School starts again tomorrow and I have an internal (exam) this week so it may be a while until I update again... Sorry :( On a happier note, here is the latest chapter!
When Henry and Abe arrived back at Jo's house around half an hour later they found her sitting curled up on the couch, nursing a glass of scotch.
'Jo?' Henry knelt by the couch so he was at eye level for her. She looked up from her drink and her red eyes met his.
'What th-the hell, Henry?' She asked, voice shaking. 'What the hell was that?' Henry gave a lopsided smile.
'That's what always happens when I die. I disappear and reappear in the river.'
'Naked.' Jo added quietly. Henry gave a small laugh.
'Yes, unfortunately.' Jo looked down and took a sip of her drink. She could feel the curiosity rising in her.
'Tell me everything, Henry. Why are you like this?' She asked, looking at him as he stood and moved to sit on the couch next to her. Out of the corner of her eye she saw Abe leave the room.
'Everything I told you before is true.' Henry shrugged. 'I don't know why am like this. I was shot while on a boat and the captain threw me overboard. Next thing I knew I woke up in the water naked. Ever since then whenever I die that's what happens.' Jo nodded and went to ask another question but a thought suddenly occurred to her.
'Everything you told me is true. That means those bones you found really are your wife's.' She felt Henry stiffen next to her.
'Possibly.' He said. 'I haven't examined them yet. They could be someone else's. But if they aren't Abigail's…' The rest of his sentence hung in the air between them before Jo finished it.
'Then you still don't know what happened to her.' Henry nodded sadly.
'You must have really loved her.' Jo said, turning to face Henry. 'I still can't believe you've only had one wife, and yet you've been alive for over 200 years.' Henry looked uncomfortable.
'There is one other part of the story I haven't told you yet. When I finally made it back to England after I died the first time, I didn't just begin my life again like I said. I went back to my wife.'
'So you did have another wife.' Jo said slowly, studying Henry's. She watched the emotions flicker across his face; love, sadness, fear and pain.
'She was called Nora.' He said quietly, not looking at Jo. 'We were married before I died. When I made it back to her she thought it was a miracle, but after a while she began asking about my scar. I told her the story, and was going to show her, but she said she believed me. The next day she sent me to the asylum.' Jo was silent.
Poor Henry. She thought. I can only imagine how hard that would have been.
After a while Henry looked up.
'But that was a long time ago now. Anyway, now that you know of my secret, Abraham and I don't need to leave town. I can continue working at the OCME and,' He looked at Jo questionably, 'perhaps we can be something, if you're willing to look past the whole I'm 200 years older than you and never die part.' Jo looked away, biting her lip.
How do I tell him I already told people? She asked herself. Henry noticed the unsureness in her face, and his heart skipped a beat.
'Jo? What is it?' He asked, already sure of what she was going to say. When she still didn't say anything he answered for her. 'You told someone, didn't you?' Jo nodded.
'I'm sorry but I just didn't know what to do. I was…' I was scared, and I had no idea what was going on. You were the one I could rely on, the sensible and reliable one, and then you told me you couldn't die. '…I was worried about you.' Henry gave her a look, almost as if he knew there was more she was not saying.
'I'm sorry, Henry. What are you going to do know? Please don't leave. We can work something out…' Jo trailed off, looking at Henry hopefully. She wasn't sure why, but she needed him to stay. Henry opened his mouth to speak and Jo held her breath, sure he was going to deliver his verdict on whether he would stay or go.
Please stay, please stay. Jo begged in her head, prepared to hear him say he had to leave. But all he said was;
'Who? Who did you tell?'
'Oh, ummm…' Jo scrambled for her train of thought. 'Just Lt Reece and Hanson.'
'Good.' Henry sighed. 'I can handle them.' He turned to Jo.
'I will stay. I'll need to talk to the Lieutenant and Detective Hanson, and give them a demonstration of my condition, but them knowing may be a good thing. It will mean I don't have to keep my curse a secret around them.'
Yes! Jo yelled to herself, leaning in to hug Henry. She wasn't sure when, but somewhere in between when she had first walked into the morgue all those months ago and now she had come to love him.
'-I reappear in the water.' Henry finished telling Lt Reece and Hanson the next day. 'It's a curse I have to live with forever.'
'Are you ok Dr Morgan?' Lt Recce asked. She didn't give him time to answer but turned to Jo angrily. 'Detective, you are the one who brought this to my attention. You are the one who showed me the letter he left you the other day. You are the one who was concerned about Dr Morgan, and you are the one who called both Detective Hanson and I to your house, promising us an explanation. I don't know what you think an explanation is, but that was not one. I could have called for backup to come and detain Dr Morgan, but I trusted you to give me an explanation.' Hanson nodded in agreement, looking at Jo who swallowed nervously, before turning to face Henry.
'It's time.' She said, and he nodded.
'I hate dying.' He replied, reaching into his coat pocket for where he had slipped a syringe filled with poison.
After he had decided to tell the others, he and Jo had sent Abe back to the shop to grab some poison. 'If I'm going to die again today, it's going to be a quick death.' Henry had said.
He drew out the syringe, and before anyone could react had injected the poison within into his arm.
'It won't take long.' He informed them. 'I got Abe to bring me some aconite. It's extremely fast acting.' His matter of fact statement spurred Lt Reece and Hanson onto action.
'Call 911!' The lieutenant yelled to Hanson, before turning to Jo.
'Detective, I-' She was cut off by a thud. 'What was that?' She asked, turning towards the sound. Hanson was standing next to the couch, holding his phone. Following his line of vision she turned again and saw… nothing. Henry had disappeared.
'He fell to the ground and then… then he was just gone!' Hanson was gabbling. 'There was a flash of light and then he-he vanished.' They both turned to Jo who turned to the doorway.
'We're just going to the river, Abe.' She called to him in the kitchen. To Hanson and Lt Reece she smiled.
'Who fancies a trip to the river?'
I only planned 4 chapters for this story but there is still more to come... This time there really will be only 1 more chapter! Hope you liked this update :) Don't forget to reviewwwwww!