Borrowed bones

Elikel was six when he saw a real human bone for the first time.

He recognized it as the ulna. It would have been impressive if the bone hadn't been protruding from his mother's arm.

Most children would have cried.

Elikel only stared.

If anything, he was fascinated.

He often spent his afternoons in the school library, surrounded by shelves overflowing with children's books.

Those never interested him.

Instead, he always found himself drawn to the small collection of books and diagrams that spoke about the human body. Of everything he'd read, the bones fascinated him the most.

When he turned thirteen, he was finally old enough to receive an intermediate library card, allowing him to borrow more advanced books.

To his disappointment, there were only a handful that covered human anatomy.

That didn't stop him from borrowing them again and again. By the time he turned fourteen, the librarian no longer needed to ask which books he wanted.

Eventually, there was nothing left for him to learn from the library.

It was then that his parents decided books were no longer enough.

They arranged for him to spend the summer with Professor Holden Quinn, a man whose fascination with bones rivaled Elikel's own.

Professor Quinn was... strange.

His office doubled as a laboratory, and his laboratory doubled as a living space. Bones, books, and half-finished cups of tea occupied nearly every available surface.

Still, he was funny.

That alone made the clutter feel oddly welcoming.

Most children would've considered spending an entire summer in a cramped laboratory a waste of their holiday.

Not Elikel.

He loved every minute of it.

He asked questions about everything he could get his hands on, and Professor Quinn never seemed to tire of answering them.

When summer finally came to an end, Elikel returned home with a pout.

He would've happily stayed another month if he'd been allowed.

His parents, amused by his disappointment, promised he could spend part of the Christmas holidays with Professor Quinn as well.

Christmas came and went far too quickly.

Before Elikel boarded the train home, Professor Quinn handed him a large suitcase.

"A Christmas present," he said with a grin.

"Don't open it until you get home."

The journey felt unbearably slow.

The moment he reached home, Elikel rushed to his room and unlatched the suitcase.

Inside lay a complete human skeleton, carefully folded to fit.

Beside it rested a handwritten note.

    **I think you should have a skeleton of your own.

        Study hard, Eli.

       P.S. It's a female specimen, and her name's Cory 

       (⁠・⁠∀⁠・⁠)

       — Quinny**

Elikel couldn't stop smiling.

*****************************************************

Eight years had passed since Professor Quinn had given Cory to Elikel.

Five had passed since he'd left the professor's laboratory.

He hadn't wanted to leave.

But an offer from one of the country's most prestigious universities was the kind of opportunity that came only once in a lifetime, and Professor Quinn had insisted he go.

Elikel sat cross-legged on the floor of his barely furnished apartment, surrounded by old lecture notes and faded photographs. Some were from Professor Quinn's chaotic laboratory; others captured the friends he'd made during his years at university.

Cory stood quietly in the corner of the tiny apartment.

Her clean ivory bones looked strangely out of place against the peeling wallpaper, mould-speckled walls, and dusty floorboards.

"Hey, girl..." Elikel said with a small smile.

"I know this place is cramped... and a little dusty. But we'll fix it up in no time."

He looked around the apartment and sighed.

"Yeah... we've got a lot of work to do."

Knock. Knock. Knock.

There was a knock at the door, pulling Elikel from his thoughts.

He ignored it.

"Must be those neighbourhood checks again," he said, glancing at Cory. "Never mind them, dear."

The knocking came again.

Louder this time.

More insistent.

"Geez, I'm coming."

The door opened up to two police officers on the other side.

Elikel blinked.

"Oh."

Not what he expected.

But not exactly alarming either.

The area had been having a few problems lately. It wasn't unusual for officers to check in with residents.

"Elikel Osbourn?"

"Yes?"

The officer showed his identification.

"We need to speak with you about Professor Holden Quinn."

Mr Quinn?" Elikel frowned. "I haven't seen him in years."

"We're aware of that," the older officer replied. "May we come in?"

Elikel stepped aside.

"Yeah... sure."

The apartment was almost empty. A few boxes were stacked against the wall, books lay scattered across the floor, and Cory stood quietly in the corner.

"I'm Detective Onyx," the older officer said. "This is Detective Milo."

Onyx held out a document.

"We have a warrant to search your apartment."

Elikel looked between the paper and the officers.

"...A search warrant?"

"We'll explain shortly. We'd just like you to answer a few questions first."

Elikel nodded slowly.

"Okay..."

While Onyx spoke with him, Milo pulled on a pair of black gloves and began looking around the room.

He stopped by a few old photographs lying on the floor.

"Hey... those are mine."

"They're being documented," Onyx said calmly. "You'll get them back."

Milo nodded absentmindedly before walking over to the skeleton in the corner.

He studied it for a moment.

"Interesting skeleton."

Elikel smiled.

"Yeah."

He looked over at her.

"That's Cory."

Milo glanced back at him.

"Cory?"

"Yeah." He smiled again. "She was a gift from Professor Quinn."

"Did you just say Cory?" Milo asked.

"Yeah."

"As in... Cory Winfield?"

Elikel frowned.

"...No. She's just Cory."

The detectives exchanged a glance.

"Mr Osbourn," Onyx said carefully, "where did you get this skeleton?"

"Professor Quinn gave her to me. Eight years ago."

Neither officer spoke.

"What's going on?"

Onyx took a slow breath.

"Mr Osbourn... we believe these are the remains of a woman named Cory Winfield."

Elikel laughed.

"...That's not funny."

"I'm afraid we're not joking."

...

"We'd like you to come to the station and answer a few questions."

******

The questioning at the station lasted for hours.

Elikel answered every question they asked him.

When had Professor Quinn given him Cory?

Eight years ago.

Had Quinn ever told him where she came from?

No.

Had he ever suspected that she was a real person's remains?

Never.

By the end of it, Elikel was exhausted.

But there was one thing he still couldn't accept.

Professor Quinn was guilty.

The trial came months later.

Elikel was called to testify, though there wasn't much he could say that the police didn't already know.

He told them about the laboratory.

About the Christmas gift.

About Cory.

And about the two years he'd spent without speaking to Professor Quinn.

Quinn pleaded guilty.

He never tried to deny what he'd done.

The trial ended, and eventually, so did everything that had followed it.

Cory was finally identified.

For the first time in eight years, she had a name that belonged to her.

Cory Winfield.

Elikel stood beside her casket.

She was no longer folded up inside a suitcase.

She was laid out properly, resting peacefully beneath the white cloth.

He took the old note from his pocket.

The same note Professor Quinn had given him eight years ago.

He looked at it for a moment.

"I wish we hadn't met like this."

He looked down at her.

"You were more than a specimen, Cory."

He placed the note inside the casket.

For a moment, he said nothing.

Eight years he'd known her.

And only now did he know her name.

"Goodbye, Cory."

Elikel stepped away from the casket.

And left her there.