Wenzell Brown

“ Earth men are hot-blooded. The chemical analysis of their bodies—but I won't bother you with the technicalities. In plain language, once a chain of Malutrex circles human flesh, it begins to shrink, slowly, almost invisibly. It grows tighter and tighter until it becomes a strangler's noose. And there is nothing, absolutely nothing, that the Earth man can do about it. Once the clasp is fastened, no matter how he tries, he cannot undo it nor, after a few minutes, can he loosen the chain from his skin. In most cases the victim is taken completely unaware by the death creeping upon him. ”

“ We landed our ships in deserts and other isolated spots and unloaded select groups to intermingle with the Earth people and, because we are a superior race, soon many of our representatives held important posts among the governments of the Earth, especially that of the United States. To these Martians fell the task of breaking down ancient prejudices so that Earth could be opened to unrestricted trade and immigration. ”

“ As soon as we rounded the corner and were in sight of the marquee of the apartment house, I knew something had gone wrong. Two red and white police cars blocked off the entrance of the house and a curious throng of people had gathered around. ”

“ We learned, in turn, that a friend of Maudie's who had a key to the apartment had dropped in to surprise her with a birthday gift and had discovered the body. There was some mention of the necklace but neither Onsett nor his partner pursued the matter. I was beginning to feel cocky again, sure that Maudie's death would be put down to accidental strangulation or a heart attack.
In about an hour we were all told that we could leave but just as we got to the door, Onsett called me back and asked me to wait. Sylvester offered to take Isabelle home and I didn't dare to protest too much. ”

“ The necklace will make you a wealthy man. We can settle upon terms then."
"I don't understand."
"Ah, but you will," he said smiling. "You do not recognize the metal. There is nothing strange about that. Probably no man of Earth has ever seen it and lived. In Mars it has been given the name of Malutrex and, even there, it is both rare and extremely expensive because of its peculiar properties. ”

“ The pumping of the heart, the warmth of the blood cause Malutrex to contract. As soon as death sets in the necklace resumes its normal proportions. The clasp can be unfastened, the necklace removed, and as long as the ends do not meet it remains completely harmless."
I gulped again. Murder in the abstract is one thing; planned, cold-blooded murder is something else again. But Maudie dead, and all that money in my hands! ”