Elizabeth (Lizzie) and the Vampires

Let us first get one simple fact of the Immortal Ones universe down: Dark Ones and Vampires are not the same, and neither group will let you forget that. Both benefit from drinking blood, both can have animalistic behaviors; but while Dark Ones usually consume blood only to prolong their life or to heal quicker, Vampires drink blood because they can and they like it. They enjoy embracing their animal instincts and hunting the much weaker human beings. 

Even to this, Vampires are not completely evil (pure evil pops up much later in this series). They are a bit self-serving and brutal, yes, but their unofficial spokeswoman (or spokesvamp...or something) Elizabeth  wishes to see her kind put in the same regard as Dark Ones. There is a bit of an unspoken hierarchy in the Immortal world, and the concerns of Vampires and Werewolves (their counterparts are the Night Wolves) aren't too high on the totem pole of power. Elizabeth hopes to change that...by any means.

Elizabeth's plan developed purely by accident on my part. I knew she would grow into an important role, I just didn't know how important. This was another example of a character I created taking my pen and running with it. She is not as fleshed out as the twins (whom she meets early in the story), but her blinding ambition and sense of destiny was all that was needed to begin the process of turning her into a force to be reckoned with. Trust me, Forbidden Children is just the tip of the iceberg for her.

Father and Sons

The subject of the boys' father is one that I wasn't planning to expand on, but as usual, the characters had other plans. Their father, who goes by the name Mykal for now, left when the twins were about 9 years old. While Mykal sent money and material goods back to his family regularly through couriers, he never came back to the small house in western Germany.

This lack of a father figure becomes obvious as the twins push through their years at Great Hall. During that time, they acquire at least three father figures to substitute the one they lost. Also, William's neediness balloons to almost frightening levels that Thomas has to constantly deflate. During this time, the twins are facing their inner demons, including the one screaming that their father never loved them.

Fast forward a few centuries. The twins suddenly have research at their fingertips, and they use it to track down their father, hoping to confront him. Naturally, the fateful meeting does not go as William and Thomas planned.

As far as how their relationship (if any at all) pans out, I will only say that the meeting between the twins and Mykal is a needed and respectful one. 

Immortal Love

I knew from the get-go that this story was not going to be a love story. For one, I don't like a story that has a ton of potential wasted because it is trying too hard to be romantic. Second, my basic thoughts on love go completely against the typical grain of the romantic novel. So for Forbidden Children, I decided to switch things up a bit. 

You can't live for 400 years and never fall for anyone (at least, I don't think you can). And the twins aren't really monsters, they're boys (and young men...or older men...or really old men). Herein laid my problem: there was a lot I wanted William and Thomas to accomplish; heck,  there was a lot they wanted to accomplish. Still, like a typical momma, I also wanted them to settle down and get married and have baby blood-lovers running around. The question I had to ask was this: Was this what they really want? Was love even what they needed?

For this major reason, this book is not another Twilight. Twilight was, at its base, a forbidden love story. Forbidden Children is the total opposite of that. The twins are not tortured by their existance because they do not have mates, they are tortured because they have not yet found their place. As anyone who read Act Like A Lady, Think Like A Man knows, a male is not going to seriously look for a lifetime partner unless their house is in order. William and Thomas are getting their houses in order.