Chapter 33
The smell of the damp rocks of the church foundation and the earth of the cellar floor blended with the scent of whale oil candles and mingled with the odor of ink after Amy opened the pot to compose the letter the vampires hoped would rid them of the suspicious Reverend Williams. As usual, Ruthie and Amy were groomed and dressed for the evening before Susie emerged from her coffin. Ruthie read her Bible while Amy dreamed of her future reunion with Robert as they waited for Susie. Now that Susie had finished her primping they were ready to begin.
"So, we've agreed on what we shall write," Amy dipped the pen into the ink, "but where should we send the good Reverend?"
"We could send him to California to preach to the gold miners," Susie suggested, "the trip there would take him months. The return trip would take months as well, provided he returns at all."
"He may not have enough money to return if he spends all his money to get there," Ruthie added.
"Let's hope that would be the case," Amy said, "We don't want him to return at all. Then we would need another plan to rid ourselves of him again."
"Yes," Susie agreed, "we need to be rid of him permanently."
"Do you think he would risk such a long trip without knowing anything about where he's going. Or who is inviting him?" Amy asked.
"Maybe this isn't such a good plan after all," Ruthie said, "how will we know whether he accepts the offer or not. What will we use as a return address?"
"I never thought of that!" Amy set the pen on the table and sighed.
"We can invite him to a false address in a closer state," Susie suggested, "perhaps New York or Pennsylvania. Ask him to leave immediately because of the urgent need of his services. Then if he is still here in a day or two, we know he declined the offer."
"That may work," Amy sounded hopeful.
"It might," Ruthie agreed, "we can write that this false person in another state read a copy of the newspaper article describing his opinions about the suspicious murders. We can say these suspicious murders are being experienced there too and they need his help in exposing the murderer."
"Or," Susie said, "they have captured the murderer who seems to be overpowered by demons and the Reverend's help is needed in ridding the man of his demons."
"How could he resist such an offer?" Amy said excitedly.
"That might not rid us of him permanently, though," Ruthie pointed out, "as soon as he realizes he's been tricked he will come back to not only search for who tricked him, but he'll continue his search for the killer, especially when he discovers even more of his congregation are dead."
"Winter will be here by then and the freezing weather blamed as the cause of death for those men," Amy replied.
"That's what the authorities will assume, at least," Susie said, "The Reverend may still be suspicious of murder."
"At least we will be rid of him long enough to devise a new plan," Amy began to write, " Robert will most assuredly have returned by that time and he will know what to do."
After the ink dried Amy folded the letter into an envelope addressed to Reverend Williams at the City Hotel. The three vampires left the lair with the letter hidden under Amy's cloak until they could find a way to deliver it to the Reverend without being noticed.
"Remember when you stole the bread from the kitchen of another hotel?" Ruthie asked Amy, "Maybe that's how you can deliver the letter. Instead of taking bread you leave a letter."
"Why would you need bread?" Susie asked Amy.
"We needed to feed the pirate that we rescued from jail," Amy replied, "we told you about the pirate, didn't we?"
"Oh, yes," Susie recalled, "you didn't tell me how you fed her though."
"Well, that's how," Amy said, "in fact it was the hotel where you were working as a barmaid."
"I'd rather not be reminded of that," Susie groaned, "That was a terrible situation."
"Worse than the situation you're in now?" Ruthie asked.
"Yes," Susie replied, "it was."
"That's right," Ruthie said, "you think you're more powerful than God and being a murdering sinner is a joke."
"You wouldn't know what a joke is!" Susie said in an accusing tone, "you'd rather mope around hating yourself."
"At least I have hope of going to heaven someday," retorted Ruthie, "there's no hope for you."
"I'm never going to die anyway," Susie replied, "so I need not worry about going to heaven or to hell."
"That's enough!" Amy whispered sternly, "you will draw attention to yourselves with such conversations."
"Fine," Susie said softly.
Ruthie remained silent until they reached the tree from which they had been watching for Reverend Williams to emerge from his hotel, "So, how will we deliver the letter?"
