EDITOR'S NOTE: This is Chapter 3 of my novel "Westenra Memorial." You can read Stave 1 and Stave 2, if you click those links.
At the start of his evening shift, José reluctantly knocked on the door of Dr. Tepes’ top-floor office. The doctor made him promise to meet with him before he started his rounds cleaning the hospital.
“Come in, come in,” Dr. Tepes greeted warmly. There was no one in his outer office, and his warmth wasn’t just for show. He always felt a close connection to his head janitor. They were, after all, both immigrants making the most of their new homeland. Hard workers and people who appreciated other people.
José peered with trepidation into the room.
“You have nothing to be worried about,” Dr. Tepes smiled. As José entered, Dr. Tepes closed the door gently behind him and whispered, “If I was going to do anything to you, I’d have done it last night.”
A chill shot down José’s back. He wanted to run. Every instinct in his body told him to run. But he knew there was no place to run, and, if he learned anything on the streets of Juarez, it was never show fear.
On the outside, José tried to play it cooly and casually. He walked toward the chairs in front of Dr. Tepes’ massive and ornate wooden desk. Dr. Tepes could smell the thick fear emanating from José’s every pore, but he respected the man’s efforts at composure. Lesser men would already be groveling.
Dr. Tepes was scared, too, but he had far more experience settling his nerves. Besides, he held the ultimate trump card. He could eat José and his family any time he wanted. But, eating José, who was a genuinely good man, went against his principles of the past 60 years. All the same, nobody had ever known his secret and lived.
“Join me on the couch,” Dr. Tepes requested. “Can I get you a drink? Maybe a snifter of the best tequila ever made?”
“I shouldn’t before work, sir,” José said, playing it safe.
Dr. Tepes laughed gently. “We are a little more than just employer and employee now, don’t you think? You can have a real drink, if you want.”
“Okay,” José agreed. “I’ll have whatever you’re drinking.”
José sucked in his breath and immediately regretted his choice of words.
The good doctor laughed again and said, “I don’t think that will sit well on your stomach. How about this?”
Taking a $13,000 bottle of limited edition Patron Lalique from his cocktail cart, Tepes poured a healthy, thick-leaded crystal snifter full for José and sat opposite from him on the black leather couch.
José took a sip and was surprised by how smooth and tasty it was. “Thank you. This is remarkable.”
“Thank you,” Dr. Tepes returned. “Now, shall we get down to business.”
“I’m so sorry,” José said, putting down his snifter. “I had no idea you were in there or what you were doing. It was after the times I was told never to go in there, and the lights were out….”
Dr. Tepes waved his hands to slow the janitor down. “It was all a mistake. I should have locked the door and left the lights on. I don’t blame you. However, I think you can appreciate that you now know a secret that I’ve kept at the expense of many other men’s and women’s lives, and that secret must continue to be kept.”
“I promise, Dr. Tepes,” José implored, taking three photos from the breast pocket of his janitorial jumpsuit. “I promised you last night on the lives of my sons that I would not tell a soul what I saw, and here they are, Brian, Jake and Paul.”
Dr. Tepes cocked his head a little and took the photos. On the backs were the names and social security numbers of each child. “Brian, Jake and Paul. Those don’t sound like very traditional Mexican names.”
“I am now an American citizen. Who says I want them to be traditional Mexicans?” José said. “They are Americans, born and raised. We both know what many white Americans think of Latinos, and I want my kids to have the best shot possible in this country. Those names sounded pretty stoutly American.”
“Fair enough, but I don’t need names and numbers to track them,” Dr. Tepes said, pausing a moment and looking thoughtfully at José. “But, I will keep them to thank you for your sign of trust in me.”
He put the photos in the breast pocket of his black Armani suit coat that bordered on formal wear.
“Please, drink up.” Dr. Tepes coaxed. “I have known many men over the centuries, and it is with a well-honed opinion that you, José, are a good man. You work hard, go above and beyond the call of duty helping patients and the medical staff all of the time, you’re honest and you are a good leader of your team. That is the only reason why I trust you now and I did not destroy you last night. Yet, it is my failure in not rewarding such a performance from a top employee. That is why I am giving you a $25,000-a-year raise after the taxes are figured out.”
