Dracula

Shortly before ten o’clock the stillness of the air grew quite oppressive, and the silence was so marked that the bleating of a sheep inland or the barking of a dog in the town was distinctly heard, and the band on the pier, with its lively French air, was like a discord in the great harmony of nature’s silence.A little after midnight came a strange sound from over the sea, and high overhead the air began to carry a strange, faint hollow booming.

Then without warning the tempest broke.With a rapidity which, at the time, seemed incredible, and even afterwards is impossible to realise, the whole aspect of nature at once became convulsed.The waves rose in growing fury, each over-topping its fellow, till in a very few minutes the lately glassy sea was like a roaring and devouring monster. White-crested waves beat madly on the level sands and rushed up the shelving cliffs; others broke over the piers, and with their spume swept the lanthorns of the lighthouses which rise from the end of either pier of Whitby Harbour. The wind roared like thunder, and blew with such force that it was with difficulty that even strong men kept their feet, or clung with grim clasp to the iron stanchions. It was found necessary to clear the entire piers from the mass of onlookers, or else the fatalities of the night would have been increased manifold. To add to the difficulties and dangers of the time, masses of sea-fog came drifting inland—white, wet clouds, which swept by in ghostly fashion, so dank and damp and cold that it needed but little effort of imagination to think that the spirits of those lost at sea were touching their living brethren with the clammy hands of death, and many a one shuddered as the wreaths of sea-mist swept by. At times the mist cleared, and the sea for some distance could be seen in the glare of the lightning, which now came thick and fast, followed by such sudden peals of thunder that the whole sky overhead seemed trembling under the shock of the footsteps of the storm. Some of the scenes thus revealed were of immeasurable grandeur and of absorbing interest—the sea, running mountains high, threw skywards with each wave mighty masses of white foam, which the tempest seemed to snatch at and whirl away into space; here and there a fishing-boat, with a rag of sail, running madly for shelter before the blast; now and again the white wings of a storm-tossed sea-bird. On the summit of the East Cliff the new searchlight was ready for experiment, but had not yet been tried. The officers in charge of it got it into working order, and in the pauses of the inrushing mist swept with it the surface of the sea. Once or twice its service was most effective, as when a fishing-boat, with gunwale under water, rushed into the harbour, able, by the guidance of the sheltering light, to avoid the danger of dashing against the piers. As each boat achieved the safety of the port there was a shout of joy from the mass of people on shore, a shout which for a moment seemed to cleave the gale and was then swept away in its rush. Before long the searchlight discovered some distance away a schooner with all sails set, apparently the same vessel which had been noticed earlier in the evening. The wind had by this time backed to the east, and there was a shudder amongst the watchers on the cliff as they realised the terrible danger in which she now was. Between her and the port lay the great flat reef on which so many good ships have from time to time suffered, and, with the wind blowing from its present quarter, it would be quite impossible that she should fetch the entrance of the harbour. It was now nearly the hour of high tide, but the waves were so great that in their troughs the shallows of the shore were almost visible, and the schooner, with all sails set, was rushing with such speed that, in the words of one old salt, “she must fetch up somewhere, if it was only in hell.” Then came another rush of sea-fog, greater than any hitherto—a mass of dank mist, which seemed to close on all things like a grey pall, and left available to men only the organ of hearing, for the roar of the tempest, and the crash of the thunder, and the booming of the mighty bellows came through the damp oblivion even louder than before. The rays of the searchlight were kept fixed on the harbour mouth across the East Pier, where the shock was expected, and men waited breathless. The wind suddenly shifted to the north-east, and the remnant of the sea-fog melted in the blast; and then, mirabile dictu, between the piers, leaping from wave to wave as it rushed at headlong speed, swept the strange schooner before the blast, with all sail set, and gained the safety of the harbour.The searchlight followed her, and a shudder ran through all who saw her, for lashed to the helm was a corpse, with drooping head, which swung horribly to and fro at each motion of the ship.No other form could be seen on deck at all.A great awe came on all as they realised that the ship, as if by a miracle, had found the harbour, unsteered save by the hand of a dead man!However, all took place more quickly than it takes to write these words.The schooner paused not, but rushing across the harbour, pitched herself on that accumulation of sand and gravel washed by many tides and many storms into the south-east corner of the pier jutting under the East Cliff, known locally as Tate Hill Pier.

There was of course a considerable concussion as the vessel drove up on the sand heap.Every spar, rope, and stay was strained, and some of the “top-hamper” came crashing down. But, strangest of all, the very instant the shore was touched, an immense dog sprang up on deck from below, as if shot up by the concussion, and running forward, jumped from the bow on to the sand. Making straight for the steep cliff, where the churchyard hangs over the laneway to the East Pier so steeply that some of the flat tombstones—“thruff-steans” or “through-stones,” as they call them in the Whitby vernacular—actually project over where the sustaining cliff has fallen away, it disappeared in the darkness, which seemed intensified just beyond the focus of the searchlight.

It so happened that there was no one at the moment on Tate Hill Pier, as all those whose houses are in close proximity were either in bed or were out on the heights above.Thus the coastguard on duty on the eastern side of the harbour, who at once ran down to the little pier, was the first to climb on board.The men working the searchlight, after scouring the entrance of the harbour without seeing anything, then turned the light on the derelict and kept it there.The coastguard ran aft, and when he came beside the wheel, bent over to examine it and recoiled at once as though under some sudden emotion.This seemed to pique the general curiosity, and quite a number of people began to run.It is a good way round from the West Cliff by the Drawbridge to Tate Hill Pier, but your correspondent is a fairly good runner, and came well ahead of the crowd.When I arrived, however, I found already assembled on the pier a crowd, whom the coastguard and police refused to allow to come on board.By the courtesy of the chief boat-man, I was, as your correspondent, permitted to climb on deck, and was one of a small group who saw that dead seaman whilst actually lashed to the wheel.

It was no wonder that the coastguard was surprised, or even awed, for not often can such a sight have been seen.The man was simply fastened by his hands, tied one over the other, to a spoke of the wheel.Between the inner hand and the wood was a crucifix, the set of beads on which it was fastened being around both wrists and wheel, and all kept fast by the binding cords.The poor fellow may have been seated at one time, but the flapping and buffeting of the sails had worked through the rudder of the wheel and dragged him to and fro, so that the cords with which he was tied had cut the flesh to the bone.Accurate note was made of the state of things, and a doctor—Surgeon J. M. Caffyn, of 33, East Elliot Place—who came immediately after me, declared, after making examination, that the man must have been dead for quite two days. In his pocket was a bottle, carefully corked, empty save for a little roll of paper, which proved to be the addendum to the log. The coastguard said the man must have tied up his own hands, fastening the knots with his teeth. The fact that a coastguard was the first on board may save some complications, later on, in the Admiralty Court; for the coastguards cannot claim the salvage which is the right of the first civilian entering on a derelict. Already, however, the legal tongues are wagging, and one young law student is loudly asserting that the rights of the owner are already completely sacrificed, his property being held in contravention of the statutes of mortmain, since the tiller, as emblemship, if not proof, of delegated possession, is held in a dead handIt is needless to say that the dead steersman has been reverently removed from the place where he held his honourable watch and ward till death—a steadfastness as noble as that of the young Casabianca—and placed in the mortuary to await inquest.

Already the sudden storm is passing, and its fierceness is abating; the crowds are scattering homewards, and the sky is beginning to redden over the Yorkshire wolds.I shall send, in time for your next issue, further details of the derelict ship which found her way so miraculously into harbour in the storm.

Whitby

9 August. —The sequel to the strange arrival of the derelict in the storm last night is almost more startling than the thing itself. It turns out that the schooner is a Russian from Varna, and is called the DemeterShe is almost entirely in ballast of silver sand, with only a small amount of cargo—a number of great wooden boxes filled with mould.This cargo was consigned to a Whitby solicitor, Mr. S.F.Billington, of 7, The Crescent, who this morning went aboard and formally took possession of the goods consigned to him.The Russian consul, too, acting for the charter-party, took formal possession of the ship, and paid all harbour dues, etc. Nothing is talked about here to-day except the strange coincidence; the officials of the Board of Trade have been most exacting in seeing that every compliance has been made with existing regulations. As the matter is to be a “nine days’ wonder,” they are evidently determined that there shall be no cause of after complaint. A good deal of interest was abroad concerning the dog which landed when the ship struck, and more than a few of the members of the S. P. C. A. , which is very strong in Whitby, have tried to befriend the animal. To the general disappointment, however, it was not to be found; it seems to have disappeared entirely from the town. It may be that it was frightened and made its way on to the moors, where it is still hiding in terror. There are some who look with dread on such a possibility, lest later on it should in itself become a danger, for it is evidently a fierce brute. Early this morning a large dog, a half-bred mastiff, belonging to a coal merchant close to Tate Hill Pier, was found dead in the roadway opposite its master’s yard. It had been fighting, and manifestly had had a savage opponent, for its throat was torn away, and its belly slit open as if with a savage claw.

Later. —By the kindness of the Board of Trade inspector, I have been permitted to look over the log-book of the Demeter, which was in order up to within three days, but contained nothing of special interest except as to facts of missing men. The greater interest, however, is with regard to the paper found in the bottle, which was to-day produced at the inquest; and a more strange narrative than the two between them unfold it has not been my lot to come across. As there is no motive for concealment, I am permitted to use them, and accordingly send you a rescript, simply omitting technical details of seamanship and supercargo. It almost seems as though the captain had been seized with some kind of mania before he had got well into blue water, and that this had developed persistently throughout the voyage. Of course my statement must be taken cum grano, since I am writing from the dictation of a clerk of the Russian consul, who kindly translated for me, time being short.

LOG OF THE “DEMETER.”

Varna to Whitby

Written 18 July, things so strange happening, that I shall keep accurate note henceforth till we land.

On 6 July we finished taking in cargo, silver sand and boxes of earth. At noon set sail. East wind, fresh. Crew, five hands, ... two mates, cook, and myself (captain).

On 11 July at dawn entered Bosphorus.Boarded by Turkish Customs officers.Backsheesh.All correct.Under way at 4 p.m.

On 12 July through Dardanelles.More Customs officers and flagboat of guarding squadron.Backsheesh again.Work of officers thorough, but quick.Want us off soon.At dark passed into Archipelago.

On 13 July passed Cape Matapan.Crew dissatisfied about something.Seemed scared, but would not speak out.

On 14 July was somewhat anxious about crew. Men all steady fellows, who sailed with me before. Mate could not make out what was wrong; they only told him there was something, and crossed themselves.Mate lost temper with one of them that day and struck him.Expected fierce quarrel, but all was quiet.

On 16 July mate reported in the morning that one of crew, Petrofsky, was missing. Could not account for it. Took larboard watch eight bells last night; was relieved by Abramoff, but did not go to bunk. Men more downcast than ever. All said they expected something of the kind, but would not say more than that there was something aboard. Mate getting very impatient with them; feared some trouble ahead.

On 17 July, yesterday, one of the men, Olgaren, came to my cabin, and in an awestruck way confided to me that he thought there was a strange man aboard the ship.He said that in his watch he had been sheltering behind the deck-house, as there was a rain-storm, when he saw a tall, thin man, who was not like any of the crew, come up the companion-way, and go along the deck forward, and disappear.He followed cautiously, but when he got to bows found no one, and the hatchways were all closed.He was in a panic of superstitious fear, and I am afraid the panic may spread.To allay it, I shall to-day search entire ship carefully from stem to stern.

Later in the day I got together the whole crew, and told them, as they evidently thought there was some one in the ship, we should search from stem to stern.First mate angry; said it was folly, and to yield to such foolish ideas would demoralise the men; said he would engage to keep them out of trouble with a handspike.I let him take the helm, while the rest began thorough search, all keeping abreast, with lanterns; we left no corner unsearched. As there were only the big wooden boxes, there were no odd corners where a man could hide. Men much relieved when search over, and went back to work cheerfully. First mate scowled, but said nothing.

22 July—Rough weather last three days, and all hands busy with sails—no time to be frightened.Men seem to have forgotten their dread.Mate cheerful again, and all on good terms. Praised men for work in bad weather.Passed Gibraltar and out through Straits.All well.

24 July—There seems some doom over this ship.Already a hand short, and entering on the Bay of Biscay with wild weather ahead, and yet last night another man lost—disappeared.Like the first, he came off his watch and was not seen again.Men all in a panic of fear; sent a round robin, asking to have double watch, as they fear to be alone.Mate violent.Fear there will be some trouble, as either he or the men will do some violence.

28 July—Four days in hell, knocking about in a sort of maelstrom, and the wind a tempest.No sleep for any one.Men all worn out.Hardly know how to set a watch since no one fit to go on.Second mate volunteered to steer and watch, and let men snatch a few hours’ sleep.Wind abating; seas still terrific, but feel them less, as ship is steadier.

29 July—Another tragedy.Had single watch to-night, as crew too tired to double.When morning watch came on deck could find no one except steersman.Raised outcry, and all came on deck.Thorough search, but no one found.Are now without second mate, and crew in a panic.Mate and I agreed to go armed henceforth and wait for any sign of cause.

30 July—Last night.Rejoiced we are nearing England.Weather fine, all sails set.Retired worn out; slept soundly; awaked by mate telling me that both men on watch and steersman missing.Only self and mate and two hands left to work ship.

1 August—Two days of fog, and not a sail sighted.Had hoped when in the English Channel to be able to signal for help or get in somewhere.Not having power to work sails, have to run before wind.Dare not lower, as could not raise them again.We seem to be drifting to some terrible doom. Mate now more demoralised than either of them. His stronger nature seems to have worked inwardly against himself. Men are beyond fear, working stolidly and patiently, with minds made up to worst. They are Russian, he Roumanian.

2 August, midnight—Woke up from few minutes’ sleep by hearing a cry, seemingly outside my port.Could see nothing in fog.Rushed on deck, and ran against mate.Tells me heard cry and ran, but no sign of man on watch.One more gone.Lord, help us!Mate says we must be past Straits of Dover, as in a moment of fog lifting he saw North Foreland, just as he heard the man cry out.If so we are now off in the North Sea, and only God can guide us in the fog, which seems to move with us; and God seems to have deserted us.

3 August—At midnight I went to relieve the man at the wheel, but when I got to it found no one there.The wind was steady, and as we ran before it there was no yawing.I dared not leave it, so shouted for the mate.After a few seconds he rushed up on deck in his flannels.He looked wild-eyed and haggard, and I greatly fear his reason has given way.He came close to me and whispered hoarsely, with his mouth to my ear, as though fearing the very air might hear: “It is here; I know it, now. On the watch last night I saw It, like a man, tall and thin, and ghastly pale. It was in the bows, and looking out. I crept behind It, and gave It my knife; but the knife went through It, empty as the air.” And as he spoke he took his knife and drove it savagely into space. Then he went on: “But It is here, and I’ll find it. It is in the hold, perhaps, in one of those boxes. I’ll unscrew them one by one and see. You work the helm.” And, with a warning look and his finger on his lip, he went below. There was springing up a choppy wind, and I could not leave the helm. I saw him come out on deck again with a tool-chest and a lantern, and go down the forward hatchway. He is mad, stark, raving mad, and it’s no use my trying to stop him. He can’t hurt those big boxes: they are invoiced as “clay,” and to pull them about is as harmless a thing as he can do. So here I stay, and mind the helm, and write these notes. I can only trust in God and wait till the fog clears. Then, if I can’t steer to any harbour with the wind that is, I shall cut down sails and lie by, and signal for help....

It is nearly all over now. Just as I was beginning to hope that the mate would come out calmer—for I heard him knocking away at something in the hold, and work is good for him—there came up the hatchway a sudden, startled scream, which made my blood run cold, and up on the deck he came as if shot from a gun—a raging madman, with his eyes rolling and his face convulsed with fear. “Save me! save me!” he cried, and then looked round on the blanket of fog. His horror turned to despair, and in a steady voice he said: “You had better come too, captain, before it is too late. He is there. I know the secret now. The sea will save me from Him, and it is all that is left!” Before I could say a word, or move forward to seize him, he sprang on the bulwark and deliberately threw himself into the sea. I suppose I know the secret too, now. It was this madman who had got rid of the men one by one, and now he has followed them himself. God help me! How am I to account for all these horrors when I get to port? When I get to port! Will that ever be?

4 August. —Still fog, which the sunrise cannot pierce. I know there is sunrise because I am a sailor, why else I know not. I dared not go below, I dared not leave the helm; so here all night I stayed, and in the dimness of the night I saw It—Him! God forgive me, but the mate was right to jump overboard. It is better to die like a man; to die like a sailor in blue water no man can object. But I am captain, and I must not leave my ship. But I shall baffle this fiend or monster, for I shall tie my hands to the wheel when my strength begins to fail, and along with them I shall tie that which He—It! —dare not touch; and then, come good wind or foul, I shall save my soul, and my honour as a captain. I am growing weaker, and the night is coming on. If He can look me in the face again, I may not have time to act.... If we are wrecked, mayhap this bottle may be found, and those who find it may understand; if not, ... well, then all men shall know that I have been true to my trust. God and the Blessed Virgin and the saints help a poor ignorant soul trying to do his duty....

Of course the verdict was an open one.There is no evidence to adduce; and whether or not the man himself committed the murders there is now none to say.The folk hold almost universally here that the captain is simply a hero, and he is to be given a public funeral. Already it is arranged that his body is to be taken with a train of boats up the Esk for a piece and then brought back to Tate Hill Pier and up the Abbey steps; for he is to be buried in the churchyard on the cliff. The owners of more than a hundred boats have already given in their names as wishing to follow him to the grave.

No trace has ever been found of the great dog; at which there is much mourning, for, with public opinion in its present state, he would, I believe, be adopted by the town.To-morrow will see the funeral; and so will end this one more “mystery of the sea.”

MINA MURRAY’S JOURNAL

8 August—Lucy was very restless all night, and I, too, could not sleep.The storm was fearful, and as it boomed loudly among the chimney-pots, it made me shudder.When a sharp puff came it seemed to be like a distant gun.Strangely enough, Lucy did not wake; but she got up twice and dressed herself.Fortunately, each time I awoke in time, and managed to undress her without waking her, and got her back to bed.It is a very strange thing, this sleep-walking, for as soon as her will is thwarted in any physical way, her intention, if there be any, disappears, and she yields herself almost exactly to the routine of her life.

Early in the morning we both got up and went down to the harbour to see if anything had happened in the night.There were very few people about, and though the sun was bright, and the air clear and fresh, the big, grim-looking waves, that seemed dark themselves because the foam that topped them was like snow, forced themselves in through the narrow mouth of the harbour—like a bullying man going through a crowd.Somehow I felt glad that Jonathan was not on the sea last night, but on land.But, oh, is he on land or sea?Where is he, and how?I am getting fearfully anxious about him.If I only knew what to do, and could do anything!

