by Sam Sea
“ECI Valticus?” As he nodded, she extended her hand. “I am Inspector Li’a with the Capital Police Department. My boss had just informed me to expect you. He said something about you taking over the investigation?”
You certainly know how to pick them, Val thought to himself, trying hard to hide a smile.
“Please, call me Val.” Well, she seems completely uninterested of any friendly gestures, probably hates the idea of someone else taking her job, Val thought.
“Is that the place where the shot came from?” He asked seeing a police two-seater hovering above the nearby house.
“Yes, the projection says that it came from somewhere around there. So, the shooter might have used an air-born vehicle. “ Val thought of Mikka and her air-scooter.
Looking from the outside on a first glance, he had to agree with the captain. It did look exactly like a professional hit. One shot only, lethal, through a glass. Probably done with a small enough caliber so it would not register on a police detection system.
“Was the shot detected?” Val asked anyway.
“No, sir…It was of sub one centimeter diameter. Our scans are not calibrated to catch anything that small.”
“How many rifles you know that can do that?”
“Not many, sir, at least those that are mass produced…it could also be handmade.”
“Well, that is true too.”
“But I can go over the list of rifles with those specifications and forward them to you, if you request it…”
“Sure, that would be good.” Keep her busy and out of my way.
“I’ll be glad to do that, unless, you are just saying it to keep me busy and out of your way…”
“This is one of the most secured places in the whole Capital… How is it possible that the intruder could get in?”
“We do not know yet, sir. This area is actually privately secured. We have no dealings here.”
“Can you call up whoever is securing this place. I want to speak with system engineers there.”
“Sir?”
“Yes?”
“Am I to think that I am to be your secretary now?”
Val looked at her, gauging how upset she was. From one to ten, my first guess would be probably fifteen.
“I am sorry… Can you please call up someone?”
Her face didn’t change, but he continued nevertheless…“I do not want to talk to some manager who will try to sell me how good their system is and how ‘this’ and how ‘that’. I want to talk to a person who knows their security systems, its ins and outs, preferably someone who installs it, fixes it when it goes down, and maintenance it, okay? Find such a person, send a cruiser and get him here right away, okay?”
“I und-“
“And if you do not want to help me, that is okay. I won’t mention anything to your captain. You have nothing to worry about. I can always call someone from EI to come and give me a hand, and cut you locals off completely out.” Val walked nonchalantly next to her. “You can always find what happened here from the video streams.”
“No, sir, that is not what I meant-”
“Now, if you are going to work with me…” Val waited for the words to sink in, seeing how approving she was of hearing that. Nobody would turn down to work with ECI with over 100 years of experience. Well nobody that knew no better. “If you are going to work by my side, you, Inspector Li’a, will call me Val, okay?”
He walked forward, knowing she would follow him inside the house.
“So talk to me, what have you found out?” He asked as he scouted black wooden parquet with his scanner.
“Well, the things do not add up… At first it seems to be a robbery that went wrong.”
“What do you mean?” They walked into the study. The body was there no more. Only blood stain remained.
“Some art pieces have been taken.”
“What was taken?” Val asked and then saw the bare wall.
“So far, we only know of three paintings missing, but we have not finished going over all the insured art work that is inside the house…”
“Make sure you let me know if anything else is missing, please…And also I want details of the paintings…If they had any value, they would be implanted with tracers…Have you been able to trace them yet?”
“No, sir. But we are looking into that.”
“Was he living here by himself?”
“Yes…”
“No lovers ? No live partners, children…?”
Li’a was shaking her head. “Makes you think, why would anybody need such a big place just for themselves, no?”
Val thought about himself, wondering if Li’a knew where he lived.
“When was the last time he was seen?”
“Last night… At the University at about 6 PM. He was seen leaving his office with…” Li’a stopped looking over the notes in her communicator.
“With whom?”
“Professor Worstin, his co-worker.”
“We want to talk to him today…”
Val reached for his communicator as well, stopping its vibration as the files were being wired into it.
“I am reviewing the analysis from the morgue that I just got from you captain. It shows that the victim was not moved for two hours after he died… Does that imply you found him two hours after he was dead?”
“Yes unfortunately, we came here only after a neighbor alerted us. He got frustrated in trying to communicate with him, so he called us in.”
“What is his name?”
“Commandant Arrez…retired.”
“I want to talk to him too. He certainly would know how to fire a rifle.”
“And where would you like to talk to him?”
“Your station would be fine. You can actually send everyone over there, everyone we need to talk to. Taking them to the EI office makes awful lot of people awfully nervous. Actually, it even makes me nervous to tell you the truth, So if you can help me with your station, that would be great.”
“Sure, glad I can help…” Li’a didn’t hide obvious sarcasm.
“ECI Valticus, we have someone outside for you…” Li’a said and pointed to the front door.
