Selene watched as the flames faded and smoke billowed into the sky. She watched the humans as they slowly made their way into the house and eventually started to remove bodies. Selene counted 4 sets of remains being taken out of the wreckage, but something inside her told her Eve wasn't among them. Selene used her powers and raced through the remains of the home, but there was nothing left to see, it was all black and scorched. The home was unlivable now by human standards, not that she suspected Eve would ever return.
Selene suppressed her self-loathing, if she had not fallen asleep she would have been able to catch Eve before this happened. But Selene knew better than most that the past was gone and couldn't be changed, even if she wanted it to. What would Michael think of her? Would he believe that she had abandoned their child? Left her alone to fight against the Lycans all this time?
She left the once quiet street now bustling with reporters and news crews and found her way to the city morgue. She broke into the building with ease, not much security for the dead. It was not long before Selene found herself in front of the door to enter where bodies were held. Inside she could hear the heartbeat of a human, one who was alive and a voice to match speaking. Selene peaked the door open to watch and listen.
(Spoken in Dutch) "... severe trauma to the left scapula with unknown device. Deep lateral cuts each roughly 6 inches with even spacing of a quarter inch. Also noting the fractures in the left humerus and ulna. Injuries are similar to the first unidentified male, foul play is suspected in both cases. I have yet to examine the other two sets of remains brought in from the same site, but I guess they will show the same signs of trauma."
Selene studied the woman as she clicked off her recorder and silently gazed at the body, she looked intense and focused as she walked the length of the table. Selene watched her, waiting for her time to strike, she would have to knock her unconscious as well.
"Wat is er met jou gebeurd," she whispered to herself while staring at the bones. "wat ben je?" (What happened to you? What are you?)
Selene didn't have the time to waste anymore, she barged into the room. The mortician shot up and looked right at her, at first with fear and then confusion which trickled into anger.
"Wie ben je? Je kunt hier niet zijn? Ga weg!" (Who are you? You can't be in here! Get out!)
"Tell me if any of the bodies are children."
"Miss, you can't be in here. Don't make me call security," the mortician realized Selene did not speak Dutch, her English was good but layered with a thick accent.
"There is no security," Selene stared her down. "Answer me: are any of the bodies children!"
"I can't divulge that information to you. This is a police investigation. How did you even get in here?!"
"Tell me now or I will have to find out myself."
The mortician grabbed a scalpel from her silver tray and held it up in defense, Selene was mostly annoyed by it but slightly astonished at just how careless humans could be.
"Get out or I will call the police!"
Selene sized the woman up in front of her, she looked slightly older perhaps in her 40s or 50s. It was so hard to speculate human aging, they die so quickly! She had some gray blended into her blonde hair, which was tied into a tight bun in the back of her head. She had fierce brown eyes that were wide with a mix of fear and adrenaline. Selene believed this may have been the most exciting thing to happen to the morgue in a long time. Human lives were so short and dull, they had only just discovered vampires and Lycans living among them.
Selene zipped to right next to her, grabbing her wrist tightly so she would drop the scalpel. The mortician's mouth opened and her eyes widened, and just before she was about to scream, Selene pushed her against the metal gurney.
"Tell me right now if a child's body is among the remains or you will not live to see tomorrow," Selene threatened her in a low voice.
"You're one of them," she gawked. "You're one of those monsters!"
"Yes, a monster. Now tell me!"
The woman trembled in Selene's grip, she was obviously horrified by Selene and the situation she was in. Selene looked down at her lab coat, a shining name tag that read 'Julienne'.
"Why would a monster care at all about a child," she knitted her brows together and spat back at Selene. Her eyes shifted from fear to hatred, a deep hatred for the so called monsters of the world she now faced.
Selene tightened her grip on the woman's wrist to the point where she whimpered and tried to pull away, it was futile attempt against Selene's strength. Selene thought about just killing her, and looking through the bones herself, but would she really be able to see if one was Eve's? She needed this woman alive, if only for a few more minutes.
Selene released some of the tension in her grip and sighed," I am her mother. I must know if she died in that fire."
Julienne's scowl remained, it was obvious she did not believe Selene.
"A monster who is a mother? What foul tricks are you playing?"
Selene chose to step back from the mortician, letting go of her bruised and possibly broken wrist that Julienne now cradled to her chest.
