Baccano!/Recap/1934 Peter Pan in Chains/Connecting Chapter

Salomé Carpenter, the chief researcher of Huey Laforet's personal research team, Rhythm, discusses his disappointment at the loss of one of their most precious subjects--Rail. He explains that they had originally conducted vivisections on Rail without anaesthesia in order to test the pain tolerance of homunculi. However, approximately five years ago, during a session that Huey himself was part of, they had half-accidentally destroyed much of Rail's sense of touch.

Salomé explains that Rail's scars come from these vivisections, and that Rail realized that he was nothing more than an object to the researchers around that time. Rail was under the impression that he was still under anaesthesia, however--he didn't realize that his sense of touch had essentially short-circuited.

The researchers had wanted to know how Rail would turn out post-vivisection, and Salomé again laments the loss of Rail. He compares Rail's situation to that of Huey's longtime friend Elmer--who, instead of his sense of touch, lost his sense of emotions due to intense, prolonged physical trauma in his childhood. Salomé had suggested that they research Elmer, but Huey vetoed the idea, claiming that Elmer was off limits to any of their research. Salomé speculates that Elmer is the link that connects Huey to the rest of the world.

Salomé then explains that he was able to conduct such cruel experiments on a young child like Rail because of love. He claims that they could go through with even the most excruciating experiments because they had love for the research subjects. He mentions Fermet, who was said to have harboured similar sentiments before he was devoured by the subject, Czeslaw Meyer.

Salomé then begins the explanation to the information broker of the circumstances of the loss of Rail--it occurred when Rail had gone on a mad rampage in search of the kidnapped Frank.