CHAPTER SEVEN

HELLGATE

When Nick got called out in the middle of the night, he had made sure to be quiet leaving. But as he passed Lena's room, the door was cracked open and he could see that it was empty. He quickly checked downstairs but saw no sign of her. Her keys were gone and when he left the house, her car was gone too. Had he missed a note? Where was she?

He didn't have time to dwell on it as he met up with Hank and got to the scene of an attack on a pregnant woman. Apparently, she was close friends with Wu, so he was there and wired up. When they spoke with her doctor while she was resting at the hospital, they found out she'd been sedated, and something stabbed her through the naval and drained some of her amniotic fluid.

When he got home, her car was in front of the house again and there was a note by the key bowl.

'Saw you weren't home when I got back. Got called out to a midwife emergency. Back now, asleep.'

Nick felt something weird with the note as he read it. It seemed… impersonal. And granted he'd only known Lena for a couple of months, but he felt like they were friends. She seemed to worry for him when he went out on potentially dangerous calls. She let him know when she was going into work or had appointments. They had dinner nearly every night. Breakfast in the morning. She'd even taken on communicating with his faux-deceased mother in order to protect them both. He felt protective of her, responsible for her.

He tried to shake off his feeling and go to bed. But he was restless for the rest of the night. The next day, he and Hank went back to the hospital to talk to Dana's doctor. Who had told them that Dana had been drugged with something called valerian root. But it wasn't included on her list of medications.

Now was the time to talk to Dana herself.

Nick was surprised when they walked in and saw Lena talking to Dana.

"Lena?"

Nick's roommate looked up, startled. "Nick, Hank, hi."

Hank was confused too. "What are you doing here?"

Dana looked to Lena as well, "You know each other?"

Lena nodded to the mother-to-be first and explained, "Yeah, they're both friends of mine." She then directed her attention to the men. "I'm Dana's midwife. Sam called me and told me what happened last night, so I'm here to check in with her."

Nick was struck again with an impersonal feeling between her and all of them.

Lena turned back to Dana. "These are Detective Burkhardt and Detective Griffin. I assume they're here to ask you some questions. Do you feel up to it?"

She nodded limply, turning to the detectives.

Nick asked first, "How are you feeling?"

Dana smiled, "A little weak, but better."

Then he asked, "Do you remember anything about the attack?"

Dana frowned. Like she was afraid of the memories. "I remember reading and then falling asleep and then waking up because of this pain. It hurt more than anything I've ever felt. I can't remember anything else. It was like a dream."

"Did you see anything outside your window?" Hank asked.

"I-I can't remember," Dana sighed.

"Did you hear anything... A ticking sound?" Nick asked gently.

"Your neighbor Liz says she remembers a ticking sound," Hank added.

Dana slowly shook her head after some thought. "Not really."

Nick and Hank shared a look before Nick informed her, "Dana, the doctors found a sedative in your system called valerian root."

"Root? As in a kind of plant?" Wu appeared in the doorway. "I'm sorry. I just got here. Keep going."

"I've heard of valerian root," Lena chimed in, frowning in thought. "Midwives used to use it in the fifteenth century to dull the pain of childbirth for their patients. It's obviously not used anymore."

Nick nodded and turned to Dana, "Did you take any or eat anything that contained valerian?"

Dana shared a look with Lena and answered, "I have a strict list of vitamins and meds to take, and sedatives are not on it."

"That's all we need for now," Nick told her. "Get some rest."

After they left, Lena went back to her patient. "Okay, Dana, we have your next checkup rescheduled three days from now. Your doctor told me you'll be discharged in a few hours. I assume Sam is picking you up?"

Dana nodded. "Yeah, he will."

"That's good," Lena said, patting her hand. "I'm going to go update your file with your doctor. Remember to call me if you feel any pain or something before our appointment."

"I will, thank you," Dana thanked her softly, resting her eyes as Lena let herself out.

Once Lena was out of the hospital, she was at a loss of where to go. She didn't want to go to the house. What if Nick was there and asked her what was wrong? She couldn't go to the shop. Nick could be there too. Or Rosalee could sense something was up and ask her about it. She just didn't want to be around people. So, she drove herself to a café.

Sitting down outside with a chamomile tea and biscotti wasn't the cure-all she hoped it would be. Even the chilly February breeze washing over her sweater-clad shoulders couldn't cool the rising heat in her head. Just down the outdoor seating area, a lovely little family was sitting down. A mother and father with two little kids sharing a sundae while the parents warmly smiled with their arms around each other as they watched their children enjoy their dessert.

