Chapter 17
Around 2:50 P.M., at Treeview Hospital, Kristy was called to the nurse's station.
Max had Kristy reviewing patient files from the past few years, and she was happy to take a break.
As Kristy was approaching the nurse's station, she saw Sarah standing there. Sarah's long-strap purse hung off her left shoulder.
"Here she comes now," Sarah told the nurse while gesturing.
When Kristy reached Sarah, they greeted each other with a hug.
Once the hug ended, Kristy told Sarah, "I called you last night."
"I know," Sarah replied. "But I'm tired of chatting with you on the phone, so I decided to visit you instead of calling you back. Plus, this way, you can show me around the city."
"Okay, one, it's been about thirty years since I've lived in Portland, so I don't know Portland as well as I used to. And two, what about your duties in Anchorage?"
"As of this morning, I'm on vacation," Sarah informed. "And Dr. Harris is capable enough to handle things at the prison infirmary for the next seven days without me. He likes to think of himself as the doctor in charge, anyway. He hates the fact that I got the promotion and not him. But enough with discussing my work; I'm sure you had called me last night to tell me all about what have been happening with you since you moved to Portland. So, spill. What's new with you?"
"Let's go to my office and we can talk there," Kristy earnestly told her.
"You sound serious," Sarah pointed out.
"I just want our conversation to stay confidential," Kristy replied.
"Not a problem," Sarah replied, as if to play along.
As Kristy turned and walked away, Sarah followed.
Once Kristy and Sarah reached Kristy's office, Kristy shut the door.
"Okay, you officially have me worried, Kristy," Sarah informed. "What's going on?"
Kristy considered her words for a moment before saying, "I would like to begin by saying that Olivia no longer believes that she is dreaming of demons."
"That's good," Sarah replied. "What convinced her that she wasn't dreaming about demons?"
"Last Monday, Olivia met and befriended four people," Kristy began. "Detective Nick Burthardt, his partner Detective Erica Espinosa and a married couple, Monroe and Rosalee. Nick, Erica, Monroe and Rosalee are who convinced Olivia that she wasn't dreaming about demons."
"Okay, well, kudos for them," Sarah replied. "But do you know why they were able to successfully convince Olivia that demons weren't real when you couldn't?"
"Yes, because they each knew the truth about what Olivia is actually dreaming about when I didn't," Kristy informed.
"Okay," Sarah began in an uncertain tone. "And what is Olivia dreaming about?"
"Wesen, or more precisely Dämonfeuer, Ziegevolk, Klaustreich, Mauzhertz, and Willahara to only name a few types of Wesen," Kristy began. Sarah's reacted nonchalantly. "In fact, in the Wesen world, Olivia is known as a witness; however, you knew that Olivia was a witness all along, didn't you?"
"And why would I have known that?" Sarah asked and sounding sincere.
"Sarah, I know you're a Wesen, and I'm okay with it," Kristy replied.
"Where are you getting the idea that I'm Wesen?" Sarah quickly questioned. "Do I look like anything Olivia has dreamed about?"
"Olivia only dreams about Wesen in their woged form and not in their human form," Kristy began. "So, no. You don't look like anything that Olivia has dreamed about."
"Then why do you think that I'm a Wesen?" Sarah quickly asked.
"Witnesses are psychics, but they aren't natural psychics," Kristy began. "Normal witnesses are inadvertently created by male Faye with the flu and irregular witnesses are inadvertently created by Faye/Wesen hybrid of either gender with the flu."
Sarah genuinely shot Kristy a puzzled look before ignoring what was puzzling her and asking, "Kristy, you are not answering my question. Why do you think that I'm a Wesen?"
"Sarah, you were born sterile," Kristy began. "I know for a fact that Olivia is an irregular witness, and Faye/Wesen hybrids are always born sterile."
"Okay, now I understand the logic behind your accusation," Sarah began. "However, I would like to point out that Olivia could've come across other people who are sterile; plus, I have never had the flu in my life."
"Yeah, about that," Kristy began. "I failed to mention that Faye or Faye/Wesen hybrids don't display the flu symptoms as Kehrseite do. Plus, only a newborn Kehrseite who is less than seven days old can only be turned into a witness, and you are the only sterile person I know who had come into contact with Olivia during the first seven days of her life."
Sarah chuckled with slight humor before saying, "Okay, fine. I admit it, Honorary Detective Cain. I'm Wesen, and I have always wondered to what Wesen my biological father was, and now I know he's Faye… or at least I'm assuming Faye is Wesen."
"Yes, Faye is a species of Wesen," Kristy replied. "But you didn't know that you are Faye… or part Faye."
