Brotherhood: The Recruits [14/?]
Brotherhood: The Recruits
Author: name_me_regret
AN: Finally, this chapter came together at last. It’s a huge chapter, 47 pages long (but that’s with a text size of 20 points, lol). Most of my inspiration would come during work, and it was hard to write there so I’ve been trying to finish it since last week. Now, this would have been posted earlier but either it’s my internet fucking up, or the site that’s messing up. Now, going by the title, it’s obvious the outcome of this chapter, but either way, there’s a reason the uncle’s name isn’t mentioned throughout the whole chapter. Now, happy reading!
Chapter Twenty-three: Serial Offender
1497
There were days when she would stare off into space, her eyes glazing over in memory as she daydreamed. It was during those times that she thought of the parents that had abandoned her almost ten years ago on the eve of her fifth birthday, and the times as a child where she’d been so happy. Her uncle and she had come to Roma in 1487 and with his knowledge of medicine they had persevered, and he never spoke of either her mother or her father; his brother. Also, the man had no patience for her daydreams, and usually snapped her out of it with a swift slap across the back of the head. The blow itself wasn’t painful and it only served to startle her back into reality, but it reminded her never to think of them when he was around. It angered the man to no end for reasons she couldn’t understand when she was the one that she be angry at them. Even then, they were her parents and could never shake the feeling of pain and longing.
Now, Bianca didn’t dare daydream during her lessons or adhere to the consequences, but usually they were too interesting for her not to pay attention. Although, at fifteen she could proudly say she could successfully stitch or cauterize a wound, and redress an injury. If prompted she could admit knowing how to pop a dislocated shoulder, arm or leg back into place, and also splint any broken appendage as well. The doctor had also instilled the knowledge of plants and herbs within her; both lethal and benign. While she didn’t have an extensive understanding of healing herbs that her uncle had, she was more than proficient than him with the poisonous ones. The reason for this was that before the “accident” that left him a bit...different, he couldn’t memorize certain things. He was horrible at remembering names or something new he had read, but everything he had learned before remained intact within his mind. So, he knew how to heal as well, or better than any doctor, but he hadn’t studied poisons extensively, so he could never remember anything he read. This is the reason he tasked her with anything having to do with poisonous plants, and which he assured were used mostly to get rid of infestations of vermin.
Bianca paused in her thoughts to look at what she had just added to the mixture, and realized it was Aconite. She cursed under her breath at having let her mind wander when she should have been paying attention, and discreetly glanced over her shoulder. The man was working in the corner and jotting down something in the ledger he was always writing in. Bianca never asked about it; like most things he did, but she was curious about what he wrote in there. Her curiosity was pushed aside for the moment to concentrate on more important things. He was clearly not paying her any mind and thus she discreetly dumped what she was working on. When she thought she had succeeded and was about to start on another batch, she felt a hand connect with the back of her head. Bianca winced in pain, since the hit had been harder that time, most likely because she had tried to hide her mistake from him.
“What have I told you about daydreaming when working?” he snapped coldly. She turned to face him, unable to see his eyes due to the mask but she could still feel them boring a hole into her. His hand snapped forward to grab one of the bowls where the poppy seeds were crushed into paste, but was now only a dollop. “You’re wasting ingredients, stupid girl.”
Bianca hung her head so as not to get smacked again. “I could go buy more,” she suggested. While she said it, she wondered if she should buy the seeds and plant them in her garden out back. His head lifted to regard her silently as a shudder raced up her spine, since it was during those times when he observed her that she felt almost scared. Then she’d remember it was just her Zio and would dismiss the thought. He abruptly shoved the bowl into her hands before he turned away and moved back to what he was doing. Bianca stared after him in bemusement but figured it was all the man would say to her, but whether he would agree with her idea was another story. Instead of further risking his ire, she would just do it and that way she would have poppy seeds whenever she needed them.
She slipped silently out of the room, trying not to make too much noise since he disliked loudness and unnecessary interruptions. Once out of the room, she hurried down the hall and removed the leather smock that she wore which was similar to his. Underneath she wore her regular clothing, the long sleeved white shirt and a vest so she almost looked like a man. She had only a dagger at her waist, but it was mostly used for cutting plants or peeling while making certain healing salves or poisons.
Bianca also carried a pouch filled with medicine and bandages, and another filled with poison in unmarked containers. If she were to be stopped and questions by the guards for whatever reason, it would not be in her best interest to be found with poison. The medicine and bandages were understandable, since it was known -although frowned upon-- that she helped her uncle, and there were some that trusted her to heal their minor injuries. However, the poison was something that she was bought on a whim in order to study its components and effects, but it was too slow-acting for her uncles’ tastes. It took about five minutes for it to kill its target, which first started with the affected victim hallucinating they were being attacked and they’d wildly defend themselves from invisible enemies. After several wild swings of a weapon or their limbs, they’d collapse in a seizure as they foamed from the mouth, and then shortly die. It was messy, but not as much as Bianca’s first poison.
The young girl, since she was no more than fourteen at the time, had been aiming for a euthanasia-like effect in the death where the heart would slow followed by the other organs. Then a sleepy feeling would take over the victim and they’d be force to sit or lay down, and then death would take them shortly after. However, Bianca had done something horribly wrong, and instead it caused the body to go into a massive internal hemorrhaging accompanied by immense pain. Bianca hadn’t been there for the testing, since her uncle forbade it, but he had informed her that the animal used had screamed in agony seconds after it was administered, and shrieked on until death finally claimed it minutes later.
She couldn’t begin to imagine how the poor creature had suffered, but the thought drove her the past year to perfect it. So far, she had managed to numb the pain, but not the bleeding out. Then there were signs of the poison which appeared on the body, which according to her uncle, were the fur turning a pale-yellow and an alabaster white tongue. Bianca was trying to not only keep the subject from hemorrhaging, but also eliminate any signs of poisoning. During all her research, she had also learned which plants could paralyze a person in seconds, and those that helped relieve a stomach ache, as well as send them into a death-like slumber.
She ducked under the half drawn curtain that separated the back with the examination room, and finally exited into what she lovingly called “the waiting room”. That was where anyone accompanying the patient that her uncle was attending would wait; thus the name. Today it was empty since they were closed until noon so as to replenish their healing salves, elixirs, sleeping aids, and anything else they provided to their patients. Now, she said their patients, but any help that she received was overlooked, however, by that time she was used to her uncles’ preterition of her work and skills. He did allow her to patch a few of them up, but it usually only consisted of something minor that wasn’t too life-threatening, since that was left to the real doctor.
~o~
Bianca’s nose wrinkled at the extravagant price of the seeds as she fingered the fiorini that she had within her money pouch, and knew she wouldn’t have enough. Her cobalt eyes shifted toward the stand owner, seeing that he was distracted her hand darted out and stole a handful of opium seeds and stored them in her medical pouch as quickly as she could. When he turned toward her, she grabbed another two handfuls of the less expensive poppy seeds to buy, but still needed for a sleeping aid.
The man eyed her warily but said nothing as he took the offered money, and then she stored the seeds in a separate pouch that she had for this very reason. “Grazie, Messere,” she chirped before skipping off, giggling like a naughty child. She made sure to leave the square as quickly as possible, so the man wouldn’t become too suspicious and want to search her. Of course, she’d never allow it, but Bianca couldn’t risk getting the attention of the guards.
As she was cutting through an alleyway, she paused at hearing raised voices heading in her direction and quickly ducked behind some crates. Bianca had no sooner hidden when a man dragged a woman into the alley. From her extravagant and revealing clothing, it was quite obvious that she was a courtesan, and Bianca was mesmerized by how beautiful she was. The man, on the other hand, looked like he had been beaten with the ugly stick.
Bianca couldn’t hear what they were arguing about and she didn’t dare get closer. However, when she heard a sharp slapping sound she couldn’t stop the gasp that escaped her mouth. The man cursed at hearing her before rushing away and leaving the downed woman where she’d fallen after being hit. Bianca didn’t think about it twice and left her hiding place to hurry to her side. “Are you alright?” she murmured to the blonde young woman. Bianca was only slightly surprised to realize that she looked to be her age, and even with the rapidly forming bruise on her cheek, she was still stunningly beautiful.
Her eyes were a brilliant blue that put the sky to shame, and her rosy plush lips were smeared in blood. “Who are you?” she demanded defensively, her body tensing cautiously. She was struggling to push down her dress, which had hiked up past her thighs when she’d fallen. Meanwhile, Bianca had come to crouch down next to her as she extracted a bandage and some salve. The young woman flinched away from her as she tried to apply it to her lip and cheek. “What is that?”
Bianca’s head tilted slightly as her jet-black hair cascaded over her shoulder. “It’s a healing salve. This will help bring the swelling down, and heal the cut more quickly,” she explained. She gave her a strained smile and offered the bandage with the salve on it, and when the other girl nodded hesitantly Bianca started to spread the medicine liberally over the injured area. “I’m Bianca. What’s your name?”
The blonde girl eyed her suspiciously for a few seconds, before glancing at the small vial in her hands. “Mina,” she whispered, blue eyes darting back to Bianca’s face. “Why do you help me?”
Bianca smirked as she sat back on her haunches, her arms resting on her knees as she continued to grip the now corked vial in her hand. “Because my Zio is a doctor, and he taught me how to help people.” Mina looked skeptical, but Bianca couldn’t say she blamed her since a woman knowing medicine was unheard of. “Here,” she muttered, holding out the vial of salve. “Put it on twice a day and the bruising should be gone in two or three days. If you run out, I’m sure you can get some more from any doctor in the city.”
Mina snorted in an unladylike fashion as she took the medicine from her. “Not likely,” she sneered. She quickly slipped the small glass bottle inside her bust, between her breasts which were pushed up by the corset. “There are few doctors around this district, and the ones that haven’t been run out of business by the Borgia, are hesitant to take our dirty coin.”
Mina finally managed to regain her feet, straightening her skirts as she tried to brush off any dirt that still clung to the material. When that was accomplished, she took her money pouch which was also tucked away within her ample bosom, and held out about thirty fiorini toward Bianca.
Bianca had also stood and was taken aback by the money the courtesan was offering to her. “W-what’s this?” Bianca asked, reaching out uncertainly to take it. It felt weird to take money from a woman in her profession, since it was usually they that were being paid for their services.
“It’s for the salve, of course,” Mina said, voice impatient. The light haired woman glanced the way the man had fled before turning back to Bianca. “Listen, if I ask you to bring me more of this and other medicine we may need, would you do it?” Bianca blinked in bemusement at her statement, not sure she understood whom “we” meant. Mina scoffed in irritation at the raven haired female. “Some of the other courtesans may need a doctor’s assistance, and you don’t seem to have the same prejudice as some of the others.”
Bianca’s eyes widened at what she was asking. “Wait! I’m not fully trained yet,” she hastened to make her understand. She indicated the vial which was already out of sight and tucked within her breasts. “I only know how to make certain medicines, poisons, and others.” She hesitated at the half-truth. “I can set a broken bone, align a dislocated limb, and staunch the flow of blood, but there is still so much for me to learn.”
Mina’s eyes lit up in determination. “You’re the one,” she decided on the spot. She grasped Bianca’s arm and started to drag her out of the alley, not caring even as the black eyed girl protested. “We’re going to meet my sisters! They’re going to love you!” Bianca prided herself in her quick wit and excellent vocabulary, but at that moment they both failed her as she stuttered a reply.
