«And what about Eden, does it remember who left the bag there?»

Rolf and some of the others were beginning to look resentful. Lumbered with a dunderhead primitive for a boss, blundering about asking the obvious and not understanding a word spoken. I was beginning to feel isolated, wondering what they were saying to each other via affinity. One or two of them had facial expressions which were changing minutely, visible signs of silent conversation. Did they know they were giving themselves away like that?

My PNC wafer bleeped, and I pulled it out of my jacket pocket. «Chief Parfitt, this is Eden. I'm sorry, but I have no recollection of who placed the bag on the stone. It has been there for three days, which exceeds the extent of my short-term memory.»

«OK, thanks.» I glanced round the expectant faces. «First thing, do we know for sure this is Penny Maowkavitz?»

«Absolutely,» a woman said. She was in her late forties, half a head shorter than everyone else, with dark cinnamon skin. I got the impression she was more weary than alarmed by the murder. «That's Penny, all right.»

«And you are?»

«Corrine Arburry, I'm Penny's doctor.» She nudged the corpse with her toe. «But if you want proof, turn her over.»

I looked at Rolf. «Have you taken the in situ videos?»

«Yes, sir.»

«OK, turn her over.»

After a moment of silence, my police officers gallantly shuffled to one side and let the two ambulance paramedics ease the corpse onto its back. I realized the light was changing, the mock-silver moonlight deepening to a flaming tangerine. Dr Arburry knelt down as the artificial dawn blossomed all around. She tugged the blue blouse out of the waistband. Penny Maowkavitz was wearing a broad green nylon strap around her abdomen, it held a couple of white plastic boxes tight against her belly.

«These are the vector regulators I supplied,» Corrine Arburry said. «I was treating Penny for cancer. It's her all right.»

«Video her like this, then take her to the morgue, please,» I said. «I don't suppose we'll need an autopsy for cause of death.»

«Hardly,» Corrine Arburry said flatly as she rose up.

«Fine, but I would like some tests run to establish she was alive up until the moment she was shot. I would also like the bullet itself. Eden, do you know where that is?»

«No, I'm sorry, it must be buried in the soil. But I can give you a rough estimate based on the trajectory and velocity.»

«Rolf, seal off the area, we need to do that anyway, but I want it searched thoroughly. Have you taken the pistol from the chimp?»

«Yes, sir.»

«Do we have a Ballistics Division?»

«Not really. But some of the company engineering labs should be able to run the appropriate tests for us.»

«OK, get it organized.» I glanced at the chimp. It hadn't moved, big black eyes staring mournfully. «And I want that thing locked up in the station's jail.»