10 August—The funeral of the poor sea-captain to-day was most touching.Every boat in the harbour seemed to be there, and the coffin was carried by captains all the way from Tate Hill Pier up to the churchyard.Lucy came with me, and we went early to our old seat, whilst the cortège of boats went up the river to the Viaduct and came down again. We had a lovely view, and saw the procession nearly all the way. The poor fellow was laid to rest quite near our seat, so that we stood on it when the time came and saw everything. Poor Lucy seemed much upset. She was restless and uneasy all the time, and I cannot but think that her dreaming at night is telling on her. She is quite odd in one thing: she will not admit to me that there is any cause for restlessness; or if there be, she does not understand it herself. There is an additional cause in that poor old Mr. Swales was found dead this morning on our seat, his neck being broken. He had evidently, as the doctor said, fallen back in the seat in some sort of fright, for there was a look of fear and horror on his face that the men said made them shudder. Poor dear old man! Perhaps he had seen Death with his dying eyes! Lucy is so sweet and sensitive that she feels influences more acutely than other people do. Just now she was quite upset by a little thing which I did not much heed, though I am myself very fond of animals. One of the men who come up here often to look for the boats was followed by his dog. The dog is always with him. They are both quiet persons, and I never saw the man angry, nor heard the dog bark. During the service the dog would not come to its master, who was on the seat with us, but kept a few yards off, barking and howling. Its master spoke to it gently, and then harshly, and then angrily; but it would neither come nor cease to make a noise. It was in a sort of fury, with its eyes savage, and all its hairs bristling out like a cat’s tail when puss is on the war-path. Finally the man, too, got angry, and jumped down and kicked the dog, and then took it by the scruff of the neck and half dragged and half threw it on the tombstone on which the seat is fixed. The moment it touched the stone the poor thing became quiet and fell all into a tremble. It did not try to get away, but crouched down, quivering and cowering, and was in such a pitiable state of terror that I tried, though without effect, to comfort it. Lucy was full of pity, too, but she did not attempt to touch the dog, but looked at it in an agonised sort of way. I greatly fear that she is of too supersensitive a nature to go through the world without trouble. She will be dreaming of this to-night, I am sure. The whole agglomeration of things—the ship steered into port by a dead man; his attitude, tied to the wheel with a crucifix and beads; the touching funeral; the dog, now furious and now in terror—will all afford material for her dreams.

I think it will be best for her to go to bed tired out physically, so I shall take her for a long walk by the cliffs to Robin Hood’s Bay and back.She ought not to have much inclination for sleep-walking then.

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CHAPTER VIII.

MINA MURRAY’S JOURNAL

Same day, 11 o’clock p.m.—Oh, but I am tired!If it were not that I have made my diary a duty I should not open it to-night.We had a lovely walk.Lucy, after a while, was in gay spirits, owing, I think, to some dear cows who came nosing towards us in a field close to the lighthouse, and frightened the wits out of us.I believe we forgot everything, except, of course, personal fear, and it seemed to wipe the slate clean and give us a fresh start.We had a capital “severe tea” at Robin Hood’s Bay in a sweet little old-fashioned inn, with a bow-window right over the seaweed-covered rocks of the strand.I believe we should have shocked the “New Woman” with our appetites.Men are more tolerant, bless them!Then we walked home with some, or rather many, stoppages to rest, and with our hearts full of a constant dread of wild bulls.Lucy was really tired, and we intended to creep off to bed as soon as we could.The young curate came in, however, and Mrs. Westenra asked him to stay for supper.Lucy and I had both a fight for it with the dusty miller; I know it was a hard fight on my part, and I am quite heroic.I think that some day the bishops must get together and see about breeding up a new class of curates, who don’t take supper, no matter how they may be pressed to, and who will know when girls are tired.Lucy is asleep and breathing softly.She has more colour in her cheeks than usual, and looks, oh, so sweet.If Mr. Holmwood fell in love with her seeing her only in the drawing-room, I wonder what he would say if he saw her now.Some of the “New Women” writers will some day start an idea that men and women should be allowed to see each other asleep before proposing or accepting. But I suppose the New Woman won’t condescend in future to accept; she will do the proposing herself. And a nice job she will make of it, too! There’s some consolation in that. I am so happy to-night, because dear Lucy seems better. I really believe she has turned the corner, and that we are over her troubles with dreaming. I should be quite happy if I only knew if Jonathan.... God bless and keep him.

11 August, 3 a.m.—Diary again.No sleep now, so I may as well write.I am too agitated to sleep.We have had such an adventure, such an agonising experience.I fell asleep as soon as I had closed my diary....Suddenly I became broad awake, and sat up, with a horrible sense of fear upon me, and of some feeling of emptiness around me.The room was dark, so I could not see Lucy’s bed; I stole across and felt for her.The bed was empty.I lit a match, and found that she was not in the room.The door was shut, but not locked, as I had left it.I feared to wake her mother, who has been more than usually ill lately, so threw on some clothes and got ready to look for her.As I was leaving the room it struck me that the clothes she wore might give me some clue to her dreaming intention.Dressing-gown would mean house; dress, outside.Dressing-gown and dress were both in their places.“Thank God,” I said to myself, “she cannot be far, as she is only in her nightdress.”I ran downstairs and looked in the sitting-room.Not there!Then I looked in all the other open rooms of the house, with an ever-growing fear chilling my heart.Finally I came to the hall-door and found it open.It was not wide open, but the catch of the lock had not caught.The people of the house are careful to lock the door every night, so I feared that Lucy must have gone out as she was.There was no time to think of what might happen; a vague, overmastering fear obscured all details.I took a big, heavy shawl and ran out.The clock was striking one as I was in the Crescent, and there was not a soul in sight.I ran along the North Terrace, but could see no sign of the white figure which I expected.At the edge of the West Cliff above the pier I looked across the harbour to the East Cliff, in the hope or fear—I don’t know which—of seeing Lucy in our favourite seat.There was a bright full moon, with heavy black, driving clouds, which threw the whole scene into a fleeting diorama of light and shade as they sailed across.For a moment or two I could see nothing, as the shadow of a cloud obscured St. Mary’s Church and all around it. Then as the cloud passed I could see the ruins of the Abbey coming into view; and as the edge of a narrow band of light as sharp as a sword-cut moved along, the church and the churchyard became gradually visible. Whatever my expectation was, it was not disappointed, for there, on our favourite seat, the silver light of the moon struck a half-reclining figure, snowy white. The coming of the cloud was too quick for me to see much, for shadow shut down on light almost immediately; but it seemed to me as though something dark stood behind the seat where the white figure shone, and bent over it. What it was, whether man or beast, I could not tell; I did not wait to catch another glance, but flew down the steep steps to the pier and along by the fish-market to the bridge, which was the only way to reach the East Cliff. The town seemed as dead, for not a soul did I see; I rejoiced that it was so, for I wanted no witness of poor Lucy’s condition. The time and distance seemed endless, and my knees trembled and my breath came laboured as I toiled up the endless steps to the Abbey. I must have gone fast, and yet it seemed to me as if my feet were weighted with lead, and as though every joint in my body were rusty. When I got almost to the top I could see the seat and the white figure, for I was now close enough to distinguish it even through the spells of shadow. There was undoubtedly something, long and black, bending over the half-reclining white figure. I called in fright, “Lucy! Lucy!” and something raised a head, and from where I was I could see a white face and red, gleaming eyes. Lucy did not answer, and I ran on to the entrance of the churchyard. As I entered, the church was between me and the seat, and for a minute or so I lost sight of her. When I came in view again the cloud had passed, and the moonlight struck so brilliantly that I could see Lucy half reclining with her head lying over the back of the seat. She was quite alone, and there was not a sign of any living thing about.

When I bent over her I could see that she was still asleep.Her lips were parted, and she was breathing—not softly, as usual with her, but in long, heavy gasps, as though striving to get her lungs full at every breath.As I came close, she put up her hand in her sleep and pulled the collar of her nightdress close round her throat. Whilst she did so there came a little shudder through her, as though she felt the cold. I flung the warm shawl over her, and drew the edges tight round her neck, for I dreaded lest she should get some deadly chill from the night air, unclad as she was. I feared to wake her all at once, so, in order to have my hands free that I might help her, I fastened the shawl at her throat with a big safety-pin; but I must have been clumsy in my anxiety and pinched or pricked her with it, for by-and-by, when her breathing became quieter, she put her hand to her throat again and moaned. When I had her carefully wrapped up I put my shoes on her feet, and then began very gently to wake her. At first she did not respond; but gradually she became more and more uneasy in her sleep, moaning and sighing occasionally. At last, as time was passing fast, and for many other reasons, I wished to get her home at once, I shook her more forcibly, till finally she opened her eyes and awoke. She did not seem surprised to see me, as, of course, she did not realise all at once where she was. Lucy always wakes prettily, and even at such a time, when her body must have been chilled with cold, and her mind somewhat appalled at waking unclad in a churchyard at night, she did not lose her grace. She trembled a little, and clung to me; when I told her to come at once with me home she rose without a word, with the obedience of a child. As we passed along, the gravel hurt my feet, and Lucy noticed me wince. She stopped and wanted to insist upon my taking my shoes; but I would not. However, when we got to the pathway outside the churchyard, where there was a puddle of water remaining from the storm, I daubed my feet with mud, using each foot in turn on the other, so that as we went home no one, in case we should meet any one, should notice my bare feet.

Fortune favoured us, and we got home without meeting a soul.Once we saw a man, who seemed not quite sober, passing along a street in front of us; but we hid in a door till he had disappeared up an opening such as there are here, steep little closes, or “wynds,” as they call them in Scotland.My heart beat so loud all the time that sometimes I thought I should faint.I was filled with anxiety about Lucy, not only for her health, lest she should suffer from the exposure, but for her reputation in case the story should get wind.When we got in, and had washed our feet, and had said a prayer of thankfulness together, I tucked her into bed. Before falling asleep she asked—even implored—me not to say a word to any one, even her mother, about her sleep-walking adventure. I hesitated at first to promise; but on thinking of the state of her mother’s health, and how the knowledge of such a thing would fret her, and thinking, too, of how such a story might become distorted—nay, infallibly would—in case it should leak out, I thought it wiser to do so. I hope I did right. I have locked the door, and the key is tied to my wrist, so perhaps I shall not be again disturbed. Lucy is sleeping soundly; the reflex of the dawn is high and far over the sea....

Same day, noon—All goes well.Lucy slept till I woke her, and seemed not to have even changed her side.The adventure of the night does not seem to have harmed her; on the contrary, it has benefited her, for she looks better this morning than she has done for weeks.I was sorry to notice that my clumsiness with the safety-pin hurt her.Indeed, it might have been serious, for the skin of her throat was pierced.I must have pinched up a piece of loose skin and have transfixed it, for there are two little red points like pin-pricks, and on the band of her nightdress was a drop of blood.When I apologised and was concerned about it, she laughed and petted me, and said she did not even feel it.Fortunately it cannot leave a scar, as it is so tiny.

Same day, night. —We passed a happy day. The air was clear, and the sun bright and there was a cool breeze. We took our lunch to Mulgrave Woods, Mrs. Westenra driving by the road and Lucy and I walking by the cliff path and joining her at the gate. I felt a little sad myself, for I could not but feel how absolutely happy it would have been had Jonathan been with me. But there! I must only be patient. In the evening we strolled in the Casino Terrace, and heard some good music by Spohr and Mackenzie, and went to bed early. Lucy seems more restful than she has been for some time, and fell asleep at once. I shall lock the door and secure the key the same as before, though I do not expect any trouble to-night.

12 August—My expectations were wrong, for twice during the night I was awakened by Lucy trying to get out.She seemed, even in her sleep, to be a little impatient at finding the door shut, and went back to bed under a sort of protest. I woke with the dawn, and heard the birds chirping outside of the window. Lucy woke, too, and, I was glad to see, was even better than on the previous morning. All her old gaiety of manner seemed to have come back, and she came and snuggled in beside me, and told me all about Arthur; I told her how anxious I was about Jonathan, and then she tried to comfort me. Well, she succeeded somewhat, for, though sympathy can’t alter facts, it can help to make them more bearable.

13 August—Another quiet day, and to bed with the key on my wrist as before.Again I woke in the night, and found Lucy sitting up in bed, still asleep, pointing to the window.I got up quietly, and pulling aside the blind, looked out.It was brilliant moonlight, and the soft effect of the light over the sea and sky—merged together in one great, silent mystery—was beautiful beyond words.Between me and the moonlight flitted a great bat, coming and going in great, whirling circles.Once or twice it came quite close, but was, I suppose, frightened at seeing me, and flitted away across the harbour towards the Abbey.When I came back from the window Lucy had lain down again, and was sleeping peacefully.She did not stir again all night.

14 August. —On the East Cliff, reading and writing all day. Lucy seems to have become as much in love with the spot as I am, and it is hard to get her away from it when it is time to come home for lunch or tea or dinner. This afternoon she made a funny remark. We were coming home for dinner, and had come to the top of the steps up from the West Pier and stopped to look at the view, as we generally do. The setting sun, low down in the sky, was just dropping behind Kettleness; the red light was thrown over on the East Cliff and the old Abbey, and seemed to bathe everything in a beautiful rosy glow. We were silent for a while, and suddenly Lucy murmured as if to herself:—

“His red eyes again! They are just the same.” It was such an odd expression, coming apropos of nothing, that it quite startled me. I slewed round a little, so as to see Lucy well without seeming to stare at her, and saw that she was in a half-dreamy state, with an odd look on her face that I could not quite make out; so I said nothing, but followed her eyes. She appeared to be looking over at our seat, whereon was a dark figure seated alone. I was a little startled myself, for it seemed for an instant as if the stranger had great eyes like burning flames; but a second look dispelled the illusion. The red sunlight was shining on the windows of St. Mary’s Church behind our seat, and as the sun dipped there was just sufficient change in the refraction and reflection to make it appear as if the light moved. I called Lucy’s attention to the peculiar effect, and she became herself with a start, but she looked sad all the same; it may have been that she was thinking of that terrible night up there. We never refer to it; so I said nothing, and we went home to dinner. Lucy had a headache and went early to bed. I saw her asleep, and went out for a little stroll myself; I walked along the cliffs to the westward, and was full of sweet sadness, for I was thinking of Jonathan. When coming home—it was then bright moonlight, so bright that, though the front of our part of the Crescent was in shadow, everything could be well seen—I threw a glance up at our window, and saw Lucy’s head leaning out. I thought that perhaps she was looking out for me, so I opened my handkerchief and waved it. She did not notice or make any movement whatever. Just then, the moonlight crept round an angle of the building, and the light fell on the window. There distinctly was Lucy with her head lying up against the side of the window-sill and her eyes shut. She was fast asleep, and by her, seated on the window-sill, was something that looked like a good-sized bird. I was afraid she might get a chill, so I ran upstairs, but as I came into the room she was moving back to her bed, fast asleep, and breathing heavily; she was holding her hand to her throat, as though to protect it from cold.

I did not wake her, but tucked her up warmly; I have taken care that the door is locked and the window securely fastened.

She looks so sweet as she sleeps; but she is paler than is her wont, and there is a drawn, haggard look under her eyes which I do not like.I fear she is fretting about something.I wish I could find out what it is.

15 August—Rose later than usual.Lucy was languid and tired, and slept on after we had been called.We had a happy surprise at breakfast.Arthur’s father is better, and wants the marriage to come off soon.Lucy is full of quiet joy, and her mother is glad and sorry at once. Later on in the day she told me the cause. She is grieved to lose Lucy as her very own, but she is rejoiced that she is soon to have some one to protect her. Poor dear, sweet lady! She confided to me that she has got her death-warrant. She has not told Lucy, and made me promise secrecy; her doctor told her that within a few months, at most, she must die, for her heart is weakening. At any time, even now, a sudden shock would be almost sure to kill her. Ah, we were wise to keep from her the affair of the dreadful night of Lucy’s sleep-walking.

17 August—No diary for two whole days.I have not had the heart to write.Some sort of shadowy pall seems to be coming over our happiness.No news from Jonathan, and Lucy seems to be growing weaker, whilst her mother’s hours are numbering to a close.I do not understand Lucy’s fading away as she is doing.She eats well and sleeps well, and enjoys the fresh air; but all the time the roses in her cheeks are fading, and she gets weaker and more languid day by day; at night I hear her gasping as if for air.I keep the key of our door always fastened to my wrist at night, but she gets up and walks about the room, and sits at the open window.Last night I found her leaning out when I woke up, and when I tried to wake her I could not; she was in a faint.When I managed to restore her she was as weak as water, and cried silently between long, painful struggles for breath.When I asked her how she came to be at the window she shook her head and turned away.I trust her feeling ill may not be from that unlucky prick of the safety-pin.I looked at her throat just now as she lay asleep, and the tiny wounds seem not to have healed.They are still open, and, if anything, larger, than before, and the edges of them are faintly white.They are like little white dots with red centres.Unless they heal within a day or two, I shall insist on the doctor seeing about them.

Letter, Samuel F.Billington & Son, Solicitors, Whitby, to Messrs.Carter, Paterson & Co., London

“17 August

“Dear Sirs,—

“Herewith please receive invoice of goods sent by Great Northern Railway.Same are to be delivered to Carfax, near Purfleet, immediately on receipt at goods station King’s Cross. The house is at present empty, but enclosed please find keys, all of which are labelled.

“You will please deposit the boxes, fifty in number, which form the consignment, in the partially ruined building forming part of the house and marked ‘A’ on rough diagram enclosed.Your agent will easily recognise the locality, as it is the ancient chapel of the mansion.The goods leave by the train at 9.30 to-night, and will be due at King’s Cross at 4.30 to-morrow afternoon.As our client wishes the delivery made as soon as possible, we shall be obliged by your having teams ready at King’s Cross at the time named and forthwith conveying the goods to destination.In order to obviate any delays possible through any routine requirements as to payment in your departments, we enclose cheque herewith for ten pounds (£10), receipt of which please acknowledge.Should the charge be less than this amount, you can return balance; if greater, we shall at once send cheque for difference on hearing from you.You are to leave the keys on coming away in the main hall of the house, where the proprietor may get them on his entering the house by means of his duplicate key.

“Pray do not take us as exceeding the bounds of business courtesy in pressing you in all ways to use the utmost expedition.

“We are, dear Sirs,

“Faithfully yours,

“SAMUEL F. BILLINGTON & SON.”

Letter, Messrs.Carter, Paterson & Co., London, to Messrs.Billington & Son, Whitby

“21 August

“Dear Sirs,—

“We beg to acknowledge £10 received and to return cheque £1 17s. 9d., amount of overplus, as shown in receipted account herewith.Goods are delivered in exact accordance with instructions, and keys left in parcel in main hall, as directed.

