Series 7/Chapter 9: THE WITCHING HOUR

The old House dropped in temperature. The fire that roared in the fire place suddenly extinguished  in a puff of smoke ...every ember left to gray mash of ashes. A gust of cold air thrust itself into the room and blew out all the candles that were lit leaving Barnabas and his new wife in frosty darkness.

Barnabas had just been disowned by his beloved daughter Siobhan after she discovered he was a killer vampire who turned Jacqueleen into one of his own and now an even bigger threat was looming...something was killing people in Collinsport, and Barnabas saw the writing on the wall.

If word got out to the town the he had returned once again. They'd come for him.

Jacqueleen was sitting on the sofa now, unfazed by the icy breath she could  now see coming out of her own mouth. Her mind felt at ease to know that what she said allowed Siobhan to come to her own conclusions about her father's true nature. For her own sanity Jacqueleen plead the fifth.

"You vengeful harlot." The vampire said, turning towards Jacqueleen, his eyes completely black, his fangs out and ready for a bite. His anger boiling over. "You did that on purpose." he growled again.

Jacqueleen was put on guard and switched to defense mode, she hissed a hateful hiss and released her own fangs that darted out of her mouth. She jumped up on the sofa and swung her hands at him like a panther ready to strike, her sharp fingers like claws that could slice his skin open with just one swing.

"Step any closer and you'll wish you never breathed my name." Jacqueleen said with a twisted grin.

"I already do. You've done nothing but destroy my life the second you laid eyes on me and for that i wish you and the pain hell can bestow on the likes of us." Barnabas said slowly casing Jacqueleen who stood on the sofa.

The tension between Mr. and the New Mrs. Collins had come to ahead. She wanted him to feel the pain that he inflicted on her, an eternity by her side in  marriage; he wanted to be free of everything associated with this curse, but they were tied together now by fate, and she was using it to her advantage.

"I should have made sure you died the night I tasted your blood. I should have made sure there wasn't an once of it left in your miserable body. You've taken everything from me now." Barnabas growled.

"Have I? And what did you take from me but my whole life! It's gone! This is your punishment Barnabas Collins and I am your creation, yours forever, chained together.  I will never leave." She said coming down off the sofa, in a commanding show of force and grinning the vampire's grin.

Barnabas lunged at her but Jacqueleen was quicker. She was much more agile than  he and leaped over the sofa and landed behind him.

"What are you going to do? Kill me? I'm already dead." Jacqueleen taunted.

"There are ways to kill a vampire you fool. And if I get my way you'll end up with a stake in your heart in no time." Barnabas warned.

"Really? And just who is going to drive that stake into my heart dear husband? It can't be you. You'll burn up into ashes if you take the life of another vampire. And trust me, if you even attempt at getting someone else to do it I'l make sure Siobhan's life is a living hell." Jacqueleen warned.

"You couldn't. " Barnabas said trying to call her bluff.

"Oh no? What do you think will happen to her once this town discovers she's the daughter of a murderous vampire. The same man who probably killed hundreds of this very town's own citizens. Thousands maybe. Maybe even that man from last night on the lawn." Jacqueleen answered.

"I didn't kill him. I was here with you." Barnabas replyed.

"You think they're going to believe you? They'll have you locked away in your coffin again or drowned in holy water before you can even try to explain yourself. This isn't a town where people get second chances. I can sense it already with how Siobhan reacted to hearing you were blood thirsty again." Jacqueleen explained.

And as they spoke Barnabas was able to get close and lunged at her again, grabbing her arm and pulling her in close, so close he could smell her perfume all over her body.

"I should take your life right here, right now. Finishing you off forever." Barnabas said in a toothy voice.

"Do it, I dare you, just do it, you'll see...we'll be sentenced to hell together just as we are here...." Jacqueleen said looking into Barnabas' black eyes. "Make your choice, kill me and you'll die too, have someone else kill me and I'll make sure the town destroys you....Or..." Jacqueleen said pausing to feel Barnabas's breathing on her.

She closed her eyes and felt his breath on her cheek. She breathed it in, it was as close as she got in a long time to feeling rawness of another being, the human side of her needed that touch, that feeling. That breath.

"Or?" Barnabas asked waiting for her to respond.

"Leave everything be, and I will make sure Siobhan comes back and you reunite." Jacqueleen answered surprising Barnabas.

"Why? What's in this for you?" He questioned.

She pulled away from his grab, his eyes now back to normal, his fangs put away. She rubbed her sore arm and stood to the side of the room.

"What's in it for you if she and I reunite again." Barnabas repeated.

