After leaving Maidenhaven Road, Jenkins followed his plan, holding an umbrella as he made his way to the ho of the young girl, Louise. As expected, the rain-swept alley was still under quarantine. The lockdown wasn't as strict as it had been on Tuesday—the order to close the adjacent street had been lifted—but until they were officially declared safe, none of the alley's residents were allowed to leave.
The incubation period for the Corpse Plague ranged from a minimum of twelve hours to a maximum of five days, varying slightly with each person's constitution. This ant that if Louise wanted to go out and sell her flowers, she would have to wait until Monday at the earliest. In effect, her family's inco during this period was zero.
Thanks to a special pass from the Church, Jenkins was allowed to enter the alley after his identity was confird.
Compared to the bustling main street, the alley was eerily deserted. A torrential downpour washed over everything, and the door of every ho was shut tight, sealed with official notices from City Hall and the health and sanitation departnt.
Only plague doctors in their heavy protective gear and police officers were permitted to move through the alley. The latter would deliver a day's worth of food and clean drinking water to each household every morning, counting heads as they went, before replacing the old seals with new ones.
The police officer guiding him soon led Jenkins to Louise's front door. Both n held black umbrellas, which prevented them from getting too close. The officer, wearing a plague doctor's mask, rapped on the door, putting extra force into it to be heard over the sound of the rain. It felt like a long ti before a voice finally ca from within:
"Who is it?"
"You have a visitor. Rember, don't say anything you're not supposed to."
Having said his piece, the officer gave Jenkins a slight bow under his umbrella, then retreated about ten paces to wait by the wall for the visit to conclude.
Jenkins nodded back at him before pushing open the door, which had been cracked open at so point.
Due to its location, Louise's house received very little natural light. Combined with the gloomy, rainy day, an oppressive darkness imdiately washed over Jenkins as he stepped inside.
He glanced to the side and saw an old-fashioned gas lamp on the wall. They must be trying to save on gas bills, he figured, which was why they hadn't turned it on.
The heavy protective suit prevented Jenkins from knowing if there was an unusual sll in the house. But one thing was clear: the occupants were not in a talkative mood. After he stepped through the doorway, the entire family, who were sitting in a circle around a square wooden table, turned their heads in unison to stare at him, like reanimated corpses. The sight gave him a start.
"I'm looking for Louise," Jenkins announced. "I have sothing to discuss with her."
The bizarre scene left Jenkins puzzled. He activated his Eye of Reality but saw no supernatural aura. The days of confinent must have taken a psychological toll on the family, he reasoned. There was little he could do to help, so he could only hope they would return to their old selves once the quarantine was lifted.
Louise looked much more worn-out, but at least she seed physically healthy. City Hall and the health departnt had been providing free food and water to the residents these past few days. While the provisions weren't exactly delicious, they were enough to keep a little girl from going hungry.
The two of them spoke in a room that served as a bedroom. The furnishings were as sparse as in the living room outside. From the style of the large bed, Jenkins guessed it was the master bedroom. It seed the family's financial situation was even worse than he had estimated.
"Fini asked to give you her regards," Jenkins began. "As you know, she can't leave the church for now, so she sent to check on you. She doesn't know what's happened to your family yet, but don't worry, Louise. I've heard that your lives should be back to normal by Monday at the earliest."
Jenkins tried his best to sound cheerful. He couldn't sit down because of the bulky "equipnt" he was wearing. As he stood there, he could feel the cat tucked inside his protective suit slipping down his chest, but the suit was too thick for him to nudge the animal back up.
"Has Chocolate fallen asleep again? Why isn't he climbing back up?"
Jenkins wondered.
"Thank you, sir. I wish you and Fini good health."
A flicker of life finally returned to the girl's listless face. She stared at Jenkins blankly for a mont, then added in a low voice:
"Please tell Fini not to worry about . I'm doing just fine."
The girl was very mature for her age. Jenkins was curious about how Fini and Louise had t, so he gently inquired and was told a rather lancholy story.
Fini and Louise had t a long ti ago. It was back when Fini's parents were still alive. Though she still sold flowers on the street, her life had been a little easier than when Jenkins first t her.
The two girls first t on a rainy spring day, much like this one. Louise had only just started selling flowers on the street and didn't know how to handle the teasing and haggling from custors.
She stood on the street, lost and afraid, as a middle-aged man under an umbrella spewed vulgarities at her.
You can imagine the little girl's despair and sorrow at that mont. But just then, soone took her by the arm from behind, and a small but firm tug pulled her along into a nearby alley.
"That was the first ti I t Fini," Louise said. "She's only eleven months older than , but she really helped so much."
The young girl explained, then bravely lifted her head to look at Jenkins:
"Sir, you might think I'm envious of Fini's life now, but I'm not. She deserves all of it. Soone as kind as her should have a good life. Fini is a truly good person, so please... please be good to her."
Louise seed to have misunderstood the relationship between Jenkins and Fini.
"I'm Fini's friend," she continued, "and soone who has been protected in her shadow. I just hope Sister Fini stays healthy. Sir, please, you must not tell her what's happening here..."
A life of hardship had made these children more mature, more understanding. As Jenkins took his leave of Louise's family, he felt a heaviness in his heart. He genuinely wanted to help those in need, but there were simply too many people in the world who needed help.
The power of a single individual was so small. To change the era, or even the world, required far greater strength.
After leaving the alley, he changed out of the heavy protective suit, exposing his already damp clothes to the rain once more. In this kind of wind and rain, an umbrella offered little protection.
"Hathaway and Briny have probably sent their replies by now," he murmured.
He decided then and there to visit Louise more often in the future. Then he spoke to the cat taking shelter from the rain inside his coat. "Let's go ho." Naturally, the cat had no objections.
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