The Domino Pattern (23 page)

“That much I gathered,” I said. “I was mostly wondering if this rumor has anything more to it. Like why I would do something like that or, better yet, how I managed to dispose of a body from a sealed Quadrail.”

“You really think anyone’s paying attention to actual logic?” Kennrick said sourly. “Especially when it’s a trusted member of the medical profession who’s telling you all this?”

“Dr. Aronobal started the rumor?” Bayta asked, frowning over her shoulder.

“Who else?” Kennrick said. “I’m just glad I got back there in time.” He grunted. “Not that you seemed to need me. That, uh, asset of yours is really something.”

“We like it,” I said. “Which isn’t to say that reinforcements aren’t always welcome. How did you happen to be there, anyway?”

“Pure luck,” he said. “
Asantra
Muzzfor went back to third earlier this morning to discuss the contract situation with Master Tririn. While he was there he got wind of the rumor about Emikai’s mysterious disappearance, though your name apparently wasn’t yet connected to it. He mentioned it to me when I stopped by his seat half an hour ago, along with the fact that he’d seen you heading that direction. I put two and two together and went charging back to try to stop you before walked into a hornets’ nest.”

“Why would Dr. Aronobal start such a rumor?” Bayta ask

“Obviously, to keep you two at bay while she locates Emikai and finds out what we know,” Kennrick said. “Or, failing that, to come up with another plan.”

“But that doesn’t make any sense,” Bayta insisted.

“Of course it does,” Kennrick said. “Like I said, she needs to find Emikai—”

“Why doesn’t it make sense?” I interrupted.

“Because if Dr. Aronobal knows
Logra
Emikai well enough to send him to break into your compartment, she should also trust him not to tell us anything,” she said. “Especially about whether or not the two of them are working together.”

Kennrick snorted. “I think the
working together
part was obvious as soon as Aronobal tried to lure Compton out of his compartment so that Emikai could break in.”

“Obvious, but not provable,” Bayta insisted. “We might suspect, but we couldn’t know for sure. Given that, wouldn’t Dr. Aronobal do better to pretend she was innocent, or had been set up, and try to find out what we know?”

There was an answer for that, I knew. But I kept quiet. Bayta was doing just fine without my help, and I was curious to see how Kennrick would respond.

Not very well, as it turned out. “Look, I’m not here to defend her cleverness,” Kennrick said stiffly. “All I know is that the rumor is there, and that she’s the only one who benefits from it.”

“Or possibly Terese German,” I suggested. “They seem to have some kind of relationship going, too.”

“And the rumor also keeps you away from her,” Kennrick said with an air of vindication. “Like I said.”

“Yes, you’re probably right,” I agreed. Bayta frowned at me, and I gave her a small warning shake of my head. She grimaced, but turned back without another word. “So what are your plans for the day?” I added to Kennrick.

“First I need to find out from
Asantra
Muzzfor exactly what he and Master Tririn talked about,” Kennrick said. “I was about to do that when I found out you two were in danger and cut the meeting short. After that, depending on what he says, I’ll need to sit down with all three of the Filiaelians and discuss the contract status.”

“You don’t sound very hopeful,” I said.

“I’m not,” he admitted. “But I have to try.”

We reached the rearmost of the first-class cars, and as we entered I casually glanced around.
Osantra
Qiddicoj was seated in a corner by himself, his eyes closed, his breathing slow, his mind presumably emptied.

The Modhri was open for business.

“You go on ahead,” I told Kennrick, taking Bayta’s arm and bringing the two of us to a halt. “I want to see how
Osantra
Qiddicoj’s doing.”

“Yes, poor guy,” Kennrick said, peering over at Qiddicoj. “I hear those Filiaelian stomach things can drag you down for weeks. He’s looking better, though.”

“Hopefully, he’ll be recovered by the time we reach Venidra Carvo,” I said. “Thanks again for coming to our rescue.”

“Any time.” With a nod to Bayta, Kennrick continued on forward.

I could feel the taut muscles in Bayta’s arm as I steered us toward Qiddicoj’s seat. “You okay with this?” I asked her quietly.

“Would it matter if I wasn’t?”

“Sure,” I said. “I could take you back to your compartment and do it alone.”

She straightened her shoulders. “I’m all right.”

There were a pair of empty chairs nearby. I pulled them over to Qiddicoj and we sat down. “Hello, Modhri,” I said.