"A second chance." Jacqueleen said softly looking into her husband's suspicious face. "I know that's all you've ever wanted. I can grant." Jacqueleen said after a pause.

Barnabas looked on into the distance of the room for a second. He calmed down again and realized she was right. There was nothing else left for him to lose.

He sat back down, gave her a nod, and snapped his fingers. The snap instantly re-igniting the fire place to warm the Old House drawing room.

Jacqueleen smiled and sat back down too, but the pressure was on. If she failed to deliver Siobhan to Barnabas, she knew it was curtains.

****

As the clock continued to count the minutes towards the birth of a new day, Carolyn was wide awake in her bedroom. She had this aching feeling in  her body. The feeling that the world was off kilter, that the stars were aligned and that madness was setting in all around her. She kept thinking of her confrontation with Barnabas at the old house, and the woman he was with in the basement, the woman he said was his new wife, Jacqueleen.

She could not get the woman's face out of her head, she swore to herself she had seen that face before somewhere.

She searched through an old box left by her mother years ago, her gut was telling her to look there. She dumped all of its contents on to her bed and sorted through the various old photos and papers. She came upon a book that carried the names of just about every Collins family member that had ever lived. It was a living family tree and as she turned through its pages to see countless old photos. Memories of decades, and centuries past. The history of her whole family in one book.

Finally, she came to a page that was tuck to another. She carefully put her finger nail into the stuck papers and split them apart. And there it was, standing out like a sore thumb....a photo of the face she had been seeing in her mind...the photo of her great-grandmother Jacqueleen Walsh....the same woman she saw with Barnabas.

It was a shock. It was almost to strange to be true. Were they the same person? And as the thoughts ran through mind, she was reminded of the time period Barnabas traveled to to bring home baby Canan. It all fit together. Jacqueleen was her great-grandmother back from the dead.

Carolyn gasped and covered her mouth in shock. How could Barnabas have done this!? She thought, the reality setting in that the dead in this family never rest peacefully.

As Carolyn began to piece the identity of the woman in her mind, David quietly walked into her room.

"I saw your light on." He said in a soft voice. "What are you doing with all this stuff out so late at night?" he asked as he picked up an old picture.

Carolyn wasn't sure what to say, she grabbed the photo of their great-grandmother Jacqueleen and placed it back in the center of the book and closed it, for her it wasn't time to tell David what was happening over at the old house especially since Barnabas himself didn't seem too excited about the situation of Jacqueleen living there.

"I was just reminiscing." She said with a slight smile sitting on her bed.

"Well I'm glad you're up. I need to talk to you about Anna. I saw her just a little while ago out by the docks. I was having dinner in a restaurant and she came past the window not seeming herself. Something was off about her, and I couldn't tell right away. Actually this has been my feeling about her ever since she came to stay with us".  David said pausing for impact.

"What? What is it?" Carolyn said, concerned for her goddaughter.

"Do you think it's possible, some how, some way, that my mother could have returned?" David asked, expecting Carolyn to just laugh and blow off his strange idea.

"David, I don't understand. Laura? What does your mother Laura and Anna have to do with each other?" Carolyn asked connecting the dots on her own.

"I think Anna is my mother." David explains to Carolyn who shook her head in disbelief.
"Listen Carolyn, I know it sounds crazy but over the years we've seen how my  mom comes back and ...and she...I don't know. But I'm getting those feelings again. The same one's I used to get when I was a kid just before my mom would show up again and cause all that drama with my father. You remember don't you?" David said remembering.

"David, I've known Anna since she was just a baby, I mean how could she be Laura?" Carolyn asked.

"It's her Carolyn. I know it is. We have to find Anna and we have to make her tell us. I don't know what my mother is capable of after all these years closed up inside of Anna like this. She's very dangerous." David worried.

Carolyn got up from her perch on her grand bed and walked over to the her large window that faced the old house. Her mind began to wonder; again so many things happening all at once it was almost too much for her. She began to cry.

"Carolyn?" David said holding her by the shoulders from behind.

"David, this ....this has gone on too long. It's too much. If Anna is your mother, let's say that she is, what does she want? Why would she come back here after almost 5 decades? What's the reason?" Carolyn said sobbing into David's chest, her emotions getting the best of her.

"She wants a life. She wants her own life. It was taken from her over and over and over again and she had to keep coming back. The life she leads is an immortal one, until that burning inside of her finds it's peace she'll always come back. And of course there's me. She's always wanted to take me with her." David explained, a bit of pain squeaking past his usually strong voice.

Carolyn wiped her eyes, the stress of the day had taken it's toll on her. She walked over to her bedside and pushed all of her mother Elizabeth's papers and photos she had taken down from the closet over to the other side of the bed and lied down.