"My daughter lived in that house. I just need to make sure she made it out alive."
Julienne looked Selene up and down, there was no trust between them and Selene didn't have the patience to fake it.
"Did you have anything to do with the vuur? I mean to say... fire. Did you kill these men?"
Selene wanted to ignore the question, how dense could humans be?
"Would I be here if I knew who had been killed in that fire?"
"They were not killed in a fire," Julienne finally stood tall, tucking a loose strand of hair behind her ear. "It must have been one of you that killed them."
"But it was not me."
The morgue fell silent as the pair stared at one another, the mortician was trying to make sense of the whole scenario unfolding. Julienne still didn't believe Selene had nothing to do with this, something inside of her wanted to point the finger at her and blame her for the whole massacre. Selene could see this woman was not so easily broken as she had once imagined humans to be.
"You'll kill me no matter what I tell you," Julienne stated blankly.
"I have no need to kill you," Selene folded her arms. "As long as you tell me about the bodies."
"Zij duivel," Julienne murmured and turned away. (She devil) She went across the room to two separate tables, the ones she had yet to assess. She kept her wrist close to her, unable to use it anymore due to the sharp and intense pain she felt. "This one is an adult, I'd say mid-twenties and it's a male based on the narrow pelvis."
Selene was gripped on her every word, waiting for her to examine the last body removed from the rubble.
"This last one is...," the mortician leaned closer. "Also an adult male, but this one," Julienne turned the skull to the side. "This one has a bullet wound to the frontal bone, looks like an entry wound..."
Selene felt relief wash through her, it was nice to have reassurance that her daughter was not among the fallen. It's still possible that she was taken by the Lycans. But if she was, then who were these men caught in a fire at her home?
"Tell me, Julienne," Selene saw the woman shudder at the use of her name. "Do these men have any abnormalities?"
"They are dood. Wat is er meer abnormaal?" (They are dead. What is more abnormal?)
"I mean are they human."
Julienne flinched," So you did not kill them but they are of your kind?"
"No. They are not my kind."
"So your enemy?"
"Anyone is my enemy if they endanger my child," Selene leaned forward to look at the bones laid out in front of her.
"Can such monsters really have children?," Julienne asked curiously.
Selene didn't look up when she responded.
"I was held hostage by humans, they stole my daughter from me at birth and experimented on her for over 10 years, while keeping me unconscious and unaware... and somehow we are called monsters."
Selene could see the bones of this person were damaged, claw marks etched so deep it exposed the marrow at the center. Could this be from Eve? Did she attack these men and survive? Or were there others and they managed to capture her? Are one of these men her fake uncle?
"These bones show signs of heavy grinding, with multiple fractures and repairs. I will say they all seem to be unusually large for a typical male, but there is nothing about the remains that reveal if they are... not human."
They must have been Lycans, who else would have been at that house? If any of the Lycans had survived, why would they have set fire to the house? No... it must have been someone else. Lycans are too sloppy, even with Jolene as their leader. Eve must have made it out, who else would have burned it down?
"There are no children here. You're daughter must have made it out alive," Julienne expressed some compassion to Selene.
Yes... but then where is she now? How do I find her?
"You should leave. I have to go to Ziekenhuis to get my wrist fixed. Verdomme het doet pijn," she winced after trying to move her hand. (Hospital. Shit it hurts.)
"I won't kill you," Selene turned to the door. "Thanks for the help."
Selene left the morgue wondering where she needed to go. It was unlikely that the Lycans had taken Eve, but where would she be now?
"Micheal," Selene fell against the side of the building, her body felt heavy with emotional turmoil. "How do I find her?"
Maybe I have to go back to the Northern castle? Will I have to find her again through Valissa? No. She still must be nearby. How far could she have made it, where would she go if she had nowhere left? Perhaps the answer is in this uncle figure. It's possible he died in that fire, but he is the best lead to figure out where Eve went. Who is this Karl Kettering? How did he become such an important person in Eve's life?
In Eve's school file, Karl was listed as her emergency contact and it had his work listed underneath, some royal military museum; but if he had just escaped death with Eve, it's doubtful his first stop would be his job. When humans are scared and on the run, the first place they go is to family. Selene next step was to out just who this mysterious man was.