Gameboard of the Gods

CHAPTER 26 EVERYONE’S SO BLOND

Exerzol and caffeine had let Justin put on a good face for Mae, but by the time he arrived home, his skull felt like it was going to explode out of his head. At least no one was around. He wasn’t ready for Cynthia’s chastisement or noise of any kind. Hoping they’d all stay gone for a very long time, he staggered to his bedroom and dug out a bottle of potent painkillers. At first, he automatically emptied out as many pills as he could take without putting himself into a coma. Several seconds later, he reconsidered and only kept the number of pills actually needed to dull the hangover’s legacy. The memory of Windsor still weighed heavily upon him.

Great restraint, said Horatio. Of course, with as much tolerance as you’ve built up, they probably won’t do anything.

Quiet, Justin told him. Voices inside my head are just as grating as ones outside.

His clothes were already a lost cause, so he just left them on and collapsed into the bed. It felt like he’d closed his eyes for only a few seconds, but when his ego woke him with a call, he saw he’d been out for two straight hours. Cornelia’s name was on the display, and he almost considered ignoring her until a hopeful part of him said maybe she was calling to tell him they’d found the murderer and the case was closed. He answered in voice only.

“Do you realize,” she said coldly, “that you are down to a week until the next full moon?”

“I’m very aware of that,” he told her.

“Then why do I have nothing more to show from your work than massive receipts? Your food bills alone are ridiculous. There’s no way you and Prætorian Koskinen eat that much, so I’m guessing SCI is paying for an extended cocktail hour.”

“Prætorians need a lot of food,” he countered.

“Well, I don’t need an extra servitor, so you should think a bit more seriously about earning your keep.” Mae had told him about Lucian’s findings in servitor hiring, and Justin nearly considered pointing out that Cornelia apparently needed lots of extra servitors. “You’re only here by Director Kyle’s good graces, and if your incompetence lets another murder slip by, you’d better hope your Panamanian friends will take you back. Now. Tell me you have something.”

Justin hesitated. Although he had gathered a fair amount of information, he hated to share it now because a lot of it didn’t make sense. He hadn’t found the pattern yet, and it was hard to admit to others that he didn’t know something.

But if she was talking about Panama, it might be worth sharing his good-faith efforts. So, he told her as much as he could, starting with all the theories about a geneticist going after his creations and then expanding to how the many plebeian deaths might also have been part of some larger sacrifice. He made sure not to mention Callista but hinted at “connections” that might help him to track down the guilty group if they could only make a positive ID.

Cornelia sounded more impressed than she wanted to be but still couldn’t deny the obvious: “You have no idea how this all ties together.”

“No,” he said in agreement.

“And your tech friend hasn’t found any tampering with the video.”

“No.”

She gave a melodramatic sigh. “Which brings us back to your having one week left and no results.”

“We’re visiting the last land grant tomorrow. The Nordics. It may very well hold the key, especially if Mae’s connections can get us in deeper.” That last part was complete bullshit, but he hoped it sounded convincing.

“Let’s hope so,” said Cornelia. “Stay in touch.” She disconnected.

Justin stared at the ego in dismay and then dragged himself out of bed to become human again. The others had come home from whatever outing they’d been on, and he ended up spending the rest of the day in with them. It earned him a lot of points with Cynthia, though not so many with Tessa when he told her she was the butt of a prætorian joke. She’d apparently spent the day skulking in terror that the authorities were coming for her at any moment, and rather than provide relief, this new information only seemed to enrage her.

Still, the day passed in a relatively ordinary way, and he welcomed this eye in the recent hurricane of his life. When he got up the next morning, however, another phone call made it clear the universe was done cutting him breaks. As soon as the call ended, he headed into the kitchen, where the normal breakfast routine was going on. Mae had just shown up and was accepting Cynthia’s offer of food. She gave Justin a cordial greeting and in no way acted as though she thought he was a deranged religious freak.

“Take the uniform off,” he told Tessa. “You aren’t going to school today.”

She looked up from her eggs. “Why not?”

“Because young budding terrorists apparently get suspended for crimes against the country.”

