"The friend that Alice was referring to…"
"You mean the one who coaxed her to get the IVF? Then no, I still don't know who she is."
"Is it possible that she was mother?"
"What?"
"Her friend. Is it possible that…
…it was Diana Ross?"
"...Huh?"
If confusion had a face, it would probably look like Charlotte right about now; one of her eyebrows, raising as her face slowly turned to the side.
"That came out of nowhere," she then said; her slight gasp voicing her confusion, "What in the world gave you that idea?"
"..." Riley turned to face Charlotte for a few seconds, before letting out a small breath and pointing to the outside, "One of the guests– one of the prisoners here told me that mother worked here."
"What?" Charlotte blinked a couple of times as she almost jumped from her seat; her curiosity, leaning closer towards Riley by the second, "What do you mean she worked here? That Diana?"
"Yes," Riley nodded his head, "The source of the information is not reliable, however. He could be lying, miss Charlotte."
"Which… prisoner?"
"He left before I could ask him his name, Miss Charlotte," Riley shook his head, "But he also told me that adoptive mother and biological mother were close."
"...What? I… wasn't aware of that," Charlotte placed her hand on her chin, "But if it was Diana… it doesn't make sense she wouldn't tell me."
"It is also to my knowledge that mother worked in the healthcare department when I was a child, Miss Charlotte," Riley followed up as he too, placed his hand on his chin, "I asked her once why she was good at patching up Bernard's wounds whenever he got hurt– she told me she was a doctor."
"What? That–" Charlotte was going to say something else to try and get to the bottom of the situation; her mouth gasped, however, as soon as a realization came to her– almost like a switch that clicked inside her mind.
There were absolutely zero records of Alice when she met with that so-called friend the day her drastic change happened; the only footage of her was when she stepped out of the Hope Guild. After her death, Charlotte scoured every surveillance there was to try and pinpoint exactly when and where she got the special IVF.
She watched every single day that she was out… and she could not find anything.
There were only three people that she knew of that were capable of not existing in the system.
Megawoman– she made it clear to the World Government that she did not appreciate being followed and surveilled. With Megawoman's symbol and status in the world being as it is, the governments of the world had no choice but to comply. So other than her defeating bad guys and her very short appearances in the media, her private life was completely incognito.
Darkday– he brought with him darkness; the clouds covering him whenever he goes. The only times that Darkday actively shows himself to the world is whenever he wreaks havoc– a true calamity.
And lastly, Whiteking. The only records that you could find of him were things that he wanted you to know; and even then, there was a possibility that it was a lie. The world was basically his canvas to paint on.
If Diana truly was the friend that Alice mentioned… then that would explain why there was no record of Alice meeting her at all– Bernard Ross erased everything. Of course, everything was just speculation; but even without any proof, Bernard seemed hella suspicious, Charlotte thought as she stood up.
"This prisoner, which house did he live in?"
"You wish to see him, Miss Charlotte?" Riley also stood up, blinking his eyes several times as the glass of wine on the table floated towards the sink.
"...Yeah," Charlotte nodded as she made her way out of the living room, "I don't like not having answers, so let's just ask this prisoner of yours. Point me to his house."
"There's no need for that, Miss Charlotte."
"What do you–"
And before Charlotte could finish her words, Riley suddenly raised a finger; and as soon as he did so, a small rumble could be heard whispering from afar, from outside the house. Charlotte was about to ask what was happening, but before her lips could part, a knock echoed from the door.
"Please come in, guest," Riley then muttered; and as he did so, the entrance door opened; revealing an old man.
"..." Charlotte could only slowly move her head as her eyes followed as the old man… floated across the hall, passing by her with a slightly confused and panicked expression until he reached inside the living room.
"Can you give our guest something to drink, Victoria?" Riley then said as he turned his head towards the corner leading to the rooms, and as soon as he did so, a small and high-pitched gasp whistled in the air.
"You… you knew I was eavesdropping?" V then took in a small gulp as she slowly revealed herself from the corner.
"Yes. There are mirrors in front and at your back, Victoria."
"..." V glanced behind her, only to see the hallway she was hiding in was surrounded by mirrors. She had been living here for 4 months now– and for her to forget a detail like this; truly, this is why stealth missions were not for her.
And so, with that slight contemplation, V then hurried to get their new… guest a glass of water. V was about to leave again, this time truly heading for her room. But before she could do so, Riley asked her to join them– in which V quickly took a seat beside Riley.
"Please, Miss Charlotte, take a seat as well."
"...Right," Charlotte squinted her eyes before returning back to the living room; her eyes, not leaving Riley even for a single second. The way Riley handled his powers, it was almost as if her daughter came back to life.
But out of all the things that Riley had to inherit from his mother– why did it have to be their way of treating people?
"..." But then again, no matter what trait or habit Riley would get from Alice… it wouldn't be good for anyone. And so, with that thought and a small but deep sigh, Charlotte once again took a seat; this time a little closer to Riley.
And as for the unexpected and sudden guest, his face showed how absolutely clueless he was about what was happening. He was just busy relaxing in his room being served by his mindless puppets when he suddenly floated in the air– the feeling felt very familiar, he thought.
And lo and behold, he found himself inside Alice Lane's son's house.
"I am truly sorry for asking you to come here, fellow prisoner," Riley then said as he faced the old man.
"You… did not ask me to come here," the old prisoner muttered. His confusion, however, quickly disappeared with a shake of his head, his aged dreads, unmoving from how stiff they already were, "Be that as it may, I am already here. What did you want?"
"The first day I arrived here, you told me that Diana Ross worked here. Is that the truth, fellow prisoner?"
"So, it's about that," the old man let out a small chuckle as he took a sip of the water provided for him, "It's true. Diana worked here as a physician. And other than her being friends with that little prankster, I only know her because she examines some of the prisoners from time to time– she was a weird one, that Diana."
"..." Riley then turned to face Charlotte as the old man said that. As for Charlotte, her eyebrows were now currently furrowed. All this time, Alice knew Diana?
But why did she never mention it? And even if she didn't, there should've been at least a little lapse when Alice and Bernard met– a little mention of their common acquaintance, but no. When Charlotte introduced Alice to the members of the Hope Guild, it truly felt like the first time she was meeting everyone.
Is it possible… she was unaware that Diana was Bernard's wife?
"..."
"..."
"...That's it?" The old man then blinked a couple of times as he looked at the three people that were in the living room. Alice's son forcefully and randomly floated him into his house to ask him one question… then just proceeded to sit on silently?
"If that's all, then I will–"
"Weird," Riley then flicked his finger, pushing the old man back to his seat, "Why did you say Diana was weird, fellow prisoner?"
"She…" The old man then cleared his throat, "She just had that weird vibe to her. But other than that, she seemed like a nice kid– she was friends with all the female prisoners that came and went here, not just that fucking little br– not just Alice."
"Can you give me a list of those female prisoners?" Charlotte then once again joined the conversation.
"Can't," the old man shook his head, "We're all just numbers here."
"None of them introduced themselves?"
"It doesn't matter," the old prisoner once again shook his head, "Even if you ask another prisoner, and even if they were able to give you a list of names, it wouldn't matter."
"...What do you mean?"
"Well," the old man then let out a long and very deep sigh, "Because besides Alice…
…the Super Max served as a grave for the other female prisoners."