In the Black (20 page)

“Too much dirty underwear floating around your cabin? Okay, mine.” He closed his eyes. “Just don’t snore.”

“I’m not coming over,” she replied despite her libido hammering and screaming to be let out.

“I’ll see you in my dreams then.” He closed his eyes and rolled his head back. “Just don’t bite.”

Sam smiled. “Not until you ask me to.”

She cut the comms with a flick of her finger before he could respond.

Let him chew on that all night.

She wasn’t going to be the only one having dirty dreams.

Chapter Eight

Daniel stared at the knife, still floating in the transparent evidence bag. He hadn’t gone to sleep after his conversation with Sam, too wound up to consider it. Another pass over the evidence might calm him down enough to let him get some rest.

He was there to catch a killer, not woo Sam Keller. Whatever he was going to do with her, to her, it’d have to wait until later.

He sighed, annoyed at being caught between personal and professional demands.

No matter how much he wanted to help her heal. Whatever ghosts were chasing Sam Keller, they snapped at her heels constantly if the recent anxiety attack was any indication.

Etts beeped and clicked at his waist.

“I’m not clearing Bianca as a suspect. She could have done all this to throw us off her trail.” Daniel turned the evidence bag over in his hands. “She did seem pretty upset. And we don’t have a motive yet for anyone.”

Etts made a double-clicking noise.

“Not strong enough?” He chuckled. “You’d be surprised how strong a woman’s grip can be at the right time and place.”

The AI blew a raspberry.

He rubbed his chin. “Run another search on the Hub and Keller’s part in it. I want to know what makes her tick.”

Another disapproving sound.

“It’s part of the investigation.”

Etts coughed.

“I don’t have to justify everything to you.” He settled down in his chair and closed his eyes. “Why does it have to be so damned hard?”

Etts beeped again, the question clear.

“Everything.”

* * *

She was in the debriefing room
,
listening to the spin the military experts were going to put on the events at the Hub.
The manipulated photographs spun through a cycle on the screen
,
the revisionist history they were supposed to cover their memories with.
One kid to her right
,
barely old enough to shave
,
kept shaking his head and muttering to himself.

Names.
He kept repeating names.

Dead friends.

A
captain moved in on the trooper
,
kneeling down beside him and talking in a low voice.
She couldn’t hear what was being said but she had a good guess.

The kid wouldn’t listen.
He slammed his fist down on his knee
,
dangerously close to the officer.

A
twitch of a finger from the officer and the guards moved in
,
taking the soldier’s arms and dragging him out of the room.

No one else moved.
No one turned from viewing the screen
,
no one spoke up to ask what was going on.

The captain followed
,
his face expressionless.

She turned her attention back to the photos
,
hoping no one had seen her watching the argument.

She wanted to live—

Sam thumped the control panel with her right hand and gasped at the pain shooting up her arm.

Metal didn’t tend to give when pummeled with fleshy bits.

“Captain, are you well?” Belle’s voice came out of the speaker. “Do you want me to contact Sean for medical assistance?”

“Yes. No. Not yet.” She shook her head, trying to clear it of Daniel LeClair.

“I have an incoming call from Grendel.” Belle sounded apologetic. “Would you like to speak to him now?”

“No.” The water bottle at the side of her chair was cold, intentionally kept that way. Sam grabbed it and took a deep swig through the narrow drinking hole. “But I guess there’s no better time like the present.”

The low voice dribbled through the speakers. “Captain.”

“Grendel.”

“I understand you have a suspect in custody.”

Trust him to cut to the chase.

Sam pressed the cold plastic against her temple. “How do you know that?”

“Captain.” The slick voice caused her stomach to churn. “Surely you know the Guild doesn’t just depend on your reports?”

“We had a suspect, past tense. Unfortunately he’s been ruled out but we’re keeping him in custody until we find the real killer.”

She didn’t want to think about who leaked the info to the Guild. It had to be Trainer, Swendson, Danforth or Huckness.

Or Daniel.

She didn’t want to think about the marshal chatting it up with Grendel.

“Who knows this?”

“The marshal, myself, the foreman, the shop steward and the medical officer. Oh, and the security chief.”

