– Chapter Fourteen –
Rat had been sitting in silence on the second floor for the last hour or so. The room was deserted apart from herself and her dogs. She'd perched herself on top of a bookshelf and had been throwing dog toys and balls for the animals to chase.
"Stupid Leigh," she muttered to herself a few times. "Stupid Aila."
She sighed when she started to grow hungry, and wondered if she should make her way back to the kitchen to get something to eat. Just then, the door opened, and a very anxious Leigh appeared at the door frame.
"Hey," she said to Rat uncertainly. "Can I come in?"
Rat shrugged, but said nothing. Leigh watched Bianca happily trot over to the hacker to give her the ball she'd just chased. Rat threw it again, and Bianca sped off in excitement.
Leigh closed the door and stepped into the room. She looked up at Rat gingerly. "Erm…I'm sorry about the cake," she began, shrugging a bit. "Can't say I've ever tried to make one myself before...not from scratch."
Rat managed the tiniest of smiles. "Forget it," she told the hairdresser.
Leigh simply nodded, and looked down at Bianca when the hyperactive dog dropped the ball at her feet. She and the dog stared at each other; Bianca practically smiling with her tongue hanging out.
"You want me to play?" Leigh questioned the animal.
Rat rolled her eyes. "Go ahead," she said.
Leigh grinned, bent down, and picked up the slobbery ball. "Nice," she muttered, but she threw it anyway. "Go on then, mad dog."
Bianca hurried after it, yapping happily. Leigh smiled and reluctantly approached the bookcase Rat was sitting on.
"Always loved animals," she said, though she wasn't sure why she was telling Rat this. "My mum…she works…worked…in an animal shelter. She was always bringing cats and dogs and everything else home when the shelter got too full."
"Yeah. It's in your file," Rat said a little bluntly.
Leigh resisted the urge to roll her eyes or comment with a sarcastic remark. "Yeah," she said instead.
Bianca came trotting back up to Leigh, her curly tail wagging. Leigh petted her before throwing the ball again. She watched it bounce between the rows of books. "She's a Chow Chow, right?" Leigh asked, attempting to make conversation. "I remember seeing one as a kid. Always thought the blue tongues were the strangest things. How old is she?"
"Two," Rat responded. "She's pedigree, technically, but the fussy breeder didn't think she was up to show standards and ditched her. I saw it happen. It was right outside this building. He just drove up and dumped her as a six week old puppy. I happened to be outside getting the shopping to bring in when it happened. Gave him a right piece of my mind when I found out why the hell he was just leaving a defenseless puppy behind. I took her in after that."
Leigh stared up at the hacker. "That's disgusting. How the hell people can toss animals out just because they might not belong on a show floor...I don't get it. Those kinds of breeders piss me off..." she trailed off just as Bianca came running back again with the ball.
"Mmhm," Rat nodded. "Charles was already getting on in years at that point, so he wasn't too happy about having a new sister," she said with a small smirk. "But he got over it pretty quickly."
"Is he a purebred too?" Leigh asked.
"Yeah, he's a Borzoi. I got him from my cousin when I was eighteen, almost nineteen. My parents wanted me to have something to do outside of…" she paused then, but bit her lip and sighed, as if forcing herself to continue. "Outside of keeping my sister company in the hospital. I suppose I'm glad they did. Charles has been a lovely companion the last ten years."
Leigh raised her eyebrows in surprise. "Your sister?" she repeated.
"My…my twin sister," Rat continued.
Leigh became genuinely curious and surprised that Rat was telling her this. "I thought…"
"You thought what?" Rat dared her.
Leigh hesitated. "I…well, correct me if I'm wrong, but I thought maybe you and Katja…"
Rat didn't look at Leigh, but a small, impressed smile appeared on her lips. "How'd you figure that out?" She asked.
Leigh shrugged. "Same birthday. Could have been coincidence, I know, but she's practically the only person you'll talk to about anything."
"I'm talking to you right now, aren't I?" Rat asked.
Leigh just stared at her. She continued to stare even when Bianca returned once more with the ball and dropped it at her feet. "You know what I mean," Leigh said after a moment. "But…now I'm confused."
