The door of the laboratory opens, and the man walks in.
“And what do you think you’re doing this time of night?”
Mina’s voice is calm, more than some would be.
“I’m at work.” Her face composes itself. I can almost hear the thought, and when do you think the work gets done, and by whom?
I see him in the dead light of the laboratory bench, and the faint light of the stars. He has traversed an envious youth to reach the foothills of successful middle age, and the journey has graven itself on his countenance: not a face I would have cared to meet, living or dead, though I did, in my days of youth. More than one such was proposed to me as a marriage party, and I refused.
Excerpt from my contribution to the Vampire Variations challenge. It’s back from the beta readers (shout-out to faithful colleagues Devin Harnois, TruantPony, and Becca Patterson) and under revision. Publication is slated for upcoming weeks, with cross-links to other Vampire Variations Challenge stories.
Weekend Writing Warriors offers eight-sentence excerpts from a variety of writers; see the other excerpts here.
E. P. Beaumont 
Hum, it’s so easy to work in the middle of the night when there is nobody around.
I liked her thought! Wow, the tone totally changes when the other character thinks…I liked it but felt like two different stories somehow. I’m sure it’s because we’re dealing with such a short excerpt. Beautiful words tho!
Very interesting snippet. Great 8 🙂
Interesting! Whenever I see the name ‘Mina’ in relation to vampires, I take notice.
You might want to consider putting the dialogue description/character actions with their speech. It makes telling who said what much easier.
Great interaction and description there.