Her mouth opened, but nothing came out at first. “You said it was a joke! That I wasn’t in any trouble!”

“You aren’t,” he said. “But your principal doesn’t feel it’s right to have a girl who’s been carted off by prætorians back in school right away. Sets a bad example, violates the school’s code of conduct…something like that. You’re off for a week.”

Once she accepted she wasn’t being deported, Tessa was okay with it. Cynthia was the outraged one. “What? That’s absurd! They can’t suspend her for personal activities. They’re a public institution, obligated to provide her education.”

“Well, technically, she attacked the public. I’m joking,” he added quickly, seeing Cynthia’s face darken.

“You should’ve sent her to a private school. Surely you’ve got enough money for them to overlook where she’s from.”

“I’ve tried.” Tessa never complained, but he knew that there was still a little friction in her adjustment to the school. She would’ve done better elsewhere, but the places he wanted her in had strict admissions policies. If he’d foreseen that problem, he would’ve worked it into his initial employment agreement. “Look, if you want to go in and fight to get her back sooner, be my guest. I would, but I’ve got to go see the Nordics today.”

Cynthia glowered. “I’ll try. My day’s not much better. The least you can do is take her with you.”

Justin, Mae, and Tessa all turned to her in surprise. “I’m going to work, Cyn,” he said. “It’s not a vacation I can just bring her along on.”

“What are you doing? Renewing some licenses? It’s all formality and paperwork,” said Cynthia, who apparently had little regard for his job. “I’m sure you’ll have downtime.”

“I’m fine here,” said Tessa.

Cynthia was obstinate. “Glued to the living room screen? No. That’s not what Justin brought you here for. You need to live. Go experience how the other half lives. Think of the photo ops for your class.”

Tessa brightened at that, and Justin deliberated. Tessa really had no business going along on SCI’s most important case, but Cynthia was right about how Tessa would spend her day if left behind. He looked at Mae for help.

“The downtown area’s safe,” she said after a moment’s thought. “She’d be fine exploring on her own while we’re out.”

That was good enough for Justin, largely because they were running out of time before they needed to go. He managed to book Tessa a ticket on the way to the airport, and they decided she could just share Mae’s hotel room, lest another expense get back to Cornelia.

To the girl’s credit, Tessa handled this trip much better than her first flight. Sure, she still kept a white-knuckled grip on the seat, but she didn’t look like she was on the verge of passing out. She entertained herself with a reader and made occasional conversation. All in all, she handled it like a pro, even when Justin had to send her off on her own. They’d checked in at a hotel on one side of downtown New Stockholm and then traveled to a police station on the opposite side. Tessa went with them to the station and then prepared to strike out.

Mae pointed out a trolley running up and down the street. “This whole stretch and the adjacent streets are shopping and touristy stuff. Plenty to see and do. You can just work your way back to the hotel.”

Tessa nodded, eyes wide. “Everyone’s so…blond.”

“Yes, they are,” Justin said, glancing at the sea of golden hair. It made everyone look alike, and he could understand how that might actually make her fear of crowds worse. But, just like with everything else on the trip, Tessa mustered her courage and gave a resolved nod. “Here,” he said. “Let me see your ego.” He made a few adjustments on his and then scanned it over hers when she offered it up. “There you go. Walking-around money. Don’t spend it all in one place.”

She grinned and surprised him with a hug, promising she’d call if there was a problem. He watched her disappear into the crowd, hoping an area this tourist-friendly wouldn’t go too hard on a provincial girl.

Their contact among the Nordic police was a woman named Dahlia Johansson, a veteran detective who obviously didn’t like federal involvement but disliked having an open case even more. She escorted them to her office and then leaned against the wall with crossed arms.

“Clara Arnarsson.” Johansson pointed at a screen on her desk, displaying a head shot of a young woman with strawberry blond hair. “Twenty-seven, killed with a silver dagger.”

Justin was following along with the victim’s profile on his ego. “And she was an eight, of course. Looks like she’s the only one who wasn’t killed at home, but…I’m guessing there were still no witnesses and a mostly inaccessible room?”