Rat inhaled deeply, but she did not release a sigh. She fixed her gaze on the wall opposite her, considering her words carefully. "Katja was separated from us at birth," she told Leigh slowly but firmly.
"Us? Triplets then?" Leigh guessed.
Rat nodded. "Katja went to the Obingers. Me and…me and Cecile…we went to scientists working for DYAD."
Leigh didn't know what to say. She remained still as she watched Rat, trying to process this new information. Bianca eagerly nudged the ball with her nose so it rolled and hit Leigh's foot, but the hairdresser ignored the dog.
"Bianca, s'asseoir," Rat commanded, and the young dog immediately sat down and stopped pestering Leigh to play.
The hacker brought her knees to her chest, her gaze blank as she stared into space for several moments. Her eyes closed slowly on their own accord. She promised Katja she would try to open up to Leigh, as afraid as she was of doing so.
"You know already Katja was put up for adoption because her birth mother died," Rat breathed. "The reasons for her death were simple really. She was a small woman, and birthing triplets is a high-risk process at the best of times. After it was over, Lucas decided to give us up for the reasons he already told you. The Obingers took one child, because they didn't have room for more during that time. Cecile and I stayed where we were for a little while, until Leekie decided he couldn't be doing waiting around for someone to take us. He shoved us onto two scientists, both of whom never really wanted us to begin with. They were only repaying a debt to Leekie, as far as I can tell. We didn't know we had another sister. I only found that out later on."
Leigh frowned. "But Lucas didn't say anything about Katja having sisters. He said it was just her."
Rat nodded. "Yeah," she muttered, her face twisting into a scowl. "That's because he thinks both of us are gone for good. That's also why Katja struggled to get along with him, because she knew he wasn't telling her everything. You have NO idea how much I wanted to tell him off for simply acting like we never existed, but doing so would have put me in danger, since he was still one of them."
"Ah," Leigh said understandingly. She waited a moment, and then invited herself to sit down next to Rat. She frowned a bit. "I see…"
"Cecile got sick," Rat willed herself to say. Her voice echoed slightly through the room. Leigh wondered if Rat was regretting all she was saying already. "She got sick the same way Katja's sick. That's how it started off. We went to the DYAD facility in London for...treatment…we were there for three years, and then..."
Leigh swallowed hard and watched Rat silently. The hacker was strangely still and emotionless on the surface as she spoke.
"She didn't survive, did she?" Leigh whispered at last.
Rat shot up instantly, throwing herself off of the bookcase to march across the room as if wanting to leave. About half way there though, she stopped, and turned around to face Leigh, as if struggling with herself about walking back over.
"That's how you know DYAD can't help," Leigh found the courage to continue. "That's why you hate them so much, isn't it?"
Rat stared at the floor, both hands clutching her own arms tightly as her body trembled. Leigh fell silent and allowed the other woman the space to speak in her own time, if at all. She couldn't imagine losing someone she was close to like that.
"No…" Rat said after several minutes, making no move to leave or return. "An illness alone did not kindle this fire. Nature taking its course is one thing, but…" she trailed off, taking a deep breath. Leigh stared at her with wide eyes, quietly waiting to see what she would do or say next.
Rat scowled. Her nails bit into her arms hard enough that Leigh was sure she'd pierce the skin at any moment. "Leekie…he said he would help her…he said he would cure her from…from being sick…but he lied…his 'cures' made her worse…his 'cures' made her suffer. He didn't care. He…he just saw an experiment…not a person. He didn't give a SHIT about her pain, and I will NEVERforgive him."
Rat stifled a sob and fled the room at last, leaving Leigh sitting alone with the dogs for company. The hairdresser considered going after Rat, but she decided against it. Instead, a burning anger filled her at the thought of Leekie; an anger deeper than she had ever felt for DYAD before.
Did Rachel know about this too? Did she support what Leekie had done?
Leigh snapped herself out of her raging thoughts before she allowed them to consume her again, instead focusing on throwing the ball for Bianca when the canine urged her to play once more.