“Val…Just call me ‘Val’…” Val smiled noting how hard it was for the inspector to address him as such…
”This is R.K. Inkling. His company says he is the main tech repairman guy in the firm. We just brought him here for you…”
Val looked at the kid not older than 20. “Are you familiar with the security system that is used here?”
“Yes of course. I helped in installations. I also come here every week and revise that everything is working fine.”
“Can you look over the system and let me know what you find. If I am not around the house, get in touch with me or Inspector Li’a, okay? “
“Yes, sir.|
“And, Inkling, I see birds flying around. How big objects your security system is programmed to keeping out?”
“Twenty inches in diameter, sir. Everything bigger than that the fence will detect and we will be alerted to make an interception.”
“That about crosses off anyone flying in here and shooting, now does it?” Val said more to himself, thinking of Mikka yet again.
***
Val signaled to the inspector that he wants to be alone and walked over the lawn toward the neighboring house. He placed a link to outer space…
“So Timor, are you enjoying your break?” He said as he saw the face of his apprentice grinning widely.
“What break...? I have not been away even a week?” Timor protested, smelling something fishy.
"What did you think, my young friend, that you were going to have a luxury of staying dead forever? Look, I have-“
“I do not know how but I have to thank you for-"
"Thank me for what?"
"You know what! Someone mysteriously paid off all my parents debts, all 300,000 credits of it!"
"Wow! That's awesome."
"And
you wouldn't know anything about it?"
"Why, why would you think I would know anything about it? You wouldn’t think I did it? Do I look like a guy with extra 300,000 credits? Plus, you know I am really not a generous guy. I like money too much. If I had those credits, who knows maybe I would get myself a new body, maybe a new bride. Who knows, maybe..."
"All right, all right, but anyway, my parents say 'thanks'."
“I have a little job for you to do, Timor.” Val decided to interrupt him. The clock was ticking.
"What is it that you want me to do?"
Val filled him in about the murder he was investigating.
"I know it was a professional hit. The target was murdered with a tiny caliber bullet that broke heavily reinforced window glass. Had to be custom-designed weapon.”
"Could it be Mikka? It certainly looks like her…"
"Might be... There are certainly not many assassins capable of doing it so right. But I don't know if I could be that lucky. She is probably enjoying her retirement someplace far away from the Capital. She seemed like a smart girl. That would make sense..”
"No, Chief, that is just your wish…I think she is someplace trying to find you... You know she wants revenge for what we've done to her."
"Let me remind you, it was not we, but I. and besides, I’ve done nothing to her. It was her mistake to become an assassin in the first place... I just judged her. Should have probably executed her right there. But anyway, we are getting off the topic here. What I want you to do is look over recent activates of the clans. There are five of them, five of the big ones that I know of at least, that are active in the Capital. This was a big job and it had to go to one of them. So, I want you to go over their activities and see what you can dig out."
"But that is worse than looking for a ship lost in space!?"
"So? You have great instincts! You are the ones that found the problem with the cargo being all screwed up during our last investigation. That was the break we needed, that's what helped me unravel the whole thing."
"Yes, I found problems with the cargo after you pointed me in the right direction."
"Well, Timor, I am pointing you now in the right direction as well...look at all their communications. This job they did was costing at least 500,000 credits, so try to find the money trail."
"Yeah, thank you...that is a right direction... money trail," Timor's eyes rolled over, "That sure will help a lot. Why don’t you send me to find a lost screw in space…?"
"And do it fast. I need to solve this case in less than 40 hours, So stop doing whatever you are doing, don't eat, sleep, hell, don't even go to the bathroom. Just find me something, Timor, find me something, anything, but do it fast.”
“There is something else I just found out…the shooter might have used a small droid. So, what you will be looking at is an assassin who uses a small, only a few inches big droids, probably big enough to park two or three bullets in it.”
“Are there such things?”
“Must be…”
“Sure, I’ll look into that.” Tim said nothing that Val was really not interested in kidding around. “It probably is not the first time someone uses it to commit a crime. I just can’t believe anybody could make such a thing. Why and how?”
“Are you kidding me? Don’t you know by now that anything is possible… if a human mind can come up with the idea, it can also find the way to make, don’t you know that by now, Timor?”
“Val, the great philosopher…I hear you, Chief, except..."
"What?"
“It would be easier to work with an unrestricted link… Have you found any way yet to bring me from the dead?”
“No, not yet… but working on it… maybe if we solve this case...maybe then you can come back.”
"Can you, can you at least call me 'Tim'. Everyone close to me call me that-"
"Sure, sure, Timor, sure I can." Val hanged up with still a crooked smile on his face.
But the very next second, he sobered up. He realized that he had one hour less to solve the case.