"I've never told you this before, Kristy, but my mom had gotten pregnant with me by a sperm donor at a fertility clinic," Sarah began. "Plus, I have never heard of Faye before."
"What species of Wesen was your mother?" Kristy asked.
"That's actually an impossible question to answer," Sarah replied.
"Why is it an impossible question to answer?" Kristy questioned.
"Because there is no name for the type of Wesen that my mom was," Sarah informed.
"How is that possible?" Kristy questioned.
"Okay, let me see if I can explain this to you." Sarah then took a moment before continuing. "My mom's Wesen form was Spinnetod, and for all intents and purposes she was a Spinnetod. However, she was only a Spinnetod because her father was a Spinnetod. My mom's mom for all intents and purposes was a Lebensauger, and the only reason that she was a Lebensauger was because her father was a Lebensauger. Now her mother for all intents and purposes was a Murciélago, and the only reason that she was a Murciélago was because her father was a Murciélago…"
"Okay, hold up for a minute," Kristy requested. "I need you to clarify something."
"What needs clarifying," Sarah requested.
"Along your female lineage, were there ever male siblings born?" Kristy questioned.
"Only if the male siblings were born first," Sarah replied.
"Are you saying that male siblings can't be born if the firstborn is a female?" Kristy quickly asked.
"The mothers to my kind of Wesen die when the first daughter is born," Sarah began. "However, before death occurs, the mother's memories are passed onto the daughter. In fact, that is how I know about my female lineage for the past twenty generations… although I should clarify that the memories I inherited from my mom, and my mom's mom… and so on had remained dormant until after I had turned seventeen. And those memories are awaken in varies ways. The most common way is through my dreams."
Kristy nodded before asking, "If any males are born before the birth of their sister, do memories get passed onto them as well?"
"They don't," Sarah replied. "And they too will be the same species as the father."
Kristy nodded before saying, "I'm getting the impression that the offspring between two Wesen of different species will be the same species as the father."
"That only holds true to the kind of Wesen that I am," Sarah began. "And that was the point that I was trying to make."
"So, there's really no rule on what the offsprings will be between two different Wesen, such a Blutbad and a Fuchsbau?" When Sarah gave her a 'are you serious?' look, she continued to say, "Okay, my knowledge of Wesen is limited to what I had learned within the past twenty-four hours,"
Sarah slightly chuckled before saying, "For most Wesen, there is a dominant gene, and the dominant traits will more often than not get passed down to the offspring. So, to answer your question about an offspring between a Blutbad and a Fushbau, the offspring would be a Blutbad sixty-five percent of the time. However, for whatever reason, the dominant gene among my female lineage had always been suppressed by the weaker gene among my male lineage. Oh, and also there has been Kehrseite among my male lineage, and when a female offspring between a male Kehrseite and my Wesen species is born, the offspring's Wesen form will always look like a mud-like creature. In fact, that is what my ancestor from twenty generations ago was. Her Wesen form was a mud-like creature. I have no memory on if her mother was a mud-like Wesen as well."
"I wonder if Nick and his group heard of a Wesen like you before." Kristy thought out loud.
"Okay, I have to ask," Sarah began. "I know you said that Nick is a detective, but is Nick a Wesen as well?"
"His friends are Wesen; in fact, Monroe is a Blutbad, Rosalee is a Fushbau and Erica is a Balam," Kristy replied. "Oh, and Monroe and Rosalee have six-year-old fraternal triplets—two boys and a girl—and that was why I was asking about the dominant gene between Blutbad and Fushbau."
"And what is Nick… a Kehrseite-Schlich-Kennen who learned about us?" Sarah asked.
"Don't freak out or panic because Nick is a policeman first," Kristy replied.
Sarah slightly chuckled without humor before asking, "Kristy, is Nick a Grimm?"
"He is, but he doesn't go after law-abiding Wesen," Kristy replied. "And he's married to a Hexenbiest."
"Wow," Sarah uttered. "A Grimm and a Hexenbiest married. Now that's unexpected. And I guess that you learned about Faye and Faye/Wesen hybrids from the Grimm."
"Actually, I heard about Faye and Faye/Wesen hybrids from Rosalee, but the source of the information came from Helen."
"And who is Helen?" Sarah asked.
"She's Faye," Kristy began. Sarah's interest piqued. "She and her two sisters own Third Eye bookstore. Oh, and the three sisters are identical triplets."
"I would like to meet Helen and her sisters," Sarah quickly replied. "Do you know where Third Eye bookstore is located?"