“Sir, that is completely unnecessary,” José stammered. “You already pay me more than any other person would for this job.”
“Please, accept it as I have accepted your photos. It is my act of good faith. Besides, if ever you break my trust, you know what will happen immediately.”
Dr. Tepes relaxed into the back of the sofa, and José gulped the remainder of his tequila.
“Save the extra, $25,000 a year for the next eight years, and you can pretty much buy the best education in America for your sons.”
Twisting up his face, José asked, “This doesn’t make me your next Renfield, does it? I don’t want to eat bugs and spiders for the rest of my days.”
Dr. Tepes laughed, again. “That Stoker fellow sure had an imagination, didn’t he? No, your diet need not change on my account.”
Dr. Tepes stood up. “Well, I think that about covers it, don’t you? We better both get back to work. My door is always open though, if you need to talk.”
Together they walked to the door, and Dr. Tepes let him out with a pat on the back and a firm handshake.
Waiting in the outer office was an attractive brunette with bewitching arctic blue eyes. She nodded a familiar hello to José who walked by, lost in his troubled thoughts.
“Come in, Kate,” Dr. Tepes smiled.
“My dearest Vladislav, what ever did you do to make poor José look as if he’d just seen a monster?” the hospital’s chief operating officer, and his right-hand woman, asked. She had a passion for old Russian classics and loved to tease Vlad, as if she were some 19th century czarina. When he first met her ten years ago, he thought she was hitting on him, but he was pleased she thought he was Russian. It helped him feel his cover was safe. It wasn’t as if your average American could tell the difference between Russians and Transylvanians, and he’d rather be seen as a Soviet ex-pat who fled to the U.S. after the collapse of communism.
“I gave him a raise, my pet,” he replied with a nod to her 19th-century style, little knowing that Kate actually was in love with him for many years but had no idea how to tell him.
Dr. Tepes had a strict policy about never dating co-workers, as his position of power as owner of the hospital could easily make people do things they wouldn’t otherwise want to do. In an era of #metoo, that policy sounded better than telling the world he was bored to death with sex and relationships. Not knowing the truth, she was surprised by the fact he never seemed to date anybody outside of work, either.
He inquired, “What can I do for you?”
“Don’t you remember?” she asked. “We have to interview for your new overnight executive assistant.”
He sighed in exasperation. “Why can’t Angie just stay on at nights? She was perfect for the past 7 years.”
“Well, you see,” Kate playfully explained, “Angie is a human, not a vampire. She earned her promotion to being your daytime secretary, so she can go back to living her normal life.”
Nobody knew who or what Dr. Tepes really was except for José, and it took Tepes a long time to get used to people using the V-word. Yet, his no-bite policy and the entertainment industry’s obsession and goth culture made it so no one on earth actually believed vampires still existed. Use of the V-word used to freak him out that his cover had been blown. Now, he never gave it a second thought.
“I like the night life,” Vlad said, playfully hurt. “I like to boogie…on the disco, Ayyyyyyyye-aye-aye.”
“Oh, please, never do that again,” she laughed.
“They don’t write ‘em like that anymore,” he said.
“C’mon, you were like 6 when that song came out.”
“You want a drink?”
“Sure, it’s end of shift for me. I’m going home when this is done.”
He poured her her favorite bourbon, and they made small talk as they waited for the interviewee to arrive.
All the while, in the back of her mind, Kate wondered why they weren’t together as a couple. She knew his policy but when there’s something there, there’s something there. They got along great, made each other laugh, felt completely comfortable with one another and at the very least she felt sexually attracted to him. She didn’t want to sound conceited but felt that she was reasonably sexually attractive, too. She’d had her share of men take interest over the years.
It was odd, she thought, that most people were unusually sexually attracted to him at first. She certainly was, but as most people spent more time with him and he ignored their advances, the attraction faded away. For her it wasn’t a strictly sexual attraction any longer. She came to love the man because he was such a true humanitarian. Sure, he was wealthy, but he put so much money back into the community. He helped anyone in need. Even on his worst days, he made time to care for others. He remained kind and helpful, when he had no reason or expectation to be so.
Maybe, she pondered, he was A-sexual and didn’t know he was putting out a sexual vibe. Either way, she discovered half the fun of interviewing people who met him for the first time was watching them try to maintain their wits when first encountering his peculiar sexual magnetism.