“I-I really c-can’t,” she tried to say, Mina shushing her quickly. They made quite the spectacle, an extravagantly dressed courtesan dragging a slender girl in men’s clothes down the street. When the dilapidated Rosa in Fiore came into view, Bianca wondered naught for the first time, how she had gotten herself into this mess. Sometimes, it didn’t really pay to be a Good Samaritan.
Bianca somehow ended up in the sitting room of the Rosa in Fiore, squeezed between two busty courtesans as their over exaggerated use of perfume threatened to activate her gag-reflex. However, it would be very rude to make a comment on it, and thus concentrated on breathing with her mouth despite the nasty feeling the perfume coating the back of her throat. It also wasn’t helping the situation much that some of the woman were commenting and nitpicking her clothes in distaste. Bianca wasn’t sure if it was the coarse material, or the fact that they were too masculine; perhaps both. The only thing she was certain of was that their chattering was giving her a headache.
A voice like silver bells cut through the cacophony in the room as the rest quieted down. “Unlikely the rest of you clucking hens, I highly doubt that this...child is actually trained in medicine. There is no man in his right state of mind that would ever teach a woman the knowledge of medicine.” The courtesan was quite stunning with pale skin, midnight black hair and her eyes were a light brown that surely served to captivate her clients. She didn’t look to that much older than Bianca herself, and she bristled defensively at the jab at her age.
“I have no reason to lie,” she spat as the older girl glared at her. “Mina insisted I come here, and I don’t have to stay and be insulted.” Bianca stood and had a momentary stare off with the other female, and then turned to leave. As she prepared to abandon the room, Mina shot to her feet as well.
“No, do not leave, per favore!” the blonde exclaimed. She immediately went to Bianca’s side as she tried to persuade her to stay. “Do not listen to Gabriele. She is just jealous of your education.” The mentioned woman protested the statement vehemently, but neither Mina nor the other courtesans paid her any mind. “We need someone that will come to attend to us when we are sick, or get injured by a rowdy client.”
Bianca hesitated since she did want to help, but she also didn’t want to get involved with them and wondered what her uncle would say. “I must speak to my uncle about this,” she started, lifting a hand to stop Mina’s protest. “This is not a decision I can make lightly, and especially since I’ve not yet completed my training.” Gabriele scoffed at her statement, but besides leveling her with an agitated glare, Bianca ignored her. To Mina she gave a strained smile. “Don’t forget to apply the salve twice a day.” The adolescent -because that’s what she was- grinned and pulled out the vial to show she still had it.
She nodded and excused herself before slipping out through the side door. It wouldn’t look right if someone saw her leaving a place of ill-repute, and was thankful that Mina had not forced her to enter through the front door. Also, her Zio may actually whip her for dishonoring him in such a manner. So, she wanted to speak with him before any of this got back to him, and it definitely would. At the same time she’d ask permission to “practice” her medicinal knowledge on the courtesans whenever they were in need of her services. Bianca wasn’t really sure how he would react, or what his opinion on these women was. She just knew that she really wanted to take on the challenge of her own patients. It would also benefit the courtesans, but that was beside the point.
Bianca peered around the corner of the building, and hurried across the cobblestone street before stopping in the shadow of the old structure that reminded her of an entrance to a crypt of some kind. The gate was locked as it had always been, and the structure itself was dilapidated and falling into disrepair. The same thing could be said about the buildings in the surrounding area, or rather, in the whole district. Granted, they were already half in ruins, but at least people were prospering in their businesses. Bianca shook these thoughts off and decided to hasten home immediately. So, with one last look at the bordello, she jogged away before disappearing around another corner.
~o~
The young woman’s pace was quick as she dashed through the alley, cutting across the street in order to reach another alleyway, and maintained to the back roads until she reached home. At seeing a cart outside made her pause, since she had been certain that today her uncle wouldn’t be accepting any patients. She knew that they were low on their stock of medicines, so to attend to a patient meant that it had to be an emergency.
Bianca decided to go in and see what was happening, pushing past the closed door to go inside. It took a moment for her eyes to adjust to the difference in light since it was dimmer inside compared to the brightness of the sun, but when she could finally see her eyes roamed the small waiting room. It was occupied by a young man around her age and noticed that he was frantically pacing. He stopped as she entered and his gaze immediately snapped in her direction. Bianca could admit if only to herself that she was momentarily taken by his dark brown eyes and attractive features, but quickly dismissed him as she moved through the curtain. He may have made a noise of protest but she paid him no heed as she entered the examination room.
She immediately noticed the unconscious young woman lying on the exam table, whom was clearly sedated, and next she spotted her uncle looking for something at the back of the room. “Zio,” she called, alerting him of her presence and was bemused as he stiffened defensively.
“What are you doing here so early?” he demanded angrily, further confusing her. She always assisted him with his patients and wondered why this time should be any different. Although, she hadn’t had any intention of helping him this time, but he didn’t know that.
He slowly turned his head to peer at her over his shoulder as he waited for her response. Bianca could not see his eyes through the holes of the mask he wore, and didn’t remember any instance in the last four years that she had seen him without it. She could scarcely remember what color his eyes were, or what his face looked like. While a part of her understood why he insisted on wearing it, she knew that it had nothing to do with his profession, because she had seen several doctors without them on.
Bianca forced her lips into a smile and decided that she’d wait for now to ask her questions until he finished with this patient. “I finished earlier than I expected, and after purchasing the seeds at the market, I came here.” She would wait until later to tell him about what had happened with the courtesan. The young woman moved to the curtain that led further into the house, and on a table within reach she removed the pouches that had the seeds aside. Bianca didn’t wait for him to say anything as she came back in and washed her hands properly, and came to stand by the sedated woman’s side.
By the way her feet hung over the edge, Bianca could tell she was awfully tall, and was undoubtedly several inches taller than Bianca herself. She had a lean body and strong arms, and she was also very beautiful. If Bianca were vain, then she’d be envious of this stunning creature. Also, not to mention the attractive young man that was anxiously waiting for her, which was obviously her husband, or lover; at the very least. She had never expressed an interest in the opposite sex, and much less marriage or any kind of relationship. However, that one outside had sparked an interest within her, and it was just a shame that he was taken.
“What is wrong with her?” she inquired curiously, since she didn’t look to be injured. The man’s hand caught her wrist in a firm grip as she started to pull back the sheet covering her to get a better assessment on whether there were any visible wounds.
“This is a special patient, who I need to attend to alone,” he warned, pulling her away so the sheet settled back into place. Bianca leveled him with a suspicious look, since he was acting very odd.
“What’s special about her?” she asked instead of backing off as she usually would when he showed any signs of agitation or anger. Bianca could tell the young woman was naked under the sheet, and her instincts were screaming at her not to leave him alone with the other female. She knew that her beloved uncle wasn’t right in the head, but he had raised her when her parents had abandoned her. He had taught her his trade where no one else would have. So, she loved him as if he was her father, but regardless, she would never allow him to harm another if she could prevent it.
Bianca felt his fingers biting viciously into her wrist and knew she’d have bruises there later, but schooled her face into a stony mask. “Is there a reason why I shouldn’t help you with this patient, when I’ve helped with countless others?” His grip tightened unbearably for a moment longer before he abruptly released her.
“No, of course not,” he conceded; voice like a sharp blade. His moved away from her as he quickly washed his hands, and then moved to the foot of the table. The man lifted the sheet up so her legs and groin area was exposed, and he spread open her legs and thighs without hesitation. Bianca made a small choking sound when he started to move his fingers over the folds of her sex, and his head shifted to smallest fraction and Bianca knew he was looking at her. “We’re looking for recent vaginal trauma,” he informed her matter-of-factly. However, she could still feel his eyes on her and knew he wanted to see her expressions. The man had always stated that a good Dottore could handle any patient regardless of personal discomfort, so Bianca refused to be scared off. Her lips pressed into a bloodless line as she watched and was prepared to assist him where she could. However, she was tempted to run off when he stuck two fingers inside of her.
After a few moments spent feeling around; he extracted the digits, and Bianca was horrified and disgusted as he lifted his mask just enough to sniff and then lick his fingers. When he was satisfied, he pushed the mask back down over his nose and mouth. “There’s blood and semen mixed in with her natural secretions,” he stated calmly, as if his actions weren’t bizarre at all. She opened her mouth to say something, but before she could broach the subject, her uncle moved past the curtain as he beckoned the young man forward.
When it closed after him, she quickly started to dress the young woman. As she did this, she could hear their hushed conversation from the other room, and Bianca stiffened when she clearly heard, “raped” and “recently”. Bianca flinched as she heard a resounding crack after a few tense moments of silence. She worked quietly and efficiently as she strained to hear more, but the conversation seemed to have degenerated to her uncle’s murmuring and the young man’s labored breathing.
She had just finished buttoning up her dress when she felt a hand at her shoulder, and her hand immediately went to her dagger as she turned. The features were more attractive up close even clouded over by grief as they were. Being that close she could see that his dark brown eyes had flecks of a lighter shade of brown, and his hair was the same color and curled at the ends. Her sharp eyes caught sight of a scar along his mandible, and that his nose wasn’t completely straight to indicate that it’d been broken before.
“May I?” he inquired, motioning to the unconscious female, and Bianca calmly stepped aside as she removed her hand from the hilt of her sheathed weapon. He was almost six feet tall, but she felt no threat from him, which was strange since she didn’t even know him.
Bianca watched as he lifted the other female as if she weighed nothing, and carried her out of the room with care. She followed them, past her uncle and out to where he was settling her within the back of the cart. There was hay piled on it with a quilt covering it, and once he finished making sure she was comfortable, he covered her with another worn quilt. Only then did he finally turn to look at her, and while he didn’t ask her what she wanted, his silence was an indication that she could speak and he would listen.
“If you truly love her, then don’t pressure her to talk. Just comfort her, and she’ll tell you eventually.” He opened his mouth to speak, but she held out her hand to forestall whatever he was about to say. “Just give her time.”
He stared at her for several silent moments before he finally nodded slightly. “Thank you,” he croaked, his Adams apple working over what was most likely a knot of emotion. Bianca couldn’t help but think that he must really love this young woman, and she hoped he wouldn’t reject her over not having her virtue intact.
When he climbed in and picked up the reigns, Bianca turned away to move back into the house, and without having asked either of their names. She remembered that she also hadn’t given hers, and thought that it was probably for the best.
When she entered the house once more, she vaguely glanced at the wall and the fist-shaped hole that now decorated it. It had been most likely caused by the younger male when the doctor told him the news that the young woman had been raped. Bianca wondered what else they had discussed, since she hadn’t heard the whole conversation. However, she knew better than to ask her uncle for any kind of information on any of his patients. Now thinking of her uncle, they had a pending conversation.
She pushed past the curtain and saw him in the far left corner, sitting at his desk and writing in his ledger. She cleared her throat but he didn’t cease his writing, and she was determined to have him listen. “Zio, I need to ask you something.”
His head finally lifted from what he’d been writing, but she knew it was most likely because he had finished. This particular assumption was confirmed as he set his writing utensil aside, but left the ledger open to allow the ink to dry. The man didn’t stand and merely peered up at her, feeling his eyes on her through that damned mask. At times she wanted to rip it away because it felt like without it he would once again be her beloved uncle, and there was almost a feeling of darkness around him when he wore the face covering.
