Chapter 37

-Amy-

I pulled my hand away from my latest… patient. The bullet hole wouldn't be life-threatening - or even permanently crippling - now, but I felt no obligation to help the Empire thugs more than I had to. I doubted even Carol would disapprove too much - she still remembered Fleur.

"Alright," I stood up, brushing the sleeve of my robe. "Where's the next one?"

"That was the last tonight," Julia said. The middle-aged nurse lowered her clipboard, and looked at me. "Go grab some lunch."

"Isn't there anyone else?" I asked, the idea of a break in the endless line of wounded feeling so strange for a moment.

"Nobody urgent. It's been quiet today, save for this lot," she grimaced. Ah, the Q-word. "Never know what might come up later, though, so really, take a break while you can. At least they can't have many more people to send our way," she muttered to herself.

I pretended not to hear her last remark, and went towards the nearest staff room. A couple of other nurses were drinking their coffees, and I headed towards the vending machine to get myself some snacks. I'd tuned out most of their gossip - mostly they were trying to guess how long it was until the entire city was divided between Coil's men and the ABB.

"...but I'm telling you, nobody's seen Krieg for weeks. He'll have grabbed all the money he could from Pharmatec and Medhall and gotten on a private jet to Europe, mark my words," Roberts (nobody called her by her first name) explained enthusiastically.

"How much of that could he really have gotten out, though?" the younger nurse, Florence according to the nametag, asked in turn. "I'd be surprised if they didn't have all the accounts locked an hour after the leak."

"Criminals and governments," Roberts waved the question off. "They always have their ways, when it comes to money. Probably were planning for that since, whatshername, Cassidy went and blabbed? I can't believe nobody figured it out then..."

"Neither did you," Florence pointed out. She shied away from Roberts' glare, but the senior nurse's pager beeped and she put her coffee down with a sigh, sparing the newbie. The older woman left with a "have a nice day, miss Dallon" over her shoulder.

"Anyway," Florence turned to me. I closed my eyes for a couple of seconds. Of course the newbie wants to talk to me. At least she didn't seem quite as star-struck as most. "Do you think she's going to do that again?"

"Hm?"

"Cassandra? Go around blabbing people's secrets, except make such a mess of it nobody realizes what she's actually saying?"

Like how I'm a supervillain's daughter and nobody ever bothered to tell me. Things had been… tense, at home, after that came out. At least Vicky didn't seem to mind.

"If she does," I said between bites, "it won't be in this town. Hasn't been seen for, like, two months." Same time half the Empire capes were declared dead. A lot of people didn't think it was a coincidence, but nothing was ever made official.

"She hasn't. But Jake, my boyfriend? Works at the precinct. Said they've been finding people with bitten necks for a few days now."

I had to chew and swallow very carefully before I could respond. "Huh. Hadn't heard about that."

I have to talk to her.

It took a few hours for me to finally decide that trying to find Cassandra by wandering around the areas between the Docks and Brockton Bay in particular was a stupid idea. Torn between having to explain myself to Vicky what, exactly, I'm doing in these parts of town an hour past sunset and all the walking involved in getting back home on my own, I'd almost failed to notice a couple of shifty-looking men in red and green. Luckily, they weren't looking in my direction, and were, in fact, walking rather briskly after a brunette girl. Oh, this can't be good. Okay, Amy, you're from an entire family of superheroes, there's got to be something you can do here. That line of thinking was cut off the moment the girl turned back and noticed her tail. I recognized that face. The thugs didn't, and ran after Cassandra as she bolted towards the nearest alleyway. I followed after them, and stopped before rounding the corner.

What am I even going to say to her? Why am I even here? What did I think was going to happen?

One of the thugs dashed out of the alleyway, but fell over backwards as if he'd been hit in the face. Most of his body was out of sight, behind the wall, but I saw his feet get dragged back inside.

This was a terrible idea.

Cassandra stepped out of the alleyway, wiping her mouth with her sleeve. Her outfit… wasn't as ridiculous as some of the stuff she'd worn the first time around. Ordinary clothes that probably wouldn't draw a second glance if they weren't a little light for the weather.

"Marchioness", she greeted me. "Did the wayward winds carry you away too early? It is a poor eagle that chases owls by day."

"Hi to you too," I said. All the questions I'd had for her were gone. I might have overestimated my ability to figure out what the hell she's trying to say. "Strange place to run into you," I added lamely.

"Stranger yet to look for me, and yet here we are, pointed by the same hand," the pale girl pointed out, arms sweeping to gesture broadly at the street we were on.

"I'm not here for riddles," I snapped. "How do you know who my— who I am? And why did you tell that to Vicky? It could've…" Made her hate me.

"Ah, but are riddles not the answers to life? I see what's before my eyes, and what's behind them. Were I not to dig worms up myself, the rain would wash them out of the ground."

"So that's what you think?" I leaned toward her. "Just… give away everyone's secrets, because they'll, what, come out on their own? That makes no sense!"

The vampire stood quietly, staring at me. Then she reached out and poked me in the forehead. My power didn't react to the contact.

"Do not become a monster when the clouds are dark. You will have to see it once the storm has passed."

I slapped her hand away.

"I'm already a—"

"Born a monster, made a monster." Each word felt like a stab. She shook her head. "No. We are in the paths we walk, not the ones laid out for us."

So easy for you to say.

"This is useless," I spat out. "I might as well have bought some fortune cookies. Fuck you, and goodbye."

I turned on my heel and walked away. When I chanced a look behind, Cassandra was gone.