There was a knock on the door. They both stood, smoothed the wrinkles in their suits and Kate answered the door.
“Hello, Emma,” she greeted cheerily and invited the young woman in and introduced her to Dr. Tepes.
When Emma made eye contact with Tepes, it was like the air charged with electricity. Emma had never been so sexually aroused by the site of any man in her entire life. He was too old for her, and while he wasn’t even that conventionally handsome to her, there was just something about him. Inside her was a need. A hunger. She practically staggered just trying to move forward and shake his hand.
Though he had happily foresworn sex for more than 6 decades, Emma was ever so much his old type. Her hair was coppery red, styled in little waves or half curls like some short retro-1990s do. Her eyes were big and green. Only 25, she had a slim frame, small breasts, a wasp waist and big hips. He didn’t see her inexpensive business suit; he saw her as a living hood ornament on some old Phaeton or Duisenberg from the 1930s, draped in a sheer, nearly see-through, wind-blown sheet of silk that clung to her every defiant contour.
Suddenly the word “hood ornament” was blowing through her mind, and Emma had no clue what one was, but she wanted to be one. His imagined view of her invaded her thoughts, and every nerve in her flesh ached for his caress.
He only glamoured her for a second of careless fantasy from his youth, but Vlad felt bad. He didn’t want a relationship with her. He didn’t even want to seduce her for a night. Not really. It was just a pleasant impulse of a memory. Yet, here he had turned this earnest young job seeker into a puddle of lust. Bad, Dracula, he silently scolded himself.
“Are you okay?” Kate asked, with a knowing smile. “You look flush. Can we get you some water?”
“Please,” she said, while Dr. Tepes showed her to a chair across from where he and Kate sat on the couch and then got her a glass of ice water.
“I’m sorry,” Emma said. “I don’t know what came over me.”
“It is no problem,” Dr. Tepes said, giving her an out to set her at ease. “It is a big interview. You’re allowed to be a little nervous.”
“Well, you’ve been through our preliminary screening interviews with H.R. Do you feel they gave you a good understanding of the job?” Kate got the ball rolling.
“I think so,” Emma said, still wanting to tear the doctor’s clothes off. “I start in the evening before Dr. Tepes gets to work to help transition the day staff and its paperwork and scheduling to be on top of everything for the evening. Beyond that, I’ll assist Dr. Tepes with all of his administrative needs, preparing the hand-off to the day shift before sunrise.”
“That’s the nuts and bolts of it,” Dr. Tepes said. “The real question for me is, ‘How are you with an all-night shift?’ Most people hate working at night. Yet, you are going to be a crucial piece of the hospital’s administrative nerve center.”
“You won’t believe me, but I’ve always been nocturnal,” Emma explained, focusing on the questions to distract herself from her desire. “My folks thought I was just another late-night teenager who always wanted to sleep in, but my bio-rhythm is just set for nighttime. I hate getting up in the morning. I thrive at night.”
“Won’t that upset your social life and possible family commitments?” Dr. Tepes pressed.
“Not really. I haven’t had a social life since I became a mother,” she laughed a little nervously, hoping not to ruin her chances for spending every night with him…even if it was in an office.
“I noticed you had dropped out of college,” Kate said. “Was it because of the baby?
“Yeah. It was just too hard to go to school and care for an infant.”
“Won’t that still be an issue now?” Dr. Tepes asked.
“No,” Emma replied. “Charlotte is 6, and we live with my mom, who watches her when I’m at work.”
“Just in case,” Kate interjected, “We offer a 24-hour daycare at the hospital for all of our employees.”
“That will be great,” Emma enthused. “I’d love to save up for our own home. I’m grateful to have my mom’s help, but it would be nice to be on my own. That will make it a lot easier.”
“What did you study?” Vlad asked.
Emma refrained from making the smart-ass remark she wanted to say. If I’d have spent more time studying, I probably wouldn’t have gotten knocked up. Instead she explained, “Psychology.”
“Tell me about your mother,” Vlad joked, with his best impersonation of Freud, with whom he went into therapy during in the Roaring Twenties. Freud had a field day with Dr. Tepes’ mother issues…and father issues. Emma bit her lower lip and wondered what things would be like alone on Dr. Tepes’ couch.
