Rosemary Cross

*Your humble mistress trundles in…minions behind, yawning a little, shutting drapes as they go.*

‘Scuze them, the sun’s a bit bright this morning. Good evening–erm, morning–my pretties. Well, you all look like you had fun last night. I can’t believe you’re up so early, however. *sniffs the punch* What did we put in here? *eyes the cook*

No matter, he’ll be going to the rack soon, for questioning.

Ahem. At any rate, you’re just in time for our next guest. Paranormal romance author Rosemary Cross  (author of the book Intercession, and many others) has come a-calling with something for everyone, we hope: her favorite vampires. Do read on, and don’t forget to answer her question, at the end for a chance at some gifties. *turns back to minions* Shut those drapes, men, and bring us more witch’s brew!

Take it away, Rosemary.

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I’m not sure why, but my dad let me watch Bram Stoker’s Dracula when I was in fifth grade, and I’ve loved vampires ever since. The pain, the tragedy, the sexiness, the angst and the beauty, and of course, the promise of youth and immortality. You never grow old, and you never die. So naturally when I sat down to write my first novel, I thought about the sexy vampires that fueled so many of my fantasies.

5) Dracula (Bram Stoker’s Dracula)

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Well, of course Gary Oldman’s portrayal of the eponymous character had to make my list. Believable and terrifying in Transylvania, sexy and heartbreaking in England with Mina. I love how Oldman’s Dracula embodies both worlds so easily, simultaneously the men’s worst nightmare and the women’s greatest temptation.

 

4) David (Lost Boys)

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I grew up watching this movie. I saw it so many times as a child that it never occurred to me that it was supposed to be horror (I guess the brutal slaughter around the bonfire never bothered me). Vampires can represent so much in film and literature, but here Keifer Sutherland’s David represents raw masculinity and youth. He’s as tempting as he is dangerous, like Dracula, but for completely different reasons. He celebrates youth and sexuality, tempting Michael not with riches, but with fast bikes, freedom, and hot girls.

 

3) Max Schreck (Shadow of the Vampire)

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There’s nothing tempting or sexy about Willem Dafoe’s Max Schreck, but I still think he deserves to be included on the list, since Dafoe played the part with such humor, even though he was ugly and terrifying. Watch his face when he finds out he can’t eat anybody on the set. Hilarious.

 

2) Angel (Buffy the Vampire Slayer Angel)

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Handsome, tortured, brooding, alone, and one of television’s best Byronic heroes, all the more delicious because sex is so appealing with him and so forbidden. In constant pain from the curse of his soul, vibrantly, brilliantly evil when the curse is lifted, and always a great time. Still, he’s the responsible one, the one who could never quite escape his Catholic upbringing, and his control issues bring him into direct conflict with my number one guy…

 

1) Spike! (Buffy the Vampire Slayer and AtS)

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Snarky, evil, sexy, punk rocker. Like David, he represents eternal youth and beauty. He embraces the punk persona to hide a sweet nugget center, and he makes you want to be bad. He loves being a vampire, which is another reason why he’s at the top of my list. Unlike Angel, he’s not full of apologies for who he is. Like David, he embraces it, but I think he does so with far more gusto. Like Oldman’s Dracula, he’s motivated by love, but he’ll kill when it’s necessary and even when it’s not. There’s just enough man in this monster to make him one hell of a catch.

It’s my greatest hope that one day my own vampire, David Derringer, makes somebody’s list. You can read more about him my latest release Intercession: First Impressions. Comment with your own favorite vampires to win a copy of Intercession: First Impressions and please enjoy the following excerpt.
Many bitter years had passed since David Derringer last darkened the church’s doorstep, but his mother’s training couldn’t be easily forgotten. Easily suppressed, yes. Easily ignored for the sake of his own sanity, absolutely. Mary Derringer had steeped her eldest in the mysteries of the Roman Catholic Church, his indoctrination beginning at her breast with hymns and whispered prayers. When things got really bad, she didn’t go to her family or call the cops. She went running to the Holy Mother. Right up until the day she died, and David swore he’d never be so foolish.

But there he was. On his knees and out of hope. He currently had the church to himself–the benefit of arriving at three in the morning–but he didn’t want to deal with any surprise guests. Especially in that place, when a surprise guest could very well mean his demise. He was in enemy territory, every one of his senses on high alert as he stumbled through an awkward but heartfelt entreaty.

“You’re probably wondering what I’m doing here, right? I’ve been wondering the same thing myself. I must be really desperate to come in here now. Desperate or stupid.” David shrugged. “I guess it can be both. But look, my mother always believed. She always did what she thought would please you. She loved her neighbor, she raised up her kids, and she was a good lady. So if you don’t want to help me for my sake, at least help me for hers. And it’s the right thing to do.”

He looked over his shoulder, though his ears and nose both assured him he still had the church to himself. His skin crawled and his bones were desperate to move. He felt as though the entire building was pushing against him, every stone in every pillar, every piece of glass in every window, every dancing flame on every candle working with one will to repel him.

“I don’t belong here,” David muttered. “I get it, alright? But like I said, I’m desperate. And it’s for my mother. See, when she died…” When you took her, you motherfucker. “When she died, she made me promise something. I swore my mother an oath on her deathbed, and I’ve been trying for the last fifty years to keep my promise, but I’ve hit a dead end after decades of dead ends, and I’m running out of time. I guess what I’m trying to say is that I’m out of options.”

