Évelyne Beaumont was the chosen name. Évelyne as a slightly more modern derivation of the name of a character from the early biblical stories that the creature had heard. As for Beaumont... Well, Victoria had mentioned something about every good Christian needing a last name to go with their name. The creature was aware of this, but she hadn't thought much about it, which is why it was her creator who randomly chose "Beaumont," claiming that it referred to the place where they had met.

Neither of the names was given much thought, not because they didn't want to but because there wasn't much time left. Évelyne, or the creature, had to have a name before getting on the stagecoach. It was decided that Victoria would be in charge of dealing with the humans they would encounter along the way. However, it would be strange for these people to see the scientist referring to her as "monster" or "creature." Even if such terms were not meant to be offensive.

The distance to Ingolstadt was over six hundred kilometers, so the journey would last for several weeks, with multiple stops for food and rest. Victoria even mentioned that she planned to stop in Munich for a few days to run some errands since they would have to pass through the city on their way to the other city. So, in short, a long and likely tedious journey awaited them.

And, if she had to be honest, that was the main reason Évelyne ended up accepting that darn counteroffer from her creator. Considering that it would take them over a month to reach their final destination, it would give her enough time to carefully analyze Victoria's actions. Up to that point, since their encounters had been short and sporadic, she had only been able to see her with her guard up and almost always with a new plan up her sleeve, just in case the current one failed.

Évelyne wanted to make sure that Victoria wasn't lying when she said she didn't pose any danger to her. And while being locked behind the walls of a city might make her anxious, the fact that they were now traveling through open countryside with so few witnesses to their activities eased her somewhat.

She knew that if any contingency arose, and she no longer believed in Victoria's word for peace, she could leave without anyone having the power to stop her or even get rid of her creator with little resistance. She had never mentioned it, but before setting fire to the house of those peasants who mistreated her upon discovering her existence, she stole some of their belongings before moving on. And among the mentioned belongings was a small knife that she thought could serve a variety of purposes. So, could one of these uses be to threaten someone who refused to cooperate?

Initially, Évelyne only planned to sit and observe, but it was good to know that she carried a hidden weapon in her clothing that she could use if she felt threatened.

The other reason she wanted to go with Victoria was simply for practicality and energy savings: Having decided not to give up on her desire to have a companion of her own kind and given that Victoria hadn't changed her mind about denying her request, ongoing harassment was the way to go. So, what was the point of getting into a fight with her when she planned to follow her to Ingolstadt anyway? The answer was none.

It was much more productive to pretend to agree with her terms, with the quiet purpose of saving herself the arduous journey on foot. Why make such a strenuous pilgrimage when there was a human willing to provide her with transportation? Besides, that person was the one she wanted to keep an eye on. So, accepting her offer was like killing two birds with one stone.
In this way, on the day Victoria had planned to start her journey, Évelyne went with her. Or perhaps "went" would not be the appropriate way to describe it since crossing the walls of Geneva was not a viable option, even if she was wearing her disguise as an ordinary peasant. It was even less of an option to present herself to the Frankenstein family while they said goodbye to their eldest daughter. So the plan had to unfold in a more discreet manner.

Victoria bid farewell to her family and boarded the stagecoach while still inside the city. Minutes later, when she had lost sight of her family as well as the cobbled streets of the place she had grown up, she instructed the driver to stop just a few meters from the field where they had agreed that the creature would be waiting.

Évelyne didn't have much confidence that the carriage would stop because, although it was true that with her new dress she didn't stand out as much, she still looked somewhat awkward. The day she accepted the offer to go to Ingolstadt, Victoria had mentioned that, apart from a bath, it wouldn't hurt to learn how to comb her hair. And yes, she tried. Her creator even took the trouble to visit her at dawn that same day to make sure she looked somewhat presentable. Was it worth it? Évelyne didn't know, but Victoria complained about her work with the comb and ended up completely redoing her bun.

At least, she thought, the hat partially concealed her face. Perhaps that's why the driver didn't just pass by but obeyed Victoria's order and even took the time to help Évelyne climb into the inside of the carriage, where the passenger seats were. He even carefully placed her only suitcase on the roof of the vehicle. To Évelyne, all of this seemed excessive kindness, something to be grateful for. Not only did this stranger not run away upon seeing her, but she took the time to provide a service! When had that happened before? She was excited, and rightly so.

Not even Victoria's comment, pointing out that the driver was behaving this way only because she had agreed to pay him extra for carrying another passenger, could dispel her good mood.

