Throughout the story, it is found that the presence of more money did not alleviate the ghost’s effect; rather it seemed to magnify its power. Despite this, Paul continues to tap into his otherworldly power, yet allows an episode of failure to overtake him. In an attempt to regain his winning streak, Paul allows other beings to cross the threshold: vampires.
In the end, Paul becomes a victim of vampires. This of course is playing off of Foster’s definition of a vampire, an area, being, or idea that consumes one emotionally, mentally, or physically. The vampire that annihilated Paul was the obsession with gambling. Paul allows himself to be overtaken by his addiction as well as the aftereffects of a dark deal (that which granted him the power to predict the winning horse). By displaying Paul succumbing to his vampiric vices, Lawrence reiterates the ill-effects of falling prey to and addictions.
Overall, both works contain rich references to unseen atrocities and otherworldly tormentors. The comparison of these two pieces of literature allows one to see the similarities between the references and reiterates the lesson warning about the presence of ghosts and vampires and their damaging