“Shrimati Ythen, you’re overreacting,” Shardul said. “May I remind you that Abha-ji is doing you a favour here, and you are being very, very rude.”
Her mouth and eyes narrowed in anger, but before she could spit back an insult, I stood and took Abha-ji’s hand. “We’re finished. I’ll continue my investigations into the security breach as Dad wants. Good day.”
I dragged everyone out before it got really messy. Well, messier. “I didn’t mean to offend,” Abha-ji said, her voice trembling as much as she was.
Shardul spoke to her in Nihani, and patted her arm. “I’m explaining she did nothing wrong at all and that your mother is just a rude woman.”
“Yes, she is,” I said. “My apologies for your treatment. That was inexcusable, and you’ve done me a personal favour I won’t forget. I pay my debts too.”
“I don’t want anything,” she whispered. “But that bracelet belongs to us.”
“I know, Abha,” Shardul said. “At least it’s still here, so we can try to buy it back. Let me take you home. Javen, pick me up from my office. I need to talk to you.”
I gave him ten minutes, and headed off. He’d want to chew me out and I couldn’t blame him. My mother had behaved so badly, I was ashamed to be her son. I’d never felt like that before, and I didn’t like the feeling at all.
Shardul said nothing as he got into my auto, except to say, “Drive somewhere we can talk in private.” So I took him to the riverside park, on the basis that we may as well be somewhere warm and pretty while talking about unpleasant matters.
I parked up. “Let’s walk,” he said.
We walked a little way in silence. He was clearly waiting for me to start, so I said, “My mother behaved inexcusably. I am sorry for the offence to both of you, and I meant what I said about the favour.”
“I know, and I told her that. It’s appreciated. What was all that about slander?”
I blew out my cheeks. “My fucking parents have decided that not only will they not attempt to have Veringe prosecuted, they won’t even put the word out about him. Harinakshi Narl doesn’t know who sold her husband that bracelet. So Timin Veringe will go gaily on, ripping off our people and stealing from yours, to keep my parents’ precious reputation safe.”
“By the Spirit, they can’t—”
“They can, but I don’t intend to give up that easily. Dad’s given me permission to chase down the theft from the residence.”
“And then?”
“And then...I don’t know. But I won’t let them sweep this under the rug. I promise you that. I think the time’s come to confront Sri Veringe about a few things.”
“Wait. I have some information.” He removed a note from his wallet. “Here. Two known associates. Both our people, unfortunately, but we have criminals among us as do you.”
I read the names. “Ved Hamsa Oorjit and Tilak Jyoti Sudhir. One of the guards I couldn’t interview, the one with the broken foot, is Vasu Sudhir. But he’s Kelon. They all are.”
“Or passing. Check your national database.”
I had the answer in seconds. “Half-brothers. Vasu uses his father’s name as a surname. So that’s our connection. How sure are you that Tilak works for Veringe?”
“Very, but I can’t tell you how.”
“I understand. I owe you for this.”
“You certainly do. Are you going to speak to him? I have an address.”
“Sure. You want to come, don’t you?”
He smiled. “In case he suddenly forgets he speaks Kelon. It’s a common tactic.”
I tended to forget that Shardul knew nearly as much about bad guys as I did. “Let’s go then. But you stay the hell out of my way, and out of the path of danger.”
“Of course. I am much more valuable than you.”
“This is true.”
Locating Tilak meant going to a run-down neighbourhood with rows of houses that had seen better days, and kids and teenagers hanging around in the street, staring suspiciously at the Kelon and his flashy vehicle. “Unemployment here is over forty percent,” Shardul said as we drove along the narrow street. “Hegal simply doesn’t offer enough work for unskilled youth. Unskilled chuma are sent back to Kelon by their parents to work there, gain some experience, and then return with employable skills. Not an option for our people, obviously. There. That shop. I’ve been told he and Ved are often to be found there.”
