Inhuman: Anastasia's segment

Chapter VIII

Along the ride, the Uber driver attempted to make small talk with Kalyan, who was reluctant to engage in legitimate conversation of any sort. They remained in awkward silence until the car pulled up to the hospital. Kalyan handed the driver a handful of cash and stepped out of the car.

The hospital was a large, rectangular, beige building with two sliding doors for an entrance and widows scattering the outer walls. A large bright red sign that read out "Medical Center" with a large red cross symbol sat on the apex of the building, the "Medical" part of the sign completely out and the 'C' of "Center" flashing.

Kalyan reluctantly entered through the sliding doors and glanced around the room, as if he expected to be able to see anything other than shaky silhouettes. The floors were a sleek white with carpets underneath the areas with groups of couches and coffee tables. There were hallways leading to separate rooms on either side of the front desk, which had computers on the left and right, each with a tired-looking person behind it.

He stepped up to the right side and cleared his throat, "Excuse me?"

The tall, dark skinned woman behind the desk glanced over her computer, pushing up her thick glasses, "Oh! Hello there! How can I help you?"

Kalyan fidgeted with his hands nervously, "I made an appointment over the phone to uh... see my wife before they bury her. Uh- Anastasia Huxley. That's her name."

"Oh! The morgue! Of course, of course," she nodded, "I'm sorry for your loss." She pressed a few buttons on her computer before removing a slip of paper from the printer between the desks, "Here! The morticians will help you out!"

Kalyan thanked her and took the sheet, pulling out his phone and scanning the information. The virtual assistant read out a room number, basement: door thirteen, and Anastasia's locker number, 40. He shoved it into his pocket and strode down the hall, feeling the room labels until he recognised the number thirteen in braille. He inhaled and exhaled shakily before turning the doorknob and stepping down the cold, dark staircase.

It became even more frigid the farther he went, before he could see his breath linger in the air after exhaling. As he made it down the stairs, he could hear an oddly familiar soft humming sound. He turned the corner, entering the wide and spacious mortuary, full of morgue lockers, each labeled with a number. Kalyan took in the horrid stench and irritating whirring sound that seemingly bounced around the room as he shivered from the temperature. The room had dim light, and with each step he took, he could hear a clack louder than his own thoughts. Kalyan was unable to see the man laying on the ground, seemingly unconscious with a short woman standing above him.

She glanced up and waved aggressively, "Oh! Kalyan!!! Hey!"

"...Laverna?! What are you- how- What're you doing here?!" Kalyan shouted with an exasperated tone.

Laverna blew a raspberry as she dragged the unconscious man's body to the wall and leaned him against it, "You think I actually trusted a blind man to kidnap his wife's corpse and not get caught? Nuh-uh, mate."

Kalyan paused, rubbing the back of his head sheepishly, "Fair point."

She skipped over to the short, blind man, "What's the locker number?"

"Fourty."

Laverna nodded and saluted to Kalyan, knowing full well he was unable to see her in the dim lighting. She scurried around the morgue, glancing at each locker to find the correct number. Her eyes eventually laid upon locker fourty. 

She examined the lock thoroughly before turning to Kalyan and shouting, "Yo! You want me to unlock it or just break it?"

"Unlock. Unlock it, please," Kalyan muttered nervously.

Laverna offered a thumbs up Kalyan was unaware of as she turned back to the lock and began spinning the numbers around vigorously. 

After nearly half an hour, Laverna exclaimed her success with triumph. She pulled the locker door open and grinned smugly at Kalyan, who glanced around with confusion. In one quick tug, the drawer was yanked out, revealing Anastasia's corpse covered by a thin blanket. 

Laverna hopped up and ran over to Kalyan, "Gimme the body bag!"

Kalyan handed it to her hesitantly, "You found her?"

"Duh!" She laughed as she hurried back to the locker and carefully stuffed Anastasia into the bag, "Now, let's escape in a non-suspicious way!" She pulled off the unconscious man's coat and supplies to wear for herself before snagging a cart, loading the body bag onto it, and covering it with the sheet. Laverna closed and locked Anastasia's locker, took Kalyan's hand, and dragged him out of the mortuary, pushing Anastasia's body on a cart. 

Once up the stairs, Kalyan could see a tad more and squinted at the cart, "You didn't."

"Oh I totally did," Laverna smirked, pushing the car towards the back doors. 

"How are you so calm about stealing a body?!"

"Done it before, dingus," Laverna retorted quietly as they passed a few doctors who eyed them suspiciously. 

Kalyan tensed, but continued to follow her, "You're undoubtedly nuts."

She smirked, "I wear that label with the same amount of pride as my name."

"Oh lord."

A doctor with pale skin and dull red hair, which was very evidently balding, approached the duo with a skeptical expression, "Excuse me? I don't appear to recognise you two."

Kalyan paused in fear, "We're- I'm a patient's Husband."

"I'm Laverna! Hi there!"

The doctor frowned, "Laverna?"

She let go of the cart, guiding Kalyan's hands to the rail to hold it in place, "Laverna! Do you know what that means?"

"Uh. The latin goddess of-"

Laverna's hands moved quicker than the doctor could see as she made violent contact with the left side of his abdomen and chelidon before quickly shifting upward and jabbing at the side of his head and neck. The doctor collapsed to the ground, twitching and muttering. Laverna turned back to the cart and resumed pushing it. 

Kalyan was stunned, "Did you just kill him?"

"Nah, he won't die. We're in a hospital. It's Dim Mak, a martial arts style. Pretty neat huh?"

"Oh god."