The atmosphere between the clones was rather miserable for the next few days. Everyone remained anxious and concerned for Katja, however much she tried to assure them not to worry. Even Beth expressed concern over their Skype calls, and it became apparent why she was so interested the next time they made contact with her.
"I'm sorry; what?" Leigh snapped at the detective one quiet afternoon. She and Aila had borrowed Rat's laptop while Rat and Katja tended to the dogs and did their own thing.
"Don't freak at me. I'm just the messenger," Beth told the hairdresser defensively.
"Let me get this straight," Leigh said firmly. "You got in touch with the other one – the scientist-"
"Yep," Beth interrupted coolly.
"And she won't let you give us her name until we provide her with our own blood and hair samples?"
"Yep," Beth said again.
"Beth, what the hell?!" Leigh shrieked, causing Aila to inch away from her covering her ears.
"Like I said, it wasn't my idea," Beth shrugged.
"Yeah, but you agreed to it!"
"Look, I…I might have mentioned something about Katja's illness to her," Beth began guiltily, and Leigh and Aila glared at her through the screen with very angry eyes. "And I don't know; she seems interested to learn more about it, and she wants the samples as proof of your existence…"
"Isn't meeting you and Alison proof enough?" Aila asked, aghast.
"She hasn't actually met Alison yet," Beth explained shortly. "Look, either way, I think it's mostly about this illness, whatever her reasons are…"
"Rat will never agree to it," Leigh shook her head firmly as she spoke. "I'm not sure I like it either to be honest."
"Rat will never agree to what?" a voice asked, and Leigh glanced over to see the hacker returning from whatever she'd been doing downstairs. The hairdresser filled her in on what Beth had done, and Rat shook her head. "You MUST be joking," she spat instantly. "There's no way in hell I'm handing over my blood and information to someone I don't know."
"Yeah, I'm not too keen on it either," Aila agreed, rubbing her neck. "Maybe if we ever meet, but…"
"OK," Katja said with a nod, and Rat stared at her for a moment.
"WHAT?! Katja, you cannot be that-" she started, but Katja held up a hand to silence her.
"If Beth's scientist friend can help, ez it not vorth it? DYAD cannot help vith sickness, and you know vat vill happen if vee leave it alone vith no help at all. Vee need to trust somebody, and I'd razer it be scientist clone over one of zem, ja?" Rat bit her lip hard and looked away, hating that Katja had a valid point. Katja put her hand on Rat's shoulder. "It vill be fine, schwester."
"You don't know that," Rat muttered. "Though I know you'll just do what you want to anyways. What should be done about Aryanna and Janika?"
"We could ask them if they want to give samples over Skype?" Aila offered. "And if they say yes, we can go there to do it? I'm qualified to draw blood. Is there any way we can order the right medical equipment to do it?"
Rat nodded. "Yeah, you can buy anything on the internet," she said, before she looked down at the laptop. "What about you? You gonna fork over hair and blood to this girl too?"
"Yeah," Beth said as she nodded calmly.
Rat sighed and muttered something under her breath. She had nothing more to say on the matter, so she made her way into the kitchen area to put on the kettle.
"Tea please!" Leigh called as she heard the switch.
"Who said I'm making you anything?" Rat's voice snapped.
"Please?" Leigh asked, trying to sound nice.
Rat groaned loudly and irritably. "Anyone else?" she asked stiffly, but nobody responded.
"Shit, I think Paul's back," Beth said suddenly as she looked around, alarmed. "I'd better go. Catch you later."
Beth ended the call to go and deal with her boyfriend while Aila, Leigh and Katja considered their options.
"Suppose we ought to call Janika and Aryanna," Aila mused.
Leigh nodded, and Katja reached for Rat's laptop to begin scrolling through her contacts list. "Janika first; it has been a vhile," she said with a shrug. Aila and Leigh waited as Katja started up a call. Janika did not respond at first, so Katja typed a message.
'Please pick up if you are there, urgent update.'
Rat entered the room at that moment carrying two cups of hot drinks. "Tea," she said bitterly, half slamming one down in front of Leigh. Leigh murmured a thanks, and rolled her eyes at the lack of sugar in the brew. She was certain Rat had left it out on purpose. "What're you doing now?" the hacker asked the clones.