I didn’t like this. It was one thing to come to a place like this in uniform with an armed comrade at my side and the entire Hegal police force to call upon, but Shardul didn’t carry a weapon, and if we ran into trouble.... “Maybe you should stay with the auto,” I said.
“Scared, Ythen?”
“Cautious, you stupid bastard. What if they’re carrying?”
“Almost certainly are. You think this is the first time I’ve walked into a place like this? Usually I’m alone.”
“Yeah, and that might be the important factor.”
He rolled his eyes. “Then you stay with the vehicle, and I’ll talk to him.”
“No way.”
“Then get off your chuma arse and come inside.”
The shop was disused, and the house above unloved. It stood at the end of the row, which made it ideal for youths wanting a meeting place that didn’t involve walking past other people’s apartments. “The access from the rest of the houses is probably blocked,” Shardul murmured, as if he’d read my mind. “I believe drugs are involved.”
“Great. As if these kids don’t have enough problems.”
“Yes. Let me go in first. Stay behind and be ready for anything.”
“I’ve got the gun.”
“I’ve got the braids. Do as I say, Javen.”
He probably had a point, but I still didn’t like it. I put my hand in my pocket, over my gun, and followed him in.
“Tilak, tuo!” he called.
A youth turned, saw me, and bolted. I ran to the obvious exit and caught him easily, holding him firmly by his collar and belt. “Calm down, beto, I just want to talk.”
He muttered something in Nihani. “I know you speak Kelon, Tilak. You can talk to me or you can talk to the cops.”
The other kids had melted away, leaving us alone. Shardul walked over and spoke to him. Tilak spat on the ground, shaking his head. Shardul spoke again, more sharply.
“What are you saying?” I asked.
“I’m telling him that breaking into the governor’s residence is a crime which could see him sent away for ten years, but we want the person who ordered it, not him. He says he doesn’t know what I’m talking about.”
I shook Tilak. “Then let me remind you. A bracelet? Locked office? Being let in by Vasu?” He jerked at his brother’s name. “Yeah, you understand me. Knock off the act, Tilak. We don’t want you, we want your boss.”
“I’m not saying nothin’.”
“Look who speaks Kelon after all,” I said to Shardul. “Why? Scared of Timin?”
“Who’s Timin?”
“The man who paid your bail when you were arrested three months ago for street theft,” Shardul said. “And the man you do various little favours for, from time to time, with Ved. Where is Ved, anyway?”
“Don’t know who you’re talking about?”
I threw him to the ground and stood over him. “Stop wasting our time, beto. I’m serious—talk to me, or talk to the police. Who will talk to Vasu and who will work out he let you into the residence, and then your brother will lose his job and you’ll go to prison. I’m matos, you little idiot. As soon as I talk to him, I’ll know if he’s lying or not.”
“Can’t use it in court.”
“Give me a break. You think the cops need me to prove a case? Who paid you to steal from that office? I just want the name.” I surreptitiously turned on my reader’s recorder.
“You already know it.”
“Timin Veringe paid you to break into the governor’s residence and steal a bracelet from a locked office. Is that true, Tilak?
”
“Yeah,” he said, sneering sulkily. “But I won’t split on my brother.”
“If you have to, will you split on Veringe?”
“No. You don’t understand. The guy’s scary. He’ll off me.”
“No, he won’t. Tell me how your brother got you into the residence. Don’t hide anything or lie to me, or I’m calling the police right now.”
He wiped his snotty nose on his sleeve. Unusually for a Nihan, he wore a long-sleeved jacket, as if he felt cold the way newcomers from Kelon did. Larin had that effect on long-term users. “I got into the grounds during the day and hid. Vasu already gave me the key card. He made a duplicate. Then he let me in on his rounds. That other guard, Hemandra, was in on it too. He knew where the thing was, from the video. You take my brother, I’ll take that Kelon down with him.”
“Settle down,” I said. “I just wanted to know how it was done. How much did Veringe pay you?”
