Chapter 44

 

Lieutenant Cornell seemed to have just gotten in as Cassie stepped into her office and shut the door behind her. Cornell sat back and regarded her. Cassie lay the folder on the desk before her.

‘What’s this?’ Cornell opened the folder.

‘Proof linking Euclidean Industries to the military types who attacked us,’ said Cassie. ‘There’s no direct evidence linking them to the raid yet, but I’ve confirmed the records of some of those pictured.’

Cornell whistled as she flicked through the file. ‘Is this what your source provided?’

‘Yep.’

‘Good. Now we just need to find them.’

‘That, I might also have a lead on.’ Cassie lay a piece of paper on the desk, identical to the one she’d given Truman. ‘Singularity, the splinter cult of the organisation that became Euclidean, were holed up here yesterday. They might still be there, and might be a target for Euclidean.’

‘You think Singularity instigated this mess?’ asked Cornell. ‘And were involved in the gunfight at the mall?’

‘Yes.’ She’d already reported the generalities of what was going on, without the hard-to-swallow specifics. What they were fighting over might be unbelievable, but the things people did to each other were entirely pedestrian around here. ‘I’m fairly sure they also killed Minetti and his friend as a false trail to protect their agent in the mob, Giovanni.’

Cornell’s frown deepened. ‘He looked like he was killed using the Gun in the possession of the mob thugs.’ She looked up at Cassie. ‘The Gun’s gone missing.’

‘I heard,’ said Cassie, who hadn’t, strictly. But what she’d been told of how the Gun functioned seemed confirmed by it turning up in her kitchen. She should feel less comfortable about bending the truth that badly. ‘I believe it’s back in the possession of Euclidean. My source says it’s in their headquarters.’

Her source on that being Truman, who had said they would secure it. Cassie assumed it was still there, until they arranged somewhere secure. They had no reason to suspect they needed to move it fast.

‘They also say Euclidian’s security contractors only just learnt the location of the Singularity hideout, and could be moving on it any moment.’

Cornell tapped her fingers on the desk as she glared at the contents of the folder. ‘You don’t like giving me much of a heads up, do you?’

‘I’d have gathered more evidence if I hadn’t learnt this was happening. If we catch their guys, Euclidean could move the Gun out to somewhere safer. Somewhere deniable.’

‘Another Mayweather Technologies.’

‘They do own a lot of businesses. That we know of.’

Cornell nodded, stood and grabbed the paper with the address. ‘Okay. I’ll arrange units to deal with Singularity, and anyone going at them. When that’s underway, I’ll try to get a warrant for Euclidean. The urgency might get it through before word can reach them. We’ll go there as soon as the first site’s secure, provided I can get the manpower. Not you, though. You stay at your desk this time.’

That was fine with her. Cassie had no desire to go near two criminal parties who both might feel she’d betrayed them. Both should soon have too much trouble to be bothered with her. Though if the Gun was found at Euclidean, it would soon be back with her, and Euclidean would know. There was no way around that without conspiring with criminals, and she had no intention of doing so. She would have to deal with them if and when they came for her. It probably wouldn’t be immediate. If anything happened to her after she’d just brought that down on them, it would draw even more attention their way. She doubted Truman was that impulsive, or reckless. Hopefully.

That left only one problem to deal with.

She sat at her desk, and suppressed the urge to order Jimmy out of Harry’s seat.

Okay, two problems, then.