QUANTUM MORTIS: A Man Disrupted

by Steve Rzasa

  “We’re not going to eat here, are we?” Hildy said, sounding alarmed.

  Tower smiled ruefully. It appeared TPPD didn’t pay much better than the military.

  “I’m sure we can find somewhere that isn’t too ruinous.”

  “I doubt it,” Baby interjected. “The average price of an entree of the three hundred twenty dining establishments is seven five point six four rads and Il Gatto Giallo is the twelfth most expensive.”

  “Maybe someone will be kind and give us a basket of bread,” Hildy said, stifling a laugh. “If you shoot the waiter, can you expense it?”

  “Do you know, I never thought to try it. Where is this Giallo place anyhow, Baby?”

  A bewildering grid of blue lines instantly plastered themselves over Tower’s right eye. Baby helpfully highlighted the restaurant at the upper left edge of the complex in yellow. It was a small establishment, but even coming at it from the other direction, the view was spectacular. A flashing red spot drew his attention to the parking inlet one level below the restaurant. He aimed the var at it and turned control over to the lot’s augment, which smoothly parked them without incident between a very expensive grey Porsche ZH-920 with pseudo-missiles racked under its stub-wings and an even more expensive yellow Uda-Fermi Kanari. Not for the first time, Tower was glad the doors of the armored var opened up rather than out; a scratch on one of those beautiful beasts would eat up two months of his salary.

  He and Hildy found themselves being smiled at in an alarmingly ingratiating manner by no less than eight parking attendants, although it was a pretty redhead in a short black skirt who showed them the way to Il Gatto Giallo, which name, he discovered, apparently had something to do with cats, particularly yellow ones. Mara Tanabera was even easier to find than he’d anticipated, as she was standing right in front of them at the hostess station, exchanging air kisses with a wealthy, silver-haired matron who was arm-in-arm with a handsome and considerably younger escort. Tanabera’s hair was jet black now, cut much shorter than it had been in her ID holo, and close to her face. But it was unmistakably her. Her smile, when she flashed it at the older woman as she led them to their table, was downright radiant.

  “No question why the Crown Prince picked her out of the crowd,” Hildy murmured as they waited for the young woman to return.

  She strode back in a businesslike manner that belied her jeweled micro skirt and gravity heels. The invisible supports of the latter made it look as if she was a ballerina tip-toeing on air. She beamed at the two of them, flashing the same brilliant smile she’d previously directed at the last couple. “Good evening, sir. Good evening, ma’am. We have two tables open if you don’t mind sitting near the balcony. The view is wonderful, but some of our guests do find it a little overwhelming.”

  “I have no doubt they do.” Tower lifted his badge out of his breast pocket and slid it on top of the reservation screen. There was no need to alarm the entire restaurant. “My name is Graven Tower, Miss Tanabera. I’m with MCID, and this is Detector Derin Hildreth of TPPD Homicide. We have a few questions for you. Would you be so kind as to step outside?”

  After the young woman quickly summoned a replacement, a pretty blonde whose wide-mouthed smile was eerily similar to Miss Tanabera’s, they followed her to a private room one level up that appeared to be some sort of VIP room. After they broke the news to her about Arpad Jagaelleon’s murder, she sat quietly and stared out the window. Tower had to give her credit. She had shed a few tears, but showed no inclination to give way to grief-stricken theatrics. The broad smile was gone. The short jaw was set with something that he belatedly realized was not merely grief.

  “Her heart rate is elevated and blood pressure indicates increased circulatory activity,” Baby observed. “In the absence of any indications of sexual arousal, the most probable conclusion is that she is upset. Very upset.”

  You don’t think it’s the uniform? Before she could respond, he nodded at Hildy. It seemed best if she took the lead here.

  “Miss Tanabera, I’m very sorry for your loss. Would you be able to answer a few questions about your relationship with Mr. Jagaelleon?”

  The young woman nodded quickly and wiped a tear out of her left eye with a long-nailed finger.

  “I’ll help in any way I can.”

  “You were involved with Mr. Jagaelleon?”

