Darkness Girl: Trickster God

Chapter Forty-Five: Anatomy of Killer

'Oh my, that's a lot of injuries.' 

The head medic smiled at Regan over her clipboard. She reminded Regan of one of those little bobble head dolls that insufferable people put on the dashboards of their cars. The name tag on her chest said 'Cesca' in swirling, cursive script that was so decorative as to be almost illegible. There was a gold star stuck next to it. 

'She's had an eventful life,' said Sarafina. 

Regan stood in her underwear with her arms outstretched as the medic squatted down to examine the bandaged wound across her stomach. She gave it an experimental prod that made her flinch. 

Regan glared down at her. 'Here's a medical tip: stop that.' 

'Did that hurt?' 

'Are you serious?' 

'They saved my most interesting candidate for last. I thought all of the medical exams were over.' 

'There were special circumstances.' 

Cesca moved up to Regan's broken fingers and examined the tight wrappings. 'So it would seem. This is good work, Sarafina,' 

Sarafina smiled. She lay behind Regan on the examination bed, spinning a lollipop between her fingers. There was a large glass jar of them on a grey metal desk in the corner of the room. 

'Is there a reason why she gets to be here?' said Regan, motioning to Sarafina with her head. 

'Moral support?' said Sarafina. 

Cesca shrugged. 'As a medic, she's entitled to sit in on examinations.' 

There was something crisp and antiseptic about Cesca, as if she'd been poured out of a plastic mold. Her platinum blonde hair fell in perfect ringlets around a face that was almost eerie in its symmetry. She wore a spotless white dress and lab coat that looked like they could light up a darkened room. 

She flipped some pages on the clipboard and made a note on the check list at the bottom. 

'Show me your back,' she said. 

Regan turned around. 

'Sarafina tells me you helped her and Forester out of some difficulty.' 

Regan looked at Sarafina, lying on the bed. Sarafina pretended not to notice. 'Is that what they called it?' 

'Was everyone okay?' 

Regan caught the inflection in Cesca's voice that hinted at enough subtext to fill a substantial library. 

'Eva doesn't remember anything and Forester's healing up well,' said Sarafina. 

Regan shrugged. 'It's lucky for him that stupidity isn't always terminal.' 

Cesca put a thoughtful finger on her lips. 'He should probably come by to get a check-up.' 

'For what? Hurt feelings?' 

There was a moment of awkward silence that Cesca filled by placing a stethoscope on Regan's back. She listened for a moment, then straightened up and cleared her throat. 

'Your body's a wreck, but you seem functional,' she said. 'I'm going to give you a pass on your medical.' 

Sarafina gave a small cheer. 

Regan picked up a loose fitting hospital gown from the end of the examination bed and slipped it over her head. 'What now?' 

'You can collect your clothes from downstairs and go,' said Cesca. 'This part of your assessment is over.'