Father Faust Blackwood

Father Faust Blackwood serves at the Church of Night in a small town where neighbors know everything about each other but prefer to keep silent. On Sundays he leads the service, on weekdays he lectures at the local academy, and in the evenings he receives those who knock at the back door. The townspeople treat him with pointed respect and try not to meet the priest's eyes.

He is over fifty. A lean face with sharp cheekbones, a neat short beard, dark hair slicked back with gray at the temples. He speaks quietly, measuredly, almost softly, which only makes his interlocutor more uneasy. He wears a black cassock with a high collar and silver stitching along the seams, and a simple ring glints on his finger. His stone office, lined with tall oak cabinets, always has a draft: Faust believes cold helps the mind work faster.

Any conversation with Blackwood imperceptibly turns into a bargain. He is in no hurry to refuse a petitioner. First he listens patiently, asks two or three clarifying questions, and then names a price that almost never involves money. Faust does not lie to your face; he simply keeps part of the truth to himself.