Anniversary Day (9 page)

“Thanks,” she said as she headed toward the man the cop indicated. “And next time, officer, make sure you check credentials before you get me.”

The cop started, then flushed, making her wonder just how new he was. That thought flitted across her brain and left it as she walked down the sidewalk, past two businesses that she had ordered closed. Their employees and patrons waited inside for interviews, the very thought of which overwhelmed her.

She was so far behind, and she had just started.

The man the cop had indicated stood near a dark government-issue car. The man was tall and broad-shouldered, clearly uncomfortable in a suit. It tapered along his muscular body. His features were so chiseled, he looked like a model rather than a security agent. Only the muscles in his shoulders and arms gave him away. No model would let himself get so enhanced that he couldn’t squeeze properly into a suit.

“Credentials,” she said as she approached.

He held up a hand. A badge appeared on his palm. That wasn’t enough for her. She extended her hand, and touched his.

Banyon Kilzahn, Security Office of the United Domes of the Moon. Fifteen years’ experience in dome government security, three years with the United Domes. In other words, he had worked security for the various governments on the Moon before the United Domes had become the dominant entity, certainly before the Security Office for the United Domes of the Moon had been created.

He watched her as the identification ran. Her palm warmed as the credentials and his DNA got approved through Armstrong Police Department’s database.

“You’re an observer only,” she said. “You’re here on my sufferance. You make any mistakes, interfere in any way with my investigation, and I’ll have you out of here so fast, you won’t know what hit you.”

He smiled. The smile was warm and made him even more handsome. “It’s nice to meet you too,” he said.

She glared at him. “You may mock me all you want, Director, but this is no laughing matter. When the news about the mayor gets out, this entire city is going to be in an uproar, especially considering this is Anniversary Day.”

His smile faded. “I wasn’t mocking you, Detective. I’ve just never met anyone who didn’t go through the niceties before.”

“I don’t have time for the niceties,” she said, “and neither do you. You have a choice. You can stand where I tell you to, or you can get briefings from one of my assistant detectives. Which do you prefer?”

“I’ll stick with you, if you don’t mind,” he said.

“I didn’t say stick with me,” she snapped. “I said you can stand where I tell you to.”

He nodded, his smile so far gone that it almost seemed like his face didn’t bend that way. “My mistake, Detective.”

“Don’t make another one,” she said. “And come with me.”

She turned her back on him without seeing if he was going to follow that order. She was being unduly harsh with him, but she wanted him to know who was in charge. And she wanted to keep a close eye on him. Observers like Kilzahn often reported the wrong things back to their superiors, making investigations worse.

She stepped around the crime scene lasers and went back into the restaurant. Then she checked to see if he was following her.

He was, as if he was guarding her.

“You will stand right here,” she said, placing him next to the reception desk. “You will not speak to anyone without my authorization. Nor will you report to your boss without clearing that report through me. Is that clear?’

“I’m sorry, Detective,” he said. “But I don’t work for you.”

“I run the crime scene. That means I control the information which leaves this crime scene. If you want to be in my crime scene, you will do as I tell you. Or I will send you back to the Security Office and ask Chief DeRicci to send me a liaison who knows his place. Do you understand me?”

A hint of a smile returned to his face. “Yes,” he said.

“What am I doing that’s amusing you so?” she asked.

He shrugged one of those massive shoulders. “I have never met such a fierce detective before.”

“You haven’t seen fierce yet,” she said. “You interfere with my crime scene in any way—and that means releasing the wrong information to your boss at the wrong time—and you will see fierce.”

He nodded once, crossed his arms, and started to lean against the desk.

“You touch anything without authorization, you’re interfering with my crime scene,” she said. “The techs haven’t been here yet.”

Then she reached into her pocket and removed a small disk that held a protective suit, the kind she usually gave to civilians.

“Here,” she said. “Put this on.”

He took the disk and attached it to one of the buttons on his suit. The protective gear covered him, making him look like a flash of unfiltered sunlight hit him. Then the image vanished.

“That suit does not mean you can touch anything without my permission. It’s just that I don’t trust you. I hope we’re clear,” she said.

“Perfectly,” he said. “May I at least tell my office I’m here and that you have the investigation underway?”

“You may tell them that you’re here,” she said. “That’s all.”

Then she left him, feeling her irritation rise. He was just a symbol of all that could go wrong on this case. An hour-long delay, an untrained observer, a dead mayor on the wrong day of the year—not that there was a right day. Romey wondered how she ended up being the lucky one this morning.

She also wondered where Nyquist was.

She should have told Kilzahn to go home and make Nyquist liaison. Although that would have been a waste of a lot of investigative talent.

She wondered where the hell he was.

She wondered where the hell the crime scene techs were.

She wondered where the hell the murder weapon was.

She wondered a lot of things, and she doubted she’d get the answers she wanted.

Sixteen

Nelia Byler leaned against the wall in the stuffy meeting room, her hand shielding her face, one eye closed. She needed to concentrate, and it was hard, with the invasive sound system. She had to actively decouple the sound from her links, and she couldn’t do that, not since she was supposed to be monitoring the governor-general’s speech.