"I just want this day to be over. It has to be over." Carolyn said closing her eyes.

David could see she was exhausted. After dealing with Nick's death and Maggie's trouble with Thatcher, then finding Barnabas had returned with Jacqueleen, her great-grandmother, and now Laura was probably Anna....it was all too much.

"It's very late. I'm going to let you rest. Just sleep now." David said switching off Carolyn's bedside light.

He tiptoed back through the dark bedroom and closed the door behind him. His worry now reaching far  beyond whatever his mother was doing back in town, he now worried about Carolyn's well being.

Had she finally hit her breaking point? She was a woman of steel, the family's go-to rock. Had the rock finally crumbled?

****

Down on the first floor of the Collins' family home there was a late night knock on the great oak door. Caleb and Kat were sitting in the drawing room each having a night-cap and relaxing after a long day at work. It was odd to both of them to be receiving someone at the house so late at night. Odd, but never out of the question when it came to strange occurrences at Collinwood.

"Wait..." Kat said as Caleb got up to go to the door. "Someone was murdered on the lawn, I don't think you should just go and answer the door." Kat said as Caleb continued to make his way to the front door.

"Nick was killed by some kind of bear, hon, bear's don't knock on doors." Caleb said as he leaned down and kissed her on her forehead.

Caleb, still in his fancy grey suit from work, walked over to the door and opened it. It was Maggie.

"Ms. Evens. Is everything ok?" Caleb asked the familiar Collins family friend.

"Caleb it's so late, I know, and I'm sorry but I was hoping Carolyn was up. I need to speak with her." Maggie said feeling frantic after her conversation with Ezrabette about Thatcher roaming the town looking for her.

"It's almost 1 in the morning, she's dead asleep. Can't it wait until morning?" Caleb asked as Maggie slipped past him and stepped into the foyer turning her back to the open drawing room door.

"It's extremely urgent that I speak with Carolyn. She would understand if you woke her for me, I know she would." Maggie pushed.

"I really wish I could do that, but she's had a really awful night. She found someone on the front of the lawn brutalized by some animal. It's been all over the news...haven't you heard?" Caleb explained not knowing the full details of Maggie's relationship to the dead man Nick.

"That's what I have to talk to her about. Really, Caleb, please I can go up myself and just speak with her for a moment, she wouldn't mind." Maggie said starting towards the staircase.

"Ms. Evans, please, it's so late. I'm sure it can wait." Caleb said grabbing Maggie's arm.

Maggie was a nervous wreck. She knew Thatcher was hot on her trail. She knew he was coming for her and if she was found he'd surly expose that secret that she was still alive to her children Sebastian and Kat. It was a secret that to Maggie needed to stay dead and buried, it was also the same thing she wanted Thatcher to be: dead and buries. Only Carolyn, her partner in the plot, was too traumatized by the recent events to stay awake to help.

"You don't understand, this is urgent."  Maggie answered back.

"Maggie, if it's that pertinent to the person who died on our lawn, you should talk to my wife Kat. She's one of the detectives on the case. Hey Kat! Can you come in here." Caleb said calling for his wife and Maggie's daughter.

"NO!" Maggie said realizing she was about to get caught by the daughter who believed she was dead for almost 3 decades.

From inside the drawing room, Kat could hear there was a commotion but hadn't heard the details but once her named was called she slowly got up and made the short distance to the drawing room door the flowed into the open foyer.

Maggie tensed up and kept her back towards Kat still facing Caleb, her face frozen in fear that she was about to be exposed.

"Is everything alright?" Kat asked from the door.

"Ms. Ev--" Caleb began before being interrupted by Maggie.

"You're right. I should go. Please have Carolyn call me the very second she wakes up, Caleb. Please." Maggie said as she started for the front door.

"Wait a minute, you just told me how important and urgent it was to talk to Carolyn because it had something to do with the dead guy Nick, Kat can help." Caleb said blocking Maggie's path.

"Caleb, I think I should go. I've already upset the evening enough. It's been a long night for me too." Maggie said clutching her purse tightly as the nerves in her hands wound tighter and tighter like the loop of a hangman's noose.

"Are you sure?" Caleb asked looking deep into Maggie's green eyes.

"If it's alright with you, I can just..." Kat began as Maggie interrupted again.

"No it's fine. Thank you." Maggie said stopping short of turning around to be seen by her own daughter.

Maggie broke free from Caleb's grasp and darted for the door, her back still towards Kat.

Maggie opened the great oak door allowing the darkness of the night to swallow her whole. And once the door closed behind her she fell back upon it and let out a giant breath of air as if she had been holding in the whole time. Kat did not see her face. Her secret was still safe...for now.

