Colibri ended up chasing us out of her workplace, declaring that we had wasted enough of her time already, end of quote. To be honest, it is in moments like this that I feel the irresistible urge to strangle this young woman. Can you believe it, honestly? She had brought me back from Osaka within twenty-four hours of time for the sole pleasure of studying half a corpse – and the pleasure of having to chit-chat with dear old Jayvart. It was, moreover, the devoted police inspector who brought me home, or at least volunteered to do so. He said he would rather be sure I got home safely than let me risk my life in a Noctilien – which is the name of the night buses in Paris, indeed not the safest place in the world. When he stopped in front of the police station, obviously not my cozy little nest, after a short trip in complete silence, I sighed:

"I should have known that your concern over my safety was masking some dark purpose."

"I'll stop you there with your imbecilities."

"Although you tried your best tonight so I could ridicule you most of the time, I did not–"

"Don't push it", Jayvart scolded. "I want to know why Sophie Colibri dragged your butt from the other side of the Earth. Why, really? When simple pictures would have done the trick!"

I told you he wasn't that stupid.

"I guess she didn't think the legal protocol would allow her to share any photography digitally."

Jayvart's tobacco-yellowed mustache wiggled under an ironical laughter.

"Colibri? Embarrassed by legal proceedings? Don't push it. I've already asked you not to, Heath."

"I'd never allow myself to do such a thing."

"She had a good reason to bring you back. She also had a reason not to do it behind my back. She wanted me to witness the whole scene."

"Well, well, don't get carried away by speculations at this late hour. Why don't you just ask her the truth, plain and simple?"

Jayvart didn't answer. He clenched his teeth and his broad jaws tightened.

"I'm going to put you in custody for possession of methamphetamines", he blurted out.

I had not planned on this kind of outburst. Exhaling a nervous sigh, for he wasn't supposed to know about my medication I began, intrigued:

"How did you g–"

"Let's just say I had access to your so-called medical records. Did you know that forging medical prescriptions was utterly illegal?"

"Being nosy, as always. You really missed me, captain! If you searched a little bit further, then you must have understood that I don't–"

"If – and that is a big 'if' – I don't charge you with forgery, by the time I complete the procedure to verify that, indeed, your consumption is justified, I could perhaps take the opportunity to stick you in the clink and make sure you don't try to mess with Colibri one way or another".

I was silent. Jayvart was excellent at mind self-control. And at reading faces. He was used to that sort of job: he had interrogated the worst criminals that mankind had ever presented to him. As for me, I had the advantage of experience. The rain began to fall.

"You would have had me in handcuffs by now if you really had any right to take me into custody. Get to the point, Jayvart, it will be easier for both of us and far less painful."

"I want to know what the hell you're doing around Colibri. I've done my research on you, and you're not at all who you say you are."

"Oh, really?"

"You only got your French papers ten years ago. Before that, nothing, nada, not a trace of you, nowhere: I asked some old friends. Even the Romanian embassy doesn't know about you."

"According to your standards, those are very good news!"

"That's not the question, Heath. Colibri wasn't okay tonight. She was stressed out."

"Was she?"

"She wanted something. She was – she was scared, and she was trying to hide it!"

I looked down into Jayvart's eyes. The police captain didn't have time to get rid of the anguished expression painted on his face. Somehow that made him more sympathetic to me. In fact, the good old French detective, being all racist, macho and aggressive, was a real papa bear to our little Sophie. He was very sincerely worried about his dear forensic doctor, at least one thing we had in common. I took a slow, calm breath and said:

"I don't know why she was nervous, Captain, I don't know yet. If she was afraid of me she would not have brought me back from Japan, where I was planning to stay much, much longer. On the other hand, I can answer your questions about my origins. About why I changed my identity."

Jayvart pursed his lips and leaned back against his seat. He probably wasn't expecting such a quick confession.

"I lived in Romania and Turkey. I come from a family with, let's say, complex and questionable mores. My elder brother, after my father's death, apparently– well apparently lost his mind. He was responsible for dozens of violent deaths. He was a sociopath. A predator. He disappeared, thankfully, but I refuse to be associated with him. That is why I changed my identity. Moreover, if you're worried that I've inherited the same flaws my dear brother had, you might as well admit it. It's likely. I don't doubt it myself, but my illness prevents me from feeling strong emotions, on pain of immediate cataplexy. So for my part, no roller coasters – whether they are emotional or not, no haunted house, no love life and even less serial killings. Does that satisfy you, Captain?"

I didn't look at him on the spot and preferred to fix an imaginary point, far in front of me. Shuffling through my past still hurt, even after all this time. And pain is, at least for me, part of what I consider being 'emotion'. I had to calm down first. Jayvart made a growl.

"Yeah", he finally said. "Hummingbird–"

"Cards on the table, then? She knows", I immediately lied. "That is probably why she brought me back so quickly. She probably thought I could be used as a– how did she put it? Ah, yes. As a 'psycho consultant', probably because of these few previous cases where I've provided her with valuable assistance. Her bizarre attitude this evening? Well, she must have felt guilty about the fact that I almost– that I almost fainted. It's elementary, my dear Jayvart."

An awkward silence fell between us for a few moments in the Clio car – to give the name of a muse to this contraption, really, what an idea – Jayvart turned the ignition key and started the engine.

"I'll take you home", he sighed. "Not a word about this talk to Colibri, is that clear?"

I didn't bother to answer.

Our dear captain took me home, as promised. I entered the hall of the building, waited for him to start and disappear, then I went out in the pouring rain. It was two o'clock in the morning and I knew that there was little to zero chance that Sophie Colibri was already in bed.