"Janika," Katja grumbled in response.
"That's not a valid response," Rat said stiffly. She sat down next to Aila just as the Austrian answered the call.
"Hang on!" Janika's unmistakable voice echoed through the laptop. Her hair looked bluer than ever, and she seemed more hyperactive than usual. "I am trying to catch the – AAH!"
Janika ducked down at that moment as something large and furry and white leapt at her from on top of something. The unmistakable sounds of hissing and growling told Leigh it was a cat.
"What the hell…" she muttered in disbelief.
"This cat, this stray came out of nowhere and has been harassing my BAT!" Janika shrieked, now running from the white feline.
"Your bat?" Aila repeated.
"Yes, my bat! My poor batty, he was minding his own business on the windowsill as I was out hunting flies, and this cat, it pounced at him yesterday and I just managed to save him, but now this fleabag will not go away and it keeps getting into my house – hang on, it won't stop hissing at me! Shoo!"
The clones could only watch as Janika ran past the camera again, followed by a crash and more yelling. After a few minutes, the Austrian clone flopped down on the sofa, looking entirely spent as she cradled a small creature in her hands.
"Finally got the friggin' fleabag outta here. Dunno how the heck it keeps getting in!" she grumbled, before lightly nuzzling the creature in her hand. "There, there, Luca, that nasty old fleabag ain't getting aholda ya," she cooed, before looking back at the camera. "So, whatcha need?"
"Uh…" Leigh shook her head and closed her mouth, before remembering why they had originally called Janika. "Yeah, OK, we got some stuff to fill you in on…" she said, before explaining about the Canadian clone Beth and her scientist friend. She then explained the situation of blood and hair samples.
Janika tilted her head. "Eh? A health condition? What kinda health condition?" she asked, frowning.
"A type of respiratory illness," Rat said quietly. "One that makes it…hard to breathe. It's fatal until a cure is found."
"And this whatserface friend of Beth's is lookin' into who's got it and who don't?" Janika asked, confused.
"Something like that, ja," Katja nodded.
"Eh…'spose I don't mind, though what's she need me passport and driver ID for?" Janika asked. She lightly petted the small bat in her hand.
"She's a clone too, and vants proof of the existence of European clones," Katja said.
Janika frowned, but before she could say anything else, the cat from earlier reappeared, making the Austrian clone shriek.
"HOW THE FRIGGIN' HELL?!" Janika gasped, flying off of the sofa. "I SWEAR I'M GONNA FRIGGIN' SKIN YA IN A SECOND-"
Just then, the cat jumped at the laptop and the Skype call cut.
"Something tells me she does not close her vindows," Katja said coolly after a few seconds of awkward silence.
"What is it with clones and windows?" Aila muttered to herself, completely dumbstruck.
"She…she wouldn't actually skin the cat, would she?" Leigh asked, concerned.
Rat shrugged. "She's weird enough. I wouldn't put it past her."
"You are too cynical," Katja said with a roll of her eyes.
"Who keeps pet bats though?" Aila complained.
"Who cares?" Rat snapped as she dragged the laptop towards her. "Let's see if Aryanna's online and call Janika again later."
Calling Aryanna was harder. The Italian clone didn't appear to be online at all during the afternoon, which Aila put down to her being at work. It wasn't until evening that Aryanna's status changed to 'online', and Katja shot up excitedly, having been sprawled on the floor with the laptop in front of her face for the majority of the day. She called the clones over and attempted to make contact.
Although they finally had Aryanna on webcam, it was easier for them to converse through typing rather than talking, so a silent video call took place, in which Rat hastily explained all that needed to be explained.
"Will you all back off and give me some space?" she growled at the other clones. "Honestly; I'll tell you what she says. I can't be doing with you lot watching like this."
Aryanna didn't look impressed. In fact, she looked rather pale and tired at this latest revelation, and began typing to explain she wasn't very happy with Beth's request.
"Yeah, none of us are, Aryanna," Rat said after deciding she couldn't be bothered to type anymore. "But I can assure you it's safe. We can come to you to get samples if you can't come here."