“We are, dear Sirs,

“Yours respectfully,

“Pro CARTER, PATERSON & CO.”

MINA MURRAY’S JOURNAL

18 August. —I am happy to-day, and write sitting on the seat in the churchyard. Lucy is ever so much better. Last night she slept well all night, and did not disturb me once. The roses seem coming back already to her cheeks, though she is still sadly pale and wan-looking. If she were in any way anæmic I could understand it, but she is not. She is in gay spirits and full of life and cheerfulness. All the morbid reticence seems to have passed from her, and she has just reminded me, as if I needed any reminding, of that night, and that it was here, on this very seat, I found her asleep. As she told me she tapped playfully with the heel of her boot on the stone slab and said:—

“My poor little feet didn’t make much noise then! I daresay poor old Mr. Swales would have told me that it was because I didn’t want to wake up Geordie.” As she was in such a communicative humour, I asked her if she had dreamed at all that night. Before she answered, that sweet, puckered look came into her forehead, which Arthur—I call him Arthur from her habit—says he loves; and, indeed, I don’t wonder that he does. Then she went on in a half-dreaming kind of way, as if trying to recall it to herself:—

“I didn’t quite dream; but it all seemed to be real.I only wanted to be here in this spot—I don’t know why, for I was afraid of something—I don’t know what.I remember, though I suppose I was asleep, passing through the streets and over the bridge.A fish leaped as I went by, and I leaned over to look at it, and I heard a lot of dogs howling—the whole town seemed as if it must be full of dogs all howling at once—as I went up the steps.Then I have a vague memory of something long and dark with red eyes, just as we saw in the sunset, and something very sweet and very bitter all around me at once; and then I seemed sinking into deep green water, and there was a singing in my ears, as I have heard there is to drowning men; and then everything seemed passing away from me; my soul seemed to go out from my body and float about the air.I seemed to remember that once the West Lighthouse was right under me, and then there was a sort of agonising feeling, as if I were in an earthquake, and I came back and found you shaking my body. I saw you do it before I felt you.”

Then she began to laugh.It seemed a little uncanny to me, and I listened to her breathlessly.I did not quite like it, and thought it better not to keep her mind on the subject, so we drifted on to other subjects, and Lucy was like her old self again.When we got home the fresh breeze had braced her up, and her pale cheeks were really more rosy.Her mother rejoiced when she saw her, and we all spent a very happy evening together.

19 August. —Joy, joy, joy! although not all joy. At last, news of Jonathan. The dear fellow has been ill; that is why he did not write. I am not afraid to think it or to say it, now that I know. Mr. Hawkins sent me on the letter, and wrote himself oh, so kindly. I am to leave in the morning and to go over to Jonathan, and to help nurse him if necessary, and to bring him home. Mr. Hawkins says it would not be a bad thing if we were to be married out there. I have cried over the good Sister’s letter till I can feel it wet against my bosom, where it lies. It is of Jonathan, and must be next my heart, for he is in my heart. My journey is all mapped out, and my luggage ready. I am only taking one change of dress; Lucy will bring my trunk to London and keep it till I send for it, for it may be that.... I must write no more; I must keep it to say to Jonathan, my husband. The letter that he has seen and touched must comfort me till we meet.

Letter, Sister Agatha, Hospital of St.Joseph and Ste.Mary, Buda-Pesth, to Miss Wilhelmina Murray

“12 August

“Dear Madam,—

“I write by desire of Mr. Jonathan Harker, who is himself not strong enough to write, though progressing well, thanks to God and St.Joseph and Ste.Mary.He has been under our care for nearly six weeks, suffering from a violent brain fever.He wishes me to convey his love, and to say that by this post I write for him to Mr. Peter Hawkins, Exeter, to say, with his dutiful respects, that he is sorry for his delay, and that all his work is completed. He will require some few weeks’ rest in our sanatorium in the hills, but will then return. He wishes me to say that he has not sufficient money with him, and that he would like to pay for his staying here, so that others who need shall not be wanting for help.

“Believe me,

“Yours, with sympathy and all blessings,

“SISTER AGATHA

“P.S.—My patient being asleep, I open this to let you know something more.He has told me all about you, and that you are shortly to be his wife.All blessings to you both!He has had some fearful shock—so says our doctor—and in his delirium his ravings have been dreadful; of wolves and poison and blood; of ghosts and demons; and I fear to say of what.Be careful with him always that there may be nothing to excite him of this kind for a long time to come; the traces of such an illness as his do not lightly die away.We should have written long ago, but we knew nothing of his friends, and there was on him nothing that any one could understand.He came in the train from Klausenburgh, and the guard was told by the station-master there that he rushed into the station shouting for a ticket for home.Seeing from his violent demeanour that he was English, they gave him a ticket for the farthest station on the way thither that the train reached.

“Be assured that he is well cared for.He has won all hearts by his sweetness and gentleness.He is truly getting on well, and I have no doubt will in a few weeks be all himself.But be careful of him for safety’s sake.There are, I pray God and St.Joseph and Ste.Mary, many, many happy years for you both.”

Dr. Seward’s Diary

19 August. —Strange and sudden change in Renfield last night. About eight o’clock he began to get excited and to sniff about as a dog does when setting. The attendant was struck by his manner, and knowing my interest in him, encouraged him to talk. He is usually respectful to the attendant, and at times servile; but to-night, the man tells me, he was quite haughty. Would not condescend to talk with him at all. All he would say was:—

“I don’t want to talk to you: you don’t count now; the Master is at hand.”

The attendant thinks it is some sudden form of religious mania which has seized him.If so, we must look out for squalls, for a strong man with homicidal and religious mania at once might be dangerous.The combination is a dreadful one.At nine o’clock I visited him myself.His attitude to me was the same as that to the attendant; in his sublime self-feeling the difference between myself and attendant seemed to him as nothing.It looks like religious mania, and he will soon think that he himself is God.These infinitesimal distinctions between man and man are too paltry for an Omnipotent being.How these madmen give themselves away!The real God taketh heed lest a sparrow fall; but the God created from human vanity sees no difference between an eagle and a sparrow.Oh, if men only knew!

For half an hour or more Renfield kept getting excited in greater and greater degree. I did not pretend to be watching him, but I kept strict observation all the same. All at once that shifty look came into his eyes which we always see when a madman has seized an idea, and with it the shifty movement of the head and back which asylum attendants come to know so well. He became quite quiet, and went and sat on the edge of his bed resignedly, and looked into space with lack-lustre eyes. I thought I would find out if his apathy were real or only assumed, and tried to lead him to talk of his pets, a theme which never failed to excite his attention. At first he made no reply, but at length said testily:—

“Bother them all!I don’t care a pin about them.”

“What?” I said. “You don’t mean to tell me that you don’t care about spiders?” (Spiders at present are his hobby, and the note-book is filling up with columns of small figures.) To this he answered enigmatically:—

“The bride-maidens rejoice the eyes that wait the coming of the bride; but when the bride draweth nigh, then the maidens shine not to the eyes that are filled.”

He would not explain himself, but remained obstinately seated on his bed all the time I remained with him.

I am weary to-night and low in spirits. I cannot but think of Lucy, and how different things might have been. If I don’t sleep at once, chloral, the modern Morpheus—C2HCl3O · H2O! I must be careful not to let it grow into a habit. No, I shall take none to-night! I have thought of Lucy, and I shall not dishonour her by mixing the two. If need be, to-night shall be sleepless....

Glad I made the resolution; gladder that I kept to it.I had lain tossing about, and had heard the clock strike only twice, when the night-watchman came to me, sent up from the ward, to say that Renfield had escaped.I threw on my clothes and ran down at once; my patient is too dangerous a person to be roaming about.Those ideas of his might work out dangerously with strangers.The attendant was waiting for me.He said he had seen him not ten minutes before, seemingly asleep in his bed, when he had looked through the observation-trap in the door.His attention was called by the sound of the window being wrenched out.He ran back and saw his feet disappear through the window, and had at once sent up for me.He was only in his night-gear, and cannot be far off.The attendant thought it would be more useful to watch where he should go than to follow him, as he might lose sight of him whilst getting out of the building by the door.He is a bulky man, and couldn’t get through the window.I am thin, so, with his aid, I got out, but feet foremost, and, as we were only a few feet above ground, landed unhurt.The attendant told me the patient had gone to the left and had taken a straight line, so I ran as quickly as I could.As I got through the belt of trees I saw a white figure scale the high wall which separates our grounds from those of the deserted house.

I ran back at once, and told the watchman to get three or four men immediately and follow me into the grounds of Carfax, in case our friend might be dangerous.I got a ladder myself, and crossing the wall, dropped down on the other side.I could see Renfield’s figure just disappearing behind the angle of the house, so I ran after him.On the far side of the house I found him pressed close against the old iron-bound oak door of the chapel.He was talking, apparently to some one, but I was afraid to go near enough to hear what he was saying, lest I might frighten him, and he should run off.Chasing an errant swarm of bees is nothing to following a naked lunatic when the fit of escaping is upon him!After a few minutes, however, I could see that he did not take note of anything around him, and so ventured to draw nearer to him—the more so as my men had now crossed the wall and were closing him in. I heard him say:—

“I am here to do Your bidding, Master.I am Your slave, and You will reward me, for I shall be faithful.I have worshipped You long and afar off.Now that You are near, I await Your commands, and You will not pass me by, will You, dear Master, in Your distribution of good things?”

He is a selfish old beggar anyhow. He thinks of the loaves and fishes even when he believes he is in a Real Presence. His manias make a startling combination. When we closed in on him he fought like a tiger. He is immensely strong, and he was more like a wild beast than a man. I never saw a lunatic in such a paroxysm of rage before; and I hope I shall not again. It is a mercy that we have found out his strength and his danger in good time. With strength and determination like his, he might have done wild work before he was caged. He is safe now at any rate. Jack Sheppard himself couldn’t get free from the strait-waistcoat that keeps him restrained, and he’s chained to the wall in the padded room. His cries are at times awful, but the silences that follow are more deadly still, for he means murder in every turn and movement.

Just now he spoke coherent words for the first time:—

“I shall be patient, Master.It is coming—coming—coming!”

So I took the hint, and came too.I was too excited to sleep, but this diary has quieted me, and I feel I shall get some sleep to-night.

---

CHAPTER IX.

Letter, Mina Harker to Lucy Westenra

“Buda-Pesth, 24 August

“My dearest Lucy,—

“I know you will be anxious to hear all that has happened since we parted at the railway station at Whitby.Well, my dear, I got to Hull all right, and caught the boat to Hamburg, and then the train on here.I feel I can hardly recall anything of the journey, except that I knew I was coming to Jonathan, and, that as I should have to do some nursing, I had better get all the sleep I could....I found my dear one, oh, so thin and pale and weak-looking.All the resolution has gone out of his dear eyes, and that quiet dignity which I told you was in his face has vanished.He is only a wreck of himself, and he does not remember anything that has happened to him for a long time past.At least, he wants me to believe so, and I shall never ask.He has had some terrible shock, and I fear it might tax his poor brain if he were to try to recall it.Sister Agatha, who is a good creature and a born nurse, tells me that he raved of dreadful things whilst he was off his head.I wanted her to tell me what they were; but she would only cross herself, and say she would never tell; that the ravings of the sick were the secrets of God, and that if a nurse through her vocation should hear them, she should respect her trust.She is a sweet, good soul, and the next day, when she saw I was troubled, she opened up the subject again, and after saying that she could never mention what my poor dear raved about, added: ‘I can tell you this much, my dear: that it was not about anything which he has done wrong himself; and you, as his wife to be, have no cause to be concerned.He has not forgotten you or what he owes to you.His fear was of great and terrible things, which no mortal can treat of.’ I do believe the dear soul thought I might be jealous lest my poor dear should have fallen in love with any other girl. The idea of my being jealous about Jonathan! And yet, my dear, let me whisper, I felt a thrill of joy through me when I knew that no other woman was a cause of trouble. I am now sitting by his bedside, where I can see his face while he sleeps. He is waking! ... When he woke he asked me for his coat, as he wanted to get something from the pocket; I asked Sister Agatha, and she brought all his things. I saw that amongst them was his note-book, and was going to ask him to let me look at it—for I knew then that I might find some clue to his trouble—but I suppose he must have seen my wish in my eyes, for he sent me over to the window, saying he wanted to be quite alone for a moment. Then he called me back, and when I came he had his hand over the note-book, and he said to me very solemnly:—

“‘Wilhelmina’—I knew then that he was in deadly earnest, for he has never called me by that name since he asked me to marry him—‘you know, dear, my ideas of the trust between husband and wife: there should be no secret, no concealment. I have had a great shock, and when I try to think of what it is I feel my head spin round, and I do not know if it was all real or the dreaming of a madman. You know I have had brain fever, and that is to be mad. The secret is here, and I do not want to know it. I want to take up my life here, with our marriage.’ For, my dear, we had decided to be married as soon as the formalities are complete. ‘Are you willing, Wilhelmina, to share my ignorance? Here is the book. Take it and keep it, read it if you will, but never let me know; unless, indeed, some solemn duty should come upon me to go back to the bitter hours, asleep or awake, sane or mad, recorded here.’ He fell back, exhausted, and I put the book under his pillow, and kissed him. I have asked Sister Agatha to beg the Superior to let our wedding be this afternoon, and am waiting her reply....

“She has come and told me that the chaplain of the English mission church has been sent for. We are to be married in an hour, or as soon after as Jonathan awakes....

“Lucy, the time has come and gone.I feel very solemn, but very, very happy.Jonathan woke a little after the hour, and all was ready, and he sat up in bed, propped up with pillows. He answered his ‘I will’ firmly and strongly. I could hardly speak; my heart was so full that even these words seemed to choke me. The dear Sisters were so kind. Please God, I shall never, never forget them, nor the grave and sweet responsibilities I have taken upon me. I must tell you of my wedding present. When the chaplain and the Sisters had left me alone with my husband—oh, Lucy, it is the first time I have written the words ‘my husband’—left me alone with my husband, I took the book from under his pillow, and wrapped it up in white paper, and tied it with a little bit of pale blue ribbon which was wound round my neck, and sealed it over the knot with sealing-wax, and for my seal I used my wedding ring. Then I kissed it and showed it to my husband, and told him that I would keep it so, and then it would be an outward and visible sign for us all our lives that we trusted each other; that I would never open it unless it were for his own dear sake or for the sake of some stern duty. Then he took my hand in his, and oh, Lucy, it was the first time he took his wife’s hand, and said that it was the dearest thing in all the wide world, and that he would go through all the past again to win it, if need be. The poor dear meant to have said a part of the past; but he cannot think of time yet, and I shall not wonder if at first he mixes up not only the month, but the year.

“Well, my dear, what could I say? I could only tell him that I was the happiest woman in all the wide world, and that I had nothing to give him except myself, my life, and my trust, and that with these went my love and duty for all the days of my life. And, my dear, when he kissed me, and drew me to him with his poor weak hands, it was like a very solemn pledge between us....

“Lucy dear, do you know why I tell you all this?It is not only because it is all sweet to me, but because you have been, and are, very dear to me.It was my privilege to be your friend and guide when you came from the schoolroom to prepare for the world of life.I want you to see now, and with the eyes of a very happy wife, whither duty has led me; so that in your own married life you too may be all happy as I am.My dear, please Almighty God, your life may be all it promises: a long day of sunshine, with no harsh wind, no forgetting duty, no distrust.I must not wish you no pain, for that can never be; but I do hope you will be always as happy as I am nowGood-bye, my dear.I shall post this at once, and, perhaps, write you very soon again.I must stop, for Jonathan is waking—I must attend to my husband!

“Your ever-loving

“MINA HARKER.”

Letter, Lucy Westenra to Mina Harker

“Whitby, 30 August

“My dearest Mina,—

“Oceans of love and millions of kisses, and may you soon be in your own home with your husband. I wish you could be coming home soon enough to stay with us here. This strong air would soon restore Jonathan; it has quite restored me. I have an appetite like a cormorant, am full of life, and sleep well. You will be glad to know that I have quite given up walking in my sleep. I think I have not stirred out of my bed for a week, that is when I once got into it at night. Arthur says I am getting fat. By the way, I forgot to tell you that Arthur is here. We have such walks and drives, and rides, and rowing, and tennis, and fishing together; and I love him more than ever. He tells me that he loves me more, but I doubt that, for at first he told me that he couldn’t love me more than he did then. But this is nonsense. There he is, calling to me. So no more just at present from your loving

“LUCY

“P.S.—Mother sends her love.She seems better, poor dear.

“P.P.S.—We are to be married on 28 September.”

Dr. Seward’s Diary

20 August—The case of Renfield grows even more interesting.He has now so far quieted that there are spells of cessation from his passion.For the first week after his attack he was perpetually violent.Then one night, just as the moon rose, he grew quiet, and kept murmuring to himself: “Now I can wait; now I can wait.”The attendant came to tell me, so I ran down at once to have a look at him.He was still in the strait-waistcoat and in the padded room, but the suffused look had gone from his face, and his eyes had something of their old pleading—I might almost say, “cringing”—softness. I was satisfied with his present condition, and directed him to be relieved. The attendants hesitated, but finally carried out my wishes without protest. It was a strange thing that the patient had humour enough to see their distrust, for, coming close to me, he said in a whisper, all the while looking furtively at them:—

“They think I could hurt you! Fancy me hurting you!The fools!”

It was soothing, somehow, to the feelings to find myself dissociated even in the mind of this poor madman from the others; but all the same I do not follow his thought.Am I to take it that I have anything in common with him, so that we are, as it were, to stand together; or has he to gain from me some good so stupendous that my well-being is needful to him?I must find out later on.To-night he will not speak.Even the offer of a kitten or even a full-grown cat will not tempt him.He will only say: “I don’t take any stock in cats.I have more to think of now, and I can wait; I can wait.”

After a while I left him.The attendant tells me that he was quiet until just before dawn, and then he began to get uneasy, and at length violent, until at last he fell into a paroxysm which exhausted him so that he swooned into a sort of coma.

... Three nights has the same thing happened—violent all day, then quiet from moonrise to sunrise. I wish I could get some clue to the cause. It would almost seem as if there was some influence which came and went. Happy thought! We shall to-night play sane wits against mad ones. He escaped before without our help; to-night he shall escape with it. We shall give him a chance, and have the men ready to follow in case they are required....

23 August—“The unexpected always happens.”How well Disraeli knew life!Our bird when he found the cage open would not fly, so all our subtle arrangements went for naught.At any rate, we have proved one thing: that the spells of quietness last a reasonable time.We shall in future be able to ease his bond for a few hours each day.I have given orders to the night attendant merely to shut him in the padded room, when once he is quiet, until an hour before sunrise.The poor soul’s body will enjoy the relief even if his mind cannot appreciate it. Hark! The unexpected again! I am called; the patient has once more escaped.

