The Vourdalak <SECURE REVIEW>

That night, the youngest son, George, hears his father call his name softly from outside. Unable to resist the sorrowful, familiar voice, George goes out. The next morning, George is found dead, with two small puncture marks on his neck. Gorcha is gone.

The marquis watches in helpless terror as Sdenka’s will breaks. She unbolts the door and walks out into the moonlight, arms outstretched, weeping with joy to see her “family” again. The marquis hears a wet, tearing sound, then silence. The Vourdalak

The family explains that Gorcha has gone to hunt and kill a notorious vourdalak (a Slavic vampire, distinct from a traditional nosferatu; a vourdalak is a reanimated corpse that returns to torment and drain the life from its own loved ones first, often calling them by name in a pitiful, irresistible voice). The family’s patriarch was warned that if he does not return before midnight, he will be dead — but worse, he will become a vourdalak himself. That night, the youngest son, George, hears his