He stirred and rose out of his chair. Yuri had told him nothing, nothing at all! But he had held no hope of catching up to the young man's run earlier. Perhaps he could find out where he was waiting out the rainstorm and confront him there.
Gepetto put on his coat and hat; it took him a minute to realize he'd forgotten his glasses on the table, among the spools of thread and the pair of scissors. He picked up his cane and left. Though he hated to leave Cornelia in the apartment alone, he was just as loathe to subject her to the harsh rain and wind.
Walking the narrow cobbled street, Gepetto inquired of his neighbors if they had seen a young man, describing what he had noticed of Yuri's features. From them he learned of the trick the young man had pulled; after running for a few minutes, he had turned back and disappeared into the empty lot near Gepetto's apartment. Though there was no person immediately visible when the puppeteer looked in, the large door in the ground left little to the imagination. With some effort he opened it and climbed down, the door slamming shut behind him.
Before him his shadow flickered and danced in the low light. Turning around, he saw both the ruffian and his niece sleeping against the tunnel's cold wall. She wore a trench coat far too large for her narrow shoulders, explaining Yuri's lack of a coat. Relieved to find his niece, Gepetto reached out. Her cheek was chill to his touch. Tears coursed down Gepetto's face as he realized the young man had not been lying; his niece was dead.
He picked his cane up and drove it into Yuri's stomach, causing the strange red eyes to open. "Explain," Gepetto ground out.
"What?"
"How did she die?"
He was holding her hand, and at the question he rubbed his thumb in the fold between her thumb and forefinger. "I was under a curse and she took it from me. But I never figured out how to fix it."
"A curse...from what?" Gepetto asked. From the serene expression on her face, whatever had killed her had done so without upsetting her. Poison seemed more likely than a curse, but he knew with his niece's abilities of perception it could not have been done so subtly.
"The masks...Fear, Envy, Anger and Hate."
"Are those monsters?"
"Parts of people's souls."
As strange as the explanation seemed, Gepetto accepted it without complaint. He seemed sincere, and Alice had trusted him- that was enough.
"When did she die?"
"Yesterday, before sunset. She just went to sleep and didn't wake up."
Gepetto stroked the white-blonde hair, his fingers trembling. "What are you going to do?"
"We were headed for Zurich...Alice kept talking about it. She said it was really beautiful...that's where I'm going to bury her." His tone brooked no room for argument. After a moment, he considered and added, "Guess I have to tell her mother too."
"I'll tell her," Gepetto said. He knew Alice's mother was sensitive, and Alice's- lover? she never did quite say what they were- seemed too dulled by his emotions to be considerate of others'.
"So you're coming with?" Yuri shrugged. "That's fine, but I'm leaving now."
"Give me a half hour."
"I'll give you the next train."