It tore her apart to watch. Especially today of all days. But she couldn't stop staring, tears building in her eyes. She could feel something washing over her. If she had been outside herself looking, she'd see something shifting under her skin and her eyes starting to glow. Her head felt like it was on fire, the heat washing down her whole body.

It overwhelmed her and left her panting for breath. She panicked, tossing money on her table and running to her car. Hopefully, Nick wouldn't be at the house.

"Here it is, valerian root," Rosalee spoke and she climbed down the ladder at her shop with a jar of some kind of plant. "It's a natural sedative used in teas and oils, but it can be really dangerous in large doses. Some call it nature's valium."

"So, whoever attacked Dana wanted to make sure she was out cold," Hank surmised.

"Maybe valerian was used instead of something with harsher chemicals that could potentially harm a fetus," Rosalee suggested.

"Lena did mention that midwives use to use it to ease the pain of birth," Nick commented.

"Why pump out the amniotic fluid but keep the fetus intact?" Hank asked.

Rosalee pursed her lips before suggesting, "There are ancient rituals where it's believed the health and youth of a baby can be absorbed. Your case could have something to do with that."

"Yeah, I have an Aunt and Uncle that used to eat their newborns' placentas, you know, fry 'em up with a little butter and honey," Monroe said, shivering. "But I'm sorry. This is going too far."

"Okay, maybe if we cross-reference attacks on pregnant women with valerian root, we can find something in the trailer," Nick thought out loud.

"Need help?" Rosalee offered.

"Wouldn't hurt."

"Anybody else got the heebie-jeebies?" Monroe asked.

The four of them made their way to the trailer and started pouring over books. Monroe and Rosalee took the couch with a couple large tomes while Nick was at the table with Hank across. Nick sighed as he flipped through his book and took a break to ask Rosalee, "Hey, Rosalee… have you heard from Lena today?"

Rosalee answered absently, "No, why?"

"I don't think it's important," Nick said reluctantly. "She just seemed off today. She was gone when I got the call about Dana's attack, no note or anything. She was in her room when I got back. Didn't see her this morning until we went to talk to Dana, and she was there. She's their midwife. And she was just… I don't know, distant, while we were there."

"Maybe she was just being professional," Hank suggested. "It being her work and all."

"Things are probably starting to speed up for her, career wise," Rosalee added. "I'm sure you don't have to worry. You'll have time to talk to her later."

Nick accepted their words and moved onto his work. Eventually, he found something. ""I arrive in the Philippines at Manila, May of 1904, after a long arduous voyage from...""

"Do we have to start at the beginning?" Hank interceded.

Monroe added, "Yeah, pick it up right before the "and then I cut off his head" part."

"All right," Nick said, reading softly to himself as he tried to find the relevant information. "Okay, okay. "After the midwife was able to quell the hemorrhaging, the young woman gained consciousness. She told me it was an Aswang that had caused the tragedy. She had been sold as a bride, to be impregnated so that her firstborn may be consumed as a means for a prolonged, healthy life. This is what we're looking for. Aswangs use their long tongues to inject chewed up valerian root to sedate their victims as they attack.""

"That explains why Dana can't remember much," Hank said.

""These attacks are often incorrectly diagnosed as miscarriages, and for the process to work, the fetus must be a blood relative to the Aswang.''" Nick read.

Hank seemed a little freaked out about that, "That's some family obligations."

"Wait, what does that say?" Rosalee asked, pointing to a gruesome picture of the creature.

""I've also learned that Aswang have an alternate name... tik-tiks, due to the ticking sound they make with their tongue."" Nick read aloud.

"The neighbor said she heard a ticking sound coming from Dana's house," Hank remembered. "Now that we know what we're dealing with, what do we tell Wu?"

Monroe instantly shook his head, "Oh, no, no. I don't think an Aswang is a very good gateway wesen for a Kehrseite."

"I'm not sure there is a good gateway," Hank said.

"It's more of a hellgate," Rosalee said softly.

"We can't risk involving him in something that he doesn't understand," Nick agreed.

"But we can't let him think he's going crazy," Hank protested. He remembered his introduction to this world, seeing Monroe in his woged form. "I know that feeling too well. And I can't just stand by and..."

"I don't think we should give him any premature information," Nick interrupted.

"Yes, premature information can be very messy," Monroe frowned.

"Hearing the truth is not the problem," Hank insisted. "It's seeing and not being able to explain what it is that pushes you over the edge."

"You were confronted with it," Rosalee reassured him. "You had no choice."

"Hank, I'm sorry," Monroe said. "I kind of agree with 'em. I mean, this is life-changing information we're talking about."

