"Surely you recognise the blades of Saint Elgius." "Exquisite, aren't they?" "Now, then." "Let me introduce myself." "My name is Abraham Van Helsing." "I will tear your heart out, peasant!" "And you are Vlad the Third," "Prince of Wallachia, second son of the House of Basarab, also known as Vlad Tepes, Vlad the Impaler." "Dracula." "Soon, the sun will take you and you will be no more." "But at least in your case, unlike my own, there will be one who deeply mourns your passing..." "For with your death so too will pass my last chance to obliterate The Order of the Dragon." "What is the Ordo Draco to you?" "They slaughtered my wife, Adalind, and my three children." "They stole from me everything in this world that I have loved..." "Everything you have loved." "Ilona..." "They burned her alive, as they did my Adalind." "And if you die this day, they will never face justice for these and all the other vile crimes they have committed in the Lord's name." "No man can change that." "True." "But you are far greater than any mortal man." "Though I possess the means," "I lack the power, the presence, and the ruthlessness to wield it to any effect." "Only you and I, together, can destroy them." "You say you have the means." "I do." "Then stop wasting my time!" "Remove this cursed blade before your confederate is rendered to ash!" "Every move you make is another card face up on the table." "Sir Clive is slaughtered, there is a vampire in London." "Then Kruger, a Huntsman." "I had no choice." "He saw my face." "A seasoned Huntsman!" "Now they will activate their Seers, if they haven't already." "I can deal with them." "And no doubt reveal yet another measure of your power." "We require stealth." "You deliver mayhem." "Our sole purpose in London is to make geomagnetic power a practical reality and wipe out The Order's investments in oil." "Damnit!" "Cursed sludge!" "Like tapping a wretched corpse." "You're lucky I fed." " Your other arm." " Must I?" "Stop being a baby." "Knives, swords, lances, stakes, a century in a metal box." "Mere annoyances." "But your needles will be the death of me." "It cannot be helped." "Your blood is a necessary component if you are ever to conquer daylight." "It's not the blood you draw that vexes me, Van Helsing, but the sublime pleasure you draw from its taking." "Must your progress be so painfully slow?" " You must have patience." " When?" "When it's done." "You've been telling me that for a decade!" "It's only a matter of time before my aversion to sunlight becomes obvious." "When?" "You must have patience." " En guard." " Excuse me, Mama." "Prêt." "Allez!" "Alastair!" "You look positively ferocious!" "Shall I have the pleasure of wearing your colours?" "It's all for a good cause, I know, but I would like to see them advance beyond the semi-finals at least." "And what, fair lady, shall be my prize should I triumph?" "Seriously?" "Touché!" "En guard." " Mina." " Hello, Minerva!" "My dear!" "Whatever happened?" "It's nothing, really, just a little accident at university." "I was practising my surgical technique, and I managed to cut myself to ribbons." "Silly." "At any rate, it did give me a chance to brush up on my suturing." "Stitches?" "Yes, I stitched it right up." "Across the thumb at least..." "Oh, good Lord, please stop." "We have only just finished luncheon." "Mina, what kept you?" " I found my champion!" " Only one?" "Oh, don't tell me you put all three ribbons on one man again!" "Why hedge when the outcome of the wager is certain?" "Shh!" "He's up!" "It's Alastair!" "Of course." "His opponent is Daniel Davenport." "The son of Lord Davenport and the reigning champion!" "Not for long." "Alastair is very motivated." "Prêt." "Allez!" "Our agents haven't reported a single incident since it bested Kruger." " He's gone to ground." " Perhaps, yes." "Or gone altogether." "Touché." "I take it, then, you'll be summoning another Huntsman to replace Kruger." "Perhaps MacLachlan from Glasgow?" "I'd rather I handled this one myself." "It is about time I had some fun for a change." "That's my girl." "Touché." " He's doing very well." " You are so mean." "Allez!" "I presume you have no objection to my deployment of the Seers?" "Must you?" "There is more than a whiff of sulphur about those two." "Better the devil you know..." "Very well." "If you must." "Touché!" "Bravo!" "Bravo!" "Good show son!" "Jolly good!" "Well fought Davenport, well done." "Well done." "Don't be ridiculous." "This is my treat!" " No, please..." " Absolutely not!" "I insist." "Thank you, Madam." "Thank you Mrs Westenra." "Oh!" "I thought I'd missed you!" "Just leaving, actually." "That was really smashing!" "I'm just glad that you were here to see me in all my glory." "Quite." " Later then." " Of course." "So?" "Did you get the raise?" " He says he'll look into it." " Sorry, mate." "At this rate, by the time I'll be able to afford a