Clan and Conviction (Clan Beginnings) (14 page)

Gelan watched the warehouse entrance, his muscles singing with tension.  At last, Latwik appeared, his hover cart laden with storage bins.  He headed towards his shuttle.

The sniper commander gave the order.  “Drop him.”

The drugged dart made no sound as the sniper shot.  Gelan didn’t know the sniper had fired until Latwik staggered.  He went to one knee and then keeled over, flat on his face.

Several men, the ones Nost had warned them about, came out of hiding.  Their percussion blasters were out, sighting on the downed Nobek dealer.

Wynhod and the other enforcers scattered around the warehouse rose up as one.  They fired with both plasma rifles and blasters, taking out the men targeting Latwik in one deafening volley of firepower.

No sooner had the last man fallen when Wynhod ordered, “Enforcer squads, into the scene!”

He raced out from behind the hiding place he shared with Gelan.  The other enforcers were also rushing towards the warehouse, moving in dark blurs.  Wynhod and a squad commander took up protective positions over the downed Latwik while the rest of the enforcers checked the dead and searched the area for other potential hostiles.  There were intermittent calls of “Clear!” as sections were found empty of troublemakers.

After about five minutes of that, Wynhod got confirmation that the entire area had been secured.  He said, “Send your team in, Supervisor Nost.  Investigator Gelan, you are clear to enter the scene.”

Gelan jogged out from behind the outcropping.  Members of undercover ops were also coming out as Wynhod cuffed the unconscious Latwik’s wrists and ankles.  He pointed to the back of Latwik’s neck, which he’d swept long strands of hair from.  Plain to see was the scarred image of a knife, rendered much better than the one of the man who’d tried to kill Hurs.  Gelan traded triumphant grins with his partner as he trotted past.

He met up with Nost, already opening up one of the 25 bins the drug dealer had been floating to his shuttle.  The two Dramoks’ eyes met as the contents were displayed:  Delir in all its forms of greenish-gray powder, spray, and hypo-ready emerald-colored serum.  Just the one bin contained the most Delir Gelan had ever seen in one place.  A quick inventory showed that all the bins were similarly packed.

“Shit,” Gelan breathed.  He never imagined he’d find this much of the drug when they caught Latwik.  What he looked at represented more money than he could hope to make in his lifetime.

Nost’s quiet tone betrayed his own stunned reaction despite the understatement of his words.  “Big score, Investigator.  You’ll probably get a commendation for this.”

Gelan dragged his gaze from the Delir to Latwik, being floated towards a prisoner transport shuttle that had landed moments ago.  “As incredible as this is, Latwik is an even bigger prize.  We’ve finally got a live one.”  He grinned at the other officers who’d taken a moment to be amazed by the record confiscation.  “Fantastic work, everyone.  That couldn’t have gone more perfectly.”

There were still the other locations to hear from, but this was the one that really mattered.  They had a member of the Delir gang in custody and the biggest haul of the devastating drug found anywhere.  Gelan couldn’t restrain the broad grin eating up his face.  It was damned good to finally win one.

* * * *

While Wynhod got Latwik ready for a round of questioning, Gelan went to the Criminal Psychology Department.  Krijero frowned at something on his computer vid as the Dramok neared.  Jomik sat at his desk and warily watched the investigator’s approach.  Gelan ignored him.

Krijero didn’t react at all when Gelan stood right next to him, so Gelan happily clapped the Imdiko on his shoulder with the announcement, “We got him.”

Krijero jumped, startled.  His flailing arm knocked a handheld off his desk.  Gelan swooped low and caught it before it could hit the floor.

The psych gave him a wide-eyed stare before recovering enough to say, “Oh.  Hi!  Thanks,” he added, taking his handheld from Gelan.  “You caught Latwik?  That’s great!”  Krijero peered around with a concerned expression.  “Where’s your partner?  No one got hurt this time, right?”

Gelan patted the Imdiko’s shoulder.  “Only the bad guys.  The entire operation went off without a hitch.  The preliminary report should be in your system now.”

Krijero brightened.  “Great.”  He pulled up another vid, the one that had the results of Latwik’s capture.  “There it is.  Thanks, I needed a little light reading.”

