“Is that it?”
“No,” Paulo said. “Different visor. Karrunians belong to clans with different face-plates. The one we are looking for it from the Ru Clan. It has a crescent engraving.”
“How do you know that?”
“Navy graduates have to know all kinds of things. We are the peacekeepers of our galaxy, so we need to study every culture possible.”
A Karrunian was approaching with a servitor carrying a black cargo box.
“Is that it?”
“Yes,” Paulo said.
We approached the alien before it boarded.
“Hi,” I said. “Do you remember me? I bought a disk from you this morning.”
“No refunds,” it said, its head-hands flapping in agitation.
“I don’t want that,” I said. “I want more recordings from the Traliad troupe on the same day. Do you have any?”
“I do not have time for business,” it said, trying to pass.
Paulo blocked its way. “I’ll pay you well.”
The Karrunian ordered the servitor to stop. Then it opened the cargo box, containing thousands of disks in a compact barrel-shaped storage unit. Its large arms removed a segment and the smaller ones selected disks from it.
“Six recordings. Only copies.”
It named an exorbitant price, way beyond my means.
Paulo didn’t haggle. He paid the full amount. The Karrunian boarded the transport waving its head-hands like it was very happy.
“Well, I’m broke,” Paulo said. “I hope these recordings are worth it.”
“Thank you,” I said, giving him a hug. “Don’t worry about the money. I’ll pay for the train back to Canyon Falls.”
“Gee! How generous!”
It was after midnight when I got home. I was too old to have a curfew, but my parents were waiting up for me like I’d sneaked out to a hardcore narco club. Their faces were grim. My father glared.
“Veya, where have you been all night?”
I’d been at Paulo’s apartment studying the airwalker disks, looking for clues to what had happened to my sister. But I didn’t want my parents involved in my amateur detective work. Not yet. I didn’t want to give them false hope. “I went to the archives. Then I hung out with Paulo, Dad.”
“That’s very interesting,” he said. “Because you had a visitor. Your mentor from the guild. She came to discuss your suspension, but you weren’t here. A suspension? You didn’t tell us. What’s going on, Veya? Are you into drugs or something?”
“No, Dad, it’s nothing like that. I lost my concentration during a training session, that’s all. The guild suspended me because they have stupid protocols. Did my mentor say much? Has the suspension been lifted?”
“No, it hasn’t. She wants you to visit her in the morning if you need to talk. She sounded concerned, for what’s that worth. I suggest you take her advice. Now, go to bed so you’re fresh in the morning.”
“We love you,” my mother said. “We just want what’s best for you.”
“I know,” I said.
I kissed them goodnight, then made a show of going to my bedroom. I switched off the lights so my parents would think I was going to sleep, and then waited for them to retire.
At Paulo’s apartment, I’d tranced each of the airwalker memories and learnt all I could from them. The first three recordings hadn’t helped much, because the airwalkers didn’t look at the bridge. The fourth performer had been higher up, looking down as it twirled through the spray from the Great Falls. The bridge was far, far below, but even the sharp eyes of an airwalker couldn’t see useful details at that distance. The fifth recording was better. The fifth airwalker had been flying lower and looking in the right direction. It captured the moment in its memory. My sister was there, leaning over the rail, when the stranger approached. The stranger said something and held out a pale hand. Amazingly, my sister took it and went with the stranger. The fifth airwalker lost sight of them moments later, but the final recording provided more clues. That airwalker had been circling over the city’s rooftops. My sister was recorded leaving the bridge. Holding the stranger’s hand, Marila boarded a taxi parked on the street. The craft was lifting off when the airwalker passed by. Its hawk-like vision captured the vehicle’s ID.
“Ava, I need you to analyse something for me.”
“Yes, Miss. How may I assist?”
“A taxi with the registration S724Q5 was parked on Ibis Road on the day my sister disappeared. Access the flight information and show me its route.”
A map appeared on my tablet with the taxi’s route marked in red, with stops marked in green circles. I studied it, my eyes widening, more questions forming in my mind than answers.
My sister had been kidnapped by Gileanor.
The next morning the streets were hot, as usual, but the air was cooler when Paulo and I reached Gileanor’s home beneath the Great Falls. She lived in a white villa surrounded by a high security wall.
“So,” Paulo said. “What’s the plan?”
“I’ll question her alone,” I told him. “I’ll record everything she says as evidence, with you listening in.”
“You should take my weapon as protection.” He offered me his Navy Peacekeeper. “Take this.”
“No. I’m not going in armed. It’d just set off the home security. I want her confession. I don’t want to kill her.”
“Be careful,” Paulo said. “I’ll be listening. I’ll come in shooting if I hear you’re in danger.”
Gileanor was expecting me, so I wasn’t surprised when the security gates opened as I approached them, though it was a little creepy, given I knew she was a kidnapper. Her voice came out of a speaker.
“Come in!” she called out. “I’m making tea! Come down the hall to the kitchen!”
A spiral path led through her garden up to an entrance. I’d never been in Gileanor’s home and didn’t know what to expect inside. Filtered sunlight filled the atrium with soft pink light. It smelled of roses. The white walls were decorated with framed pictures of men, women and children. I’d never known Gileanor had a family until I saw her with people I assumed were her children and grandchildren. They looked happy. I wondered why she would want to kidnap my sister when she already had a family. Why did she do it? Why?
Gileanor was in a light and airy kitchen with a panoramic view of the city, her back to me as she boiled a kettle on a marble counter. I was tempted to attack her before she turned around. It took strength staying calm and focussed.
“You wanted to discuss my suspension?”
“I think I can sort it out for you,” she said. “But it might take months. The Guild moves very slowly in these matters. I’ll explain everything, but first you should join me for tea. It’s English Breakfast Tea imported from Earth.”
“Sounds good,” I said.
I didn’t want tea, but I didn’t want Gileanor anywhere near a source of boiling water when I confronted her. I followed her onto a balcony and acted like I appreciated her hospitality. She talked about how she was going to help me, making me want to throw my hot tea in her face. My right hand trembled. I had to put down my drink and hide my hand under the table.
Paulo’s voice spoke into my ear, saying what I was already thinking. “Quit stalling. Confront her.”
“Gileanor, I know you kidnapped my sister.”
Her mouth became a tight line. “What makes you think that?”
“I’ve evidence: a memory recording of you kidnapping my sister. It shows you both getting into a taxi. That taxi came here. I’ve got all I need to have you arrested, but I don’t care about that. I just want to know what you did to my sister. Tell me the truth. Where is she?”
“I’m right here,” Gileanor said.