บท 4: Angels

She could have handled it well.

She could have rubbed her cheek and cleared her throat.

Shooting two men before breakfast did a number on a person. Serenica was full to the brim with fury already.

She felt her blood boil but it didn't have the time to start banging the war drums in her ears.

She pulled her hand back, curled it into a fist and punched the woman in the nose.

The cartilage let out a nauseating crunch.

As time slowed down for Serenica, she saw blood splattering onto the street from the woman's nostrils.

Tears came. The patient started crying almost immediately. She looked so ugly for someone that beautiful, heaving and looking at Serenica with an accusing expression.

"You hit me!" she yelped.

"Yes," Serenica said.

She felt normal again.

"What's your fucking problem?" she asked, stepping a bit closer.

The patient dropped the aggression. She curled up into a scared, submissive ball of victimhood. Didn't get on her feet, didn't attempt to defend herself.

"Did your baby die?" Serenica asked, hoping that this was the case. Both sons were too sick to live. They were in pain all the time. They had their breathing difficulties. A kind doctor would have slipped a large dose of wolf's paw into the medication to stop that pesky respiration altogether.

"N-no," the woman whimpered. "But he hasn't laughed!"

Serenica rolled her eyes openly.

Some of her patients were beyond help. She began to consider euthanasia for the mother as well.

Or, at the very least, sterilization.

What was there to laugh about?

If the boys were lucky, they'd die in their sleep.

If not, they'd live to understand the horror their mother was.

Serenica had seen this woman mistake an obvious cry of agony for adoration.

The punch had been a necessary sacrifice. The city guards hardly cared about two lowly women fighting on the street. The mother looked disheveled enough to pass as a poor street girl. Serenica was Raelian, with her darker skin and curly hair. She'd be thrown into the jail cell for doing this to any rich Sennites.

The men in their gray coats turned a strategic blind eye and continued with their stroll through the city.

Serenica dragged the woman onto her feet with force.

"You take me to your home and I'll see what I can do for you," she said. There was little hope of the boys ever learning how to walk, or living past the age of four. It was a bit cruel to even think about anything besides relieving their pain.

The fuming fury got calmer inside Serenica's head. She didn't feel clouded any longer. She had a plan.

She'd get paid soon.

They arrived to the home of the patient. The cribs, situated right where Serenica didn't want them to be, bathed in the oppressive heat of the fireplace. That didn't help with the pain.

Serenica searched for any blunt objects she could use to her advantage. There was a hammer on the shelf.

She thought she could just pull a knife out of her boot if the woman would try to attack her with lethal force.

"I am deeply sorry to hear about your situation," she said. It wasn't a lie.

Both sons were bedridden, had been so all their lives. A lesser woman would have looked at them and cried. All Serenica could think about was finding a solution to this.

The muscles of the little ones were wasting away, as were their internal organs. Only a small, carefully chosen dose of the paw kept the little patients from weeping openly.

Serenica thought about the situation a bit too long and began to feel anxious.

"I just want to see him smile! He has never said mama…I want to hear them say mama…"

Serenica wanted to shake her head. Instead, she nodded. Pretending to be highly confident about her plan, she pulled out her medicine bag.

She didn't have the mild stuff with her right now. All she could offer were strong paw pills. One would have been enough to make the mother forget about the babies for a day. One third of it would have killed both sons.

There was no use in trying to split the pill into smaller parts, because splitting these little things was a bitch.

"These are not for your sons," Serenica warned and looked deep into the eyes of the patient.

Her nose was still bleeding. She didn't seem to notice that.

Serenica saw what the woman was thinking.

The mother was not going to obey her doctor.

"These are too strong for them," Serenica continued. "These are meant for you. I will fetch the other medicine tomorrow. Until then, I want you to be happy. I want you to be able to smile."

The woman nodded, veiling her intentions. She didn't do it well enough.

"How much?" she asked as Serenica dropped four paw pills into her hand.

"Four gold coins times four," the doctor said without blinking. "I won't charge for the diagnosis. Or the punch."

They sealed the deal. Serenica left, still walking fast because her mind was racing. This time, she didn't have a crazy woman slowing her down.

Before long, she ended up in the place she wouldn't have visited without any gold.

The weapon shop.

She had passed this store so often, with longing in her heart. Having slipped into the habit of openly ogling at the blades in the window, she'd thought there was a time for everything.

Like in the distant future.

With her life so uncertain, she didn't count on having a future anymore. A good gun would ensure she'd at least have a bigger chance.

She walked in. No one noticed, which was weird, because a string of bells near the door was a telling sign. A customer came in, and no customer service attacked her with questions and smiles.

Helen was talking with the shopkeeper. It was easy to recognize the blonde from her hair and her gaudy dress, even with her back turned.

"I don't feel safe with her any longer," Helen sniffled. "But I don't know how to shoot."

Serenica stood there, frozen.

Helen turned quicker than she ever had.

Her eyes got wide.