As if the Guild rep didn’t know. One of them must have flipped Kowalski to Grendel, serving the poor guy up on a platter.

Grendel was playing his cards close to his chest though—she couldn’t tell from his tone which one had the loose lips.

And open wallet.

“I see.” Grendel’s tone turned icy. “I’ll contact them and let them know we’re satisfied with the preliminary results of the marshal’s investigation. Send this man to a Justice base and we’ll close the books on this unfortunate incident.”

“He’s not guilty.” Sam shook her head, forgetting the invisible Guild representative couldn’t see her. “He’s a crippled old man who got played for a fall guy by the real killer. The token I gave him got plucked out of the garbage by someone who left it in Comet’s room to throw us off the track.”

“Then he’s guilty of something else. I’m sure there’s something he can be charged with for tossing the token out. Either way Kowalski needs to be arrested.”

“Huckness is keeping him in custody for causing a ruckus during my presentation. The only thing he’s guilty of as far as the Guild is concerned is not wanting to use the
Belle’s
services. And that’s not a crime.”

She suspected that if the Guild could make it a crime, it would.

“I see.” The chill continued. “Captain, you’ve spent only six months with the
Belle.
Maybe it’s time to remind you of your responsibilities.”

“I know what I’m doing,” Sam snapped. “I’m finding out who killed one of my crew.”

“That’s only part of your job. You’re also supposed to be making us money.”

She pressed the cool bottle to her forehead. “And how does arresting an innocent man make the Guild money? We’ve already reopened for business and the clients are coming in. Others are rescheduling.”

“The longer a murder investigation takes the worse it appears for both the Guild and the Service.” Grendel sighed. “This isn’t rocket science. Bad publicity is bad publicity and we need the situation rectified as soon as possible.”

Her patience was at an end. “So what, toss Kowalski down for the crime? He’ll clear out in no time after his lawyer gets hold of the evidence. And we’re flying either with a murderer in amongst the crew or leaving one on Branson Prime among the employees.”

“It wouldn’t be the first time.”

Sam blinked as if she’d been slapped across the face. “Come again?”

“Tell the marshal to take Kowalski. Right now the murder is top of the news feed and we need it gone. By the time he gets out of jail it’ll be a note at the bottom of the page right after the sports score. Case closed.”

“And the killer goes free?” Sam croaked.

“For now.” She imagined Grendel waving a hand in the air. “If we’re lucky he’ll slip up again and take out a girl on a Charity ship and get caught. Or he’ll disappear and never do another illegal thing again until he rotates back home. Some of these fellows need to vent and that’s how they release the pressure. One, maybe two kills and they never do it again. Either way it’s a problem that’s easily solved now that we have a suspect in custody.”

Sam stared at the water bottle, wishing it were vodka. “And what if it’s one of the crew? You want me to fly a ship with a murderer running loose on board?”

“You wouldn’t be the first captain to do so.”

She felt nauseated.

“I know, I know.” Grendel’s honeyed voice swept over her. “You want justice done. I get it, I really do. I told you we do psych checks on all the crew and we do, every time they renew their contracts. But space changes a man, a woman. Sometimes the competitiveness between our members gets to be too much, inflamed and inflated by the lack of space and the need to make money.”

“And when they snap, someone dies.” The words caught in her throat.

“At the very worst, yes. Someone dies. Maybe they get into a catfight or maybe they ask for a transfer to another ship and it never reaches that degree. It doesn’t happen often but it does happen.” The low, warm words continued to try to bribe her. “Look, you used to be a soldier. You’ve seen how people react under pressure. Some can handle it, some don’t. You can give all the tests you want but you can’t predict how a person will cope when it comes down to it. You’re a professional. You’re a vet. You can smooth this over.”

Sam closed her eyes, the sour taste in the back of her throat increasing. “And if he or she kills again?”

“Then we’ll deal with it. But these cases tend to burn themselves out after one side is taken care of.”

“Murdered.”

“Whatever,” Grendel replied. “Just tell the marshal to take Kowalski and go. Finish the stay and get back into space and on your route.”

She couldn’t find her voice.

“I understand you having problems with this, Sam.”

Using her first name made it worse.