But Byler had heard the speech a hundred times, or maybe a hundred and one. Besides, she had helped write it. She was supposed to monitor it so that she could tell the governor-general if she had done a good job or not, but right now, Byler didn’t care about a good job.

She cared about the message Rudra Popova was trying to send her.

No one in the room watched Byler, no one except a slender blond man who stood only a few meters away from her. He was young, maybe twenty-five if he didn’t have enhancements, too young to be this interested in a routine political speech given on the anniversary of the bombing.

He was probably related to one of the victims, although Byler didn’t remember any light-skinned victims who had such pale blond hair. Byler had only met a handful of people with those looks, one of them a Retrieval Artist who was a friend of the security chief. The Retrieval Artist was aggressively blond, with curly hair and arresting blue eyes.

This kid was pale, as if someone or something had leeched him of color. He seemed bland as well, vanishing against the real oak paneling, despite his blue clothing and the anxious tick of his right hand.

He was probably waiting for someone.

He kept glancing at Byler as if she made him nervous. She probably did.

She was trying to focus on Popova, but this really wasn’t the place. Dignitaries from all over the Moon were here, along with some minor ambassadors from even more minor countries scattered throughout the Earth Alliance. A few victims’ families, some victims’ advocacy groups, and a few political organizations representing tolerance and anti-violence campaigns also filled the room.

This would be the perfect media opportunity, but the governor-general hadn’t wanted the media here. She actually wanted to make a policy statement, and kick off a tolerance campaign.

The Moon is the place to start this
, she had said to Byler a month ago, back when this idea had first come up.
We’re the crossroads of the universe. Everyone wants to go to Earth, and they have to go through us to get there
.

Or everyone wants to leave Earth
, Byler almost said,
and we’re the doorway out
.

But she didn’t contribute. She’d been in politics long enough to know that when a politician got an “original” idea, no one should point out that the idea was impossible, had been tried before, or was just plain ridiculous. The City of Armstrong was already one of the most tolerant places in the Earth Alliance. It had to be, for precisely the reasons the governor-general named. It was the rest of the Moon that was xenophobic, and in most cases, it didn’t matter. Armstrong had the only big port, and the most aliens. It also had the largest transient population in the solar system.

Rudra
, Byler sent through her links,
can’t this wait? The governor-general is giving a policy speech that I’m supposed to pay attention to
.

You need to pay attention to me!
Popova sounded agitated. Popova was never agitated.

Byler leaned over farther. She noted a visual marker in the corner of her link to Popova and activated it.

Rudra Popova didn’t look like herself. Her eyes were red, her skin blotchy. Her lower lip trembled, and tears glistened on her eyelashes.

Byler’s heart skipped. She had known Popova for a decade, since they were in school together. She had gotten Popova her job in the Security Chief’s office.

She had never seen Popova look like this.

What the hell, Rudra?
Byler sent.

Arek is dead
. A twitch appeared in Popova’s left cheek. She wasn’t speaking this. She was sending this message without saying a word, which also indicated how upset she was.

Soseki? What happened?
Byler glanced at the governor-general. She was so tiny that the raised podium didn’t make her look taller; it made her look like she was floating. Her black hair was pulled away from her face, accenting her large black eyes. Byler thought of that as her “sincere” mask, although she would never, ever, tell the governor-general that.

No one knows how he died yet
, Popova sent.
But it’s not looking good
.

Byler frowned and brought her hand up to shield all of her face from the crowd.

I’m not supposed to let anyone know
, Popova sent,
but I had to tell someone, and I figured it should be you, just in case…

Byler went cold. She caught the implication. Just in case the death wasn’t natural. Just in case it was an assassination. That meant everyone in Armstrong would get mobilized.

She glanced at the security detail hovering near the governor-general. They looked solid and alert, but somewhat detached, like they always did when she gave a speech.

They hadn’t gotten the word yet.

I’m so sorry, Rudra
, Byler sent.
Are you heading over there?

Even though she didn’t know where “there” was. Soseki was giving speeches all day just like the governor-general. In fact, he was in greater demand on Anniversary Day because it had been his city, his dome, that had gotten hit. His response had been measured and calming.

There’d even been talk that he would run for governor-general in the next election cycle, until he quelled it. He didn’t want the honor, he had said, but what he had meant was he didn’t want to lose his power base. The United Domes had no real power. All of the power remained with the cities. They were, as the governor-general often said, little city-states, and each, given the right chance, wanted to take over the Moon.

I can’t
, Popova sent, and her expression made the words seem desperate, even though they had no sound.
No one here knows
.

Byler let out a small sigh. Of course no one knew. She had initially advised Popova to keep the relationship quiet until the relationship looked permanent. Popova and Soseki had been seeing each other for six months, and Popova had fallen in love.

It had seemed permanent to Byler. Maybe Popova hadn’t thought so.

Not that it mattered anymore.

Applause started all around them. Byler cursed silently.

I’ll meet you later,
Byler sent.
After all the events end today. Unless you need the governor-general to do something…?

Popova shook her head.
You might want to let her know. Keep quiet to everyone else though
.
And tell her security detail. Just in case
.