“That doesn’t make what happened right. They killed people.”
“Don’t do this, Paula.” Mel was almost pleading. “Let me talk to Columbia, let me find out if this is safe. You never know, I might actually be right. It might have been one of Rigin’s enemies.”
She considered the request. “Very well, I’ll complete the investigation into the gallery explosion itself. How it is carried forward after that, and who it’s assigned to, will be your call.”
“Seriously?”
“Yes.”
“Why?” he asked suspiciously.
“If the investigation is blocked politically, it will be because it was either CST or the executive which ordered the assault, in which case I’m not interested. Not that I don’t want to see justice done, but it would not ever be possible to achieve justice in those circumstances. I would be wasting my time, which I could be using to pursue Johansson and Elvin. If Columbia wants us to proceed, then that’s a different matter.”
“If we get the all-clear, it’ll be to find out who Rigin was at war with. Do you really want to spend time on that? You’ve got the resources to track down Johansson now.”
“If we get the all-clear, you and I will need to know which of us is right.”
“So do you want the case?”
“I’ll let you know when you bring an answer from Columbia. Until then, I’m still dedicating the team to finding Johansson.”
“Okay. I can live with that.”
“There’s something else I want you to raise with Columbia.”
“Yes?”
“Elvin was after some very advanced equipment; I really think it’s time for every export to Far Away to be searched. Our current policy of random checks is simply not acceptable anymore. Not that it ever was to me.”
“I’ll put it on the agenda.”
“Good.”
Hoshe Finn was just sitting down to supper when the apartment’s door sensors showed him who was approaching. He muttered, “Holy shit,” and stood bolt upright. His wife, Inima, gave him a surprised look, then glanced at the little screen showing the camera picture. “Isn’t that… ?”
“Yep.” Hoshe went through the living room and arrived at the door the same time as Paula Myo. “Is something wrong?” he asked after he’d invited her in.
“No, everything is fine, thank you.” She looked him up and down. “You’ve lost some weight.”
“Not before time,” Inima said giving him a shy glance. “We’re considering having a child.”
Paula produced a genuine smile. “Congratulations. Will you be carrying it?”
“Heavens no,” Inima said. “It’ll be a vitro womb pregnancy.”
“Right.”
That seemed to exhaust the Investigator’s small talk. Hoshe and Inima exchanged a mildly bewildered look.
“Do you want to join us for supper?” Inima asked.
“No thank you, it’s midafternoon Paris time. I caught the express.”
“We can talk on the balcony if you’d like,” Hoshe said as his wife shot him a desperate glare.
“If you don’t mind,” Paula said.
“I’ll just get on with catching up on some work,” Inima assured her.
The balcony of the little apartment barely had room for the small round table and two chairs that were pressed up against the railing. Hoshe shuffled around the table and sat down. Paula stood by the rail, taking in the view. The thirty-story apartment block was in Darklake City’s Malikoi district, a long way back from the shore. Paula could look out and see the parks and elaborate buildings that meandered along the shoreline, she could even pick out the tower behind the big marina where Morton used to live.
“You have a nice home, Hoshe.”
“Why are you here?”
She left the rail and sat opposite him. “I need some detective work done. This is not an official request, it’s a…”
“A favor,” he supplied gently.
“Yes.”
“You don’t like working outside channels, do you, Paula?”
“I don’t have a lot of choice in this particular case. I believe my Agency is compromised. That’s why I’ve come to you, and a few others I worked with outside the old Directorate, you can make inquiries that won’t be registered in our office.”
“Compromised by whom?”
“I’m not sure. But they will be very highly placed inside the Commonwealth government, perhaps even the executive itself. If they find out about this, it won’t exactly help your career.”
“What have they done?”
“What they always do, play politics and maneuver among their own kind. But this time it’s resulted in people being killed.”
“Okay. What do you need?”
“Have you seen the recordings of the Venice Coast bomb?”
“Hell yes. Mellanie has been playing them just about nonstop.”
“Mellanie?” Paula hesitated. “Mellanie Rescorai?”
“None other. I sometimes think I did the wrong thing letting the demon out of the bottle.”
“You let genies out of bottles, Hoshe, not demons.”
“Not in this case, believe me. After the court case she went on and made some softcore TSI biogdrama, Murderous Seduction . Did you access it?”