Gelan grinned at the joke.  He located another chair and sat next to Krijero’s desk as the Imdiko glanced over the details of the mission.  He got a surge of satisfaction when Krijero’s jaw dropped at the inventory.  “Bad guy caught with plenty of evidence.”

“By the ancestors,” the psych breathed.  “That’s a lot of Delir.”

“Most ever confiscated in one go,” Gelan confirmed.  “Before you get into that analysis, I need a favor.”

“Sure.  Anything to help.”

Gelan held back a smirk.  He had a feeling Krijero was going to regret automatically agreeing without first knowing what the Dramok had in mind.  “I want you to sit down with Latwik first before we start interrogation.  Get a feel for him, what makes him tick.  It will help me approach him better when I have my turn with him.”

Krijero blinked and swallowed.  Just as Gelan thought, the Imdiko was not happy with the request.  His voice came out a little high-pitched.  “You mean, you want me to actually talk to the guy?”

Gelan gave him his most charming smile.  “You’ll be completely safe.  We’ll put him in a suspension field, where he can’t move at all.  Plus a couple of armed enforcers will be there.”

The investigator could practically see the gears turning in Krijero’s head.  The psych was trying to find a way out of honoring his agreement to do anything for the case. 

His tone weak, the Imdiko said, “You know, I’m not like a one-on-one counselor.  I analyze behavior patterns by looking at the cycle of activity and a perp’s interaction with other officers who question him.”

“I realize that.”  Gelan decided to stroke the man’s seemingly non-existent ego.  “Krijero, you’re smart.  You were absolutely right in how these guys are all or nothing.  There were people waiting to kill Latwik rather than let us take him.”

That made the psych thoughtful despite his obvious distress.  “Maybe they didn’t trust him to kill himself like all the others.  That could mean he’s more likely to tell us stuff if we figure out where his biggest loyalty lies.”

“I’ve got to get him to talk, and you’re my best chance to do that without torture or drugs.”

“I’m no interrogator.”  Krijero reddened, and his gaze dropped to his desktop.  “I know you’ve noticed how bad I am at expressing myself with others.  I’m awkward as hell in conversation.”

Gelan leaned close to him.  “That’s what I’m counting on.  Latwik would be on his guard with an actual interrogator.  He won’t know what to make of you.  You’ll knock him off balance.”

Krijero snorted.  He refused to look at Gelan.

The Dramok didn’t let up.  “I don’t expect you to get anything out of him.  I just want you to talk to him, get an assessment, figure out how I can best approach him.”  He added, in the most intensely sincere tone he could muster, “I can’t begin to tell you how much I would appreciate you doing this for the case.”

Krijero squirmed in his chair.  One purple eye peeked up at Gelan through the cowlick that hid half his face.  Sounding dreadfully uncertain, he said, “Well … I guess I could try…”

Before the Imdiko could find another argument to stave Gelan off, the investigator stood.  Though it would no doubt piss off the man’s clanmates if they found out, he dared to touch Krijero, tugging the other man to his feet.  “Great!  He’s already in Interrogation and coming out of sedation.”

Obviously reluctant, Krijero slowly straightened.  This was the closest Gelan had ever stood to the other man. Damn Krijero was tall, nearly Wynhod’s height.  He had at least three inches on Gelan.  The Dramok was abruptly aware of Krijero’s long, lithe frame, standing close enough to put his arm around.  The short sleeves of the psych’s shirt showed arms nicely corded with lean muscle.  Gelan couldn’t help but run his gaze over the whole package.  He enjoyed what he saw, especially the tight ass encased in wrinkled but well-cut trousers.  The Dramok’s cocks twitched.

Gelan wasn’t surprised he found the guy so attractive at this moment.  After all, he’d already noted the appealing face under all that messy hair.  More than anything, the high of catching a Delir gang member alive long enough to question him had the investigator feeling pretty damned good all over. 

He realized he’d been rather grabby with Krijero since coming in the office, a no-no for a Dramok to do with a clanned Imdiko.  Especially a Dramok on the verge of arousal.  His excitement made him rude.  When Krijero hesitated however, it was all Gelan could do to keep his hands to himself and not physically urge the other man forward.

