Part 2

  Lexa had living quarters above the saloon. Quite convenient for her, Ghor supposed. Searching through the dead girl's things was not something that she relished but there may be a clue as to who had perpetrated the crime to be had in that tiny living space.

  Before she went up to Lexa’s room she stopped at the mercantile.

  As Ghor walked in she saw Lucy behind the counter. Her eyes were red and her face was a dour mask. She’s heard the news about the murder.

  Gary was out of the stockroom for once standing next to his employee. His own face, although harder to read, seemed sad.

  They waited to say anything until the sheriff had approached the counter. It was Gary who spoke first. “Good afternoon, sheriff. What can we do for you?”

  The sheriff suddenly felt bad for coming here. She almost decided to simply bid them a good day, make an excuse, and leave but ultimately she kept to her original plan.

  “Gary. Lucy,” she started. “I guess you heard about Lexa.”

  Lucy nodded. Gary acknowledged, “Yeah. One of the Ugnaught boys was in here earlier.”

  Ghor turned her to Lucy. “Lucy, I need your help. You knew Lexa pretty well. I have to go up to her apartment.”

  She nodded. “I’d be happy to go with you.”

  Ghor smiled in appreciation. “Gary, can you do without her for a bit?”

  For once Gary kept any sarcastic remarks to himself. “Sure. Lucy, take the rest of the day.” He patted her arm. “See you tomorrow?”

  Lucy covered his hand with her own and nodded her own appreciation.

  Ghor and Lucy went straight up to the tiny apartment above the saloon that had been Lexa’s home. It was one of four single bedroom units that were accessed by a stairway behind the establishment. Ghor used a master key to unlock the door and the two looked inside. The living area was combined with a tiny kitchen. It was tidy. There was no clutter and the dishes sitting on the counter had been washed.

  Ghor took a step inside, glancing around warily, keeping her left hand on the blaster she kept in a cross draw holster.

  When nothing occurred to unsettle her, she continued into the room, carefully noting the position of the furniture and items that were common enough to an apartment like this one. There was an old couch, its fabric thin and faded from years of use. A table made of wood with two mismatched chairs next to it had served as Lexa’s dining furniture.

  Lucy also stepped inside. She’d had a fear in the pit of her stomach that they would find some kind of horrid scene upon opening the door. This all appeared normal and that was, in its way, just as strange.

  As she was passing the table, Lucy reached a hand out toward the vase that sat at its center. She halted when Ghor cleared her throat loudly. “Try not to touch anything just yet.”

  Lucy looked at her hand as if seeing it for the first time that day. “Oh course. You’re right.” She folded her hands against the temptation.

  Ghor walked over to a small closet and opened the door, her hand never leaving the grip on her blaster.

  Lucy crossed the room and opened the door to the bedroom. What she saw caused a gasp to escape her lips.

  The sheriff rushed over, half drawing her pistol in the process. She pushed Lucy to the side to get through the door and almost gasped at the sight herself. The bed was covered in blood.

  Once she realized that no one was in the room, Ghor pushed her blaster back securely into the holster. She walked over to the bed but didn’t touch anything. The blood was dark and there were a couple of small, coagulated pools amidst the soaked area on the comforter.

  Lucy stood there in shock, her hand over her mouth, realizing that this was quite likely the scene of her young friend’s murder.

  The sheriff pulled her comlink from her pocket. “Kiro. Go get Doc Mason and bring him up to Lexa’s apartment.”

  They did not have long to wait. Doc Mason tapped on the still open door of Lexa’s former resistance. Lucy was in the living area and motioned for him to come inside. Although she was not terribly excited to see the Doc she did understand that his expertise was necessary.

  Mason took off his hat as he entered. “Ms. Lucy, how are you holding up?”

  Lucy, as usual, didn’t want to keep a conversation going with the Doc for long. “I’m okay. The sheriff is waiting for you in there,” she said, nodding toward the bedroom door.

  Doc nodded back and went to the bedroom door. Ghor was standing next to the bed talking to someone on her com link but cut the conversation short when she saw the Doc at the door. “Come on in.” She pointed at the blood soaked bed. “I think we found our crime scene.”

  Doc circled the bed to the opposite side and unshouldered the bag he was carrying. He retrieved a sample tube and busied himself collecting a small amount of the coagulated blood from the comforter.

  He noticed Ghor watching his actions. “I’ll need to take it back to my lab to see if it’s a match to the girl.”

  Ghor nodded understanding. “What do you think?”

  Doc knelt to place the sample back in his satchel. “It’s probably enough. This is probably where it happened.”

  He glanced up at the sheriff. “Did you see this?” He pointed to the floor just under the bed.

  Ghor walked around, her gaze followed to where the Doc was pointing. It was a short, wooden toothpick.

  Doc handed the sheriff a pair of tweezers that she used to pick it up off the floor. She held it up to the light noting that one end was chewed to splinters.

  “Looks used,” Ghor observed.

