The Domino Pattern (Quadrail Book 4) by Zahn Timothy

Author:Zahn, Timothy [Zahn, Timothy]
Language: eng
Format: azw3, epub
ISBN: 9781504016438
Publisher: Open Road Media Sci-Fi & Fantasy
Published: 2015-07-27T16:00:00+00:00

The next few days passed quietly. No one else even got sick, let alone died, and life aboard the train settled back a bit gingerly into its normal low-key routine.

We reached the three-week midway point without incident and passed on to the back half of our journey. Bayta told me the next morning that Kennrick and Tririn had gone ahead and held their halfway-celebration meal, the one Kennrick had been discussing with Colix the night of the first two deaths. Under the circumstances, I suspected the event was somewhat more subdued than originally planned.

I spent most of those days in my compartment, coming out only for meals, exercise, and occasional flybys of my primary suspects. Most of the compartment time was devoted to reexamination of the spectroscopic data I’d taken from the air filters and the bodies. But it was all just wheels spinning in mud. If there was anything in there aside from the bald fact of the cadmium poisoning, I reluctantly concluded, it would take someone better trained than me to spot it. All I could do now was wait for the other shoe to drop.

Two nights after the journey’s midpoint, it finally did.

I had just taken off my shoes in preparation for bedtime when the divider opened and Bayta hurried into my compartment. “The Spiders say Dr. Aronobal is calling for you,” she said tautly.

“What’s the problem?” I asked, grabbing my shoes and starting to put them on again.

“They don’t know,” she said. “They just say she needs to see you right away. She’s in the second/third dispensary, staring at the medications in the drug cabinet.”

“Maybe she’s thought of something relating to the murders,” I suggested, finishing with my shoes and standing up. “I’ll be back soon. Feel free to eavesdrop via the dispensary’s server.”

“What are you talking about?” she asked, frowning as she started for the door. “I’m coming with you.”

“No, you’re staying here,” I corrected, getting to the door first. “Aronobal asked for me, remember?”

Her face had gone very still. “You think it’s a trap, don’t you?”

That was, in fact, exactly what I was thinking. “I just think she might feel more comfortable talking to me alone,” I lied.

I reached for the door control, paused, and instead dug into my pocket. “Here,” I said, handing Bayta the kwi. “This won’t do me any good out there.”

She took it, her eyes going even darker. “Frank—”

“Besides, if there’s a problem and I have to fight, I’d rather you be here and not right in the middle of things where I have to worry about you,” I cut her off. “I’ll be back soon.”

I escaped into the corridor before she could come up with a suitable retort.

The corridors of the compartment cars were deserted, most of the other passengers probably having turned in for the night. The first-class coach car just beyond had the same settled feel about it, though there were still a few reading lights showing.

I went past the dining car and its usual contingent of

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