“But this is the way the world works. Money has trumped justice for decades, centuries. You’re not going to change that and we don’t want you to. Just do your job.”

“I can’t order Daniel to arrest the wrong man.” She tried to drink from the bottle and found it empty. “I can’t control the marshal.”

“No, you can’t. But you control a ship of women and men who could,” Grendel purred. “The Guild is very willing to compensate any courtesan who will help you out of this situation.” He paused. “Or even you, if you’d like to take on the task.”

The blaze of white hot rage blinded her. She threw the empty bottle at the communication panel. It gently smacked a set of buttons before bouncing away.

“I won’t be a part of this. I won’t help cover up a crime or thwart justice.”

The bottle floated overhead, a last drop of water trying to escape from the opening.

“I understand your position, Sam. I just thought you’d like to be the one to take care of—Daniel, is it?”

She flinched.

“Your job is to dispose of the problem and finish the assignment. The Guild won’t settle for anything less. I’ll be in touch later.”

The link went dead.

Sam closed her eyes and wondered what god she’d pissed off enough that she kept dropping into different levels of hell.

* * *

“Excuse me?” Daniel glared at Trainer. “Did you just suggest I take Kowalski and leave? You’re his foreman, how can you even suggest something like that?”

Trainer glanced from side to side, beads of sweat dotting his forehead. “All I’m saying is that if it’s expedient for the Service I’m willing to allow him to take the heat. You know he’ll be cleared in a few days or weeks, whenever the system figures out officially through their doctors what your Captain Keller picked up in a few minutes. Kowalski’ll get a free medical and a handful of drugs for his arthritis before they ship him home to his family, and his full pension.”

He’d cornered Daniel in the security office while Huckness was breaking up a fight on the arrival dock.

Daniel wouldn’t have put it past Trainer to have ordered the brawl through his connections so that he could get Daniel alone.

Trainer leaned over the desk, glancing once at the monitors surrounding Daniel’s chair. “Hey, it works for all of us. Kowalski gets to leave early, you get a silver star on your sheet and the file’s closed.”

“Except for a murderer running loose among your men.”

Trainer held up a finger. “Or on the
Belle
. And frankly, once that Mercy ship cuts line she’s none of my concern.” He tilted his head to one side with a weary smile. “Marshal, men need to let off some steam at times. Wrong time, wrong place but it’s one of the risks these women take when they work for the Guild. I don’t think the killer will do anything else while he’s here and if he does we’ll catch him then.”

“Are you kidding me? Are you fucking kidding me?” His voice rose and he saw the panic on Trainer’s face.

“I’m suggesting it. You get to go on vacation early and everyone gets what they want. It’s a win-win deal.” Trainer forced a smile. “Maybe you can get a freebie from one of the girls for your assistance? I’m sure the Guild would appreciate a fast resolution to this.”

Daniel stood up slowly, more out of keeping his temper in check than weariness. “I am not for sale.”

Trainer scowled. “Everyone’s for sale, Marshal. It’s just a matter of figuring out the price.” He glanced at the closed door. “I’m making a suggestion, that’s all. Whether you choose to go that route is your decision. But it’d be to everyone’s benefit to get this done as soon as possible.”

Daniel ignored the urge to strangle the foreman. “I’ll take it under advisement.” His teeth hurt from clenching them so hard. “Now get the fuck away from me.”

Trainer put his hands up and took a step back. “I’ll be in my office if you want to talk.” He headed for the door, his face wet with sweat. “No offense meant.”

Daniel watched the foreman’s retreat, never taking his eyes off Trainer.

As the door closed behind the worker, Daniel wondered why Kyle had been so insistent about him taking the case. Had he known Daniel couldn’t be bought off and thus rerouted him here to ensure justice was done? Or was he setting Daniel up for failure?

Justice and politics had always gone hand in hand in the past. He’d run afoul of a few big players and pissed off more than a few powerful people inside the Service with his honesty.

Kyle Harris was a damned good poker player.

Daniel hoped he hadn’t just been dealt aces and eights.

* * *

Sam leaned back, resting her head on the thin cushion of her command chair.

Do the routine the therapist taught you. Go through the steps and you’ll be just fine.