Bianca inhaled deeply and started to explain what had happened to her after she’d left the market, and finally the courtesans’ petition. When he didn’t say anything right away, she was terrified that he was so furious that he couldn’t find the right words to express himself. However, she was surprised when his head tilted in an indication of thought, which meant he was giving the idea some consideration. When he finally spoke, she was pleasantly surprised at his response. “Si, I believe you are ready for that step,” he muttered thoughtfully. The fingers of his right hand tapped anxiously against the table without him noticing, and she was too excited at this opportunity to really pay attention. “You will...need to keep a detailed account of every patient you attend, and afterwards I will go over it to assess where you need more training.”
She was so happy that she flung herself at him, hugging him enthusiastically and Bianca felt him immediately stiffen against her. The young woman immediately realized her mistake and backed off, smiling sheepishly. “Mi dispiace,” she hastily apologized, not wanting him to change his mind in his ire. Bianca’s uncle had not hugged her shortly after she had turned fourteen, and besides the smack he’d given her earlier, he not touched her either. She had always asked herself the reason for this, but had never dared ask him what they were; had never questioned him on anything.
“Get out,” he hissed, hands shaking at his sides as if he were stopping himself from reaching out to throttle her. Bianca swallowed nervously before she scurried out of the room, and she could hear his labored breathing until she disappeared through the curtain leading further into the house.
~o~
The moonlight flittered in through the window of Bianca’s room, making the white bed sheets glow in the darkness. Her even breathing indicated that she was in a deep sleep as she lay on her back, the ebony strands of her hair spread around her head like a halo, and her pale skin shone as surreally as the blankets. The night was hot, so she had gone to sleep in only a Chemise that she never wore, since Bianca didn’t frequently wear dresses unless she was forced to.
If the room had been darker, the shadowed body in the corner of the room would have been missed, but the moonbeams revealed his unmoving figure. The leather doctor’s smock gave his identity away, but he was lacking his usual mask. His dark brown hair was wild and cascading down over his eyes so only his mouth; which was twisted in a parody of a smile, was visible. He moved slowly toward the bed until he was standing over his niece as his hands clenched into shaking fists at his sides. He’d lost count of the times he had stood in this very same spot in the last year.
When it had happened, Bianca had just turned fourteen and had flagrantly failed at creating an untraceable poison. She’d been out recovering ingredients from the garden despite the drizzle of rain coming down, and in a misstep she had fallen in a muddy puddle. The man had taken on look at her filthy state, and sent her at once to bathe. By that time the housemaid had water heated for one of theirs baths, since it was nearing the end of the work day and a lot of people wouldn’t come out to see him in the rain unless it was an emergency.
The older woman had carted Bianca off to her bath while he finished writing his notes, and when he finished he had closed up the front and went to retire. It was as he was passing the teenagers’ room, that the sound of sloughing water and giggling caught his attention. He sighed in exasperation and paused at the door before pushing it open as he inhaled to snap at his niece for playing in the bath like some child. However, the sight before him made the breath leave his lungs like a punch in the gut.
Bianca’s head was turned away from him so she hadn’t noticed that the door had opened, but he could see the curve of her back and the swell of her breasts. Her smooth, creamy skin was unblemished and he knew it was untouched, and the thought sent a sudden shudder of arousal through his body as it coiled in his loins. In that instant, he might have forgotten that she was his own flesh and blood if her voice hadn’t snapped him out of it. Bianca had started to sing as she splashed around like the five year old he had stolen, and it was the lullaby he had sung to her that night during their trip to Roma. He had sang her to sleep with it the nights she had sobbed on his shoulders for parents she believed had abandoned her, and if he had his way, that’s what she would always believe. That night, he had fled and tried to bury his salacious thoughts, but he had already seen her and the sight would not leave his mind. This is the reason he had stopped hugging and touching her, and retreated further and further away from her.
He crouched down by the bed as his eyes hungrily drank in her visible pale skin, and he lifted a trembling hand toward her slumbering features. His fingers had just brushed rosy cheeks when she moaned in her sleep and shifted away from his touch. The man curled his fingers away from her, and when he noticed her eyelashes flutter as if threatening to awaken, he straightened and silently exited the room. When her dark blue eyes opened a moment later, Bianca thought she saw a face staring at her through the crack in the door, but she had drifted off to sleep once more and in the morning she didn’t remember.
~o~
1497
Bianca entered the dilapidated building through the back door as was accustomed to and started on her routine. She set her bag on the table nearby and started to go over the supplies she may need that day, since the courtesans at times had all sorts of ailments and injuries. The fifteen year old remembered that last week Gabriele had a severe fever and Bianca had to stay almost three days at the Rosa in Fiore. Of course, she had sent a messenger to her uncle to inform him that she had to care for the young woman. Bianca had stayed in the room with her, and slept in a chair while she tried to cool her body temperature. It had been a pure miracle that she had managed to keep the taller woman in the bed, since she had tried to get up several times in her delirium. Finally, the fever had broken the third night but had maintained her stay there until she was sure Gabriele was out of danger. Bianca and she had come to a reluctant truce after months of animosity between both women.
The young woman was broken out of her habitual actions by loud crash followed by screams that originated from the back stairs leading up into the private rooms. She grabbed her bag and took the stairs two at a time, and then pushed through the other courtesans that had crowded around the door. Bianca was momentarily startled by the sight of the woman on the bed, blood heavily staining it and some splattered on the surrounding walls. Then she snapped into action as she pushed past the distraught woman next to her as she held onto her hand. “Get her out of here,” she commanded one of the others and they moved without question to obey her order.
Her name was Cristina and she was still breathing, but the two stab wounds on her midsection were oozing dangerous amounts of blood. Bianca judged by the color of the blood that no major organs had been punctured. However, if she didn’t stop the bleeding soon then she’d die of blood loss.
“Give me hot water and clean rags, and someone start a fire!” There was a flurry of movement as they rushed off to obey her order. Meanwhile, Bianca had to cut away her clothing, and then used the bandages that she had in her bag to try and staunch the flow of blood. Her head snapped toward the fire place and saw Mina making the fire, and moments’ later one of the courtesans rushed in with a pot of clean, cold water which she set on the hearth in the fire place.
When the water was hot enough they brought it over to Bianca’s side along with the rags which they had used by cutting up a bed sheet. She cleaned the wound with soap and the water, and then dug her fingers in each of the stab wounds to make sure there were no fragments of metal or anything that could cause infection. When she was absolutely sure she glanced up at the delirious woman that looked on the verge of fainting. “I have to cauterize the wound or you’ll bleed to death,” she informed the barely conscious woman. Cristina may have made a sound of protest, but Bianca was trying to save her life and had no time for arguments. So, she motioned toward Mina who brought over the hot fireplace poker and without waiting, she pressed it to the first wound. Cristina wailed in pain and tried to buck her off. “Hold her!” she snapped at Mina, who immediately surged forward on top of her friend. She wanted to reassure the sobbing woman that the pain was almost over, but she had no time and pressed the burning metal to the second injury.
Bianca handed over the poker to another courtesan and inspected the burns to make sure the holes had closed, and was relieved or she didn’t have to do it again. She leaned toward Cristina to check her over, but Cristina pushed her away as she wept into Mina’s shoulder, who embraced her. Bianca sighed but moved away all the same as she grabbed her bag. “She needs complete bed rest.” Mina glanced helplessly at her, but Bianca held out a placating hand. “Stay with her,” she reassured her.
Once she left the room, she was met by Gabriele as they eyed one another uncertainly. It was the courtesan that spoke first. “You did what you had to do to save her life.” She moved past her, bumping her good-naturedly as she went. Bianca chuckled with a nod and moved back downstairs.
She was writing in her ledger what had happened and the actions she’d taken to cure the victim when Mina entered the room. The black haired young woman glanced at her friend. “What happened?” she asked her. Bianca had noticed several things when she had entered that room, and the first had been that there had been a struggle judging by the broken pieces of furniture. The second thing was the open balcony door, which had broken glass to indicate that they’d been flung open in a rush. Finally, the door of the room had looked to have suffered damage and was even off one of its hinges.
Mina inhaled deeply before practically collapsing in the chair across from her. There were blood stains on her beautiful flowing orange dress as well as a smear across her right cheek. “Cristina had a client that came very regularly, but would get easily jealous of her other clients. He offered to get out of this life, but she refused since she stated that she loved this kind of life. He left but swore that she would regret this decision.” The blonde girl started to notice the blood that was staining her dress and wrinkled her nose in disgust. “Today he barged in, took Cristina by force, and locked them up in her room. We called for help from the guards and they came running inside. That’s when we heard her scream and they knocked down the door, and Joanna just started screaming when she saw Cristina.” Mina shook her head as she rubbed at her bloodshot eyes, and Bianca knew she had been crying. “He escaped through the balcony doors and the guards gave chase. That’s when you came in,” she offered a smile, “and saved Cristina’s life. You were amazing!”
Bianca felt her face start to heat up as she cleared her throat. “I just did what I’m paid to do. It was nothing more than my duty.” Secretly, she was giddy with joy because it was her first crisis and she had saved her patient!
~o~
It was the creaking of the floorboards that alerted them that they had company. The maid wasn’t there that night, and her uncle never made any unnecessary noise. Bianca knew this was someone that did not live here and she silently slipped out of bed with her dagger in hand. She peered through the crack in her door out into the hallway and saw several figures moving carefully down from the front. There were at least four of them and what she could see in the faint moonlight revealed that they were soldiers. Bianca knew that there was no good reason for them being there, and gripped her weapon tighter as two came toward her door.
She scurried behind the door without making a sound and when it opened all the guards would see was her empty, unmade bed. Bianca heard one of them curse as the other went further into the room. Her fingers were going numb with how tight she was holding the hilt of her dagger. After the man finished searching the room and found no sign of her, both of them left and the door slammed after them. Bianca didn’t allow herself even a sigh of relief as she hurried to get dressed. She didn’t worry that they would surprise her uncle, since she knew he had heard them before she had.
The sound of a scuffle interrupted her as she pulled on her clothes, and immediately grabbed up her dagger and rushed out of the room. Bianca was intercepted halfway down the hall by a tall, brute of a man that caught her up as she screamed. She flailed her arm as she tried to at least scratch him with her weapon, but his hold was unyielding. The blade of the knife was coated in her poison that she had just finished making, but which hadn’t been tested yet. Even if she hadn’t gotten the effect she wanted, at least the poison would be enough to keep him from harming her.
Bianca gasped as she was bodily lifted off her feet and the man started to carry her off. “While they interrogate the good doctor, why don’t you and I have some fun?” he whispered in her ear. Her eyes widened at his words and the meaning behind them, and she started to struggle anew. He simply laughed and carried on like he was carrying a child throwing a temper tantrum.
The young woman truly thought she was lost, but there was a commotion behind them followed by screams. When his hold faltered, she struck like a cobra and drove the knife into his thigh. He screamed and flung her away from him as her body careened through the air before hitting the wall. Bianca was dazed from the hit and lay in a heap on the floor for several seconds. The giant man tried to come after her but staggered to a stop as his hand went to his face. He shook his head as if trying to wake up, but his limbs felt weighed down and soon dropped to his knees. His eyes lifted toward Bianca who was watching him with bleary cobalt eyes, and his own eyes rolled into the back of his head before collapsing.
