapping the book in it, she darted out into the rain, hoping that Barnabas held the answers. When the Old House came into view, she ran as hard she could towards it.The door was locked, so she pounded on it hard, her fist ached from the pounding. Barnabas sat in his chair in the drawing room, watching Scully sleep on the settee. When she stirred in her sleep, the puncture wounds were very obvious. That wasn't his intention, nor was it hers after Mulder's interruption anyway. Barnabas was still hungry, but has already taken too much from Scully. He was still in his reverie when the incessant pounding brought him out of it. He opened the door and a drenched Callista ran in, clutching her raincoat. "Barnabas, I have to know, are you my father?" she asked trembling from the cold, the exhaustion, and fear.

"Nicholas is your father, what on earth would make you think that I was your father?" Barnabas asked, removing his cape and sliding it around her shoulders.

"Jeremiah," she gasped, her words spoken in short broken phrases "and it was in Quentin's handwriting. I know, Jeremiah said so!"

Barnabas looked concerned, "Callista, have you, er, been smoking something, or doing something," he began uncertainly.

"No, no Barnabas, this book. Jeremiah led me to Rose Cottage, somebody is staying there. They had a bag of books, and Jeremiah had this one looking at it, then he shoved it in the back, I grabbed it and ran." She unwrapped the book and opened it to the family tree. Barnabas read it then looked at her. The hazel eyes, the hair that had originally been a few shades darker than Angelique's, the fact that she looked more like Barnabas and Angelique's child would.

He held her, "Callista, I will not let Nicholas harm you. As your father, I will protect you, and be a better father than mine was."

"I know you're a vampire, and it's my fault, it's all my fault. I pushed Nicholas to far, I caused him to...."

Barnabas was shocked, how could Angelique have let that monster raise his child. He held his daughter in his arms. She broke off her rambling, at that time, a horrible smell entered the room. Scully, awoken by the young woman's noisy entrance, had listened, then sat up. She scrunched her nose up. Callista also made a face. "It smells like, like cow poopie."

Scully laughed, the young woman, a college grad, sat around saying things like cow poopie.

Fox Mulder walked in, depositing the goat at Barnabas's feet. "I swear, if you ever........" Fox began angrily.

"Mulder, is that your new girlfriend? She's so pretty." Scully said snidely.

Callista smiled, "And your cologne, it's so sexy, I bet all the other goat wish they had gotten your love. And I know that a man who likes "herbal" soaks is bound to be hit."

Scully laughed, turning her head to see Mulder better. Callista paled, seeing the marks, "Mr. Mulder? I don't think we've met, I'm Callista Collins, Barnabas' daughter."

She extended her hand and smiled. 'Not bad,' she thought, not bad at all' giving him the once over. "Scully, are you alright?" Mulder asked, observing how tired and pale she looked. When he moved closer to Scully, she kicked him hard in a sensitive place.

"Stay away from me, Mulder!" she looked adoringly at Barnabas. Barnabas wasn't even paying attention to her. Instead he was looking at Callista. Scully sighed, 'Maybe, when they leave,' she began to think. Callista smiled at Mulder. "I think I'll spend the night at Collinwood, I have a lot of explaining to do, and if Mr. Mulder wouldn't mind, he could escort me there?" she looked at Mulder with a pleading look. Quentin had taught her the importance and secrets of winning a man's heart, and she never forgot it.

"I don't mind, I doubt if she kicks like an ass!" he shot towards Scully.

"Goodnight, Dr. Scully. Goodnight, Father." hugging her father tightly, she turned to leave.

After a few minutes, Barnabas picked up the goat and went out.

Scully rolled over on the settee, 'He might make me his bride,' she thought,'and at one point in time, I loved Mulder. Well now, he can go to Hell. I have Barnabas, and he loves me. And I will be his bride.' She got up and glanced at the pictures of his two most prominent loves, Josette and Julia.

"Josette, you were a fool and moron to run away from him. And you Julia, just had bad timing, well he's mine now," she stated smugly.

As said that, the chandelier shook hard, and the candles flickered. The smell of flowers became almost sickening. It wasn't jasmine, it was just flowery and nauseating.

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"How can we stop him?" Mulder asked Callista.

"I don't know, Mulder, I've never seen him like this before, and I doubt it will have a Leave it to Beaver ending."

Mulder laughed, then paused, he knew he tread dangerous ground when he asked something personal, but he had to know. "Callista, I was wondering, you stabbed yourself, why? I mean, Barnabas is a vampire, but he can't be that bad,"

She turned, "It wasn't Barnabas, it was my brother Jacob. I think you should hear my explanation at Collinwood, but Scully is my concern right now."

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Willie Loomis was coming downstairs at Collinwood when he heard someone knock at the front door. He opened it, and found a wooden jewelry box, and two leather pouches sitting on the mat outside. A card on top read Callista Collins' in delicate spidery handwriting. Willie carried them in sat them in the room Callista used sometimes at Collinwood. Outside, a red-haired ghost smiled, her work for tonight was done.