“Correct. She was killed in her office.” Johansson glanced at Mae. “Do you know the Sturluson Building? She was on the tenth floor, in a secure hall only accessible to those with the correct key cards.”

“Was there a window in her office?” asked Justin.

“I can’t imagine that being used as an entrance,” said Mae, eyes narrowed in thought. “That building wouldn’t be easy to climb, and it’s on a pretty visible corner. Was it during business hours?”

Johansson nodded. “Yes, which makes it even more unbelievable.”

“Let’s head over and take a look, then,” said Justin. He didn’t exactly feel defeated yet, but he had a suspicion the same pattern was coming: no clues at the scene, no obvious religious involvement, and security info sent to Leo that would reveal no obvious alteration.

That wasn’t far from the truth. The office was just as difficult to penetrate as Johansson had implied. The police had at least documented an extensive amount of information on the place, meaning Leo would have solid evidence to sift through later. In a surprisingly helpful gesture, Johansson’s team cleared out most of the staff on that floor of the building, so that Justin and Mae could have an easier walk-through. Johansson even saved them a trip by bringing the victim’s husband in for questioning. Justin went through the usual interrogation and couldn’t help but feel bad for Mr. Arnarsson. He was clearly grief-stricken and wore the look of someone who couldn’t yet accept his reality. And just like all the others Justin had interviewed, Mr. Arnarsson firmly denied any religious involvement on his wife’s part.

When Justin finished, he sought out Johansson to wrap things up but found her engrossed in a heated discussion with a few of her officers. “Come on,” Mae told him as they waited a respectful distance away. “Let’s wander. I saw a vending machine by the elevators. They might have this drink I used to love.”

The section by the elevators had actually remained unsecured, and a few curious coworkers lingered near the edge of the police lines, whispering and speculative as they waited for the authorities to leave. There was a counter along the wall that contained assorted beverage machines, and Mae bought some sort of carbonated fruit beverage that she assured him he’d adore.

“Needs vodka,” he told her.

While they lingered, a nervous Nordic woman in her forties approached. She gave them tentative smiles and then glanced around for any onlookers. Satisfied, she moved closer and said, “You’re with SCI, right? I heard they think there’s a cult involved in this.”

Mae looked understandably annoyed at the security leak. “I’m sorry, we can’t discuss the investigation.”

“Of course, of course.” The woman’s eyes darted around again, first to her colleagues, then to the police, and then back to Justin and Mae. “Have any of you looked into…the man?” Despite her unease, the woman seemed to enjoy the drama of the moment, and Justin’s senses went on high alert. Interpersonal gossip could crack something like this wide open.

“The man?” Justin asked, giving the woman one of his best smiles. Whether she went for plebeians or not, she seemed to like the attention and flushed with pleasure.

“Clara’s boyfriend. She tried to keep it quiet, but I saw them at restaurants a couple of times. They always seemed to be having really intense conversations. I don’t know if I can blame her. The guy was gorgeous—a little different from Siegfried, if you catch what I’m saying.”

Yes, Justin certainly did. The victim had been beautiful, as would be expected from an eight, but her husband showed heavy damage from Cain. It was the same pattern they’d observed in the other murders.

The woman had overcome her anxiety now and was loving her captive audience. “If you want my opinion, you shouldn’t be checking out cults. Look to her husband or her boyfriend. One of them might not have liked the, uh, arrangement anymore.”

“That’s good insight,” Justin told her, which pleased her more. “And astute of you to notice all that at the time. You’re in the wrong line of work. You should be a cop with those instincts. Do you know his name or anything else that could be helpful?”

Her face fell a little. “No…but I could tell you what he looked like. And I can tell you the restaurants they were at.”

Mae called over an officer and asked him to take a thorough description of the alleged boyfriend and the couple’s outings. Meanwhile, Justin sought out Johansson.

“Is her husband still here?” he asked her. “We might want to ask him if he knew about any affairs.”

As Johansson went to retrieve him, Justin wondered if this new lead could actually be useful. Naturally, he’d take any piece of knowledge they could get. On the other hand, something as mundane as an act of passion didn’t fit into the neat raging-geneticist theory or even the murderous-cult theory. Nonetheless, he interrogated Mr. Arnarsson and was met with even greater incredulity than the religious questions had received.

