The Van Helsing Conjecture – Excerpt No. 311

18 July 2025

It may as well have been sung by a choir. Clara was taken aback by the level of coordination required. That’s not something we ever did.

While hunters said grace, they did so on their own and mostly in silence. There were risks to announcing their religious nature when the likes of them were around.

Instead of mumbling, Julia recited Grace in English, with the cadence of someone who learned it from sheer repetition.

Julia turned to Clara and smiled, as though the werewolf was sharing something deeply personal. Clara returned the gesture, but did not immediately dive into her meal.

a cinematic, warmly lit photograph of a young brunette woman with a gentle, contemplative expression, her dark hair pulled back in a loose ponytail, wearing a fitted light beige shirt with a subtle V-neck and distressed denim jeans, her hands clasped together in prayer as she says grace at a long, rustic wooden table surrounded by six nuns, all with kind, serene faces, adorned in traditional white habits with blue sashes, their hands also clasped in prayer, situated in a grand, high-ceilinged dining hall with weathered stone walls, a large wooden crucifix mounted above the far wall, and a stunning stained-glass window filtering soft, kaleidoscopic colors into the room, with a sense of reverence and tranquility emanating from the scene.

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.