"We will wait until he departs on his evening patrol then deliver the letter to the rear of the hotel just as you suggested, Ruthie," Amy replied.
"He should be leaving anytime now," Ruthie replied.
"There he is!" Susie exclaimed as the Reverend exited the front door of the hotel, looked down the sidewalk first to his left then to his right and walked to his right as he pulled the collar of his thin coat up higher to protect his neck from the cold night air, "he's alone tonight."
"Mr. Thomas was only with him last night, then," Amy said, "we won't be overhearing his conversations tonight."
"We have work to do anyway," Ruthie said.
"We will go to the rear of the hotel a few minutes after he's rounded the corner," Amy said, "he will surely be far enough away not to be seen by him by then."
"I do hope this plan works," Susie said, "even though I do like my plan better."
"You're not killing a Reverend," Ruthie growled.
"No, I'm not killing a Reverend," Susie replied disappointedly.
"I think it's safe to begin," Amy announced and they left the shadow of the tree to cross the street and walk toward the corner the Reverend had recently passed. To reach the back door of the hotel, they needed to travel a block past the corner and turn west along a side street.
The wooden hotel was sandwiched between two modern brick buildings that extended higher and longer than the hotel creating a small alleyway that led to the back door of the hotel. Stacks of empty kegs from the kitchen along with other various pieces of trash littered the alleyway attracting rats, roaches and other scavengers.
"I can smell the blood of the rats here," Ruthie observed, "can't you?" she asked her companions.
"It smells delicious," Susie replied.
"Let's follow our plan," Amy said as she led them toward the dark door at the rear of the hotel, "then we can feed."
"I hope no one comes to that door," Ruthie said.
"If someone does," Susie said lustfully, "I'll have him for dinner."
Amy paused and looked at her companions, "I'll go alone while the two of you hide behind those kegs. Then if someone does happen to find us here, you can take care of him so I'm not caught and the letter is delivered."
"Fine," Ruthie agreed.
"I'll be happy to take care of anyone who happens by," Susie smiled hoping for an intruder.
Ruthie and Susie each took a position on either side of the alley crouching low behind the kegs and debris. Rats scurried past their feet and brushed against their hems as they kept their attention divided between Amy's progress and the mouth of the alley.
Just as Amy's hand reached from under her cloak to open the back door of the hotel a voice from the street echoed through the alley, "Stop there!" demanded the man who now took determined strides into the alley toward Amy. Amy's hand disappeared back into her cloak and her eyes still shielded by her hood grew wide with fear as she heard his steps approaching rapidly. As she turned to look at the intruder, Susie jumped from her place behind the kegs becoming slightly airborne in her haste. Ruthie, still secluded behind the kegs was rising to see who the intruder was. She recognized him and tried to order Susie to stop but it was too late. Susie had already sunk her teeth in
Reverend William's neck before Ruthie or Amy could intervene. In the urgency of the moment, Susie herself didn't realize who her victim was until she had drained most of his blood. Ruthie and Amy now stood in horror over Susie and her victim.
"Don't kill him!" Ruthie exclaimed as she tore Susie away from the Reverend.
"He knows us now, Ruthie!" Amy said in horror, "he knows us and now knows what we are."
"Oh no!" Susie exclaimed in remorse, I didn't see who it was before I attacked," she sat on the ground next to Reverend Williams, her cloak draped around her and partially over her victim. His hat lay several feet away in the trash of the alley, "Ruthie, I didn't mean to."
"What will we do?" Amy fretted, her eyes searching Susie and Ruthie for an answer, but they were just as dumbfounded and shocked, "we are ruined."
Suddenly Ruthie dropped to her knees and laid the Reverend's unconscious head into her lap. She raised the sleeve of her cloak and bit into her own wrist causing blood to ooze and run from the wound.
"Ruthie, no!" Amy exclaimed.
"We can't kill a man of God!" Ruthie exclaimed urgently as she forced her bloody wound into the Reverend's mouth.
"You're insane!" Susie exclaimed not understanding what Ruthie was doing.
"She's making him one of us!" Amy said to Susie who looked up at Amy in horror.