Bianca’s head was spinning from having hit it, but she had to get up and struggled to her feet. She had managed to right herself when the man was at her side with a steadying hand at her elbow. “I’m alright,” she panted.
The doctor glanced at the dead soldier, which had died within seconds of being stabbed with a poisoned dagger. His hand twitched at his side at remembering she had finished another batch of poison. She hadn’t given him yet because she had been busy with the courtesans, and his patients had piled up since he didn’t have Bianca to help him. “Get your things. We are leaving in one minute.” He slipped away, disappearing into the darkness and never igniting a single lamp. Bianca had already hastily packed her bag when the soldiers had left her room earlier, and now lit a lantern and started to check over the corpse. From what she could see, there was no change in the skin, and the pupils were normal as well. However, when she came to the mouth is where she found the evidence. There were white spots on the roof of the mouth that were not normal.
Bianca heard the man returning, but it was the clinking of the bottles of medicines that alerted her and not his steps. She scrambled away from the man and went into her room to get her own two bags. One was her clothing and the other was her own medicines and poisons. As they left the house, they disappeared into the darkened streets of Roma. Bianca didn’t know what they had wanted with them, but she did know that they could never return here.
~o~
1500
The eighteen year old woman paced back and forth in the ruins of the building, in her hand the syringe that she had found next to Gabriele’s body, and in her mind a hundred questions that she was afraid to ask. However, she knew that she had to ask them, because her friend was dead. She needed to know.
Bianca found her uncle at his stand and saw that he had just sold a vial of medicine. She waited until the man had left to approach, the man turning immediately in her direction to indicate that he had seen her right away. “Shouldn’t you be at the Rosa in Fiore?” he asked her. Indeed, she should be there right now, but this was a more pressing matter.
Rather than answer him, she lifted the syringe that still had the remaining poison inside of it. “I found this next to the corpse of a friend of mine,” she stated bluntly. She watched the movement of his body to see if he tensed or shifted nervously, but the man was unflinching. “Who are you selling my poison to?”
The man finally moved, striding toward her and taking the object in her hand. His head lowered as he seemed to study it as well as the liquid that remained inside. “How are you so certain that this is your poison?” He twirled it in his hand with a familiarity that chilled her. “This is a basic instrument used by a doctor, and the liquid inside could be any manner of medicine or poison.”
Bianca faltered at his words, opening her mouth to speak but not knowing what to say. He had a point about the syringe and the liquid. Besides, she hadn’t had any time to check over the body before she had to flee lest she get blamed, and thus didn’t know if she had the spots on the roof of her mouth.
The girl shuffled nervously as his head lifted and she knew he was looking right at her. “I will test it to make sure, but you can rest assured that it is not yours.” His leather gloves creaked as they tightened on the instrument before he turned away from her. Bianca wanted to take it back and do her own tests, because she was the best person to do it since she was the creator of the poison. However, her courage dissolved as he turned sharply toward her and she swallowed nervously. “Shouldn’t you be on your way?”
She nodded hastily as she stepped back. “Uh, yes, I should be going now.” Bianca bowed her head toward him before fleeing from the square back toward the Rosa in Fiore. As she went she was filled with doubt and wondered how she could have ever thought that her uncle would willingly sell the poison to someone that would hurt another.
When Bianca arrived at the brothel and was told of her raven-haired friend’s death, her near collapse was not faked because she felt she’d failed Gabriele.
~o~
1501
The second death happened many months after the first, however, it was certainly not from lack of trying. Bianca had heard that there was a man lurking outside the Rosa in Fiore that was harassing, and at times, injuring them. She had been forced to go there more often than the once a week as she’d been doing before. Mina had been the one that informed her that the second victim was Cristina, who had been found murdered in the back courtyard. At first they believed it to be the same man that had attacked her, but they quickly learned that he was in a prison in Venezia. Also, Joanna had seen a glimpse of the culprit, and had described a distinct doctor’s black leather smock. The news had filled her with a sickening feeling of dread, and it gnawed at her insides until she was finally driven to where she stood now.
Her cobalt eyes stared down at the sheet that covered Cristina’s corpse, but she made no more to pull it back as her fingers curled and uncurled at her sides. The young woman was in denial; knew she was in denial, but even so Bianca couldn’t quite make her hand move. She had come with the excuse that she wanted to pay her respects, but she wasn’t doing that either. Soon, rigor mortis would set in, but not even that thought moved her. The thing that finally made her hands reach out and open Cristina’s mouth was the fact that the girls’ life had once been in her hands. Bianca had saved her life, and someone had extinguished it, and there were no answers. She had to know despite what answer she got.
The lamp was pulled closer to better see inside her mouth, which had already started to emit an unpleasant odor. When she finally saw the white spots, Bianca dropped the lantern as she staggered back. The sound of the glass breaking brought unwanted attention of her blonde friend. “Bianca, what has happened? Is everything alright?”
Bianca glanced at the nineteen year old courtesan, and the anguish must have been as plain as day on her face for Mina went immediately to her side. “Oh Bianca,” she gasped, arms going around her in a comforting embrace. The ebony haired woman cringed away from her touch as Mina gave her a wounded look. “What’s the matter?”
Her heart was heavy and afflicted with grief that she couldn’t speak. Bianca glanced at Cristina’s pale face and then back to Mina’s rosy cheeks. “I h-have to go,” she choked. Before the other could speak, Bianca turned to flee the room, and ignored Mina’s urgent calls.
~o~
Bianca arrived at their house when the sun was highest in the sky, but soon discovered that it was empty. She hurried further into the house and without hesitation shoved past the door of her uncle’s room. “Zio! Are you here? I need to speak with you!” There was no answer but despite this searched even the restroom, but found no one. Bianca carded slender fingers through her hair and loosened the pins so cascaded down her back. She was about to leave the room when something on the nightstand caught her eye; her uncle’s ledger.
There was no hesitation this time, and especially not after what she had discovered as she strode forward and picked it up. The first few pages were nothing more than notes on patients, but as she went further on she read things that made her sick.
‘April 11, 1500
Bianca is working with the whores today. Initially, I allowed this fancy of hers to further her skills, but it has proved worrisome. She accidentally discovered the syringe besides that puttana’s body, and has started asking questions. It’s unclear how long I can keep her in the dark, and my latest indulgence isn’t helping matters either. However, I simply couldn’t refuse this time, since that whore’s hair was almost exactly the same as my angels’. It’s my wish to run my hands through hers the way I did that filthy troia’s hair, but it’s not the same.
The smell and feel of her skin was too different, and the small whimpers were not the same as she makes while she sleeps. For me the differences were too great that I simply couldn’t stay my hand. I intended only for her to sleep, but the pinprick of the needle caused her to react violently. When I threw her against the wall, I didn’t expect her head to crack open like a melon. She was much too fragile, and nothing in comparison to my angel; to my Bianca.’
Bianca’s labored breathing was the only thing that was heard for several moments before she jerked away from the ledger as if it had scalded her. Her stomach heaved at remembering the words she had read there before she promptly emptied her stomach on the floor. When she had thrown up everything and only bile and stomach acid came up, and tears were running down her face did she straighten. “Mio dio, no,” she sobbed, stumbling out of the room.
She was moving out of the house without even cleaning herself up and looked like a mad woman, but she didn’t care. Bianca was determined to find her uncle before the day was over.
Bianca was almost to the area where the doctor’s stand was located at when she noticed a bloody trail leading into the alley. She couldn’t tear her eyes from it and unconsciously her feet led her down the dark alleyway, until finally she came upon a sight that broke her heart in two. “M-Mina?” she sobbed, interrupting the weeping woman at her side. The blonde woman was collapsed against a crumpled wall of what remained of a building, and the smear of blood lead down to where her caved in skull was resting. Mina looked like a broken doll, and Bianca knew who had done this.
“What are you doing here?!” Joanna demanded angrily. She stood from where she had been crying over her friend’s body; Bianca’s friend as well. “This is what you both planned, isn’t it? You came and tricked us all with your big, innocent eyes and then let loose the monstro into our midst! You killed Gabriele, Cristina and Mina as surely as your uncle, Malfatto!”
A tear slid down her cheek as she only stared at her friend’s bloodied face. She had done this, because as she had healed their wounds and tried to help, she had really been leading them into danger. Bianca had killed her friends as surely as if she had held the syringe herself. Her hand slid down to the daggers at her waist and unsheathed one as Joanna stilled in fear. “You don’t need to worry about the monster waiting in the shadows anymore,” she whispered, as more tears slid down her face. “I will personally end his reign of terror.” Without another word, she ran in the direction of her uncle’s stand.
She found him standing where she knew he would be, the dagger still clenched in a white knuckled grip. His head lifted toward her and this time saw him stiffen at seeing the weapon in her hand, and the grief on her face. In that instant, he realized that she knew. “So, have you come to kill me?” He made no move to run or withdraw a weapon of his own.
Bianca screamed as she lunged at him, slashing at him with a frantic fervor that he dodged again and again. He didn’t try to attack her once, but she didn’t stop her assault on him. She wanted him dead.
During a swing, he caught her wrist and twisted her arm behind her back. She could feel his body at her back and his mask pressed against the back of her throat. “Did you really think you could harm me, Bianca?” he whispered, his hot breath warming the material of his face covering against her skin. “Is that whore more important to you, that you’d kill your beloved uncle?”
The young woman grunted as she struggled to throw him off, but his hold was tenacious. “You’re no kin to me, figlio di puttana!” she spat. She cried out as his fingers bit viciously into her wrist. “You sick fucker! Are you going to kill me as well?” He chuckled and the sound reverberated against her neck and sent a shudder of horror throughout her body. While she felt his hand move across her flat belly, she was slowly and discreetly pulling out a thin blade from a sheath she had had hidden within her sleeve.
When his hand was close enough and almost at her breast, she moved and drove the knife as hard as she could through his gloved hand. The man yelped in pain to show that it had hit its mark, and he threw her away from him. She crashed against the stand as the dagger went flying from her hand, and crumpled in a dazed heap. As she tried to get her bearings, she heard her uncle shout and start to run off. She pulled herself up to see what was happening, and was in time to see a slender figure in black attire launch herself at her faltering uncle and drive a blade at her wrist into his throat. Bianca knew that had he not been poisoned by her seconds earlier, they would not have had a chance to catch and kill him.
A male figure in matching black robes appeared in Bianca’s line of vision as he peered down at her. “Are you alright?” He glanced at Malfatto’s downed figure and then the young woman who was a moment ago collapsed against the doctor’s stand. “Do you know that man?” She saw his hand move toward the sword at his side and Bianca struck first, using a dagger she’d pulled from her boot to slash at him. It only nicked the back of his hand as he jumped away, but it was all that was needed, and in minutes it would take effect. Already she saw him stagger back before he collapsed as he lost feeling in his arms and legs first, and soon he’d be paralyzed. It would eventually wear off, but would serve to give her time to flee.
