Wars by Alex Deva

Author:Alex Deva [Deva, Alex]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Sci-Fi & Fantasy
Published: 2018-12-28T22:00:00+00:00

XXV.

“Damn you!“ Jox screeched, jerking helplessly.

The newcomer sniggered as the door to the room closed soundlessly behind her. “For what? Doing my job?“ She brushed off water from her arms and from her head, then came to the bed where the ambassador was still being held down by the drone, wriggling nervously. For a few moments, she watched Jox without saying anything; then, briskly, she reached into her pouch and pulled out her multitool. She squeezed it to authenticate, and it chimed softly in response. She gestured with it, and the liquid screen started raining from the ceiling, quickly forming into a thin curtain. The logo of the Warfare Column appeared on it, as the chief accessed her files. Browsing through them, almost absently, she muttered:

“Greetings, ambassador.“

“Tell the drone to let me go.“

“Do you recognise this person?“

The head and torso of a male blended in on the screen, slowly turning around for identification. A secondary, even thinner curtain fell in front of the main one; on it, a magnifying area of statically charged droplets enlarged various distinctive features of the body, starting with the face, and moving over the rest of the body.

Jox stopped struggling long enough to look.

“I do not,“ she said.

“Again, please,“ said the chief, gesturing with her remote again.

“I said I do not recognise this person.“

It took a few seconds, but then the drone let go. In one fluid movement, it rolled itself off the bed and onto the floor, where it reassembled into a neat cube. Jox glanced at it hatefully, rubbing her wrists as she sat up.

“You are not lying,“ said the chief, matter-of-factly.

“Oh, really? Am I not lying? How about now: I am going to drown you in your own excrement. Am I lying now, Chief?“

The other woman waved indifferently. “My truth detection algorithms are smart enough to ignore idle threats, and so am I, I daresay,“ she said. “But back to the relevant. I am temporarily satisfied that, at the very least, you did not kill ken Cudner yourself.“

“I did not kill anybody, although tonight seems like the perfect occasion to start.“

“I remind you that my drone is still active and wholly capable of incapacitating you at a moment’s command.“

Jox fixed the chief with a scornful gaze.

“What do you want? Is that ken Cudner?“

“Was. Bree ken Cudner was murdered in his house, ten days ago, and I still suspect your involvement.“

“Ten days ago? What time?“

“No need to bother. You are going to tell me that you were at work in the Complex at the time. A perfect alibi, which I did not have enough time to dismantle yet. And you could obviously have had someone else do it.“

Jox looked at her with incredulity. She breathed fast, her torso moving up and down, her head gently bobbing to maintain eye contact. She wrapped her body with her long hands, and thought about it. She was sure: ten days earlier she had been on Complex duty. Her fury had by now been replaced by disgust.

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