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Amy stole another furtive glance at her stone-faced father who was still brooding
silently across the able from Laura.
 Okay, she said, snatching the card in one quick move, as though hoping to
perform a magic trick her father couldn't see.  Thank you. She dipped her head
politely.
 Welcome. Vince rose and nodded at Laura.  C'mon.
 Maybe she was just in the wrong place at the wrong time.
 Maybe.
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Laura watched him stare moodily out the window as the Eternity sluiced through
the watery downtown streets on a course for Channelside and her lab. She sighed.
 I'm sorry, Vince. I know you were hoping to find something that would lead to
your sister. She touched his elbow lightly, drawing away before the touch could
spark along her nerves too intensely.  You were really good with that little girl
back there.
He turned to her, a half smile lighting his dark face.  Yeah?
 Yeah. You seem to have a way with emotional females. Laura smiled, glad to
feel his mood lighten. It was like riding beside a rain cloud when he was upset.
 Hey, she shifted to face him.  I don't know if it'll help but why don't you tell me
some of the details of the cases?
Vince shrugged.  Not much to tell, really. Only two things they all have in
common: a missing girl and fresh scales.
 You're sure they were all fresh? I mean, all of them at every scene?
Vince nodded.  Every single one. Still had the fairy dust on 'em and everything.
Laura shook her head.  Fairy dust ... God.
 What? He turned to her as the car made a sudden right.  You know something
about it? His face was carefully blank but Laura could feel his intense interest
needling the back of her skull.
 Well, I mean, nothing that would probably help the case unfortunately. I'm sure
you know Gerald is a.... She swallowed.  was a biochemist. His research had a
lot to do with how different smells make people react--he was trying to unlock the
genetic code responsible for human pheromones , which was how he got into
Human/Lepid communication in the first place. See, She tucked a strand of hair
behind her ear.  That fairy dust on the Lepid scales isn't really dust at all--it's
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actually alive. It's a symbiotic organism that lives on their wings and helps them
communicate.
Vince frowned.  I don't understand. How does it help?
Laura bit her lip, thinking how Gerald had always explained it.  Well, the Lepids
communicate using emotions. But it's not some magical ability-- being able to
sense what another person--another being is feeling. When you feel a certain way
your body produces a certain chemical.
 Oh, like with a fight or flight response. Your body starts pumping adrenaline?
 Exactly. She smiled at him.  And the chemical produces a certain scent although
most people don't consciously smell it. But the Lepids have lost the ability to
'smell' for themselves. In effect, the 'fairy dust' lives on their wings, where they
have their organs of scent, and helps convey the pheromones to them. That's how
they talk to each other. And to us--sensitives, I mean. She looked down at her
hands. Outside the Eternity's windows the rain continued to fall in a gray haze.
 So is that how it works for you too? You, uh, smell other people's emotions?
Vince looked at her curiously.
Laura shifted in her seat, uncomfortable as always when talking about her
disability.  That's sort of an oversimplification but in a way, yes. That's part of it,
anyway. She concentrated on looking out the window. The rain was slowing
everything down and the trip was taking forever.
 So tell me about it.
She looked up to see Vince looking at her intently. His interest still prickled at the
back of her neck.
 Hey, I'm not trying to make you uncomfortable, honestly. It's just that ... well, I
had kinda a strange experience with that fairy dust, or whatever you want to call it
yesterday. Ever since I've been wondering if I imagined it or what.
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 Really? What happened?
Now it was his turn to look uncomfortable.  Well, I got some of it on my hands
and then I smelled my fingers....
Laura listened as he explained the strange experience at his neighborhood bar,
nodding for him to go on when he seemed hesitant. When he related the strange
feelings he had gotten from his fellow detective she had to cover her mouth to hide
a small smile. She couldn't imagine Vince ever being interested in another man
although she could well believe that another man would come on to him. He was,
after all, very attractive.
 So that's the way it went down. Hey--you're laughing at me, Vince accused.
 No I'm not, really. Okay, maybe I am, just a little. Laura grinned at him.  It's
just the way you described the other detective--with the long hair and beard and
the 'white power' tattoos and everything.... [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]