“Suffice it to say, Antonia, that at this rate you will be adding to their number before long, but think carefully before casting aside my protection… my ‘tyranny’. It may be all you have. The gun-toting agents who hounded us out of Sibiu are a fair measure of what treatment you can expect to receive from mortals, and the God you once bowed and scraped to has cast you aside like the spoiled goods that you are.”
“That isn’t true!” replied Antonia, forcefully but desperately.
“Really, dear? Didn’t I see you trying to read your Bible yesterday? Wearing thick gloves, and dark glasses, and you still couldn’t look at the pages for more than a second without averting your eyes in pain. What message do you suppose you are intended to draw from that?”