Later. —Another night adventure. Renfield artfully waited until the attendant was entering the room to inspect. Then he dashed out past him and flew down the passage. I sent word for the attendants to follow. Again we went into the ground of the deserted house, and we found him in the same place, pressed against the old chapel door. When he saw me he became furious, and had not the attendants seized him in time, he would have tried to kill me. As we were holding him a strange thing happened. He suddenly redoubled his efforts, and then he suddenly grew calm. I looked round instinctively, but could see nothing. Then I caught the patient’s eye and followed it, but could trace nothing as it looked into the moonlit sky except a big bat, which was flapping its silent and ghostly way to the west. Bats usually wheel and flit about but this one seemed to go straight on, as if it knew where it was bound for or had some intention of its own. The patient grew calmer every instant, and presently said:—

“You needn’t tie me; I shall go quietly!” Without trouble we came back to the house. I feel there is something ominous in his calm, and shall not forget this night....

Lucy Westenra’s Diary

Hillingham, 24 August—I must imitate Mina, and keep writing things down.Then we can have long talks when we do meet.I wonder when it will be.I wish she were with me again, for I feel so unhappy.Last night I seemed to be dreaming again just as I was at Whitby.Perhaps it is the change of air, or getting home again.It is all dark and horrid to me, for I can remember nothing; but I am full of vague fear, and I feel so weak and worn out.When Arthur came to lunch he looked quite grieved when he saw me, and I hadn’t the spirit to be cheerful.I wonder if I could sleep in mother’s room to-night.I shall make an excuse and try.

25 August—Another bad night.Mother did not seem to take to my proposal.She seems not too well herself, and doubtless she fears to worry me.I tried to keep awake, and succeeded for a while; but when the clock struck twelve it waked me from a doze, so I must have been falling asleep. There was a sort of scratching or flapping at the window, but I did not mind it, and as I remember no more, I suppose I must then have fallen asleep. More bad dreams. I wish I could remember them. This morning I am horribly weak. My face is ghastly pale, and my throat pains me. It must be something wrong with my lungs, for I don’t seem ever to get air enough. I shall try to cheer up when Arthur comes, or else I know he will be miserable to see me so.

Letter, Arthur Holmwood to Dr. Seward

“Albemarle Hotel, 31 August

“My dear Jack,—

“I want you to do me a favour. Lucy is ill; that is, she has no special disease, but she looks awful, and is getting worse every day. I have asked her if there is any cause; I do not dare to ask her mother, for to disturb the poor lady’s mind about her daughter in her present state of health would be fatal. Mrs. Westenra has confided to me that her doom is spoken—disease of the heart—though poor Lucy does not know it yet. I am sure that there is something preying on my dear girl’s mind. I am almost distracted when I think of her; to look at her gives me a pang. I told her I should ask you to see her, and though she demurred at first—I know why, old fellow—she finally consented. It will be a painful task for you, I know, old friend, but it is for her sake, and I must not hesitate to ask, or you to act. You are to come to lunch at Hillingham tomorrow, two o’clock, so as not to arouse any suspicion in Mrs. Westenra, and after lunch Lucy will take an opportunity of being alone with you. I shall come in for tea, and we can go away together. I am filled with anxiety, and want to consult with you alone as soon as I can after you have seen her. Do not fail!

“ARTHUR.”

Telegram, Arthur Holmwood to Seward

“1 September

“Am summoned to see my father, who is worse.Am writing.Write me fully by to-night’s post to Ring.Wire me if necessary.”

Letter from Dr. Seward to Arthur Holmwood

“2 September

“My dear old fellow,—

“With regard to Miss Westenra’s health, I hasten to let you know at once that in my opinion there is not any functional disturbance or any malady that I know of.At the same time, I am not by any means satisfied with her appearance; she is woefully different from what she was when I saw her last.Of course you must bear in mind that I did not have full opportunity of examination such as I should wish; our very friendship makes a little difficulty which not even medical science or custom can bridge over.I had better tell you exactly what happened, leaving you to draw, in a measure, your own conclusions.I shall then say what I have done and propose doing.

“I found Miss Westenra in seemingly gay spirits. Her mother was present, and in a few seconds I made up my mind that she was trying all she knew to mislead her mother and prevent her from being anxious. I have no doubt she guesses, if she does not know, what need of caution there is. We lunched alone, and as we all exerted ourselves to be cheerful, we got, as some kind of reward for our labours, some real cheerfulness amongst us. Then Mrs. Westenra went to lie down, and Lucy was left with me. We went into her boudoir, and till we got there her gaiety remained, for the servants were coming and going. As soon as the door was closed, however, the mask fell from her face, and she sank down into a chair with a great sigh, and hid her eyes with her hand. When I saw that her high spirits had failed, I at once took advantage of her reaction to make a diagnosis. She said to me very sweetly:—

“‘I cannot tell you how I loathe talking about myself.’I reminded her that a doctor’s confidence was sacred, but that you were grievously anxious about her.She caught on to my meaning at once, and settled that matter in a word.‘Tell Arthur everything you choose.I do not care for myself, but all for him!’So I am quite free.

“I could easily see that she is somewhat bloodless, but I could not see the usual anæmic signs, and by a chance I was actually able to test the quality of her blood, for in opening a window which was stiff a cord gave way, and she cut her hand slightly with broken glass. It was a slight matter in itself, but it gave me an evident chance, and I secured a few drops of the blood and have analysed them. The qualitative analysis gives a quite normal condition, and shows, I should infer, in itself a vigorous state of health. In other physical matters I was quite satisfied that there is no need for anxiety; but as there must be a cause somewhere, I have come to the conclusion that it must be something mental. She complains of difficulty in breathing satisfactorily at times, and of heavy, lethargic sleep, with dreams that frighten her, but regarding which she can remember nothing. She says that as a child she used to walk in her sleep, and that when in Whitby the habit came back, and that once she walked out in the night and went to the East Cliff, where Miss Murray found her; but she assures me that of late the habit has not returned. I am in doubt, and so have done the best thing I know of; I have written to my old friend and master, Professor Van Helsing, of Amsterdam, who knows as much about obscure diseases as any one in the world. I have asked him to come over, and as you told me that all things were to be at your charge, I have mentioned to him who you are and your relations to Miss Westenra. This, my dear fellow, is only in obedience to your wishes, for I am only too proud and happy to do anything I can for her. Van Helsing would, I know, do anything for me for a personal reason. So, no matter on what ground he comes, we must accept his wishes. He is a seemingly arbitrary man, but this is because he knows what he is talking about better than any one else. He is a philosopher and a metaphysician, and one of the most advanced scientists of his day; and he has, I believe, an absolutely open mind. This, with an iron nerve, a temper of the ice-brook, an indomitable resolution, self-command and toleration exalted from virtues to blessings, and the kindest and truest heart that beats—these form his equipment for the noble work that he is doing for mankind—work both in theory and practice, for his views are as wide as his all-embracing sympathy. I tell you these facts that you may know why I have such confidence in him. I have asked him to come at once. I shall see Miss Westenra to-morrow again. She is to meet me at the Stores, so that I may not alarm her mother by too early a repetition of my call.

“Yours always,

“JOHN SEWARD.”

Letter, Abraham Van Helsing, M.D., D.Ph., D.Litt., etc., etc., to Dr. Seward

“2 September

“My good Friend,—

“When I have received your letter I am already coming to you.By good fortune I can leave just at once, without wrong to any of those who have trusted me.Were fortune other, then it were bad for those who have trusted, for I come to my friend when he call me to aid those he holds dear.Tell your friend that when that time you suck from my wound so swiftly the poison of the gangrene from that knife that our other friend, too nervous, let slip, you did more for him when he wants my aids and you call for them than all his great fortune could do.But it is pleasure added to do for him, your friend; it is to you that I come.Have then rooms for me at the Great Eastern Hotel, so that I may be near to hand, and please it so arrange that we may see the young lady not too late on tomorrow, for it is likely that I may have to return here that night.But if need be I shall come again in three days, and stay longer if it must.Till then good-bye, my friend John.

“VAN HELSING.”

Letter, Dr. Seward to Hon.Arthur Holmwood

“3 September

“My dear Art,—

“Van Helsing has come and gone.He came on with me to Hillingham, and found that, by Lucy’s discretion, her mother was lunching out, so that we were alone with her.Van Helsing made a very careful examination of the patient.He is to report to me, and I shall advise you, for of course I was not present all the time.He is, I fear, much concerned, but says he must think.When I told him of our friendship and how you trust to me in the matter, he said: ‘You must tell him all you think.Tell him what I think, if you can guess it, if you will.Nay, I am not jesting.This is no jest, but life and death, perhaps more.’I asked what he meant by that, for he was very serious.This was when we had come back to town, and he was having a cup of tea before starting on his return to Amsterdam. He would not give me any further clue. You must not be angry with him, Art, because his very reticence means that all his brains are working for her good. He will speak plainly enough when the time comes, be sure. So I told him I would simply write an account of our visit, just as if I were doing a descriptive special article for The Daily TelegraphHe seemed not to notice, but remarked that the smuts in London were not quite so bad as they used to be when he was a student here.I am to get his report to-morrow if he can possibly make it.In any case I am to have a letter.

“Well, as to the visit. Lucy was more cheerful than on the day I first saw her, and certainly looked better. She had lost something of the ghastly look that so upset you, and her breathing was normal. She was very sweet to the Professor (as she always is), and tried to make him feel at ease; though I could see that the poor girl was making a hard struggle for it. I believe Van Helsing saw it, too, for I saw the quick look under his bushy brows that I knew of old. Then he began to chat of all things except ourselves and diseases, and with such an infinite geniality that I could see poor Lucy’s pretence of animation merge into reality. Then, without any seeming change, he brought the conversation gently round to his visit, and suavely said:—

“‘My dear young miss, I have the so great pleasure because you are much beloved.That is much, my dear, even were there that which I do not see.They told me you were down in the spirit, and that you were of a ghastly pale.To them I say: “Pouf!”’ And he snapped his fingers at me and went on: ‘But you and I shall show them how wrong they are.How can he’—and he pointed at me with the same look and gesture as that with which once he pointed me out to his class, on, or rather after, a particular occasion which he never fails to remind me of—‘know anything of a young ladies?He has his madmans to play with, and to bring them back to happiness and to those that love them.It is much to do, and, oh, but there are rewards, in that we can bestow such happiness.But the young ladies!He has no wife nor daughter, and the young do not tell themselves to the young, but to the old, like me, who have known so many sorrows and the causes of them.So, my dear, we will send him away to smoke the cigarette in the garden, whiles you and I have little talk all to ourselves.’I took the hint, and strolled about, and presently the Professor came to the window and called me in. He looked grave, but said: ‘I have made careful examination, but there is no functional cause. With you I agree that there has been much blood lost; it has been, but is not. But the conditions of her are in no way anæmic. I have asked her to send me her maid, that I may asked just one or two questions, that so I may not chance to miss nothing. I know well what she will say. And yet there is cause; there is always cause for everything. I must go back home and think. You must send to me the telegram every day; and if there be cause I shall come again. The disease—for not to be all well is a disease—interest me, and the sweet young dear, she interest me too. She charm me, and for her, if not for you or disease, I come.’

“As I tell you, he would not say a word more, even when we were alone.And so now, Art, you know all I know.I shall keep stern watch.I trust your poor father is rallying.It must be a terrible thing to you, my dear old fellow, to be placed in such a position between two people who are both so dear to you.I know your idea of duty to your father, and you are right to stick to it; but, if need be, I shall send you word to come at once to Lucy; so do not be over-anxious unless you hear from me.”

Dr. Seward’s Diary

4 September—Zoophagous patient still keeps up our interest in him.He had only one outburst, and that was yesterday at an unusual time.Just before the stroke of noon he began to grow restless.The attendant knew the symptoms, and at once summoned aid.Fortunately the men came at a run, and were just in time, for at the stroke of noon he became so violent that it took all their strength to hold him.In about five minutes, however, he began to get more and more quiet, and finally sank into a sort of melancholy, in which state he has remained up to now.The attendant tells me that his screams whilst in the paroxysm were really appalling; I found my hands full when I got in, attending to some of the other patients who were frightened by him.Indeed, I can quite understand the effect, for the sounds disturbed even me, though I was some distance away.It is now after the dinner-hour of the asylum, and as yet my patient sits in a corner brooding, with a dull, sullen, woe-begone look in his face, which seems rather to indicate than to show something directly. I cannot quite understand it.

Later. —Another change in my patient. At five o’clock I looked in on him, and found him seemingly as happy and contented as he used to be. He was catching flies and eating them, and was keeping note of his capture by making nail-marks on the edge of the door between the ridges of padding. When he saw me, he came over and apologised for his bad conduct, and asked me in a very humble, cringing way to be let back to his own room and to have his note-book again. I thought it well to humour him; so he is back in his room, with the window open. He has the sugar of his tea spread out on the windowsill, and is reaping quite a harvest of flies. He is not now eating them, but putting them in a box, as of old, and is already examining the corners of his room to find a spider. I tried to get him to talk about the past few days, for any clue of his thoughts would be of immense help to me; but he would not rise. For a moment or two he looked very sad, and said in a sort of far-away voice, as though saying it rather to himself than to me:—

“All over!all over!He has deserted me.No hope for me now unless I do it for myself!”Then suddenly turning to me in a resolute way, he said: “Doctor, won’t you be very good to me and let me have a little more sugar?I think it would be good for me.”

“And the flies?”I said.

“Yes!The flies like it, too, and I like the flies; therefore I like it.”And there are people who know so little as to think that madmen do not argue.I procured him a double supply, and left him as happy a man as, I suppose, any in the world.I wish I could fathom his mind.

Midnight—Another change in him.I had been to see Miss Westenra, whom I found much better, and had just returned, and was standing at our own gate looking at the sunset, when once more I heard him yelling.As his room is on this side of the house, I could hear it better than in the morning.It was a shock to me to turn from the wonderful smoky beauty of a sunset over London, with its lurid lights and inky shadows and all the marvellous tints that come on foul clouds even as on foul water, and to realise all the grim sternness of my own cold stone building, with its wealth of breathing misery, and my own desolate heart to endure it all. I reached him just as the sun was going down, and from his window saw the red disc sink. As it sank he became less and less frenzied; and just as it dipped he slid from the hands that held him, an inert mass, on the floor. It is wonderful, however, what intellectual recuperative power lunatics have, for within a few minutes he stood up quite calmly and looked around him. I signalled to the attendants not to hold him, for I was anxious to see what he would do. He went straight over to the window and brushed out the crumbs of sugar; then he took his fly-box and emptied it outside, and threw away the box; then he shut the window, and crossing over, sat down on his bed. All this surprised me, so I asked him: “Are you not going to keep flies any more?”

“No,” said he; “I am sick of all that rubbish!”He certainly is a wonderfully interesting study.I wish I could get some glimpse of his mind or of the cause of his sudden passion.Stop; there may be a clue after all, if we can find why to-day his paroxysms came on at high noon and at sunset.Can it be that there is a malign influence of the sun at periods which affects certain natures—as at times the moon does others?We shall see.

Telegram, Seward, London, to Van Helsing, Amsterdam

“4 September—Patient still better to-day.”

Telegram, Seward, London, to Van Helsing, Amsterdam

“5 September—Patient greatly improved.Good appetite; sleeps naturally; good spirits, colour coming back.”

Telegram, Seward, London, to Van Helsing, Amsterdam

“6 September—Terrible change for the worse.Come at once; do not lose an hour.I hold over telegram to Holmwood till have seen you.”

---

CHAPTER X.

Letter, Dr. Seward to Hon.Arthur Holmwood

“6 September

“My dear Art,—

“My news to-day is not so good.Lucy this morning had gone back a bit.There is, however, one good thing which has arisen from it: Mrs. Westenra was naturally anxious concerning Lucy, and has consulted me professionally about her.I took advantage of the opportunity, and told her that my old master, Van Helsing, the great specialist, was coming to stay with me, and that I would put her in his charge conjointly with myself; so now we can come and go without alarming her unduly, for a shock to her would mean sudden death, and this, in Lucy’s weak condition, might be disastrous to her.We are hedged in with difficulties, all of us, my poor old fellow; but please God, we shall come through them all right.If any need I shall write, so that, if you do not hear from me, take it for granted that I am simply waiting for news.In haste,

“Yours ever,

“JOHN SEWARD.”

Dr. Seward’s Diary

7 September. —The first thing Van Helsing said to me when we met at Liverpool Street was:—

“Have you said anything to our young friend the lover of her?”

“No,” I said.“I waited till I had seen you, as I said in my telegram.I wrote him a letter simply telling him that you were coming, as Miss Westenra was not so well, and that I should let him know if need be.”

“Right, my friend,” he said, “quite right!Better he not know as yet; perhaps he shall never know. I pray so; but if it be needed, then he shall know all. And, my good friend John, let me caution you. You deal with the madmen. All men are mad in some way or the other; and inasmuch as you deal discreetly with your madmen, so deal with God’s madmen, too—the rest of the world. You tell not your madmen what you do nor why you do it; you tell them not what you think. So you shall keep knowledge in its place, where it may rest—where it may gather its kind around it and breed. You and I shall keep as yet what we know here, and here.” He touched me on the heart and on the forehead, and then touched himself the same way. “I have for myself thoughts at the present. Later I shall unfold to you.”

“Why not now?” I asked. “It may do some good; we may arrive at some decision.” He stopped and looked at me, and said:—

“My friend John, when the corn is grown, even before it has ripened—while the milk of its mother-earth is in him, and the sunshine has not yet begun to paint him with his gold, the husbandman he pull the ear and rub him between his rough hands, and blow away the green chaff, and say to you: ‘Look! he’s good corn; he will make good crop when the time comes.’ ” I did not see the application, and told him so. For reply he reached over and took my ear in his hand and pulled it playfully, as he used long ago to do at lectures, and said: “The good husbandman tell you so then because he knows, but not till then. But you do not find the good husbandman dig up his planted corn to see if he grow; that is for the children who play at husbandry, and not for those who take it as of the work of their life. See you now, friend John? I have sown my corn, and Nature has her work to do in making it sprout; if he sprout at all, there’s some promise; and I wait till the ear begins to swell.” He broke off, for he evidently saw that I understood. Then he went on, and very gravely:—

“You were always a careful student, and your case-book was ever more full than the rest. You were only student then; now you are master, and I trust that good habit have not fail. Remember, my friend, that knowledge is stronger than memory, and we should not trust the weaker. Even if you have not kept the good practice, let me tell you that this case of our dear miss is one that may be—mind, I say may be—of such interest to us and others that all the rest may not make him kick the beam, as your peoples say. Take then good note of it. Nothing is too small. I counsel you, put down in record even your doubts and surmises. Hereafter it may be of interest to you to see how true you guess. We learn from failure, not from success!”