Aryanna still looked hesitant, quickly asking if there was any other way to get the scientist's help with the medical condition.
Rat shrugged. "I don't know. It'll take us at least a week to get the stuff needed in anyways, so you can think about it and then decide, OK?"
Aryanna sighed but nodded, though she still looked unhappy. Rat didn't bother telling her about DYAD taking blood samples from her every few months regardless, not wanting to freak her out any more.
The hacker stood up when the call ended and made her way over to her desktop computers. "Hey doc, what kinda stuff do you need to do this?" she asked, pulling up a website where she could order medical items without any questions being asked.
Aila walked over, frowning at the website. "Is that legal?"
Rat gave her an unimpressed look. "Is anything I do legal?"
Aila frowned, but had Rat order several thick plastic vials, a few specialized syringes, a few rubber tourniquets, and a briefcase to hold the vials safely in place.
The following week, Rat and Leigh returned to Italy, along with Aila. Katja opted to stay at the library with the dogs, despite Rat worrying over her illness. The Italian clone reluctantly agreed to trust the others, and hand over samples for the scientist clone.
The group agreed to meet up at Aryanna's house, and while she wouldn't explain exactly what had happened with her monitor, Aryanna assured them it was taken care of, and that is was safe for them to come over.
When they had arrived at the house, Leigh instinctively looked around to make sure they weren't being followed or watched in any way, even after being invited inside the house. Aryanna watched with curiosity as Leigh went over to the nearest window and stared out, before signing something to Rat.
"You have no idea," Rat muttered, shaking her head at Leigh.
Aryanna just shook her head before walking over to the table, picking up pieces of paper showing scans of her driver ID, passport, and birth certificate. She still looked uncertain about handing them over.
Leigh pulled herself away from the window and crossed the room. "Yeah, we're not exactly thrilled about it either," she assured a very worried Aryanna. "But it's our safest bet. We don't know if this illness could happen to all of us, and if it does…well…we need to find a cure." She took a seat at the table without invitation and rested her chin on her hand. This really was the best option for them now; there was no denying it.
Aryanna agreed, although she was reluctant. She allowed Aila to prepare to draw blood later that day, looking slightly nervous as the doctor carried the needle closer to her arm. Rat and Leigh tried to look busy, feeling rather awkward and wanting to give the other two clones space to do what needed to be done.
"There," Aila said with a sigh a while later. "Sorry…" she told Aryanna, who was still looking extremely uncomfortable at the entire situation.
Aryanna allowed the clones to stay for dinner. That evening, everyone sat at the dining table, having ordered food from the nearest takeaway. Rat sat with the laptop on the table, despite Aila's look of disapproval at such bad table manners.
Rat could only glare back at her. "I'm checking on Katja," she told Aila bluntly. "I'm sure Aryanna doesn't mind."
Aryanna shrugged and shook her head as if to say it was no big deal.
"She OK? Katja?" Leigh asked before stuffing her face with a slice of pizza.
"I am fine," Katja's voice told them. "Glad of zee peace and quiet to be perfectly honest. Oh, I spoke to Janika again."
"Yeah?" Rat asked.
"She is still battling vith zee cat. I zink she spends half her time chasing it."
"Forget the cat; is she on board or not?" Rat asked.
"Ja, she agreed to give copies of ID and vhatever else," Katja told her. "I said vee vill contact her about going to visit."
Rat continued conversing with Katja for a while. Everyone else ate, discussing this and that; things Rat wasn't particularly interested in. She only looked up in surprise when Leigh opened her mouth to change the subject.
"So, Aryanna," the hairdresser began, opening her fourth beer of the evening. "How…when did you realise you were gay?" She sounded more curious than anything, although everyone stared at her with wide eyes. Aryanna turned a faint shade of red.
"Leigh!" Aila gasped.
"What?" Leigh asked defensively, looking genuinely surprised that everyone thought she had said something inappropriate.
"You can't just ask people about that!" Aila said, though somehow Leigh thought she looked more amused than anything.
