Chapter 14

Matheus blinked, opening his mouth in shock. Confusion spread across his face without understanding.

"Eh? How so? Lu's things? What things? Do you know this guy, Dr. Francisco?" Matheus poured out with wide eyes, his thumb toward Dmitri as if his mere presence in the spot was complete nonsense.

"Yes, yes, of course!" Said the doctor with half-moon eyes and an amused smile “He came at dawn to leave Luciene's bag. He said a friend asked as a favor, that's not it, Mr. Dmitri?”

Dmitri saw the two pairs of eyes turn to him. Francisco was extremely satisfied, looking at him over his glasses with a false smile waiting for a great show to happen, and young Matheus with half-closed eyes and a mouth twisted in disgust.

Taking a deep breath, Dmitri relaxed his tense face and straightened his posture, placing his hands behind his back gave his best diplomatic smile, the one he always used in the most complex negotiations. "That's right, Doctor Francis -co," he amended, maintaining the pose.

Of course, the whole embarrassing situation that had taken him by surprise wasn't enough, but it was obvious that Francis had to make a scene.

And before leaving early, what he had said most to Francis was that he did not want to have contact with the young woman or her family as much as possible so that it would not affect her recovery, as they didn’t know if his presence would generate any kind of psychological or physics reaction in Luciene.

It was a long time since vampires had been recorded attacking humans, and no one had been too concerned about it in the past. Which as a doctor, the great doc was expected to understand the situation to avoid collateral damage.

Besides, Dmitri couldn't allow suspicion to be raised about himself, even though vampires were now just fiction to the world, he didn't want any trouble with the council after the incident in Korea.

And since last night Francis had constructed a whole story that he wouldn't know or contact with Luciene or help her before arriving at the hospital, Dmitri thought the most logical thing would be to keep his involvement a secret. isn't it?! And who the hell is Francisco?

Though, if Dmitri remembered correctly, the receptionist had called him that as well. What was that? Secret identity? False name? You would have said something before, like: look Dmitri, my name at work is Francisco, so don't think it's weird if no one calls me Francis. And it still throws me this pineapple of having to deal with this rude brat. Better that Francis doesn't want me to go into that room.

Anyway, better get this sorted out soon. “So you are the young woman's brother? Sorry for the misunderstanding. Here…” Dmitri reached out with the pendant, offering it to Matheus. “Now I can rest assured that it will reach its proper owner”.

The other's sincere smile made Matheus feel ashamed for his previous actions. “Un, sure…” He picked up the pendant, looking down at the stars now somewhat opaque without the sunlight hidden behind a long cloud.

A flash of sadness clouded Matheus' eyes before he could lift his head. “Thank you. And… un, my bad…” he rubbed his cheek awkwardly, and looking at his hand again, whispered “It's important”.

Dmitri nodded, easing his stance with a sigh.

The three of them were silent, and the more time passed, the heavier it was in the hallway.

Matheus fell into thoughts with his gaze lost in the clouds that passed by the blue sky.

Dmitri turned to scowl at Francis, who was looking at him cynically, and that only made him want to drag him by the neck.

The faint sound of laughter caught the attention of all three. Matheus woke up from his trance in those long seconds and headed for the door, but stopping with his hand on the doorknob he looked at Dmitri. "Do you want to... come in?"

The answer to that question was just one, obviously.

Not that Dmitri wasn't worried about Luciene's condition, or even curious to know who this young woman was, but that wouldn't happen, at least not this time. So, with a tired smile, Dmitri opened his lips to say clearly:

"Well, it's a great idea, isn't it?" An amused voice sounded before Dmitri could say a word. The smile froze. Dmitri turned his head, rigid, toward the source of that voice. I’ll kill this son of bitch.

Francis ignored the menacing air that circled Dmitri and smiled at Matheus, who looked somewhat confused by the doctor's intervention. "Eh? Do you think?”

"Of course!" Francisco replied approaching Matheus to put a distance from Dmitri, who had jabbed a step towards him capable of cracking the tile floor under his feet, and patting Matheus' shoulder twice, he looked innocently at Dmitri. “After all, Mr. Dmitri can talk a little bit about what he and his friend saw last night, which might ease Luciene's confusion a little and help with the investigation later.”

A shiver went up through Dmitri's spine. "Investigation?" He cocked his head to the side, raising an inquisitive eyebrow, disguising the discomfort.

"Yes. The hospital contacted the police about the state Luciene arrived in yesterday, and after she recounted some of what she remembered when she woke up earlier, I believe the police presence is even more necessary. After all, in addition to the aggression itself, there were some very strange things. Whether this was an aggressive drunk or a psychopath, the police should find out. So they will send someone soon.”

"Who would have thought, it's the first time I've heard about this big commitment." Dmitri ran a hand over his mouth feeling the small needles of stubble, crossed his arms, and smirked. Of course, the police would be involved since a young woman was attacked, but that made things more complicated.

Although Campo Grande was considered a quiet city to live in, the violence rates had been increasing in the last years, causing great discomfort in the population that was beginning to feel suffocated with the apprehension of going out into the street that slowly becoming fear.

It began to take root in the hearts of people, who then asked for a reaction from the local police and their rulers, which of course didn’t happen, and many became suspicious of their own shadow in the street.

However, even with the apparent incompetence of the local police, they had a police station in which they were recognized for their commitment and rigor in complying with the law, and this was the woman's station in Campo Grande. Since the delegate started her work two years ago, violence against women in the city has decreased, taking some weight off the hearts of many mothers and inspiring young people.

“Hump! I hope it turns out something and they find the bastard who did this to Lu” Matheus' heart sped up again remembering the pain he felt in the car while running to the hospital the night before, while only the worst came to his mind. “I don't know what I would do if she…” His voice died in his throat.

Matheus shook his head to clear his thoughts.

"I am sorry"

"No need, the only one who should feel something is the monster that hurt my sister" The smile that didn't reach his eyes left Matheus's expression almost sinister.

Take it easy boy, the monster in front of you has a heart too “The important thing is that she's fine now” Francisco said to alleviate the mood that had gotten heavier than it needed to be. He looked up and reached out to ruffle Matheus's hair, who gave an embarrassing smile.

Matheus nodded slightly "Are you going to come in too, Dr. Francisco?"

"Sure, why not? I just left, but Never mind!” his eyes almost faded into another smile.

Nodding again, Matheus tapped twice on the door before opening and entering, followed by the doctor.

“Oh Matheus, good time, I was about to get up to find out who was at the door. The conversation was good, wasn't it?” Dmitri heard a sweet-voiced woman speak in amusement, but could still feel tiredness in her tone.

Standing in front of the door, he took a deep breath, wondering if that was a good idea.

Of course, it wasn't, but neither could he just go out and disappear out of nowhere. It would be weird, and suspicious. But he didn't want to meet Luciene right now. Dmitri knew what he had done wasn't right, but no one wants to be called a monster for a mistake.

"Is there someone out there, Matheus?"

"Oh, true."

Dmitri felt the sleeve of his shirt pull slightly forward, causing him to take a step automatically. He blinked his eyes in surprise, looked around, and swallowed hard.

In addition to Francisco and Matheus, who were releasing the fabric, also surprised by the sudden movement, two women sitting on a white bed looked at him curiously.