"Out of curiosity, may I know how you managed to go unnoticed these two years?" the scientist suddenly asked, once they were comfortably seated inside the stagecoach, facing each other. "To be more specific, how did you get to Geneva without anyone stopping you?"

Évelyne was startled by the question. Not because she had qualms about answering or anything of the sort, but because the two of them had spent nearly three-quarters of an hour in silence since they shared that small space. She didn't expect Victoria to address her until the coach made its customary rest stop.

"It wasn't so difficult. I stayed in the woods most of those two years. I usually stayed away from towns and roads, except perhaps at night, when everyone was asleep."

"You mentioned that before, but I find it curious that you didn't encounter anyone while fleeing from Ingolstadt. My house there was on the outskirts, in a neighborhood without too much activity. But you should have seen someone."

If she had to be honest, Évelyne could admit here that she did come across several passersby who, after seeing her face, walked more quickly in the opposite direction. A group of children insulted her and threw stones at her as she passed through their neighborhood. And several dogs barked at her and chased her through several blocks.
"I don't remember anyone in particular," Évelyne replied instead. "I was somewhat disoriented."

"Yes, that was to be expected. I'm just glad you weren't stopped by the police; otherwise, you and I would be in serious trouble."

"Both of us or just me?" Évelyne wondered. Maybe if the authorities checked the papers she had with her, they would lead them to Frankenstein's house, but she was sure that if she didn't have any incriminating evidence with her, Victoria would never have contacted the police to claim her monster from the dungeons. But she didn't say anything. She didn't feel like opening a new debate, and in any case, it seemed that Victoria wasn't inclined to continue the conversation. After she was satisfied with the response she had received, she didn't ask any more questions, and silence once again reigned between them.

Perhaps this situation might have been uncomfortable at first, but Évelyne got used to it fairly quickly. Even though they hardly spoke to each other, the silence didn't overpower everything. With the windows closed, they could still hear the sounds of the carriage traveling on the roads, jolting over potholes and the corresponding noises from the countryside or the villages they passed through. Since it was daytime, the curtains remained open, so Évelyne could sit in the corner nearest the door and gaze at the scenery for as long as she wanted. Victoria soon lost any interest she might have had in her and, completely ignoring her, began reading a novel.

Évelyne wanted to stay as alert as possible throughout the journey. However, just a couple of hours after leaving Geneva, she fell asleep. It was inevitable considering all the factors. Despite having been to many places, she had never experienced a seat as comfortable as the one she was allowed to use now. Not even the dry leaves or straw she had once used to create a makeshift bed felt the same. So, when you added the novelty of it all to her actual fatigue, given how early she had woken up that morning, it wasn't surprising that she fell into a deep sleep and didn't wake up until the sun began to set.

"It's time to get off," Victoria declared without further explanation.

Évelyne wanted to complain about the abrupt awakening. The carriage's stop hadn't woken her up; in fact, it was likely that it had stopped several times while she was in the arms of Morpheus to let the horses rest. Instead, it was that annoying human sitting in front of her who had awakened her. Had she given her a kick to get her attention? She wasn't sure. It had seemed that way, but her leg didn't particularly hurt after the initial impact. Besides, as soon as Victoria informed her that they needed to get off, she headed straight for the door and left, not giving her a chance to retort.

Her protest died in her throat. Perhaps she was getting used to this kind of insult, but she thought it was better not to get stuck on a biting comment that had been on the tip of her tongue and focus on the positive. After all those hours in such a confined space, she was relieved to be able to step outside and stretch her legs.

The stagecoach had left Geneva around noon, shortly after lunch. And now, close to dinnertime, it had finally stopped in one of the central streets of a small village. Victoria gave instructions to the driver to unload part of the luggage and then indicated to Évelyne to follow her to a specific building. A inn, to be precise.

The truth is that Évelyne hardly had time to figure out where she was, much less ponder whether it was prudent or not to accept any orders given to her and enter an unknown establishment in a village whose main entrance had already closed and, therefore, from which she couldn't leave until dawn.

But the sky was already darkening, and the cobblestone streets were lit by streetlamps standing at regular intervals along the sidewalks. Only a few local residents were moving about the neighborhood, probably returning from their respective jobs, and all they seemed to desire was to finish their day as soon as possible, so they paid little attention to the recently arrived stagecoach.

This relieved Évelyne. She had spent the day, in a way, in hiding. Now that she was revealed to the world in a place that should be populated, no one was paying her any attention.

