The Warlock's Nemesis (Completed, Kings Series, Book 2)

Seeking Answers

We were in the car, speeding to get to the hospital after receiving the news that Diana was now dead. How could she have died, she'd looked fine to me, except for her short spanned vomiting in the kitchen. It did not make one bit of sense. Alex's face was stern, his muscles tense and rigid across the angles of his face. He was clutching the steering wheel tightly; his skin stretched tightly across his knuckles. He was too quiet for my liking, in fact, he was barely holding on.

Seeing him like this, I felt guilty. I should have insisted that I touch his girlfriend back then. My feelings should not have mattered, as little as I liked Diana, she'd been sick, and I could have helped. If only I'd done that, she'd be alive now. But, how could I have predicted this outcome? I'd never seen anyone die of the symptoms Diana had displayed, and so quickly, too. It was too late for misgivings anyway. "Alex," I said, feeling utterly powerless to ease his pain.

He did not say anything, and I sighed, letting him be. I knew my cousin well when he was in this mood; he'd close up like a clam, hiding all his emotions from everyone, including me. There was nothing I could say to help him deal with this tragedy. I'd just be there for him, help him heal when he was ready to move on, just like the time when his parents had divorced. Though he'd never had their affection, he'd still been touched as a boy of ten-years-old; he'd been deeply wounded by the experience and the indifference of the very two people who should have cared for him.

We finally arrived at the hospital. "Can I help you?" asked the auxiliary woman at the information desk, lifting her head from the notepad she was writing on.

"Yes. We are here for Diana Klein."

The woman pushed up her glasses and typed the name on the computer, and she paused for a few seconds as uncertainty flashed briefly across her features. She looked at us with a kind expression. "Are you her relatives?" she asked.

"Boyfriend," Alex said succinctly. "We were notified of her death."

The senior woman sighed in relief, free from the burden of relaying the news on the patient's death. "Yes, I am very sorry. She was admitted to the hospital for flu at 6 pm, and we have lost her at 8 pm."

"That does not make sense; she was fine the last time I saw her. I need to know what happened to her, who can I talk to?" asked Alex, his voice too harsh, his hands shaking.

"I understand," the woman said with a deep compassion in her eyes. Dr. Morgan was attending her. Let me call him." We heard her speak to the doctor in hushed tones and within a few minutes, a balding doctor in his forties, walked towards us in the hall, carrying a thin file. He extended his hand, "Dr. Morgan at your service. I am very sorry for your loss," he said, in a thick southern accent.

"I need to know what happened to Diana. What was the cause of her death?" Alex asked.

"We are not sure, Mr.?" he said, inquiring a name.

"Alex Temple," my cousin filled in.

"Mr.Temple, the patient was admitted to the hospital because of vomiting, sweating, and a light fever, all symptoms of the light flu. She started getting worse in the middle of her checkup, and we immediately started giving her fluids, and some medication. Within a matter of two hours, she was worse and eventually her heart gave in. We believe the virus had located itself in the heart. Dying of flu happens very rarely, but it does. I am very sorry."

"This is bullshit, are you telling me she died of a heart condition in the middle of a fully equipped hospital?" Alex raged.

"There was nothing we could do," Dr.Morgan said, ignoring Alex's fury.

"Can I see her?" I asked.

"I'm afraid that is impossible. We already removed the patient's body to the hospital morgue; we are waiting for the family to fetch it."