Season of Starlight

Second Month

The Goldmoore Speedway

The City of Onoco, The Cronia Region

2327

Abbott felt numb as Naomé approached him.

He hadn't seen his sister in five years, not since the controversy surrounding Sebastian Hahn's first crash, a fateful event that started Abbott's chosen exile to Trylla.

The accident gave him the perfect way out, a reason to leave the life of death and destruction his family had evolved into since his father's death, and an opportunity to discover he was something more than just an heir to a criminal empire.

Young and alone in a new world, Abbott relied on his immediate connections within the Constable Academy of Cronia. He soon started training in the capital of Woalani until he was dispatched to the Trylla Detective Bureau to join Detective Inspector Henri Fraser.

That decision altered the course of his life forever.

It was a whirlwind of an adjustment, but a satisfactory pursuit for justice came along with the gruesome crime scenes and dishevelled corpses. Abbott was part of something greater than himself, a purpose he would have never uncovered if he stayed in Onoco.

In his absence, everything familiar had changed. His mother now helmed the Abbott dynasty with anger and brute strength, a far cry from the soft, compassionate woman he once knew.

While Rebeka had hardened after Luis' demise, Abbott had never expected her to prowl around the city with a hit squad of personal slaves, souls sold to the cause of holding the integrity and superiority of the family legacy.

Cruelty and intimidation were the trademarks of the Hahn household, not the Abbotts, a nature Magdalena, Sebastian's widow, had preserved.

The Goldmoores were elusive, led by twins Gaspar and Aurore. They kept to themselves and invested in illegal moonshine trade and manufacturing, all hidden under the guise of their colourful aesthetic, best on display through their nightclub and bar, Golden Delights.

Yet, Sebastian Hahn's murder had provoked a sense of aggression in all the families. Everyone was out for blood and territory, and they would risk murder and sabotage to achieve it. A hidden war had begun, and Abbott feared he was wandering onto the frontlines.

What if accusing him of Hahn's murder was the perfect ploy to lure him back to Onoco and exterminate his family altogether? Without an heir, the Abbott empire would fall, consumed and scavenged by the predators surrounding them.

As Naomé wrapped her arms around him in a tight embrace, Abbott recognized the familiar face of the young reporter who had promised to help him at the airship terminal, a conversation cut short by Constable Merit and Detective Dorraine's antics that almost ended his life.

However, as he examined the woman's features, her blonde hair, sharp amber eyes, and the golden corset she now wore over a black Molina blouse with brown trousers and knee-length heeled boots, Abbott immediately recognized Lynn Goldmoore. He suddenly wondered how much help she would actually provide.

There was always a catch.

"Are you alright?" Naomé asked, running her hands up his arms as she quickly inspected for anything unusual. "We heard about the crash..."

"I'm fine," Abbott said with a small smile.

"We will fight this," Naomé said. "It's just a matter of time before the world knows you had nothing to do with Hahn's death."

"Are you sure you can trust a Goldmoore to tell that truth?" Abbott wondered.

"Not if you insult me," Lynn said, standing beside him. She crossed her arms and smirked. "What I am offering you is unprecedented. While respect has always been maintained between the families, this union is the first of its kind. It would be wise to indulge in its rewards."

"And if I don't?"

"Then prepare to face the wolves because the whole city wants to feed you to them."

"Gives Lynn a chance, James," Naomé pleaded. "You can trust her."

"Naivety is dangerous in this life, Naomé," Abbott said. "You should know that."

"It's not naivety. I am giving her the benefit of the doubt."

Naomé looked at Lynn with a poker face, who stared back at her with bewilderment.

"Benefit of the doubt?"

Naomé smiled.

"If you harm or embarrass my brother in any way, you will live to regret it. Just ask Sebastian Hahn."

***

Henri sat on an uncomfortable cot in the Trylla Detective Bureau Med-Bay.

He winced as a mage pressed a cold towel against his throat, the mark of the imposter waiter at Café Lagrousa still setting the sensitive skin on fire.

He pushed her hand away, shocking the woman, whose yellow eyes enlarged when he snatched her wrist.

"Careful," Henri grumbled. "Must you be so thorough?"

"Standard protocol, sir," said the mage with a snicker. She grabbed a health ointment elixir from a basket on the metallic side table next to the cot, popped off the cork and spread the blue gel over the towel, massaging it onto Henri's wound. Once the entire affected area was covered, the mage paused. "Hold it for me, will you?"