Maggie's biggest fear was creeping up on her, if they all discovered the truth, that she was alive, her ex Thatcher would  make all their lives a living hell Thatcher was still out there...searching for her. To stay "dead" Maggie would protect her children from his return and abuse, if found alive he'd surly wreak havoc on them all.

She was undeterred. Thatcher had to die. Some way. Some  how.

"What in the world was that about?" Kat asked inside after Maggie left.

"I can honestly say I have not a single clue." Caleb with a silly grin as he walked up to Kat and hugged her.

"Who was she?" Kat asked laying her head on Caleb's chest.

"Just an old family friend. She's been through a lot over the years. She was once my dad's governess, and Barnabas kind of had a thing for her and ...well...let's just say she's connected to us forever." Caleb said lifting Kat's face towards his and kissing her lips slowly.

She smiled and closed her eyes savoring the moment and they drifted together upstairs to bed.

****

3am. The witching hour. 

Anna and Sebastian were still laying on the floor of his apartment in Collinsport. He slept long and deep after his night of horror killing three Fisherman down at the wharf for Anna's locket...the locket that needed souls to release the phoenix inside of her, the phoenix Laura Collins.

Sebastian's clock on the wall chimed marking the hour. Anna opened her eyes and shifted her weight over noticing her new lover Sebastian right next to her, his arm carefully pulled over her body holding her tight. 

Her locket began to glow again, the sign Laura was ready again for him to take more lives for her release.

"He's sleeping. Please." Anna said to the locket in her hand. 

It began to heat the skin of her palm, another signal that Anna's power over her own life was no match for Laura's controlling nature, the two had battles all of Anna's life over who was in control and at what times. 

Anna knew Laura's powers and knew that she could not win. She nudged Sebastian and woke him up.

"You have to go again. Sebastian, it's time." Anna said with sorrow in her eyes.

"I can't, I can't do this again. Please." Sebastian said in a sleepy voice.

"You have to. Once she has what she wants I'll be free of her too, you're the only one that can do this Sebastian." Anna said kissing Sebastian's lips.

"You don't know what it's like taking these lives. You don't know!" Sebastian begged.

Anna looked at him with sympathy and again knew neither of them had control of the situation, this was Laura's show and Sebastian and Anna were just players.

"It'll all be over soon." Anna said grabbing his handsome face with both hands, their bodies still locked together on the living room floor.

"And then what? Can we actually be together after all this is over?" Sebastian wondered.

"We will." Anna confirmed then kissing him on the lips.

"How can you be so sure? How can you look at me the same way again after all the things I've done?" Sebastian said in a hushed voice.

"It's time." Anna said looking down at her locket.

The locket began to glow again, stronger and stronger. Heat radiated from around Anna's neck ad began to seep out into the air. Sebastian jumped up from the floor where he was laying as the heat from Anna's locket swirled around him like a red hot fog.

And before he could even understand what was happening he was the monster again, prepared to threaten the people of Collinsport. 

Anna's eyes were red as fire, her hair was blowing as the swirling heat from the locket surrounded both of them her, mind went into the wolf's with laser precision and gave him his next directions.

"Find another soul to release me, wolf. Kill and give me the life-force I need to live again and take my son from this place." Laura's voice said from Anna's mouth.

Sebastian, in mid transition could feel Laura the phoenix bursting into his mind. He tried to push her our but it was too much. The control she had over Anna was powerful, but the control she had over him was even more.

As Laura's orders filled the wolf's mind he howled a bone chilling howl and dashed out of an opened window into the cold spring night leaving Anna in the swirling hot light from the locket around her neck. Laura's obsession with her son David, grown now and a grandfather himself, was about to become a danger for the entire town of Collinsport.

****

As the night finally began to turn to day, Maggie made her way home to the Evans' family cottage. She stepped up to her front door and heard the  howl of a beast somewhere in the distance. She turned and looked over her shoulder and saw just an empty street behind her, yet the howl, still chilled her blood.

She turned her key and made one step onto the front step, suddenly a hand came from behind and covered her mouth while another hand pulled her close at the waist.

"You make one sound, and I swear I'll snap your neck. Go inside." The voice said.

Maggie nodded in agreement and pushed the door open. She recognized the voice. She knew exactly who it was. It was her ex husband Thatcher, finally meeting her face to face after all these years.

The two ex's went into the house. Maggie, still muzzled by Thatcher's hand, turned on the lights and Thatcher pushed Maggie then let go of her.  He closed the door behind him turned around.

They were now face to face.