"Why?" Leigh asked, flustered. "I know it's no big deal. I'm just curious-"
"You are unbelievable," Rat groaned tiredly.
Aryanna, however uncomfortable and embarrassed she looked, couldn't help but smile in amusement.
"I'm just saying; maybe I can kind of understand it, you know?" Leigh said desperately, feeling uneasy now at all the disbelieving looks on their faces. "Men are…well, I never had much luck with them-"
"A lot of women don't," Aila said, laughing now.
"Yeah I know!" Leigh snapped defensively. She hid her own face now and took another long gulp of beer. "It's just this whole clone thing, you know? It still amazes me how different we all are…"
Rat simply shook her head and turned her attention back to Katja, who had fallen silent.
"Is she on the beer again?" she asked.
Rat sighed. "How'd you guess?"
Aryanna grinned before signing something to Rat, who glanced up to interpret what the Italian was saying.
"I don't know how I knew, really. It just happened that way. Girls are better at kissing, anyway. You should try it sometime," Rat said, before smirking in reluctant amusement.
Leigh snorted with laughter and had to cover her mouth to stop beer dribbling out. Rat and Aila stared at her in disgust and amusement. "What makes you think I haven't?" Leigh asked, grinning, and earning another disbelieving look from Rat. The hacker seemed to be finding the conversation completely hopeless by this point.
"What the hell?" Aila laughed now.
Leigh set down her beer bottle and took a moment to think. "Only for a laugh! Years ago, I used to go out clubbing with friends, back in college – we were drunk-"
"Of course," Rat said, rolling her eyes.
"-but it's not like I've ever found women attractive," Leigh continued, trying to sound serious but only causing more laughter around the table. "Oh come on; you've never done stupid things for a laugh when drunk?"
Aryanna was laughing silently now, and was attempting to sign to Leigh that she was only teasing, but the mute seemed to find the situation too funny to get the message across.
Leigh frowned a bit and turned to Aila. "What about you?" she dared the doctor with raised eyebrows. "Miss 'I'm so perfect and sensible' – I'd love to see what you're like when you're drunk."
Aila grinned. "I don't think I'm perfect or sensible at all, and I have been drunk before. Just not since meeting you lot. Though for me, it depends on what I'm drinking. Stuff like wine just makes me relax. I hate beer, and stuff like tequila…eeeeh…let's just say there's a reason I don't have much of that..." Aila trailed off, dissolving into a fit of giggles.
"Why?" Leigh probed, grinning. "I'm sensing there's a story behind that one."
Aila shook her head, a light blush colouring her cheeks as she continued to laugh. "Let's just say weird things will happen…that may or may not have once involved loud singing and a pole…"
Leigh snorted and burst into laughter at the mental image Aila's statement conjured up. "Oh wow…"
Aryanna continued silently laughing as well, growing more and more amused by the conversation by the minute. Rat just stared around at the three clone. She eventually turned her attention back to Katja, who also seemed lost.
"Are zey all drinking?" the German woman asked.
"Nope, just Leigh," Rat said.
"What about you, Rat?" Aila asked after recovering from a small laughing fit. Rat simply stared at her as if she had grown another head.
"Rat doesn't drink," Leigh answered before the hacker could. "I already tried."
"I'm guessing that ended badly," Aila giggled, and Leigh nodded.
"It made her angry."
"No more than usual then," Aila teased.
Rat looked severely unimpressed, even when Aryanna signed at her to lighten up.
"I had girlfriend once."
Everyone froze and fell silent. The comment had come from Katja's voice on the laptop screen.
"Only once. All other times, it has been boyfriends. But zee girl, she vas very high maintenance. She vould alvays steal my cookies, so it didn't last."
A pause followed.
Then, everyone burst into another fit of laughter; Rat included this time. She absently shook her head, wondering how on earth she'd become involved with such an abnormal bunch of people.
Later on in the evening after everyone finished telling stories and laughing, the clones decided to get ready to head back to Switzerland. Aryanna invited them to spend the night, but they'd already purchased their plane tickets, and she understood they weren't cheap.
The group stood on the doorstep talking as the sun went down, painting the sky in brilliant shades of oranges, reds, and golds. A light breeze picked up as the day drew to a close.
