Reborn In a Murderer’s Embrace (Dexter) novel Chapter 336

Their daughter was born with Asperger's syndrome, but they never complained. In fact, they went out of their way to encourage her talents and abilities, making sure she shone brightly in the areas where she excelled.

What did they do to deserve this?

Was their daughter's mistake being too brilliant? Did her brilliance make her a target?

Leaning against the wall, I stiffened, then turned and walked back to my room, looking at Robin. "The girl who jumped, Leo's daughter, what was her special talent?"

"They say she had an extraordinary knack for numbers, spatial visualization a hundred times better than the average person. She could overlook the city, count every manhole cover, and recreate the entire urban landscape and its underground infrastructure on paper with uncanny accuracy."

Like computer-generated...

"What about the person they caught this time? Did his child go missing too?" I asked Robin anxiously.

Robin nodded. "It's a boy, born with autism, but he's obsessed with all sorts of insects and poisonous plants. He seems to have an innate interest in them, a sort of biology prodigy. He once slipped a toxin extracted from a toad into the water bottle of a bully, causing them to hallucinate and strip down to urinate in front of the whole class..."

I massaged my temples. "Toads?"

Colin clarified in a hushed tone. "They can secrete a sticky venom or release toxins from their skin. One is bufotenin, another is 5-MeO-DMT. These substances can cause intense hallucinations and can be quite harmful to humans..."

"Geniuses," I muttered under my breath.

"Both are standout savants with Asperger's syndrome. I suspect they're still alive... at least, until the value they possess is fully exploited. Could it be that someone's deliberately targeting these gifted children, trafficking them, or even..." There could be a more sinister plot.

Robin nodded, clearly sharing the suspicion.

"Do these two kids have anything in common?" I asked Robin.

"Both disappeared five years ago and had both participated in a Genius Contest," Robin said with a shrug. "I've been looking into that contest. It was run by a group that vanished after just two events. They offered a hefty prize, so it was well-known at the time. After the teens disappeared, so did the people who organized the contest."

"I'm investigating the organization behind that contest," Robin murmured.