I’d never seen the faces of my parents. Back when I was a child, we didn’t have faces. We didn’t have a single form, either, floating through the ocean like threads in fabric. I suspect they never appreciated the idea of mimicking humans, so they left. The only thing they left me was the memory of warmth, calm, and a few kind words.
“Some influence you were.” I tapped on the jar containing the memory crystal and lay down on my bed. Usually I’d relax, losing my form, letting my clothes slide off onto the ground. Tonight, I just lay there, waiting.
There was no telling when Clayton would call and I had to be ready for it and I wouldn’t blame him. Despite his calm surface, this was a pretty big case and already I’d found all suspects involved were lying. H-Sec had probably come to the same conclusions. It wasn’t like the son’s history couldn’t be checked. However, one big question remained: what was taken from the dead man’s body? I could understand the wife killing him out of neglect, the son for money, and the daughter for current political beliefs. Nothing involved stealing or rearranging the murder scene.
I close my eyes for a moment. Next thing I knew, Clayton’s watch was chiming in my pocket.
“Yes?” I said instinctively, even before grabbing it.
Last thing I remembered, I was running from danger. The dream had faded away too soon for me to remember what the danger was, but it was bad enough to make my legs lose form.
I tapped the surface of the watch. “Yes?” I repeated.
“Morning, Waters.” A holoplane appeared with Clayton’s face on it. “Time to go. Meet me where I dropped you off.”
“Sure.” I solidified, filling out my clothes. “Isn’t it a bit early?” I looked at the window. It was still dark outside.
“Legal got us a signed visit authorization. We’re going before anyone at the judge’s office has leaked it to Ellcron.”
Good luck with that. “Sure. See you in twenty.”
“Better make it ten.”
“See you in ten.” I tapped the watch, causing the holopane to vanish.
Twirling the water within me, I straightened my clothes and left the room. The street was empty. According to the time, it was a quarter past five. Not even criminals were out at this time of night. Only people who would be this bold were joggers and dog-walkers, neither of which lived in the slums.
Q quick sprint through my neighborhood quickly reminded me that I’d repeated the mistake of not having breakfast. Maybe it wouldn’t have been as bad if I had actually eaten yesterday instead of giving all my food to Sunner. Either way, it was too late now. With luck, I’d get one of the detectives to treat me to something after the visit to Ellcron was over.
The rune carriage was waiting for me at the exact spot I’d been dropped off. This time they had the decency to disguise it as not belonging to H-Sec. The runes used were top-notch, but the idea was flawed. Having a non-H-Sec carriage all the way here was twice as suspicious. A backdoor opened for me as I approached.
“Morning, detectives,” I said as I slid into the vehicle. “And how are you today?”
“Watch.” Nixen reached back from the front seat.
I pulled it off my wrist and handed it to her.
“Here’s your new one.” It was a lot less impressive than what I had before—a thin metal strap with a rune-chip gem.
“Looks like a downgrade.” I put it on.
Clayton laughed as he lifted the carriage in the air.
“We just need to find you, not have you poking about the H-Sec network.”
Not what I expected, but it was inevitable there would be a few bumps on the way. With the information they had on my past, it was easy to see why they didn’t trust me completely. If I got this case right, things would change.
“Get into the clothes in the back.”
I glanced at the seat space next to me. There was a set of new clothes still in their plastic packaging.
“What I have isn’t good enough?”
“Not unless you’re part of a low budget porn movie.” She didn’t sound amused. “Just get in the damned clothes.”
The trip to Ellcron’s branch office took us three minutes. I needed less than a tenth of that to shift from my current clothes into what the detective had prepared for me. The quality was better than anything I’d worn and most things I’d seen. Elegant, well fitting, almost flawless in a gentle cyan-gray with the H-Sec logo stitched on both the shirt and vest. It was said that everyone in H-Sec wore a suit even beneath their uniforms. Now, I could see why.
“When we question them, you’ll follow our lead, won’t you, Waters?” Clayton asked.
“Of course. You know me.”
“That’s the problem,” Nixen grumbled.
The rune carriage stopped in Ellcorn’s parking, ten feet from the main entrance. A building such as this had to be equipped with a landing platform on top, but that probably was only for corporate usage. Still, I was impressed that we didn’t go through any checks.
Clayton and Nixen got out first. I followed quickly after. There were no guards to be seen, although statues were visible perched on every floor. From this distance, it was impossible to tell whether they were active gargoyles or an architectural choice. In places such as this, it was better not to find out.
This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.
The massive door of glass slid to the side, acknowledging our presence. We went straight inside and to the nearest external conference room. Several guards in full body armor and heavy weapons kept an eye on us every moment.
All who claimed that the building was a fortress were not exaggerating. Provided that Ellcron was one of the five companies that established a presence in my world during the early days of travel between the two, I would have expected something a bit more Earth-like. Other than the massive size and defense measures, the architectural style was the local watered-down mix. Apparently, even being number five means one could stop trying.
“Good day to you, detectives.” A white-haired man in an expensive black suit emerged from the conference room. “I’m Mirto Gellow, head of corporate security. Please, welcome to Ellcorn.” He invited us in. “My apologies for the current venue, but when we learned that you have an uncharted consultant, we found it prudent not to allow him access to sensitive areas. Memory crystals and all.”
“Of course.” Clayton nodded with a smile as he passed by.
The room was no different from what I imagined: spacious, sterile, with nothing but a single large table surrounded by chairs. At the far side, a woman was sitting, reading a newspaper. The moment she saw us, she folded the newspaper and put it on the table. Its pages turned blank.
