Warnings: Child abuse by a villain, gore
“I know, Melissa, I know you’re caring for your mom, but I need those reports on my desk by Monday. Ok? Good, goodnight, Melissa.” Robert snaps his flip phone shut with a sigh before throwing it onto the passenger seat without a second thought.
He couldn’t wait to get out of driving in this rain and settle in with his wife, Clare, for the night.
The rain was coming down pretty heavy tonight, making his way home a bigger pain in the ass than usual. He could barely see anything in front of him, even with the headlights on high.
“What the…?” He leans forward, squinting as he sees a shape in the road. He slammed on the brakes when he was close enough to realize the shape was a person standing in the middle of the road.
The car screeched to a stop, and Robert breathed heavily, quickly stepping out of the car, “What the hell is your problem!?”
He storms up to the person, grabbing their shoulder to turn them around to face him, “Hey, I’m talking to you-” He stops himself, eyes widening as he sees the unnatural red glow in the person’s eyes. Robert starts to back away, body trembling with fear, feeling a nervous sweat breaking out on his neck, before everything goes black.
Two other figures join the first one, each grabbing one of Robert’s limbs, carrying him off into the nearby treeline.
All three figures disappear into the night as Robert’s forgotten phone rings, still sitting on the passenger seat.
“So, get this,” Sam turns to his older brother, Dean, who was sitting nearby eating a double cheeseburger like it was his last meal, “Rich CEO, named Robert Woods, goes missing, no trace of him, nothing. He’s the third to go missing this month alone.”
Dean sets his burger down onto the wrapper, which was sitting on the motel kitchen table, “So what? Creature’s got expensive taste or something?”
Sam closes his laptop, “That’s what it looks like.”
“What kind of monster cares about your credit score?” Dean wondered aloud.
“I have no idea, but first we should talk to his wife, see if she’s seen anything weird lately,” Sam says, setting his laptop on the bed and getting up.
Dean nods in agreement, grabbing the keys to the Impala and following behind Sam.
Clare wiped her teary eyes with a tissue, looking down at the photo in her hand. It depicted her and Robert together on their wedding day, smiling at the camera.
She was broken out of her thoughts when she heard a knock on the door. When answering it, she found two men on her doorstep, both dressed in F.B.I. uniforms. The shorter of the two held up his badge, “I’m Agent Hill, this is my partner Agent Gibbons.” He put away his badge. “We’d like to ask you a few questions about your husband’s disappearance.”
Clare looked over the two for a moment before stepping aside and letting them in, “Finally, you’re here. I was telling the local police that we needed the F.B.I. on this, but they wouldn’t listen to me,” She says as she walks to the sitting room in the house. “Have a seat, agents,” She gestures to two expensive-looking leather upholstered chairs as she sits across from them.
Agent Gibbons pulls out a notepad and pen before looking up at Clare, “Now, Mrs. Woods can you please tell us about the night your husband disappeared?”
Clare lifts the tissue to her eye once more, wiping the tears in her eye, “Well, I was preparing dinner for him since I knew he’d be home soon. When I noticed it was getting late, I called his phone to see how long he was going to be, but he never answered his phone.”
Agent Gibbons writes that down on the notepad, “And did you notice anything strange before he disappeared? Like odd noises in the house or cold spots?”
Clare shakes her head, “No, nothing like that, but he did say he had gotten an odd phone call before he disappeared.”
Agent Hill raises an eyebrow, “Weird phone call?”
Clare nods, “Yes, he said the caller spoke oddly, they had a British accent, but their speech seemed incredibly old-fashioned. They were asking about how much he makes in a year and what his position is at the company. I just thought it might have been a weird investor. Do you think that has anything to do with what happened?”
“Well, we like to consider all the possibilities,” Agent Gibbons says, “Thank you for your time, Mrs. Woods. We’ll contact you if we find anything.”
“Thank you so much, agents.” Clare smiles, walking them to the door.
The two agents step outside and walk to the impala that was parked on the side of the street.
Dean opens the driver's side door to the Impala, “That was weird, right? I mean, old-fashioned British accents?”
Sam gets in the passenger seat, as he nods in agreement, “Maybe Bobby knows something about this,” He suggests, already grabbing his phone and dialing Bobby’s number.
The phone rings a few times before being answered, “Sam?”
