The Raven (The Florentine #1)(5)
Author: Sylvain Reynard

So did the woman.

She moved to the right.

So did the woman.

It took a moment for her to realize the woman in the mirror was her reflection.

In amazement, she touched her face, her cheekbones, her mouth, with its full lower lip.

Raven knew how she was supposed to look—plain, overweight, and with a leg that didn’t work right. Yet her appearance was that of a beautiful young woman with two completely functional legs.

Was she hallucinating?

But my senses seem to be working. I can hear, touch, see, and smell.

Was her previous appearance and injury a nightmare? She stepped into the hall and peered into her bedroom, which was decorated with framed prints of Botticelli’s Primavera and the Birth of Venus, along with personal photographs. Pictures of herself and her sister, Carolyn, gazed at her from her bookcase, confirming her previous appearance.

She didn’t believe in miracles, the supernatural, or anything that couldn’t be investigated by science. She had to be hallucinating. There was no other scientific explanation.

She tried to remember what she’d done the day before. She recalled going to work, but she couldn’t remember anything afterward. What if she’d been drugged?

Perhaps if she returned to work, her friends could help her. If she was ill, they could take her to a doctor. And if she’d been drugged . . .

Raven pulled the nightgown over her head, pausing to examine the material. It appeared to be made of cotton that had once been white but was now yellowed. The neckline was trimmed with ornate lace and a faded pink ribbon. A row of antique pearl buttons dotted the front from neckline to waist. In short, not only was the nightgown a stranger to her, it appeared to be from the previous century.

Now she was naked, next to the mirror.

She retrieved a small footstool from the kitchen and stood on top of it.

Raven never looked at herself naked. That was a sight she studiously avoided. But this morning she cursed the fact that her only mirror was so small.

Her skin was creamy and perfect, its surface unblemished by scars or stretch marks. Her breasts were firmer, sitting high on her chest. Her figure was an hourglass, her waist tiny, her hips gently flaring out.

She contorted herself atop the stool so that she could get a better view of her hips and backside. Cellulite was noticeably absent from her thighs.

I don’t know what they gave me, but it must have been a very strong drug.

Worried she might have been assaulted, Raven examined her skin for any signs of trauma. She found nothing.

She cautiously parted her legs, slipping her hand between them in order to check for any tenderness. She breathed a sigh of relief when all seemed normal.

Of course, if I’m hallucinating my appearance, I could be hallucinating the absence of trauma.

Raven wondered if all victims of hallucination were so reasonable, and once again, she attributed both effects to the drug she’d no doubt been given.

She pulled on her bathrobe, though it dwarfed her now smaller size, and picked up her cell phone, quickly realizing that it was out of power. She moved to her desk with the intention of picking up the cord to charge her phone. A glance at her computer screen revealed that it was Monday morning. She didn’t know how she’d forgotten her entire weekend, but she needed to skip checking her e-mail and get moving if she was going to make it to her job at the Uffizi by eight o’clock.

She gulped her coffee and dressed, pulling on an old pair of yoga pants and a T-shirt because they were the only items in her limited wardrobe that wouldn’t be ridiculously oversized. Hurriedly, she brushed her hair and her teeth, switching off her music and tossing her cell phone and charger cord into her knapsack.

She tried to find her favorite sneakers, but gave up after a few moments, thrusting her feet into a pair of casual black shoes that had been carelessly tossed into her closet. She’d search for the sneakers under the bed later.

Consequently, she didn’t see the unfamiliar box that was hidden below where she slept, just out of sight.

As she locked the door to her flat and stepped onto the landing, she saw Dolcezza, her neighbor’s cat.

“Buongiorno, Dolcezza.” Raven smiled at the animal and reached out a hand to pet her.

The cat withdrew, hissing and arching its back.

“Dolcezza, what’s the matter?” Raven crouched, making another attempt to approach the cat, but it continued hissing, thrashing its tail wildly and lashing out with its paws.

At that moment, Signora Lidia DiFabio opened the door to her apartment and called for the cat, who raced past her legs as if a demon from hell were chasing it.

“Good morning.” Raven waved to her neighbor, wondering how she would react to her change in appearance.

“Good morning, my dear.” Lidia smiled.

“How are you this morning?”

Lidia rubbed at her temple. “Oh, a little tired. I just haven’t been feeling well these past few days.”

Raven came a few steps closer. “Can I help?”

“Oh, no. Bruno will be here later. I’m just going to go and lie down. Enjoy your day.”

Raven waved good-bye to her neighbor and clambered down the stairs. She was surprised that Lidia hadn’t seemed to notice her appearance or new, slimmer figure. Perhaps it was because Lidia wasn’t wearing her glasses.

Raven was even more surprised by the cat’s sudden change of temper. She’d always been on affectionate terms with Dolcezza and had frequently fed and cuddled the animal. Their relationship had never been anything but friendly.

Normally she descended the flight of stairs in her building like a turtle, moving slowly with the aid of her cane. On this morning, she ran.

It was liberating to be able to move without the burden of added weight or the pain she normally experienced. Without thinking much about it, she jogged all the way from her flat in Santo Spirito and across the Ponte Santa Trinita.

Then she stopped.

Angelo, the homeless man who was usually seated next to the bridge, was absent.

Raven took a moment to look for him, wondering if he’d merely changed location, but he was nowhere to be found. His belongings, which were normally placed next to the bridge in one favorite spot, were also gone.

She felt a prickly feeling on the back of her neck. In all the time she’d lived in Santo Spirito, Angelo was seated next to the bridge morning and evening.

She made a mental note to stop by the Franciscan mission, which he sometimes visited, in order to check on him.

Glancing at her watch and seeing she had mere moments before she was supposed to start work, Raven continued running to the Uffizi, a distance of one and a half kilometers. The sensation of her feet hitting the pavement, the jarring of her lower legs and knees—all these feelings were eagerly embraced.