Page 21

Chapter Twenty-One

I blinked. “That was not what I thought you were going to say. You’re sure?”

“Sure as can be, Mum.” Harry stared up at me. “If it’s all right with you, I’d like to run the perimeter. Could be he was here, just not in that area.”

“Okay, do that, but first, go to Frank and let him turn on your recording capabilities.”

Harry went to Frank, who manipulated Harry’s left ear while pushing on one of his vertebrae. Frank stood. “All set. Harry, record anything interesting.”

“You got it.” He took off again.

I shook my head as I considered what Harry had told us. “If Olan wasn’t here, who put Navun behind that storage pod? There’s no way he crawled back there. His neck looked too broken for that to have been possible.”

“That’s the question. If Olan’s not our killer, who is?”

“Obviously.” That sounded much snappier than I’d meant it to. “Sorry, that came out wrong. And it wasn’t directed at you.” I hadn’t meant it to sound snappy at all.

“I know it wasn’t. This is very frustrating. I feel it, too.”

“What’s frustrating is that we’re getting nowhere, and time is slipping away.”

“The clock is ticking, but it’s not entirely true that we aren’t getting anywhere. We might be able to eliminate Olan as our murderer.” He looked in the direction that Harry had gone. “Harry,” he called out. “Come back as soon as you’re done.”

My sweet boy came running back a minute later. “I’m done.”

“Did you pick up any trace of Olan in the cordoned area? Or just Navun?”

“Just Navun.”

“Did you pick up any trace of Olan elsewhere in the cargo bay?”

“No.”

Frank shoved a hand through his hair. “Definitely not how I thought this was going to go.”

“Me either.” I crouched down. “Harry, you had to have picked up the scents of other people, right?”

“I did. Men and women.”

I pressed my hand to my forehead. “Of course you did. This is a cargo bay. It’s constantly filled with people.” I stood. “Whoever left Navun’s body here knew what they were doing. There must be DNA and trace evidence from a hundred people all over this place. ”

I put my hands on my hips and tipped my head back, trying not to melt down from frustration. “We’re at another dead end.”

Gracie circled overhead, the spiral tightening as she descended to rest on Frank’s shoulder.

“Mum?”

I looked down to see Harry sitting by me, his sweet face turned up to me. “Yes, baby?”

“What if you took me to somewhere else Olan had been? Maybe I could sniff him out there?”

“That’s a great idea, but I just don’t know where that place might be.” I looked at Frank, wondering if he had any more suggestions. “The observation deck, but there have been so many people through there, I don’t know there’d be any point.”

Frank gave a little nod. “I agree.”

My wristband chimed. I checked the screen, then filled Frank in. “Hazel just texted. Navun’s autopsy report has been added to the bubble. I guess we’re done here. Unless there’s anything else you can think of?”

“Nope,” Frank answered.

Harry pushed against my leg. I bent down and picked him up. “You did a great job, baby.”

“Thanks, Mum. Sorry I couldn’t help more.”

“Nothing to be sorry for.” I kissed his nose.

Frank frowned in the direction of the pod, which matched what I was feeling. He sighed. “Maybe the report will give us something new to work with.”

“Maybe. Your place or mine?”

“Mine. I’ve got the murder board there.”

We made the trip back in silence, the lack of new evidence weighing on both of us. We remained quiet in his quarters, moving into our usual seats in his office with few words. Frank fired up his computer and clicked through to the new report so that it was on the screen.

We read through it.

“Broken hyoid bone,” I said. “Seems like he was definitely strangled.”

“And stabbed. Two punctures in his abdomen.”

Frank brought up the murder board and added a note about Navun’s autopsy report and another note that no trace of Olan had been picked up by Harry at the cargo bay. His third and final note was added under the premier’s name. Affair with Ayronina?

I stared at those words, willing something to come to me. Nothing did, so I decided to talk it out. “What does it mean if Ayronina and Yut are sleeping together? For this case, I mean? Is it important? Or just a random detail?”

Frank leaned back in his chair. “What if … she threatened to tell Fathia?”

“Fathia already knows. And I don’t think Yut would care.”

“But would his constituents? Might still be a scandal. And having it out in the open doesn’t seem like something Fathia would want.”

“I don’t think she would, but killing Ayronina would make more sense in that scenario.”

“True. But that would require Yut getting his hands really dirty. So what then? Yut arranges for the Star to be stolen with the intent of giving it to Ayronina to keep her quiet? That’s a pretty big payoff for some illicit hanky-panky.”

“ Really big,” I agreed. “And from what you said, Yut isn’t shy about sharing his extramarital conquests.”

“No, he’s not.” Frank’s frown deepened. “It’s more likely that Yut orchestrated this whole thing to gain some kind of leverage in the Federation agreement.” His next sigh was loud and full of frustration. “Where would he be keeping that stone then? And where the devil is Olan?”

“Probably with the Star. Guarding it.”

Frank’s eyes narrowed. He leaned forward and started typing with the kind of intensity that told me he’d had an idea.

“What?”

“If Yut hired Olan and Navun to do this, they weren’t doing it for free. He had to promise them something. Either money or advancement. I want to look into their history and see if there’s any evidence of that.” He glanced at me. “This isn’t going to be a quick thing.”

“That’s okay. I can keep you company.”

“I love that you’re willing, Els, but it’s probably going to be hours of me just typing and searching. Go home, get some sleep. You have work tomorrow.”

“So do you.”

“I already put in for PTO tomorrow, even though your daughter said we wouldn’t lose any.”

“Oh.” I hadn’t done that. I should have. I had plenty of personal time off accumulated.

He smiled. “I know you want to keep working on this, but right now there just isn’t anything you can do. Except get some rest. If I can prove Yut had a hand in this, it will be enough for your daughter to confront the premier and put an end to it. I don’t know if that will get us to Navun’s killer, but it should.”

