Page 38 of Semper
“The babe,” the woman replied, her voice barely above a whisper.
The name Delacroix clicked in my mind. That was the couple from the Chapel—the beautiful pregnant woman who had kept her gaze down the entire time, and her husband, Jamison.
"Of course, we'll go," I found myself saying naturally, the words slipping out before I could even process them.
The woman glanced at me, did a quick double-take, and then immediately bowed her head. "Sponsa Diaboli, thank you."
"You should get back inside," I replied, noticing the growing interest from the tourists lingering around us.
She nodded quickly. "Of course," she said before retreating into her shop, disappearing from view.
As casually as possible, we began following Esther’s directions, weaving our way through the streets toward where we needed to meet the driver. He was always on standby for moments like this, ready to whisk us away at a moment's notice.
“You handled that well,” Keres remarked.
I blinked, not really understanding what I had done to deserve the compliment. "I didn’t do anything."
“No,” Esther said with a small smile. “You did right.”
I shifted uncomfortably, wanting to change the subject. "What do you think is wrong with Cassandra's baby?"
Drita, Keres’ servitor, answered. “She chose a home birth,” she said, her tone carrying a hint of disapproval as if that explained everything.
I frowned but didn’t press further. Homebirths weren’t uncommon where I was from, but there was clearly more to it here on the Isle. We continued in silence until we found the black SUV waiting for us. We all squeezed inside, the tension thickening the closer we got to our destination. The town faded behind us as the SUV carried us away, the streets becoming more secluded, the homes increasingly grand. It wasn’t long before we reached a gated neighborhood, the kind of place that screamed privilege and security.
The brick brownstones and manicured lawns marked the area as what would easily be considered above middle-class. Gated security at every turn ensured that the inhabitants were safely tucked away from prying eyes.
As we drove through the gate, Nanno, Pandora’s servitor, turned to the three of us and said, "You will want to brace yourselves."
Pandora furrowed her brow. "Brace for what?"
But Nanno didn’t answer, her expression giving nothing away. The tension in the car thickened as we pulled into the driveway of a large, imposing brownstone. The second we came to a stop, a piercing scream shattered the stillness, cutting through the air like a knife.
My stomach twisted violently, the sound triggering an immediate reaction of nausea and dread, but I followed Esther out of the vehicle, my legs feeling wobbly beneath me.
We hurried toward the front door and were ushered inside without hesitation. The screams grew louder as we made our way up a winding staircase, each step making my heart pound faster. By the time we reached the top, my body felt frozen, my hands trembling at my sides. The noise was deafening now, Cassandra's wails of agony reverberating through the halls. Without a word, Esther opened the door.
CHAPTER NINE
The scene inside hit me like a punch to the gut. Cassandra lay sprawled on the bed, drenched in sweat, her face twisted in agony, gripping the sheets as though they were the only things tethering her to reality.
She wasn’t alone.
On a bed identical to hers, across the room, lay another woman—also heavily pregnant, her body wracked with labor pains. The crisp white linens beneath her were stained with the unmistakable signs of childbirth, blood, and fluid seeping into the fabric.
Keres stepped in behind me, her voice low but sharp. "What the fuck is this?"
Before I could respond, Esther and the servitors rushed past us, moving with purpose. They knew exactly where to go and what to do, their faces set with a grim determination I hadn’t seen before.
"Stay there," Esther called back as she moved toward Cassandra. "We’ll oversee this."
Confusion clouded my mind, and instinctively, I reached for Pandora. She stood beside me, her blindfolded gaze staring ahead blankly, her hands trembling at her sides. "What’s happening?" she asked, her voice wavering.
I exchanged a quick glance with Keres, both of us unsure how to explain what we were witnessing. "It looks like..." I faltered, "two women in labor. One of them is Cassandra, but the other..." I trailed off, trying to make sense of the scene.
We carefully moved Pandora out of the way, guiding her to a chair in the corner of the room where she could sit.
"It’s chaos in here," Keres muttered, her eyes darting between the two women.