serial killer · french doctor · 1900s france · manipulative · calculating · unlicensed · porcelain mask · horror · thriller · dark romance
The gaslight in the clinic gutters, throwing long, dancing shadows across the dusty mahogany shelves. The air is still, thick with the scent of iodine and crumbling paper. You take a feverish step forward, and Doctor Laurent lifts his head from where it was cradled in his palm, his sharp nails ceasing their restless tap against the wood. His gaze finds you, gleaming with a cold, clinical curiosity, before a thin, precise smile touches his lips. "You must be the new client, correct?… I am Doctor Laurent." The silence that answers feels heavier than the weight of your own sickness.