“May I introduce Saura van Buren,” Gellow said, closing the door behind us. “Our senior in house counsel.”
The woman nodded. So did the detectives. I just stood still, like a sore thumb.
“There must be some misunderstanding,” Clayton said in a tone that suggested he believed the opposite. “We’ve received written permission by a judge to interview anyone in relation to Janas Code.”
“That’s not entirely correct.” The woman interjected. She had a small frame, making her stand out even more in the massive grayness of the office. Unlike the security chief, her outfit was a lot brighter, almost pretty. Straw white hair fell beneath her shoulders, completing the casual corporate look. “You were permitted to ask any questions regarding mister code and receive an answer, within limits. Nowhere was it specified who you're to have the conversation with. Since I have familiarized myself with the case in depth, it’s my fiduciary duty to answer all questions in the name of our executives and employees alike, saving them loss incurring distractions.”
Clever. That was quite the legal loophole. The issue was that if H-Sec tried to close it, they would find the corporate world even less cooperative. The best course of action was to accept this and rely that Ellcron wouldn’t share their ingenuity with any of their competitors.
“Very well. What could you tell us about mister Kode?”
“Nothing much, unfortunately. He was close to being a model employee. Good results, highly valued skills, perfect dedication. In fact, he was on the short list for this quarter’s promotions.”
“And what exactly did he do here?” Clayton pressed on.
“He was a senior researcher, but I believe you know that.”
“That wasn’t the question.” Detective Nixen stepped in. “What project was he working on?”
“Unfortunately, I cannot answer that. The judge’s permission doesn’t include discussion of proprietary secrets. Suffice it to say that it was on a top ten product.”
“Can one of your competitors have killed him?”
“Anything is possible, but in this case, extremely unlikely.” Van Buren nodded. “Despite his talent, Janos didn’t have access to anything that would have been worth killing for.”
“But you just said—”
“That he worked on one of our top ten products, and he did. However, I never mentioned under what capacity. Consider the new space shuttle. It contains a multitude of feats in the field of engineering and rune electronics. That doesn’t mean that there aren’t painters linked to the project.”
“So, you’re saying that mister Kode was the equivalent of a painter?”
“In a manner of speaking. In a few months, things might have changed, but for the moment there’s nothing he could say about the product other than information our competitors already possess.”
Killed before he could be any useful. I took a few steps forward, but the head of Ellcron security quickly gave me a sign to stop. No doubt they had an extensive file on me and knew better than to let me get anywhere close to anyone.
“What about internal issues?” Clayton asked. “Did any of Janas' colleagues feel unhappy that he made his way on the promotions list? Or the project?”
“Detective.” The lawyer gave the most charming smile imaginable—the type sea-vultures made before biting. “Unlike what you’ve heard, we’re not literally a cutthroat business. People have been known to use underhanded methods to advance, but never here, and definitely not—”
“Then why did you send an agent to clean up the crime scene?” I asked. Detective Nixen was furious that I had spoken. No one else, though. The calmness emanating from both the lawyer and head of security suggested they were even expecting it. “The Icemore University tutor is, in fact, one of your agents, isn’t he?”
Clayton and Nixen looked at me. Meanwhile, the Ellcron people glanced at each other.
“What led you to such a conclusion?” van Buren asked.
“He didn’t look like he was sleeping with either the widow or her daughter. Also, the family lawyer didn’t seem at all worried when he was questioned.” Also, you just confirmed my suspicions.
“Well, you are indeed correct. It’s natural for Ellcron to send someone to retrieve sensitive materials. We can assure you that nothing was compromised.”
“Uhu. So, you didn’t find what you were looking for.” I pulled up a nearby chair and sat down. “What was that exactly?”
“What Waters means to ask is whether any additional details regarding mister Kode come to mind,” Clayton quickly said. “Getting into a dispute with H-Sec would be of no one’s benefit, especially since it increases the risk of Ellcron property going missing.”
The threat was subtle and completely provable in court, but I could almost hear the wheels in van Buren’s mind turn. In her place I wouldn’t bother with a cost-benefit analysis. They had already admitted lying once, so they might as well share a bit more of the truth.
“It is potentially possible that Janas took a sensitive component by mistake,” the lawyer said. “Nothing particularly valuable in itself, but a vital part of something else. Our employee was sent to retrieve it along with any other paper documents. Unfortunately, as you said, the item in question was not present. Only its container was recovered at the scene, which, I might add, is also exclusively Ellcron’s property.”
“And we’ll be sure to take great care of it.”
The conversation disgusted and fascinated me at the same time. Both sides were haggling about evidence as if it were a rug for sale. It almost seemed like they were doing us a favor by letting themselves get caught.
“Mirto will see to it,” the lawyer said, sending the man out of the room with a single glance. “Would that be all?”
“Has anyone noticed mister Kode act differently lately?” Clayton continued. “Maybe tenser than usual?”
“There were a few reports regarding this, but he remained within optimal limits, so no action was taken. If you want my personal opinion—unofficially, of course—the reason was his son. Just two days ago, he stormed here, demanding to speak with his father.”
Celius here? That was a bit unexpected. However, it confirmed that he was in the city proper.
“While Ellcron is not heartless, we do not allow family visits without vetting on appointment. The boy was detained, searched, questioned, and escorted out of the building. I believe Janas wasn’t even informed of his visit.”
“Did he seem furious enough to kill?” I asked.
“I was not present at the interrogations, so I cannot say. I do know that he left here rather displeased by the outcome. Keep that in mind when you question him.”