"I do," Kristy replied as she checked her watch. "My shift is ending now if you would like for me to lead you over there."
"I do," Sarah replied.
"Okay, let me log out and grab my purse," Kristy replied before taking her seat behind her desk.
"I guess I can let you do that," Sarah playfully said.
"Oh, ah, for fair warning," Kristy began as she went to close everything and log out. "Olivia gets visions of Wesen woging when she comes into physical contact with one. So, she will…"
"We hugged earlier," Sarah informed. "Before I came here, I went by the house, and we hugged."
"Did she say something to you about you being a Wesen?" Kristy questioned.
"No," Sarah replied. "But she did react to the hug as if a chill went down her spine."
"Sarah, Olivia loves you, so please don't think that has change since Olivia, Ben and I have learned about you being a Wesen," Kristy replied.
"Actually, the only thing I was thinking right now was that Olivia reacted to my hug as if I had hugged her while Woged," Sarah replied. "My body is as cold as a block of ice when woged."
"Sarah, even when you are not woged, you feel as cold as a corpse to the touch," Kristy informed before pulling out her purse from her desk.
Sarah slightly chuckled, and as Kristy was standing, Sarah replied, "You're not the first person to tell me that. And every guy I've been with can only put up with my physical coldness for so long before he had enough."
"I always thought that it was the fact that you couldn't give them children was why none of them had stuck around," Kristy replied.
"That might be true as well for some of them," Sarah replied. "Anyway, are we good to go?"
"We are," Kristy replied before she and Sarah entered the corridor. "So which lot are you parked in?"
"I'm in the visitor's lot closest to the emergency entrance," Sarah replied. "And I'm driving a dark blue Honda Accord from Enterprise Rent-A-Car."
"Okay," Kristy replied as the two walked towards the elevator.
"So how do you like the new job?" Sarah questioned as if to make small talk.
"Today is only my second day, but so far, I like it," Kristy replied. "How are things going with your job?"
"The same, mostly," Sarah replied. "The inmates come to me for a wide variety of problems and/or ailments, and I treat them. Anyway, have you found a place to live yet? Or will you be staying with your parents for a while?"
"I actually bought a house last Tuesday," Kristy informed before going into details about the house.
Kristy and Sarah's conversation remained on the house and once they reached the lobby, they went to their respective vehicles.
It didn't take long for Kristy to jump into her SUV and drive it around to where Sarah had parked her rental car.
Once Sarah saw Kristy driving around, she pulled out of her parking space and then followed Kristy from the hospital's parking lot.
Around 3:05 P.M., Nick, Erica and Allison were taking seats in Heidi Scott's office.
Heidi waited until they were seated before asking, "So who are you bringing me today, Nick?"
"Her name is Allison West," Nick began. "She's a Steinadler. Her mom died ten years ago. Her father, Shawn West, is a Kehrseite who learned about the Wesen world just today when Allison woged for the first time in her life in front of him."
"Let me guess," Heidi began. "Allison's dad is now scared of her and doesn't want anything to do with her."
"Correct, for the moment, but I'm hoping that in a week or two, he can conquer his fears and realize that Allison is still his daughter," Nick replied.
"In my experience, Nick, that never happens," Heidi replied.
"In my experience as a Grimm, I have seen change of sentiments for the better between Kehrseite and Wesen," Nick replied. "It's rare, but it happens, and I hope it happens in Allison's case."
"Yes, well, meanwhile, I'm going to proceed as if that won't happen," Heidi began while moving to create a new case file on her computer. "And if it does, well, we'll cross that bridge when we come to it. Anyway, Allison what is your full name."
"It's Allison Jane West," she replied.
Heide typed it in before asking, "Date of Birth?"
After Allison answered Heidi, Erica told her, "Happy belated birthday," as her twelfth birthday was last Tuesday.
"Thanks," Allison replied.
"Allison, do you know your Social Security Number?" Heidi asked. Allison shot her a perplex look before shaking her head. "That's fine. We can worry about that information later. What is your address?"
Allison took a breath before answering.
"Mother's full name?" Heidi asked as Nick's phone rang.
As Allison answered the question, Nick looked at his phone before answering, "Captain. What's up?"
"Your sister is at the police station, Nick, and is demanding to speak with you," Hank informed.
Erica, Heidi and Allison were able to hear everything that Hank was saying.
"That's odd, Hank, since I don't have a sister," Nick replied. "I'm an only child. You know that."
"Yes, well, the woman who's claiming to be Emma Burthardt is saying otherwise," Hank replied. "However, she doesn't have ID. Anyway, you'll need to come in as soon as possible to deal with this."
