Muses, Mishaps, and Murder!

Chapter 11 Better Accommodations

Muse Paisley

I stared at the holding cells.

Holbrook was allowed to leave, and Zander took her to the firing range, where she practiced her aim.

An odd perk for a prisoner. If she isn't officially being held, why is she there?

An armed guard stood at her side, but it appeared she was observing the surrounding prisoners and waiting. She sang quietly to herself.

An hour later, she entered the cell she shared with Mason and her father and fell asleep.

"Mason, wake up!" Zander yelled through the bars.

Holbrook draped the blanket over her head and fell back asleep.

Mason's eyelids shot open, and he bolted from his mattress, tossing the soft blanket into the corner. He couldn't tell it was hours before dawn because he was locked in a spaceship, but his body could.

"What info do you want?"

"Finding out what happened to Quin Salamander is your job. Your mom wants to protect you, but this protection has a price." Zander slipped him a letter about what Shanna had said to him through the bars.

"How does my mother know you?" Mason asked.

"Do what I say!"

"If you want my assistance, I need better accommodations. And maybe a cup of hot chocolate.  There isn't any evidence other than Shanna's voice." Mason sat down on his thin mattress in the cell and switched on a small TV bolted to the corner bars.

"Fine, be a jerk." Zander folded his arms. 

Mason dropped the paper, turned on an educational streaming channel, and selected Shanna's children's program. She was a doe-eyed, fairy-like princess. Blue Jays danced around her, and her voice was high.

She sang the Happy Cleanup Song.

"Deb-Dagger and Shanna are not the same. Most people can't tell the difference, but Shanna has a careful pause. She rarely breaks character and wouldn't sully her show."

"Hello, boys and... girls," Shanna said.

"Okay, it's not Shanna, but I was positive. Before Vash died, Shanna's voice was rather husky."

Mason switched off the TV. "We'll talk when you decide to treat me as your equal. Could you get me an interview with Stew Gray-Bolt, the dragon commander? He's still a suspect."

"Stew and I could arrange something." Zander made a phone call.

A massive dragon's green face appeared on the screen. "Hey, Zander. What do you need?"

"Mason has questions about Quin."

"Not another armchair, detective." Steam came from Stew's angry snout. "Agent Rock-Heart cleared me."

"This isn't directly related. We all know you hated Mrs. Salamander. Your granddaughter is a holographic AI programmer, right? And your military degree was programming drones."

"I've given up tech and full command to run a useful store. Besides, my granddaughter isn't a cultist, and I'm too busy. Programming is only my little princess's hobby. She works for a resort. But Deb-Ann-Dagger isn't a true learning AI. She is more like an animated VTuber. Someone has to be speaking through her off-site. They could be thousands of miles away, but the hologram might be run by more than one person."

Mason and the commander said goodbye and hung up.

Zander left as a guard came to collect chamber pots behind a flimsy curtain.