Víctor de Paredes: The Manipulative Patron in Leigh Bardugo's The Familiar

Overview

Víctor de Paredes is a ruthless nobleman in sixteenth-century Madrid who serves as Luzia Cotado’s patron in the secret torneo organized by Antonio Pérez. He is defined by his hunger for political power, his cruel control over the immortal servant Santángel, and his willingness to sacrifice anyone for advancement. Víctor embodies the corrupt alliance between aristocracy, magic, and the Inquisition.

Plot Role

Víctor de Paredes first appears as the wealthy lover of Luzia’s aunt Hualit. When he learns of Luzia’s milagritos (small miracles), he orchestrates her entry into the torneo—a competition to find a holy champion for King Philip II. He orders Santángel to train Luzia, promising freedom if she wins. Throughout the trials, Víctor manipulates events from the shadows, threatening Luzia and Santángel to ensure his own political rise. He ultimately becomes a duke after Pérez’s fall, then attempts to reclaim Luzia from the Inquisition to leash her permanently.

Motivations and Traits Shown Through Actions

Víctor is driven by ambition above all. He tells Santángel that winning the torneo will make him “a count. Perhaps a duke. In time a grandee” (Chapter 9). His cruelty is demonstrated repeatedly: he orders Álavaro to break Santángel’s fingers (Chapter 16) and later slaps Luzia while threatening her aunt (Chapter 39). He shows no loyalty—he abandons the Ordoños during the chaotic third trial (Chapter 42) and orders Hualit’s murder when she becomes inconvenient (Chapter 43). His defining trait is his belief that his luck, granted by Santángel’s presence, makes him untouchable.

Chronological Arc

• Introduction: Víctor is established as Hualit’s patron and a man of influence in Madrid. He witnesses Luzia’s power in the courtyard and decides to use her (Chapter 8-9).
• Training period: He installs Luzia at La Casilla, provides Santángel as her teacher, and threatens both to ensure compliance (Chapters 10-16).
• Escalation: After Álavaro’s death, Víctor grows more controlling. He refuses to withdraw Luzia from the torneo despite Santángel’s warnings (Chapter 36).
• Crisis: When Pérez flees and the Inquisition arrests Luzia, Víctor quickly distances himself, saying “nothing has changed for you” while privately planning to reclaim her (Chapter 40-41).
• Final scheme: As a new duke, Víctor offers to save Luzia from execution if she agrees to lifelong servitude under his roof (Chapter 49). He is present at the auto-da-fé but dies paralyzed by fear after Luzia’s apparent death (Chapter 55).

Relationships

With Luzia: Víctor treats Luzia as a tool, never as a person. He calls her “scullion” and “shitty little scullion” to remind her of her station. His patronage is conditional and coercive—he squeezes her wrist in private (Chapter 10) and threatens her aunt when Luzia hesitates (Chapter 39). He wants to own her power permanently.

With Santángel: Víctor holds Santángel in bondage through the inherited curse. He alternates between threats (breaking fingers, poisoning) and false promises of freedom. Santángel reflects that Víctor “saw and wanted, wanted and claimed. He didn’t know what it was to be denied” (Chapter 49).

With Hualit: Víctor keeps Hualit as his mistress but has her murdered when she no longer serves him. She drowns when his men attempt to kill her on the road to Venice (Chapter 43).

With the Ordoños: Víctor uses Don Marius and Doña Valentina as cover to distance himself from Luzia if the torneo attracts Inquisition scrutiny (Chapter 30). He abandons them without a thought during the third trial.

Key Decisions and Consequences

1. Sponsoring Luzia in the torneo: This decision elevates Luzia from scullion to potential holy champion, but also exposes her to the Inquisition. Víctor gains a dukedom but loses Luzia’s cooperation.

2. Ordering Santángel to train Luzia: By forcing Luzia and Santángel together, Víctor inadvertently creates the emotional bond that ultimately drives Luzia to refuse his control. This decision also awakens Santángel’s long-dormant desire for freedom.

3. Poisoning Santángel before the third trial: This attempt to control Santángel backfires—Santángel still reaches Luzia at the lake, and his growing resentment pushes him to betray Víctor during the Inquisition trial (Chapter 51).

4. Ordering Hualit’s murder: This act removes Luzia’s last familial tie and eliminates a potential escape route, but it also eliminates any chance Luzia would willingly serve Víctor after the torneo.

5. Attempting to reclaim Luzia from the Inquisition: Víctor’s plan to save Luzia from the pyre only to leash her permanently fails because Luzia and Santángel choose apparent death together, using Luzia’s magic to escape (Chapter 54-55).

Theme/Symbol Connections

Ambition versus Safety: Víctor consistently chooses ambition over safety. He risks his family, his reputation, and his life to climb the noble hierarchy. His eventual fate—dying alone in fear (Chapter 55)—demonstrates the cost of unchecked ambition.

Hidden Identity and Heritage: Víctor himself appears to have no hidden identity, but his willingness to fabricate a pure-blood lineage for Luzia (hiring a linajista to create false documents, Chapter 15) shows how identity is manipulated for power. He represents the Old Christian elite who police these boundaries.

The Cost of Power and Magic: Víctor uses Santángel’s luck for centuries, but this dependence erodes his humanity. At his death, the luck leaves him, and he is “paralyzed by fear and died alone promising ‘tomorrow’” (Chapter 55). His power is revealed as hollow without the magic he exploited.

Inquisition and Institutional Fear: Víctor navigates the Inquisition adeptly, using his influence to avoid suspicion even as he traffics in magic. His ability to secure Luzia’s release into his custody (Chapter 49) shows how the Inquisition serves noble interests.

Freedom and Servitude: Víctor’s relationship with Santángel is the novel’s clearest example of servitude. He dangles freedom as a reward but never intends to grant it. His promise of freedom in Chapter 99 (freedom for Santángel if Luzia wins) is exposed as a manipulation when Víctor later offers to leash both Luzia and Santángel forever.

Questions and Answers

1. Why does Víctor de Paredes sponsor Luzia in the torneo? He sees her as a means to gain political power and a title. He tells Santángel that if Luzia wins, “Pérez will have the king’s favor” and “I will be a count—perhaps a duke” (Chapter 9). Her magic is merely an instrument for his ambition.

2. Does Víctor ever genuinely care for Luzia or Santángel? No. The evidence shows he treats both as possessions. He calls Luzia a “scullion” and threatens her aunt. He breaks Santángel’s fingers and later poisons him. When Luzia is imprisoned, Víctor plans to reclaim her only to “leash” her permanently (Chapter 49).

3. Why does Víctor abandon the Ordoños during the third trial? Víctor is a pragmatist who protects himself first. When Antonio Pérez flees and the king’s soldiers arrive, Víctor distances himself from anyone who might implicate him. He takes Santángel and leaves Valentina and Marius to fend for themselves (Chapter 42).

4. How does Víctor’s relationship with Santángel change over the course of the novel? It deteriorates. Initially, Santángel obeys out of long habit. But as Santángel’s feelings for Luzia grow, he begins to resist. Víctor responds with increased cruelty (breaking fingers, poisoning), which drives Santángel to betray him at the Inquisition trial by claiming to be a demon (Chapter 51).

5. What is Víctor’s ultimate fate? According to the end of the novel, “Fortún Donadei loses his powers after the execution; his patron Víctor becomes paralyzed by fear and dies alone promising ‘tomorrow’” (Chapter 55). His political rise ends in isolation and terror.