"Okay, I'll be there as soon as I wrap up things here," Nick replied. "Bye."
"Nick, your part is over," Heidi told Nick. "You brought Allison to me. And I can handle the rest from here. So, you and Erica can go handle what you need to handle."
Nick hesitated for a moment before saying, "Okay. And I would like to remain in the loop with what happens to Allison."
"I'll do what I can, Nick," Heidi replied as Nick and Erica stood up.
Nick nodded before pulling out his wallet. He then pulled out a business card and held it out for Allison to take.
"Allison, this is my contact information," Nick began as Allison took the business card. "If you ever find yourself in a bad situation, give me a call."
"Okay," Allison replied with a slight grin.
Nick, Erica, Allison and Heidi exchanged parting pleasantries before Nick and Erica left Heidi's office.
It was around 3:15 P.M., when Kristy and Sarah entered the bookstore. Five customers were browsing for books. Helen was helping one of the customers (a teenage boy) to choose a book on reincarnation. Athena was in the backroom with a client. Another customer (a man) was at the cash register while waiting to pay for his selected items as Phoebe was scanning each of his items.
"Helen is over there with that young man," Kristy replied while gesturing.
"So, who's behind the counter? Athena or Phoebe?" Sarah asked.
"My dad described their hairstyles to me, so I believe she's Phoebe," Kristy replied. "And I don't see the third sister."
"Let's see what kind of books they sell," Sarah replied before stepping up to a roll of books on Tarot cards and reading the spine of each book.
Kristy stayed at Sarah's side and read the spine of each book as well.
Within a short time, the man at the cash register had paid for his selected items and was now walking towards the exit. Kristy and Sarah saw when the man walked away with his purchase and walked towards Phoebe.
Phoebe saw the two approaching and waited until they were a few steps from the counter before greeting them with, "Hi. I'm Phoebe. How can I help you?"
"Hi, Phoebe, I'm Kristy Cain, David Chang's daughter," she informed.
"Oh, hi, Dr. Cain," Phoebe pleasantly began. "Helen told me that she met you and your daughter last Tuesday."
"Yes, and since then I had learned a lot about you, your sisters and… and the hidden community that I've been a part of for years and not known about," Kristy replied.
"I'm sorry, I'm not following," Phoebe claimed.
Kristy made a point to keep her voice down as she replied, "My daughter is an irregular witness, and my friend Sarah is the Faye/Wesen hybrid who turned her that way. And we are here…"
Phoebe woged to where only a Grimm or another Wesen could see her. A pleasant flora fragrance filled the air around her. In response to Phoebe woging, Sarah woged as well. The room temperature around Sarah by several feet dropped thirty degrees.
Kristy broke off what she was saying and rubbed her arms as if she was out in the cold without a coat.
"What just happened?" Kristy quickly asked as she continued to rub her arms.
Helen caught a glimpse of Phoebe and Sarah just before the two shifted back to their human form. The room temperature quickly warmed up, but it remained slightly cooler than what it was before. The pleasant flora fragrance began to slowly fade.
"Phoebe and I greeted each other by showing our true selves to one another," Sarah began and keeping her voice down as well. "However, I'm not what she is. So whatever Wesen my father was, I don't think he's Faye."
Phoebe amusingly grinned before asking Sarah, "You're not familiar with Faye, are you?"
"Before today, I have never heard of Faye," Sarah replied.
Phoebe nodded as if she understood the situation before quietly saying, "There are five races of Faye, and they are Woodland Faye, Desert Faye, Mountain Faye, Aqua Faye and Artic Faye. My sisters and I are Woodland Faye, and you are an Artic Faye."
"Okay," Sarah replied in a 'if you say so' tone. Helen was stepping up as Sarah continued, "What exactly does that mean to be an Artic Faye?"
"Phoebe, what's going on?" Helen asked as she joined in.
"Helen, meet Sarah," Phoebe replied. "She's Dr. Cain's friend, and she's the one who turned Dr. Cain's daughter into an irregular witness."
"I learned about Wesen and Faye and Faye/Wesen hybrids yesterday from Rosalee. Oh, and please, everyone, call me Kristy," she informed while keeping her voice down. "Anyway, Sarah, doesn't know anything about Faye, and since she is a Faye/Wesen hybrid, she wants to learn more about her Faye lineage. So I brought her here."
"This discussion needs to be taken to the office, and out of earshot of others," Phoebe informed. "So, Helen, can you take over at the cash register?"
"Sure," Helen replied.
"Sarah; Kristy, follow me," Phoebe told them before stepping away.
Sarah and Kristy followed behind Phoebe.
To be continued.