Connelly felt surprise and relief, but a tinge of disappointment churned within the brew. She wondered if she really did want to hear what he thought. Maybe Michael was not good, but she couldn't see it? She'd seen the same thing happen to other women. "You don't?"

"God, no."

"Oh..." Connelly could feel the skin on her forehead bunching up as she tried to figure out where Robert was heading. "What else was on the tape?"

"As you know, the Europhid tracked Michael's movements, displaying that it had senses beyond that of your garden variety vegetable."

"Right."

"I reviewed the tape several times, close up, frame by frame. I'm fairly sure that Europhids, or at least this one, displayed some signs of higher intelligence."

"Compared to garden variety vegetables," Connelly added.

"Exactly."
"What was most intriguing about the footage was the timing of the attack. It played innocent, moving almost cutely back and forth, until the exact moment Michael was completely distracted."

"Your saying the attack wasn't just a reflexive action?"

"More than that. The Europhid, an alien organism that has never come in contact with a human, recognized how Michael perceived the world visually, through human eyes. It understood what his eyes were used for and how they worked. It knew to strike the moment he focused on you. How does a creature that has no knowledge or evolved experience with humanity know how Michael's eyes work?"

Connelly shifted in her seat, not sure if she was uncomfortable with the topic or if she had picked poor padding for the seats. Either way, something was causing her spine to ache. "Have you ruled out coincidence?"

"Barring putting my hand in front of another Europhid and looking away, I'd say the tape is fairly conclusive. Have a look at it when we get back. I think you'll find the video convincing enough." It was Robert's turn to shift uncomfortably. "I would have brought it up publicly if the stinging incident wasn't accompanied by more…intimate matters."

Connelly felt her face flush. Robert said he'd watched the tape several times, close up and frame by frame. How many times had he seen her closing her eyes and reaching out for Peterson? She didn't mind Robert knowing the truth, but it was damned embarrassing. Connelly pushed the topic from her mind and kept to the more urgent, and honestly, more interesting subject at hand. "If the Europhid had a true understanding of human physiology, which would have to be in depth if it really knew when to strike, why did it inject Michael with a poison that had no effect other than to produce a slight infection?"

Robert leaned back in his chair. "Now it's our turn to attempt understanding the actions of an alien creature. We assumed the substance was a poison simply on the basis that on Earth, organisms that inject anything almost always inject toxins or poisons with the intent of paralyzing or outright killing their enemies."