“Good afternoon, Compton,” the Modhri said, Qiddicoj’s eyes remaining closed. “And to you, Bayta, agent of the Spiders.”

Bayta didn’t answer.

“Let’s start with last night,” I said. “I’d like your take on just what the hell happened.”

For a long moment the Modhri was silent. “It was very strange,” he said at last. “I was… I could hear and see what I was doing, and I knew it was a lie. And yet, I could not stop myself.”

Which was, I knew, the hallmark of a good hypnotic drug. “At least you were able to slip in the clue about the hypnotic,” I commented. “So who was feeding you your lines?”

“I don’t know,” the Modhri said, a hint of frustration edging into his otherwise emotionless voice. “The voice spoke to my Eye Prapp, but spoke from behind him. I never saw who it was, neither before, during, nor after.”

“Did you recognize the voice?” I persisted. “Male, female, species—did you get
anything
?”

“Nothing,” he said. “But I do remember that a faint whistling sound seemed to underlie my attacker’s words.”

I looked at Bayta. I’d heard a whistling sound that evening, and so had Emikai. Now the Modhri had joined the club.

Obviously, that was significant. I just wished I knew how. “I don’t suppose you have any idea how the hypnotic got into your system.
Any
of your systems,” I amended. “I assume what gets into one walker affects the whole mind.”

“It does,” he confirmed. “Unfortunately, I have no idea how that was done.”

I sighed. If dead ends were money, Bayta and I could retire rich. “You really ought to try to be more alert,” I told the Modhri.

“I will,” the Modhri promised. “And may I say that I’m pleased you are still alive.”

“I’m reasonably pleased about that myself,” I said. “Okay, back to the business at hand. What can you tell me about Master Colix’s last day?”

“I’ve been pondering that question since his death,” the Modhri said. “Unfortunately, there’s little I can tell you that you don’t already know. He ate his sunrise and midday meals alone. No one approached his table during either time. Sundown was eaten with Master Bofiv and Master Tririn.”

“Master Tririn told us Dr. Witherspoon and Terese German were seated nearby at that latter meal,” I said. “Did Master Colix have a good view of them?”

“He did, and neither of them approached the table,” the Modhri confirmed. “They seemed interested only in each other.” Qiddicoj’s nostrils flared briefly. “Perhaps
too
interested.”

I felt my ears prick up. Terese, and
Witherspoon
? There was at least a forty-year age difference there. “What makes you say that?” I asked.

“He touched her in a very intimate way,” the Modhri said, and I could hear the contempt in his voice for primitive Humans who didn’t know any better than to display their affection in public.

“Where exactly did he touch her?” I asked.

A hand lifted limply from Qiddicoj’s lap. “Here,” he said, his fingertips touching his lower abdomen. “And here,” he added, moving the fingers upward a short distance.

I frowned. There wasn’t a single Human erogenous zone in either place. “Are you sure?” I asked, holding my hand a couple of centimeters above Bayta’s abdomen. “He was touching her right here?”

Qiddicoj’s eyes flicked briefly open, then closed again. “Yes,” the Modhri confirmed.

“I see,” I said, bringing my hand back. “Well, well.”

“What is it?” Bayta asked.

“At least one corner of this mess is suddenly making sense,” I said. “This dinnertime get-together wasn’t a meeting. It was a medical consultation.” I tapped my own abdomen. “Remember Terese’s stomach trouble?”

Bayta’s eyes widened a little. “Are you saying…?”

I nodded. “Our young friend Terese German is pregnant.”

Bayta shot a look at Qiddicoj. “What in the world is she doing alone on a Quadrail heading for the far end of the galaxy?”

“That’s the question, isn’t it?” I agreed. “And it’s clear now that our Filly friends Aronobal and Emikai are definitely involved with her.”

“Why do you say that?” the Modhri asked.

“Because if they are, a few more of the pieces fall into place,” I told him. “Emikai’s concern for the air in Terese’s car, for starters—air quality would be especially important for a woman carrying a baby. And then there’s Dr. Witherspoon’s reaction after
di
-Master Strinni’s death, when I asked him about his rendezvous with Terese.”

“Yes,” the Modhri murmured thoughtfully. “He was very reluctant to speak of her.”

I frowned. “
You
remember that?”

