It was freezing. Caleb watched as Luna Wrapped her fur cape a little tighter around her torso to ward off the cold. Lna spoke up then, "The smell isn't so bad."She countered, as they walked further into the large abandoned storehouse.
Caleb sad nothing. Instead he grabbed one of the many brass lanterns that were lit for their use. He went back over to Luna and continued walking further still. Caleb saw officer Willis guarding the entrance. He was still a a ways away. He spoke to Luna then in a hushed tone to prepare her for what was to come.
"Officer Willis will need to ask us some questions about who we are searching for."He informed her.
They came to wall made of glass. Inside, he could see the slabs with white sheets over them. He knew underneath those sheets were unclaimed corpses. He counted 20 by sight. There was a glass door. In front of it stood Officer Chester Willis.
Officer Willis had been assigned to this part of the village for the past eight years. He was to keep the peace at the market, now his sole job was to check in the corpses and keep them from being stolen, on occasion. Officer Willis wore a black suit with a silver five-pointed star badge on the right side of his upper chest, beside his jacket lapel. He wore a black bowler hat and had a thick chocolate brown mustache. Caleb remembered his manners and decided to use them on the Officer.
"Good morning to you, Officer WIllis. We have come to claim one of our kin." He stated. He knew he sounded confident, but deep down he was a nervous wreck.
The Officer took stock of them both, "Ain't you the Blacksmith's son?" He looked directly at Caleb when he asked his forward question.
Caleb swallowed hard and answered, "Yes."
The Officer crossed the distance between them. He stood a few inches in front of Luna and Caleb. He looked at Caleb and spoke once more, "What are you doing with the likes of this one?"
With his father's words at the forefront of his mind, Caleb held his tongue.
Instead of giving the Officer a piece of his mind he decided to let it go and play his part, which was the helpful friend of Sylvie.
"Officer, I am assisting her in identifying someone she may have possibly lost in the fire." While Caleb explained their motive, he couldn't help but notice the Officer was too busy leering at Luna.He watched her through his peripheral to see if she made any reaction to Officer Willis' rude behavior.She gave no outward sign of annoyance.Caleb didn't know how she did it. Her patience was superhuman. After hearing Caleb's valid explanation, the Officer scoffed then turned his full attention to Luna. This time he used his size to try to intimidate her as he spoke.
"Who did you lose, poppit?A favorite John who had a magic purse or a wh*re friend?" He smirked at his lude comments. Thinking himself clever.
Luna's jaws were clenched tight. She said nothing, just looked ahead. When the Officer realized he wasn't going to get a rise from her he backed down. He walked back over to his desk and grabbed his clipboard, which held the visitor's log. The pair watched as he scribbled something down, then turned it over for them to see.
"Sign." He ordered, shoving the clipboard at Caleb. Caleb signed his name on a blank line, then handed it to Luna who did the same. She handed the clipboard back to Caleb, who then handed it back to the Officer.
"Alright then, In you both go. The bodies for the fire are the first three rows." He informed them as he unlocked the glass door and moved out of their way so they could enter.
The smell of the dead was pungent, even with sulfur in his nostrils. He could smell the burned flesh. He couldn't dwell on it long mentally. It would make him sick. He decided to focus on Luna and see if he could possibly get more information out of her about Amaruq and his plans for the island.
They walked the first row. There were symbols embroidered on the top left corner of the sheet to let them know the sex of the unidentified body. A crow meant it was a male. A red robin meant it was a female.
Caleb broke the heavy silence only death could bring, "Apologies for that back there," he said referring to the rudeness of Officer Willis.
Luna smiled at his apology. "It's all right. I didn't notice it, really." She lied smoothly.
They stopped at the fourth slab on the first row. Caleb checked the upper left corner of the sheet. A small embroidered Red Robin was there.The body was a female. He watched Luna's carefree demeanor change.
Once again, the harsh silence fell upon them. It felt like minutes had gone by before she removed the sheet, but had only been a few seconds. Luna had pulled the white sheet back to reveal a young woman in her early years of life. Half of her face was burned off. Her eye was open the other had been obstructed by the melting flesh that now covered it.
Caleb could see the terror stuck on her face. It was horrendous. "Maisy." He heard Luna speak.
A large, single tear escaped. She sniffled and laughed aloud, as if that would take away the sting of young life lost.
"Silly girl was going to leave for the mainland in a month." She confided in him. With the Genteel reverence she placed the sheath back over the girl's body. They moved on.
"I am sorry for your loss, Luna." She turned to him and spoke.
"You are assisting me, Caleb. I should be the one apologizing to you."
"What for?" He inquired. She seemed receptive to his questions.
" As I stated at the market, I was not a very good mother. I... I should have been there for her no matter what. I should have protected her." She took out her handkerchief and dabbed at her eyes.
They walked the second row of bodies slowly, not missing a detail. Caleb noticed quite a few men had died in the fire. They were halfway down the row when Luna stopped them. Her serious demeanor was back. She pulled back the sheet and exposed them to the next atrocity.
This time the corpse was completely burned beyond recognition. The appearance made Luna cover her mouth in shock. "Sylvie!" She whispered. Then she fainted.
Caleb caught her just in time and immediately assisted her by holding her and gently patting her cheek. He said her name, "Luna! Luna!"
She was unresponsive to the light patting on her cheeks. After a full minute passed Luna fluttered her beautiful long eyelashes open. She had lost her coloring. Luna immediately got up from the ground, and out of Caleb's embrace. Caleb stood up along with her.
He couldn't help but feel badly for how he had been treating Sylvie's mother. She genuinely seemed to care about her daughter. Had he been wrong?
"I am sorry! I..." She rattled off.
"Please, Ma'am. Don't be," He reassured her.
She looked up at him. In that moment Caleb could understand why so many men had fallen under her spell.
"I told myself before coming here that I would be strong and brave. I don't feel like I have ever been those things."
"You don't. What do you feel, ma'am?" He asked her.
"I feel like a mother who has just lost her child, and lost her too soon. I will never be able to get my Sylvie back. She is gone." She let her tears run down her face. They streaked her cheeks. "I wasn't always a horrible mother." She confessed to Caleb.
Having manners in this moment, he did not outwardly agree with her statement.
"Please allow me a moment to get my bearings before we see the last row" She said.
Caleb was astounded at her inner fortitude and tenacity. He knew Luna thought that burned corpse was Sylvie. Them looking on the last row would be validation for her. Luna placed her right hand over her abdomen.
She closed her eyes and took three deep, calming breaths. She smiled at him and spoke, "I am ready."
They walked the final row in complete silence. Seeing Luna so vulnerable and raw didn't feel good. Caleb could feel the pain and the grief that only a parent could feel when losing their child. His heart had ached at how she had expressed her eternal love for her daughter. Unfortunately for her, her pain and grief did not sway him from his decision.
The pain, suffering and grief he had watched Sylvie endure because of this woman's selfish actions outweighed her grief. She, herself, said that she was not the very best of moms. Caleb was happy with today's outcome. Luna would never change. She deserved her fate.
They examined the last female corpse. She was not severely burned and appeared to have died because she was trampled to death. They left shortly after. Luna once again ignored Officer Willis and walked out without Caleb. Caleb tried to follow her when the officer had stopped him. "Did you find who you were looking for?" He asked.
"Yes," he answered plainly.
"Too bad." He replied. "That was a senseless fire. A lot of good people died." He reminded him and let him walk away then...