When I described Lucy’s symptoms—the same as before, but definitely more marked—he looked very grave, but said nothing.He took with him a bag in which were many instruments and drugs, “the ghastly paraphernalia of our beneficial trade,” as he once called, in one of his lectures, the equipment of a professor of the healing craft.When we were shown in, Mrs. Westenra met us.She was alarmed, but not nearly so much as I expected to find her.Nature in one of her beneficent moods has ordained that even death has some antidote to its own terrors.Here, in a case where any shock may prove fatal, matters are so ordered that, from some cause or other, the things not personal—even the terrible change in her daughter to whom she is so attached—do not seem to reach her.It is something like the way Dame Nature gathers round a foreign body an envelope of some insensitive tissue which can protect from evil that which it would otherwise harm by contact.If this be an ordered selfishness, then we should pause before we condemn any one for the vice of egoism, for there may be deeper roots for its causes than we have knowledge of.

I used my knowledge of this phase of spiritual pathology, and laid down a rule that she should not be present with Lucy or think of her illness more than was absolutely required.She assented readily, so readily that I saw again the hand of Nature fighting for life.Van Helsing and I were shown up to Lucy’s room.If I was shocked when I saw her yesterday, I was horrified when I saw her to-day.She was ghastly, chalkily pale; the red seemed to have gone even from her lips and gums, and the bones of her face stood out prominently; her breathing was painful to see or hear.Van Helsing’s face grew set as marble, and his eyebrows converged till they almost touched over his nose.Lucy lay motionless and did not seem to have strength to speak, so for a while we were all silent.Then Van Helsing beckoned to me, and we went gently out of the room.The instant we had closed the door he stepped quickly along the passage to the next door, which was open. Then he pulled me quickly in with him and closed the door. “My God!” he said; “this is dreadful. There is no time to be lost. She will die for sheer want of blood to keep the heart’s action as it should be. There must be transfusion of blood at once. Is it you or me?”

“I am younger and stronger, Professor.It must be me.”

“Then get ready at once.I will bring up my bag.I am prepared.”

I went downstairs with him and as we were going there was a knock at the hall-door. When we reached the hall the maid had just opened the door, and Arthur was stepping quickly in. He rushed up to me, saying in an eager whisper:—

“Jack, I was so anxious. I read between the lines of your letter, and have been in an agony. The dad was better, so I ran down here to see for myself. Is not that gentleman Dr. Van Helsing? I am so thankful to you, sir, for coming.” When first the Professor’s eye had lit upon him he had been angry at any interruption at such a time; but now, as he took in his stalwart proportions and recognised the strong young manhood which seemed to emanate from him, his eyes gleamed. Without a pause he said to him gravely as he held out his hand:—

“Sir, you have come in time.You are the lover of our dear miss.She is bad, very, very bad.Nay, my child, do not go like that.”For he suddenly grew pale and sat down in a chair almost fainting.“You are to help her.You can do more than any that live, and your courage is your best help.”

“What can I do?” asked Arthur hoarsely. “Tell me, and I shall do it. My life is hers, and I would give the last drop of blood in my body for her.” The Professor has a strongly humorous side, and I could from old knowledge detect a trace of its origin in his answer:—

“My young sir, I do not ask so much as that—not the last!”

“What shall I do?” There was fire in his eyes, and his open nostrils quivered with intent. Van Helsing slapped him on the shoulder. “Come!” he said. “You are a man, and it is a man we want. You are better than me, better than my friend John.” Arthur looked bewildered, and the Professor went on by explaining in a kindly way:—

“Young miss is bad, very bad.She wants blood, and blood she must have or die. My friend John and I have consulted; and we are about to perform what we call transfusion of blood—to transfer from full veins of one to the empty veins which pine for him. John was to give his blood, as he is the more young and strong than me”—here Arthur took my hand and wrung it hard in silence—“but, now you are here, you are more good than us, old or young, who toil much in the world of thought. Our nerves are not so calm and our blood not so bright than yours!” Arthur turned to him and said:—

“If you only knew how gladly I would die for her you would understand——”

He stopped, with a sort of choke in his voice.

“Good boy!”said Van Helsing.“In the not-so-far-off you will be happy that you have done all for her you love.Come now and be silent.You shall kiss her once before it is done, but then you must go; and you must leave at my sign.Say no word to Madame; you know how it is with her!There must be no shock; any knowledge of this would be one.Come!”

We all went up to Lucy’s room. Arthur by direction remained outside. Lucy turned her head and looked at us, but said nothing. She was not asleep, but she was simply too weak to make the effort. Her eyes spoke to us; that was all. Van Helsing took some things from his bag and laid them on a little table out of sight. Then he mixed a narcotic, and coming over to the bed, said cheerily:—

“Now, little miss, here is your medicine.Drink it off, like a good child.See, I lift you so that to swallow is easy.Yes.”She had made the effort with success.

It astonished me how long the drug took to act.This, in fact, marked the extent of her weakness.The time seemed endless until sleep began to flicker in her eyelids.At last, however, the narcotic began to manifest its potency; and she fell into a deep sleep.When the Professor was satisfied he called Arthur into the room, and bade him strip off his coat.Then he added: “You may take that one little kiss whiles I bring over the table.Friend John, help to me!”So neither of us looked whilst he bent over her.

Van Helsing, turning to me, said:—

“He is so young and strong and of blood so pure that we need not defibrinate it.”

Then with swiftness, but with absolute method, Van Helsing performed the operation. As the transfusion went on something like life seemed to come back to poor Lucy’s cheeks, and through Arthur’s growing pallor the joy of his face seemed absolutely to shine. After a bit I began to grow anxious, for the loss of blood was telling on Arthur, strong man as he was. It gave me an idea of what a terrible strain Lucy’s system must have undergone that what weakened Arthur only partially restored her. But the Professor’s face was set, and he stood watch in hand and with his eyes fixed now on the patient and now on Arthur. I could hear my own heart beat. Presently he said in a soft voice: “Do not stir an instant. It is enough. You attend him; I will look to her.” When all was over I could see how much Arthur was weakened. I dressed the wound and took his arm to bring him away, when Van Helsing spoke without turning round—the man seems to have eyes in the back of his head:—

“The brave lover I think deserve another kiss, which he shall have presently.”And as he had now finished his operation, he adjusted the pillow to the patient’s head.As he did so the narrow black velvet band which she seemed always to wear round her throat, buckled with an old diamond buckle which her lover had given her, was dragged a little up, and showed a red mark on her throat.Arthur did not notice it, but I could hear the deep hiss of indrawn breath which is one of Van Helsing’s ways of betraying emotion.He said nothing at the moment, but turned to me, saying: “Now take down our brave young lover, give him of the port wine, and let him lie down a while.He must then go home and rest, sleep much and eat much, that he may be recruited of what he has so given to his love.He must not stay here.Hold!a moment.I may take it, sir, that you are anxious of result.Then bring it with you that in all ways the operation is successful.You have saved her life this time, and you can go home and rest easy in mind that all that can be is.I shall tell her all when she is well; she shall love you none the less for what you have done.Good-bye.”

When Arthur had gone I went back to the room. Lucy was sleeping gently, but her breathing was stronger; I could see the counterpane move as her breast heaved. By the bedside sat Van Helsing, looking at her intently. The velvet band again covered the red mark. I asked the Professor in a whisper:—

“What do you make of that mark on her throat?”

“What do you make of it?”

“I have not seen it yet,” I answered, and then and there proceeded to loose the band.Just over the external jugular vein there were two punctures, not large, but not wholesome-looking.There was no sign of disease, but the edges were white and worn-looking, as if by some trituration.It at once occurred to me that this wound, or whatever it was, might be the means of that manifest loss of blood; but I abandoned the idea as soon as formed, for such a thing could not be.The whole bed would have been drenched to a scarlet with the blood which the girl must have lost to leave such a pallor as she had before the transfusion.

“Well?”said Van Helsing.

“Well?”said I, “I can make nothing of it.”The Professor stood up.“I must go back to Amsterdam to-night,” he said.“There are books and things there which I want.You must remain here all the night, and you must not let your sight pass from her.”

“Shall I have a nurse?”I asked.

“We are the best nurses, you and I.You keep watch all night; see that she is well fed, and that nothing disturbs her.You must not sleep all the night.Later on we can sleep, you and I.I shall be back as soon as possible.And then we may begin.”

“May begin?”I said.“What on earth do you mean?”

“We shall see!” he answered as he hurried out. He came back a moment later and put his head inside the door, and said, with warning finger held up:—

“Remember, she is your charge.If you leave her, and harm befall, you shall not sleep easy hereafter!”

Dr. Seward’s Diary—continued

8 September—I sat up all night with Lucy.The opiate worked itself off towards dusk, and she waked naturally; she looked a different being from what she had been before the operation.Her spirits even were good, and she was full of a happy vivacity, but I could see evidences of the absolute prostration which she had undergone.When I told Mrs. Westenra that Dr. Van Helsing had directed that I should sit up with her she almost pooh-poohed the idea, pointing out her daughter’s renewed strength and excellent spirits. I was firm, however, and made preparations for my long vigil. When her maid had prepared her for the night I came in, having in the meantime had supper, and took a seat by the bedside. She did not in any way make objection, but looked at me gratefully whenever I caught her eye. After a long spell she seemed sinking off to sleep, but with an effort seemed to pull herself together and shook it off. This was repeated several times, with greater effort and with shorter pauses as the time moved on. It was apparent that she did not want to sleep, so I tackled the subject at once:—

“You do not want to go to sleep?”

“No; I am afraid.”

“Afraid to go to sleep!Why so?It is the boon we all crave for.”

“Ah, not if you were like me—if sleep was to you a presage of horror!”

“A presage of horror!What on earth do you mean?”

“I don’t know; oh, I don’t know.And that is what is so terrible.All this weakness comes to me in sleep; until I dread the very thought.”

“But my dear girl, you may sleep to-night.I am here watching you, and I can promise that nothing will happen.”

“Ah, I can trust you!”I seized the opportunity, and said: “I promise you that if I see any evidence of bad dreams I will wake you at once.”

“You will?Oh, will you really?How good you are to me!Then I will sleep!”And almost at the word she gave a deep sigh of relief, and sank back, asleep.

All night long I watched by her.She never stirred, but slept on and on in a deep, tranquil, life-giving, health-giving sleep.Her lips were slightly parted, and her breast rose and fell with the regularity of a pendulum.There was a smile on her face, and it was evident that no bad dreams had come to disturb her peace of mind.

In the early morning her maid came, and I left her in her care and took myself back home, for I was anxious about many things.I sent a short wire to Van Helsing and to Arthur, telling them of the excellent result of the operation.My own work, with its manifold arrears, took me all day to clear off; it was dark when I was able to inquire about my zoophagous patient. The report was good: he had been quite quiet for the past day and night. A telegram came from Van Helsing at Amsterdam whilst I was at dinner, suggesting that I should be at Hillingham to-night, as it might be well to be at hand, and stating that he was leaving by the night mail and would join me early in the morning.

9 September. —I was pretty tired and worn out when I got to Hillingham. For two nights I had hardly had a wink of sleep, and my brain was beginning to feel that numbness which marks cerebral exhaustion. Lucy was up and in cheerful spirits. When she shook hands with me she looked sharply in my face and said:—

“No sitting up to-night for you.You are worn-out.I am quite well again; indeed, I am; and if there is to be any sitting up, it is I who will sit up with you.”I would not argue the point, but went and had my supper.Lucy came with me, and, enlivened by her charming presence, I made an excellent meal, and had a couple of glasses of the more than excellent port.Then Lucy took me upstairs and showed me a room next her own, where a cosy fire was burning.“Now,” she said, “you must stay here.I shall leave this door open and my door too.You can lie on the sofa, for I know that nothing would induce any of you doctors to go to bed whilst there is a patient above the horizon.If I want anything I shall call out, and you can come to me at once.”I could not but acquiesce, for I was “dog-tired,” and could not have sat up had I tried.So, on her renewing her promise to call me if she should want anything, I lay on the sofa, and forgot all about everything.

Lucy Westenra’s Diary

9 September—I feel so happy to-night.I have been so miserably weak, that to be able to think and move about is like feeling sunshine after a long spell of east wind out of a steel sky.Somehow Arthur feels very, very close to me.I seem to feel his presence warm about me.I suppose it is that sickness and weakness are selfish things and turn our inner eyes and sympathy on ourselves, whilst health and strength give Love rein, and in thought and feeling he can wander where he wills. I know where my thoughts are. If Arthur only knew! My dear, my dear, your ears must tingle as you sleep, as mine do waking. Oh, the blissful rest of last night! How I slept with that dear, good Dr. Seward watching me. And to-night I shall not fear to sleep, since he is close at hand and within call. Thank everybody for being so good to me! Thank God! Good-night, Arthur.

Dr. Seward’s Diary

10 September—I was conscious of the Professor’s hand on my head, and started awake all in a second.That is one of the things that we learn in an asylum, at any rate.

“And how is our patient?”

“Well, when I left her, or rather when she left me,” I answered.

“Come, let us see,” he said.And together we went into the room.

The blind was down, and I went over to raise it gently, whilst Van Helsing stepped, with his soft, cat-like tread, over to the bed.

As I raised the blind, and the morning sunlight flooded the room, I heard the Professor’s low hiss of inspiration, and knowing its rarity, a deadly fear shot through my heart.As I passed over he moved back, and his exclamation of horror, “Gott in Himmel!”needed no enforcement from his agonised face.He raised his hand and pointed to the bed, and his iron face was drawn and ashen white.I felt my knees begin to tremble.

There on the bed, seemingly in a swoon, lay poor Lucy, more horribly white and wan-looking than ever. Even the lips were white, and the gums seemed to have shrunken back from the teeth, as we sometimes see in a corpse after a prolonged illness. Van Helsing raised his foot to stamp in anger, but the instinct of his life and all the long years of habit stood to him, and he put it down again softly. “Quick!” he said. “Bring the brandy.” I flew to the dining-room, and returned with the decanter. He wetted the poor white lips with it, and together we rubbed palm and wrist and heart. He felt her heart, and after a few moments of agonising suspense said:—

“It is not too late.It beats, though but feebly.All our work is undone; we must begin again. There is no young Arthur here now; I have to call on you yourself this time, friend John.” As he spoke, he was dipping into his bag and producing the instruments for transfusion; I had taken off my coat and rolled up my shirt-sleeve. There was no possibility of an opiate just at present, and no need of one; and so, without a moment’s delay, we began the operation. After a time—it did not seem a short time either, for the draining away of one’s blood, no matter how willingly it be given, is a terrible feeling—Van Helsing held up a warning finger. “Do not stir,” he said, “but I fear that with growing strength she may wake; and that would make danger, oh, so much danger. But I shall precaution take. I shall give hypodermic injection of morphia.” He proceeded then, swiftly and deftly, to carry out his intent. The effect on Lucy was not bad, for the faint seemed to merge subtly into the narcotic sleep. It was with a feeling of personal pride that I could see a faint tinge of colour steal back into the pallid cheeks and lips. No man knows till he experiences it, what it is to feel his own life-blood drawn away into the veins of the woman he loves.

The Professor watched me critically. “That will do,” he said. “Already?” I remonstrated. “You took a great deal more from Art.” To which he smiled a sad sort of smile as he replied:—

“He is her lover, her fiancéYou have work, much work, to do for her and for others; and the present will suffice.”

When we stopped the operation, he attended to Lucy, whilst I applied digital pressure to my own incision. I lay down, whilst I waited his leisure to attend to me, for I felt faint and a little sick. By-and-by he bound up my wound, and sent me downstairs to get a glass of wine for myself. As I was leaving the room, he came after me, and half whispered:—

“Mind, nothing must be said of this.If our young lover should turn up unexpected, as before, no word to him.It would at once frighten him and enjealous him, too.There must be none.So!”

When I came back he looked at me carefully, and then said:—

“You are not much the worse.Go into the room, and lie on your sofa, and rest awhile; then have much breakfast, and come here to me.”

I followed out his orders, for I knew how right and wise they were.I had done my part, and now my next duty was to keep up my strength.I felt very weak, and in the weakness lost something of the amazement at what had occurred.I fell asleep on the sofa, however, wondering over and over again how Lucy had made such a retrograde movement, and how she could have been drained of so much blood with no sign anywhere to show for it.I think I must have continued my wonder in my dreams, for sleeping and waking, my thoughts always came back to the little punctures in her throat and the ragged, exhausted appearance of their edges—tiny though they were.

Lucy slept well into the day; and when she woke she was fairly well and strong, though not nearly so much as the day before.When Van Helsing had seen her, he went out for a walk, leaving me in charge, with strict injunctions that I was not to leave her for a moment.I could hear his voice in the hall, asking the way to the nearest telegraph office.

Lucy chatted with me freely, and seemed quite unconscious that anything had happened. I tried to keep her amused and interested. When her mother came up to see her, she did not seem to notice any change whatever, but said to me gratefully:—

“We owe you so much, Dr. Seward, for all you have done, but you really must now take care not to overwork yourself.You are looking pale yourself.You want a wife to nurse and look after you a bit; that you do!”As she spoke Lucy turned crimson, though it was only momentarily, for her poor wasted veins could not stand for long such an unwonted drain to the head.The reaction came in excessive pallor as she turned imploring eyes on me.I smiled and nodded, and laid my finger on my lips; with a sigh, she sank back amid her pillows.

Van Helsing returned in a couple of hours, and presently said to me: “Now you go home, and eat much and drink enough.Make yourself strong.I stay here to-night, and I shall sit up with little miss myself.You and I must watch the case, and we must have none other to know.I have grave reasons.No, do not ask them; think what you will.Do not fear to think even the most not-probable.Good-night.”

In the hall two of the maids came to me, and asked if they or either of them might not sit up with Miss Lucy.They implored me to let them; and when I said it was Dr. Van Helsing’s wish that either he or I should sit up, they asked me quite piteously to intercede with the “foreign gentleman.” I was much touched by their kindness. Perhaps it is because I am weak at present, and perhaps it was on Lucy’s account that their devotion was manifested; for over and over again have I seen similar instances of woman’s kindness. I got back here in time for a late dinner; went my rounds—all well; and set this down whilst waiting for sleep. It is coming.

11 September—This afternoon I went over to Hillingham.Found Van Helsing in excellent spirits, and Lucy much better.Shortly after I had arrived, a big parcel from abroad came for the Professor.He opened it with much impressment—assumed, of course—and showed a great bundle of white flowers.

“These are for you, Miss Lucy,” he said.

“For me?Oh, Dr. Van Helsing!”

