Blood of Youth Chapter 6: Bloodbath and Betrayal

He turned to Zhang, swept her shrunken body into his arms. But now she stiffened instead of going limp against him. The almost insane frenzy vanished from her wrinkled face.

“Li,” she whispered, so softly that Li Wei could scarcely hear her. “Li, that—that girl is your—your wife?”

Li Wei nodded. “Yes.”

Zhang’s eyes softened. “Your wife,” she repeated. “So young and sweet. I—I told Dr. Wang they were to be single persons. He knew my wishes.”

The physician, suspicious that something was wrong, came to the bars. “Zhang!” he called.

The old woman’s eyes blazed. “You fooled me!” she screamed. “Yes, you did! Maybe you fooled me about the whole thing! Maybe I’m going mad to believe you! This boy and that girl are married! It isn’t right! I told you only single people!” She gripped Li Wei’s arm. “The top drawer of my bureau!” she gasped. “Keys—to every door—hurry!”

It seemed like hours before Li Wei found the ring of keys, inserted the correct one in the door. As it swung open, a hairy, white-fanged tornado leaped at his throat. He ducked. The animal hurtled over his head, struck the fragile person of Zhang. In the hallway, Li Wei saw the shadowed outlines of Dr. Wang. The steel blade of a knife in his right hand glittered. Li Wei lunged, felt the deadly weapon cut through the arm of his jacket. He smashed his fist into Wang’s face, knocked him down. The knife clattered to the floor. Li Wei pounced on it, was ready for the physician’s attack. Mindless of the consequences, he slashed out.

The point of the blade slid under Wang’s chin, went into his throat to the hilt. He died without a sound, his jugular cut.

Li Wei pulled the blade out. It was dripping with blood. He faced the room. The huge, hairy animal—a dog that was half-wolf—was just about to sink its fangs into the old woman’s throat when Li Wei struck with the knife, dropped it in its tracks. He lifted Zhang to the bed. Her throat and chest were red with blood.

A noise behind him brought him whirling around. The revolting old man who had first let him into the house was crouched on the threshold, a revolver in his hand. Li Wei knew it was a matter of life and death. In that timeless moment his harried mind harked back to the days when he had practiced knife throwing for hours on end. His arm went back, fingers tight at the tip of the gory blade. Zing! It whizzed through the air. Flame leaped from the old man’s gun, but too late. The shot went wild as the knife blade pierced his chest, cut through to the heart.

Zhang’s voice—deathly weak—brought Li Wei to the bedside. “Paper,” she whispered. “P-pencil.”

Li Wei found them on the bureau. Slowly, painfully, she dictated her last will and testament. “I—I want you and your wife… to have something to repay you for… for all this horror.” She signed her name to the penciled document, sank back wearily.

Li Wei leaned over. “Tell me why all this happened?”

A faint smile crossed her face. “Vanity, my boy. I… was young and beautiful… once. Like a fool I thought I could regain that… that youth. Dr. Wang said he could do it with young blood. I… I promised him a fortune… have given him thousands already. Now I can see it… it was all a ghastly trick to… to get my money. All this secrecy and mystery he said was necessary to insure me quiet. There have been others… poor, young creatures… who gave their blood. He doped them to keep them here. When nothing happened he suggested a young man. You know the rest.”

Her eyelids closed heavily. Li Wei heard the horrible rattle of death. She died.

Leaving the room that was swimming in the blood of man and beast, Li Wei found the barred room where Li Mei was stretched on a bed.

His arms, now strong, went about her. Feverishly, he kissed her unresponsive lips. It seemed to bring life back to her. She stirred, opened her eyes.

“Li Wei!” she moaned. “Li Wei! Oh, God, what happened?”

He touched his cheek to hers. “Nothing, darling. Just a horrible nightmare. It’s all over.”

Her arms crept about his neck. Sweet warmth flowed between them.

The End