It becomes necessary to give Lucy numerous blood transfusions, and after each one she improves significantly, only to deteriorate quickly in the next couple of days. Van Helsing finally deems it necessary to drape Lucy's room, as well as her neck, with garlic, a technique, we learn later, which is used to ward off vampires. Eventually, however, the vampire manages to evade the spells against him, and he attacks Lucy again. One significant night, an escaped wolf is used to smash the window of Lucy's room. The wolf's attack so frightens Lucy's mother that she dies of shock, and Lucy, left helpless, is again attacked by the vampire.
Van Helsing, knowing that Lucy is near death, summons her fiancé, Arthur Holmwood, to her side. Holmwood himself comes from the deathbed of his father. As Holmwood bends to kiss Lucy goodbye, Lucy, whose canine teeth have become strangely lengthened, attempts to attack Arthur. As Van Helsing throws Arthur back from her, Lucy dies.
After Lucy's death, the papers report the strange appearance of a person whom the village children label as "the Bloofer Lady," a creature who has been attacking young children in the area. Van Helsing, shaken by the reports, summons Dr. Seward to attend him in an examination of Lucy's coffin. After Seward's initial shock, he agrees, albeit with reservations, to open Lucy's coffin.
In the meantime, Mina and Jonathan have been married, and they return to England. Mina has transcribed Jonathan's diary of his journey in Transylvania, and soon afterward Van Helsing reads it. Van Helsing then calls all of Lucy's ex-suitors together, and he explains to them his belief that Lucy has been bitten by a vampire and has become one herself. The only way to save her soul, he says, is to drive a wooden stake through her heart, cut off her head and stuff it with garlic. Eventually Van Helsing convinces them of the truth of his claims, and the "service" is performed on Lucy.
