La Chair disparue
(Les Gestionnaires de l'Apocalypse -1)
(Les Gestionnaires de l'Apocalypse -1)
Jean-Jacques Pelletier
(Excerpt from the prologue, p. 3-5.)
The history of Western art is the history of a massacre.
Louis Art/ho, Petite dissection de l'art occidental,
précis d'art organique, Introduction, ii.
Bangkok, August 4, 1996, 9:17 pm
Two naked bodies.
Dark glasses cover their eyes. The toothless mouths are black holes that the hollow cheeks cannot push shut. Secretions have dried on the edges of their lips.
Because the two cadavers are so thin, one might believe they are normal victims of prostitution. In Bangkok, these things are common. Thousands of children disappear every year into the businesses of the city. Their bodies are found everywhere, in back alleys or floating on the khlongs, ravaged by drugs, abuse and improperly treated diseases.
Two more bodies. Nothing to worry the authorities. The statistics continue to rise as predicted. They will be replaced by other children. There are thousands of them, in the country and the villages, ready and waiting to take their places. Networks of procurers ensure a regular supply, under the less than disinterested supervision of the military.
These two cadavers are special, though. First of all, their skin: extremely pale, even for Westerners, recalling the bloodless vampires from Hollywood movies.
And then, there is the general sunken look of their bodies, as if the torsos and limbs had suddenly deflated.
An incision, closed with crude stitches, runs from the throat all the way down to the pubes. Two more, perpendicular to the first one, cut across the belly: one at the level of the diaphragm, the other at the lower abdomen.
There are also lengthwise incisions on the arms and legs.
In the middle of their foreheads, a symbol is carved in the skin. A Y intersected by two horizontal lines, the yen symbol, is incised inside a circle.
John Paul Hurtubise sees the scene as if he were floating at the ceiling.
Beside the bed where the bodies of the children lie, a man is struggling, restrained by two police officers who are keeping him from throwing himself on the bodies.
The man looks strangely like him. He is screaming two names. Marc. Lynn...
The left hand of the young boy is clenching a Tamagochi. In the hair of the girl, barrettes form two red patches that stand out against the black of her curls.
Hurtubise sees a third police officer pick up the envelope sitting on a chair, pull out a sheet of paper folded in four, unfold it and read the message written there.
The man who is gesticulating suddenly stops screaming and thrashing around. Rigid, he blinks his eyes several times and shakes his head a bit, as if trying to clear his vision. The features of his face harden.
The two police officers looked at each other, surprised.
Then in a cold tone of voice, completely detached, he asks to see the message.
After reading the short message, he walks calmly over to the stereo system, at the other end of the room, and turns on the cassette player.
A few seconds later, an electronically distorted female voice breaks the silence.
Dear Mr. Hurtubise...
As a professional yourself, you will understand that I could not turn blind eye to your recent initiatives. You have ruined a major operation. Forceful corrective measures are required. If I did not react vigorously enough, competitors could see this as an admission of weakness, subordinates could see an opening...
Accordingly, you will have to, within the next three days, cut all ties with your relatives, your friends and your work colleagues. Beyond that deadline, individuals who maintain relationships with you will suffer the same fate as your children. They and their friends and families...
In case this is any comfort to you, you should know that it will all be done in a civilized manner. It was compatriots of yours, Americans, who placed the orders for which your children's organs are intended. As for the bone marrow, brain tissue, ligaments, cartilage and blood, they are already on their way to an American laboratory. One of our regular customers.
Oh, yes, I almost forgot... You are prohibited from committing suicide. If this occurs, all your relatives and friends will be eliminated.
Of course, if your employer takes the initiative to proceed with your elimination, we will consider the gesture to be assisted suicide and we will conduct ourselves accordingly.
If I may allow myself to give you one piece of advice, it is very much preferable that you follow these instructions to the letter. Not so much for your personal safety as for the safety of those close to you.
The goal of the exercise is to ensure that you suffer for a long time, that you spend the rest of your life alone, afraid to get close to people for fear that they or their loved ones will be eliminated. You will be a living example of what happens to those who oppose us.
Until our paths cross again, may I convey to you my best wishes for a long life.
Hurtubise's fascinated gaze follows the tiniest gestures of his double.
The latter listens calmly to the message and then proceeds with a methodical examination of the hotel room.
Is it a dream?...
© 1998 Éditions Alire & Jean-Jacques Pelletier
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