Summary

In Chapter 18, Diana meets Ysabeau, Matthew's vampire mother. She is openly hostile and says she does “not like the way witches smell” (225). She then says “warmbloods are so poorly educated” (225). A servant named Marthe is more welcoming. She is an older vampire and recognizes Diana's power. Matthew takes Diana up a series of stairs to his room. She is curious about the items he has collected but he insists she eat and go to sleep. She wakes in the afternoon, showers and eats again, then goes to Matthew's library. Matthew provides her an ancient text called Aurora Consurgens illustrated by Bourgot Le Noir. Diana is enthralled but knows that the text is unknown and she will not be able to use it in her research. Matthew says he will loan it to a well-known library for a year to make it official for...