  Doc held up an open plastic container and Ghor dropped the little stick inside.

  “You think you can get anything from that?” she inquired.

  Doc Mason frowned and shook his head. “Not me. I don’t have the equipment.”

  “Too bad,” she replied. “How long to test the blood?”

  He shrugged. “Not long. A few minutes, once I’m back at my lab.”

  Ghor handed back the tweezers. “I’ll be at the office. Can you bring the results to me today, please?”

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  Picking up and closing his bag Doc Mason nodded, “Certainly.”

  “Good. I won’t hold you up.” Ghor went back to the small dresser to finish looking through its contents.

  Doc Mason went back out to the living area. Lucy was looking through the kitchen. “Ms. Lucy? Find anything?” he asked.

  Lucy frowned and shook her head no.

  “Are any of her knives missing?” the Doc asked.

  Lucy turned to the tiny counter and pointed to the small knife block. There were six kitchen knives sheathed in the wooden block. There were no empty spaces. “Doesn’t look like it.”

  Doc could tell she was even less willing to talk than usual so he placed his hat back on his head. “Well, see you later.”

  Lucy nodded and the Doc made his exit through the door.

  A few moments later Ghor came out of the bedroom. “He’s gone?”

  “Yeah.”

  The sheriff exhaled a sigh of relief. “Good.”

  “What did he find in there?”

  “A toothpick. One end was chewed up pretty good too.”

  Lucy opened a cupboard and retrieved a small box of toothpicks. The sheriff took it and looked inside. “Huh!” She grunted with mild surprise.

  Lucy looked at her, “What?”

  “These are flat. The one we found was round.”

  “So,” Lucy started.

  “Maybe it belonged to the killer.”

  *****

  Satisfied that they’d looked through Lexa’s apartment thoroughly, Ghor and Lucy locked the door and headed back to the sheriff's office. The sun was sinking low in the sky. As they approached they saw Vilnius standing outside the door. He saw them coming and watched as they walked up.

  “Sheriff, do you have a minute?”

  Ghor gestured at the door. “Let’s go inside.”

  She found the door locked and a perplexed look crossed her face. Vilnius saw it. “The deputy just left to get some dinner.”

  When they got inside the Ugnaught aimed a head nod at Lucy. “I got some news. Might be hard to hear.”

  Before Lucy could excuse herself, Ghor replied, “Lucy knows what’s what.” The sheriff sat in her chair and leaned on her desk with her ample chin in her hands, her elbows resting on the surface. “What do you got?”

  Vilnius kept his eyes on the sheriff as he took a seat across the desk from her. He withdrew a folded page and slid it across the desk without a word.

  Ghor scowled. She wasn’t a fan of drama and up til now she wouldn’t have thought that Vilnius was either. She scraped the page off the desk and opened it.

  Ghor stared at the page, not wanting to believe her eyes. She wasn’t fluent in Huttese but she did know all their profanity by heart. She used one of the worst ones at this moment.

  Vilnius gave a single nod. “My sentiments exactly.”

  Lucy stepped closer to the desk, her curiosity aroused in spite of herself. Ghor sighed deeply and handed her the page. Lucy took it and looked. She wanted to swear but the words wouldn't come. No words would.

  Vilnius spoke again. “I managed to get one more image off the camera data. That image.”

  Lucy looked down again hoping to see something different but it was still a dark figure, his back turned, but clearly wearing a very familiar serape. That garment could only have been Kiro’s.

  Lucy felt strangely numb. She’d known Kiro nearly his entire life. He wasn’t a killer. He couldn’t be a killer. “What now?” Her voice a shaky whisper.

  Ghor stood up and took back the page which she folded and placed in a pocket. “I need to talk to him.”

  A shadow seemed to fall on Vilnius. “If he is the killer, he may not want to talk.”

  Ghor thought for a moment. “You’re right. I’m gonna need some backup.”

  She turned and selected a blaster rifle from the rack on the wall behind her desk. She turned and handed it to Vilnius who stood up as he accepted the weapon. Ghor looked him in the eyes. “You still remember how this thing works?”

  Vilnius cast a glance down at the rifle before looking back at the sheriff. “Yeah, I do.”

  Lucy surprised the other two when she stepped behind the desk and grabbed a blaster pistol off the rack. She pointed the weapon at the floor, checking to confirm that it was fully charged, then flipped the selector switch on the side of the weapon to the stun setting. “I’m going too.”

  Ghor was about to argue but then thought better of the idea. “Let’s go.”

  Ghor led her impromptu posse out of her office and across the street to the saloon. As they walked up they could see Kiro sitting at a table through the window seated at a table. Ghor stopped and addressed the other two, “You two stay out here. I want to do this without making a scene.”

  Vilnius grunted. “What if he decides to make a scene?”

  When Ghor spoke again she did so in the most serious tone either of them had ever heard her use. “If that happens you two come in. Shoot first, ask questions later.”

  The Ugnaught’s fingers twitched on the blaster rifle. Lucy began to turn a shade of green that might have matched the sheriff’s. Neither said a word.