“Yes, my dear, but not for you to play with.These are medicines.”Here Lucy made a wry face.“Nay, but they are not to take in a decoction or in nauseous form, so you need not snub that so charming nose, or I shall point out to my friend Arthur what woes he may have to endure in seeing so much beauty that he so loves so much distort.Aha, my pretty miss, that bring the so nice nose all straight again.This is medicinal, but you do not know how.I put him in your window, I make pretty wreath, and hang him round your neck, so that you sleep well.Oh yes!they, like the lotus flower, make your trouble forgotten.It smell so like the waters of Lethe, and of that fountain of youth that the Conquistadores sought for in the Floridas, and find him all too late.”

Whilst he was speaking, Lucy had been examining the flowers and smelling them. Now she threw them down, saying, with half-laughter and half-disgust:—

“Oh, Professor, I believe you are only putting up a joke on me.Why, these flowers are only common garlic.”

To my surprise, Van Helsing rose up and said with all his sternness, his iron jaw set and his bushy eyebrows meeting:—

“No trifling with me!I never jest!There is grim purpose in all I do; and I warn you that you do not thwart me. Take care, for the sake of others if not for your own.” Then seeing poor Lucy scared, as she might well be, he went on more gently: “Oh, little miss, my dear, do not fear me. I only do for your good; but there is much virtue to you in those so common flower. See, I place them myself in your room. I make myself the wreath that you are to wear. But hush! no telling to others that make so inquisitive questions. We must obey, and silence is a part of obedience; and obedience is to bring you strong and well into loving arms that wait for you. Now sit still awhile. Come with me, friend John, and you shall help me deck the room with my garlic, which is all the way from Haarlem, where my friend Vanderpool raise herb in his glass-houses all the year. I had to telegraph yesterday, or they would not have been here.”

We went into the room, taking the flowers with us. The Professor’s actions were certainly odd, and not to be found in any pharmacopœia that I ever heard of. First, he fastened up the windows and latched them securely; next, taking a handful of the flowers, he rubbed them all over the sashes, as though to ensure that every whiff of air that might get in would be laden with the garlic smell. Then with the wisp he rubbed all over the jamb of the door, above, below, and at each side, and round the fireplace in the same way. It all seemed grotesque to me, and presently I said:—

“Well, Professor, I know you always have a reason for what you do, but this certainly puzzles me.It is well we have no sceptic here, or he would say that you were working some spell to keep out an evil spirit.”

“Perhaps I am!”he answered quietly as he began to make the wreath which Lucy was to wear round her neck.

We then waited whilst Lucy made her toilet for the night, and when she was in bed he came and himself fixed the wreath of garlic round her neck. The last words he said to her were:—

“Take care you do not disturb it; and even if the room feel close, do not to-night open the window or the door.”

“I promise,” said Lucy, “and thank you both a thousand times for all your kindness to me!Oh, what have I done to be blessed with such friends?”

As we left the house in my fly, which was waiting, Van Helsing said:—

“To-night I can sleep in peace, and sleep I want—two nights of travel, much reading in the day between, and much anxiety on the day to follow, and a night to sit up, without to wink.To-morrow in the morning early you call for me, and we come together to see our pretty miss, so much more strong for my ‘spell’ which I have work.Ho!ho!”

He seemed so confident that I, remembering my own confidence two nights before and with the baneful result, felt awe and vague terror.It must have been my weakness that made me hesitate to tell it to my friend, but I felt it all the more, like unshed tears.

---

CHAPTER XI.

LUCY WESTENRA’S DIARY

12 September—How good they all are to me!I quite love that dear Dr. Van Helsing.I wonder why he was so anxious about these flowers.He positively frightened me, he was so fierce.And yet he must have been right, for I feel comfort from them already.Somehow, I do not dread being alone tonight, and I can go to sleep without fear.I shall not mind any flapping outside the window.Oh, the terrible struggle that I have had against sleep so often of late; the pain of the sleeplessness, or the pain of the fear of sleep, with such unknown horrors as it has for me!How blessed are some people, whose lives have no fears, no dreads; to whom sleep is a blessing that comes nightly, and brings nothing but sweet dreams. Well, here I am to-night, hoping for sleep, and lying like Ophelia in the play, with “virgin crants and maiden strewments.”I never liked garlic before, but to-night it is delightful!There is peace in its smell; I feel sleep coming already.Good-night everybody.

Dr. Seward’s Diary

13 September—Called at the Berkeley and found Van Helsing, as usual, up to time.The carriage ordered from the hotel was waiting.The Professor took his bag, which he always brings with him now.

Let all be put down exactly.Van Helsing and I arrived at Hillingham at eight o’clock.It was a lovely morning; the bright sunshine and all the fresh feeling of early autumn seemed like the completion of nature’s annual work.The leaves were turning to all kinds of beautiful colours, but had not yet begun to drop from the trees.When we entered we met Mrs. Westenra coming out of the morning room. She is always an early riser. She greeted us warmly and said:—

“You will be glad to know that Lucy is better. The dear child is still asleep. I looked into her room and saw her, but did not go in, lest I should disturb her.” The Professor smiled, and looked quite jubilant. He rubbed his hands together, and said:—

“Aha! I thought I had diagnosed the case. My treatment is working,” to which she answered:—

“You must not take all the credit to yourself, doctor.Lucy’s state this morning is due in part to me.”

“How do you mean, ma’am?”asked the Professor.

“Well, I was anxious about the dear child in the night, and went into her room.She was sleeping soundly—so soundly that even my coming did not wake her.But the room was awfully stuffy.There were a lot of those horrible, strong-smelling flowers about everywhere, and she had actually a bunch of them round her neck.I feared that the heavy odour would be too much for the dear child in her weak state, so I took them all away and opened a bit of the window to let in a little fresh air.You will be pleased with her, I am sure.”

She moved off into her boudoir, where she usually breakfasted early.As she had spoken, I watched the Professor’s face, and saw it turn ashen grey.He had been able to retain his self-command whilst the poor lady was present, for he knew her state and how mischievous a shock would be; he actually smiled on her as he held open the door for her to pass into her room.But the instant she had disappeared he pulled me, suddenly and forcibly, into the dining-room and closed the door.

Then, for the first time in my life, I saw Van Helsing break down.He raised his hands over his head in a sort of mute despair, and then beat his palms together in a helpless way; finally he sat down on a chair, and putting his hands before his face, began to sob, with loud, dry sobs that seemed to come from the very racking of his heart.Then he raised his arms again, as though appealing to the whole universe.“God!God!God!”he said.“What have we done, what has this poor thing done, that we are so sore beset?Is there fate amongst us still, sent down from the pagan world of old, that such things must be, and in such a way? This poor mother, all unknowing, and all for the best as she think, does such thing as lose her daughter body and soul; and we must not tell her, we must not even warn her, or she die, and then both die. Oh, how we are beset! How are all the powers of the devils against us!” Suddenly he jumped to his feet. “Come,” he said, “come, we must see and act. Devils or no devils, or all the devils at once, it matters not; we fight him all the same.” He went to the hall-door for his bag; and together we went up to Lucy’s room.

Once again I drew up the blind, whilst Van Helsing went towards the bed.This time he did not start as he looked on the poor face with the same awful, waxen pallor as before.He wore a look of stern sadness and infinite pity.

“As I expected,” he murmured, with that hissing inspiration of his which meant so much.Without a word he went and locked the door, and then began to set out on the little table the instruments for yet another operation of transfusion of blood.I had long ago recognised the necessity, and begun to take off my coat, but he stopped me with a warning hand.“No!”he said.“To-day you must operate.I shall provide.You are weakened already.”As he spoke he took off his coat and rolled up his shirt-sleeve.

Again the operation; again the narcotic; again some return of colour to the ashy cheeks, and the regular breathing of healthy sleep.This time I watched whilst Van Helsing recruited himself and rested.

Presently he took an opportunity of telling Mrs. Westenra that she must not remove anything from Lucy’s room without consulting him; that the flowers were of medicinal value, and that the breathing of their odour was a part of the system of cure.Then he took over the care of the case himself, saying that he would watch this night and the next and would send me word when to come.

After another hour Lucy waked from her sleep, fresh and bright, and seemingly not much the worse from her terrible ordeal.

What does it all mean?I am beginning to wonder if my long habit of life amongst the insane is beginning to tell upon my own brain.

Lucy Westenra’s Diary

17 September—Four days and nights of peace.I am getting so strong again that I hardly know myself.It is as if I had passed through some long nightmare, and had just awakened to see the beautiful sunshine and feel the fresh air of the morning around me.I have a dim half-remembrance of long, anxious times of waiting and fearing; darkness in which there was not even the pain of hope to make present distress more poignant; and then long spells of oblivion, and the rising back to life as a diver coming up through a great press of water.Since, however, Dr. Van Helsing has been with me, all this bad dreaming seems to have passed away; the noises that used to frighten me out of my wits—the flapping against the windows, the distant voices which seemed so close to me, the harsh sounds that came from I know not where and commanded me to do I know not what—have all ceased.I go to bed now without any fear of sleep.I do not even try to keep awake.I have grown quite fond of the garlic, and a boxful arrives for me every day from Haarlem.To-night Dr. Van Helsing is going away, as he has to be for a day in Amsterdam.But I need not be watched; I am well enough to be left alone.Thank God for mother’s sake, and dear Arthur’s, and for all our friends who have been so kind!I shall not even feel the change, for last night Dr. Van Helsing slept in his chair a lot of the time.I found him asleep twice when I awoke; but I did not fear to go to sleep again, although the boughs or bats or something flapped almost angrily against the window-panes.

“The Pall Mall Gazette,” 18 September

THE ESCAPED WOLF.

PERILOUS ADVENTURE OF OUR INTERVIEWER

Interview with the Keeper in the Zoological Gardens

After many inquiries and almost as many refusals, and perpetually using the words Pall Mall Gazette as a sort of talisman, I managed to find the keeper of the section of the Zoological Gardens in which the wolf department is included. Thomas Bilder lives in one of the cottages in the enclosure behind the elephant-house, and was just sitting down to his tea when I found him. Thomas and his wife are hospitable folk, elderly, and without children, and if the specimen I enjoyed of their hospitality be of the average kind, their lives must be pretty comfortable. The keeper would not enter on what he called “business” until the supper was over, and we were all satisfied. Then when the table was cleared, and he had lit his pipe, he said:—

“Now, sir, you can go on and arsk me what you want.You’ll excoose me refoosin’ to talk of perfeshunal subjects afore meals.I gives the wolves and the jackals and the hyenas in all our section their tea afore I begins to arsk them questions.”

“How do you mean, ask them questions?”I queried, wishful to get him into a talkative humour.

“’Ittin’ of them over the ’ead with a pole is one way; scratchin’ of their hears is another, when gents as is flush wants a bit of a show-orf to their gals.I don’t so much mind the fust—the ’ittin’ with a pole afore I chucks in their dinner; but I waits till they’ve ’ad their sherry and kawffee, so to speak, afore I tries on with the ear-scratchin’.Mind you,” he added philosophically, “there’s a deal of the same nature in us as in them there animiles.Here’s you a-comin’ and arskin’ of me questions about my business, and I that grumpy-like that only for your bloomin’ arf-quid I’d ’a’ seen you blowed fust ’fore I’d answer.Not even when you arsked me sarcastic-like if I’d like you to arsk the Superintendent if you might arsk me questions.Without offence, did I tell yer to go to ’ell?”

“You did.”

“An’ when you said you’d report me for usin’ of obscene language, that was ’itten’ me over the ’ead; but the ’arf-quid made that all right.I weren’t a-goin’ to fight, so I waited for the food, and did with my ’owl as the wolves, and lions, and tigers does.But, Lor’ love yer ’art, now that the old ’ooman has stuck a chunk of her tea-cake in me, an’ rinsed me out with her bloomin’ old teapot, and I’ve lit up, you may scratch my ears for all you’re worth, and won’t get even a growl out of me.Drive along with your questions.I know what yer a-comin’ at, that ’ere escaped wolf.”

“Exactly.I want you to give me your view of it.Just tell me how it happened; and when I know the facts I’ll get you to say what you consider was the cause of it, and how you think the whole affair will end.”

“All right, guv’nor.This ’ere is about the ’ole story.That ’ere wolf what we called Bersicker was one of three grey ones that came from Norway to Jamrach’s, which we bought off him four year ago.He was a nice well-behaved wolf, that never gave no trouble to talk of.I’m more surprised at ’im for wantin’ to get out nor any other animile in the place.But, there, you can’t trust wolves no more nor women.”

“Don’t you mind him, sir!”broke in Mrs. Tom, with a cheery laugh.“’E’s got mindin’ the animiles so long that blest if he ain’t like a old wolf ’isself!But there ain’t no ’arm in ’im.”

“Well, sir, it was about two hours after feedin’ yesterday when I first hear any disturbance.I was makin’ up a litter in the monkey-house for a young puma which is ill; but when I heard the yelpin’ and ’owlin’ I kem away straight.There was Bersicker a-tearin’ like a mad thing at the bars as if he wanted to get out.There wasn’t much people about that day, and close at hand was only one man, a tall, thin chap, with a ’ook nose and a pointed beard, with a few white hairs runnin’ through it.He had a ’ard, cold look and red eyes, and I took a sort of mislike to him, for it seemed as if it was ’im as they was hirritated at.He ’ad white kid gloves on ’is ’ands, and he pointed out the animiles to me and says: ‘Keeper, these wolves seem upset at something.’

“‘Maybe it’s you,’ says I, for I did not like the airs as he give ’isself.He didn’t get angry, as I ’oped he would, but he smiled a kind of insolent smile, with a mouth full of white, sharp teeth.‘Oh no, they wouldn’t like me,’ ’e says.

“‘Ow yes, they would,’ says I, a-imitatin’ of him.‘They always like a bone or two to clean their teeth on about tea-time, which you ’as a bagful.’

“Well, it was a odd thing, but when the animiles see us a-talkin’ they lay down, and when I went over to Bersicker he let me stroke his ears same as ever.That there man kem over, and blessed but if he didn’t put in his hand and stroke the old wolf’s ears too!

“‘Tyke care,’ says I.‘Bersicker is quick.’

“‘Never mind,’ he says.‘I’m used to ’em!’

“‘Are you in the business yourself?’I says, tyking off my ’at, for a man what trades in wolves, anceterer, is a good friend to keepers.

“‘No,’ says he, ‘not exactly in the business, but I ’ave made pets of several.’And with that he lifts his ’at as perlite as a lord, and walks away.Old Bersicker kep’ a-lookin’ arter ’im till ’e was out of sight, and then went and lay down in a corner, and wouldn’t come hout the ’ole hevening.Well, larst night, so soon as the moon was hup, the wolves here all began a-’owling.There warn’t nothing for them to ’owl at.There warn’t no one near, except some one that was evidently a-callin’ a dog somewheres out back of the gardings in the Park road.Once or twice I went out to see that all was right, and it was, and then the ’owling stopped.Just before twelve o’clock I just took a look round afore turnin’ in, an’, bust me, but when I kem opposite to old Bersicker’s cage I see the rails broken and twisted about and the cage empty.And that’s all I know for certing.”

“Did any one else see anything?”

“One of our gard’ners was a-comin’ ’ome about that time from a ’armony, when he sees a big grey dog comin’ out through the gardin ’edges.At least, so he says; but I don’t give much for it myself, for if he did ’e never said a word about it to his missis when ’e got ’ome, and it was only after the escape of the wolf was made known, and we had been up all night a-huntin’ of the Park for Bersicker, that he remembered seein’ anything.My own belief was that the ’armony ’ad got into his ’ead.”

“Now, Mr. Bilder, can you account in any way for the escape of the wolf?”

“Well, sir,” he said, with a suspicious sort of modesty, “I think I can; but I don’t know as ’ow you’d be satisfied with the theory.”

“Certainly I shall.If a man like you, who knows the animals from experience, can’t hazard a good guess at any rate, who is even to try?”

“Well then, sir, I accounts for it this way; it seems to me that ’ere wolf escaped—simply because he wanted to get out.”

From the hearty way that both Thomas and his wife laughed at the joke I could see that it had done service before, and that the whole explanation was simply an elaborate sell. I couldn’t cope in badinage with the worthy Thomas, but I thought I knew a surer way to his heart, so I said:—

“Now, Mr. Bilder, we’ll consider that first half-sovereign worked off, and this brother of his is waiting to be claimed when you’ve told me what you think will happen.”

“Right y’are, sir,” he said briskly.“Ye’ll excoose me, I know, for a-chaffin’ of ye, but the old woman here winked at me, which was as much as telling me to go on.”

“Well, I never!”said the old lady.

“My opinion is this: that ’ere wolf is a-’idin’ of, somewheres.The gard’ner wot didn’t remember said he was a-gallopin’ northward faster than a horse could go; but I don’t believe him, for, yer see, sir, wolves don’t gallop no more than dogs does, they not bein’ built that way.Wolves is fine things in a story-book, and I dessay when they gets in packs and does be chivvin’ somethin’ that’s more afeared than they is they can make a devil of a noise and chop it up, whatever it is.But, Lor’ bless you, in real life a wolf is only a low creature, not half so clever as a good dog; and not half a quarter so much fight in ’im.This one ain’t been used to fightin’ or even to providin’ for hisself, and more like he’s somewhere round the Park a-’idin’ an’ a-shiverin’ of, and, if he thinks at all, wonderin’ where he is to get his breakfast from; or maybe he’s got down some area and is in a coal-cellar.My eye, won’t some cook get a rum start when she sees his green eyes a-shining at her out of the dark!If he can’t get food he’s bound to look for it, and mayhap he may chance to light on a butcher’s shop in time.If he doesn’t, and some nursemaid goes a-walkin’ orf with a soldier, leavin’ of the hinfant in the perambulator—well then I shouldn’t be surprised if the census is one babby the less.That’s all.”

I was handing him the half-sovereign, when something came bobbing up against the window, and Mr. Bilder’s face doubled its natural length with surprise.

“God bless me!”he said.“If there ain’t old Bersicker come back by ’isself!”

He went to the door and opened it; a most unnecessary proceeding it seemed to me.I have always thought that a wild animal never looks so well as when some obstacle of pronounced durability is between us; a personal experience has intensified rather than diminished that idea.

After all, however, there is nothing like custom, for neither Bilder nor his wife thought any more of the wolf than I should of a dog.The animal itself was as peaceful and well-behaved as that father of all picture-wolves—Red Riding Hood’s quondam friend, whilst seeking her confidence in masquerade.

The whole scene was an unutterable mixture of comedy and pathos. The wicked wolf that for half a day had paralysed London and set all the children in the town shivering in their shoes, was there in a sort of penitent mood, and was received and petted like a sort of vulpine prodigal son. Old Bilder examined him all over with most tender solicitude, and when he had finished with his penitent said:—

“There, I knew the poor old chap would get into some kind of trouble; didn’t I say it all along?Here’s his head all cut and full of broken glass.’E’s been a-gettin’ over some bloomin’ wall or other.It’s a shyme that people are allowed to top their walls with broken bottles.This ’ere’s what comes of it.Come along, Bersicker.”

