It was a nice breezy day. But Deema Hayat wasn’t really feeling it. She kept her eyes on the collage of 7 dead people from across the country, dead in one day three weeks ago, from an allergic reaction to seafood. Each had suddenly grown a gargantuan tongue, choked on it, and died after a few minutes of utter horror shared between them and those near them.
Deema focused on the first one, a bearded man in his thirties with soulless blank eyes and a vaguely disapproving look. “Tell me more about him.”
Daniel had been patiently waiting for more directions. “well, Mr. Loney actually did have an allergy to olives, but it was always mild. Hives, at most, every summer without fail. He only developed it after he moved to Si, ah, the new colonies.” He broke off. He had the grace to not use that name for the (newer) colonies an ocean away. Deema motioned him to continue. She wasn’t a fan of the colonists but didn’t really pay them any mind. She knew they were up to no good, but the indigenes over there weren’t sharing either. Plus, the colonists brought with them new technology and a hard working ethic. And it had already been so many years since the colonists came, they were barely colonists! Couldn’t people just get along?
Daniel continued telling her about Loney and the 6 other near dear departed. People of very different backgrounds and ages. A bored house-husband, 36. An ambitious marketing executive, 31. A brash lawyer, 29. A pharmacist, 55. A hairdresser, 61. A pipe-fitter, 45. And a high school graduate, 18. All united by their shared sudden allergic reaction to, well, something. It had already been 2 weeks since their deaths. The only thing other than their day of death was the fact they were all card carrying colonialists. All had gone to the ColExplore program to see the colonies up close and personal. Most had volunteered in the colonial service. “So all of these people were Sioni. Had they met?” Daniel shook his head. “How did you even find that out?”
Daniel leant back. “They all had the full map of the colonies in their homes or apartments or rooms. True believers in the return.”
Now that was interesting, Deema mused to herself. True believers were uncommon. The Sioni were passé and gauché. The new colonists’ excesses embarrassed the Whigs, who would rather forget their own genocidal excesses in the not too distant past. Not enough to withdraw the Whigs’ money and diplomatic support to the colonies, mind you. But the Whigs couldn’t scold the other free nations of the world by pointing to human rights abuses and what have you when their own creation was busy bulldozing indigenes. All seven being true believers was enough to make her curious enough to take the case.
“But we aren’t sure if they had met before. You must understand, we only realized this may be connected a week ago, when five obituaries were published in the Colonial Express. I only heard the date was a tough one for us, then we learnt that they all passed away with identical causes of death…. Well.” Daniel broke off again. He had tears in his eyes.
Deema looked away. She didn’t offer him her condolences. If these were true colonials, they understood the risks. You can’t just take over someone’s lands and groves and sea and air and not expect some pushback. It wasn’t the first time that some indigenes had arranged for a quiet kill off of a particularly egregiously evil colonist. And the colonists of course had perfected the art form of the barely disguised massacre either to mow the lawn or to respond to a real or perceived slight. At least the indigenes were quiet about it.
She refocused on Daniel. He had asked her for an appointment claiming it was urgent and he needed her help. She had other cases, but she agreed to see him anyway. 7 allergy deaths were interesting. She knew she was macabre, but hey. She knew what she liked. “So have you any pictures of the scenes? Or they just cleaned everything up?” Daniel dabbed his left eye with a tissue. “Not everyone. We have one video for Mr. Veli in marketing, his wife took a video because she thought it would pass very quickly and it may go viral. And we have two photos for Ms. Egoden. But we do have pictures from the funerals too. Have a look.”
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Deema took the proffered phone and scanned through the photos. Despite the funeral homes lighting and makeup, each of the departed looked ill at ease, with a slight green tinge to their faces. The large size of their tongues was also obvious.” She hadn’t expected much insight from these photos so she wasn’t disappointed. She scrolled further to see the two jumbled photos of the pharmacist Egoden on a jade sofa struggling for air and then the video started. A woman was hyperventilating in the background and another one was telling Veli to keep breathing and to smile for the camera. Veli was trying to stand and holding his throat and his tongue was continuing to expand in size. The hyperventilating woman calmed down enough to try to tell the camerawoman to give him an anti-allergy shot. The camerawoman ran to the other room in a flash of green and came back outside to help save Veli. But by the time she arrived Veli was already gasping for breath and turning a faint aqua blue. Deema could see the exact moment he realized he was not gonna make it, his tongue came out, lolled, and he fell down onto the floor.
She felt and checked for her amulet on her skin. It was still here. Superstition, perhaps, but it made her feel safe.
Daniel’s phone rang, interrupting the video. Deema saw the call was from The Centre for New Colonial Affairs. Daniel snatched back the phone, mumbled a vague apology to her, and answered it right away. “Yes Mr. Eeon, I’m here with Ms. Deema right now. I’m showing her the photos we have.” He fell silent as the caller talked over him. Daniel’s face blanched. “Should I come right away? Should I bring her as well?”
He was listening animatedly, his expressive eyebrows were rising and falling constantly. Deema studied him. He had come to her to request her expertise in murder investigations. It had only been half an hour since he had arrived, sweaty and worried and sad. He was a part of the CNCA, had been for years. He was an admin guy, who had come across her previous work supporting the investigative services lock up a budding serial killer who killed based on the myths of the Infinite Bag of Amr Ayyar. She wasn’t sure she wanted to help. For one thing, she was busy. For another, the CNCA were full-throated colonialist believers. They lobbied for the colonists, financed new settlements, and ran the ColExplore program. Odious people, pretty much. Deema herself was descended from the first colonials, those who came and explored the new world, and built a new life together here with the local indigenes, overcoming all the past unpleasantness. But the ColExplorers thrived on the unpleasantness, taking potential colonists to the new settlements and teaching them how to bully the indigenes, and how to ‘protect’ themselves from the savages. Did they have to be so obvious?
He suddenly turned to her. “Could you come with us? I just got a call.” And his eyes teared up again. “There have been a few more deaths and injuries. 15 deaths and 1 injury. And I knew 3 of them…” Deema muttered a prayer. “God rest their souls, illuminate their memories, and grant you patience”. She felt wrong saying that for anyone the CNCA was sad about, but it was almost automatic. “What happened?” “Their pressure cookers exploded.” Daniel stopped again and tried to control his emotions.
Their pressure cookers exploded? Pressure cookers, especially the electric ones, were super safe now! Gone were the days that the indigenes in the new colonies could just pack a pressure cooker and blow it up in front of a security installation dividing them from their olive groves. Each pressure cooker shipped with safety measures that made the new enhanced safety sleeping pills look downright deadly. Deema leaned forward. “Tell me more.” “I don’t know too much. I just know that these deaths happened today, we are only hearing about it now… These guys thought I was clearly overreacting but I’m so glad I came to see you and you agreed to see me.” He smiled tremulously. “Could you please come with me? We can show you some of the, ah, scenes. We will, of course, reimburse you for your costs and we have a generous per day allowance.” He showed her a card. Deema whistled internally. Yeah those guys were scumbags, but they were rich. And hey, unexplained deaths was kind of her thing! She fired off a quick message to her office partner telling her she’d be back soon and nodded to Daniel.