She heard a shout but ignored it as she dashed around the corner and out into the crowded streets. The female in black was chasing her, but soon she managed to lose her tail within the market. Bianca knew how to move like water through a crowd, become one with it and seemingly disappear. This is what she did, and soon the young woman following her had lost sight of her while Bianca stuck to the alleyway until she was far away from there. Now, Bianca needed to get home and pack what she could, and then she would leave Roma. At the moment, the only place she could run to was back to Venezia, even when there was nothing for her there. However, it was better than remaining here and being hunted down for the sins committed by Malfatto.-
Author: name_me_regret
AN: Finally, this chapter came together at last. It’s a huge chapter, 47 pages long (but that’s with a text size of 20 points, lol). Most of my inspiration would come during work, and it was hard to write there so I’ve been trying to finish it since last week. Now, this would have been posted earlier but either it’s my internet fucking up, or the site that’s messing up. Now, going by the title, it’s obvious the outcome of this chapter, but either way, there’s a reason the uncle’s name isn’t mentioned throughout the whole chapter. Now, happy reading!
Chapter Twenty-three: Serial Offender
1497
There were days when she would stare off into space, her eyes glazing over in memory as she daydreamed. It was during those times that she thought of the parents that had abandoned her almost ten years ago on the eve of her fifth birthday, and the times as a child where she’d been so happy. Her uncle and she had come to Roma in 1487 and with his knowledge of medicine they had persevered, and he never spoke of either her mother or her father; his brother. Also, the man had no patience for her daydreams, and usually snapped her out of it with a swift slap across the back of the head. The blow itself wasn’t painful and it only served to startle her back into reality, but it reminded her never to think of them when he was around. It angered the man to no end for reasons she couldn’t understand when she was the one that she be angry at them. Even then, they were her parents and could never shake the feeling of pain and longing.
Now, Bianca didn’t dare daydream during her lessons or adhere to the consequences, but usually they were too interesting for her not to pay attention. Although, at fifteen she could proudly say she could successfully stitch or cauterize a wound, and redress an injury. If prompted she could admit knowing how to pop a dislocated shoulder, arm or leg back into place, and also splint any broken appendage as well. The doctor had also instilled the knowledge of plants and herbs within her; both lethal and benign. While she didn’t have an extensive understanding of healing herbs that her uncle had, she was more than proficient than him with the poisonous ones. The reason for this was that before the “accident” that left him a bit...different, he couldn’t memorize certain things. He was horrible at remembering names or something new he had read, but everything he had learned before remained intact within his mind. So, he knew how to heal as well, or better than any doctor, but he hadn’t studied poisons extensively, so he could never remember anything he read. This is the reason he tasked her with anything having to do with poisonous plants, and which he assured were used mostly to get rid of infestations of vermin.
Bianca paused in her thoughts to look at what she had just added to the mixture, and realized it was Aconite. She cursed under her breath at having let her mind wander when she should have been paying attention, and discreetly glanced over her shoulder. The man was working in the corner and jotting down something in the ledger he was always writing in. Bianca never asked about it; like most things he did, but she was curious about what he wrote in there. Her curiosity was pushed aside for the moment to concentrate on more important things. He was clearly not paying her any mind and thus she discreetly dumped what she was working on. When she thought she had succeeded and was about to start on another batch, she felt a hand connect with the back of her head. Bianca winced in pain, since the hit had been harder that time, most likely because she had tried to hide her mistake from him.
“What have I told you about daydreaming when working?” he snapped coldly. She turned to face him, unable to see his eyes due to the mask but she could still feel them boring a hole into her. His hand snapped forward to grab one of the bowls where the poppy seeds were crushed into paste, but was now only a dollop. “You’re wasting ingredients, stupid girl.”
Bianca hung her head so as not to get smacked again. “I could go buy more,” she suggested. While she said it, she wondered if she should buy the seeds and plant them in her garden out back. His head lifted to regard her silently as a shudder raced up her spine, since it was during those times when he observed her that she felt almost scared. Then she’d remember it was just her Zio and would dismiss the thought. He abruptly shoved the bowl into her hands before he turned away and moved back to what he was doing. Bianca stared after him in bemusement but figured it was all the man would say to her, but whether he would agree with her idea was another story. Instead of further risking his ire, she would just do it and that way she would have poppy seeds whenever she needed them.
She slipped silently out of the room, trying not to make too much noise since he disliked loudness and unnecessary interruptions. Once out of the room, she hurried down the hall and removed the leather smock that she wore which was similar to his. Underneath she wore her regular clothing, the long sleeved white shirt and a vest so she almost looked like a man. She had only a dagger at her waist, but it was mostly used for cutting plants or peeling while making certain healing salves or poisons.
Bianca also carried a pouch filled with medicine and bandages, and another filled with poison in unmarked containers. If she were to be stopped and questions by the guards for whatever reason, it would not be in her best interest to be found with poison. The medicine and bandages were understandable, since it was known -although frowned upon-- that she helped her uncle, and there were some that trusted her to heal their minor injuries. However, the poison was something that she was bought on a whim in order to study its components and effects, but it was too slow-acting for her uncles’ tastes. It took about five minutes for it to kill its target, which first started with the affected victim hallucinating they were being attacked and they’d wildly defend themselves from invisible enemies. After several wild swings of a weapon or their limbs, they’d collapse in a seizure as they foamed from the mouth, and then shortly die. It was messy, but not as much as Bianca’s first poison.
The young girl, since she was no more than fourteen at the time, had been aiming for a euthanasia-like effect in the death where the heart would slow followed by the other organs. Then a sleepy feeling would take over the victim and they’d be force to sit or lay down, and then death would take them shortly after. However, Bianca had done something horribly wrong, and instead it caused the body to go into a massive internal hemorrhaging accompanied by immense pain. Bianca hadn’t been there for the testing, since her uncle forbade it, but he had informed her that the animal used had screamed in agony seconds after it was administered, and shrieked on until death finally claimed it minutes later.
She couldn’t begin to imagine how the poor creature had suffered, but the thought drove her the past year to perfect it. So far, she had managed to numb the pain, but not the bleeding out. Then there were signs of the poison which appeared on the body, which according to her uncle, were the fur turning a pale-yellow and an alabaster white tongue. Bianca was trying to not only keep the subject from hemorrhaging, but also eliminate any signs of poisoning. During all her research, she had also learned which plants could paralyze a person in seconds, and those that helped relieve a stomach ache, as well as send them into a death-like slumber.
She ducked under the half drawn curtain that separated the back with the examination room, and finally exited into what she lovingly called “the waiting room”. That was where anyone accompanying the patient that her uncle was attending would wait; thus the name. Today it was empty since they were closed until noon so as to replenish their healing salves, elixirs, sleeping aids, and anything else they provided to their patients. Now, she said their patients, but any help that she received was overlooked, however, by that time she was used to her uncles’ preterition of her work and skills. He did allow her to patch a few of them up, but it usually only consisted of something minor that wasn’t too life-threatening, since that was left to the real doctor.
~o~
Bianca’s nose wrinkled at the extravagant price of the seeds as she fingered the fiorini that she had within her money pouch, and knew she wouldn’t have enough. Her cobalt eyes shifted toward the stand owner, seeing that he was distracted her hand darted out and stole a handful of opium seeds and stored them in her medical pouch as quickly as she could. When he turned toward her, she grabbed another two handfuls of the less expensive poppy seeds to buy, but still needed for a sleeping aid.
The man eyed her warily but said nothing as he took the offered money, and then she stored the seeds in a separate pouch that she had for this very reason. “Grazie, Messere,” she chirped before skipping off, giggling like a naughty child. She made sure to leave the square as quickly as possible, so the man wouldn’t become too suspicious and want to search her. Of course, she’d never allow it, but Bianca couldn’t risk getting the attention of the guards.
As she was cutting through an alleyway, she paused at hearing raised voices heading in her direction and quickly ducked behind some crates. Bianca had no sooner hidden when a man dragged a woman into the alley. From her extravagant and revealing clothing, it was quite obvious that she was a courtesan, and Bianca was mesmerized by how beautiful she was. The man, on the other hand, looked like he had been beaten with the ugly stick.
Bianca couldn’t hear what they were arguing about and she didn’t dare get closer. However, when she heard a sharp slapping sound she couldn’t stop the gasp that escaped her mouth. The man cursed at hearing her before rushing away and leaving the downed woman where she’d fallen after being hit. Bianca didn’t think about it twice and left her hiding place to hurry to her side. “Are you alright?” she murmured to the blonde young woman. Bianca was only slightly surprised to realize that she looked to be her age, and even with the rapidly forming bruise on her cheek, she was still stunningly beautiful.
Her eyes were a brilliant blue that put the sky to shame, and her rosy plush lips were smeared in blood. “Who are you?” she demanded defensively, her body tensing cautiously. She was struggling to push down her dress, which had hiked up past her thighs when she’d fallen. Meanwhile, Bianca had come to crouch down next to her as she extracted a bandage and some salve. The young woman flinched away from her as she tried to apply it to her lip and cheek. “What is that?”
Bianca’s head tilted slightly as her jet-black hair cascaded over her shoulder. “It’s a healing salve. This will help bring the swelling down, and heal the cut more quickly,” she explained. She gave her a strained smile and offered the bandage with the salve on it, and when the other girl nodded hesitantly Bianca started to spread the medicine liberally over the injured area. “I’m Bianca. What’s your name?”
The blonde girl eyed her suspiciously for a few seconds, before glancing at the small vial in her hands. “Mina,” she whispered, blue eyes darting back to Bianca’s face. “Why do you help me?”
Bianca smirked as she sat back on her haunches, her arms resting on her knees as she continued to grip the now corked vial in her hand. “Because my Zio is a doctor, and he taught me how to help people.” Mina looked skeptical, but Bianca couldn’t say she blamed her since a woman knowing medicine was unheard of. “Here,” she muttered, holding out the vial of salve. “Put it on twice a day and the bruising should be gone in two or three days. If you run out, I’m sure you can get some more from any doctor in the city.”
Mina snorted in an unladylike fashion as she took the medicine from her. “Not likely,” she sneered. She quickly slipped the small glass bottle inside her bust, between her breasts which were pushed up by the corset. “There are few doctors around this district, and the ones that haven’t been run out of business by the Borgia, are hesitant to take our dirty coin.”
Mina finally managed to regain her feet, straightening her skirts as she tried to brush off any dirt that still clung to the material. When that was accomplished, she took her money pouch which was also tucked away within her ample bosom, and held out about thirty fiorini toward Bianca.
Bianca had also stood and was taken aback by the money the courtesan was offering to her. “W-what’s this?” Bianca asked, reaching out uncertainly to take it. It felt weird to take money from a woman in her profession, since it was usually they that were being paid for their services.
“It’s for the salve, of course,” Mina said, voice impatient. The light haired woman glanced the way the man had fled before turning back to Bianca. “Listen, if I ask you to bring me more of this and other medicine we may need, would you do it?” Bianca blinked in bemusement at her statement, not sure she understood whom “we” meant. Mina scoffed in irritation at the raven haired female. “Some of the other courtesans may need a doctor’s assistance, and you don’t seem to have the same prejudice as some of the others.”
Bianca’s eyes widened at what she was asking. “Wait! I’m not fully trained yet,” she hastened to make her understand. She indicated the vial which was already out of sight and tucked within her breasts. “I only know how to make certain medicines, poisons, and others.” She hesitated at the half-truth. “I can set a broken bone, align a dislocated limb, and staunch the flow of blood, but there is still so much for me to learn.”
Mina’s eyes lit up in determination. “You’re the one,” she decided on the spot. She grasped Bianca’s arm and started to drag her out of the alley, not caring even as the black eyed girl protested. “We’re going to meet my sisters! They’re going to love you!” Bianca prided herself in her quick wit and excellent vocabulary, but at that moment they both failed her as she stuttered a reply.
