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“It won’t be an ordinary death. His organs might melt, or as I said, his body will be torn apart in a massive radiation explosion.”
While the woman continued, Coretta pulled something out of her pocket and set it on the table.
At first, I thought I was seeing things because it made no sense at all.
What was the butterfly Raymond had given me years ago doing in the hands of a biologist?
My finger involuntarily pointed toward the butterfly. “This… where did you find this?”
I was sure I had asked as calmly as possible, but Coretta and Prisne both frowned.
“The butterfly?” Coretta paused. “My boyfriend gave it to me. It makes recording easier.”
“Recording?”
Although I asked in horror, Coretta remained calm. She touched the butterfly’s wings, and the voice of a man I didn’t recognize echoed in the air.
“Yes. It’s a device that can record sound. Plus, it can warm my hands.”
“Your boyfriend…” I stammered. My stomach churned, my heart was pounding out of my chest. “Where did he find this? Where do they sell it?”
“If you want one too, I could ask him.”
“Please.”
Coretta nodded, but when I didn’t avert my eyes from her, she smiled slightly.
“Should I ask now?”
I nodded eagerly. While she made the phone call, we turned back to the woman.
“So the phenomenon can reside in the host’s body thanks to the atmosphere of Mars?”
“Exactly. But Eleanor didn’t finish the operation. That’s why the test subject was left incomplete; up until that stage, we estimated it would only sustain him for 10 years. He might not be able to carry the radiation he has accumulated inside for years any longer. As it releases into the entire planet, the host’s organs will also be torn apart in this explosion.”
“There has to be a way to save him.”
The woman’s eyes, which had been fixed on the table, met mine upon my firm tone. She looked so intensely I flinched, involuntarily averting my gaze.
“Eleanor had developed a regulator to neutralize Umbra energy, just in case. If it wasn’t destroyed in the fire…” The woman’s eyes lingered on me again for a brief moment. “It’s somewhere near Raymond.”
“Somewhere near?” This time it was Prisne who asked. “At his house?”
“I don’t think he’s aware of any of this. The medications were very strong; he suffered from memory loss. If the conductor hasn’t disappeared yet, it’s at his house, but he has no idea.”
“I’ll go,” I said quickly. “I’ll search his house.”
“We could just inform him about this instead,” Coretta reasoned. Hanging up her phone, she stepped back over to us, and I watched her with trepidation. Finally, she met my gaze.
“He got it from Lesse. From Madam Sui.”
I knew that place. It was mentioned in one of my first officially published reports. I was already nodding. I thanked Coretta and turned back to the woman.
“What does this regulator look like?”
“I don’t know. But it must be something small.”
Her voice sounded hesitant, she were weighing whether to say more. I sensed this, but decided not to press her. She’d already given us more information than we needed.