"Are you stupid!" Susie said to Ruthie, "he will be even more dangerous to us now."
"Susie's right, Ruthie," Amy pleaded, "You must stop this. It was an accident."
"He won't be a danger if he's one of us," Ruthie reasoned, "He won't be able to survive without us."
"Oh, Ruthie, no," Amy groaned.
"I cannot let him die!" Ruthie said, "we need to carry him to the lair."
"Ruthie, that is far too dangerous," Amy insisted, "he cannot know where that is."
"Let's leave him here," Susie suggested as she got to her feet.
"No," Ruthie stood holding the unconscious Reverend, "the sun will kill him."
"Unless someone finds him before morning and puts him to bed," Amy said, then added, "he will kill the first person who wakes him, if the sun in his window doesn't kill him first."
"And if he kills the person who wakes him," Ruthie said, "he will certainly be put in jail if the city men can overpower him. Then he will be tried and hung for murder. The sun would surely kill him first then."
"The entire city will know there are vampires here when he dies from sunlight," Amy added sadly, "I suppose we must take him with us."
"How will we get him there without being seen?" Susie asked, "It's quite a distance."
"I will guard him here until later when the streets are deserted," Ruthie said as she carried him behind the kegs, "then the two of you can lead the way back while I carry him."
"Fine, Ruthie," Amy agreed regretfully, "Susie will come with me to find myself a victim while we wait."
"Wait!" Susie exclaimed causing Amy and Ruthie to turn back to face her, "what if we leave him in the river like our other victims. The sun will burn his body, but his ashes will simply float away."
Amy gasped in glee, "Susie, that's a wonderful idea!" She happily spun toward Ruthie who sadly looked down at the Reverend's unconscious body by her feet.
"What do you think of Susie's idea, Ruthie?" Amy asked hopefully, "Reverend Williams will be free to go to heaven and we will regain our blood supply."
"Yes, Ruthie," Susie added, "He won't have to become a murderer like we are. That's not what you want for him, is it? To make matters worse you would have to live with him and know you were the one to transform him into a sinner."
"Only because you tried to kill him!" Ruthie angrily stepped over the Reverend to reach Susie, "how dare you try to make me feel responsible for his situation. I was trying to save his life. You're the one who tried to kill him."
"It was an accident, Ruthie," Amy softly reminded Ruthie, "Susie didn't know who he was when she attacked. She was only trying to protect me and make our plan a success."
"She was hoping for any reason to attack anyone," Ruthie accused, "she doesn't care who she kills. She just loves to kill."
"Perhaps I should have been more careful and looked closer at who I was attacking," Susie said in defense, "but what would have happened if I had recognized him while still hidden? He was quickly approaching Amy. Could she have escaped unmolested? What would he have done if he had reached her? Perhaps Amy would have been forced to kill him herself."
"That could very well have happened," Amy agreed, "I'm sorry Ruthie, but he was in the wrong place at the wrong time."
"Would you have allowed him to reach Amy?" Susie asked, "He seemed determined to identify and interrogate her."
"Oh!" Ruthie moaned and put her face in her hands, "Why did this happen?"
"I'm sorry, Ruthie," Amy said, "I hate that you're in such a difficult position."
"I'm sorry too, Ruthie," Susie said, "I truly am. I know I made a lot of jokes about wanting to kill him, but I only did so to rile you. I wasn't serious. I didn't want to hurt your feelings."
"No," Ruthie was annoyed, "you didn't mean to hurt my feelings in the church either, but you still had no trouble doing so."
Susie turned away in anger, "I'm trying to apologize to you and you mistrust my sincerity."
"We need to leave this alley," Amy said, someone else is sure to pass by soon."
"Fine!" Ruthie lifted the Reverend onto her shoulder, "one of you drape your cloak over him so he won't be recognized and I'll carry him to the river."
"Oh, thank you, Ruthie!" Amy exclaimed, "This really is the best solution."
"It's the only solution," Ruthie replied as Amy covered the Reverend with her cloak and Susie reached down to pick up his hat and hide it under her own cloak, "the two of you wanted to kill him from the beginning and now you have."