Backstory

Edwin Talmadge was born in 1846 to a modest family of bookkeepers and clerks in a quiet town nestled along the banks of the Ohio River. His father, Nathaniel Talmadge, was a numbers man — not a wealthy one, but precise, methodical, and unyielding in his belief that order was the mark of all great men. From a young age, Edwin was taught that control was everything. Mistakes were unacceptable, and debts — be they of coin or conscience — must always be repaid.

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By 16, Edwin was already assisting his father in balancing ledgers for local businesses, earning a reputation as a boy with a mind sharper than any quill. When a merchant accused his father of "forgetting" a debt, Edwin pulled out the man's own records, pointed to the mistake, and forced an apology from a man twice his size. That moment taught Edwin something his father never said aloud — control wasn't just about knowing the numbers, it was about knowing people.

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In 1867, drawn by the promise of opportunity, Edwin moved to Shadewood Hollow, where the Monaghan family’s influence loomed large. The Shadewood Hollow Bank had been established in 1854, and it was in need of a sharp-eyed manager to handle its growing accounts. Edwin took the job, knowing full well what Monaghan's reputation entailed. But he didn't flinch. He saw Monaghan’s control of the town as a reflection of his own father's lessons — debts owed, payments due, and no room for sentiment.

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Over the years, Edwin became known as "the man with the ledgers in his head." No book was ever out of balance, no debt ever overlooked. It’s said he can recall the exact terms of a loan without even opening a page. If a man missed a payment, Edwin didn’t rage or send enforcers. He sent reminders through action. When Old Henry Locke failed to pay his gambling debt, Edwin didn’t make threats. He took Henry’s coat. Two weeks later, Henry died of pneumonia, and folks in town began to argue about what had really killed him — the cold, the debt, or Edwin’s quiet cruelty.

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But Edwin isn’t the top of the chain. There’s a shadow behind his steady hand — Katarina Moreau, a vampire tied to The Congregation. She inspects the ledgers after dark, her presence lingering like a chill in the air. It’s whispered that her name is faintly written on every page, as though each debt owed was somehow owed to her as well. Some say she only glances at the names of the indebted, but she remembers every one.

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Now, at 44 years old, Edwin stands as the face of the Shadewood Hollow Bank. Impeccably dressed in sharp suits, his gaze cuts as clean as his calculations. No threats. No shouting. Just control. The people of Shadewood Hollow call him many things — "stone-faced," "cold," "the man with a quill for a heart" — but no one calls him careless. Some debts go unpaid for a lifetime. Edwin Talmadge makes sure they aren't forgotten.

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