- Eighteen -

[cranes_blood]

Elise Crane woke at six o'clock, as she usually did. She got out of the bed where she'd spent the night and dressed silently. Even though she knew the man still sleeping in the bed should be fast asleep for at least another hour due to the drugs, she didn't want to risk waking him

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[arkhams_dr]

The sound of movement woke it. His head ached and the surroundings were...he looked up, asking, "Elise?"

[cranes_blood]

Elise's eyes widened a bit, and she inwardly swore. How was he already awake? Still, she reminded herself, the rest of the drug had probably been a success. If she kept her cool, he would never know what had happened last night.

"Good morning," she said.

[arkhams_dr]

He narrowed his eyes at her. There was an odd, cottony taste in his mouth, and a certain ache in his head. "Is it? Or is there something you wish to tell me, Elise?"

[cranes_blood]

Her expression faltered only momentarily before it resumed an almost impassive look. "What would I need to tell you?"

[cranes_blood]

Some time later, Elise sat on the bed, half dressed. She'd taken the shirt her father had worn the previous night and put it on. Her eyes focused on the man in the room, but she said nothing.

Had he simply been trying to prove that he was not a man to be trifled with? Did he intend to do to her what he'd done to her mother? Her sudden absence from Bellevue, if he did mean to keep her shut away in this house and locked in a room, would not be easy to explain. He'd find a way, she was sure, if that was what he intended. Or could he see her as something else? Not an equal, Elise knew, but perhaps a protege in ways he'd never seen her before. Something more than just an experiment, than someone to break and make scream. Was that all he saw her as fit for now?

She straightened up slightly where she sat, still turning over the possibilities in her mind.

[arkhams_dr]

He glanced at her, then stared up at the ceiling. "Well, Elise? What shall we do now?"

[cranes_blood]

The young woman looked at him, thinking for several moments before she spoke. "I suppose that depends greatly on you," she replied. "One option is to pretend that none of this happened. Hardly ideal, if I may offer my opinion, but an option nonetheless. You could, as you indicated, subject me to my mother's fate. I have no doubt you have methods of keeping me locked up even if I protest. You could send me away, perhaps to Austria." She paused again.

Elise leaned back against the headboard of the bed, tilting her head to look at him. "Or," she said, "you could see how you like it. Someone passionately devoted to you, eager to please and able to assist. Someone who, while unable to match it, can at least appreciate your genius."

[arkhams_dr]

He seemed to consider the idea, then turned back to face her. "This could cause a great deal of trouble for both of us."