Dracula: Hearts of Fire (Dracula Heart's) by Albert Gallant

sides of the narrow box. Besides that the casket had been spelled .  It was an entrapment spell, put on the box by a high-level wizard and that meant big trouble . Lauren had a spell put on her several years earlier that would allow her to break free of any binding , but whatever wizard had her now was obviously much more powerful than the one that had created her anti-entrapment incantati on, either that or it had simply worn off.
     
        “How the hell did I get in here?”
     
       Lauren not iced that her badge was missing therefore no one could track her. She could see her swords near her on an old Mexican copper inlaid grand coffee table on a stylish iron stand but she couldn’t get to them. The coffee table had two cubby holes and four long drawers. Inside one of the cubby holes was an hourglass with pale blue sand the color of the ocean . Sand was slowly draining from the top to the bottom.
     
        It was then that she realized that she could only move her head . Couldn’t wiggle her toes or fingers, couldn’t move her arms, her head was it, a nd what a terrible feeling it was. It was as if the sheriff was paralyzed from the neck down. She was resting on some sort of flat surface about tw o feet off the floor. It was obvious that she was in some sort of log cabin with a high wooden ceiling , and from what she could see it was an expensive looking place . Apparently she was alone as she couldn’t hear anyone. I t would have been the perfect opportunity to escape. 
     
       “Someone’s gonna get a shit kicking.”
     
        Lauren put all of her concentration into one kick that would bust it open. She thought that if she put her mind to it she could accomplish something; she hoped that the power Dracula had infused in her had some counter magic to it. She visua lized it, over and over, kicking that thing open so she could get the hell out of there. Lauren put several minutes into it but soon became discouraged. No matter how hard she tried she couldn’t move an inch.   Being trapped in such a fashion was becoming increasingly uncomfortable. Although she didn’t know it the spell that had been placed on her was not only supposed to completely paralyze her, but was meant to have kep t her unconscious as well. T he extra energy that Dracula had infused in her had interfered at least somewhat with the enchantment.
     
        “Damn it!”
     
        A loud crash of thunder got her attention. Lightening lit up the place as it started to pour. It surprised her as the sun had just been shining through the window. The sound of the rain hitting the roof and windows would have been pleasant enough if it wasn’t for her situation. Lauren had always liked the sights and sounds of a rainstorm, and used to dance in it as a child; she loved the way it brought life to the world with its invigorating touch. Lauren had always though how the flowers and plants must love the rain. I t was great atmosphere for what was perhaps the last day of her life. If she couldn’t get out of that damn coffin she was at the mercy of whoever put her there, and obviously he didn’t just want to bid her a good afternoon.
     
        “Whoever did this is going to lose his damn head!”
     
         Her concentration wasn’t exactly working properly ; she had seconds of fuzziness ebbing and flowing through her mind. Her options were so limited that she really couldn’t think of any. That’ s what really frightened her.
     
        Lauren could hear a clock ticking somewhere in back , perhaps ticking away the seconds of her life. She could also hear a pair of zebra finches singing back there , with bird seed being scratched around . She tried hard to remember what happened but her mind was disjointed. Michael’s face popped into her head which saddened her; if this was how she was to suffer her demise he would neve r know her fate . Her mind suddenly became a little clearer. She n ow had an idea of why she was there,