Chapter 7

VII

Missing Pieces

Mec's house is an old mansion of dark stone and gargoyles, situated on a hill in Gutbred. The view of Hive Central is fantastic; it starts out low in the distance but shoots up into the dark clouds above. On a day with clearer skies than this one turned out to have, it would probably be a dizzying sight.

More modern mansions crowd in either side with nothing but pools and garages, but Mec has spacious and well-tended gardens. Now rain-darkened, they must have stunning colours in the daylight. A tall, barbed wire topped fence encircles the property, crowned with security cameras and spikes.

Every surface has a dark, reflective sheen to it in this weather. It adds an otherworldly aspect to all the flashing blue lights.

Two uniformed apian police officers are standing by a yellow cordon across the gate.

"I'm Estrade Apocope, the executor of Mr Ogive's estate. What's going on?"

The two wingless apians glance at one another. "One moment," one of them says, before speaking quickly and quietly into her radio.

A terse reply crackles back, and she lifts the cordon so that Cubi and Apocope can pass through. A short way up the gravel path, they are met by two apians in suits, obviously detectives, one winged, one wingless.

"I'm Zzg," the wingless one says, "and this is my partner Zzrh. I understand that you're Ms Apocope. And this is?"

Cubi waves feebly. "I'm Cubiform Judge."

"He's inherited one of Mr Ogive's paintings," Apocope says.

Zzrh raises a feeler. "Not the Skeleton God one?"

Apocope nods. "Why do you ask?"

*

"It happened quite recently," Zzg says, "but no-one saw it happen, and no-one understands how it happened. You probably shouldn't get too close to the edge."

Apocope is standing the closest. Wind flows freely into the hallway, snatching at her long, strawberry blond hair. A part of the mansion is missing, from the roof to the foundations, seemingly torn away and carried off. "This was the living room," she says.

It wasn't a question, but Zzg answers, "Yes. Nothing of worth except a leather three piece suite, a plasma screen television and one blasphemous painting."

"The painting's gone?" Cubi says, his voice raised slightly.

"I'm afraid so," Zzg says.

"Well, where does that leave me?" Cubi asks. "What about insurance?"

Apocope screws up her nose and sighs. "Difficult to say. The city's always been balanced on the knife edge between human and apian law when it comes to property and especially inheritance. Apians aren't too big on getting money for no work-"

Zzrh, who has just placed a cigarette in his mandibles and is fumbling in his pockets for a lighter, laughs. "Some of us are bigger on it than others."

"In any case," Apocope continues, "you can expect a lengthy court proceeding. Ogive's insurance company will try everything they can to get out of paying up to you, and they may just be able to do it."

Cubi kicks the wall. It splits and bends further out into the gulf where the living room used to be. "Nog damn it!"

"You know what," Zzrh says, "I think I've lost my lighter. Does anyone have a light?"

Apocope looks at Cubi, clearly thinking about Mec's belief that he doesn't care for money, which is true, normally.

"My friend is-" Cubi begins and then glances at the two detectives. The wingless one is looking out through the missing room at the cloudy sky. But the winged one, while acting casual, is clearly trying to surreptitiously keep a compound eye on Cubi and Apocope. Perni was worried about prison, Cubi remembers. "My friend is in hospital. She's lost her job and could use some money. And I don't have any. Is there-" He turns to the two detectives, feeling self-conscious and somehow dishonest, "Is there any chance of catching whoever did this?"

"Difficult to say," Zzg muses. "So far all we have is a missing part of a house and not much else. Still, it's a pretty big thing to hide. I wouldn't be surprised if it turns up somewhere. Without the painting, of course."

"Look, this is a famous painting," Zzrh says, taking his cigarette out of his mandibles and turning to look Cubi right in the eye. "Either the thief has a client already lined up, in which case we may well never see it again. Or they don't in which case it may turn up after they dump it, or they may destroy it even. But then, there are quite a few people who'd like to just destroy it, without even thinking about selling it. It doesn't look good, but we'll do everything we can."

"Thank you," Cubi says.

Apocope puts a hand on Cubi's shoulder and starts to lead him away, but Zzrh adds, "Were you a friend of Mr Ogive's?"

Cubi nods.

"Zzg and I are investigating his murder as well. It seems strange to think that these two crimes aren't related, doesn't it?"

"I should think so," Cubi says. "Good luck. I hope you succeed."

Zzrh nods.

When they're out of earshot down the hallway, Apocope whispers, "Could you understand everything they were saying? My Zzrrzz has never been that good."

"I grew up south of the river," Cubi says. In Imbroglio you pick up languages like fleas."

*

"What did you think of the little one?" Zzrh asks. "The male in the raincoat."

Zzg shrugs. "Poor bastard."

Zzrh looks down at his unlit cigarette thoughtfully. "I think he was hiding something."