He took the wolf and locked him up in a cage, with a piece of meat that satisfied, in quantity at any rate, the elementary conditions of the fatted calf, and went off to report.

I came off, too, to report the only exclusive information that is given to-day regarding the strange escapade at the Zoo.

Dr. Seward’s Diary

17 September—I was engaged after dinner in my study posting up my books, which, through press of other work and the many visits to Lucy, had fallen sadly into arrear.Suddenly the door was burst open, and in rushed my patient, with his face distorted with passion.I was thunder-struck, for such a thing as a patient getting of his own accord into the Superintendent’s study is almost unknown.Without an instant’s pause he made straight at me.He had a dinner-knife in his hand, and, as I saw he was dangerous, I tried to keep the table between us.He was too quick and too strong for me, however; for before I could get my balance he had struck at me and cut my left wrist rather severely. Before he could strike again, however, I got in my right, and he was sprawling on his back on the floor. My wrist bled freely, and quite a little pool trickled on to the carpet. I saw that my friend was not intent on further effort, and occupied myself binding up my wrist, keeping a wary eye on the prostrate figure all the time. When the attendants rushed in, and we turned our attention to him, his employment positively sickened me. He was lying on his belly on the floor licking up, like a dog, the blood which had fallen from my wounded wrist. He was easily secured, and, to my surprise, went with the attendants quite placidly, simply repeating over and over again: “The blood is the life! the blood is the life!”

I cannot afford to lose blood just at present: I have lost too much of late for my physical good, and the then prolonged strain of Lucy’s illness and its horrible phases is telling on me.I am over-excited and weary, and I need rest, rest, rest.Happily Van Helsing has not summoned me, so I need not forego my sleep; to-night I could not well do without it.

Telegram, Van Helsing, Antwerp, to Seward, Carfax

(Sent to Carfax, Sussex, as no county given; delivered late by twenty-two hours.)

“17 September—Do not fail to be at Hillingham to-night.If not watching all the time, frequently visit to see that flowers are as placed; very important; do not fail.Shall be with you as soon as possible after arrival.”

Dr. Seward’s Diary

18 September. —Just off for train to London. The arrival of Van Helsing’s telegram filled me with dismay. A whole night lost, and I know by bitter experience what may happen in a night. Of course it is possible that all may be well, but what may have happened? Surely there is some horrible doom hanging over us that every possible accident should thwart us in all we try to do. I shall take this cylinder with me, and then I can complete my entry on Lucy’s phonograph.

Memorandum left by Lucy Westenra

17 September.Night—I write this and leave it to be seen, so that no one may by chance get into any trouble through me.This is an exact record of what took place tonight.I feel I am dying of weakness, and have barely strength to write, but it must be done if I die in the doing.

I went to bed as usual, taking care that the flowers were placed as Dr. Van Helsing directed, and soon fell asleep.

I was waked by the flapping at the window, which had begun after the sleep-walking on the cliff at Whitby when Mina saved me, and which now I know so well. I was not afraid, but I did wish that Dr. Seward was in the next room—as Dr. Van Helsing said he would be—so that I might have called him. I tried to go to sleep, but could not. Then there came to me the old fear of sleep, and I determined to keep awake. Perversely sleep would try to come when I did not want it; so, as I feared to be alone, I opened my door and called out: “Is there anybody there?” There was no answer. I was afraid to wake mother, and so closed my door again. Then outside in the shrubbery I heard a sort of howl like a dog’s, but more fierce and deeper. I went to the window and looked out, but could see nothing, except a big bat, which had evidently been buffeting its wings against the window. So I went back to bed again, but determined not to go to sleep. Presently the door opened, and mother looked in; seeing by my moving that I was not asleep, came in, and sat by me. She said to me even more sweetly and softly than her wont:—

“I was uneasy about you, darling, and came in to see that you were all right.”

I feared she might catch cold sitting there, and asked her to come in and sleep with me, so she came into bed, and lay down beside me; she did not take off her dressing gown, for she said she would only stay awhile and then go back to her own bed.As she lay there in my arms, and I in hers, the flapping and buffeting came to the window again.She was startled and a little frightened, and cried out: “What is that?”I tried to pacify her, and at last succeeded, and she lay quiet; but I could hear her poor dear heart still beating terribly.After a while there was the low howl again out in the shrubbery, and shortly after there was a crash at the window, and a lot of broken glass was hurled on the floor. The window blind blew back with the wind that rushed in, and in the aperture of the broken panes there was the head of a great gaunt grey wolf. Mother cried out in a fright, and struggled up into a sitting posture, and clutched wildly at anything that would help her. Amongst other things, she clutched the wreath of flowers that Dr. Van Helsing insisted on my wearing round my neck, and tore it away from me. For a second or two she sat up, pointing at the wolf, and there was a strange and horrible gurgling in her throat; then she fell over, as if struck with lightning, and her head hit my forehead and made me dizzy for a moment or two. The room and all round seemed to spin round. I kept my eyes fixed on the window, but the wolf drew his head back, and a whole myriad of little specks seemed to come blowing in through the broken window, and wheeling and circling round like the pillar of dust that travellers describe when there is a simoom in the desert. I tried to stir, but there was some spell upon me, and dear mother’s poor body, which seemed to grow cold already—for her dear heart had ceased to beat—weighed me down; and I remembered no more for a while.

The time did not seem long, but very, very awful, till I recovered consciousness again.Somewhere near, a passing bell was tolling; the dogs all round the neighbourhood were howling; and in our shrubbery, seemingly just outside, a nightingale was singing.I was dazed and stupid with pain and terror and weakness, but the sound of the nightingale seemed like the voice of my dead mother come back to comfort me.The sounds seemed to have awakened the maids, too, for I could hear their bare feet pattering outside my door.I called to them, and they came in, and when they saw what had happened, and what it was that lay over me in the bed, they screamed out.The wind rushed in through the broken window, and the door slammed to.They lifted off the body of my dear mother and laid her, covered up with a sheet, on the bed after I had got up.They were all so frightened and nervous that I directed them to go to the dining-room and have each a glass of wine.The door flew open for an instant and closed again.The maids shrieked, and then went in a body to the dining-room; and I laid what flowers I had on my dear mother’s breast.When they were there I remembered what Dr. Van Helsing had told me, but I didn’t like to remove them, and, besides, I would have some of the servants to sit up with me now. I was surprised that the maids did not come back. I called them, but got no answer, so I went to the dining-room to look for them.

My heart sank when I saw what had happened.They all four lay helpless on the floor, breathing heavily.The decanter of sherry was on the table half full, but there was a queer, acrid smell about.I was suspicious, and examined the decanter.It smelt of laudanum, and looking on the sideboard, I found that the bottle which mother’s doctor uses for her—oh!did use—was empty.What am I to do?What am I to do?I am back in the room with mother.I cannot leave her, and I am alone, save for the sleeping servants, whom some one has drugged.Alone with the dead!I dare not go out, for I can hear the low howl of the wolf through the broken window.

The air seems full of specks, floating and circling in the draught from the window, and the lights burn blue and dim.What am I to do?God shield me from harm this night!I shall hide this paper in my breast, where they shall find it when they come to lay me out.My dear mother gone!It is time that I go too.Good-bye, dear Arthur, if I should not survive this night.God keep you, dear, and God help me!

---

CHAPTER XII.

DRSEWARD’S DIARY

18 September—I drove at once to Hillingham and arrived early.Keeping my cab at the gate, I went up the avenue alone.I knocked gently and rang as quietly as possible, for I feared to disturb Lucy or her mother, and hoped to bring only a servant to the door.After a while, finding no response, I knocked and rang again; still no answer.I cursed the laziness of the servants that they should lie abed at such an hour—for it was now ten o’clock—and so rang and knocked again, but more impatiently, and still without response.Hitherto I had blamed only the servants, but now a terrible fear began to assail me.Was this desolation but another link in the chain of doom which seemed drawing tight around us?Was it indeed a house of death to which I had come too late?I knew that minutes, even seconds, of delay might mean hours of danger to Lucy, if she had had again one of those frightful relapses; and I went round the house to try if I could to find by chance an entry anywhere.

I could find no means of ingress. Every window and door was fastened and locked, and I returned baffled to the porch. As I did so, I heard the rapid pit-pat of a swiftly driven horse’s feet. They stopped at the gate, and a few seconds later I met Van Helsing running up the avenue. When he saw me, he gasped out:—

“Then it was you, and just arrived.How is she?Are we too late?Did you not get my telegram?”

I answered as quickly and coherently as I could that I had only got his telegram early in the morning and had not lost a minute in coming here, and that I could not make any one in the house hear me. He paused and raised his hat as he said solemnly:—

“Then I fear we are too late.God’s will be done!”With his usual recuperative energy, he went on: “Come.If there be no way open to get in, we must make one.Time is all in all to us now.”

We went round to the back of the house, where there was a kitchen window.The Professor took a small surgical saw from his case, and handing it to me, pointed to the iron bars which guarded the window.I attacked them at once and had very soon cut through three of them.Then with a long, thin knife we pushed back the fastening of the sashes and opened the window.I helped the Professor in and followed him.There was no one in the kitchen or in the servants’ rooms, which were close at hand.We tried all the rooms as we went along, and in the dining-room, dimly lit by rays of light through the shutters, found four servant-women lying on the floor.There was no need to think them dead, for their stertorous breathing and the acrid smell of laudanum in the room left no doubt as to their condition.Van Helsing and I looked at each other, and as we moved away he said: “We can attend to them later.”Then we ascended to Lucy’s room.For an instant or two we paused at the door to listen, but there was no sound that we could hear.With white faces and trembling hands, we opened the door gently, and entered the room.

How shall I describe what we saw? On the bed lay two women, Lucy and her mother. The latter lay farthest in, and she was covered with a white sheet, the edge of which had been blown back by the draught through the broken window, showing the drawn, white face, with a look of terror fixed upon it. By her side lay Lucy, with face white and still more drawn. The flowers which had been round her neck we found upon her mother’s bosom, and her throat was bare, showing the two little wounds which we had noticed before, but looking horribly white and mangled. Without a word the Professor bent over the bed, his head almost touching poor Lucy’s breast; then he gave a quick turn of his head, as of one who listens, and leaping to his feet, he cried out to me:—

“It is not yet too late!Quick!quick!Bring the brandy!”

I flew downstairs and returned with it, taking care to smell and taste it, lest it, too, were drugged like the decanter of sherry which I found on the table. The maids were still breathing, but more restlessly, and I fancied that the narcotic was wearing off. I did not stay to make sure, but returned to Van Helsing. He rubbed the brandy, as on another occasion, on her lips and gums and on her wrists and the palms of her hands. He said to me:—

“I can do this, all that can be at the present.You go wake those maids.Flick them in the face with a wet towel, and flick them hard.Make them get heat and fire and a warm bath.This poor soul is nearly as cold as that beside her.She will need be heated before we can do anything more.”

I went at once, and found little difficulty in waking three of the women.The fourth was only a young girl, and the drug had evidently affected her more strongly, so I lifted her on the sofa and let her sleep.The others were dazed at first, but as remembrance came back to them they cried and sobbed in a hysterical manner.I was stern with them, however, and would not let them talk.I told them that one life was bad enough to lose, and that if they delayed they would sacrifice Miss Lucy.So, sobbing and crying, they went about their way, half-clad as they were, and prepared fire and water.Fortunately, the kitchen and boiler fires were still alive, and there was no lack of hot water.We got a bath, and carried Lucy out as she was and placed her in it.Whilst we were busy chafing her limbs there was a knock on the hall-door.One of the maids ran off, hurried on some more clothes, and opened it.Then she returned and whispered to us that there was a gentleman who had come with a message from Mr. Holmwood.I bade her simply tell him that he must wait, for we could see no one now.She went away with the message, and, engrossed with our work, I clean forgot all about him.

I never saw in all my experience the Professor work in such deadly earnest. I knew—as he knew—that it was a stand-up fight with death, and in a pause told him so. He answered me in a way that I did not understand, but with the sternest look that his face could wear:—

“If that were all, I would stop here where we are now, and let her fade away into peace, for I see no light in life over her horizon.” He went on with his work with, if possible, renewed and more frenzied vigour.

Presently we both began to be conscious that the heat was beginning to be of some effect. Lucy’s heart beat a trifle more audibly to the stethoscope, and her lungs had a perceptible movement. Van Helsing’s face almost beamed, and as we lifted her from the bath and rolled her in a hot sheet to dry her he said to me:—

“The first gain is ours!Check to the King!”

We took Lucy into another room, which had by now been prepared, and laid her in bed and forced a few drops of brandy down her throat.I noticed that Van Helsing tied a soft silk handkerchief round her throat.She was still unconscious, and was quite as bad as, if not worse than, we had ever seen her.

Van Helsing called in one of the women, and told her to stay with her and not to take her eyes off her till we returned, and then beckoned me out of the room.

“We must consult as to what is to be done,” he said as we descended the stairs. In the hall he opened the dining-room door, and we passed in, he closing the door carefully behind him. The shutters had been opened, but the blinds were already down, with that obedience to the etiquette of death which the British woman of the lower classes always rigidly observes. The room was, therefore, dimly dark. It was, however, light enough for our purposes. Van Helsing’s sternness was somewhat relieved by a look of perplexity. He was evidently torturing his mind about something, so I waited for an instant, and he spoke:—

“What are we to do now?Where are we to turn for help?We must have another transfusion of blood, and that soon, or that poor girl’s life won’t be worth an hour’s purchase.You are exhausted already; I am exhausted too.I fear to trust those women, even if they would have courage to submit.What are we to do for some one who will open his veins for her?”

“What’s the matter with me, anyhow?”

The voice came from the sofa across the room, and its tones brought relief and joy to my heart, for they were those of Quincey Morris.Van Helsing started angrily at the first sound, but his face softened and a glad look came into his eyes as I cried out: “Quincey Morris!” and rushed towards him with outstretched hands.

“What brought you here?”I cried as our hands met.

“I guess Art is the cause.”

He handed me a telegram:—

“Have not heard from Seward for three days, and am terribly anxious.Cannot leave.Father still in same condition.Send me word how Lucy is.Do not delay.—HOLMWOOD.”

“I think I came just in the nick of time.You know you have only to tell me what to do.”

Van Helsing strode forward and took his hand, looking him straight in the eyes as he said:—

“A brave man’s blood is the best thing on this earth when a woman is in trouble.You’re a man, and no mistake.Well, the devil may work against us for all he’s worth, but God sends us men when we want them.”

Once again we went through that ghastly operation.I have not the heart to go through with the details.Lucy had got a terrible shock, and it told on her more than before, for though plenty of blood went into her veins, her body did not respond to the treatment as well as on the other occasions.Her struggle back into life was something frightful to see and hear.However, the action of both heart and lungs improved, and Van Helsing made a subcutaneous injection of morphia, as before, and with good effect.Her faint became a profound slumber.The Professor watched whilst I went downstairs with Quincey Morris, and sent one of the maids to pay off one of the cabmen who were waiting.I left Quincey lying down after having a glass of wine, and told the cook to get ready a good breakfast.Then a thought struck me, and I went back to the room where Lucy now was.When I came softly in, I found Van Helsing with a sheet or two of note-paper in his hand.He had evidently read it, and was thinking it over as he sat with his hand to his brow.There was a look of grim satisfaction in his face, as of one who has had a doubt solved.He handed me the paper, saying only: “It dropped from Lucy’s breast when we carried her to the bath.”

When I had read it, I stood looking at the Professor, and after a pause asked him: “In God’s name, what does it all mean?Was she, or is she, mad; or what sort of horrible danger is it?” I was so bewildered that I did not know what to say more. Van Helsing put out his hand and took the paper, saying:—

“Do not trouble about it now.Forget it for the present.You shall know and understand it all in good time; but it will be later.And now what is that you came to me to say?”This brought me back to fact, and I was all myself again.

“I came to speak about the certificate of death.If we do not act properly and wisely, there may be an inquest, and that paper would have to be produced.I am in hopes that we need have no inquest, for if we had it would surely kill poor Lucy, if nothing else did.I know, and you know, and the other doctor who attended her knows, that Mrs. Westenra had disease of the heart, and we can certify that she died of it.Let us fill up the certificate at once, and I shall take it myself to the registrar and go on to the undertaker.”

“Good, oh my friend John!Well thought of!Truly Miss Lucy, if she be sad in the foes that beset her, is at least happy in the friends that love her.One, two, three, all open their veins for her, besides one old man.Ah yes, I know, friend John; I am not blind!I love you all the more for it!Now go.”

In the hall I met Quincey Morris, with a telegram for Arthur telling him that Mrs. Westenra was dead; that Lucy also had been ill, but was now going on better; and that Van Helsing and I were with her. I told him where I was going, and he hurried me out, but as I was going said:—

“When you come back, Jack, may I have two words with you all to ourselves?”I nodded in reply and went out.I found no difficulty about the registration, and arranged with the local undertaker to come up in the evening to measure for the coffin and to make arrangements.

When I got back Quincey was waiting for me.I told him I would see him as soon as I knew about Lucy, and went up to her room.She was still sleeping, and the Professor seemingly had not moved from his seat at her side.From his putting his finger to his lips, I gathered that he expected her to wake before long and was afraid of forestalling nature.So I went down to Quincey and took him into the breakfast-room, where the blinds were not drawn down, and which was a little more cheerful, or rather less cheerless, than the other rooms. When we were alone, he said to me:—

“Jack Seward, I don’t want to shove myself in anywhere where I’ve no right to be; but this is no ordinary case. You know I loved that girl and wanted to marry her; but, although that’s all past and gone, I can’t help feeling anxious about her all the same. What is it that’s wrong with her? The Dutchman—and a fine old fellow he is; I can see that—said, that time you two came into the room, that you must have another transfusion of blood, and that both you and he were exhausted. Now I know well that you medical men speak in camera, and that a man must not expect to know what they consult about in private.But this is no common matter, and, whatever it is, I have done my part.Is not that so?”

“That’s so,” I said, and he went on:—

“I take it that both you and Van Helsing had done already what I did to-day.Is not that so?”

“That’s so.”

“And I guess Art was in it too.When I saw him four days ago down at his own place he looked queer.I have not seen anything pulled down so quick since I was on the Pampas and had a mare that I was fond of go to grass all in a night.One of those big bats that they call vampires had got at her in the night, and, what with his gorge and the vein left open, there wasn’t enough blood in her to let her stand up, and I had to put a bullet through her as she lay.Jack, if you may tell me without betraying confidence, Arthur was the first; is not that so?”As he spoke the poor fellow looked terribly anxious.He was in a torture of suspense regarding the woman he loved, and his utter ignorance of the terrible mystery which seemed to surround her intensified his pain.His very heart was bleeding, and it took all the manhood of him—and there was a royal lot of it, too—to keep him from breaking down.I paused before answering, for I felt that I must not betray anything which the Professor wished kept secret, but already he knew so much, and guessed so much, that there could be no reason for not answering, so I answered in the same phrase: “That’s so.”