  “Involved?” The young woman laughed involuntarily. “You put it so delicately, officer! But yes, we were involved. Romantically, if that’s what you’re getting at.”

  “How long had you been involved?”

  “Eleven months.”

  “And how long had you been acquainted with Mr. Jagaelleon?”

  “It was about three weeks… I don’t know, say, twelve months.”

  “Did Mr. Jagaelleon have any rivals for your affection?”

  “Any rivals?” Hildy’s question clearly took the young woman by surprise. “I don’t know what you mean!”

  “She means, were you involved with anyone else while you were with the prince?” Tower interjected. “Or were there any old boyfriends lurking about who objected to being replaced?”

  Tanabera glared at both of them, first aiming her ire at Tower, then at Hildy. “What sort of girl do you think I am? Do you think I’m some sort of gold-digger who was only after Vladi for his money?”

  “Hildy says please, pretty please, shut up, Tower!”

  Tower closed his mouth and forced himself to lean back in his chair. Hildy coolly proceeded as if neither of the other two had said anything at all.

  “We’re only attempting to learn if there is anyone in Mr. Jagaelleon’s extended circle of acquaintances who might have had a motive to kill him, Miss Tanabera. I’m sure you understand that jealousy and romantic rivalries are often connected to violence, particularly where very attractive young women are involved.”

  Whether it was Hildy’s casually indifferent tone or the implied compliment she’d thrown out, the young woman’s anger visibly dissipated. She nodded, and Hildy continued.

  “Were you single at the time that you met Mr. Jagaelleon?”

  “More or less. I mean, I was seeing one or two people, but it was nothing serious.” She shrugged and half-grinned at Hildy. “You’re pretty, you know how it is.”

  “Of course,” Hildy nodded easily.

  Of course? It took every last gram of Tower’s self-control not to ask Detector Hildreth what, exactly, she had meant by that. How it is? How is what?

  “Settle down, Tower, she’s just mirroring. You really need to do something about your LDL level, boss. With the way your blood pressure just spiked there, I thought you were heading for a coronary.”

  Right, mirroring, of course. What else would it be? Hildy was a trained interrogator and a skilled professional who just happened to be extremely attractive to a broken-down soldier who hadn’t been on a date in eight years, she wasn’t anything like some gold-digging slag who kept six men on a string at a time. He tried to clear his mind of the image of Derin Hildreth as a smiling lapdancer, fawning upon a long line of xenos with strangely colored eyes in all the hues of the rainbow.

  “If you don’t let me book that appointment with your therapist you’ve been putting off for three months, I’ll book one with the other clinic,” Baby threatened.

  Fine, go ahead, Tower grumbled.

  But it wasn’t an idle threat. He’d spent six months in that other clinic and the Rhysalan military’s idea of rehabilitation for extreme cases of post-trauma neural anomalies left more than a little to be desired. It wasn’t as if Baby could actually know what he was thinking, but her ability to read his vital signs sure made it seem that way sometimes. He shook his head and tried to return his focus to Hildy’s interrogation.

  “So, at the time you met Mr. Jagaelleon you were seeing a waiter here as well as the older gentleman who was an Ascendancy diplomat.”

  At least Tanabera had the grace to look mildly embarrassed. “You make it sound so sordid when you put it that
way, Detector! I mean, Enkobar was very sweet, and very kind, but we weren’t, you know, involved, if you want to put it that way. I just accompanied him to a few parties at one embassy or another from time to time, and he would take me out to dinner, or to a game, or maybe bring me along on a little shopping trip to the capital sometimes.”

  Tower couldn’t help himself. “But you weren’t involved.”

  This time she looked more surprised than offended. “No, we were just friends. Like I said, he was a very sweet, very generous man.”

  “Must be nice,” Tower commented, drawing a warning glance from Hildy.

  Who is this Enkobar?

  “Enkobar Walrasian. Age 64, citizen of House Antony, resident for the last two years, four months. He’s the Chief Undersecretary to the Ascendancy’s Ambassador; came in with the current administration.”

  “But you were, shall we say, involved with one of your co-workers here.”