Of course, this couldn't be considered a true test. Being so late and with most people hurrying to their homes, it wasn't as if anyone was in the mood to pay attention to any stranger who appeared in the village. For now, things were going well. However, they would have to see if everything continued to be so peaceful when they entered Munich, for example, a city with hundreds of thousands of inhabitants, where even during the dark hours, one couldn't say the place was completely dead.

For now, Évelyne followed Victoria into the inn. The coachman had handed her the two luggage bags before muttering that he would go to the nearest stables since the scientist didn't seem inclined to carry her own bag. Had Victoria even noticed what the driver was saying?

Évelyne wasn't worried about that. She was more afraid that someone might guess her origins just by taking a look at her. While outside the light was so dim that it was almost impossible to distinguish faces from a distance, once inside the inn's lobby, it was as if all the lamps were concentrated on the creature.

No, there wasn't much movement inside the place, but Évelyne couldn't help but feel anxious when a man, presumably the owner, emerged from one of the rooms located behind the reception counter.

"Act as if these people don't have the right to burn you at the stake in the middle of the square," Victoria had advised her that very morning before they left. She was trying to revisit her theory from a few days earlier, that how others perceived her was more a matter of attitude than appearance. But for obvious reasons, Évelyne was not comforted by these words. Even less so now, as she remembered it while realizing that she and Victoria were the only people in the place, the subjects of scrutiny by this man.

Unaware, Évelyne took a step back when her gaze met the innkeeper's, although neither he nor anyone else appeared to notice her mounting anxiety. And since it was Victoria who took the initiative to approach the counter and request a reservation, the attention that could have been focused on her quickly shifted elsewhere.

"It must have been a long journey from Geneva, I imagine," the owner commented, once they had reached an agreement and put the guestbook in front of the scientist for her to fill in her details. "May I ask where you plan to go?"
"We'll be crossing the border into the Confederation in a few days," Victoria replied without providing further details. If hiding things from her relatives was already a routine, with strangers, she didn't even bother pretending to be friendly.

"It's a good time to travel. If you had waited a couple of weeks, many roads might have been blocked by snow," the owner said. Seeing that he didn't get the desired reaction, he opted to forgo the usual phrases he used to welcome his customers and instead brought up a topic that never failed to pique interest.

"But since you're here, have you had dinner? We have a restaurant right next door, or if you prefer, we can bring your meal to your room."

"As you said, it has been a long journey. It would be nice if we could have dinner in the privacy of the room you assign to us."

"Very well, I'll show you to your room and send a maid to inform you about the menu."

"It's not necessary," Victoria interrupted, taking the offered key. "I mean, there's no need to send a maid because I plan to return to the reception myself. It doesn't make much sense to make two unnecessary trips."

"As you prefer."

"And one more thing, do the rooms have a bathroom?"

"Of course, we have the usual latrines at the end of the hallway and a bathtub in the room itself if you'd like to take a bath." Looking sideways at Évelyne, he added, "By the way, if you want to bathe, let me know, and I'll have a couple of buckets of hot water brought up."

Was it Évelyne's imagination, or was that last comment made specifically for her? Either way, Victoria accepted the offer immediately, and after a few more explanations from the owner about the exact location of the bedrooms, they headed to the first floor.

As the inn was modest, the rooms had little decoration. The room they were given only had a couple of beds separated by a rustic nightstand, a chair that was somewhat tattered from the passage of time, a chest of drawers that didn't look much better, and a couple of paintings whose colors had already started to fade from the canvas.

There was still a small table in a corner with a couple of chairs, but none of this helped make the place seem any less gray. On one side was another door leading to another room where the bathtub the innkeeper had mentioned was located. Évelyne was perfectly aware that if she requested a bath, she would be the first to need it. Not only had she not wanted to wash, but she also didn't have the means, and the weather didn't seem to want to cooperate.
For someone like Évelyne, accustomed to living in the great outdoors like a wanderer, the usual way to clean up was to use the waters of a lake or river in the remote areas where she was camping at the time. She enjoyed using this method in the summer when the sun was out and she didn't need to worry too much about spending a lot of time in the water. However, in this season, as winter's chill began to approach, the idea of taking a bath was exactly the opposite of pleasant.

Now, the risk of freezing wasn't a problem this time. As promised, the owner of the establishment sent up a few buckets of hot water, enough to fill the bathtub that would serve as her bath. So, while Victoria chose to disappear from the scene, Évelyne enjoyed her bath until the water started to cool down.

