Swordplay

Part 19

The next morning, Moira reached her desk just in time before her shift started. She had been sitting in her living room for quite a while, reading her father's letters and wondering why her mother had deprived her of them. She yawned.

Semra peaked from interrogation room three and waved her over. "Didn't you want to be here for the questioning?"

Moira hurried into the room and sat beside Semra. In daylight, Samantha looked even worse for wear that at night. The coat was way too big and dangled around her angular body which was dressed in several layers of T‑Shirts and pullovers. Her long, blonde hair hung limply in her face, and her eyes were red.

Samantha snuffled and wiped her nose on the sleeve of her coat. "What do you want with me? I didn't do anything."

"Does this tell you something?" Semra put a drawing with Pete Huudien's face on the table.

Samantha spit on the ground. "Asshole. Like all of them."

"Just because he didn't fall in love with you?"

"What does this Rose-tart have that I can't surpass? My love for him is much bigger than hers, and my tits are too. But the dickhead just didn't want to understand. Not even when I had him all to my own. He only cried. Rosine here, Rosine there. Puke-tastic."

"So you admit of having kidnapped Pete Huudien?" Semra cocked her head.

"That was no kidnapping. I only invited him to my place. Anyway, this Lif soandso and his elf friend helped. I thought that if I showed him how much I loved him, he'd stay fro good."

"With elf friend do you mean Bastide Leclerque?"

"Basti, sure."

Moira asked, "Where is Pete Huudien now?"

"Haven't got a clue. He went nuts when I showed him the money Rosi-posy got for us. He pushed me against the table, and when I came to my senses, he was gone. With the money." Samantha wiped her nose on her sleeve again. "I called Lif right away. He took care of everything, Basti said."

Moira paled. She bent to Semra and whispered in her ear. "Does one of the murdered homeless resemble Pete Huudien?"

"Not that I know. But that might mean we just haven't found his body yet," Semra whispered back." Get Druidus or Buds and fetch Bastide, so we can press him for details. I'll try to get some more information from Mademoiselle Belz." While Moira got up and walked to the door, Semra turned back to Samantha. "Where did you last see Bastide Leclerque?"

"He was on his way to the rail-nerl station because of his job."

In the corridor, Moira found Druidus coming from Sabio's office. She ran to him. "The drunken woman from last night really was the one we've been looking for. She accuses Bastide Leclerque. Semra thinks we should fetch him for more questioning. Do you have time?"

"I already am on my way to Leclerque. The lab identified his fingerprints with some found at the burglary." Druidus grinned. "I think it's about time we ask our elf, what happened to the weapons."

"And he might know what Lif did to Pete. If he was the elf in the surveillance globe, had close contact to both." Moira was happy. Finally, there was a clue she could follow especially together with Druidus. Despite the grey sky, she hopped down the stairs. Druidus followed a little slower. His mobile parlebol rang. When he realized who called, his eyebrows shot up. "Oh." He waved Moira over but held the parlebol away from her. "It's your father. He wants to talk to you."

She shook her head mouthing, "I'm not here."

"I'm sorry, Sir. I cannot find her." Druidus ended the call and opened the carpisto. "It's quite difficult to get my number. So, why does he phone me not you?"