“I-I really c-can’t,” she tried to say, Mina shushing her quickly. They made quite the spectacle, an extravagantly dressed courtesan dragging a slender girl in men’s clothes down the street. When the dilapidated Rosa in Fiore came into view, Bianca wondered naught for the first time, how she had gotten herself into this mess. Sometimes, it didn’t really pay to be a Good Samaritan.
Bianca somehow ended up in the sitting room of the Rosa in Fiore, squeezed between two busty courtesans as their over exaggerated use of perfume threatened to activate her gag-reflex. However, it would be very rude to make a comment on it, and thus concentrated on breathing with her mouth despite the nasty feeling the perfume coating the back of her throat. It also wasn’t helping the situation much that some of the woman were commenting and nitpicking her clothes in distaste. Bianca wasn’t sure if it was the coarse material, or the fact that they were too masculine; perhaps both. The only thing she was certain of was that their chattering was giving her a headache.
A voice like silver bells cut through the cacophony in the room as the rest quieted down. “Unlikely the rest of you clucking hens, I highly doubt that this...child is actually trained in medicine. There is no man in his right state of mind that would ever teach a woman the knowledge of medicine.” The courtesan was quite stunning with pale skin, midnight black hair and her eyes were a light brown that surely served to captivate her clients. She didn’t look to that much older than Bianca herself, and she bristled defensively at the jab at her age.
“I have no reason to lie,” she spat as the older girl glared at her. “Mina insisted I come here, and I don’t have to stay and be insulted.” Bianca stood and had a momentary stare off with the other female, and then turned to leave. As she prepared to abandon the room, Mina shot to her feet as well.
“No, do not leave, per favore!” the blonde exclaimed. She immediately went to Bianca’s side as she tried to persuade her to stay. “Do not listen to Gabriele. She is just jealous of your education.” The mentioned woman protested the statement vehemently, but neither Mina nor the other courtesans paid her any mind. “We need someone that will come to attend to us when we are sick, or get injured by a rowdy client.”
Bianca hesitated since she did want to help, but she also didn’t want to get involved with them and wondered what her uncle would say. “I must speak to my uncle about this,” she started, lifting a hand to stop Mina’s protest. “This is not a decision I can make lightly, and especially since I’ve not yet completed my training.” Gabriele scoffed at her statement, but besides leveling her with an agitated glare, Bianca ignored her. To Mina she gave a strained smile. “Don’t forget to apply the salve twice a day.” The adolescent -because that’s what she was- grinned and pulled out the vial to show she still had it.
She nodded and excused herself before slipping out through the side door. It wouldn’t look right if someone saw her leaving a place of ill-repute, and was thankful that Mina had not forced her to enter through the front door. Also, her Zio may actually whip her for dishonoring him in such a manner. So, she wanted to speak with him before any of this got back to him, and it definitely would. At the same time she’d ask permission to “practice” her medicinal knowledge on the courtesans whenever they were in need of her services. Bianca wasn’t really sure how he would react, or what his opinion on these women was. She just knew that she really wanted to take on the challenge of her own patients. It would also benefit the courtesans, but that was beside the point.
Bianca peered around the corner of the building, and hurried across the cobblestone street before stopping in the shadow of the old structure that reminded her of an entrance to a crypt of some kind. The gate was locked as it had always been, and the structure itself was dilapidated and falling into disrepair. The same thing could be said about the buildings in the surrounding area, or rather, in the whole district. Granted, they were already half in ruins, but at least people were prospering in their businesses. Bianca shook these thoughts off and decided to hasten home immediately. So, with one last look at the bordello, she jogged away before disappearing around another corner.
~o~
The young woman’s pace was quick as she dashed through the alley, cutting across the street in order to reach another alleyway, and maintained to the back roads until she reached home. At seeing a cart outside made her pause, since she had been certain that today her uncle wouldn’t be accepting any patients. She knew that they were low on their stock of medicines, so to attend to a patient meant that it had to be an emergency.
Bianca decided to go in and see what was happening, pushing past the closed door to go inside. It took a moment for her eyes to adjust to the difference in light since it was dimmer inside compared to the brightness of the sun, but when she could finally see her eyes roamed the small waiting room. It was occupied by a young man around her age and noticed that he was frantically pacing. He stopped as she entered and his gaze immediately snapped in her direction. Bianca could admit if only to herself that she was momentarily taken by his dark brown eyes and attractive features, but quickly dismissed him as she moved through the curtain. He may have made a noise of protest but she paid him no heed as she entered the examination room.
She immediately noticed the unconscious young woman lying on the exam table, whom was clearly sedated, and next she spotted her uncle looking for something at the back of the room. “Zio,” she called, alerting him of her presence and was bemused as he stiffened defensively.
“What are you doing here so early?” he demanded angrily, further confusing her. She always assisted him with his patients and wondered why this time should be any different. Although, she hadn’t had any intention of helping him this time, but he didn’t know that.
He slowly turned his head to peer at her over his shoulder as he waited for her response. Bianca could not see his eyes through the holes of the mask he wore, and didn’t remember any instance in the last four years that she had seen him without it. She could scarcely remember what color his eyes were, or what his face looked like. While a part of her understood why he insisted on wearing it, she knew that it had nothing to do with his profession, because she had seen several doctors without them on.
Bianca forced her lips into a smile and decided that she’d wait for now to ask her questions until he finished with this patient. “I finished earlier than I expected, and after purchasing the seeds at the market, I came here.” She would wait until later to tell him about what had happened with the courtesan. The young woman moved to the curtain that led further into the house, and on a table within reach she removed the pouches that had the seeds aside. Bianca didn’t wait for him to say anything as she came back in and washed her hands properly, and came to stand by the sedated woman’s side.
By the way her feet hung over the edge, Bianca could tell she was awfully tall, and was undoubtedly several inches taller than Bianca herself. She had a lean body and strong arms, and she was also very beautiful. If Bianca were vain, then she’d be envious of this stunning creature. Also, not to mention the attractive young man that was anxiously waiting for her, which was obviously her husband, or lover; at the very least. She had never expressed an interest in the opposite sex, and much less marriage or any kind of relationship. However, that one outside had sparked an interest within her, and it was just a shame that he was taken.
“What is wrong with her?” she inquired curiously, since she didn’t look to be injured. The man’s hand caught her wrist in a firm grip as she started to pull back the sheet covering her to get a better assessment on whether there were any visible wounds.
“This is a special patient, who I need to attend to alone,” he warned, pulling her away so the sheet settled back into place. Bianca leveled him with a suspicious look, since he was acting very odd.
“What’s special about her?” she asked instead of backing off as she usually would when he showed any signs of agitation or anger. Bianca could tell the young woman was naked under the sheet, and her instincts were screaming at her not to leave him alone with the other female. She knew that her beloved uncle wasn’t right in the head, but he had raised her when her parents had abandoned her. He had taught her his trade where no one else would have. So, she loved him as if he was her father, but regardless, she would never allow him to harm another if she could prevent it.
Bianca felt his fingers biting viciously into her wrist and knew she’d have bruises there later, but schooled her face into a stony mask. “Is there a reason why I shouldn’t help you with this patient, when I’ve helped with countless others?” His grip tightened unbearably for a moment longer before he abruptly released her.
“No, of course not,” he conceded; voice like a sharp blade. His moved away from her as he quickly washed his hands, and then moved to the foot of the table. The man lifted the sheet up so her legs and groin area was exposed, and he spread open her legs and thighs without hesitation. Bianca made a small choking sound when he started to move his fingers over the folds of her sex, and his head shifted to smallest fraction and Bianca knew he was looking at her. “We’re looking for recent vaginal trauma,” he informed her matter-of-factly. However, she could still feel his eyes on her and knew he wanted to see her expressions. The man had always stated that a good Dottore could handle any patient regardless of personal discomfort, so Bianca refused to be scared off. Her lips pressed into a bloodless line as she watched and was prepared to assist him where she could. However, she was tempted to run off when he stuck two fingers inside of her.
After a few moments spent feeling around; he extracted the digits, and Bianca was horrified and disgusted as he lifted his mask just enough to sniff and then lick his fingers. When he was satisfied, he pushed the mask back down over his nose and mouth. “There’s blood and semen mixed in with her natural secretions,” he stated calmly, as if his actions weren’t bizarre at all. She opened her mouth to say something, but before she could broach the subject, her uncle moved past the curtain as he beckoned the young man forward.
When it closed after him, she quickly started to dress the young woman. As she did this, she could hear their hushed conversation from the other room, and Bianca stiffened when she clearly heard, “raped” and “recently”. Bianca flinched as she heard a resounding crack after a few tense moments of silence. She worked quietly and efficiently as she strained to hear more, but the conversation seemed to have degenerated to her uncle’s murmuring and the young man’s labored breathing.
She had just finished buttoning up her dress when she felt a hand at her shoulder, and her hand immediately went to her dagger as she turned. The features were more attractive up close even clouded over by grief as they were. Being that close she could see that his dark brown eyes had flecks of a lighter shade of brown, and his hair was the same color and curled at the ends. Her sharp eyes caught sight of a scar along his mandible, and that his nose wasn’t completely straight to indicate that it’d been broken before.
“May I?” he inquired, motioning to the unconscious female, and Bianca calmly stepped aside as she removed her hand from the hilt of her sheathed weapon. He was almost six feet tall, but she felt no threat from him, which was strange since she didn’t even know him.
Bianca watched as he lifted the other female as if she weighed nothing, and carried her out of the room with care. She followed them, past her uncle and out to where he was settling her within the back of the cart. There was hay piled on it with a quilt covering it, and once he finished making sure she was comfortable, he covered her with another worn quilt. Only then did he finally turn to look at her, and while he didn’t ask her what she wanted, his silence was an indication that she could speak and he would listen.
“If you truly love her, then don’t pressure her to talk. Just comfort her, and she’ll tell you eventually.” He opened his mouth to speak, but she held out her hand to forestall whatever he was about to say. “Just give her time.”
He stared at her for several silent moments before he finally nodded slightly. “Thank you,” he croaked, his Adams apple working over what was most likely a knot of emotion. Bianca couldn’t help but think that he must really love this young woman, and she hoped he wouldn’t reject her over not having her virtue intact.
When he climbed in and picked up the reigns, Bianca turned away to move back into the house, and without having asked either of their names. She remembered that she also hadn’t given hers, and thought that it was probably for the best.
When she entered the house once more, she vaguely glanced at the wall and the fist-shaped hole that now decorated it. It had been most likely caused by the younger male when the doctor told him the news that the young woman had been raped. Bianca wondered what else they had discussed, since she hadn’t heard the whole conversation. However, she knew better than to ask her uncle for any kind of information on any of his patients. Now thinking of her uncle, they had a pending conversation.
She pushed past the curtain and saw him in the far left corner, sitting at his desk and writing in his ledger. She cleared her throat but he didn’t cease his writing, and she was determined to have him listen. “Zio, I need to ask you something.”
His head finally lifted from what he’d been writing, but she knew it was most likely because he had finished. This particular assumption was confirmed as he set his writing utensil aside, but left the ledger open to allow the ink to dry. The man didn’t stand and merely peered up at her, feeling his eyes on her through that damned mask. At times she wanted to rip it away because it felt like without it he would once again be her beloved uncle, and there was almost a feeling of darkness around him when he wore the face covering.