“Hey Bobby, Dean and I are on a case and we’re kinda stumped with this one. Do you know anything about a monster that only targets people with large amounts of money?”
“‘Large amounts of money?’ It could be a Yeongno; it’s a creature from ancient Korean mythology. It targets ‘corrupt and wealthy people’. That sound like what you’re after?” Bobby questions.
“Uh, no, not really. The guy’s wife said that the thing had called her husband, and that it spoke with an old-fashioned British accent.”
“British accent?” The sound of turning pages comes through the phone as Bobby flips through one of his lore books. “I think I’ve got something.”
“Old British vampire nobility. They used to target lords, ladies, barons, whatever they considered wasn’t ‘peasant blood’. But the last I knew, all those families had died out hundreds of years ago to hunters. If they're the ones doing it, I’d look for any noble families that up and disappeared out of thin air or maybe died mysteriously.”
“Alright, thanks, Bobby.” Sam hangs up the phone, looking over at Dean. “Bobby thinks it’s some noble vampire family that managed to escape hunters back in the day.”
Dean scoffs, “‘Noble’? Vampires aren’t noble. I don’t know about you, but I’ve never heard of a philanthropist vamp.”
Sam gives Dean a confused look, “No, I meant nobility.”
“As in kings and queens?”
“Exactly, kings, queens, barons, lords.” Sam pulls out his laptop. “We need to find a British noble family that disappeared without a trace.”
Dean starts the car, pulling out onto the street and driving to the city library.
“You two some kind of historical enthusiasts?” The librarian asks as he sets a pile of books down in front of Sam and Dean. “I don’t think I’ve seen anyone this interested in British lords before.”
Sam looks up at the librarian wth a friendly smile, “Our history professor wanted us to write a paper on it. We just want to be thorough with our research.”
The librarian nods, “Well, happy reading, gentlemen.” He walks back to the librarian’s desk.
Sam puts half the pile of books in front of Dean, “Here, look for any mysterious disappearances, or weird deaths.”
Dean looks down at the stack of books with a sigh, “I’m gonna need a beer after this.” He mutters under his breath, grabbing the book on the top of the stack and starting to read through it.
Book after book was set aside, anything that could be considered remotely ‘mysterious’ was already solved or had no solid evidence behind it.
As the two were starting to become frustrated with the lack of leads, Dean suddenly shoved the book he was reading toward Sam, “Here, I think this is what we’re looking for.”
Sam leans over, reading the text on the page. The chapter was dedicated to the mysterious disappearance of the Constantine family. Lord Lucian Constantine, his wife Lady Claudia Constantine, their daughter, Victoria Constantine, and their servants had all disappeared in 1840 without a trace. Some suspected foul play, and an investigation was started with no real conclusion.
One page of the book even included a painted portrait of the family. Lucian stood tall and intimidating, dressed in a black coat with gold clasps and deep red shoulder pads. His hair was a deep black, falling slightly past his shoulders, and his eyes were blue. Claudia stood beside him, dressed in a red and black dress, with long blonde hair and green eyes. Both of their hands were placed on Victoria’s shoulders. She was wearing a black and pink dress, with long black hair and blue eyes, just like her father.
“So, what? Marilyn Manson over here is kidnapping people?” Dean looks down at the photo.
Sam pulls out his laptop, “It’s possible.” He types the last known places of the victims onto a map, drawing a line that connects to each dot. “Guess we’re heading to Jackson Street. It’s right in the middle of all these disappearances.” He stands, packing his things away into his messenger bag.
Dean stands as well, “Let’s go take down some snobby vamps.”
The impala pulls up onto the side of the street the next day. The house was tall, with red paint covering the old wood, and a white porch with a balcony above it, also painted in the same color. The home would look more intimidating if it weren’t for the fact that it was the middle of the day.
Sam and Dean step out of the car, opening the trunk’s secret compartment, revealing the various weapons scattered around that could kill different creatures.
Dean grabs two machetes, handing one to Sam, before shutting the trunk. He walks up to the house, Sam trailing closely behind him.
Sam kneels, picking the lock on the door as Dean keeps watch, looking up and down the street for any interruptions. The lock gives a soft click, the door swinging open with a squeak. The two step inside, looking around at the interior of the house.
