CHAPTER XI.
THE COMMUNICATIONS TO THE LOVER.--THE HEART'S DESPAIR.
Consternation is sympathetic, and any one who had looked upon thefeatures of Charles Holland, now that he was seated with HenryBannerworth, in expectation of a communication which his fears told himwas to blast all his dearest and most fondly cherished hopes for ever,would scarce have recognised in him the same young man who, one shorthour before, had knocked so loudly, and so full of joyful hope andexpectation, at the door of the hall.
But so it was. He knew Henry Bannerworth too well to suppose that anyunreal cause could blanch his cheek. He knew Flora too well to imaginefor one moment that caprice had dictated the, to him, fearful words ofdismissal she had uttered to him.
Happier would it at that time have been for Charles Holland had sheacted capriciously towards him, and convinced him that his true heart'sdevotion had been cast at the feet of one unworthy of so really noble agift. Pride would then have enabled him, no doubt, successfully toresist the blow. A feeling of honest and proper indignation at havinghis feelings trifled with, would, no doubt, have sustained him, but,alas! the case seemed widely different.
True, she implored him to think of her no more--no longer to cherish inhis breast the fond dream of affection which had been its guest so long;but the manner in which she did so brought along with it an irresistibleconviction, that she was making a noble sacrifice of her own feelingsfor him, from some cause which was involved in the profoundest mystery.
But now he was to hear all. Henry had promised to tell him, and as helooked into his pale, but handsomely intellectual face, he half dreadedthe disclosure he yet panted to hear.
"Tell me all, Henry--tell me all," he said. "Upon the words that comefrom your lips I know I can rely."
"I will have no reservations with you," said Henry, sadly. "You ought toknow all, and you shall. Prepare yourself for the strangest revelationyou ever heard."
"Indeed!"
"Ay. One which in hearing you may well doubt; and one which, I hope, youwill never find an opportunity of verifying."
"You speak in riddles."
"And yet speak truly, Charles. You heard with what a frantic vehemenceFlora desired you to think no more of her?"
"I did--I did."
"She was right. She is a noble-hearted girl for uttering those words. Adreadful incident in our family has occurred, which might well induceyou to pause before uniting your fate with that of any member of it."
"Impossible. Nothing can possibly subdue the feelings of affection Ientertain for Flora. She is worthy of any one, and, as such, amid allchanges--all mutations of fortune, she shall be mine."
"Do not suppose that any change of fortune has produced the scene youwere witness to."
"Then, what else?"
"I will tell you, Holland. In all your travels, and in all your reading,did you ever come across anything about vampyres?"
"About what?" cried Charles, drawing his chair forward a little. "Aboutwhat?"
"You may well doubt the evidence of your own ears, Charles Holland, andwish me to repeat what I said. I say, do you know anything aboutvampyres?"
Charles Holland looked curiously in Henry's face, and the latterimmediately added,--
"I can guess what is passing in your mind at present, and I do notwonder at it. You think I must be mad."
"Well, really, Henry, your extraordinary question--"
"I knew it. Were I you, I should hesitate to believe the tale; but thefact is, we have every reason to believe that one member of our ownfamily is one of those horrible preternatural beings called vampyres."
"Good God, Henry, can you allow your judgment for a moment to stoop tosuch a supposition?"
"That is what I have asked myself a hundred times; but, Charles Holland,the judgment, the feelings, and all the prejudices, natural andacquired, must succumb to actual ocular demonstration. Listen to me, anddo not interrupt me. You shall know all, and you shall know itcircumstantially."
Henry then related to the astonished Charles Holland all that hadoccurred, from the first alarm of Flora, up to that period when he,Holland, caught her in his arms as she was about to leave the room.
"And now," he said, in conclusion, "I cannot tell what opinion you maycome to as regards these most singular events. You will recollect thathere is the unbiassed evidence of four or five people to the facts, and,beyond that, the servants, who have seen something of the horriblevisitor."
"You bewilder me, utterly," said Charles Holland.
