Subj: Quentin's Thoughts and Barnabas' Demise XIV
Date: 5/27/99 11:42:22 AM Central Daylight Time
From: Mysterious Millicent
Quentin's Thoughts and Barnabas' Demise XIV
Inside Collinwood..........
Beth shut the bedroom door. Good. Jamison was sleeping peacefully. Thank goodness for that. She walked down the hall and headed towards the door that led downstairs. She stopped suddenly and then staggered over towards the wall, putting her hand on it for support. She lowered her head and began to breathe heavily. This lasted for a few minutes, and then she slowly straightened up.
She looked down the hall staring for a few minutes. Then she walked over to a mirror on the wall and glanced at the reflection. {Good! The transfer was successful! Now I can find out what is going on here with Quentin.} As she walked down the hall, she found it wonderful to be able to walk tall and proud, without being so bent over! Youth was wonderful. She continued down the hall and through the door that led to the large staircase. She descended the stairs and walked towards the drawing room. There was Aristede pacing back and forth. She walked into the drawing room. Aristede wheeled around, and seeing Beth walked over to her and put his arms around her.
"So, is Jamison alright?" he said as he looked down at Beth with interest.
{So, this is why Aristede strayed away from Petofi! He has a new love interest. Well, so be it. I will make use of this, and have fun at the same time!}
"Yes. He was sleeping peacefully in his bed." Beth replied. Then looking up at Aristede she smiled.
"Good! That is something to be thankful for!" Aristede said smiling. And he tightened his grip around Beth a bit.
Beth smiled up at Aristede and said, "That is not all to be thankful for, Aristede." And she put her arms around his neck and pulled his face towards her and kissed him. It was a very passionate kiss. Much more so than Beth should have given him. Aristede at first was caught up in the moment, but suddenly broke from the kiss and Beth. He looked at her with scrutinizing eyes. "I am glad you are so grateful, Beth. Are you alright?"
{Oh dear. That was too quick. I thought they were more involved. I must be careful what I do} Beth turned red and backed away from Aristede. "I...I.. I'm sorry Aristede. I don't know what happened. I just wanted to thank you."
Aristede looked at Beth suspiciously. This didn't act like Beth. But then, she is on edge, and the gesture was most appreciated. So he simply shrugged it off and let it go. "You're most welcome, Beth. And I do want to help you all I can."
{Good. He accepted it. I must be more careful.} thought Beth/Tabitha. She walked towards the fireplace. "I am really worried about Jamison. I wonder what Petofi will do?"
"Whatever his Excellency does, you can be sure it will be sneaky and quite convenient for him." Aristede said still watching Beth intently.
She said in a voice that seemed full of concern. "I hope that we can know when Petofi does act. Jamison can be unpredictable at times."
Aristede nodded his understanding. "Then we will have to watch him very carefully." And added, "But you know him and I don't."
Beth almost chuckled to herself, {Of course you don't you stupid man. You have only been in Collinsport a short time. And even if you were here for years, you still wouldn't know him.} She turned around and faced Aristede. "I am glad that you are here to help me, Aristede. It helps. Quentin needs our help."
Aristede smiled and said, "I will always be here for you Beth. Always."
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The Old House Drawing Room........
Rachel slowly opened her eyes and took a few minutes
to focus. At first she wasn't sure where she was, or who it was that was looking
down at her. Then she realized she was at the Old House and the woman looking
at her was
Magda.
"Magda. What happened to me?" Rachel asked as she began to sit up.
"You fainted. You had a big shock." Magda answered.
Rachel suddenly stood up, weaving for a few seconds but then straightening up. "I remember! The monster was here! I saw it."
Magda looked at Sandor, who was equally concerned. He walked towards Rachel and said. "Yes, you saw the werewolf."
Rachel looked at Sandor with inquizative eyes. "Werewolf? I have read of such things." Then she remembered more. "Quentin! Quentin is the monster? No!"
"He was placed under a curse Rachel. It is not his fault." Magda said quickly. They knew that Rachel could become a big help and they also knew that she was much stronger than she appeared. Both Magda and Sandor could sense her strength and wisdom and knew also that she could be trusted.
Rachel looked at Magda and said, "Do you know who put the curse on him?"
Magda walked away a bit uneasy. "I did. He killed my sister, and I wanted to punish him for that."
Rachel looked at Magda suspiciously, "Killed your sister? Why?"
Magda took a deep breathe and related the story to Rachel of Jenny, her sister who was not content to live as a gypsy and wanted to live with "normal" folk. She told her how Jenny met Quentin, they fell in love and married. And then Quentin began to run around on Jenny and hurt her and Jenny went mad. But before her madness set in, Quentin left Collinwood with Edward's wife Laura, shaming her but not knowing that she was pregnant with his children. Later, Jenny had two children, a boy and a girl, of which the boy eventually died. But the daughter still lives. Magda told Rachel that she placed the curse on Quentin when she knew that Quentin had killed Jenny. It wasn't until later that she found out Jenny had tried to kill Quentin, but he was too strong for her, and it was self-defense. And she also realized too late that she had placed a curse not only on Quentin, but on Quentin's children which were also of gypsy blood.
Magda waited for Rachel to absorb all that she had told her, then she walked over to the stairs and picked up the wooden box. "But I have brought something with me that will cure Quentin."
Rachel looked at the box and said, "What is that? What is in there?"
"The Hand of Count Petofi!" Magda said with pride. "He was once a werewolf as Quentin is. He came to the gypsies looking for a cure, and got it. But he had to pay the price for the cure. After Marta Julianka cured him, King Stefano Romano ordered the removal of his hand as payment!"
Rachel looked at the box. "Why is the hand so special?"
"Because it has powers of the black arts. It can cure the werewolf in Quentin."
Rachel suddenly got up from the chair and ran towards the door. Magda called out after her, "Where are you going Rachel?"
"To find Quentin! He must come back here, so you can cure him." Rachel said quickly and ran out the front door.
"Rachel, wait! You have not protection from the werewolf!" Magda had reached the front door, but now realized it was too late. Poor Rachel, she will become another of Quentin's victims!