House of Horrors

Chapter Nine- Reunited!

Ethan, Mia, and I were immediately taken to a hospital to rest and recover. Chris made sure to give the hospital my information, then he came into my room, on the phone.

"I need you to come down to the hospital. Yes, it's absolutely necessary. Yes, you need to bring her here. Trust me, everything is fine. It's a surprise. Just get down here!" And with that, he hung up.

"Chris, who was that?" I asked.

"I just got off the phone with Leon. He and Scarllete should be down here soon." He said, and I got the biggest smile on my face. Finally, after three long years, I was going to be able to see my family again! Chris and I made small talk while we waited. I had given him the files that I had found in the lab in the salt mines. As he was looking through them, I sighed.

"Chris? Is...is it wrong that I feel sorry for Eveline?" I asked. He looked up at me.

"No. You're an empathetic person. You feel everyone's emotions very deeply and take all their problems to heart. It's natural for you to feel sorry for her. Can I ask why you do, though?" He asked. I sighed again.

"Yes, she had me trapped for three years against my will, but...when I read those files...all I could see was myself...what I would have been had Leon not rescued me when he did." I said. I looked up at him. "Chris...Eveline is what I was always supposed to be. The end product that my father wanted when he did those experiments on me. The perfect biological weapon that could be used in warfare to infiltrate and destroy...had I not gotten out of Raccoon City...had I never met Leon...Eveline wouldn't have been "E-001"...she would have been Carter Wesker 2.0." I said, my voice getting quieter as I spoke. Chris stood from his chair, sat beside me on the bed, and hugged me tight. I held the tears back as I returned the hug.

"Carter, please don't think that! You were not meant to be a bio-weapon. You are, and were always meant to be, Carter Kennedy. Okay?" He said. I nodded.

"Thank you, Chris." I said. There was a knock on the door, and a nurse poked her head in.

"Mr. Redfield? Leon Kennedy is here looking for you." She said. I smiled brightly, and Chris helped me stand.

"Come on, let's go see them." He said. I nodded, and followed him out, pulling the IV stand with me, as I had an IV in for fluids and medicine. Once we got down to the first floor, Chris went ahead to meet Leon. He didn't see me yet, and I watched Chris pick up a little girl, about four years old, and toss her lightly into the air. I smiled, seeing the jet black hair on her head. I bit my lip, trying not to cry, and waited for Chris to bring their attention to me. I saw Chris point in my direction, and my stomach did flips when Leon looked over at me. I saw his eyes widen, and he froze in place. I smiled a little, and waved a bit at him. He didn't say anything, but instead, he ran over to me, engulfing me in his arms. I returned the hug, holding him as tightly as he held me. His shoulders were shaking as he held me, and I knew that he was crying, so I let my own tears flow as well. Now, we were both a sobbing mess! He pulled away from the hug to look at my face. He gently wiped my tears away with his thumb, and I returned the gesture.

"Carter, I can't believe you're here! I thought you were..." He couldn't finish his sentence, and I could see in his eyes how badly he had been hurting since I was gone.

"Leon, I...I'm so sorry!" I said, as I began crying more. My tears had now turned into heaving sobs that wracked my body, to the point that I couldn't even stand. I collapsed to my knees on the floor, Leon following me down, and kneeling in front of me. "I-it was only supposed to be recon! In and out! I never meant to get caught!! If I had known what was going on...I-I never would have...I-I never should have...I'm so sorry!" I sobbed. He held me again, and gently rubbed my back.

"Hey, Carter, easy. It wasn't your fault. There's no way that you could have known what was going on in that house!" He said. I looked up at him.

"I never should have agreed to go in the first place! I left you all alone with Scarllete for three years! I-I feel like the worst person in the world! You deserve a better wife and Scarllete deserves a better mother!" I sobbed, burying my face in his chest again. He pulled away, and gently made me look at him.

"Hey, I don't wanna hear talk like that! Like I said, you couldn't have known what was going to happen. You were asked to go in for possible bio-weapon activity. It wasn't even definite that there was anything going on in that house. They just thought there was. You couldn't have know what was going to happen." He said. I nodded a little. "And I don't want a "better" wife. I want you. I love you, and nothing is going to change that." He said. I sniffed.

"But...but I abandoned you! How can you look past that so easily??" I asked. He laughed a little here.

"Because you didn't! You didn't leave intentionally, it was a freak accident! It wasn't your fault! You didn't abandon me, and you didn't abandon Scar. Okay?" He asked. I nodded, feeling much better. Chris walked over then.

"Hey, Carter, I think someone wants to meet you." He said, and set the little girl down on her feet. She hid behind Chris a little. I covered my hand with my mouth. Scarllete...she looked so much like Leon, save for my black hair and green eyes that she had. Leon held out his hand to her. She took his hand, and came over to him.

"Hey, baby girl, it's okay, this is someone that I want you to meet. Do you recognize her from the pictures I showed you?" He asked. She squinted her eyes at me, looking me up and down. After a few silent minutes, her eyes widened, lighting up.

"MAMA!!" She screamed, and tackled me to the ground. I laughed as we fell, and I hugged her tightly, now crying again.

"Scarllete! Sweetheart, I missed you so much!! I'm so glad to see you!!"