“—for some reason. We told them they need to fix number eight, but you know how it is on Belvaille,” he said smiling.
I tried to return the grin because I got the idea that was an appropriate response.
He went back to his controls and the shuttle docked as usual.
I turned languidly to Valia and saw she was staring at me and looked quite alarmed.
CHAPTER 34
“Where were you on the night of Goldor the 14th?”
“I don’t know,” I said.
I heard groans and cries reverberate through the city.
The trial on Courtroom Six Street was of course being broadcast via loudspeaker. I had been sticking my foot in it ever since I framed Judge Naeb a month ago.
“That was the night Su Dival was murdered and you’re saying you ‘don’t know’ where you were at?” the prosecutor mocked. He wore a feather headdress to stand out.
Belvaille had gotten interested like I hoped, but not as I suspected. Everyone thought it was some great conspiracy to remove the Totki leader. Half thought I was personally involved in the cover-up, half thought I was merely an incompetent dupe and—
“He kill Su Dival,” Hong said, pointing to me.
This trial was so fantastical that they had us mic’d at all times so every bit of entertainment was squeezed out.
The trial was not especially formal. We were yelling at each other across the street. Every once in a while someone would take the stand just for a change of pace.
“How could I kill him? I’d never get away.”
I wasn’t exactly a bad guy in terms of the city. Anti-Totki sentiment was high what with them roaming around interrogating everyone. Me framing the judge and Su Dival’s “killers” hadn’t stopped the Totki, just changed their focus. The only questions in everyone’s minds were how high the orders came from, how broad in scope, and to what purpose.
The Totki themselves were more irrational than ever and considered everyone that wasn’t their clan to be enemies.
“We know you do it. You never like Totki. You try and take our planets!” Hong yelled.
“What am I going to do with a planet? I can barely afford my meals!” I screamed in frustration.
I had been trying to avoid telling people that 19-10 killed Su Dival because no one would believe it. Instead I made a botched murder-suicide-cover-up with me as a stooge. If I had told everyone Su Dival was strangled by magical intelligent underwear it wouldn’t be as bad as this.
“Do we refer to you as the Supreme Kommilaire now or Secretary of City?” the prosecutor asked me.
“How about Supreme Secretary?” I joked.
No one laughed.
“Why is the Deputy Kommilaire unavailable for questioning?” he continued.
“Objection,” the defense attorney sitting next to me said, “irrelevant.” He was covered in one-foot spikes all over his clothes. I think he wanted to appear warlike, but he looked like some kind of cactus.
“He’s on the witness list. How is it irrelevant?” the judge asked.
MTB had vanished. I was a little worried about that. He was a sadistic guy, but he was a relatively truthful sadistic guy. And his recent doubts about the Judge Naeb incident made me wonder how he would react on the stand.
“We know you Kommilaire kill our leader,” Hong pressed. “We have proof.”
“What proof?” I asked, being pretty certain 19-10 hadn’t left anything since he couldn’t carry anything when teleporting.
Hong held up a clear plastic bag.
“Uniform!”
Gasps from the city.
I looked over at the defense and he gave me a look like, “that’s pretty good evidence!” Sigh. Since he wasn’t going to do anything:
“That’s idiotic! Why would an assassin take off his jacket and then leave it behind?”
“You say,” Hong replied.
“Yeah, you tell us,” the prosecutor translated.
“Objection!” I shouted. “You all are morons.”
“Sustained,” the judge gaveled.
The city cried out.
“I mean overruled,” the judge amended.
“Give me that coat,” I told Hong.
“No, you steal it,” he said, covering the plastic bag as if I was going to dash the thirty feet across the street and swipe it before he had a chance to react.
“Your honor, I can’t prove anything about the evidence if I’m not allowed to see the evidence.”
The judge waited. I think he was listening to the crowd. My guess was he didn’t want to be the next judge assassinated.
“Agreed.”
Hong gave the bag to the prosecutor who gave it to my prickly defense, who accidentally lanced the bag with his spines. I removed the jacket from the bag.
Looking at it, I could tell it was real Kommilaire. It wasn’t a knock-off that I could see unless it was high quality. But that didn’t mean anything.
I put the jacket on my head, where it was too tight to even cover my chin.
I turned around so the street could see me.
“Maybe not you, but you people kill Su Dival,” Hong yelled.
I kept twirling and walked back some distance on Courtroom Six Street so people could see the tiny little jacket.
“The Kommilaire don’t have any officers this small,” I said. “This is like children’s size.”
I took off the jacket.
“Yes… yes you do,” Hong said. He was jumping up and down pointing at me. “That girl. Red. Uh…”
Only his lack of language skills and hyperactivity was preventing him from getting it out. He was going to say Valia. This thing might actually fit Valia. What if it did? What if they brought her to the stand? Did I trust her to lie about this? Even if she did, if this thing fit her, what would people do?
“Hong!” I interrupted. “Maybe you killed Su Dival.”
I was just stalling. I hadn’t thought it would elicit any kind of response other than mild confusion.
But the city shook.
Hong erupted in rage.
“Maybe you were working with Judge Naeb so you could run for Governor as representative of the Totki,” I continued, just throwing stuff out there.
Hong, unable to contain himself, blasted a torrent of what I could only assume was Totki dialect.
I thought things were going well unticlass="underline"
“Citizen Rendrae, please approach the stand,” the judge said.
Rendrae waddled up and was sworn in. He wore a bitter expression and hate burned in his eyes. I think he was madder at me than Hong was.
“Why were you with Hank on the day of Judge Naeb’s suicide?” the prosecutor asked.
“Because it was news. I do news,” he answered calmly.
“Who had told you of this? Did you just happen to be walking around? Forgive me, but you don’t seem to possess the physique of someone who is regularly out exercising.”
“I retain the right to protect my sources under the Freedom of Press Act of 074,” Rendrae responded coolly.
No one had any clue what that was, but Rendrae said it with such confidence we all assumed it was actually a thing.
“What did you see in Judge Naeb’s quarters?” the prosecutor asked.
“Hank.”
“Besides Hank.”
“A chair.”
“Besides the furniture and chairs and carpet and paintings!” The prosecutor demanded, his feathers literally getting ruffled.
“Judge Naeb.”
“And what was he doing?”
“Sitting on the carpet. A gun in his hand.”
The city was sweating. It was on the edge of its collective seat.
“Was he dead?”
“I don’t think guns are alive.”
Wow, I had to remember not to ever try interrogating Rendrae.
“Judge Naeb! Was he alive when you entered the chambers?”
“Yes.”
Oh, crap. He was going to bail on me. His journalistic integrity was winning.