"As we are all bewildered."
"But--but, gracious Heaven! it cannot be."
"It is."
"No--no. There is--there must be yet some dreadful mistake."
"Can you start any supposition by which we can otherwise explain any ofthe phenomena I have described to you? If you can, for Heaven's sake doso, and you will find no one who will cling to it with more tenacitythan I."
"Any other species or kind of supernatural appearance might admit ofargument; but this, to my perception, is too wildly improbable--too muchat variance with all we see and know of the operations of nature."
"It is so. All that we have told ourselves repeatedly, and yet is allhuman reason at once struck down by the few brief words of--'We haveseen it.'"
"I would doubt my eyesight."
"One might; but many cannot be labouring under the same delusion."
"My friend, I pray you, do not make me shudder at the supposition thatsuch a dreadful thing as this is at all possible."
"_I_ am, believe me, Charles, most unwilling to oppress anyone with theknowledge of these evils; but you are so situated with us, that youought to know, and you will clearly understand that you may, withperfect honour, now consider yourself free from all engagements you haveentered into with Flora."
"No, no! By Heaven, no!"
"Yes, Charles. Reflect upon the consequences now of a union with such afamily."
"Oh, Henry Bannerworth, can you suppose me so dead to all good feeling,so utterly lost to honourable impulses, as to eject from my heart herwho has possession of it entirely, on such a ground as this?"
"You would be justified."
"Coldly justified in prudence I might be. There are a thousandcircumstances in which a man may be justified in a particular course ofaction, and that course yet may be neither honourable nor just. I loveFlora; and were she tormented by the whole of the supernatural world, Ishould still love her. Nay, it becomes, then, a higher and a nobler dutyon my part to stand between her and those evils, if possible."
"Charles--Charles," said Henry, "I cannot of course refuse to you mymeed of praise and admiration for your generosity of feeling; but,remember, if we are compelled, despite all our feelings and all ourpredilections to the contrary, to give in to a belief in the existenceof vampyres, why may we not at once receive as the truth all that isrecorded of them?"
"To what do you allude?"
"To this. That one who has been visited by a vampyre, and whose bloodhas formed a horrible repast for such a being, becomes, after death, oneof the dreadful race, and visits others in the same way."
"Now this must be insanity," cried Charles.
"It bears the aspect of it, indeed," said Henry; "oh, that you could bysome means satisfy yourself that I am mad."
"There may be insanity in this family," thought Charles, with such anexquisite pang of misery, that he groaned aloud.
"Already," added Henry, mournfully, "already the blighting influence ofthe dreadful tale is upon you, Charles. Oh, let me add my advice toFlora's entreaties. She loves you, and we all esteem you; fly, then,from us, and leave us to encounter our miseries alone. Fly from us,Charles Holland, and take with you our best wishes for happiness whichyou cannot know here."
"Never," cried Charles; "I devote my existence to Flora. I will not playthe coward, and fly from one whom I love, on such grounds. I devote mylife to her."
Henry could not speak for emotion for several minutes, and when atlength, in a faltering voi
ce, he could utter some words, he said,--
"God of heaven, what happiness is marred by these horrible events? Whathave we all done to be the victims of such a dreadful act of vengeance?"
"Henry, do not talk in that way," cried Charles. "Rather let us bend allour energies to overcoming the evil, than spend any time in uselesslamentations. I cannot even yet give in to a belief in the existence ofsuch a being as you say visited Flora."
"But the evidences."
"Look you here, Henry: until I am convinced that some things havehappened which it is totally impossible could happen by any human meanswhatever, I will not ascribe them to supernatural influence."
"But what human means, Charles, could produce what I have now narratedto you?"
"I do not know, just at present, but I will give the subject the mostattentive consideration. Will you accommodate me here for a time?"
"You know you are as welcome here as if the house were your own, and allthat it contains."
"I believe so, most truly. You have no objection, I presume, to myconversing with Flora upon this strange subject?"
"Certainly not. Of course you will be careful to say nothing which canadd to her fears."
