Zy's Novel Post 20

Novel total = 20,201
Post total = 474


“Did you forget to ask for his resume when you obtain his services?” Xeryl carried his glass to the sink. He had his back to her dirty look. “D’pa is coming here.”

She closed her eyes to fight the urge to glare at Xeryl. “What skills, Mealte?” She opened them and focused on his grey forehead.

“I have training in giving pain. Not all beings respond the same way, but enough do to make it effective. Master Cobaine used my skills sporadically.” He folded his arms over his chest.

“Training? Pain? Are you talking about torture?”

“I think that’s exactly what he’s talking about.” Xeryl stood at the edge of the bar. “I don’t have to explain to you what an appalling mistake that would be.”

“You don’t have to tell me anything!” Zy took a deep breath while shaking her head. “No, we just ask beings questions and maybe threaten them with legal action, but we can’t hurt them.”

“Master Cobaine…” Mealte tilted his head to the left.

“I don’t care what Master Cobaine did. He was a criminal. IGA doesn’t torture.”

“That depends on who you ask,” Xeryl said. “Those prisons…” His voice trailed off when she hit him with her glare.

“I don’t use torture.” She said it slowly, making sure the glare punctuated each word. “The beings in IGA prisons committed crimes against other beings in the galaxy. I’m not a criminal. Mealte, those skills will not be necessary.”

Mealte brought his teeth together twice. “Yes, Mistress Zy.”

“Okay then, let’s get ready for D’pa.” Zy moved to the living room portion of the room. The heavy stone couch and chairs weren’t budging, but luckily they had been set up flanking a stone block coffee table height. Zy perched on the cushions of the chair facing the main door of the suite. Mealte followed and stood behind the chair.

Xeryl shrugged. “Am I to play host? I offered Murdock and you drinks, but otherwise I’ve never been part of an IGA interrogation. I don’t know what the protocol is.”

“Will drinks mellow D’pa?”

“Can you breathe in the vacuum of space?”

“Then we’ll just do whatever doesn’t piss him off. But let me ask the questions.”

“And what if that upsets him?” The door alert chimed. Xeryl opened the door. “Hello, D’pa, would you like a drink?”

“Do not pretend this is a social occasion.” He set a viddisk on the stone block and sat stiffly in the second chair. “The coroner’s report.”

“Thank you.” Zy wondered how hard he leaned on the coroner to get an autopsy done so quickly. “I appreciate your cooperation. I just need to know what happened.”

“Fudlack is dead and we are ready to deal with the trespass. What I do not understand is your need to butt into an internal affair.”

Zy took a deep breath to stay calm. “How come your internal affair is involved in the deaths of Possatact, Ifeket, and Cobaine? That doesn’t sound so internal to me.” Xeryl poured himself a drink and moved around D’pa to settle on the couch. Zy didn’t take her attention from D’pa. “Who found Fudlack?”

“I did.”