Bianca inhaled deeply and started to explain what had happened to her after she’d left the market, and finally the courtesans’ petition. When he didn’t say anything right away, she was terrified that he was so furious that he couldn’t find the right words to express himself. However, she was surprised when his head tilted in an indication of thought, which meant he was giving the idea some consideration. When he finally spoke, she was pleasantly surprised at his response. “Si, I believe you are ready for that step,” he muttered thoughtfully. The fingers of his right hand tapped anxiously against the table without him noticing, and she was too excited at this opportunity to really pay attention. “You will...need to keep a detailed account of every patient you attend, and afterwards I will go over it to assess where you need more training.”
She was so happy that she flung herself at him, hugging him enthusiastically and Bianca felt him immediately stiffen against her. The young woman immediately realized her mistake and backed off, smiling sheepishly. “Mi dispiace,” she hastily apologized, not wanting him to change his mind in his ire. Bianca’s uncle had not hugged her shortly after she had turned fourteen, and besides the smack he’d given her earlier, he not touched her either. She had always asked herself the reason for this, but had never dared ask him what they were; had never questioned him on anything.
“Get out,” he hissed, hands shaking at his sides as if he were stopping himself from reaching out to throttle her. Bianca swallowed nervously before she scurried out of the room, and she could hear his labored breathing until she disappeared through the curtain leading further into the house.
~o~
The moonlight flittered in through the window of Bianca’s room, making the white bed sheets glow in the darkness. Her even breathing indicated that she was in a deep sleep as she lay on her back, the ebony strands of her hair spread around her head like a halo, and her pale skin shone as surreally as the blankets. The night was hot, so she had gone to sleep in only a Chemise that she never wore, since Bianca didn’t frequently wear dresses unless she was forced to.
If the room had been darker, the shadowed body in the corner of the room would have been missed, but the moonbeams revealed his unmoving figure. The leather doctor’s smock gave his identity away, but he was lacking his usual mask. His dark brown hair was wild and cascading down over his eyes so only his mouth; which was twisted in a parody of a smile, was visible. He moved slowly toward the bed until he was standing over his niece as his hands clenched into shaking fists at his sides. He’d lost count of the times he had stood in this very same spot in the last year.
When it had happened, Bianca had just turned fourteen and had flagrantly failed at creating an untraceable poison. She’d been out recovering ingredients from the garden despite the drizzle of rain coming down, and in a misstep she had fallen in a muddy puddle. The man had taken on look at her filthy state, and sent her at once to bathe. By that time the housemaid had water heated for one of theirs baths, since it was nearing the end of the work day and a lot of people wouldn’t come out to see him in the rain unless it was an emergency.
The older woman had carted Bianca off to her bath while he finished writing his notes, and when he finished he had closed up the front and went to retire. It was as he was passing the teenagers’ room, that the sound of sloughing water and giggling caught his attention. He sighed in exasperation and paused at the door before pushing it open as he inhaled to snap at his niece for playing in the bath like some child. However, the sight before him made the breath leave his lungs like a punch in the gut.
Bianca’s head was turned away from him so she hadn’t noticed that the door had opened, but he could see the curve of her back and the swell of her breasts. Her smooth, creamy skin was unblemished and he knew it was untouched, and the thought sent a sudden shudder of arousal through his body as it coiled in his loins. In that instant, he might have forgotten that she was his own flesh and blood if her voice hadn’t snapped him out of it. Bianca had started to sing as she splashed around like the five year old he had stolen, and it was the lullaby he had sung to her that night during their trip to Roma. He had sang her to sleep with it the nights she had sobbed on his shoulders for parents she believed had abandoned her, and if he had his way, that’s what she would always believe. That night, he had fled and tried to bury his salacious thoughts, but he had already seen her and the sight would not leave his mind. This is the reason he had stopped hugging and touching her, and retreated further and further away from her.
He crouched down by the bed as his eyes hungrily drank in her visible pale skin, and he lifted a trembling hand toward her slumbering features. His fingers had just brushed rosy cheeks when she moaned in her sleep and shifted away from his touch. The man curled his fingers away from her, and when he noticed her eyelashes flutter as if threatening to awaken, he straightened and silently exited the room. When her dark blue eyes opened a moment later, Bianca thought she saw a face staring at her through the crack in the door, but she had drifted off to sleep once more and in the morning she didn’t remember.
~o~
1497
Bianca entered the dilapidated building through the back door as was accustomed to and started on her routine. She set her bag on the table nearby and started to go over the supplies she may need that day, since the courtesans at times had all sorts of ailments and injuries. The fifteen year old remembered that last week Gabriele had a severe fever and Bianca had to stay almost three days at the Rosa in Fiore. Of course, she had sent a messenger to her uncle to inform him that she had to care for the young woman. Bianca had stayed in the room with her, and slept in a chair while she tried to cool her body temperature. It had been a pure miracle that she had managed to keep the taller woman in the bed, since she had tried to get up several times in her delirium. Finally, the fever had broken the third night but had maintained her stay there until she was sure Gabriele was out of danger. Bianca and she had come to a reluctant truce after months of animosity between both women.
The young woman was broken out of her habitual actions by loud crash followed by screams that originated from the back stairs leading up into the private rooms. She grabbed her bag and took the stairs two at a time, and then pushed through the other courtesans that had crowded around the door. Bianca was momentarily startled by the sight of the woman on the bed, blood heavily staining it and some splattered on the surrounding walls. Then she snapped into action as she pushed past the distraught woman next to her as she held onto her hand. “Get her out of here,” she commanded one of the others and they moved without question to obey her order.
Her name was Cristina and she was still breathing, but the two stab wounds on her midsection were oozing dangerous amounts of blood. Bianca judged by the color of the blood that no major organs had been punctured. However, if she didn’t stop the bleeding soon then she’d die of blood loss.
“Give me hot water and clean rags, and someone start a fire!” There was a flurry of movement as they rushed off to obey her order. Meanwhile, Bianca had to cut away her clothing, and then used the bandages that she had in her bag to try and staunch the flow of blood. Her head snapped toward the fire place and saw Mina making the fire, and moments’ later one of the courtesans rushed in with a pot of clean, cold water which she set on the hearth in the fire place.
When the water was hot enough they brought it over to Bianca’s side along with the rags which they had used by cutting up a bed sheet. She cleaned the wound with soap and the water, and then dug her fingers in each of the stab wounds to make sure there were no fragments of metal or anything that could cause infection. When she was absolutely sure she glanced up at the delirious woman that looked on the verge of fainting. “I have to cauterize the wound or you’ll bleed to death,” she informed the barely conscious woman. Cristina may have made a sound of protest, but Bianca was trying to save her life and had no time for arguments. So, she motioned toward Mina who brought over the hot fireplace poker and without waiting, she pressed it to the first wound. Cristina wailed in pain and tried to buck her off. “Hold her!” she snapped at Mina, who immediately surged forward on top of her friend. She wanted to reassure the sobbing woman that the pain was almost over, but she had no time and pressed the burning metal to the second injury.
Bianca handed over the poker to another courtesan and inspected the burns to make sure the holes had closed, and was relieved or she didn’t have to do it again. She leaned toward Cristina to check her over, but Cristina pushed her away as she wept into Mina’s shoulder, who embraced her. Bianca sighed but moved away all the same as she grabbed her bag. “She needs complete bed rest.” Mina glanced helplessly at her, but Bianca held out a placating hand. “Stay with her,” she reassured her.
Once she left the room, she was met by Gabriele as they eyed one another uncertainly. It was the courtesan that spoke first. “You did what you had to do to save her life.” She moved past her, bumping her good-naturedly as she went. Bianca chuckled with a nod and moved back downstairs.
She was writing in her ledger what had happened and the actions she’d taken to cure the victim when Mina entered the room. The black haired young woman glanced at her friend. “What happened?” she asked her. Bianca had noticed several things when she had entered that room, and the first had been that there had been a struggle judging by the broken pieces of furniture. The second thing was the open balcony door, which had broken glass to indicate that they’d been flung open in a rush. Finally, the door of the room had looked to have suffered damage and was even off one of its hinges.
Mina inhaled deeply before practically collapsing in the chair across from her. There were blood stains on her beautiful flowing orange dress as well as a smear across her right cheek. “Cristina had a client that came very regularly, but would get easily jealous of her other clients. He offered to get out of this life, but she refused since she stated that she loved this kind of life. He left but swore that she would regret this decision.” The blonde girl started to notice the blood that was staining her dress and wrinkled her nose in disgust. “Today he barged in, took Cristina by force, and locked them up in her room. We called for help from the guards and they came running inside. That’s when we heard her scream and they knocked down the door, and Joanna just started screaming when she saw Cristina.” Mina shook her head as she rubbed at her bloodshot eyes, and Bianca knew she had been crying. “He escaped through the balcony doors and the guards gave chase. That’s when you came in,” she offered a smile, “and saved Cristina’s life. You were amazing!”
Bianca felt her face start to heat up as she cleared her throat. “I just did what I’m paid to do. It was nothing more than my duty.” Secretly, she was giddy with joy because it was her first crisis and she had saved her patient!
~o~
It was the creaking of the floorboards that alerted them that they had company. The maid wasn’t there that night, and her uncle never made any unnecessary noise. Bianca knew this was someone that did not live here and she silently slipped out of bed with her dagger in hand. She peered through the crack in her door out into the hallway and saw several figures moving carefully down from the front. There were at least four of them and what she could see in the faint moonlight revealed that they were soldiers. Bianca knew that there was no good reason for them being there, and gripped her weapon tighter as two came toward her door.
She scurried behind the door without making a sound and when it opened all the guards would see was her empty, unmade bed. Bianca heard one of them curse as the other went further into the room. Her fingers were going numb with how tight she was holding the hilt of her dagger. After the man finished searching the room and found no sign of her, both of them left and the door slammed after them. Bianca didn’t allow herself even a sigh of relief as she hurried to get dressed. She didn’t worry that they would surprise her uncle, since she knew he had heard them before she had.
The sound of a scuffle interrupted her as she pulled on her clothes, and immediately grabbed up her dagger and rushed out of the room. Bianca was intercepted halfway down the hall by a tall, brute of a man that caught her up as she screamed. She flailed her arm as she tried to at least scratch him with her weapon, but his hold was unyielding. The blade of the knife was coated in her poison that she had just finished making, but which hadn’t been tested yet. Even if she hadn’t gotten the effect she wanted, at least the poison would be enough to keep him from harming her.
Bianca gasped as she was bodily lifted off her feet and the man started to carry her off. “While they interrogate the good doctor, why don’t you and I have some fun?” he whispered in her ear. Her eyes widened at his words and the meaning behind them, and she started to struggle anew. He simply laughed and carried on like he was carrying a child throwing a temper tantrum.
The young woman truly thought she was lost, but there was a commotion behind them followed by screams. When his hold faltered, she struck like a cobra and drove the knife into his thigh. He screamed and flung her away from him as her body careened through the air before hitting the wall. Bianca was dazed from the hit and lay in a heap on the floor for several seconds. The giant man tried to come after her but staggered to a stop as his hand went to his face. He shook his head as if trying to wake up, but his limbs felt weighed down and soon dropped to his knees. His eyes lifted toward Bianca who was watching him with bleary cobalt eyes, and his own eyes rolled into the back of his head before collapsing.
