Professor Layton: Love In All Adversities

4. Making Connections

"I have always admired your determination, Layton. It's that determination that kept you with her though, so in a way, I despise it."

"Claire found her true love with me. If she had stayed with you, look at the monster she would have married."

In an instant, Oliver was right in front of Hershel, their faces mere inches away. When he spoke, he spoke with pure malice.

"If she had stayed with me, maybe she would have lived!" He was breathing heavily and Hershel could feel his pain as if it was leaking out of the deluded man. "Maybe she wouldn't have pursued that career. When she told me of her dreams, I argued against it, talking of the dangers!"

"You know as well as I that pursuing the life of a scientist was in her blood. No matter what you would have said, she would have still followed her dream. Yes, she died, but dying while pursuing one's dream is a worthy death!"

Hershel spoke with fierce determination, but even he doubted his own words. If he could have foreseen the dangers, he could have... No! Claire told him not to keep blaming himself. He had to be strong. For her!

And more importantly - he turned his head slightly and studied the sleeping bodies of Katia and Flora - for them!

"Enough talk of this!" The leader of the Gatherers walked away slowly, his arms tucked behind his back. He stopped a few metres away from the lake edge. His voice softened. "I am at least glad that you finally remember who I am. But then again, you did not remember who Don Paolo was either. That hatred twisted him and that same hatred and jealousy twisted me! I do have a bigger reason for why I am here today, but killing you I admit is something I've wanted for ages, and unlike Don Paolo, I won't fail!"

"So why are you here, Oliver? What could you possibly need with Azran artefacts and the Folsense gas?"

"All in good time. I want our other guests to listen up as well. Maybe even poor Katia will like my plan. My dream."

"And why would I ever like something that came from you?!"

Oliver and Hershel turned to see that Katia had risen and was wiping dirt off of her clothes. She was staring straight at Oliver, her eyes filled with a burning hatred. From the eyes of one in such awe and love to this was something the Professor felt such pain for.

"Ah, good morning my dear Katia! Did you have a nice sleep?"

"You monster!"

Oliver giggled and turned to Hershel. "That's how I would always greet her every morning. She used to look at me with such affection... Pathetic affection."

"I hate you!"

"Ooh, I can really feel the vileness in your voice. This is quite the sight. Sweet-natured Katia is snapping murder at me."

"I will murder you for-"

"That is quite enough, Katia."

Hershel had said it very calmly, and yet Katia stopped immediately. The Professor was doing what was best for her.

"I... I apologise, Hershel. I do not like what I have become... I just can't believe the man I was certain I would spend my life with would be the cruelest man I ever knew. I thought he loved me..."

Tears formed in her eyes and then Hershel stepped towards her and wiped them away.

"Do not cry, Katia. There is one out there for you. You will find that man and you will live a most extraordinary life. This is no time to give up hope."

"Ooh, I sense a preachy hope speech coming along!" Oliver was almost bouncing with glee and he was the picture of insanity. "We cannot give up hope, Katia, for hope is all we have..." He clutched his chest and fell to his knees. "And we must never relinquish it... even... even to our dying breath!"

He fell onto the grass, giggling and holding his sides.

"You are truly twisted..." Katia murmured, bowing her head in shame. "How could I not have seen it...?"

The laughing stopped and he was quickly back on his feet.

"Because you were so madly in love, that you were oblivious. All my suspicious behaviour, the late night-outs and random people coming to the house who I said were business associates. You are thick!"

There was the sound of grumbling from behind them and Hershel could sense that Flora was rising. She saw the others standing around and she walked over beside Katia. She was confused at what was going in, but she had to take in the information quickly.

"I never loved you," He continued, making each word stab her like knives. "I am in love with another. You were only a means to an end. A way to be able to search the castle freely. You see, long ago I found out that your dearly departed grandfather collected, or should I say, gathered all the Azran items and kept them somewhere in the house. I was getting nowhere. There was so little I could do before someone came in and halted my progress. My business associates, who I assume you know now to be my men, came into the house to search while I kept that bumbling housemaid busy. We only found two items and that took too long. You see that’s when we found someone who could help us. Someone who knew their way around the house, yet wasn't old..."

It clicked in Hershel's mind.

"Mr Anderson!"

"Exactly! Anton was too old. The next best person was Mr Anderson. Well I kept dear Katia and Dorothea busy, he found the items and brought them to me under the cover of night."

"But why would my father ever help you?!" She cried, her first raised firmly in the air.

"He did not do so willingly..." Hershel explained. "He was under the control of something as I said before, but I wasn't sure how at the time. Now I can quite confidently say so. It makes sense once you put the pieces together. It is the gas. Using the Azran artefacts, one can gather the Folsense gas and use it as a weapon."

"Very clever, Layton." Oliver smiled, clapping slowly. "I suppose you want to know the rest."

"Maybe another time, you demented freak!"

The small group spun to see where the new voice had come from. Coming out from the forest, guns in hand were the entire police force, townsfolk and leading them was Dimitri, Clive, Albert and Inspector Chelmey.

The Gatherer thugs were still in a line formation along the woods, but they started to walk closer together in fear of this sudden number of people. It was as if a small army had come out of the forest.

Dimitri stepped forward, It had been him that had spoken.

"Hello, Hershel. Did you miss us? I hope we're not late to the party!"