“Five hundred. I gave Vasu three hundred and I think he split it with that arsehole. Why do you need all this?”
“Call it insatiable curiosity. Okay, that’s it.”
He scrabbled to his feet and took off. Neither of us tried to stop him. I pulled out my reader. “Got it all here.” I switched off the recording.
“You can’t tell your father how it was done without implicating the brothers and this other guard,” Shardul said.
“Damn, you’re right. But leaving a dirty guard on duty—”
“I’ll take care of Vasu. You speak to this Hemandra. And you’ll have to drop a hint to the security chief to tighten up on the creation of duplicate key cards. But no more than that, Javen. He told us in good faith.”
“I guess. But we have enough to catch Veringe now.”
“You can’t confront him without endangering those boys. He’ll deny everything. I know the type.”
“Yeah. My only question is why?”
Shardul walked back out to the auto, and I followed. “Because it’s classic con artist behaviour. You establish your bona fides by engaging in legitimate, small deals, so your mark is lulled into a false sense of security. Then you set up a larger deal, and take them for all you can. He played your mother like a fool, but he was greedy and couldn’t resist selling the real bracelet as well as the fake. That’s why he showed it to your mother the wrong way around. He wanted to minimise the risk of her recognising it on her friend. He’ll have chosen your mother precisely because of her position and the need for discretion. He didn’t count on your parents having a private investigator in the family.”
“But why retrieve the fake at all, if Geng’s in on it?”
“The important thing was that Geng and his partner had to be able to prove the parcel was empty on arrival. They’d get the purchase price back and a fat settlement to shut their mouths if they’re lucky, while Veringe pockets the entire amount your mother paid. He can sell the fake bracelet over and over if he’s careful, and doesn’t try it in Hegal again. He must have been working on this for a while. I imagine he’s got others in that circle in his sights.”
“And my stupid mother will just let them be taken, which is all they deserve, but it means Veringe enriches himself at their expense and your people’s.”
“We have to stop him.”
“Yeah, but unless my mother brings a complaint, the police won’t do a damn thing. All I have is the evidence of a druggy banis kid, and a lot of circumstantial stuff.”
“You have to convince your mother to act.”
“Uh, Shardul, I couldn’t even make her be nice to a little old lady doing us all a huge favour.”
He bashed the roof of the auto with his clenched fist and said something obviously rude in Nihani. “Mind the metal,” I said.
“We know he’s a thief, a fraudster, and yet we can’t stop him. What kind of justice is this?”
“You could do better in your culture?”
“A man like that would be driven away as unfit to participate in the community.”
I grinned at him. “Now that’s an idea.”
“What?”
“Leave it to me. Back to your office?”
“Javen?”
“Trust me, Shardul.”
“You say that a lot.”
“And I’m still trustworthy, right?”
He growled. “You are a very, very irritating person, even for a chuma.”
“I know. I do try.”
~~~~~~~~
I let my parents stew for a couple of days, though I paid Hemandra a visit and extracted a recorded confession from him. I gave the question of how to handle the whole burglary and security thing a lot of thought. I didn’t want to give my father even more reason not to hire indigenous staff, but at the same time, Hemandra and Vasu were guarding an important facility and important people. The fact I was related to the governor didn’t mean his safety wasn’t something of national interest.
When I was ready, I arranged a meeting with both my parents, saying I wanted to report on the break-in. My mother sent a message in reply to my first asking why she needed to be present, and I told her I wanted her there. I could wait, I said, until she was free. She sent me a date and time and no love in her next message. I was officially in the shit with them.
Nonetheless, I dressed carefully, prepared a full report as I would for any other client, and made sure I was a few minutes early for the appointment. They still kept me waiting for a quarter of an hour past the agreed time. The politeness of princes didn’t apply to family, apparently.
They met me in my father’s office, my mother’s expression chilly, and my father’s hostile. “Well, Javen?” he barked. “What was so important that you had to take up both our time?”
