New Wave Publishers etext of "Dracula's Guest" by Bram Stoker. Note: "Dracula's Guest" was excised from the original "Dracula" mss by his publisher because of the length of the original book mss. It was published as a short story in 1914, two years after Stoker's death.
In spite of the warnings of his guide, Johann, "Dracula's Guest" continues his journey on Walpurgis Night, an evening of terror when the Devil himself is feared to be out and searching for victims. He soon finds himself, lost, amidst a snow storm in a graveyard..."This was the place where I was alone--unmanned, shivering with cold in a shroud of snow with a wild storm gathering again upon me! It took all my philosophy, all the religion I had been taught, all my courage, not to collapse in a paroxysm of fright."
When we started for our drive the sun was shining brightly on Munich, and the air was full of the joyousness of early
summer. Just as we were about to depart, Herr Delbruck (the
maitre d'hotel of the Quatre Saisons, where I was staying)
came down bareheaded to the carriage and, after wishing me a
pleasant drive, said to the coachman, still holding his hand
on the handle of the carriage door, "Remember you are back by
nightfall. The sky looks bright but there is a shiver in the north wind that says there may be a sudden storm. But I am
sure you will not be late." Here he smiled and added,"for you
know what night it is."
Johann answered with an emphatic, "Ja, mein Herr," and,
touching his hat, drove off quickly. When we had cleared the town,
I said, after signalling to him to stop:
"Tell me, Johann, what is tonight?" He crossed himself, as he answered laconically: "Walpurgis nacht." Then he took out his watch, a great, old-fashioned German silver thing as big as a turnip and looked at it, with his eyebrows gathered together and a little impatient shrug of his shoulders.