Henri pressed a hand on the towel and held it in place while the mage proceeded to pack up her belongings.

"Now what?" he asked.

"Maintain a firm pressure for five minutes, then you should be fine," she said, smirking while rejusting her lump of white hair. She reached into her orange uniform and pulled out wrapped candy, waving it around like she was trying to attract an animal to its food. "Have a sweet. I can kiss your elbow if it will make you feel better, Detective."

Henri recognized the snarky tone and rolled his eyes.

The mage walked away with a hideous laugh, rivalling a witch's cackle.

The door to his room opened, and Commissioner Li Valco walked in, her long black hair brushing the edges of her shoulders while her pink blouse, tucked under the waistline of her grey trousers, ruffled as she crossed her arms, a red folder pinched between her fingers.

"Well, I thought I had seen everything at Flo's café," she sighed. "Affairs, drunks, and nudists, but never had I imagined murder. You alright?"

"Yes," Henri said, squeezing the towel with extra force around his neck. "And Miss Parks?"

"Still breathing," Valco said, sitting on the cot's edge. "Thanks to the advances in medical care and the mummified cacoon of bandage wrap spreading the ointment over her body, Elza should be on her feet in no time."

Valco took a laboured breath, then continued.

"I wasn't expecting her to crawl back into our lives."

"Neither did I," Henri said, drifting out of the conversation. "Yet, Miss Parks always had the gift of showing up at the most unexpected times."

Valco snapped back his attention by slapping the folder on his knee. "So, how much trouble has your constable gotten himself into?"

"James Abbott is a capable young man. I am certain he can handle what comes his way."

"That wasn't my question, Fraser," Valco replied sternly. "Some stranger tried to rip you apart. Is there a connection? Why target you? Enlighten me."

"I can answer that, Commissioner," said a voice.

Henri and Valco turned their heads and found Elza Parks looming in the doorway, her red hair voluminous and her body covered in a medical gown. She entered the room.

"Wait," said Valco.

She stopped Miss Parks by extending a hand into the air.

"What?" Elza asked.

Valco pointed a skinny finger at the gown. "Are you zipped up?"

Elza checked her rear side with confusion. "Yes."

"You sure?"

"I would have felt a chill if I wasn't."

Valco chuckled. "Not always."

"What do you mean?" Henri asked, his gaze fixed on Miss Parks. "Were you expecting company?"

"I have an informant in the Onoco Bureau who has been feeding me information on the crime families once news broke that James was a suspect in Sebastian Hahn's death. I compiled everything I had into this dossier to try and better understand the situation," Elza said, gesturing to the folder, "but my source went silent. He was supposed to make contact before my flight to Onoco but failed to follow through."

"If you were digging into the crime families, then your informant is dead," Valco said. "They have people in every rank of the bureau. They own the city, and nothing sleeps in Onoco unless they permit it."

Henri jumped up from the cot and pressed the towel firmly against his throat while he paced the room. "What was the name of your source?"

"Benjamin Merit," Elza said. "Constable to Detective Vien Dorraine."

"Why did you not mention this before?"

"I never got a chance."

Henri took the folder from Valco and opened it. Inside were three white sub-envelopes, one for each of the three families. He flipped briefly past the Hahns and Goldmoores but locked his eyes on the envelope with the name Abbott written across it in black.

"Henri," Elza said.

"Yes?"

"Prepare yourself. It seems James left a major skeleton in the closet."

"I thought you believed he was innocent."

"I do, but his involvement in this case is consequential."

Without hesitation, Henri opened the Abbott envelope and pulled out the first photograph.

"That was taken five years ago," Elza said. "In Sebastian Hahn's pit bay before the race that nearly claimed his life."

As Henri absorbed the image's content, his chest contracted, and the pit of his stomach soured.

"Where did Merit find this?"

"In a restricted file at the bureau, marked Commissoner's Eyes Only. No one else was supposed to see it."

In the photograph, a teenage James Abbott is captured standing by Hahn's motorcarriage, pouring an unknown substance into the fuel tank.

Henri wiped a layer of sweat from his brow. "Has this been leaked to the press?"

"No," said Elza. "But if our assumptions are correct, wherever this photograph goes, death will follow. That waiter was a guardian angel sent to protect James by concealing the truth. They will come after us until it is destroyed."

Valco leaned forward to view the image, her curiosity piqued.

"Problem?" she asked.

Henri sighed, closing his eyes. "Huge. Get me on the next flight to Onoco. Now."