Bianca’s head was spinning from having hit it, but she had to get up and struggled to her feet. She had managed to right herself when the man was at her side with a steadying hand at her elbow. “I’m alright,” she panted.
The doctor glanced at the dead soldier, which had died within seconds of being stabbed with a poisoned dagger. His hand twitched at his side at remembering she had finished another batch of poison. She hadn’t given him yet because she had been busy with the courtesans, and his patients had piled up since he didn’t have Bianca to help him. “Get your things. We are leaving in one minute.” He slipped away, disappearing into the darkness and never igniting a single lamp. Bianca had already hastily packed her bag when the soldiers had left her room earlier, and now lit a lantern and started to check over the corpse. From what she could see, there was no change in the skin, and the pupils were normal as well. However, when she came to the mouth is where she found the evidence. There were white spots on the roof of the mouth that were not normal.
Bianca heard the man returning, but it was the clinking of the bottles of medicines that alerted her and not his steps. She scrambled away from the man and went into her room to get her own two bags. One was her clothing and the other was her own medicines and poisons. As they left the house, they disappeared into the darkened streets of Roma. Bianca didn’t know what they had wanted with them, but she did know that they could never return here.
~o~
1500
The eighteen year old woman paced back and forth in the ruins of the building, in her hand the syringe that she had found next to Gabriele’s body, and in her mind a hundred questions that she was afraid to ask. However, she knew that she had to ask them, because her friend was dead. She needed to know.
Bianca found her uncle at his stand and saw that he had just sold a vial of medicine. She waited until the man had left to approach, the man turning immediately in her direction to indicate that he had seen her right away. “Shouldn’t you be at the Rosa in Fiore?” he asked her. Indeed, she should be there right now, but this was a more pressing matter.
Rather than answer him, she lifted the syringe that still had the remaining poison inside of it. “I found this next to the corpse of a friend of mine,” she stated bluntly. She watched the movement of his body to see if he tensed or shifted nervously, but the man was unflinching. “Who are you selling my poison to?”
The man finally moved, striding toward her and taking the object in her hand. His head lowered as he seemed to study it as well as the liquid that remained inside. “How are you so certain that this is your poison?” He twirled it in his hand with a familiarity that chilled her. “This is a basic instrument used by a doctor, and the liquid inside could be any manner of medicine or poison.”
Bianca faltered at his words, opening her mouth to speak but not knowing what to say. He had a point about the syringe and the liquid. Besides, she hadn’t had any time to check over the body before she had to flee lest she get blamed, and thus didn’t know if she had the spots on the roof of her mouth.
The girl shuffled nervously as his head lifted and she knew he was looking right at her. “I will test it to make sure, but you can rest assured that it is not yours.” His leather gloves creaked as they tightened on the instrument before he turned away from her. Bianca wanted to take it back and do her own tests, because she was the best person to do it since she was the creator of the poison. However, her courage dissolved as he turned sharply toward her and she swallowed nervously. “Shouldn’t you be on your way?”
She nodded hastily as she stepped back. “Uh, yes, I should be going now.” Bianca bowed her head toward him before fleeing from the square back toward the Rosa in Fiore. As she went she was filled with doubt and wondered how she could have ever thought that her uncle would willingly sell the poison to someone that would hurt another.
When Bianca arrived at the brothel and was told of her raven-haired friend’s death, her near collapse was not faked because she felt she’d failed Gabriele.
~o~
1501
The second death happened many months after the first, however, it was certainly not from lack of trying. Bianca had heard that there was a man lurking outside the Rosa in Fiore that was harassing, and at times, injuring them. She had been forced to go there more often than the once a week as she’d been doing before. Mina had been the one that informed her that the second victim was Cristina, who had been found murdered in the back courtyard. At first they believed it to be the same man that had attacked her, but they quickly learned that he was in a prison in Venezia. Also, Joanna had seen a glimpse of the culprit, and had described a distinct doctor’s black leather smock. The news had filled her with a sickening feeling of dread, and it gnawed at her insides until she was finally driven to where she stood now.
Her cobalt eyes stared down at the sheet that covered Cristina’s corpse, but she made no more to pull it back as her fingers curled and uncurled at her sides. The young woman was in denial; knew she was in denial, but even so Bianca couldn’t quite make her hand move. She had come with the excuse that she wanted to pay her respects, but she wasn’t doing that either. Soon, rigor mortis would set in, but not even that thought moved her. The thing that finally made her hands reach out and open Cristina’s mouth was the fact that the girls’ life had once been in her hands. Bianca had saved her life, and someone had extinguished it, and there were no answers. She had to know despite what answer she got.
The lamp was pulled closer to better see inside her mouth, which had already started to emit an unpleasant odor. When she finally saw the white spots, Bianca dropped the lantern as she staggered back. The sound of the glass breaking brought unwanted attention of her blonde friend. “Bianca, what has happened? Is everything alright?”
Bianca glanced at the nineteen year old courtesan, and the anguish must have been as plain as day on her face for Mina went immediately to her side. “Oh Bianca,” she gasped, arms going around her in a comforting embrace. The ebony haired woman cringed away from her touch as Mina gave her a wounded look. “What’s the matter?”
Her heart was heavy and afflicted with grief that she couldn’t speak. Bianca glanced at Cristina’s pale face and then back to Mina’s rosy cheeks. “I h-have to go,” she choked. Before the other could speak, Bianca turned to flee the room, and ignored Mina’s urgent calls.
~o~
Bianca arrived at their house when the sun was highest in the sky, but soon discovered that it was empty. She hurried further into the house and without hesitation shoved past the door of her uncle’s room. “Zio! Are you here? I need to speak with you!” There was no answer but despite this searched even the restroom, but found no one. Bianca carded slender fingers through her hair and loosened the pins so cascaded down her back. She was about to leave the room when something on the nightstand caught her eye; her uncle’s ledger.
There was no hesitation this time, and especially not after what she had discovered as she strode forward and picked it up. The first few pages were nothing more than notes on patients, but as she went further on she read things that made her sick.
‘April 11, 1500
Bianca is working with the whores today. Initially, I allowed this fancy of hers to further her skills, but it has proved worrisome. She accidentally discovered the syringe besides that puttana’s body, and has started asking questions. It’s unclear how long I can keep her in the dark, and my latest indulgence isn’t helping matters either. However, I simply couldn’t refuse this time, since that whore’s hair was almost exactly the same as my angels’. It’s my wish to run my hands through hers the way I did that filthy troia’s hair, but it’s not the same.
The smell and feel of her skin was too different, and the small whimpers were not the same as she makes while she sleeps. For me the differences were too great that I simply couldn’t stay my hand. I intended only for her to sleep, but the pinprick of the needle caused her to react violently. When I threw her against the wall, I didn’t expect her head to crack open like a melon. She was much too fragile, and nothing in comparison to my angel; to my Bianca.’
Bianca’s labored breathing was the only thing that was heard for several moments before she jerked away from the ledger as if it had scalded her. Her stomach heaved at remembering the words she had read there before she promptly emptied her stomach on the floor. When she had thrown up everything and only bile and stomach acid came up, and tears were running down her face did she straighten. “Mio dio, no,” she sobbed, stumbling out of the room.
She was moving out of the house without even cleaning herself up and looked like a mad woman, but she didn’t care. Bianca was determined to find her uncle before the day was over.
Bianca was almost to the area where the doctor’s stand was located at when she noticed a bloody trail leading into the alley. She couldn’t tear her eyes from it and unconsciously her feet led her down the dark alleyway, until finally she came upon a sight that broke her heart in two. “M-Mina?” she sobbed, interrupting the weeping woman at her side. The blonde woman was collapsed against a crumpled wall of what remained of a building, and the smear of blood lead down to where her caved in skull was resting. Mina looked like a broken doll, and Bianca knew who had done this.
“What are you doing here?!” Joanna demanded angrily. She stood from where she had been crying over her friend’s body; Bianca’s friend as well. “This is what you both planned, isn’t it? You came and tricked us all with your big, innocent eyes and then let loose the monstro into our midst! You killed Gabriele, Cristina and Mina as surely as your uncle, Malfatto!”
A tear slid down her cheek as she only stared at her friend’s bloodied face. She had done this, because as she had healed their wounds and tried to help, she had really been leading them into danger. Bianca had killed her friends as surely as if she had held the syringe herself. Her hand slid down to the daggers at her waist and unsheathed one as Joanna stilled in fear. “You don’t need to worry about the monster waiting in the shadows anymore,” she whispered, as more tears slid down her face. “I will personally end his reign of terror.” Without another word, she ran in the direction of her uncle’s stand.
She found him standing where she knew he would be, the dagger still clenched in a white knuckled grip. His head lifted toward her and this time saw him stiffen at seeing the weapon in her hand, and the grief on her face. In that instant, he realized that she knew. “So, have you come to kill me?” He made no move to run or withdraw a weapon of his own.
Bianca screamed as she lunged at him, slashing at him with a frantic fervor that he dodged again and again. He didn’t try to attack her once, but she didn’t stop her assault on him. She wanted him dead.
During a swing, he caught her wrist and twisted her arm behind her back. She could feel his body at her back and his mask pressed against the back of her throat. “Did you really think you could harm me, Bianca?” he whispered, his hot breath warming the material of his face covering against her skin. “Is that whore more important to you, that you’d kill your beloved uncle?”
The young woman grunted as she struggled to throw him off, but his hold was tenacious. “You’re no kin to me, figlio di puttana!” she spat. She cried out as his fingers bit viciously into her wrist. “You sick fucker! Are you going to kill me as well?” He chuckled and the sound reverberated against her neck and sent a shudder of horror throughout her body. While she felt his hand move across her flat belly, she was slowly and discreetly pulling out a thin blade from a sheath she had had hidden within her sleeve.
When his hand was close enough and almost at her breast, she moved and drove the knife as hard as she could through his gloved hand. The man yelped in pain to show that it had hit its mark, and he threw her away from him. She crashed against the stand as the dagger went flying from her hand, and crumpled in a dazed heap. As she tried to get her bearings, she heard her uncle shout and start to run off. She pulled herself up to see what was happening, and was in time to see a slender figure in black attire launch herself at her faltering uncle and drive a blade at her wrist into his throat. Bianca knew that had he not been poisoned by her seconds earlier, they would not have had a chance to catch and kill him.
A male figure in matching black robes appeared in Bianca’s line of vision as he peered down at her. “Are you alright?” He glanced at Malfatto’s downed figure and then the young woman who was a moment ago collapsed against the doctor’s stand. “Do you know that man?” She saw his hand move toward the sword at his side and Bianca struck first, using a dagger she’d pulled from her boot to slash at him. It only nicked the back of his hand as he jumped away, but it was all that was needed, and in minutes it would take effect. Already she saw him stagger back before he collapsed as he lost feeling in his arms and legs first, and soon he’d be paralyzed. It would eventually wear off, but would serve to give her time to flee.
She heard a shout but ignored it as she dashed around the corner and out into the crowded streets. The female in black was chasing her, but soon she managed to lose her tail within the market. Bianca knew how to move like water through a crowd, become one with it and seemingly disappear. This is what she did, and soon the young woman following her had lost sight of her while Bianca stuck to the alleyway until she was far away from there. Now, Bianca needed to get home and pack what she could, and then she would leave Roma. At the moment, the only place she could run to was back to Venezia, even when there was nothing for her there. However, it was better than remaining here and being hunted down for the sins committed by Malfatto.-