“Because I died years ago,” he said. “I actually physically died. I died completely. I died when I deliberately exposed myself to the sun behind our flat in the French Quarter. It was after my misadventure with Merrick. Merrick had bewitched me. And I didn’t want to go on. I exposed myself to the sun, and I had none of the blood of the elders to strengthen me, and all day I lay in the sun and I burned and I died.”

Louis looked at me.

“You remember, Lestat, and you remember, too, David. You were both there. David, it was you who found me. I was as dead as anyone can be—until you both poured your powerful blood right into the coffin, right into my burnt remains and brought me back.”

“But the etheric body, the Amel body, was still in you,” said Fareed. “It had to be or you couldn’t have been revived.”

“That’s true,” Louis said. “It was there inside me and it would have remained there until the ashes were scattered. It would have remained suspended, waiting, waiting for how long we don’t know. Remember the old admonition from Magnus, Lestat? Scatter the ashes? Well, no one scattered my ashes and I was brought back—by your blood, and David’s blood, and Merrick’s blood too.”

“Then you were not really dead, Louis,” said Fareed patiently.

“Oh, but I was,” said Louis. “I know now that I was. I was dead according to one ancient and highly significant definition of ‘dead.’ ”

“I’m not following you,” said Fareed. I saw the first signs of impatience but it wasn’t impolite.

“My heart had stopped,” said Louis. “There was no blood pumping in me. All circulation had stopped when my heart stopped. That is how I was dead.”

I was speechless. Then slowly it dawned on me. It came back to me what Kapetria had said…something about the invisible tentacles—or the cord—being the only part of us that was not filled with blood.

Nobody was speaking. Even Fareed had narrowed his eyes and was looking at Louis in the hard sightless way of someone peering only into his own thoughts. Seth too was pondering.

“I see!” said David in amazement. “I don’t know the scientific explanation for it. But I see it. Your heart stopped; the blood wasn’t pumping. And the cord snapped. Of course!” He looked to me. “Lestat, how many times have you ever seen or heard of a vampire brought back from such a state where the heart had stopped, where the ashes were still perfectly formed, and everything remained there but the heart had stopped!”

“Never seen another example of it, ever,” I said.

“Neither have I,” said Seth, “but I know the old admonition, scatter the ashes.”