The interior had a large hallway entrance, and intricate paintings hung on the wall depicting various scenes of nature. The hallway led to a large sitting room with a couch, a fireplace, and a coffee table.
The brothers step into the room, looking around at the intricate furniture. Dean scoffs, picking up a pure silver candelabra, “I knew these vamps had money, but damn.”
Sam rolls his eyes, quietly making his way toward the nearby staircase, “Come on, they’re probably upstairs.”
Dean sets the candelabra down, following behind Sam up the stairs. The stairs led to another hallway with doors lining the walls, most likely leading to different bedrooms. Both of them stop abruptly when they hear one of the doors opening. Before they can find somewhere to hide, they see a small girl with long black hair leave the bedroom on the left side of the hallway. She looked exactly like the portrait; clearly, this was Victoria Constantine.
Victoria looks up at the two warily, eyes wide with fear and trepidation. Her small body starts to shake, afraid of the two strange men who were in her house.
Sam kneels, trying to make himself look less intimidating, “Hey, it’s ok, we’re not here to hurt you,” He whispers, trying to reassure her.
Victoria seems to consider his words for a moment, before catching sight of the two’s weapons, fear building in her once again. “Daddy!” She yells, waking the other vampires in the house.
The servants rush out of their rooms, surrounding the brothers. Lucian and Claudia emerge from their room, Lucian kneeling and picking Victoria up into his arms.
Sam and Dean raise their machetes, preparing to fight off the vampires surrounding them. One of the servants, a tall woman, rushes at Sam, dodging his machete swings, clawing and biting at wherever she can reach. Meanwhile, Dean was fighting off his own attacker, a lanky man who had managed to knock Dean’s machete out of his hand, leaving the two to fight with their hands. The man sweeps Dean’s legs out from under him, knocking his head against the hardwood floor, knocking him out.
“Dean!” Sam exclaims, trying to assist his brother. The momentary distraction allows the woman to twist Sam’s arms behind his back and disarm him. The man grabs Sam’s fallen machete and hits him with the handle, knocking him out as well.
“Ugh…” Dean groans, eyes slowly opening, squinting as he adjusts to the sudden bright light in the room. He attempts to lift his hands to rub his eyes, but he finds them bound by rope. Looking down, he sees that his arms and legs are tied to a chair. He notices Sam beside him in the same position. “So much for ‘we’re not here to hurt you.’” He gives Sam a look.
Lucian steps into the room, looking down at the two tied-up hunters, “Ah, so you are finally awake. Nice of you to join the rest of us.” His voice had that old-fashioned British accent that Clare had mentioned.
Sam glares up at Lucian, “So you’re the one who’s been kidnapping all those CEOs.”
“Do not be mistaken, boy, I did not kidnap anyone. We merely sent our servants to do the dirty work for us.” Lucian explains as if that was supposed to make the situation any better.
Dean scoffs, “And that’s supposed to make you some kind of hero? Just because you don’t go out and hunt them down yourself?”
Lucian’s eyes narrow, “And you are any better? You break into my home, threaten my daughter, and you have the nerve to speak to me with that vile tongue?” He steps closer, eyes flashing red as his anger grows.
“Lucian,” A woman’s voice comes from the doorway. “Control yourself.” A blonde woman, Claudia, enters the room, red heels clicking against the wooden flooring.
Lucian immediately falls silent, stepping away from the two. His energy had gone from anger to submission in record time.
Claudia steps closer to the brothers, “I apologize for my husband’s rudeness; he sometimes forgets his place.”
Dean raises an eyebrow, “His place?”
“Of course, the man is much too weak to command much of anything. I am the one who runs this show here. Claudia amirks at the shocked expressions on the brother’s faces, “What? Did you really think that pathetic excuse of a man was the head of the house? Humans must have become quite dense. Right, dear?” She looks back at Lucian.
He nods, gaze cast downward onto the floor, “Yes, dear…”
Claudia turns back to the brothers, “Now what to do with you both. You are clearly not of high class,” She gazed condescendingly at the brother's simple jeans and t-shirts. “Maybe we could feed you to the servants, or we could make you into our spawn.”
“If you think you can just turn us into your little vampire servants, you've got another thing coming bitch.” Dean growls, struggling against his bonds.