  Ghor stepped inside the saloon. She nodded at the man behind the bar but made her way across the dining area to Kiro’s table. His plate was empty and his mug was only half full. As soon as he took notice of the sheriff he started to rise but Ghor held up a hand, “Mind if I join you?”

  Kiro gestured at the other chair across from him and sat back down. “Have a seat. What’s up, ma’am?”

  Ghor took the seat and only then did she pull the blaster from her holster, pointing it at her deputy under the table. If Kiro realized he had a weapon pointed at him, he didn’t let on.

  Ghor continued. “Kiro, we need to talk.”

  “Yes, ma’am,” he answered, appearing somewhat confused.

  “But first, I need you to hand me your blaster. Slowly. Under the table.”

  Ghor’s voice was low and deadly serious. Kiro picked up on the implication instantly. He nodded and reached down, unsnapped the strap that held the blaster fast in its holster. He gingerly, slowly withdrew the weapon seeing the whole time that the sheriff's unwavering gaze was on him. He handed the weapon to her under the table. She took it and pointed it back so that Kiro was now covered by both. Only then did she breathe a little easier.

  Kiros lower lip trembled a bit. “What’s going on, ma’am?”

  Ghor holstered her weapon but kept the one she’d taken from her deputy aimed back at him. “Not here. We’ll have our talk back at the office.”

  At Ghor’s urging, Kiro stood slowly and walked out of the saloon ahead of her. She followed close behind so that the blaster was effectively concealed between the two of them. When they got outside they were joined by Lucy and Vilnius who helped to escort the deputy across the street to the sheriff's office.

  Once back at the office Kiro seemed to guess their intentions. He actually led them to the cell at the back of the office and went inside without a word. The sheriff activated the energy field that sealed the entrance.

  Kiro stood on the other side of the barrier and looked the sheriff in the eye. “Now will you tell me what’s going on, ma’am?”

  Ghor held up the page she’d removed from her pocket. “This you?”

  Kiro, realizing the implications, was shocked into silence.

  Sheriff Ghor pulled the first page she’d gotten from Vilnius from her pocket as well and held both of them side by side. “Is this you?” She said, raising her voice.

  Kiro stared for a moment and then shook his head vigorously. “No, ma’am! I swear!”

  “No one else has a serape like that, Kiro.”

  “Must be another one, ma’am. Mine’s home. In my closet,” Kiro insisted.

  Ghor whirled around to face Lucy and Vilnius. “Let’s go look.”

  Vilnius nodded agreement. “I’ll call my boys to keep an eye on him,” he said.

  Lucy nodded but said nothing. A strange mix of fear and disappointment covered her face.

  *****

  On the edge of town from where Lucy and her neighbors called home was a tiny, ramshackle shack where Kiro lived. It was dark by the time that Sheriff Ghor, Lucy, and Vilnius approached. The small wooden structure had a shallow front porch providing minor cover for a door and small window in the front wall. The structure itself had taken some damage in the recent storm. Even by the pale light of the sheriff’s flashlight, they could see areas of the roof missing shingles. Lucy was sure that the shack had been old and dilapidated when it was occupied by Kiro’s father before his son was even born.

  Ghor used her flashlight to examine, as best she could, the outside of the shack while Lucy, shivering, stood off to one side. It was not actually cold, Ghor figured it was mostly her nerves.

  Vilnius stood, vigilant, with his rifle at the ready. The late evening was darkening quickly but the air was still.

  Ghor finished a circle of the shack and approached the door, the only entrance, at the front. She leaned to the side and shined her light into the window. Seeing nothing, she used her master key to unlock the door.

  The door swung open and Ghor pointed her light inside. She stepped in and hit the light switch as she did. The lights illuminated the single room, revealing the spartan interior. There was a bed and a countertop with some kitchen implements. A closet door was adjacent to the entry and it was this that caught the attention of the sheriff.

  Ghor stepped to the closet and opened the door without fanfare. There was a coat hanging on a single hanger and wadded up on the floor was Kiro’s serape.

  Ghor knelt on one knee. “It’s here,” she said, reaching for the garment. As she picked it up a knife, concealed within, fell clattering to the red tile door.

  Ghor was silent but Lucy, who was looking over her shoulder, gasped.

  Vilnius, still at the door, inquired, “What is it?” in an impatient tone.

  Ghor picked the blade up from the floor. She held out the serape and the knife for them to see. Vilnius saw the long, thin, black blade and the blood stained garment in her hands. He sighed, “The boy did it. He killed her.” His voice betrayed his resignation.

  Lucy shook her head in disbelief. “No. It’s not possible. He’s a good kid.”

  Vilnius snapped, “Look at this! What other explanation is there?”

  Ghor stuffed the serape and the knife into a plastic bag. “Let’s keep the speculation to a minimum.” She pointed to the door. “Let’s get back to the office. We’re gonna need Doc to check the blood on this thing.”