She'd been running for eighty years from Cordelia. She stopped running and breathing fast. Where was she? This place looked different. So different from London but still quite similar. The class system. But she did not want to bother herself with that. Cordelia had dug a dagger covered wolfsbane potion into her skin and it hurt badly. She wasn't healing which was unusual and suspected it was wolfsbane and silver.
She scoffed.
"I have to fucking find the nearest hospital", she gritted in pain moving as quickly as she could. Then it hit her… this was Paris in France.
"I'll think about that later", she muttered, still moving until she entered the hospital. She had always hated the smell of disinfectant and antiseptics but she had to treat her wound quickly before the silver got to her heart though she knew she wouldn't die, she just didn't want to feel that pain.
Iris looked around the hospital and frowned, the smell of almost dying people if not dead filled her nose. Just then, someone was rushed in, he was bleeding profusely from his side and looked as if he would die soon. She smiled sinisterly as her wound started to heal all of a sudden but then a strange thing happened.
Her skin was turning white and furry and her eyes were as yellow and scary as lightning. Her canines grew and she transformed into a beast snarling. She rushed at the humans devouring them… there was no sign of humanity in her eyes. That was how the curse worked.
***
Jacob waited for death, he had lived through one year and knew his time was up. He had nothing to live for any longer, no friends, no family and even his wife had killed herself out of guilt. He could feel his life slipping away slowly. The last thing he heard were screams and piercing cries.
Is the building burning? Oh well, God doesn't want me to go alone.
He thought smiling. Then someone came in and he looked at her, wondering about her eye colour. "Who would have such beautiful eyes?"he muttered. It had no eye colour… it was blank but beautiful.
Then he shut his eyes and passed away.
***
Jacob opened his eyes and shut it back. Was he in heaven or he probably was facing judgement. But if this was the courtroom for the judgement day or heaven, it looked very similar to the hospital he was in… or was God taking him to the part where he was dying and was happy other people would die with him?
He opened his eyes and looked around. There was blood everywhere and he heard noises. This was definitely not heaven or its courtroom. He looked at his body, it looked healthy and he didn't feel weak. He felt even stronger than before and he smiled a little. Maybe that time was a dream and his wife was still alive. But he somehow doubted that.
He stood up and went out of his room and what he saw sent shivers. Dead bodies. He saw the police and he didn't want to enter this issue so he sneaked out of the hospital and went straight home to think about what had happened.
Jacob sighed entering the bathroom. He suddenly remembered those eyes… That probably was it! "She must be the person behind all these", he said to himself. He needed to find her so she could explain what had just happened. He knew within himself that the owner of those eyes weren't normal and had saved his life and given him strength.
***
Le meurice was a popular hotel in Paris then and an occasion was held there by one of the wealthiest people and Jacob was invited. It was a masquerade party. He sat drinking one of his best wines and listening to the singer as she sang. She winked at him and he smirked.
After she had entertained the guest, she walked to him and he kissed her fingers. "Beautiful", he said in English and she laughed.
"You speak English?" She asked and he smiled. Soon they were in bed. He kissed her neck and tugged at her mask but she slapped off his hands and stroked his thighs.
"Your name?" He whispered into her ears.
"I don't live around here and so you might never see me again so don't bother. I'm an opera singer in Toulon", she said, kissing him.
Suddenly, the door opened. Jacob turned and he saw a lady standing there. She looked familiar, just like those eyes he had seen when he was in the hospital. "My bad", she said in French and turned to leave.
"I have to leave", he told her and she nodded feeling rather confused. "I'm sure I'll see you again. Paris or not", he said and dressed up to chase after that girl.
He saw her outside looking at the night sky. He grinned and came behind her. She hit him and put him face down on the ground. He groaned and when she found him not harmful, she released him.
"I just wanted to ask you something", he said, rubbing his waist. She looked at him quite surprised.
"Something happened at the hospital three weeks ago and I saw you there", he said and she was alarmed. He noticed and he knew that his guess was right. She was the one.
"I heard the terrible news. Quite shocking"
"Shocking you say, I was actually thinking you massacred all those people in the hospital"
"Why would you lay such accusations against me!" She said getting angry.
"But what triggered it? Since you were in the hospital it must be blood!" He said as if she had not said anything.
Jacob took out a penknife and cut his hand. That was the first mistake he had ever made, her eyes glowed and she tried to resist it but she couldn't. She lunged at him. He wanted to scream but couldn't, he was too scared to scream.
"You won't kill me", he said though he was shaking. Surprisingly, she threw him on the ground and disappeared.
"I triggered something", he muttered, smiling.
***
For three weeks straight, Jacob did not leave her side. He kept bugging her until she became tired of his constant nagging.
"I'll teach you. I'll teach you to be stronger than ever, Jacob, because when she comes. I'll leave you and flee so you have to fight for yourself". She had said these words and he was thrilled. He didn't exactly understand what she meant till twenty years later when Cordelia entered Paris. He had watched how she burnt down everything he built within twenty years… his hospital and his one sided love for Iris.
He had fought with everything in him and the last he saw of Iris during that time was when he was stabbed with a silver covered dagger and she looked at him and smiled.
"Run" she had said and fled Paris to God knows where.
***
Iris loved France. It was lively and a place away from home… She did not have a home being the last of the morhan clan. When Cordelia was in Paris, she had fled and came to Toulon. She knew that snivelling fox would think she went to another country so she was safe for now.
Iris entered an opera house and heard the most loveliest of voices… She was going to love Toulon.