Chapter 15 fifth scene

Mr. Jerry Lane climbed the steps of the dirty old municipal mortuary with an expectant look on his face.Once inside, he asked to see Dr. Leo Schelling, the medical examiner, and a staff member took him to the autopsy room shortly after. The strong smell of disinfectant made him wrinkle his nose, and he stopped at the door. Dr. Schelling's squat figure was leaning over the dissecting table, probing the internal organs of a shriveled corpse.A blond middle-aged man with fat features and short stature sat lazily on a chair, watching with a completely unusual emotion. "Come in, Mr. Wren," said Dr. Schelling, keeping his eyes on the dreadful task at hand, "it's amazing, Ingels, that this pancreas is so well preserved... Sit down, Mr. Wren. This is Dr. Ingels, our toxicologist, and I'll get this body done right away."

"Toxicology expert?" Ren asked, shaking hands with the short middle-aged man, "What a coincidence." "How?" asked Dr. Ingels. "The body is that of a businessman," said the coroner, still busy with the guts. "You'll see his name in the papers. Great publicity man, Ingels." "Yes." Dr. Ingels responded. Dr. Schelling yelled some inarticulate words, and then two men came in and removed the body. "Okay," he said, "we can talk now." He pulled off his rubber gloves and went to the sink. "What's your business at the morgue, Mr. Wren?"

"On a very unusual and trivial errand, doctor, I am trying to track down a scent." Dr. Ingels raised an eyebrow. "A smell, my dear sir?" The forensic doctor giggled while washing his hands: "You have found the right place, Mr. Wren. The morgue can indeed provide a very wonderful smell." "I'm afraid that's not the smell I'm after, Dr. Schelling," Wren smiled. "It's a sweet, pleasant smell that doesn't seem to have anything to do with crime, but which might be of great help in solving a murder case. " "What's the smell?" asked Dr. Ingels. "Perhaps I can help."

"It smells of vanilla." "Vanilla!" The two doctors repeated at the same time, and Dr. Schelling stared. "You once encountered a smell of vanilla in the Hett case, Mr. Wren. That is really strange, I must say." "Yes, Luisa Kabian still believes that the moment she came into contact with the murderer," Ryan explained patiently, "smelling a fragrance that she described as 'intense and sweet' at first, after some tests, She pointed out it was vanilla. Do you have any suggestions?" "Cosmetics, pastries, perfume, biscuits," Ingels said quickly, "and a whole bunch of others, but none of that is particularly interesting."

Ren shook his hand: "Of course we have checked everything you mentioned. I tried to start from general sources. In addition to those you have mentioned, I also checked ice cream, candies, flavors, etc., but nothing came out. I'm afraid it's not that sort of thing." "Where are the flowers?" the forensic doctor asked luckily. Ryan shook his head: "The only thing that connects is a vanilla-smelling orchid, but that doesn't make sense. In the recent history of this case, there is no sign of such a flower ever appearing. I think, Dr. Schelling , with your knowledge on the subject, there may be a way of suggesting other sources, perhaps of more direct relation to crime in general."

The two doctors looked at each other, and Dr. Ingels shrugged. "What about the chemicals?" Dr. Schelling ventured. "It seems to me..." "My dear doctor," Ryan said with a faint smile, "that's why I came to your place, and it finally occurred to me that that elusive vanilla smell might be a chemical. At first I naturally wouldn't Associating vanilla with chemicals, because the two ideas are so opposite, and my scientific knowledge is really limited. Is there a poison, Dr. Ingels, that smells like vanilla?" The toxicology expert shook his head: "I can't think of any. If there is, of course it must not be a common toxin, or even a poison."

"You know," said Dr. Schelling thoughtfully, "the fact that vanilla itself is arguably of no medical value. Oh yes, it is sometimes used as a scent in cases of hysteria or low-temperature fever." Stimulants, but..." Ren suddenly showed a look of interest.Dr. Ingels stared blankly at first, then laughed out loud, slapped his fat leg, got up and walked to the desk in the corner.He signed a note, giggled the whole time, and then he walked to the door. "McMurty!" he yelled, and a clerk ran up. "Take this to Scott." Same thing." The medical examiner didn't look very happy, and Wren sat quietly: "You know what, Dr. Schelling," he said in a calm tone, as if Dr. Ingels' divine presence didn't interest him, "I I've been blaming myself at Heights Hamlet for not thinking to sniff the bottles and jars of York Height's laboratory."

"Oh, yes, the lab. You might be able to find it in there." "At least that's a possibility. By the time I really think about it, the timing has passed, the fire destroyed the room, and most of the bottles were broken." He sighed. "Anyway, Hatt's index card is still intact. Yin Dr. Gus, I would like you to go over it with me, and examine every detail of that file that you may find clues in. I'm no use in that kind of work, of course." "I do not think," replied the toxicologist, "that there is any need for such a procedure, Mr. Wren."

"And I sincerely hope it won't be necessary." When the clerk came back, he had a small white jar in his hand.Ryan stood up suddenly, Dr. Ingels unscrewed the aluminum cap, took a sniff, smiled, and presented the jar to Ryan.Ren grabbed it... It was full of a honey-like color and consistency, and looked a little harmless. He held it up to his nostrils... "I think," he said calmly, dropping his hand, "that you have done us a great service, Dr. Ingels. It smells like vanilla, yes, what is it?" The toxicologist lit a cigarette: "It's called Peruvian balm, Mr. Wren. The amazing thing about this thing is that you can't find it in any pharmacy or in thousands of homes."

"Peruvian balm..." "Yes, it is a widely used slime, as you can see, mainly in lotions and ointments. By the way, it is completely harmless." "Lotion? Ointment? For what purpose, doctor?" Dr. Schelling knocked himself on the forehead heavily: "God!" He shouted in great annoyance, "I'm such an idiot, although I haven't touched this kind of thing for many years, but I should remember that Peruvian sesame oil is The principal ingredient in lotions or ointments for certain skin disorders. Very common, Mr. Wren." Ren frowned: "Skin disease... Strange. Has anyone used it alone?"

"Well, sometimes. But most of the time it's mixed with other materials." "How does this help you?" Dr. Ingels asked curiously. "I admit that at the moment..." Mr. Jerry Lane sat down and was silent for two minutes. When he raised his head again, his eyes were full of doubts, "Dr. Schelling, what is wrong with Mrs. Hatter's skin?" Is there something wrong? You should have noticed it after the autopsy." "It's the wrong person," replied the medical examiner decisively. "It's definitely not her. Mrs. Hatter's skin is as healthy as her internal organs, except for her heart." "Oh, so she doesn't have some internal disease?" Wren asked slowly, as if Schelling's reaction reminded him of some forgotten question. Xie Lin looked confused: "I can't see... No, the autopsy did not find any pathological problems, nothing... But what do you mean by asking?" Ryan looked at him intently, and a look of understanding flashed in the forensic doctor's eyes: "I understand, Mr. Ryan, no, it doesn't look like that symptom on the surface. But, of course, I didn't pay attention to that at the time. On the other hand, I suspect..." Mr. Jerry Lane shook hands with the two doctors and left the autopsy room.Dr. Schelling watched him, and then he shrugged and said to the toxicologist, "One of the weird ones, eh, Ingels?"