wife," "Mina and I will be in advanced old age." "I wouldn't say that." "Well, not both of you, at least." "You do have a few years on the girl." "Mr Renfield, this is my co-chairman on the board of British Imperial Coolant Company," "Lord Laurent!" "Pleasure." "Please." "Sit." "I'm sorry, but I really don't have much time." "My driver is waiting and you indicated in your wire that this was a matter of some urgency." "It is." "Namely, I have become uncomfortable with our business relationship." "It's nothing personal, of course." "I just don't like partners in general." "I see." "So you wish to sell your shares?" "I'd be happy to..." "No, no, no, no." "No, I have no interest in selling my interest." "I was rather hoping you would entertain an offer for your interest?" "Renfield?" "Certainly not!" "You haven't even looked at the offer." "I do not need to see your offer, sir." "My interests are not for sale!" "At any price!" "See Renfield? "Not for sale." "At any price."" "Good day, sir." "If I may ask a question, sir?" "I'd rather you didn't, and yet I know somehow you will." "I still don't understand your circumspection." "Why engage Harker to bring the woman into your orbit?" "Surely you have the power to simply take her." "I can't." "I know." "It sounds absurd that someone such as I would hesitate to act on moral grounds." "But to simply take the woman, to turn her into such as I am..." "It would be an abomination." "No, Renfield, I cannot." "I will not take her." "Yet still you seek to draw her in." "To what possible end?" "That I cannot say." "I only know to lose her twice would be more that I can bear." "No, exactly, if you bring the header down and then move this across, then we will not get into trouble later." "Mr Harker?" " Yes?" " If you don't mind." "Chop chop!" "I take it our interview was a feather in your cap?" "My editor was quite pleased." "But?" "I was hoping for something rather more tangible than a feather." "As you should." "It's perfectly reasonable to expect a reward when one demonstrates initiative." "A man should never be ashamed of ambition, only the lack of it." " That may be true in America..." " No, Harker." "It's simply true." "Everywhere." "In every man's heart." "Even in yours." "Especially yours." "If you don't mind, I have a little business matter to attend to." "Of course." "Mr Grayson." " You have met my man, Renfield?" " I have." " This is my young friend, Mr Harker." " How do you do?" " Shall we?" " By all means." "This is the main entry hall." "As you can see, it's quite spacious." "To the left is the drawing room." "There's a full cellar, of course, including kitchen and pantry." "Four bedrooms upstairs and servant's quarters are on the second floor." "Thank you." "I must say, I was keenly impressed by your insights regarding Sir Clive's, uh..." "How shall I put this?" "Marked fondness for games of chance." " It was nothing, really." " Quite the contrary." "They proved very helpful indeed in persuading his widow in selling me his interests in a company I had my eye on." "British Imperial Coolant?" "The very same." "Of course, I don't yet have a controlling interest." "Which is where you come in." " Gentlemen, is everything in order?" " Yes, sir." "I need a Vice President of Public Affairs." "A man with a certain finesse and a thorough knowledge of who's who and what's what." "The primary duties of the position will be to assist me in navigating a course through British society, and her business community." "Enjoy your new home, Mr Grayson." "I'll see to all the details with the executor." "Thank you." " Oh, hold on a minute." "Is this..." " Sir Clive's old place." "Got it for a song, really." "A little paint, a little polish..." "So, Harker..." "It's yours, if you accept my offer." "I can't have my attaché living in a hovel, now, can I?" " Um..." " Is that a yes?" "No!" "I mean..." "I'm sorry, this is very unexpected." "Think about it." "Of course the position comes with a generous salary." "However, I cannot wait indefinitely for an answer." "So I'll need yours by Monday morning." "Is that okay with you?" "Yes, of course." "Do me a favour, will you, Harker?" "Turn out the lights and lock up." "I just know I'm going to botch it." "I'll be lucky to pass, much less be chosen as Professor Van Helsing's protégé." "You'll do fine." "No, Jonathan." "I most decidedly will not do fine." "The cardiovascular system is the most complex structure we studied this term and surgical skills are not my forte." "They never have been." "If I don't pass this examination, I won't advance past fourth year." "Jonathan?" "You haven't heard a word I've said." "Of course I have." "You've got a test on the anterior thingamabob, and I'm quite certain that you'll leave all the other students in the shade!" "Hmm." " I got the most extraordinary offer." " What?" "Mr Grayson has offered me a position in his