“I wanted to present you with my report, and my bill.”
“Your bill? I assumed you were doing this out of love,” Mum said.
“I might be but my employees aren’t, and I have them to support and an office. I’ve charged slightly less than I would anyone else.”
“How kind,” my father said, taking the papers with a look of distaste. “You’ve solved the break-in?”
“Yes.”
“So how was it done?”
“I can’t tell you because I received the information on a confidential basis. However, I’ve spoken to Lieutenant Damen and given him what he needs to tighten up security here, without revealing names.”
“That’s outrageous, Javen! I demand you tell me who was behind this.”
“Only if you prosecute Timin Veringe, and only on the basis that the witnesses receive immunity.”
“I can’t agree to that,” he said as my mother glared. “I explained why.”
“Then we’re at an impasse. While Veringe’s on the loose, he’s a security threat. So what I propose is this. You revoke his visa and send him back to Kelon.”
“I could do that, I think,” he said, looking at Mum. “Yes, a good idea. Thank y—”
“I’m not finished. You’re also going to suppress any appeal from this region against the result of the current cases in the High Court concerning indigenous discrimination.”
“Now, wait a—”
“And finally, you’re going to throw your full and enthusiastic support behind Representative Gopan’s emergency bill requiring export licenses for all indigenous artefacts, with control and issuing of those licenses to be handed over to the Nihan themselves.”
He folded his arms. “Now why would I do that, Javen?”
“Because if you don’t, a copy of that report I just gave you will find its way into every media outlet in Medele. I will, of course, be free to be interviewed and be able to verify its contents.”
My mother’s face paled. “You’re blackmailing us?”
“Yes. Once upon a time, Mum, I could have trusted you to do the right thing. But I don’t know the two of you any more. I don’t know what you believe in, or what principles you uphold. So I have to act on mine, and they tell me that Dad’s in a position to rectify a hu
ge injustice.”
“You wouldn’t do this,” Dad sneered. “You’d ruin yourself too.”
“Maybe, maybe not. But I’m deadly serious, and I warn you not to try and bluff your way out. I’m well past the age when you can intimidate me, and I really don’t have a damn thing to lose.”
“Only us,” Mum said, her hand over her heart. I’d hurt her and I regretted that, but I’d taken that risk deliberately.
“Yes. But that’s up to you.” I stood. “I shouldn’t have to force you to do this, Dad. One day, I hope you’ll understand why I did.”
“I think you should leave, Javen.”
“Then good day, Governor, Mother.”
I walked out, my knees shaking, half expecting a guard to tell me to stop so I could be arrested for treason. I had just committed a serious offence by anyone’s standards.
But no one shouted at me or stopped me, and I reached the auto unharmed. I got inside, and picked up my phone. “Shardul? Can you do lunch today?”
“Javen, this is a bad time.”
“Please?”
A pause. “Let me rearrange a couple of things. Pick me up at one. I can’t get free before then.”
“Thank you.”
My hands trembled. I shoved them between my legs to still them. Had I just cut myself off from my parents for good? Yashi would stand by me. He always did. But supporting me would make things tough for him and his little family. Was making a point about the indigenous people of this country really worth that?
Too late now. I drove to the riverside park and spent an hour sending messages to various people about various things, and tried not to think about what I’d just done.
Shardul was outside his office by the time I arrived. “You look terrible,” he said as I got out of the auto. “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing. Not for you, anyway. I just needed to know I don’t suck.”
He raised an eyebrow. “And you came to me for affirmation? You are in a bad way.”
“Shut up and let’s eat.”
At his cousin’s establishment, I let him order as usual, then he folded his arms. “You want to tell me?”
“I just blackmailed my father into supporting Gopan’s bill and not opposing the indigenous court case result. Oh, and Timin Veringe will be kicked back to Kelon.”
Different Senses Page 26