  “It was nothing serious.” She smiled suddenly, as if at a recalled memory. “He was hot. We’re young. We had a little fun together, that’s all.”

  “And the name of this hot young gentleman?” Hildy sounded amused.

  “Wicca.” At the sight of their upraised eyebrows, Tanabera flashed the real version of her professional smile. “I know,” she said, sounding amused. “He always said it was because he was magical in the sack.”

  Tower managed to keep his mouth shut. But it was hard.

  “He wasn’t really, but it was cute. We just sort of drifted apart right around the time I met Vladi. Wicca didn’t care. I mean, he called me up late at night a few times, you know, like they do. But I didn’t take him up on it and I’m sure he didn’t have any trouble finding someone else who would. He’s usually going out with one of the girls here, sometimes two. He’s not the sort of man you get serious with, you know what I mean?”

  “Sure,” said Hildy, a little too easily for Tower’s comfort. “I notice you refer to Mr. Jagaelleon as Vladi. Is that how he introduced himself to you? Did you know he was the Crown Prince of Morchard?”

  “Not right away. He was different. He could have just been an executive of an interplanetary. He was polite, thoughtful, and he tipped well. Never said anything bad to the staff, even when they botched an order in back. Of course, it didn’t hurt that he was handsome. You should have seen the girls maneuvering to get his table whenever he came in.”

  “How did you find out?”

  “Word gets out. Sometimes the embassies inform us, you know, when the VIP wants to be treated like one. Can’t stand them. You should see how they all try to lord it over us. We get those types in here all the time, with guards and advisors trailing them around like puppies, snapping their fingers and barking orders.”

  “Bet they tip well.”

  “They’re not all bad.” She shrugged and her expression softened. “Vladi wasn’t that sort. I think after his third time here, one of the girls heard one of the other guests calling him “your highness”. We make it a practice to learn as many names as possible, so Crystal and me looked up all the royal Vladimirs on the planet.”

  “How did he react to the wait staff knowing about his royal status?” Hildy asked.

  “He didn’t. He didn’t know. I mean, he didn’t until after we started dating.”

  “He told you?”

  “Actually, I may have dropped a “your highness” at an inopportune time.”

  Hildy glanced at Tower, her amusement barely concealed. Tower shook his head. Women.

  “Was he upset?”

  “That I knew?” Tanabera smiled. “No, he just laughed.”

  “He didn’t mind that you’d been researching him?”

  “He said it was only fair, considering the background search his security team had done on me.”

  “Did you know about his political enemies?”

  “Sure. Vladi talked about them every now and then. Used lots of words in Morchardese I didn’t know. But he wasn’t afraid of them. Nothing scared him. He liked to talk about the future, what he would do when they retook their planet and he was king.”

  “Like what?”

  “Oh, I don’t know, I didn’t really pay a lot of attention to it.” The woman shrugged and shook her head. “I mean, even if it happened, what would it have to do with me? I don’t know much about crown princes and kings, but I’m pretty sure they don’t marry waitresses from other planets. I liked him, I liked him a lot, but I knew it would be over the moment he was able to go back to Morchard.”

  “Sure,” Tower made an effort to be more agreeable. “But do you remember if he was vengeful, or if he was looking for revenge? Could the possibility of his returning to power have scared a lot of people, maybe given them a little extra incentive to make sure it never happened even if it was pretty unlikely? I mean, stranger things have happened, right?”

  “Revenge? Oh, no, not Vladi. He was always talking about how if only his father had been more open to reform, you know, given the common people a real say in how the planet was run, there wouldn’t have been enough support for the rebels.” She shook her head. “If anything, they’d have wanted to keep him alive if they knew what the alternative was. I remember he said once that his little brother, Prince Janos, would just as soon wipe the planet clean and start over. He was joking, Vladi, I mean, exaggerating, really, but I had the idea that his brother wasn’t quite as forgiving as Vladi.”

  “Did you ever meet Janos?” Hildy asked.

  “No, I never met anyone from the embassy once we started dating. Even the night he asked for my number, he was there with two of his local friends.”

  “You know their names?”

