Page 29 of Keran's Dawn

“Dawn didn’t specify which last name he goes by,” I added in a gentler tone.

Tagar smiled, thus acknowledging my subtle apology. “I had noticed. I wonder why.”

“Maybe he legally has his sire’s last name and prefers not to hear it,” Nowik offered. “Or she knows of the bad blood between your families and chose not to underline it.”

I grunted, either being a possibility that our speculations wouldn’t answer.

The sound of Dawn’s footsteps approaching put an end to our conversation. She entered the room with a hover tray in front of her. The rich scent of warm breads, creamy cheeses, and spiced butter wafted to me. A large pitcher contained a reddish liquid with ice, while a glass pot seemed filled with the human version of gwar, which they called coffee.

“This is quite the feast, Dawn. We didn’t expect such a lavish breakfast,” I said with a smile.

She grinned proudly, puffing out her chest. “You are my guests,” she said in a self-evident tone. “I should have received you better yesterday. I’m making up for it today.”

“There is nothing to make up for,” I replied in a slightly chastising tone as we helped her unload the contents of the hover tray onto the table. “But you will never hear any complaints from a Braxian for being served large amounts of delicious food.”

“Ah-hoo,” Tagar and Nowik said simultaneously to express their agreement.

Dawn laughed, and we settled at the table. While my companions started filling their plates, I established the communication with Captain Baldur onboard our ship. Seconds later, his massive frame filled the screen. Although he maintained a neutral expression with his legendary military discipline, I didn’t miss the approving once over he gave Dawn. The silly female didn’t realize just how beautiful she was to a Braxian.

“Baldur, apologies that we should be eating in your face like this, but every minute counts,” I said in greeting.

“They do. And in your shoes, I wouldn’t let such a delectable-looking feast grow cold,” he said in a friendly tone. “But we do have much to discuss,” he added, his tone becoming more serious.

“We’re listening,” I replied, bracing for what would follow.

“As you’re eating, we’ll leave the details on Orin’s preliminary autopsy of the victims for last,” Baldur said.

I almost chastised him for implying we could be indisposed out of eating by some gruesome descriptions, then swallowed it back when I realized it was out of courtesy for Dawn.

“We have reviewed every line of the file you’ve put together on Jardan Korey, Dawn. You’ve done a remarkable job, considering the limited resources you had access to,” Baldur said in a kind voice.

“Thank you,” Dawn said, her cheeks flushing with pleasure at the praise. “I hope it helped a little.”

Baldur nodded. “It did. You saved us a lot of time trying to dig up that information. Everything checks out,” he continued, this time looking at me. “He’s a very well-known headhunter in the Western Quadrant. His reputation is stellar, and he runs a clean business. Over the past year, he’s been wetting his feet in the Eastern Quadrant to expand his clientele.”

“So nothing shady?” I asked with a frown.

“Nothing,” Baldur replied with conviction. “We actually reached out to him. He agreed to meet with you on the ranch where he trains the candidates.”

“When?” I asked eagerly, straightening in my chair.

“As soon as is convenient for you,” Baldur replied with a grin.

“Today?” I insisted.

“Yes. You can just drop by. Jardan says he’s always at the ranch.”

“Perfect. We’ll head there as soon as we’re done here,” I said, a thrill coursing through me.

“The surveillance records and security systems from planetary control have not revealed any suspicious arrivals. They’ve also not detected any stealth ships trying to infiltrate the planet,” Baldur continued. “However, their technology is fairly dated. We are not the most advanced species, but we could have fooled some of their systems. It is therefore fair to say that the killer could have snuck in undetected.”

“Aside from Jardan’s team, are there any other unusual visiting off-worlder vessels recorded in the docking manifest?” I asked after swallowing another mouthful.

Baldur shook his head. “Nothing stood out. Only the usual suppliers, a couple of ambassadors, and charitable organizations’ representatives. The smaller vessels belonged to refugees that are all accounted for.”

“How did you get access to such private information?” Dawn asked with a frown.

“We have our ways,” Baldur said with a mysterious tone. “Like I mentioned earlier, Haven’s technology is dated.”

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