“Thanks so much for doing this, Krijero,” he said instead.  “We need to get a move on, so you can hopefully catch Latwik before he pulls his head together.”

“Okay.”  Finally, the psych began to walk towards the door that would take them into the corridor.  His feet were dragged with excruciating slowness, but Gelan comforted himself with the knowledge that at least Krijero was moving.

* * * *

Krijero’s heart hammered as he followed Gelan to the interrogation section of the precinct.  He had no doubt what was about to happen would be a debacle.  There was simply no way he was going to do anything but embarrass himself interviewing Latwik.  He tried to distract himself by concentrating on the slight arousal scent coming from Gelan.

It turned out to not be such a good idea, because carnal warmth slipped deliciously into his pricks.  Krijero knew full well Gelan’s excitement had to do with what might be a pivotal arrest.  It had nothing at all to do with the Imdiko, but he responded to it anyway.  Gelan was big, Gelan was bad, Gelan was a stunning specimen of a male.  But he didn’t like Krijero.  A blessing, seeing as how the psych did not let himself get entangled with Dramoks.  Reminding himself of all that, Krijero calmed his own momentary erotic yearnings.  It would be damned embarrassing if Gelan thought he had the slightest bit of interest.

Over his shoulder, the investigator said, “Come in this room, Krijero.  I’ll let you have a look at what’s happening before you go in with Latwik.”

Krijero followed Gelan through a door.  The room was small, with a kind of tabletop running along one wall.  A bank of computers lined up all across the surface.  Other than that, the room had nothing else of note.

Two other men waited inside the room, both Dramoks that Krijero recognized.  Gelan quickly made introductions.  “Undercover Ops Supervisor Nost, you’ve met the psych working on this case.”

Nost and Krijero exchanged quick bows.  The head of undercover ops gave the Imdiko a charming smile.  “Good to see you again, Krijero.  Excellent background on the kind of mindset we were facing today.”

Krijero fought not to duck his head so he could hide more of his face behind his hair.  Compliments always embarrassed him.  He mumbled, “Thank you.  Glad I could help.”

Gelan motioned to the other Dramok in the room.  “Head Investigator Utta, Criminal Psychologist Dr. Krijero.”

“Doctor.”  Utta bowed and the Imdiko returned the acknowledgment. 

Gelan addressed the two department heads.  “All Dr. Krijero is going to do is attempt to engage Latwik in conversation.  This should give him a feel for how our suspect interacts with others.  I’m hoping he can make some recommendations on how to best approach the subject with the actual interrogation.”

Utta nodded.  “Sounds good.”

Gelan turned to the row of computers.  “Vid up, Interrogation Room Seven.”

A large vid bloomed into view.  It looked like a window to another room, one with a table and an empty chair facing away from the onlookers.  On the other side of the table, facing them were three men.  Two percussion blaster-armed enforcers stood on either side of a hovercuffed Nobek.

One of the enforcers was Wynhod.  He and the other officer kept their eyes on the prisoner, who was not only cuffed but also locked in a suspension field that held him floating frozen in mid-air.  Krijero swallowed.  The suspension field kept Latwik absolutely helpless.  Gelan wasn’t fucking around with this man; not with a field, hovercuffs, and two armed guards on the prisoner. 

A continuous growl rumbled from Latwik’s chest.  Krijero looked into the dark, scarred face of the captured Nobek, and his mouth went dry.  Suddenly, all the safeguards in place didn’t seem enough.  Not with the heavy-browed, animalistic expression Latwik wore.  He looked like violent rage personified.

Gelan said, “As you can see, Latwik cannot harm you in any way, Doctor.  The suspension field is fully activated, as are the hovercuffs.  You’ve got Wynhod and Daw standing right there as well.”

Krijero managed not to shudder.  “Yeah.  I guess he’s not going to get away, is he?”

Gelan looked at him carefully.  As if discerning the Imdiko’s unease, his tone came out gentle.  “Ready?”

Fuck no
, Krijero thought.  What he said was, “I guess.  I have no idea what I’m supposed to say to him.” 

Gelan shrugged.  “It doesn’t matter, as long as you get him talking and give me an idea of what I’m dealing with.  Come on.”