Karin's lips twitched at the mention of firemen. Her sister provided one welcome distraction, and it was true that uniformed men running headlong into danger would be another. But that disconcerting odor still lingered, keeping her from being able to fully enjoy any of those fleeting, girlish thoughts. Her free hand circled her sister's arm, giving her a short, tight squeeze. Her gratitude for her sister's presence seemed to grow by the minute, as time and distance away from her apartment did not diminish the alarming smell.
"It's..."
Her brow furrowed as she tried to place it. Words failed her. The longer they did, the more foolish she felt, until at last, a few paces from the lobby, she wondered if perhaps she wasn't hallucinating after all. Sleep and sleeplessness could do strange things to the human body; it was an explanation her rational mind could accept. Sadly, her rational mind was currently being incessantly nagged by her more intuitive, primal one. She gritted her teeth, shaking her head in frustration with herself.
"It's like that smell when you short out a battery," she said. "Kind of electrical?" The furrow in her dark brow grew deeper. She tried to ease it with humor, giving a quiet, unconvincing laugh at herself. "God, I hope it's not a tumor."