Page 33 of Where the Snakes Sleep

His fork clinks lightly against his plate, a gentle punctuation in the hush. “Chemistry.”

“Really?” I pick at a sprig of parsley.

“You sound surprised.”

“I don’t know why I am.” I shrug. “I guess I’ve just never thought of him as someone who was once—,” I wave my fork vaguely, “—a person? Like I haven’t really thought about how he lived his life. In my head, he’s always been…” I trail off. “Dead.”

“That is a remarkably thorough biography,” Camille mutters. A bit louder, he asks, “You truly know nothing about him?”

“No. I didn’t really know he existed until recently. I mean, sure, I knew my dad had to have had parents, but he never talked about them.”

“Hm.”

“So, tell me more? Please?”

Camille begins again, “From what I have learned, Alberte was a capable student. Intelligent, particularly adept with laboratory work, though perhaps not exceptional enough for his name to be widely known in academic circles.”

“Ouch.” I grimace theatrically.

“It is not an insult. Most intelligent people are not geniuses.” He lifts a slender brow.

“I guess. So Alberte was studying chemistry in Montpellier. Then what?”

“He meets a doctor.”

My fork pauses halfway to my mouth. “A doctor?”

“Yes.”

“Like a medical doctor?”

“Among other qualifications.”

“What was his name?” I ask, tone neutral.

“Henri Voclain.”

The name means nothing to me. I repeat it, trying to catch the soft French cadence. “Henri Voclain.”

Camille lifts his glass of red wine and swirls it, the liquid catching the light. “Henri was twenty-nine at the time. Young for the reputation he had already begun building.”

“What kind of doctor was he?”

“He studied medicine, but his interests went far beyond the clinic. Toxicology, pharmacology, animal venoms, naturally occurring compounds, and their potential applications.”

My gaze drifts to the snake. “Venom,” I whisper, more to myself than to Camille. An eerie feeling fills my chest.

“Yes.”

“How did they meet?”

“Henri collaborated with university researchers and occasionally lectured. Alberte’s talents were recommended, and Henri took notice.”

“Recommended for what?”

“A position.”

“What kind of position?”