Claudia laughs, “Oh, quite the fight in this one. It would be a shame to just kill you. I think I’ll keep you as a spawn. As for your friend here,” She looks Sam up and down, “He will be food for the servants.”
She walks to the door, “Come along, Lucian, we have many things to prepare.”
Lucian walks to the door, following behind her as the two leave the room.
Sam watches the two leave with an almost sympathetic look on his face, “Did you see the way she treats him? That’s not right.”
Dean glares at Sam, “Yeah, yeah, save the sympathy for after we get out of here.” He struggles against the ropes, testing the strength of the bonds. The rope holds strong, barely shifting under Dean’s movements. “Damn it, those bastards really know how to tie a knot.” He grunts.
Sam watches Dean’s struggles, head snapping up when he hears movement near the doorway of the room.
Victoria was standing in the doorway, watching the two. Her eyes were wide, her body trembling slightly, never taking her gaze off of them. Despite her clear nervousness, there was a hint of curiosity in her gaze.
Sam’s expression softens, “Hey, Victoria, right?”
“I’m Sam,” He glances at Dean, “This is my brother Dean. We’re sorry about scaring you earlier. We didn’t mean to frighten you.”
Victoria hesitantly steps into the room, approaching the two, “You didn’t?”
Sam shakes his head, “Of course not. We were just looking around; we didn’t know you were living in this house.” He hated lying to her, but he couldn't exactly tell her that he and Dean were originally here to kill her and her family.
Dean stops struggling against his binds, looking down at Victoria, “You think you can help us out of these ropes?”
Victoria hesitates for a moment, unsure if she should trust the two strangers. After a bit, she speaks up, “If I let you go, will you help my daddy…?”
Dean gives her a bewildered look, “Help your dad? What’s he need help with?”
She fidgets with the edges of her dress, “Mommy yells at Daddy sometimes… He always tells me to stand up for myself, but he refuses to stand up to her. He says it isn’t his place to argue with her.
Both brothers' expressions soften at the little girl’s words. Sam smiles gently, “Of course, we’ll help your dad. You just need to untie us first, ok?”
Victoria returns the smile, walking behind the brothers and untying their binds.
The ropes fall to the floor with a slight thud, releasing both men from the chairs. They stand, rubbing their sore wrists, trying to soothe the angry redness that has developed on the skin. Sam spots their machetes lying on a nearby table and grabs them, handing one to Dean with a nod. He turns to Victoria, “Just stay behind us, we’ll protect you.”
Dean leads the group out of the room, looking down the hallway to make sure no one is there. Once he confirmed the hallway was empty, they proceeded through the house. The group eventually comes upon a room with closed double doors. The room was guarded by the three servants that attacked and knocked out the brothers before.
Sam quietly has Victoria stay in the other room while he and Dean quietly sneak up on the vampires.
The servants whip around, spotting the brothers. They rush them, trying to overpower them with pure brute force and wild tactics, but Sam and Dean know what to anticipate now.
Dean quickly dodges their attacks, paying attention to where he steps to avoid being knocked down again. He backs them into a corner, taking down two vamps at once with a swift and clean machete swing.
Meanwhile, Sam focuses purely on the woman, refusing to let himself be distracted this time. He avoids her wild bites and claw attacks, keeping her away from Dean so he can fight without distraction. Finally, when the timing’s right, he swings his machete and decapitates her.
The two take a moment to catch their breath, panting from the exertion. They focus on the door once again, Dean taking the left while Sam takes the right, both raising their machetes over their shoulders just in case.
They swing the door open, taking both Claudia and Lucian by surprise. Claudia quickly stands, her face morphing from surprise to anger, "Escaped, did you?” She glances at the dead bodies of the servants, “I should have known, never send a spawn to do anything important.” She looks back at the brothers, narrowing her eyes, “How about this? If you both lower your weapons now, I will let you live, but if you choose to continue to be insolent brats, I will kill you instantly.”
Sam and Dean glance at each other before looking at her. “Yeah, hell no,” Dean responds, a scowl on his face.
“Fine then, if it is a fight you want, then a fight you will receive.”
Her attacks were much more coordinated than those of the servants. She was faster, stronger, and smarter. She feinted attacks so she could have openings to knock them down. She focused on Sam in particular, seeing him as the weaker of the two, figuring she could take him down easily and then focus on Dean.