"I shall be most guarded, believe me. You say that your brother George,Mr. Chillingworth, yourself, and this Mr. Marchdale, have all beencognisant of the circumstances."
"Yes--yes."
"Then with the whole of them you permit me to hold free communicationupon the subject?"
"Most certainly."
"I will do so then. Keep up good heart, Henry, and this affair, whichlooks so full of terror at first sight, may yet be divested of some ofits hideous aspect."
"I am rejoiced, if anything can rejoice me now," said Henry, "to see youview the subject with so much philosophy."
"Why," said Charles, "you made a remark of your own, which enabled me,viewing the matter in its very worst and most hideous aspect, to gatherhope."
"What was that?"
"You said, properly and naturally enough, that if ever we felt thatthere was such a weight of evidence in favour of a belief in theexistence of vampyres that we are compelled to succumb to it, we mightas well receive all the popular feelings and superstitions concerningthem likewise."
"I did. Where is the mind to pause, when once we open it to thereception of such things?"
"Well, then, if that be the case, we will watch this vampyre and catchit."
"Catch it?"
"Yes; surely it can be caught; as I understand, this species of being isnot like an apparition, that may be composed of thin air, and utterlyimpalpable to the human touch, but it consists of a revivified corpse."
"Yes, yes."
"Then it is tangible and destructible. By Heaven! if ever I catch aglimpse of any such thing, it shall drag me to its home, be that whereit may, or I will make it prisoner."
"Oh, Charles! you know not the feeling of horror that will come acrossyou when you do. You have no idea of how the warm blood will seem tocurdle in your veins, and how you will be paralysed in every limb."
"Did you feel so?"
"I did."
"I will endeavour to make head against such feelings. The love of Florashall enable me to vanquish them. Think you it will come againto-morrow?"
"I can have no thought the one way or the other."
"It may. We must arrange among us all, Henry, some plan of watchingwhich, without completely prostrating our health and strength, willalways provide that one shall be up all night and on the alert."
"It must be done."
"Flora ought to sleep with the consciousness now that she has ever athand some intrepid and well-armed protector, who is not only himselfprepared to defend her, but who can in a moment give an alarm to us all,in case of necessity requiring it."
"It would be a dreadful capture to make to seize a vampyre," said Henry.
"Not at all; it would be a very desirable one. Being a corpserevivified, it is capable of complete destruction, so as to render it nolonger a scourge to any one."
"Charles, Charles, are you jesting with me, or do you really give anycredence to the story?"
"My dear friend, I always make it a rule to take things at their worst,and then I cannot be disappointed. I am content to reason upon thismatter as if the fact of the existence of a vampyre were thoroughlyestablished, and then to think upon what is best to be done about it."
"You are right."
"If it should turn out then that there is an error in the fact, well andgood--we are all the better off; but if otherwise, we are prepared, andarmed at all points."
"Let it be so, then. It strikes me, Charles, that you will be thecoolest and the calmest among us all on this emergency; but the hour nowwaxes late, I will get them to prepare a chamber for you, and at leastto-night, after what has occurred already, I should think we can beunder no apprehension."
"Probably not. But, Henry, if you would allow me to sleep in that roomwhere the portrait hangs of him whom you suppose to be the vampyre, Ishould prefer it."
"Prefer it!"
"Yes; I am not one who courts danger for danger's sake, but I wouldrather occupy that room, to see if the vampyre, who perhaps has apartiality for it, will pay me a visit."
"As you please, Charles. You can have the apartment. It is in the samestate as when occupied by Flora. Nothing has been, I believe, removedfrom it."
"You will let me, then, while I remain here, call it my room?"
"Assuredly."
This arrangement was accordingly made to the surprise of all thehousehold, not one of whom would, indeed, have slept, or attempted tosleep there for any amount of reward. But Charles Holland had his ownreasons for preferring that chamber, and he was conducted to it in thecourse of half an hour by Henry, who looked around it with a shudder, ashe bade his young friend good night.