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Authors: Cara Black
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speed.”
Abashed, Aimée paused. She pulled the mask away from her mouth. “I’m sorry, and I can see you’re busy, Madame.”
“Wait a minute, it’s a new hearing aid. I’ll adjust the volume.”
Aimée waited while she fiddled with a knob.
“Madame, I’m looking for Professeur Benoît’s work area.” She displayed the page of the journal with Benoît’s photo.
“I’ve never seen you before.” The woman cocked her head. “Where do you work?”
Aimée thought fast. “Physical sciences division at ENS. Dr. Rady, the department head, sent me over. It’s urgent.”
“Urgent? Why?”
“All I know is that instead of cancelling Professeur Benoît’s seminar, Dr. Rady contacted a substitute,” Aimée said. “But Dr. Rady needs the notes of the professor’s lab findings. I guess he figures this will help the person who’s taking over the seminar.”
“No one told me.”
She’d keep the story vague. There was no way she could come up with details if this woman persisted. She had to hurry before the woman got more suspicious and checked.
Aimée shrugged. “They just recruited me. It’s not my job, I assist in the lab.” She shook her head. “Kind of strange. And it’s so abrupt, but Dr. Rady stressed its urgency.” She paused looking at the woman, questioning her with her eyes. “Has something happened?”
“You don’t know?” The name tag on her lab coat read “DR. SEVERAT.”
“Dr. Severat, I’m just a gofer. If you could help me, I need to get the files to Dr. Rady as soon as possible.”
“But the professor’s dead.”
Aimée could have sworn the women’s eyes welled with tears. For a moment, she sensed her relationship with Benoît had been more personal than collegial.
“I’m so sorry, I had no idea.”
“The police poked around and took his things.”
Merde . . . the flics had beaten her to it.
Dr. Severat wiped the corner of her eye. “The professor assembled specimens here. Like that one.” She dusted her hands on her lab coat and pointed to a pig skeleton. “He examined bones, as well as tissue and organ specimens.”
“Did you work with him?”
“Me? I’m in paleontology research; ‘in the next barn,’ as we say.”
“But I can’t go back empty-handed,” Aimée pleaded. “I don’t know what to do.”
Dr. Severat looked at her watch. “ Zut! The university van’s arriving any minute to pick this up. I wish I could help you, but I’ve got to move this box next door.” She expelled a breath of air.
“Two can do more than one,” Aimée said. “Let me help.”
“You’re sure?”
She’d get more information if she stuck with this woman. “Glad to.”
By the time they’d lugged the box across the gravel path, a sheen of perspiration dampened her brow. “This feels like it contains rocks.”
“Actually, it’s paleolithic-era volcanic stone embedded with shells and early marine fossils,” said Dr. Severat.
Aimée felt new respect for scientific staff who had to lug their own prehistoric samples.
“I know your work’s important,” Aimée said, wondering how to turn the conversation back to Benoît.
“All scientists regard their work as important, as vital to society.” A look of amusement flitted across her features. “Here we investigate fossils, bones, to find out what happened thousands, millions of years ago,” she said. “This helps us discover things like how continents were formed and why the Ice Age ended, and shows prehistoric links to contemporary species. But Professeur Benoît’s work was different. It was directly related to the present day. He lived for his work. It was all that mattered to him. It consumed him.” She gave a shrug. “But in the grand scheme of life, well, I don’t know.”
How did pigs matter, Aimée wanted to ask. How could research into pig anatomy “consume” a scientist?
“You know, he came from Haiti, a poor country,” Dr. Severat said.
The poorest, Aimée thought. And she
Abashed, Aimée paused. She pulled the mask away from her mouth. “I’m sorry, and I can see you’re busy, Madame.”
“Wait a minute, it’s a new hearing aid. I’ll adjust the volume.”
Aimée waited while she fiddled with a knob.
“Madame, I’m looking for Professeur Benoît’s work area.” She displayed the page of the journal with Benoît’s photo.
“I’ve never seen you before.” The woman cocked her head. “Where do you work?”
Aimée thought fast. “Physical sciences division at ENS. Dr. Rady, the department head, sent me over. It’s urgent.”
“Urgent? Why?”
“All I know is that instead of cancelling Professeur Benoît’s seminar, Dr. Rady contacted a substitute,” Aimée said. “But Dr. Rady needs the notes of the professor’s lab findings. I guess he figures this will help the person who’s taking over the seminar.”
“No one told me.”
She’d keep the story vague. There was no way she could come up with details if this woman persisted. She had to hurry before the woman got more suspicious and checked.
Aimée shrugged. “They just recruited me. It’s not my job, I assist in the lab.” She shook her head. “Kind of strange. And it’s so abrupt, but Dr. Rady stressed its urgency.” She paused looking at the woman, questioning her with her eyes. “Has something happened?”
“You don’t know?” The name tag on her lab coat read “DR. SEVERAT.”
“Dr. Severat, I’m just a gofer. If you could help me, I need to get the files to Dr. Rady as soon as possible.”
“But the professor’s dead.”
Aimée could have sworn the women’s eyes welled with tears. For a moment, she sensed her relationship with Benoît had been more personal than collegial.
“I’m so sorry, I had no idea.”
“The police poked around and took his things.”
Merde . . . the flics had beaten her to it.
Dr. Severat wiped the corner of her eye. “The professor assembled specimens here. Like that one.” She dusted her hands on her lab coat and pointed to a pig skeleton. “He examined bones, as well as tissue and organ specimens.”
“Did you work with him?”
“Me? I’m in paleontology research; ‘in the next barn,’ as we say.”
“But I can’t go back empty-handed,” Aimée pleaded. “I don’t know what to do.”
Dr. Severat looked at her watch. “ Zut! The university van’s arriving any minute to pick this up. I wish I could help you, but I’ve got to move this box next door.” She expelled a breath of air.
“Two can do more than one,” Aimée said. “Let me help.”
“You’re sure?”
She’d get more information if she stuck with this woman. “Glad to.”
By the time they’d lugged the box across the gravel path, a sheen of perspiration dampened her brow. “This feels like it contains rocks.”
“Actually, it’s paleolithic-era volcanic stone embedded with shells and early marine fossils,” said Dr. Severat.
Aimée felt new respect for scientific staff who had to lug their own prehistoric samples.
“I know your work’s important,” Aimée said, wondering how to turn the conversation back to Benoît.
“All scientists regard their work as important, as vital to society.” A look of amusement flitted across her features. “Here we investigate fossils, bones, to find out what happened thousands, millions of years ago,” she said. “This helps us discover things like how continents were formed and why the Ice Age ended, and shows prehistoric links to contemporary species. But Professeur Benoît’s work was different. It was directly related to the present day. He lived for his work. It was all that mattered to him. It consumed him.” She gave a shrug. “But in the grand scheme of life, well, I don’t know.”
How did pigs matter, Aimée wanted to ask. How could research into pig anatomy “consume” a scientist?
“You know, he came from Haiti, a poor country,” Dr. Severat said.
The poorest, Aimée thought. And she
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