firm." " Alexander Grayson?" " Yeah." "Yes." "Well, then you simply must take it!" "Don't you even want to know what it entails?" "Of course I do!" "Tell me everything about it!" "You didn't answer my summons!" "We only just lit that!" "There's a vampire in London." "You shall find him forthwith." "We can't." "We've been ill, sick as pikes." "But as soon as we're up to snuff..." "Yes, well I think that snuff is half the problem." "You will find him, or you will answer to Mr Browning and the High Council." "Oh, Jonathan!" "You'll be perfect for that!" "Doesn't it just feel a bit dodgy?" "But he's a visionary." "He's a brilliant business tactician." "Every concern he's had a hand in has prospered." "Yes." "For the past seven or eight years, yes." "But the farthest anyone can dig back is to Manitoba Rail and Transport." "I mean, as far as the public record are concerned, before that the man didn't even exist." "Yes." "But he made his early fortune on the American frontier, it's hardly a bastion for crack record keeping." "Hmm." "You're right." "Perhaps the whole thing just feels too good to be true." "Mr Grayson is leading the charge in a technical revolution that will change everything!" "I know." "I know you, Jonathan." "How can you not want to be a part of that?" "Hmm, let me think." "I will kick you if you don't!" "Then I suppose I'll have to." "Oh." "He's acquired every drop of coolant from our distributors." "And put in an order for 250,000 gallons, which, of course, we declined." "Then this..." "He's offered to buy you out?" "For treble the book value of my stock." "I declined, of course." "I should hope so." "As absurd as his claims are regarding this geomagnetism, we must obstruct him at every turn." "A schoolboy experiment delivered with a bit of panache hardly equals large-scale practical application." "Yes but even if the mere idea gets a foothold in the public imagination, it could impact severely upon our portfolio." "Perhaps, but surely over the long run..." "Therefore any member of this organisation who knowingly assists Grayson will be dealt with in the harshest of terms." "So, this trick with the light bulbs that you performed with just such panache at your house-warming party?" "I prefer to think of it as a debutante ball." "Oh, a cotillion, was it?" "Yes ma'am." "And I was the belle of it." "And the main entertainment as well." "If you're referring to my little demonstration, yes." "How did you do it?" "Really." "No, I must know." "I simply adore magic tricks." "I'm sorry to disappoint you, but there was neither magic nor trickery involved." "Simply science, physics, and technology." "Although, I have been known to dabble in the occult." "Have you?" "Do tell!" "Observe." "What're you doing?" "Where did it go?" "No!" "Shall we show the butler?" " Jenkins, that'll be all." " Yes Ma'am." "Miss Murray?" "Good morning." "May I offer you my carriage?" "Mr Renfield, is it considered proper in America for a gentleman to ask a single lady if she would like to ride in his carriage?" "To tell you the truth, ma'am," "I don't believe my employer ever gave a damn about what's proper." "Nor I." "Thank you." "Certain you wouldn't rather swim?" "I'd hate to compromise your reputation." "Well, I'm afraid only I can do that, Mr Grayson." "So, did you quit?" "I'm beginning to harbour second thoughts." " You are mad!" " No, I am not mad." "It's just, I keep wondering, why me?" "There are hundreds, thousands of men in London with greater qualifications." "But Grayson chooses me." "Don't you think that's a bit odd?" " He must have some sort of agenda." " What agenda?" "I don't know." "That's just it, I can't figure it out." "Nothing adds up." "What will you tell Mina?" "The truth." "This whole business, it just feels so wrong." " So did Mr Harker tell you about my offer?" " He did." "And what do you think?" "I told him that I would give him a kick if he didn't take you up on it." "Hmm, I bet you did." "So what's your area of study, Miss Murray?" "Um, I'm studying to be a physician." "Are you?" "How extraordinary." " You don't approve?" " Why would you say that?" "My father is the Supervising Physician at Bethlem Royal Hospital." "And people would always say to me..." ""Are you going to be a nurse when you grow up?"" "And I would say, "No, I'm going to be a doctor."" " Really?" " Yes." "And it was all very sweet and charming until I was 14 or so." "So what?" "Indeed, Mr Grayson." "Two words guaranteed to repel any manner of mediocrity masquerading as conventional wisdom." "I have a very difficult examination today." "One which I may well fail." " And if I do..." " That will be the end of your dreams?" "Very much so." "If there is one thing I have learned in all my years, in all my journeys, Miss Murray, is that when it comes to dreams, one may falter, but the only way to fail is to abandon them." "Here." "When it comes to dreams, one