"We've still to wait if Jalsa's police can dig out anything. Furthermore, we still do not have any idea who may be behind the whole scheme. Find that out, and we find the Constrictor."
"To find them we have to find the Constrictor," retorted Kalangu. "A vicious circle if you approach it in that manner."
"Only to a certain extent. So far nobody appears to be suspicious enough or powerful enough to be implicated. That leaves someone we don't know about."
This statement was considered more seriously than might be expected. In so large a universe the old rule "expect the unexpected" was the only reliable guide. Some powerful group, hiding their tracks and biding their time... It was not a completely unreasonable hypothesis, but one that would be very difficult to follow up on.
Kirrik continued, "I'm not suggesting that we waste time on pure speculation, but I would suggest we don't dismiss anything slightly unusual we might find."
From another room an "Incoming Message" tone sounded. Jalsa stood up. "Excuse me, please."
As expected the message was from the police. "There's one bit of information I've found for you," he said. "Garhan Jersisallam."
"Didn't him and his business vanish after the Constrictor's destruction?" asked Jalsa.
"Yes. No trace of him ever found, but about eight months later a James Tebay, an employee of his, appeared briefly. Boarded a ship with a few others who had arrived with him and left but to where I haven't any idea. There's no record on the people with him, but they must have been crew for the ship."
"What sort of ship was it?"
"I don't know. You'll have to check System Records," came the unhelpful reply.
"When exactly did he appear?" demanded Jalsa.
"Third of March by Co-op dating. I've nothing else, I'm afraid."
"Thankyou for being of help. Goodbye." The inspector looked relieved as he closed the link.
Jalsa hurried back into the main room where they had been meeting. "When did the scrap turn up here?" he asked.
"Second of March," Barbeth replied. She looked up at him. "What have you heard?"
"Another coincidence that probably isn't one." He told them the news.
"I remember the name of Jersisallam from the enquiry," said Kirrik. "He'd been suspected of dealing in experimental technology acquired by dubious means and selling it to those who probably shouldn't have it. We put in a lot of effort trying to find him but he's vanished completely."
"It looks like nobody put two and two together when this Tebay appeared," said Jalsa. He sighed. "That's the problem with the bureaucracy of this place. No two departments talk to each other that much and information from one has to filter through to another in its own time."
"I'll see what System Records has to say," said Williams. "We might as well head for Tiriusri, unless anyone has any better ideas?"
Nobody had. "We'll meet you at the ship, then," said Kalangu.
Williams caught up the the group as they were boarding the ship. It was a modified Ghavial, large enough to accommodate them and contain an impressive array of weaponry. As well as its two-man crew they had further accompaniment in the form of three Navy Iguanas, set up as heavy fighters with hyperspace capability. Whilst this flotilla was leaving the station Williams told the others what he had learned. Apparently Tebay had acquired a second-hand but well-maintained Fer-de-Lance Lightspeeder, a potent weapon in the hands of an experienced combateer. GalCop had no record of it either being destroyed or abandoned (although a deserted ship in deep space was never likely to be found again). What, if anything, could be found at Tiriusri remained to be seen.
There had been no record of the ship docking at any space station in the Tiriusri system. The most likely possibility was that it had destroyed its target and hyperspaced out again straight afterwards. There was a slim chance that the attack had been witnessed, though, and with this in mind Kalangu found himself with a pile of police reports for the day the missing ship disappeared.