David paused, waiting either for lightning to strike him or the answer to his prayers to drop from the heavens. Neither event happened. Nothing stirred in the chapel behind him.

“I tried every other option. But it’s been fifty years, and Danny isn’t like me. So it’s kind of important that I find him now. So if you could…point me in the right direction or send me a sign or something, I’d appreciate it.” He paused again, looking upwards with his hands spread, silently asking God to just help him out here.

Again there was no response.

“God answers everybody’s prayers,” Mary once told him as she rocked him against her chest, trying to sooth his small sobs away. “You must be patient. How big are you to God?”

“The size of an ant.” David stuttered.

“Smaller than an ant. But He still loves us in his infinite wisdom.”

But if they were nothing but ants to God, how could He hear their prayers? Did ants make any noise? If they did, David never heard them. He’d even held his ear up to a mound of black and red ants once to see if they buzzed or hummed or clicked or anything. But all he got for his trouble was a red, swollen ear and more questions he couldn’t answer.

“I don’t know what I was expecting anyway,” David muttered, pushing himself to his feet. “It’s not like Danny would just appear on the altar right? And it’s not like this ever worked for her.”

He took one step towards the door and froze, his nose quivering with the hint of a new scent. Male, in his forties, no booze, no smoking, no drugs. David hit the floor, more than willing to risk the embarrassment of jumping to the wrong conclusion. The arrow swooshing over his head a half second later confirmed his suspicions, and he rolled towards the shadows, holding himself perfectly still once he reached their welcoming embrace.

That little trick worked anywhere, even a house of God, and the Monk got within ten feet of David without seeing him. David grinned and melted out of the darkness, pouncing on the hunter as easily as a cat on a baby bird. The Monk immediately reached for the cross hanging from his neck, but David was faster, clutching the silver chain and yanking it from the man’s neck with only a small hiss of pain. He tossed it to the far side of the room and bent the hunter’s head, exposing his neck.

The Monk struggled, cursing him in Latin and French, calling on God to strike the beast where he stood for daring to enter a Holy Place.

“I swear to your God, if you don’t shut up, I’ll snap your neck right now.”

The Monk was terrified, but he wasn’t stupid. He sealed his mouth shut but remained stiff in David’s arms, clearly waiting for any tiny opening he could get to either escape or attack. David tightened his hold, his mouth watering to bite through the Monk’s paper-thin skin. His blood would burst in David’s mouth, hot and fresh and tasting of holy anger. The hunters always tasted the best. But David ignored the impulse, remembering that he had a more important objective than a snack.

“Now listen to me. Believe it or not, I didn’t come here to pick a fight.”

“Unclean thing,” the Monk snarled.

“I know, I know. Spawn of evil, an abomination unto the Lord, etc. I’m familiar with the rhetoric. Like I said, I’m not here to fight with you. I need help.”

The Monk barked laughter at that, and David found himself grinning as well. “I know. You can laugh, it’s fine.”

“You? You? Would come here to find help?”

“Desperate times call for desperate measures.”

“What desperate times, vampire?”

“My brother’s dying.”

David released the man and sent him flying away with a hard shove. He stumbled forward, gaining his footing within seconds and immediately searching for a likely weapon. David didn’t give him time to find a piece of wood to shove through his back, darting out of the building in a blink of an eye. He fled to the sewers, using an unlocked manhole to drop into the filth below. There’d once been a time when David could wander the streets at will, but now it was too dangerous in the larger cities. Which only complicated his mission.

But nobody would bother to follow him into the sewers. There the vampires who refused to leave the city lurked and slept and ate. They spent most of their time below ground, and David never understood how they could choose that life. As the walking undead, he had enough problems without entombing himself and hiding from the only things that made existence even mildly worthwhile any more.

He made swift progress, backtracking his earlier trail and avoiding the scattered nests of sewer dwellers. They were mostly harmless, but living under ground made them all a little batty. David didn’t like dealing with them–they were likely to mistake him for a human and most of them were hungry enough to keep attacking once their fangs dropped, even if they got their faces beat in and the only blood they tasted was their own.

Twenty minutes later, David was out of the sewers and under a full moon, but he was hungry. Why had he spared the Monk? David was too hungry to remember the genesis of his mercy, and that only sharpened his irritation. When a jogger passed by with her earbuds blaring Lady Gaga and her cute dog on a leash, David didn’t hesitate to reach from the shadows. This time he didn’t let go of his prey until she was nothing but an empty shell.

Thank you so much for your fine post, Rosemary, and for being here! So, folks, please do answer Rosemary’s question. Tell us, who is your favorite vampire? Mine, well, you know the answer to that one, if you’ve known me for a while?

Seriously, ladies, how could you not love the Brat Prince. So…. Onward to the feast! Lestat and I have to attend the queen–;) I mean, as Rosemary  said:  Comment with your own favorite vampires to win a copy of Intercession: First Impressions. To learn more about Rosemary see her site here. And have a happy, ghoulish night!

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(Legalese silliness: My apologies to my Canadian friends but contests only open to US residents, and void where prohibited by law.

No extra entries necessary other than, of course, to leave a comment on the appropriate contest entry for that time period.

Full site giveaway disclaimers here)