“The polyp colony within an Eye lives for a short time after the Eye’s own death,” he explained.

“Ah,” I said, a shiver running up my back. I’d always suspected that was the case, but to have it confirmed in such a coldly clinical manner was a little disconcerting. “What you
couldn’t
see was that Witherspoon kept looking at Aronobal during that conversation, as if he wasn’t sure how much he was allowed to say. Physician/patient privilege is pretty much a standard of Human law these days, but other species handle it in different ways. And Witherspoon was only brought in as a consultant, after all.”

“You think Dr. Aronobal was concerned about Ms. German’s stomach trouble?” Bayta asked.

“That’s my guess,” I said. “I’m sure she knows about morning sickness, but the duration and intensity of Terese’s bouts may have thrown her enough to want a Human doctor to take a look.”

I looked back at Qiddicoj. “Speaking of death and Modhran afterlife, why did you try to finger me—no pun intended—with Strinni’s silly dying clue?”

“My apologies,” the Modhri said, a touch of embarrassment in his tone. “At the time I believed you to be the one killing off my Eyes. I wanted to raise that same suspicion in others so that they would keep watch on your future actions.”

“That makes sense, I guess,” I said. “You have no such suspicions now?”

“None,” the Modhri assured me. “To return to Master Colix’s sundown meal. His individual was
birrsh
, and the common was
po krem
, which he ate with
prinn
scoops.”

“Yes, Tririn’s already given me the menu,” I said. “Any chance either Bofiv or Tririn spiked any of the food?”

“None,” the Modhri said firmly. “I’ve replayed the memory of the entire meal through my mind many times since then. Neither of the others could have done so.”

I nodded. I’d already come to the same conclusion, but it was good to have it verified by a fresh source. “Let’s move on to the rest of Colix’s evening. He finished dinner and…?”

“He returned immediately to his seat,” the Modhri said. “His stomach was starting to bother him.”

I frowned. “By the time he reached his seat?”

“Even sooner,” the Modhri said. “He was feeling the first twinges before the end of the meal.”

“Really,” I said, tapping my fingertips on the arm of my borrowed chair. Heavy-metal poisoning hit Shorshians quickly, but not
that
quickly. “Let’s back up a bit. Did anything unusual happen that afternoon?”

“And did he have his throat lozenges with him all afternoon?” Bayta added.

I threw a sideways look at her. As distasteful as it might be for her to have to deal with the Modhri, she was obviously intrigued by the chance to access one of the murder victims’ memories. “Including during dinner,” I added, looking back at Qiddicoj.

“Mr. Kennrick visited him briefly in the early afternoon,” the Modhri said. “They discussed the halfway-celebration meal Mr. Kennrick was planning.”

I nodded. Kennrick had already told me about that. “And the lozenges?”

“They were locked in his lower storage compartment the entire time, including during the sundown meal.” The Modhri considered. “Though Mr. Kennrick
did
handle them later that evening, when he retrieved Master Colix’s keepsake blanket for him.”

I sat up a little straighter.
That
meeting Kennrick
hadn’t
mentioned. “What exactly happened?”

“Mr. Kennrick stopped by to say good night,” the Modhri said. “Master Colix was feeling too ill to rise, and asked Mr. Kennrick to obtain his blanket and transfer his lozenges to the upper storage compartment.”

“Were either of Master Colix’s seatmates there at the time?” I asked.

“The Juri was absent,” the Modhri said. “The Human female was already beneath her privacy shield. I believe Master Tririn was absent as well.”

Which would explain why neither Tririn, Terese, nor the Juri in the window seat had mentioned the incident. “Did he lock the upper storage compartment after he got the blanket?”

A slight frown creased Qiddicoj’s face. “I’m not certain. Master Colix watched as he pulled out the blanket, placed the bag of lozenges in its place, then flipped the blanket open and draped it across Master Colix’s torso. Master Colix was looking at the blanket, adjusting its position, when Mr. Kennrick returned Master Colix’s ticket.”

“Where did Master Colix put the ticket?” I asked.

“In his tunic’s inside top pocket.”

Which was where Bayta and I had found it when we’d later examined the body. “Did anyone else go pocket-diving in his tunic between then and the time he was brought to the dispensary?” I asked.

“I don’t know,” the Modhri said, sounding frustrated. “Master Colix was so focused on his internal condition that he wasn’t really paying attention to his surroundings.”