Man at War – Excerpt No. 32

12 October 2025

It glowed brightest when Evelyn placed the wand beside the phone. She followed the line to the wall and disconnected the phone which instantly caused the wand to revert to a soft blue.

“We need to be cautious when the blower is plugged in,” Evelyn said.

“So much for neutral,” Grace said.

The Grand was to serve as a resort for vampires and other things that went bump in the night. For her kind it meant a safe haven when travelling through the Rockies, making their way overland towards the Pacific ocean.

a cinematic photograph of a grand French Palatial hotel under construction, perched dramatically atop a rugged cliff and nestled within the majestic Rockies, with workers in 1914 attire, including newsboy caps, suspenders, and long coats, amidst a backdrop of freshly cut stone, wooden scaffolding, and billowing canvas tarps, with a serene lake or river flowing gently in the valley below, set against a warm, sunny sky with puffy white clouds, captured in a warm, earthy color palette with shades of brown, beige, and grey, using a medium format camera with a slight sepia tone, emphasizing the intricate architectural details and the contrast between the natural landscape and the man-made structure.

Disclaimer: This novel is an work in progress and readers may encounter grammatical errors and inconsistencies. Please view this a draft and not a published work.