"Thank you for letting us come over, " Aila said, smiling as she shook Aryanna's hand. "We'll be in touch over Skype."
Aryanna nodded, smiled, and walked out onto the street with the other three clones as Rat and Leigh bickered over something in the background. Aryanna looked over to them...something caught her eye...she glanced up, noticing something catching the light of the setting sun...her face paled, and her eyes grew wide in horror.
Having no way to verbally warn Rat and Leigh to move, the Italian clone darted forward and shoved them both to the ground as a resounding bang echoed through the street. There was a moment of absolute stillness, and then the people nearby on the street screamed and scattered.
"The fuck?!" Leigh gasped.
Her blood ran cold at the sight of Aryanna lying in the street, gasping for breath. Bright red liquid poured out of her chest, staining her shirt and the ground below. Rat looked equally horrified, her eyes locked on the sight as she froze, all coherent thoughts coming to a screeching halt.
Everything became a blur.
All was silent. Leigh could see people running, and rushing, and screaming and crying out, but the words and sounds failed to register in her head. The figures of people crowding the street blurred into one huge mass of colours; the colour red stood out most to the hairdresser as blood slowly grew and travelled along the pavement of the street below…
It was as if time stood still. Leigh was only vaguely aware of someone attempting to pull her out of the way of further potential danger; she was sure it was Rat as the pink-clothed figure of Aila could be seen tending to the nearly unconscious form of Aryanna on the ground. Leigh looked around urgently for a sign of the Italian's attacker. In her panicked state, she failed to think logically and realise the killer was long gone.
This was not real. It couldn't be real.
And then, loud sirens sounded through the air, shattering the silence Leigh had fallen into. Someone had phoned for an ambulance. Someone had phoned for police.
"We can't stay here," Rat's muffled voice grew louder as Leigh became more aware of the reality of the situation. "Come on; move, we have to…we have to…"
But the hacker wasn't sure what they had to do. She was shaking tremendously; both horrified at what had just happened, and scared for what might happen next. Leigh looked around and started to really take in her surroundings as she came back to earth after failing to spot anyone who could be the killer.
The clones were encircled by people who probably lived nearby, all whispering things to each other in Italian. Leigh lowered her gaze from them to Aila, who was now busy pressing her pink hoodie into Aryanna's chest to combat the bleeding. The doctor's face was a strange contortion of alarmed and icily calm as she focused.
Leigh's gaze then shifted to Rat, who had since stopped tugging on her arm to instead slump beside her. Rat's eyes wide and horrified at the reality of what had just happened.
"She…she saved us…" Leigh whispered, her voice quivering and hoarse.
Rat didn't reply, her gaze leaving Leigh's to focus on Aryanna as the crowd split to allow paramedics access to the now unconscious clone. Aila moved out of their way, her hands and clothes bloody from trying to help Aryanna as best she could. The doctor made her way over to the other two clones.
"Come on…we…we should go to the hospital too…" she murmured quietly.
Leigh and Rat both found that they didn't have the heart to argue.
Leigh didn't know how long they'd been sitting out in the waiting room. She couldn't even begin to really process what was happening around her. The other clones sat on either side of her, both silent as well. Aila had thrown away her hoodie, the bloodstains on it too great to wash out. She now wore a plain white shirt which was also streaked with blood.
Rat sat with her head down, clutching her bag to her chest tightly. She hadn't called Katja yet, even though she knew she should. Aryanna had been rushed to surgery the moment they'd arrived, and since then, the trio hadn't heard a single word about her condition.
Leigh opened her mouth to say something, but struggled. Her throat felt dry and her words were cracked, causing the other clones to look around at her. "H-has anyone contacted her girlfriend? What's her name…monitor…" she spoke more clearly this time.
Aila looked as though she wanted to respond, but seemed lost for words, while Rat's eyes grew wider and she cursed under her breath. "Um," she began, shakily loosening her grip on her bag to search for Aryanna's file. "Y-yeah…Alessi; her number's here on Aryanna's file…"
"Someone should call her," Leigh breathed, feeling quite numb now the shock of what had happened began to subside.