Seeing his opportunity, Dean swings his machete, but it doesn’t cut all the way through. Dean’s eyes widen in confusion, trying to force the machete through her neck, but it wouldn’t budge.
Claudia knocks the brothers against the opposite wall, machete still stuck in her neck, crimson blood dripping from the wound, “Did you really think you pesky humans could cut through my neck? You’re much more dunce than I originally believed you to be. Now my question is, how did you two escape? I made sure myself those binds were strong.”
“Leave them alone!” Victoria steps into the room, her small body trembling with anger as she steps toward her mother.
Claudia turns her head toward her daughter, “What did you say?” Her voice was laced with barely concealed anger at Victoria’s insolence.
“You heard me, leave them alone! You’re a big meanie, mommy. You make the servants do everything, and you yell at Daddy when he hasn’t done anything to you!” Victoria yells, eyes filled with anger and frustration at her mother’s behavior.
Claudia turns to fully face the little girl, “You, ungrateful, insolent, little brat,” She growls. She grabs Victoria by the collar, “You will treat me with respect, I am your mother!” She wraps her hands around Victoria’s neck. “I should kill you for this, maybe our next heir will be more obedient than you-”
“Take your hands off of her.” Lucian’s voice cut through the air, instantly cutting off Claudia’s angry words. While Claudia had been distracted, Lucian had snuck up behind her, “I have had just about enough of you.” In a fit of parental rage, he grabbed the machete handle and swung the weapon clean through Claudia’s neck.
Claudia’s head swings through the air, blood spraying out of the stump that was left of her neck. Her grip on Victoria’s neck instantly loosens as her limp body slumps to the ground dead.
Lucian wraps Victoria in his arms, holding her against his body, “I am so sorry, my sweet girl. I should have stood up to your mother sooner. Are you alright?”
Victoria nods slowly, in shock at the turn of events. She buries her face into Lucian’s chest as she sobs quietly, feeling safer than she has in her small lifetime.
Sam and Dean watch the scene in pure disbelief; they’d never expected to see a vampire kill another of its kind. Dean looks at Sam with wide eyes, “Did he just…”
Sam nods, “Yeah, he did.”
They stand carefully, leaning against the wall for support. Both brothers’ bodies were sore from the fight and being thrown into a wall. Lucian, sensing their movements, turns to the brothers, “I suppose I should thank you both. Without your interference, I believe I never would have stood up to her.” He steps closer, “I will allow you both to live, just promise me that you will keep both my daughter and my location a secret.”
Dean raises an eyebrow, clearly skeptical of the offer, “And what are we getting in return, say we even believe you in the first place? You can’t seriously expect us to just trust you, you’re still a vampire.”
“I do not expect you to trust me immediately, but I am in your debt. I will become your ally; you can call upon me whenever my assistance is needed,” Lucian says sincerely, his expression showing nothing but a truthful offer.
Dean opens his mouth to give a sarcastic retort, but Sam cuts him off, “We appreciate your offer. We’ll call you if we need your help.”
Lucian nods, reaching his hand out to shake, which Sam takes, “It is a deal then.” Lucian hands Sam a piece of paper, “This contains my contact information. Do not hesitate to call me.”
Sam smiles, placing the paper into his jacket, “Thanks. We should be going now. As I said, we’ll call if we need anything.”
The brothers leave the room, making their way out of the house and back to the Impala. They open the trunk, throwing their weapons inside.
Dean turns to Sam as he shuts the trunk, “You really think this is a good idea, Sammy? I mean, the guy’s a vampire; they don’t exactly have a clean track record.”
Sam sighs, “I don’t know, you saw the way he protected Victoria back there. Would a monster really protect its kid like that?” Seeing Dean’s skeptical expression, Sam places a hand on Dean’s shoulder, “Just try to give the guy a chance, ok? Maybe he’ll turn out to be a valuable asset.”
Dean shakes his head, “You’re way too naive, Sammy.” Despite his words, he didn’t argue against him. A part of him did want to believe that Lucian did really want to help, but he couldn’t help his hunter instincts telling him to be wary of the powerful vampire. He walks to the driver’s side door, getting inside.
Sam gets in the passenger seat, buckling his seatbelt.
The impala drives off into the evening, ready for another hunt that might include a brand new ally.
