The Red Rose

Chapter XIV

After returning home from Juanpi and Sebastian's place, their relatives told us that their grandfather was very ill and had to be hospitalized. I could hear an argument that seemed to be getting stronger among the relatives regarding the grandfather's state of health.

Some debated that it was better for him to spend his last moments at home, with family, while most thought he should go to the hospital, and that everything possible should be done to keep him alive and improve his health.

"They're crazy," Sebastian said, looking at his father and uncles with disapproval.

"Mom wants him to have a dignified death, together with us," Juanpi murmured.

I felt very out of place. The grandfather's sons made the decision to admit him to the nearby clinic and intubate him, as he could not eat. They also gave precise instructions for him to have all possible medications, as the gentleman in question suffered from senile dementia and advanced cancer.

Juanpi's mother was very angry about the miserable conditions in which they had left her father, who every night complained of pain, and in his eyes, you could see the worn-out look of a man who only wants to leave, but his own children seem unwilling to accept that at almost a hundred years old, nothing more could be done.

After that horrible scenario, Juanpi and I returned to his computer to record data about the Alicanto while I gave him the details.

"Size?" Juanpi asked.

"Like a swan," I replied.

"Okay, okay, I'll take notes," Juanpi said as he updated the Bestiary. Sebastian, on the other hand, continued making sketches of the Alicanto while I described its appearance. He was a very good artist; I could barely draw stick figures, let alone a decent triangle.

I also gave him more details about the Trauco, and while Sebastian drew, Juanpi commented:

"It really seems like a kind of dwarf."

"It's a freaking dwarf! A horny dwarf!" Sebastian laughed.

"It's not funny, Seba. This thing has traumatized and harmed many women, if you'd seen them..." I said.

"And I bet you consoled them," he joked, winking at me.

"Come on, Seba!" Juanpi protested. "And would you dare to pick up the soap? Like in school?" he asked.

Sebastian opened his eyes and calmed down a bit, I think Juanpi had reminded him of an uncomfortable moment. Juanpi looked at me and explained with a smile:

"He was a bully, initially making silly and somewhat denigrating jokes, but later in his teens, his jokes really went too far, especially in the school showers. It was really uncomfortable. We finally reported him to the principal. If you'd seen how Sebastian fought with the guy. It was like the Rocky movie! He only lacked screaming, 'Adriaan!' Hahaha."

They both laughed, but Sebastian seemed a little uncomfortable, as the bully was in his class, not Juanpi's. Who knows what things he saw that made him get into such a violent fight with the guy, who was expelled.

After a few days, while I was debating whether to return home to deal with the Trauco or stay a little longer to keep an eye on Juanpi's family, I pondered deeply about the strange scent I caught along with the vampires'. It was similar to one of theirs but had a honey-like touch. I couldn't really decide what kind of being would have such a peculiar essence.

At night, we sat at the computer to review the bestiary, and Juanpi inserted a USB drive into the computer. After booting the system from the USB and entering a new kind of system, he started checking his secret stuff. While browsing through pages, he finally exclaimed: