Tinnean's Blog - Posts Tagged "something-to-think-about"

I have a number of things I need to do, but instead I'm rereading They Come By Night, which is the vampyre edition of my Strange, Strange World series. I came across the scene where de Vivar, the baddie, assaults a very holy young woman. He doesn't realize how morally strong she is, and the next evening (vampyre, remember?) he discovers she'd walked out into the sun rather than accede to his plans when he finds a pile of ashes, a single finger bone, and her silver and sapphire rosary. And the story moved on, with de Vivar gnashing his teeth.

But... suppose that didn't happen? Suppose the Rege (vampyre king) has kept a surreptitious eye on de Vivar, and he sends someone to help the poor woman. They leave behind the ashes of... a tree? a dog? Not important just now. As for the finger bone, graveyards are filled with them. It's too bad about the rosary, but to avoid what de Vivar has planned for her, I think Sor Belicia would be willing to sacrifice it. Or it could be paste, and de Vivar is too arrogant to even consider it.

All these centuries, de Vivar has thought he carried her ashes in first a pouch and then an urn. His head would have exploded if he'd realized otherwise, and that thought is extremely satisfying. And the Rege, being the Rege, will have found a way for her to survive, or if she couldn't bear that life, to end it in a manner that wouldn't compromise her beliefs.

I'd always planned to write a seventh book in this series, and if I'm able to, I might include it. :-)