“He seems sincere,” Justin told Mae afterward. “But if he did do it, he may have had a while to prepare himself. There’s also the small question of how he or the other guy would’ve gotten into this inaccessible office. Who knows? Maybe the boyfriend’s a contortionist or something. That might add to his appeal, along with his good genes.”

Mae frowned at that and looked like she was about to speak when Johansson returned and said they had a call for her in their makeshift command station. Mae straightened up as though her general were right in front of her and hurried off.

Meanwhile, the sketch was complete. The image compiled by their witness and the police certainly gave credence to the idea of a desirable lover. The guy was close to the victim’s age, with blond hair and flawless skin that the victim’s coworker was obsessed with. “It was perfect, I tell you. Not a mark,” the witness told Justin. “Just like that woman you were with.”

Identifying the man was in the hands of the police now. Justin glanced at the time and saw it was later than he’d expected. They’d have to find Tessa soon and get dinner. Seeing as she hadn’t called, he could only hope she hadn’t committed any other acts against national security.

One of the officers directed Justin to the office they’d set up their equipment in. There, he found Mae engaged in conversation with someone on a screen—but not the stern general he’d expected from her stories.

“Because I’m here on business!” Mae exclaimed.

“And that doesn’t warrant a call?” The speaker was one of those older women who were described as “handsome.” Her dark blond hair was wound up into a high bun that showed a face with taut, smoothed skin that suggested a recent face-lift. She had a heavier brow than Mae and lacked the high cheekbones, but the woman’s eyes were the same shade of greenish blue that he’d come to admire.

“I’m just busy, that’s all. This isn’t a good time.”

“It’s never a good time, Maj.” The name sounded like “my” to Justin’s ears. “It hasn’t been for three years apparently.”

“Mother, please. Now isn’t the time.” Justin knew Mae well enough now to recognize the signs of when she was fighting to keep control.

“Are you working all night?” her mother asked insistently. “Surely you have to eat. Come over tonight, and I’ll gather your brother and sister. Bring your associates.” The woman’s eyes suddenly flicked to Justin, and he flinched. He thought he’d been standing out of the camera’s range. “Is that one of them?”

Mae spun around in surprise, exasperation crossing her features. “Yes. Mother, this is Dr. Justin March. Justin, this is Astrid Koskinen.”

With nowhere to escape, Justin stepped forward and went into action. “Mrs. Koskinen, it’s a pleasure to meet you. I can see where Mae gets her stunning looks.”

Astrid didn’t even blink. “Dr. March, do you and my daughter have dinner plans?”

He faltered. “Well, I…” A glance at Mae told him what the correct answer to give was, but he was too slow.

“That’s what I thought,” said Astrid triumphantly. “Both of you come over at seven.”

“He’s a plebeian,” Mae said bluntly.

“Yes, I can see that, Maj.”

“And we have someone else with us.” Mae paused for what had to be dramatic impact. “A provincial.”

Her mother wouldn’t be dissuaded. “Bring whoever you want, if that’s what it takes to get you here. Besides, you know how open-minded we are.”

“No, I didn’t know that, actually.”

“See you soon.” Astrid’s face disappeared, and Mae kicked the desk.

“Goddamn it,” she growled.

“I’m sorry,” said Justin. “I didn’t think fast enough to—”

“No, no.” Mae waved off his protests. “It’s not you. It’s all her. And whatever friend she has around here who recognized me and tattled that I was in town. My ego’s set to automatically send her calls to voice mail, but she tricked me by going through the police.”

“I’m sorry,” he repeated. He actually meant it. Sure, there was some perverse part of him that wanted to see where she’d grown up, but after hearing her stories on Saturday, he didn’t want to subject Mae to a return to that place. “Maybe we can get out of it. Say something came up.”

She sighed. “No. That’ll make things worse. I’m just going to have to suck this up.” She walked out of the office with a forlorn look on her face, though she paused to give Justin a humorless smile. “On the bright side, if there’s anything about me you don’t know yet, it’ll probably come out tonight.”

He gave her a small smile in return, little knowing how true her words would be.