"Wu needs to know what he's going up against. You leave him unprepared, anything could happen," Hank answered.

"Look, I don't want to drag him into this, not unless we absolutely have to," Nick decided.

Hank sighed. He could tell he was out voted. "If you all think that's the way it should be... Okay. Let's go see if Dana and Sam have any blood relatives in town."

Nick and Hank ended up getting to Sam and Dana's house in time to see Wu shooting the Aswang down as it attacked Dana. Nick watched as the wesen morphed into a little old lady – Sam's mother. She was dead. They had to comfort Wu over the episode. He was so freaked out, having seen the Aswang and witness it turn into Mrs. Tomas. They had just finished reporting the incident to the Captain late in the night.

When Nick got home, most of the house was dark too. But he saw Lena curled up on the couch. He frowned when he saw an empty six pack on the coffee table and an empty glass of wine. He saw a book next to them.

He approached the living room and saw the book – a photo album – open to a page of photos. He saw Lena, in a beautiful simple white dress, in the arms of an Asian man. She looked so happy, smiling from ear to ear. He had never once seen her smile like that since meeting her.

Nick had a feeling that she wasn't in a good place. He sat next to her on the couch to try and gently shake her awake so he could get her in her bed to sleep more comfortable. She immediately shot up, awake and gasping and crying. Nick grabbed her shoulders, so she didn't fall to the ground.

"Hey, you're okay," Nick assured her. "It's just me. You fell asleep on the couch. Or well, it looks like you drank yourself to sleep."

She scoffed harshly, "Right."

"I can tell something is really wrong," Nick told her. He gestured with his eyes to the album on the coffee table, "Your wedding album?"

She nodded solemnly. She pulled her knees up to hug them to her chest. "I'm just torturing myself. Today is our – well, was my… wedding anniversary."

"Oh, God, Lena…" Nick sighed. "Why didn't you tell any of us?"

He watched her face crumble as she shook her head, tears streaming down her cheeks, "I don't know, I don't know. I just… didn't even want to acknowledge it. I don't want to miss him anymore. It's too painful. And everyone tells me to let him go and move on. Counselors, old coworkers, even his parents… Telling me that he wouldn't want me to close myself off and not live my life."

"You don't have to rush into that," Nick told her. "You can take your time to grieve, but in the mean time you need to let us be here for you. It's okay to miss your husband. But you can't pretend that today isn't what it is, or that your life before Portland didn't happen."

"I know, I know," she sobbed, trying to dig her face into her knees.

But Nick reached to wrap his arms around her and pull her into his side. She cried into his shoulder and he just held her close. He couldn't imagine the pain she was going through, losing her husband so suddenly as she had. Sometimes he still missed Juliette. But she'd left him because she couldn't handle the Grimm and wesen world. And ultimately, he would move on with someone that could. But poor Lena had gotten no warning before her husband just wasn't there anymore.

Once her tears slowed down and she sniffled a little, she pulled away and gave him a mournful smile, "I know I was probably really off with you today. I'm sorry."

"Don't worry about it, I understand," he told her honestly. "I do wish you would have just told me what was wrong. But I understand that you may not trust me enough…"

"It's not that," she said. "It's just… me trying to run away from the pain. It didn't exactly work, as you can see. Checking in with Dana didn't distract me, wandering the city didn't distract me. I ended up at this little café and saw this family with their kids and I… I think I started to woge."

"How could you tell?" Nick asked, concerned.

"It just… seeing those kids just brought all the pain to the front of my mind and I felt like I was going to cry at first. But then it was like a hot flash. Rosalee said it could feel like that. It knocked the wind out of me so I came here and…" she ended her explanation by gesturing to the scene he'd found when he arrived.

"Maybe it was the emotional distress," Nick suggested. "Though I don't understand how seeing kids distressed you…"

Lena winced. "Right before Kevin… died… we had just started trying…"

To have a baby.

"Oh, Lena," Nick sighed lowly. "I'm so sorry."

Lena wiped at her eyes. "Today has been a day, huh? Did you find out what attacked Dana?"

"Yeah, we took care of it," he assured her. "Don't worry about her, she'll be fine. Now, I think we need a good night's sleep."

She weakly chuckled, "It might be better to sleep in a real bed, huh?"

"Yeah," Nick said, helping her up off the couch and walking upstairs with her. At her door, he grabbed her hand to tug her to face him before she went inside. "I'm here. To talk, to cry, even to punch something."

Lena smiled at the offer, "I'll definitely keep that in mind. Thank you, Nick."

Without noticing, Nick had intertwined their fingers together. "You don't have to thank me."