“And how long has this been going on?”

“About ten days.”

“Ten days!Then I guess, Jack Seward, that that poor pretty creature that we all love has had put into her veins within that time the blood of four strong men. Man alive, her whole body wouldn’t hold it.” Then, coming close to me, he spoke in a fierce half-whisper: “What took it out?”

I shook my head.“That,” I said, “is the crux.Van Helsing is simply frantic about it, and I am at my wits’ end.I can’t even hazard a guess.There has been a series of little circumstances which have thrown out all our calculations as to Lucy being properly watched.But these shall not occur again.Here we stay until all be well—or ill.”Quincey held out his hand.“Count me in,” he said.“You and the Dutchman will tell me what to do, and I’ll do it.”

When she woke late in the afternoon, Lucy’s first movement was to feel in her breast, and, to my surprise, produced the paper which Van Helsing had given me to read.The careful Professor had replaced it where it had come from, lest on waking she should be alarmed.Her eye then lit on Van Helsing and on me too, and gladdened.Then she looked round the room, and seeing where she was, shuddered; she gave a loud cry, and put her poor thin hands before her pale face.We both understood what that meant—that she had realised to the full her mother’s death; so we tried what we could to comfort her.Doubtless sympathy eased her somewhat, but she was very low in thought and spirit, and wept silently and weakly for a long time.We told her that either or both of us would now remain with her all the time, and that seemed to comfort her.Towards dusk she fell into a doze.Here a very odd thing occurred.Whilst still asleep she took the paper from her breast and tore it in two.Van Helsing stepped over and took the pieces from her.All the same, however, she went on with the action of tearing, as though the material were still in her hands; finally she lifted her hands and opened them as though scattering the fragments.Van Helsing seemed surprised, and his brows gathered as if in thought, but he said nothing.

19 September—All last night she slept fitfully, being always afraid to sleep, and something weaker when she woke from it.The Professor and I took it in turns to watch, and we never left her for a moment unattended.Quincey Morris said nothing about his intention, but I knew that all night long he patrolled round and round the house.

When the day came, its searching light showed the ravages in poor Lucy’s strength.She was hardly able to turn her head, and the little nourishment which she could take seemed to do her no good.At times she slept, and both Van Helsing and I noticed the difference in her, between sleeping and waking.Whilst asleep she looked stronger, although more haggard, and her breathing was softer; her open mouth showed the pale gums drawn back from the teeth, which thus looked positively longer and sharper than usual; when she woke the softness of her eyes evidently changed the expression, for she looked her own self, although a dying one.In the afternoon she asked for Arthur, and we telegraphed for him.Quincey went off to meet him at the station.

When he arrived it was nearly six o’clock, and the sun was setting full and warm, and the red light streamed in through the window and gave more colour to the pale cheeks.When he saw her, Arthur was simply choked with emotion, and none of us could speak.In the hours that had passed, the fits of sleep, or the comatose condition that passed for it, had grown more frequent, so that the pauses when conversation was possible were shortened.Arthur’s presence, however, seemed to act as a stimulant; she rallied a little, and spoke to him more brightly than she had done since we arrived.He too pulled himself together, and spoke as cheerily as he could, so that the best was made of everything.

It is now nearly one o’clock, and he and Van Helsing are sitting with her.I am to relieve them in a quarter of an hour, and I am entering this on Lucy’s phonograph.Until six o’clock they are to try to rest.I fear that to-morrow will end our watching, for the shock has been too great; the poor child cannot rally.God help us all.

Letter, Mina Harker to Lucy Westenra

(Unopened by her.)

“17 September

“My dearest Lucy,—

“It seems an age since I heard from you, or indeed since I wrote. You will pardon me, I know, for all my faults when you have read all my budget of news. Well, I got my husband back all right; when we arrived at Exeter there was a carriage waiting for us, and in it, though he had an attack of gout, Mr. Hawkins. He took us to his own house, where there were rooms for us all nice and comfortable, and we dined together. After dinner Mr. Hawkins said:—

“‘My dears, I want to drink your health and prosperity; and may every blessing attend you both.I know you both from children, and have, with love and pride, seen you grow up.Now I want you to make your home here with me.I have left to me neither chick nor child; all are gone, and in my will I have left you everything.’I cried, Lucy dear, as Jonathan and the old man clasped hands.Our evening was a very, very happy one.

“So here we are, installed in this beautiful old house, and from both my bedroom and drawing-room I can see the great elms of the cathedral close, with their great black stems standing out against the old yellow stone of the cathedral; and I can hear the rooks overhead cawing and cawing and chattering and gossiping all day, after the manner of rooks—and humans.I am busy, I need not tell you, arranging things and housekeeping.Jonathan and Mr. Hawkins are busy all day; for, now that Jonathan is a partner, Mr. Hawkins wants to tell him all about the clients.

“How is your dear mother getting on?I wish I could run up to town for a day or two to see you, dear, but I dare not go yet, with so much on my shoulders; and Jonathan wants looking after still.He is beginning to put some flesh on his bones again, but he was terribly weakened by the long illness; even now he sometimes starts out of his sleep in a sudden way and awakes all trembling until I can coax him back to his usual placidity.However, thank God, these occasions grow less frequent as the days go on, and they will in time pass away altogether, I trust.And now I have told you my news, let me ask yours.When are you to be married, and where, and who is to perform the ceremony, and what are you to wear, and is it to be a public or a private wedding?Tell me all about it, dear; tell me all about everything, for there is nothing which interests you which will not be dear to me.Jonathan asks me to send his ‘respectful duty,’ but I do not think that is good enough from the junior partner of the important firm of Hawkins & Harker; and so, as you love me, and he loves me, and I love you with all the moods and tenses of the verb, I send you simply his ‘love’ instead. Goodbye, my dearest Lucy, and all blessings on you.

“Yours,

“MINA HARKER.”

Report from Patrick Hennessey, M.D., M.R.C.S., L.K.Q.CP.I., etc., etc., to John Seward, M.D

“20 September

“My dear Sir,—

“In accordance with your wishes, I enclose report of the conditions of everything left in my charge....With regard to patient, Renfield, there is more to say.He has had another outbreak which might have had a dreadful ending, but which, as it fortunately happened, was unattended with any unhappy results.This afternoon a carrier’s cart with two men made a call at the empty house whose grounds abut on ours—the house to which, you will remember, the patient twice ran away.The men stopped at our gate to ask the porter their way, as they were strangers.I was myself looking out of the study window, having a smoke after dinner, and saw one of them come up to the house.As he passed the window of Renfield’s room, the patient began to rate him from within, and called him all the foul names he could lay his tongue to.The man, who seemed a decent fellow enough, contented himself by telling him to ‘shut up for a foul-mouthed beggar,’ whereon our man accused him of robbing him and wanting to murder him and said that he would hinder him if he were to swing for it.I opened the window and signed to the man not to notice, so he contented himself after looking the place over and making up his mind as to what kind of place he had got to by saying: ‘Lor’ bless yer, sir, I wouldn’t mind what was said to me in a bloomin’ madhouse.I pity ye and the guv’nor for havin’ to live in the house with a wild beast like that.’Then he asked the way civilly enough, and I told him where the gate of the empty house was; he went away, followed by threats and curses and revilings from our man.I went down to see if I could make out any cause for his anger, since he is usually such a well-behaved man, and except his violent fits nothing of the kind had ever occurred. I found him, to my astonishment, quite composed and most genial in his manner. I tried to get him to talk of the incident, but he blandly asked me questions as to what I meant, and led me to believe that he was completely oblivious of the affair. It was, I am sorry to say, however, only another instance of his cunning, for within half an hour I heard of him again. This time he had broken out through the window of his room, and was running down the avenue. I called to the attendants to follow me, and ran after him, for I feared he was intent on some mischief. My fear was justified when I saw the same cart which had passed before coming down the road, having on it some great wooden boxes. The men were wiping their foreheads, and were flushed in the face, as if with violent exercise. Before I could get up to him the patient rushed at them, and pulling one of them off the cart, began to knock his head against the ground. If I had not seized him just at the moment I believe he would have killed the man there and then. The other fellow jumped down and struck him over the head with the butt-end of his heavy whip. It was a terrible blow; but he did not seem to mind it, but seized him also, and struggled with the three of us, pulling us to and fro as if we were kittens. You know I am no light weight, and the others were both burly men. At first he was silent in his fighting; but as we began to master him, and the attendants were putting a strait-waistcoat on him, he began to shout: ‘I’ll frustrate them! They shan’t rob me! they shan’t murder me by inches! I’ll fight for my Lord and Master!’ and all sorts of similar incoherent ravings. It was with very considerable difficulty that they got him back to the house and put him in the padded room. One of the attendants, Hardy, had a finger broken. However, I set it all right; and he is going on well.

“The two carriers were at first loud in their threats of actions for damages, and promised to rain all the penalties of the law on us.Their threats were, however, mingled with some sort of indirect apology for the defeat of the two of them by a feeble madman.They said that if it had not been for the way their strength had been spent in carrying and raising the heavy boxes to the cart they would have made short work of him.They gave as another reason for their defeat the extraordinary state of drouth to which they had been reduced by the dusty nature of their occupation and the reprehensible distance from the scene of their labours of any place of public entertainment. I quite understood their drift, and after a stiff glass of grog, or rather more of the same, and with each a sovereign in hand, they made light of the attack, and swore that they would encounter a worse madman any day for the pleasure of meeting so ‘bloomin’ good a bloke’ as your correspondent. I took their names and addresses, in case they might be needed. They are as follows:—Jack Smollet, of Dudding’s Rents, King George’s Road, Great Walworth, and Thomas Snelling, Peter Parley’s Row, Guide Court, Bethnal Green. They are both in the employment of Harris & Sons, Moving and Shipment Company, Orange Master’s Yard, Soho.

“I shall report to you any matter of interest occurring here, and shall wire you at once if there is anything of importance.

“Believe me, dear Sir,

“Yours faithfully,

“PATRICK HENNESSEY.”

Letter, Mina Harker to Lucy Westenra

(Unopened by her.)

“18 September

“My dearest Lucy,—

“Such a sad blow has befallen us. Mr. Hawkins has died very suddenly. Some may not think it so sad for us, but we had both come to so love him that it really seems as though we had lost a father. I never knew either father or mother, so that the dear old man’s death is a real blow to me. Jonathan is greatly distressed. It is not only that he feels sorrow, deep sorrow, for the dear, good man who has befriended him all his life, and now at the end has treated him like his own son and left him a fortune which to people of our modest bringing up is wealth beyond the dream of avarice, but Jonathan feels it on another account. He says the amount of responsibility which it puts upon him makes him nervous. He begins to doubt himself. I try to cheer him up, and my belief in him helps him to have a belief in himself. But it is here that the grave shock that he experienced tells upon him the most. Oh, it is too hard that a sweet, simple, noble, strong nature such as his—a nature which enabled him by our dear, good friend’s aid, to rise from clerk to master in a few years—should be so injured that the very essence of its strength is gone. Forgive me, dear, if I worry you with my troubles in the midst of your own happiness; but, Lucy dear, I must tell some one, for the strain of keeping up a brave and cheerful appearance to Jonathan tries me, and I have no one here that I can confide in. I dread coming up to London, as we must do the day after to-morrow; for poor Mr. Hawkins left in his will that he was to be buried in the grave with his father. As there are no relations at all, Jonathan will have to be chief mourner. I shall try to run over to see you, dearest, if only for a few minutes. Forgive me for troubling you. With all blessings,

“Your loving

“MINA HARKER.”

Dr. Seward’s Diary

20 September—Only resolution and habit can let me make an entry to-night.I am too miserable, too low-spirited, too sick of the world and all in it, including life itself, and I would not care if I heard this moment the flapping of the wings of the angel of death.And he has been flapping those grim wings to some purpose of late—Lucy’s mother and Arthur’s father, and now....Let me get on with my work.

I duly relieved Van Helsing in his watch over Lucy.We wanted Arthur to go to rest also, but he refused at first.It was only when I told him that we should want him to help us during the day, and that we must not all break down for want of rest, lest Lucy should suffer, that he agreed to go.Van Helsing was very kind to him.“Come, my child,” he said; “come with me.You are sick and weak, and have had much sorrow and much mental pain, as well as that tax on your strength that we know of.You must not be alone; for to be alone is to be full of fears and alarms. Come to the drawing-room, where there is a big fire, and there are two sofas.You shall lie on one, and I on the other, and our sympathy will be comfort for each other, even though we do not speak, and even if we sleep.” Arthur went off with him, casting back a longing look on Lucy’s face, which lay on her pillow, almost whiter than the lawn. She lay quite still, and I looked round the room to see that all was as it should be. I could see that the Professor had carried out in this room, as in the other, his purpose of using the garlic; the whole of the window-sashes reeked with it, and round Lucy’s neck, over the silk handkerchief which Van Helsing made her keep on, was a rough chaplet of the same odorous flowers. Lucy was breathing somewhat stertorously, and her face was at its worst, for the open mouth showed the pale gums. Her teeth, in the dim, uncertain light, seemed longer and sharper than they had been in the morning. In particular, by some trick of the light, the canine teeth looked longer and sharper than the rest. I sat down by her, and presently she moved uneasily. At the same moment there came a sort of dull flapping or buffeting at the window. I went over to it softly, and peeped out by the corner of the blind. There was a full moonlight, and I could see that the noise was made by a great bat, which wheeled round—doubtless attracted by the light, although so dim—and every now and again struck the window with its wings. When I came back to my seat I found that Lucy had moved slightly, and had torn away the garlic flowers from her throat. I replaced them as well as I could, and sat watching her.

Presently she woke, and I gave her food, as Van Helsing had prescribed.She took but a little, and that languidly.There did not seem to be with her now the unconscious struggle for life and strength that had hitherto so marked her illness.It struck me as curious that the moment she became conscious she pressed the garlic flowers close to her.It was certainly odd that whenever she got into that lethargic state, with the stertorous breathing, she put the flowers from her; but that when she waked she clutched them close.There was no possibility of making any mistake about this, for in the long hours that followed, she had many spells of sleeping and waking, and repeated both actions many times.

At six o’clock Van Helsing came to relieve me.Arthur had then fallen into a doze, and he mercifully let him sleep on.When he saw Lucy’s face I could hear the hissing indraw of his breath, and he said to me in a sharp whisper: “Draw up the blind; I want light!” Then he bent down, and, with his face almost touching Lucy’s, examined her carefully. He removed the flowers and lifted the silk handkerchief from her throat. As he did so he started back, and I could hear his ejaculation, “Mein Gott!” as it was smothered in his throat. I bent over and looked too, and as I noticed some queer chill came over me.

The wounds on the throat had absolutely disappeared.

For fully five minutes Van Helsing stood looking at her, with his face at its sternest. Then he turned to me and said calmly:—

“She is dying.It will not be long now.It will be much difference, mark me, whether she dies conscious or in her sleep.Wake that poor boy, and let him come and see the last; he trusts us, and we have promised him.”

I went to the dining-room and waked him. He was dazed for a moment, but when he saw the sunlight streaming in through the edges of the shutters he thought he was late, and expressed his fear. I assured him that Lucy was still asleep, but told him as gently as I could that both Van Helsing and I feared that the end was near. He covered his face with his hands, and slid down on his knees by the sofa, where he remained, perhaps a minute, with his hands buried, praying, whilst his shoulders shook with grief. I took him by the hand and raised him up. “Come,” I said, “my dear old fellow, summon all your fortitude; it will be best and easiest for her.”

When we came into Lucy’s room I could see that Van Helsing had, with his usual forethought, been putting matters straight and making everything look as pleasing as possible. He had even brushed Lucy’s hair, so that it lay on the pillow in its usual sunny ripples. When we came into the room she opened her eyes, and seeing him, whispered softly:—

“Arthur!Oh, my love, I am glad you have come!”He was stooping to kiss her, when Van Helsing motioned him back.“No,” he whispered, “not yet!Hold her hand; it will comfort her more.”

So Arthur took her hand and knelt beside her, and she looked her best, with all the soft lines matching the angelic beauty of her eyes.Then gradually her eyes closed, and she sank to sleep.For a little bit her breast heaved softly, and her breath came and went like a tired child’s.

And then insensibly there came the strange change which I had noticed in the night. Her breathing grew stertorous, the mouth opened, and the pale gums, drawn back, made the teeth look longer and sharper than ever. In a sort of sleep-waking, vague, unconscious way she opened her eyes, which were now dull and hard at once, and said in a soft voluptuous voice, such as I had never heard from her lips:—

“Arthur!Oh, my love, I am so glad you have come!Kiss me!”Arthur bent eagerly over to kiss her; but at that instant Van Helsing, who, like me, had been startled by her voice, swooped upon him, and catching him by the neck with both hands, dragged him back with a fury of strength which I never thought he could have possessed, and actually hurled him almost across the room.

“Not for your life!”he said; “not for your living soul and hers!”And he stood between them like a lion at bay.

Arthur was so taken aback that he did not for a moment know what to do or say; and before any impulse of violence could seize him he realised the place and the occasion, and he stood silent, waiting.

I kept my eyes fixed on Lucy, as did Van Helsing, and we saw a spasm as of rage flit like a shadow over her face; the sharp teeth champed together.Then her eyes closed, and she breathed heavily.

Very shortly after she opened her eyes in all their softness, and putting out her poor pale, thin hand, took Van Helsing’s great brown one; drawing it to her, she kissed it.“My true friend,” she said, in a faint voice, but with untellable pathos, “My true friend, and his!Oh, guard him, and give me peace!”

“I swear it!”said he solemnly, kneeling beside her and holding up his hand, as one who registers an oath.Then he turned to Arthur, and said to him: “Come, my child, take her hand in yours, and kiss her on the forehead, and only once.”

Their eyes met instead of their lips; and so they parted.

Lucy’s eyes closed; and Van Helsing, who had been watching closely, took Arthur’s arm, and drew him away.

And then Lucy’s breathing became stertorous again, and all at once it ceased.

“It is all over,” said Van Helsing.“She is dead!”

I took Arthur by the arm, and led him away to the drawing-room, where he sat down, and covered his face with his hands, sobbing in a way that nearly broke me down to see.

I went back to the room, and found Van Helsing looking at poor Lucy, and his face was sterner than ever.Some change had come over her body.Death had given back part of her beauty, for her brow and cheeks had recovered some of their flowing lines; even the lips had lost their deadly pallor.It was as if the blood, no longer needed for the working of the heart, had gone to make the harshness of death as little rude as might be.