I cupped his face in my hands. “You’re a good man, Frank. I appreciate you doing all of this.”

“I know you do, but it’s not completely selfless. I have a vested interest in keeping you and your daughter aboard the Athos .” He winked at me, then snuck a kiss. “I promise if I find anything, I’ll send you a message.”

“Regardless of the time.”

He chuckled. “Regardless of the time.”

“Okay, I’m going home.” I got up and went out to the living area. Harry was passed out on the couch. Gracie was on her perch. Frank followed me. I stopped in the middle of the living area. “Are you going to watch that footage Gracie took?”

He nodded. “At some point. I can upload it, if you want.”

“Only if it’s something you think is worth seeing.” I patted my leg. “Come on, Harry. Time to go home.”

He got up, stretched, then jumped down and came to me. I picked him up. He was obviously capable of walking, but my mood was on the bleaker side, and I needed the comfort of him in my arms. Even if he was a chunk.

He rolled his head to the side to look at Frank. “Bye, mate.”

“Bye, Harry.”

I felt a little better already. “See you tomorrow.”

“Hopefully with news,” Frank said. He kissed me again, then got the door for us.

I gave him a quick smile before it closed, but the smile disappeared as soon as it was shut. Things weren’t going well, and I wasn’t happy about it. To make matters worse, there wasn’t anything I could do to change our situation.

I couldn’t make evidence appear out of thin air. I couldn’t conjure up a lead. I couldn’t force anyone to confess. I wouldn’t even know who to start with, other than Olan, and he was in the wind.

It felt like Olan was the key to this. It had to be the premier behind it all—that made the most sense— but he obviously hadn’t been the perpetrator.

A vuum trundled past, on its way to its next cleaning stop.

So where was Olan? The Athos was a massive vessel. The number of hiding places felt infinite. He might even be hiding with someone else who was in on the plan. One of the premier’s underlings. That personal attendant of his, maybe? Anything was possible.

Back in my quarters, I put Harry down on the couch. I stood there a moment, staring out the window into space. The swirling blue edge of the nebula was just visible.

“You’re unhappy, Mum.”

I answered without looking at him. “Yes, but not with you, baby. I’m unhappy because I can’t find a way forward. A way to solve this theft and the murder. It’s weighing on me.”

“You think it was Olan?”

I nodded and gave him my full attention. “I think he was at least involved in taking the Star. Whether or not he killed Navun, I don’t know. If he had, you should have been able to pick up some trace of him in the cargo bay. Without that, there’s no link to him.” I thought about that. “I wonder if there’d be any trace of Olan on Navun’s clothing. Which would be … in evidence, I guess.”

Not much chance of getting access to that tonight. Or ever, unless Hazel could make it happen. I wasn’t about to ask Frank to break into the ASF offices.

I sat next to Harry and stroked his back, making him purr. “Frank’s right. I should get some sleep. Tomorrow’s going to be a long day.”

He stepped up onto my leg, using the lift to put his face closer to mine, his expression deeply earnest. “You could let me out and I could search the ship for Olan while you’re sleeping.”

I laughed. “That is quite the offer, but it is not going to happen. First of all, what if you run out of battery?”

“I’ve got plenty of charge left, Mum.”

“Secondly, you’re adorable. What if someone grabs you and decides to keep you for their own?”

His little eyes narrowed into what I suspected was supposed to be a serious look. “I would fight them off and escape. I would bite and scratch and make a real hullabaloo.”

“I would certainly hope so, but you might get injured. And I’d be very upset if that happened. I think it’s better if you stay here with me.” I wrapped my arms around him and hugged him close. “I need you, Harry.”

“Okay, Mum.” He made biscuits on my arm, purring away as he pushed his head into my chin. “But I could probably find him, if you let me out there to look.”

“I’ll give it a good think, all right?” I kissed his head before letting him go.

He flopped down next to me. “All right.”

Harry was so funny. The idea that he might be able to track Olan if given enough time was intriguing, but there was no way I was letting him roam free. For one thing, it wasn’t allowed. Compdroids were supposed to be with their owners at all times. Leashes weren’t necessary, but they couldn’t just wander freely.

For another, he really was adorable. It was very possible someone might snatch him up and keep him. Compdroids were reasonably expensive. Losing him would break my heart. Although I supposed he was trackable. Frank would probably know.

My brain did that thing where it felt like it snagged on a thought. I leaned forward, trying to turn that snag into a fully formed idea. What had caused that sensation? Thinking about Harry? About the cost of him? About someone taking him? Nothing jogged any further thought, so I pursued the last one I’d had.

I popped up the holoscreen on my wristband and called Frank.

He answered right away, his face appearing on the little rectangle projected above my wristband. “Hey.”

“Hey, quick question. If a compdroid went missing on the ship, would it be possible to find them?”

His brow furrowed with amusement. “What has Harry done now?”

I snorted. “Nothing. He’s right here. It’s just something I feel like I need to know. Could he be found?”

“Sure. Each one has a unique digital signature. As long as they weren’t out of battery, they should show up. Would still take some looking, though.”

“A digital signature?”

He nodded.

My train of thought suddenly gained speed and headed toward a recognizable station. “Hey, what about tracking something organic that had its own energy? Like the Omega Min Star.”

Frank’s mouth opened slightly while his eyes narrowed further. “In theory, that should be possible. But we’d have to have already scanned the Star’s signature. There’s no way we can do that now.”

“Wouldn’t it be close enough to another piece of nebulite? What I’m saying is, could you get the signature off the nebulite in the pendant the premier gave me and use that?”

Frank’s expression froze, making me think that the signal had gone bad. Then he threw his head back and laughed. “Ellis McFadden, you just might be onto something.”