Rat swallowed hard and held the file out. Her hands were still shaking and she looked as if she couldn't stand the thought of breaking such news. "Please," she said to neither Aila nor Leigh. "I can't."
Aila twitched nervously as though wanting to help, but Leigh was faster than she was. "I'll do it," she assured them both. "I'll do it…"
Leigh took the file and stood up, managing to keep quite calm. Aila gave her a grateful look and shuffled into the seat Leigh had previously occupied to comfort a very ill-looking Rat. Leigh nodded and began the walk to leave the hospital so she could call Alessi.
The hairdresser took out her mobile phone and searched hastily for Alessi's number. More paranoid than ever, Leigh dodged back closer to the building out of sight. For all she knew, the killer might have followed them…after what Aryanna had done to protect her, Leigh was taking no chances.
"Alessi?" Leigh managed once she called the number and the woman on the other end picked up. "Is this Alessi?"
"Sì?" the woman's voice answered. "Who is this?"
"I-It doesn't matter. Aryanna…A-Aryanna's been shot…she's at Ospedale Santo Spirito," Leigh said, her voice surprisingly firm as she spoke. She heard a sharp gasp on the other end of the line, along with the woman's voice saying something quickly in Italian. Her voice was fainter than it had been initially, and Leigh guessed she was talking to someone else.
Leigh didn't wait to speak to the monitor again. She hung up before numbly making her way back into the building, taking the seat on Rat's other side. The two clones acknowledged Leigh's presence before falling back into silence.
Aila sighed after another twenty minutes. "It's been almost an hour. We should have heard something by now."
"Has it?" Leigh mumbled. "Feels like it should have been at least five hours by now."
Aila glanced around the waiting room just as a door opened from outside, and a tall woman with long, chestnut-brown hair walked in. She wore a black leather coat and faded blue jeans with a tarnished badge on her hip. She looked panicked, but was attempting to control it. Aila's gaze returned to the floor after a moment, figuring it was rude to stare, but she snapped her head back up as something caught her attention.
"C'è una vittima da arma da fuoco di nome Aryanna Giordano qui?" the woman asked a nurse.
Aila's eyebrows shot up at the mention of Aryanna's name. Was that Alessi? The nurse nodded and responded in Italian, before waving over to the three clones huddled together. Alessi looked over and froze as she saw the three, her eyes wide in shock as she looked at their faces. She cautiously approached and took a seat opposite the trio.
"Shit," Leigh muttered. She wasn't sure what to do now, having not planned on actually meeting the Italian clone's monitor.
Alessi looked at the three warily. "What happened?"
Leigh and Aila glanced at each other uncertainly, while Rat grit her teeth and said nothing, suddenly taking great interest in the intricate stitching on her bag.
"Um…we…we're…" Aila started out clumsily, though Alessi held up her hand while shaking her head.
"While it's…unsettling seeing three faces looking just like hers, and I'm guessing this is the reason for her sudden strange behaviour, it's not important. Tell me what happened to Aryanna…please," the CSI said, the fear in her eyes unmistakable at the thought of Aryanna being shot.
Aila and Leigh began to explain together what had happened, both struggling, but both helping each other when the reactions of the woman before them became too much. When they were done, the ringing silence between them became almost unbearable. Alessi seemed to be at a loss for words.
Rat shivered besides Aila suddenly. A new fear had struck her. The police were going to want to talk to them. If that happened, they would see three faces identical to Aryanna, and if word spread; if it was broadcast on the news, DYAD might find them. And what if they linked this to Aila's supposed murder back in Scotland? What if the doctor was accused of having something to do with this too; what if-
The hacker looked up, snapping herself out of her thoughts when she realised the other three women were on their feet. An exhausted-looking doctor approached them, and he looked very sombre.
It was Rat's turn to block everything out and spiral into a clouded reality. She did not need to hear the words from the doctor's mouth to know what he said. She did not need to see the shocked and defeated expressions the others now wore to know what had happened.
Sickened, distraught, and mentally exhausted, the hacker fell from her seat in the waiting room as her surroundings turned to black.