  “Sure, I saw them many times after that; we usually met up with them and their girlfriends at Ascathel’s apartment near here. Good guys. Pernys is a banker, and Ascathel is an executive with a company that has something to do with managing city traffic flows.”

  “Want their data?”

  Maybe later, Tower replied. He was becoming increasingly skeptical that Jagaelleon’s murder had anything to do with this girl or his personal life. In fact, the crown prince’s secret life was turning out to be almost disappointingly normal. Who voluntarily hung out with bankers and traffic engineers?

  Then he was leaping to his feet in unison with Hildy as separate alarms went off in their heads.

  “Morchard!” she gasped.

  “The embassy!” he shouted at her.

  Mara Tanabera all but cringed in terror, holding up one arm crooked defensively over her face. She was staring fearfully at them, as bewildered by their strange burst of activity as she was alarmed. Tower saw Hildy trying to reassure her, but he had no time for that. He was already moving toward the exit while simultaneously trying to absorb the dynamic information Baby was force-feeding his mind.

  Location 44.981667, -93.278333. External. Multiple shots fired: two lasers, four charged particles, one disruptor. One definite fatality, ID unknown, two possible casualties, ID X3040MO004500420034 and ID X3040MO004500421067. Seven units responding from TPPD. Audio sensors indicate shot order: disruptor discharge (unknown), CPG (GHK 707), CPG (GHK 707), Laser (unknown), CPG (GHK 707), Laser (unknown), CPG (GHK 707). 2 paramedical units responding from St. Cristobal General. SATT 445 on standby. Units Q45873927-3472 and Q8572925-8741 report secure horizontal blockade south of intersection with 74th avenue. Correction: one casualty, one definite casualty, ID X3040M0004500420034. Units F8348-4872 and F2783-7863 confirm en route to secure vertical blockade.

  There was more, increasingly more, even as Hildy came flying down the stairs from the VIP room, her eyes showing relief when she saw that he was moving slowly enough to allow her to catch up. But despite the flood of information engulfing him, the gist of it was simple enough. The unknown assassin had struck again, this time on the street outside the Morchardese embassy.

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  City homicides this year will total slightly more than 700, marking the third year in succession of a declinin
g murder rate, Lord Mayor Mondereth Platen said today. Trans Paradis had 702 killings as of this morning, according to Nikal Vorgna, a city spokesman for the Lord Mayor’s office. The continued reduction in crime was attributed to the new data analysis augments acquired by the Trans Paradis Police Department two years ago. The record low was 571 in 3385; the record high was 18,477 in 3299, according to police statistics.

  —from “Homicides fall for third year in a row,” the Trans Paradis Times, 3403.380

  They hurtled through the official airlines of the city with sirens blaring, lights flaring, and Baby’s emergency override sending bureaucrats and private citizens sufficiently well-connected to acquire public transponders spilling left, right, and downward out of their way. Tower was driving on manual, listening as Baby and Hildy took turns sharing information that was being divulged from the civilian and military nerve centers. According to the red light that kept blinking on his controls, his speed was “dangerously excessive” but Baby had overridden the override.

  “The fatality is the assassin. I repeat, the fatality is the assassin,” Hildy said as if she was simply repeating whatever Victor was telling her. “ID indicates Xeno—”

  “ID X3042ML018493061,” Baby interrupted. “Male Valatestan citizen by the name of Giuseppe Andrea Milazzo. Ex-military. Eight years in the Valatestan Deep Space Marines. Unmarried, no children. Two years on-planet serving as bodyguard to various visiting dignitaries. Employment nominally private, in reality front corporation owned in full by the Valatestan Embassy in Rhysalan.”

  “Looks like you get your case back, Tower.” Hildy frowned and wrinkled her lip.

  “What case? The targets nailed the hitter and I have no doubt the sponsoring embassy will very convincingly deny all knowledge of his actions and disavow any responsibility for them. If we lean on them hard enough, maybe they’ll send a junior deputy undersecretary to the ambassador’s chief food taster home and blame him after the fact, all the while vowing to never again do what they swear they didn’t. A few weeks later, rinse and repeat with a new hitter, a new embassy, and a new target.”