recon
_Detective Stephen Raitt knew the laundry room was full of bystanders who needed to vent their feelings of fear & relief and absolutely empty of useful witnesses.
He took it upon himself to close down the crime scene and headed for the tubes. He checked his pad, and pressed the button for level 4.
Sergeant Pettigrew was already back at her post at the MedLab Gateway when he arrived.
"Hello, Sergeant, I came to check on the laundry chute, have a look around. Any sign of Mr... " Raitt looked at his pad again. "Mr. Freedman?"
"No sign of either of them, no. Follow me, I'll take you to the chute." Pettigrew came out from behind the admission desk and walked him through the curtain.
"Either of them?" Raitt was perplexed. "Who else is missing?"
"Suzanne Devereaux." She looked at him with a slight frown. "Nobody mentioned her?"
"The Suzanne Devereaux?" Raitt smelled money as motive, but he was of a mind money didn't matter much beyond buying one's way on to the space station.
Pettigrew smiled. "The one and only, yes."
"What's her connection with Freedman?"
"Volunteerism can be a playgound for the rich and powerful, Detective. MedLab had no staff to speak of beyond Aggie & Rails, Suzanne volunteered, she and Leon seem to have become friends."
They turned the corner. Pettigrew stopped and pointed to the first bed on the left. "This was Leon's bed. Suzanne had taken to sitting there beside him and reading to him the last day or so, or Leon would share his tales from the streets or the wars."
Raitt looked only slightly interested. "He was in what Iraq? Afghanistan?"
She shook her head. "No, Leon Freedman was in Vietnam."
That got Raitt's attention. "How old is he?"
"I have no date of birth on record for him. I would imagine he's at least in his late sixties." She felt the need to add. "That created no problem for Suzanne. Her late husband was 40 years older than she was."
Raitt nodded. "You said 'streets' as well. He was well off, but he worked the streets? He a street missionary?"
Pettigrew laughed. "Heavens, no, Detective. Leon was dirt poor, a pro bono patient of Dr. Stormer's."
Raitt's puzzlement grew. "He wasn't rich, he lived on the streets, how the hell did he get up to L5?"
Pettigrew started walking towards the chute. "For the answer to that, I think you'll have to ask Dr. Stormer." She opened the chute hatch. "Aggie went in first, Lori went in after." She looked at him somewhat triumphantly. "Nothing to see here."
"What's on 5?"
"The Morgue, the crematorium and a utilities center for water and power."
"Six?"
"Six is L5 General Administration." She reflected on what she knew. "Seven is the Admin arm of the government. Eight is the Government Executive offices and 9 is the exclusive domain of the President, his Chief of Staff and the Senior Admin & Security staff."
Raitt had his moments of brilliance. He was looking at Pettigrew's feet. "Those shoes, they're crepe, right?"
She was caught slightly off-balance by the queston. "Yes, I wear them in here instead of my issue boots. They're silent, they have great traction even on wet floors." She looked at Raitt, whose eyes were on the opening of the laundry chute.
"You're kidding." Pettigrew smiled nonetheless.
Raitt grinned from ear-to-ear. "Life is an adventure. Got any size 11s?"
She grinned back and slapped him on his belly with the back of her hand. "Yep, we have all sizes, Detective, c'mon back out to the desk, I'll fix you up."
They had just made it back to the foyer when she had a thought. She looked at her watch. "You know you should do it in about an hour and fifteen minutes."
He squinted and smiled at the same time, appreciating her take on the matter. "Why so?"
"Shift changes. Laundry gets dumped *after* shift changes. Just over an hour from now, 90% of what's going down will have gone." She grinned again, happy to be appreciated.
He held his hand out. "I'm Stephen."
She even blushed a little. "I'm Eileen."
He backed out of the foyer. "See you in about an hour, Eileen."
Pettigrew didn't need to use the washroom particularly. She popped in to check herself out in the mirror.
He took it upon himself to close down the crime scene and headed for the tubes. He checked his pad, and pressed the button for level 4.
Sergeant Pettigrew was already back at her post at the MedLab Gateway when he arrived.
"Hello, Sergeant, I came to check on the laundry chute, have a look around. Any sign of Mr... " Raitt looked at his pad again. "Mr. Freedman?"
"No sign of either of them, no. Follow me, I'll take you to the chute." Pettigrew came out from behind the admission desk and walked him through the curtain.
"Either of them?" Raitt was perplexed. "Who else is missing?"
"Suzanne Devereaux." She looked at him with a slight frown. "Nobody mentioned her?"
"The Suzanne Devereaux?" Raitt smelled money as motive, but he was of a mind money didn't matter much beyond buying one's way on to the space station.
Pettigrew smiled. "The one and only, yes."
"What's her connection with Freedman?"
"Volunteerism can be a playgound for the rich and powerful, Detective. MedLab had no staff to speak of beyond Aggie & Rails, Suzanne volunteered, she and Leon seem to have become friends."
They turned the corner. Pettigrew stopped and pointed to the first bed on the left. "This was Leon's bed. Suzanne had taken to sitting there beside him and reading to him the last day or so, or Leon would share his tales from the streets or the wars."
Raitt looked only slightly interested. "He was in what Iraq? Afghanistan?"
She shook her head. "No, Leon Freedman was in Vietnam."
That got Raitt's attention. "How old is he?"
"I have no date of birth on record for him. I would imagine he's at least in his late sixties." She felt the need to add. "That created no problem for Suzanne. Her late husband was 40 years older than she was."
Raitt nodded. "You said 'streets' as well. He was well off, but he worked the streets? He a street missionary?"
Pettigrew laughed. "Heavens, no, Detective. Leon was dirt poor, a pro bono patient of Dr. Stormer's."
Raitt's puzzlement grew. "He wasn't rich, he lived on the streets, how the hell did he get up to L5?"
Pettigrew started walking towards the chute. "For the answer to that, I think you'll have to ask Dr. Stormer." She opened the chute hatch. "Aggie went in first, Lori went in after." She looked at him somewhat triumphantly. "Nothing to see here."
"What's on 5?"
"The Morgue, the crematorium and a utilities center for water and power."
"Six?"
"Six is L5 General Administration." She reflected on what she knew. "Seven is the Admin arm of the government. Eight is the Government Executive offices and 9 is the exclusive domain of the President, his Chief of Staff and the Senior Admin & Security staff."
Raitt had his moments of brilliance. He was looking at Pettigrew's feet. "Those shoes, they're crepe, right?"
She was caught slightly off-balance by the queston. "Yes, I wear them in here instead of my issue boots. They're silent, they have great traction even on wet floors." She looked at Raitt, whose eyes were on the opening of the laundry chute.
"You're kidding." Pettigrew smiled nonetheless.
Raitt grinned from ear-to-ear. "Life is an adventure. Got any size 11s?"
She grinned back and slapped him on his belly with the back of her hand. "Yep, we have all sizes, Detective, c'mon back out to the desk, I'll fix you up."
They had just made it back to the foyer when she had a thought. She looked at her watch. "You know you should do it in about an hour and fifteen minutes."
He squinted and smiled at the same time, appreciating her take on the matter. "Why so?"
"Shift changes. Laundry gets dumped *after* shift changes. Just over an hour from now, 90% of what's going down will have gone." She grinned again, happy to be appreciated.
He held his hand out. "I'm Stephen."
She even blushed a little. "I'm Eileen."
He backed out of the foyer. "See you in about an hour, Eileen."
Pettigrew didn't need to use the washroom particularly. She popped in to check herself out in the mirror.