"What took you so long. I've been in town for years. I guess you've lost your touch." Maggie said teasing him wickedly.

"Oh have I? I don't make it habit looking for dead people. You're dead aren't you? At least thats what everyone's been telling me for the past 30 years." Thatcher said coming close to Maggie who backed away slowly leading her to back up into one of her father's paintings on an isle.

"What do you want?" Maggie asked feeling trapped.

"You. My kids. Everything you took from me. You took everything from me and I want it back." Thatcher demanded.

"You don't deserve those beautiful kids, they've thrived without you. Do you hear me? They've thrived. Everything you ever did was for you, you didn't care about them ever, and you know it. The best thing I did was give those kids to Ezrabette and make sure you never had any conta--" Maggie said as Thatcher interrupted.

"You are crazy. They said you were, and at first I  didn't believe those nurses over at Windcliff, I didn't I can honestly say I didn't. But you know what, you are. It makes me kind of laugh. When we first met you told me all these things about your past and all these crazy Collins family horror stories that you were involved in. I thought you just liked to make up some fun stories but no....you're insane. You're really insane. I should just have you put away again." Thatcher said infuriating Maggie.

"If you only suffered half the things I  suffered in my past, you would't be saying that." Maggie answered back as she slowly moved around the room to a where a desk was.

Thatcher followed.

"Is that so?" Thatcher asked getting closer to her again.

Maggie was backed up against the desk. A desk that she knew well. As she faced Thatcher her hands felt around the surface of the desk behind her looking for something she knew was there. A pen. A a few bits of paper work, then the answer. A letter opener.

Maggie grabbed the handle of the letter opener and swung it around pointing it at Thatcher.

"And what are you going to do? Slit my throat? Go ahead. Kill me. See what happens." Thatcher said walking closer to Maggie.

"You're evil. Pure evil. The things you've done ....you deserve only pain and suffering just like you did to me." Maggie said still pointing the letter opener at Thatcher.

Thatcher moved closer and closer. The deep purple sky peeked through the large window behind Maggie and on the other side of the desk. The bushes outside that window shook taking Thatcher's attention off of Maggie.

Maggie swung the letter opener and it sliced Thatcher across the cheek.

"You bitch." He slurred instantly putting his hand to his bloody face wound.

He pulled his right hand back towards his ear, Maggie braced for the impact of the back of his hand and as he his large chest took a deep breath and was about to swing down the werewolf Sebastian crashed though the window from behind knocking Maggie down to the ground.

The wolf landed on Thatcher tearing at his flesh. Maggie screamed and backed away from the beast. She crawled to the other side of the room and hid her eyes from the bloody scene.

The werewolf was not just any werewolf of course, it was Sebastian devouring his own abusive father Thatcher.

Maggie stayed on the floor behind the sofa shaking in fear. She covered her ears to muffle the sounds of Thatcher being torn apart.

Then there was silence.

The wolf walked around the sofa and found Maggie in the fetal position. She opened her eyes and looked at the wolf in front of her.

He did not strike at her and when their eyes met, she could sense something calming, something warm. It was almost like she had seen those eyes before, like they had looked at her lovingly at one point. But of course they had, they were the eyes of her very own son Sebastian.

He sniffed at her. She looked at him. Their eyes still connected. He howled another murderous howl. Maggie reached out to touch his face but he leaped off like a flash to escape the rising sun. He jumped out of the window he broke leaving Maggie on the floor frozen in her emotions.

Sobbing and terrified of what just happened she made her way over to the phone and dialed.

****

As the morning sun began to warm the frosty night over, the red and blue lights flashed at the docks. Out of a police car ca me Detective Loomis McGovern and Detective Kat Banning-Collins. 

The crime scene tape was everywhere. Three bodies were being looked over by investigators.

"What we have here?" Loomis asked the other police.

"Looks like the same thing got these guys as the guy up on the Collins estate lawn." The cop said.

Loomis looked over at Kat. She looked back uncomfortably. 

Then his cell phone rang.

"McGovern." Loomis said answering the phone. His face turning pale in the dawn light.

"What is it?" Kat asked sipping from  her early morning coffee.

"You sure?" Loomis asked the caller. "Yes, she's here with me." He said again.

"What is it?" Kat asked again as Loomis hung up his call.

"Looks like whatever got these guys and the guy on your lawn got someone else. but Kat I need you to say calm." Loomis said.

"Why? What's happened?" Kat asked, the fear in her eyes beginning to show.

"It's your dad Kat. Your dad's been killed." 

The morning sun peeked through the clouds and warmed Kat's chilly face then a single tear fell from her eye as the red and blue flashing lights of the police cars shined on her face.