'I'm sorry, Jane,' Doctor Porter said. 'It was the only way to stop him.'
Max lay on his back, unconscious, with a bandage across his chest. His breath was shallow, and his eyes closed. Apart from the gentle rise and fall of his chest, he had not moved for hours.
'My bullet missed his heart, but pierced his left lung,' the doctor continued. 'His condition is serious.'
Jane nodded dumbly. It was hard to believe that all this had happened in such a short time. One moment, she and Max had been together. Together forever. In the next, Doctor Porter had been forced to shoot him, to stop Max from leaping to his doom.
They were able to piece together what had happened that night. Dracula must have escaped the mine and followed them back to the inn. He'd waited until all was in darkness before infiltrating their room. Max had likely stirred but was instantly mesmerised by Dracula.
Jane knew what that was like. Max would have been utterly within the vampire's control.
She did not blame the doctor for shooting Max. Could not blame Doctor Porter. If the doctor hadn't acted when she did, then dear Max would have been lost. The blame could only be attributed to one man.
One thing.
Dracula.
'Max will survive?' Jane said.
'He will. I have a doctor friend who will care for him while Eddy and I are away.'
'Away?'
The doctor's eyes narrowed. 'You remember what Max said.'
'I remember.'
Dracula wants you to go to him. He is returning to his castle in Transylvania, and he wants to meet you all there.
'I am coming with you,' Jane said.
'Jane—'
'Trying to dissuade me is a waste of breath.' Her gaze turned to Max's pale face. 'Dracula must be stopped—permanently. Neither my family nor I will ever feel safe as long as Dracula lives. He's a monster. He must be destroyed.
'Jane,' the doctor said patiently. 'His invitation is almost certainly a trap.'
'Then we must be ready.' Jane fixed the other woman with her gaze. 'I trust you can prepare us for what lies ahead.'
The doctor did not speak for a moment. Then, finally, she nodded. She knew it would have been pointless to argue.
Other than dealing with Max's poor health, there was one bright spark of joy: the return of Cassandra. Before Max, Jane's sister had been the greatest love of her life. Cassandra had also been left unwell and drained of life from her dealings with Dracula. Over the next few days, Jane nursed Cassandra back to health while Doctor Porter prepared for their departure.
For Jane, it was as if they had rediscovered each other after years. At first, she spent time with Cassandra, feeding her and taking her for walks. In the beginning, these restorative walks were brief, but by the third day, they were able to move through the township at a good pace.
It was during these excursions that she told Cassandra about Max. Her sister listened without judgment when Jane spoke of her social misdeeds. Cassandra was wise enough to know not to condemn her. What was done was done.
'When Max recovers,' Cassandra said, 'I assume you will be married.'
'It is my greatest wish.'
Cassandra hesitated.
'What is it?' Jane asked.
'And your writing?'
'I will be a married woman. I can write while being a wife and mother.'
'If that is what is in your heart…'
'It is.'
Cassandra's face brightened. 'Then I wish you good fortune. You will live happily ever after.'
'Yes.' Jane frowned. 'But first, Dracula must be hunted down and vanquished; otherwise, we will never be free of him.'
'I can come with you,' Cassandra offered.
'No,' Jane said. 'You stay here with Max. This is something I must do with Doctor Porter and Eddy. We must put a stop to this fiend for good.'
The next day, she said goodbye to Cassandra, knowing it could be the last time she saw her. It was a heartbreaking farewell, but a necessary one. Their parents needed peace in their lives after all the disruption, and having Cassandra returned to them would achieve that.
It was later that night, when Jane was packing her belongings, that she found the locket. It was jammed into the bottom of her cloak. She stared at it, uncomprehending, before realising what had happened.
He left it here, Jane thought. Dracula's done with me.
That's why he tried to kill Max. It was because she had rejected Dracula. Jane imagined what the vampire's predatory rage must have been as he stood in the quiet room in the night and watched them sleep. For centuries, he had waited for her, and here she lay sleeping with another man. How furious he must have been. Dracula must have been determined to hurt her, and he did. If she hadn't loved Max—and if he hadn't loved her—Dracula would not have sent him on his suicidal race to the cliff edge.
But none of this was her fault.
Jane knew who was to blame.
And she would make him pay.