Chapter 7 - At the Station
Inspector Li’a kept Val the company as the police cruiser zoomed two feet of the ground and slowly took them back to the city. The main police station building was located in the center of the downtown in area designated for the local planetary administration, at least twenty minutes away.
It’s been a while since Val rode the streets this low, and he looked down at the green turf that waved below their ride. The era of sky-scratchers has long come and gone, and now buildings covered in white stones and marbles stood not more than fifty floors above ground. They lined up wide avenues with their grand entrances decorated by greens of the trees and hedge plants.
Some places, long, flowering wines hugged their sides as they stretched all the way down from their roofs to the ground. Each building seemed to compete to have the deepest-green, the softest-looking lawn where a few children and their petting animals were enjoying a beautiful spring day. It seemed that goats and sheep outnumbered them especially where water ran in little springs, next to the flowers of rainbow colors and eternally blooming cherries.
The sunlight covered everything, bouncing off tilted windows, dancing over the waterfalls.
There were only a few vehicles authorized to move this low , as the hectic city traffic has been moved a long time ago to the underground tubes and to the sky highways, for those who could afford it.
It almost didn’t look like the city at all, certainly not the most important one in the whole of empire. It looked so melted with nature, looked like some kind of a serene interpretation of one artistic mind, which, in reality, it actually was.
They rode slowly for Val’s taste, so he accepted the enjoyable, pastoral views before sinking his eyes in the murder files.
Before they got to the station, Val’s communicator blinked, interrupting him.
"ECI Val?"
"Go ahead, R.K. Inkling…"
"You said to report to you once I finish checking out the entire security system."
"What have you found out?"
"The whole security system for the entire neighborhood is working spotlessly fine. It was not compromised in any way."
"What does that mean?"
"It means nobody could fly in without being screened."
"Well somebody obviously got in."
"Nobody did it through the air or on the surface roads.
"That only leaves underground..."
"All the sewage exits were checked and are secured, all except the one closest to the residence...that one got disabled a day ago, and we were in the process of fixing it up."
So, that is how he got in.
"You are saying you left the place unsecured?"
"Yes. Unfortunately. I have to admit to that. The problem was scheduled to be fixed today. Usually this should not happen, but it seems that the part to fix the problem was not available, so we are waiting for a spare part to be delivered from the Space Station."
"I see..."
"Also, the security of the house was completely disabled...”
"How easy could something like that be done?"
"Someone who does not know full schematics, almost impossible. Whoever did it, knew exactly what to do. In all honesty, I do not think that there is anyone in the firm, besides me, who could do disable it perfectly like that."
"Well, that is good to know… Thank you for your honesty..."
“I also found something else very interesting...” Val was starting to like the kid. No spaceshitting with him. He could see the value of having someone like him working alongside ECI.
"What’s that?"
"The house had installed some sort of special protective cover. It was not our product. I actually have never seen anything like it. It is a net that prevents anyone from scanning the house through any means possible, thermal scans, voice recordings, brain scans, everything, everything is blocked out."
Val thought about his prior
conversation with Timor.
"You do not need to concern yourself with that." Val told him, interrupting him. He knew that the emperor himself as well as the top government officials wanted to build such a system. Obviously they were successful in creating it. With all the connection the victim had, it would not be too difficult to assume where he got it from.
“If you find anything else out, let me know, kiddo, okay?”
“Will do that, sir.”
“That means that the intruder had a whole schematics of the place. “ Li’a commented.
“Yes, even that was done very professionally. But that gives us another trail to go down… maybe you can send some of your uniforms to check where the house plans can be found… they had to get it from someplace.”
"I can do that…” Li’a nodded as she started to think of the most suitable person to follow up on that end.
“So what do you think about all of this so far?" Val asked her unexpectedly
"It still doesn't make that much sense."
"Yes, it is always like that, until it all does."
"I mean, are we to think that someone took a jetter through the sewage, then go up in the air, shoot the victim, go inside his house, take the paintings and go back through the sewage out...? And why not just go straight to the house...? Why would the killer try to make that shot? We know he was a professional, and we know how hard that shot must have been to do it so perfectly. Why complicate things like that?”
“Yes, you are right… “ Val had to admit that Li’a had made all the good points. But, no answers, which is what Val was after. "You know, I really don't think that is how it happened. You are right, that doesn't make any sense."
"What make sense?"
"You are looking at those two events like they are one...you have to look at them separately.” Val was thinking trying to make sense of it all to himself as well. “One event is killing, and another one is stealing. Just because they happen in the same house, just because they are connected, does not automatically mean they are necessarily the same.
“Look, the house security that was disabled show that the paintings were taken off the wall at exactly 9.34.43, 9.34.49 and 9.34.55. Okay, this is what I am looking at from the files I got from you… Now, the noise of the broken window was recorded at exactly 9.33.49. Would that make enough time for a shooter to ride to the door, jump in and take the paintings…”