In the Shadow of the Starships

Chapter 4 To the Library!

I tousled my short hair dry with a hand towel and brushed the dull brown strands into order. Wash and wear—my favorite style. My clothes were just as simple, if a bit tattered and worn.

With my "private time" over, I tapped my bracelet to activate the screen and microphone. "I'm done."

"Perfect! I think our first stop should be the library. I need direct access to their private information network, and I have to be in the actual building for that. This afternoon or evening we'll have to stop by the Wayward Casino. I have a strong hunch they're laundering money, but I need direct network access from inside to get into their camera system."

The money laundering sounded really interesting—Enforcement agencies were currently cracking down on such activities and paying better than usual. But it was too early to wander into a casino on the shady side of town without attracting more attention than was wise. I could slip in quite easily later on.

"What's at the library?" I asked as I grabbed a light coat and my wallet, tucking it into an inside pocket where it would be safe from the numerous pickpockets around here. Our destination had me thoroughly puzzled. In all my years, I'd never had to darken the door of such a building.

"News articles directly from the press," he replied, sounding almost gleeful. "If I couldn't access them via the spaceweb, then the hackers wouldn't have been able to either."

Now he had my interest. "Hackers?" As I left my room, I paused just long enough to pet the orange tabby that came racing over.

"Sloppy ones," he clarified. "They mismatched the dates and even spelled an Enforcement Officer's name wrong!"

"What a crime," I drawled as I joined the foot traffic outside the residence, making sure Chuck didn't slip outside.

"Well, the typo isn't, but the murders I think they were trying to cover up most certainly are. The library's archives will prove if my hunch is correct or if the press had hired squirrels to write and proofread those articles."

A murder coverup was definitely worth investigating, although I wasn't too sure what a squirrel was.

"Some sort of tree-climbing rodent on Earth," Toby helpfully supplied.

It was a solid hour-long walk to the nearest library, but at least the sunshine shook off the last of my drowsiness. The building looked run down, which wasn't overly surprising since the average person just wanted to look up information from their couch instead of entering an oversized dusty fire-starter.

I climbed the steps and went inside, glancing around. There weren't nearly as many paper books as I'd expected.

"Can I help you?" a woman by the reception asked.

"Ummm... How would I find the archives for press releases?"

She gave me a puzzled look but gestured to some old-generation computers on scattered desks. "One of the applications is called Archives. Just enter your library ID and password to access it."

"And if I don't have a card?"

"You can either get a six-month membership, a one-year membership, or pay a daily rate."

With a sigh, I dug out my wallet. I hated parting with money, but the astrogold would be worth it if Toby managed to pinpoint some murderers. I picked the farthest desk, one that put my back against the wall, and pulled a connection cable out of my pocket to link my bracelet to the computer.

"I'm in!" Toby exclaimed. His voice turned apologetic. "Sorry, but this might take a while. Maybe even an hour. There's a lot of articles here, and they aren't well cataloged. Feel free to use the computer while you wait."