The room was an architectural contradiction. The blue velvet couch and the assor

The room was an architectural contradiction. The blue velvet couch and the assortment of armchairs looked like splashes of dark, deep sea water, the floor lamps like big yellow halos of light. The lines of dark wooden bookshelves leaning against the wall hinted more at a literature professor's workplace rather than the head vampire's reception room. As if all this was set for some sort of high-brow movie that might have been a blend of futuristic art and a flashback to the 1900s. The three still life pictures on the wall opposite the couch depicted parts of a well-laid table whose details I was pretty familiar with by this point in time. Together with the golden goblet of wine, the ripe bunch of grapes gave it an air of decadence.