might falter, but the only way to fail is to abandon them." "The patient exhibits left ventricular wall thickening and mal-alignment of the muscle cells, or myocardial disarray." "The hypertrophic thickening is asymmetric and clearly involves the inter-ventricular septum, which obstructs the cardiac outflow and prevents blood from flowing freely between the aortic valve and into the aorta." "The Seers located the vampire in Stepney." " He detected them." " He what?" "He detected them and then he employed some kind of countermeasure." "Is that even possible?" "Well it's rare, yes." "It's extraordinarily so." "But it's possible if he is very, very old." "Two or three centuries at the least." "Have you consulted your peers?" "Has anyone ever come across anything like this?" "Not in our lifetime, no." "There was Lucrezia Borgia..." "Yes." "Yes, spare me the history lesson." "All I need to know is can we contain this?" "I promise." "I will track him down and I will destroy him, with or without the Seers' assistance." "You just raised the rent a month ago!" "If you don't bloody like it, move out!" "There you are Harker, we've been looking for you." "I passed!" "Not only passed, but first in her class!" "It was stupendous!" "Professor Van Helsing says that I'm..." "She's the first female student to come top of her class in college!" " I reserved a table." " At the Savoy!" "August is going to make something special just for Mina, isn't that divine?" "August?" "August who?" "August Escoffier, silly!" "Don't you know anything?" "Doesn't he know anything?" "Come." "We've got a cab waiting." "I can't." "I'm under the cosh with a deadline, and I have to deliver the copy before they set the presses." "Oh, don't worry, Harker." "The whole celebration is my treat!" "I can't tell you how happy we are to have you on board." "You will call me Alexander, and I will call you Harker." "Of course, if it pleases you." "There's something you should know about me right now, Harker." "I never do anything, anything that does not please me." "Is that not true, Renfield?" "All too true I'm afraid, sir." "Please." "He insists on calling me sir because he knows how much it annoys me, but I will brook no such insubordination from the likes of you." "Now, to business." "I want you to tell me everything you know about Lord Laurent." "Lord Laurent, uh..." "Well, he dabbles in business, he sits in Parliament." "We know all that." "But every man has a dark side." "I need to know his." "I want you to tell me everything." "Everything you need to know, you can find out at 10:00 PM at the Swinburne Club." "Good." "Very good." "Members only." "Whiskey." "Daniel!" "The night's hardly started!" "I'm sorry, but I must be off." "Father and I play polo tomorrow and you know how cross he gets when I come in late the night before a match." "Not nearly so cross as I get when you leave so early." "You are irresistible when you sulk." "Do you think so?" "How did you get in here?" "This is a private establishment." "You can't..." "Stephen, what is this?" "Who is this man?" "I'm Alexander Grayson." " The American." " Mmm-hmm." "And you would be Daniel, Lord Davenport's only son." "Hello, Daniel." "Leave him alone." "Stephen, please." "Sit." "Personally, I couldn't care who a man chooses to love, it's really none of my business." "However, there are legions of less broad-minded souls." "Your wife, his father." "Who would take considerable umbrage if your inclinations were given a public airing." "Why thank you." "What, I wonder, would that do to your reputations?" "Indeed, your families' reputations?" "What do you want?" "Bravo!" "Very nice!" "I mean to ask for her hand this very night." "What?" "In front of everyone?" "Of course in front of everyone." "In front of God, the prophets, the angels and every bloody soul in this room!" "Even you, you miserable git." "My boy is going to be a proper English gentleman!" "That's right!" "With a proper English wife!" "Cheers!" "Hold on, hold on." "If Miss Murray intends to be a physician, how does that square with the "proper English wife" bit?" "Mate, when I slip this ring on Mina's lovely little finger," "I have every confidence that she'll forget all this silliness at university, and settle down, and dedicate herself to more natural, womanly pursuits." "Mina." "Mina!" "Wait!" "Mina!" "Mina?" "Mina, wait!" "Mina, look, I'm sorry." "I'm sorry." "Why apologise?" "It's how you feel, it is how you have always felt." "That's not fair!" "I've never said a word of discouragement to you, ever!" "Nor a single word of support!" "Mina." "Good night." "I must know your name." "Please?" "If you don't give me your name, I won't give you your stub." "Then I shan't give you your coat." "Ah, but I can always purchase another coat." "But your name, now that's something I'd treasure more than any mere garment." "Sinead." "Ah, Sinead!" "Lovely!"