By the time she finally left the little room, dressed again in her clothes, Victoria had not returned yet. "If only she wouldn't come back," she thought for a moment, forgetting not only the request she had not given up on but also the idea of possible revenge. The truth was that the journey was slightly better than she had expected. Sitting by the window of the carriage all day, she had traveled dozens of kilometers enjoying the scenery without having to worry about her own survival constantly. Victoria had not bothered her with any unreasonable requests or reproached her in any way; in fact, she spent most of the day ignoring her. And, best of all, the few people she encountered had not fled.

While the situation might still need improvement, as even if no one ran away, she still noticed a few looks that were divided between fear and disdain. But it was already an improvement that people were able to contain their instincts to flee, so she was satisfied.

Now that she had gotten rid of a layer of dirt that had undoubtedly changed her skin color, she had more confidence that humans wouldn't find her so repulsive. Plus, she thought, it was the first time she had access to that thing called soap! Why didn't she find out about that earlier? If she had known about it earlier, given how good it smelled, she might not have minded taking the risk of bathing in any spring more often.

In short, this trip shouldn't just be about keeping an eye on her creator, but also about learning as much as possible. In the future, if she continued with her plan to become independent and return to the solitary fields, she wanted to have a better idea of how to survive using the greatest comfort possible.

Évelyne lay down on her bed, still absorbed in her imagination. Her hair was wet, and it was clear that the blankets would end up the same way, but she didn't seem to care. She was comfortable, so she didn't get up until she heard the door of the room open and saw Victoria enter.

"Are you done?" she asked as soon as she arrived, referring to the bathtub that could be seen thanks to the partially open door that separated both rooms.

"Yes," and remembering that the innkeeper had mentioned that they wouldn't have a problem preparing a couple of baths and providing them with more hot water, she wanted to add, "if you want, you can use it now."
Victoria had approached the tub and, perhaps noticing the grayish water and considering the time it would take to drain and then clean everything to prepare a new decent bath, she interjected, "I think I'll wait until tomorrow. Until then, you must be hungry; I've taken the liberty of asking the restaurant staff to prepare something for you. I imagine they'll bring it up shortly."

"What about you?" Évelyne inquired.

"I've already had dinner downstairs while you were detoxifying. So, you don't need to wait for me. Just have your dinner when the food arrives, and in the meantime, I'll review my documents before going to sleep."

At this point, it was quite clear who didn't want to interact with whom. Were they going to spend the rest of the journey like this? Évelyne would bet that they would, though she still couldn't say whether she disliked it. Because, yes, she didn't feel good being ignored, but she also wasn't sure if she wanted Victoria's attention. And, if one thing must be admitted, it would have been uncomfortable to sit silently at the table across from her.

No, she wouldn't object to this arrangement. She would eat on her own, as she was already accustomed to, and as soon as she finished, she would participate in the silent game and go to her own cot to wait for a new day.

It wasn't a dream plan, but it would do.

Victoria remained engrossed in her papers for most of her dinner, and later, when sleep threatened to overtake her, she only addressed Évelyne briefly to instruct her to turn off the light before going to bed. A measure as prudent as it was necessary to avoid the candles burning out completely or, worse, to prevent a fire due to carelessness. After saying this, she put the documents aside and nestled under the blankets, ready to sleep.

Half an hour passed, and Évelyne had finished her dinner a while ago. What if she took advantage of this opportunity...?

Évelyne took out the knife she had been keeping and approached the bed where Victoria was fast asleep. Wasn't this the moment she had been waiting for? She often tried to convince herself that she took no pleasure in killing. To some extent, that was true; she didn't enjoy scaring passersby she encountered on the streets, let alone taking the lives of innocents, no matter how they hurt her unintentionally. But with her creator... With her, it was different. How many times had she wished for Victoria's death, even before she knew how to curse in human language?

And now she was there, defenseless and unarmed. If she ran the blade across her throat, it was very likely that Victoria wouldn't have time to struggle or call for help. Everything would end there. Évelyne wouldn't have to continue suffering, because even if she hadn't achieved her ultimate goal of finding a companion, at least she would have the satisfaction of seeing the cause of all her problems suffer a painful death.

So why not go ahead now? The anxiety of not knowing if she would be accepted in the next village she visited would also be gone. Moreover, she now had access to new clothes and the scientist's possessions; there was nothing to stop her from getting rid of her, taking those objects – including the money – and leaving.

Évelyne gripped the knife handle tightly and approached the cot a little closer. It was now or never.