In this chapter, the story shifts to Dr. John Seward’s perspective as he grows alarmed over Lucy Westenra’s rapidly worsening condition. Despite care and rest, Lucy grows paler and weaker by the day, her vitality draining as if from some unseen nightly visitor. Seward’s medical expertise cannot explain the strange marks on her throat, nor her unsettling habit of wandering in her sleep.
Desperate to help her, Seward writes to his friend — Lucy’s fiancé, Arthur Holmwood — urging him to return to Whitby at once. But Arthur is tied up with his gravely ill father, leaving Seward to act alone. Recognizing that Lucy’s illness lies beyond conventional medicine, he sends for his old mentor, the brilliant and enigmatic Professor Abraham Van Helsing.
A sense of dread deepens as nightfall continues to bring danger. Something sinister is feeding on Lucy’s life, and the arrival of Van Helsing marks the beginning of a new battle — one waged not only with science, but with ancient forces that defy reason.
This is Chapter 10 of Bram Stoker’s Dracula, narrated by Amazon bestselling horror author Jonathan Dunne — part of a complete chapter-by-chapter audiobook experience capturing the Gothic suspense, emotional stakes, and creeping supernatural terror of this classic novel.
📖 Public domain text. Original publication: 1897.