After polite laughter for the joke neither Kate nor Emma found particularly funny, Vlad continued, “Do you hope to go back to school to finish your degree, maybe earn a master’s or doctorate? We’re always on the look out for good mental health professionals. We offer some continuing education benefits.”
Emma wondered why it was never enough just to want to do a job well, get paid and go home. Whether you’re 25 or 65, you always have to have inspiring career goals. There are never any LinkedIn posts about “I just want to punch a damned clock and go home, where everything is more interesting than working.”
Instead she looked excited and enthusiastically responded, “Wow. That sounds great. I can’t wait to learn more about that. Maybe when Charlotte gets a little older.”
Kate asked the next question: “We see by your résumé that you spent several years working at Apathetic Health Resolutions and then got a promotion to work for Ambivalent Industrial Health Wellness Hospitals, where you’ve only been for the past six months. Why only six months before changing jobs?”
Emma looked nervous and searched for an answer. She chewed the inside of her cheek and looked around the room. The true answer is that the executive that she worked for was a lecherous tub of lard who kept trying to force her to have sex with him. How do you say that and sound credible as a job candidate? How do you not ruin any hope for a job in that industry again if you out a powerful and connected regionally known executive?
“Ummmmm. Let’s just say it is a personality conflict.”
“I suspect I understand,” Kate explained. “Your boss has a bit of a well-deserved bad reputation in the industry. But, we are pleased to let you know that we have a zero-tolerance policy for sexual harassment and a no-dating policy for employees who are of unequal ranks. Even the big guy there is held to account for it.”
“That’ll be a relief,” Emma sighed, internally crestfallen that it might be harder to get it on with a boss she genuinely wanted to seduce…or be seduced by.
“There’s one more thing that you should know,” Dr. Tepes added. “Most companies host a big Christmas party for its employees. We regard Halloween as our high holiday, and every year I host a huge costume party at my house for all of the employees. We have a ton of food, drinks, a dance floor, a DJ and an orchestra, along with festive decorations. As my overnight secretary, it will be your responsibility to organize the event. We are already dangerously close to the big day here in September. Do you think you can pull it off, if we hire you? There’s a budget of more than $50,000 dollars to manage and do it up right.”
Emma’s eyes lit up.
“Okay, this just became my dream job,” she enthused. “I was a total goth girl in high school, and, like, Halloween is kinda my jam. This will be the single greatest party you’ve ever hosted. Do you have a theme in mind?”
“The look of the party will be entirely up to you, but we set a pretty high bar. Your reputation with your new coworkers will be on the line. As for me, I only have a few specific requirements that you must follow, which I’ll get into later if we extend you an employment offer.”
“I can start tomorrow if you want me to!”
“Do you have any other questions or things you’d like us to know?” Kate inquired.
“When do I start?” Emma clapped her hands together and rubbed them.
Vlad chuckled and liked her enthusiasm. “We have a couple other candidates to review, but we will get back to you in a few days.”
He rose and Kate and Emma followed. They shook hands and exchanged final pleasantries before Emma walked to the door. She looked Dr. Tepes over hungrily one last time before she walked out and he gently closed the door.
Back on the couch, refreshed drink in hand, Kate asked, “What do you think?”
“She seems like a nice kid,” Vlad said, before tentatively asking, “Do you think maybe she has the hots for me?”
Kate laughed. “I could practically smell it, but most people seem a little turned on when they first meet you. It’s the damnedest thing. Does it bother you?”
Dr. Tepes was more bothered that Kate noticed the trend. “Not really, but do you think it will be a problem.”
“I don’t know,” she answered. “Most people usually cool down after they spend some time around you. I warned her about our policy.”
“This will sound horribly egotistical, but some people don’t ‘cool down,’ as you say,” Vlad explained. “She’s going to be in a position of pretty big responsibility. If she gets weird, it could cause a lot of problems.”
“True,” Kate agreed. “But you have a bigger problem in that we don’t really have any other candidates willing to work the overnight.”
Vlad sighed. Some days he really missed Renfield.
“Okay. Have H.R. give her a call tomorrow and offer her the job.”
