“No,” I whispered, coming out of the memory. “A murderer on the force. No. And assigned to investigate the murder of his victim? How the Gods must laugh at us.”
“Tekhan?” The King knelt before me. “Show me the button.”
I opened my hand and lifted it for the King to see. Everything popped into place when I met his stare. Dear Gods, he steadied me like nothing else. Made sense of madness. Why? Why him? I stared at King Tor'rien as he lowered his gaze to the button, and then he took it from me and lifted it into a shaft of sunlight.
“Is this a talon's button?”
“No.” I took it back. “It's aclaw'sbutton. And it belonged to Greishen.”
“What? How could you know that?”
“Because I remember when he lost it. It was mere days before he was assigned to the Kun-lo case.”
“You can remember someone losing a button over fifty years ago?”
“Sixty-eight years. And I store information. When I need it, I access it.” I shrugged. “Seeing this button triggered the memory. It all makes sense now. It wasn't racism that made Greishen so careless with this case. It was self-preservation. He deliberately didn't find anything becausehewas the murderer.” I growled in fury. “The stalker! There was an Argaiv seen following Kun-lo before he disappeared. It was Greishen.” I shook my head. “I never would have suspected him.”
“The man investigating the disappearance was the same man who caused it?” The King shook his head. “That is a terrible coincidence.”
“Yes. But bound to happen with a murderer in the force.” I grimaced. “How many other people did he kill? It must have been hundreds over the years. Becoming a claw was brilliant. The perfect occupation for a murderer. He hid in plain sight.”
“However many there were, his victims can rest now. He has paid for his crimes.”
“No, he hasn't!” I shot to my feet, clutching the button. “He's dead, yes, but he should have been disgraced first. Imprisoned. I can't imprison him, but I can disgrace his name.”
“Tekhan.” Tor'rien stood and wrapped his hand around my fist. “Think about this. Greishen is beyond such things now. The only people you'll hurt are his family and the Talons.”
“The Talons? How?”
“Trust in them will falter. Do you want that?”
“It doesn't matter what I want. It's the truth. People deserve to know the truth. Greishen's victims deserve it to be known.”
“Maybe. But we decide what truth to give the civilians. Just because they deserve something, it doesn't mean it's good for them. Our jobs, at their hearts, are both about protecting people. Is it protecting them to spread fear and distrust?”
I stepped back, pulling my fist away from him. Yes, he steadied me. Focused me. But he also influenced me in other ways. And I couldn't have that. I had to remain impartial about this. I knew the game depended on it.
“The game,” I whispered.
“Oh, fuck this damn game!” the King snarled.
“You've already seen what happens when I don't play by his rules.” I waved toward the road. “If I don't report this, someone will die.”
“Then report it. To the Chief. Allowhimto decide what to do with the information.”
“I don't know if that will work.”
“It's the rules, isn't it? He's testing you to see if you will obey the law, even when it's difficult.”
“Yes. So, I should see justice done.”
“No, that's not the rules for a claw. You must report your findings to your superior officer and allow him to decide on the path to justice. You are not a tooth of my law, sitting in judgment in a court. You are a claw. Let the teeth judge. Let your chief decide what to put before them.Thatis your job, Claw Shinkai. Doing anything else would be an abuse of your power, wouldn't it?”
“Fuck.” I chewed at my lip and stared down at the body. “And what about you, Kun-lo? Are you satisfied? Is your spirit at peace?”
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw a sympathetic look come over the King's face. But then, to our mutual surprise, a soft breeze scented with flowers came through the trees and brushed our cheeks.
“Dear Gods,” the King whispered. “Was that . . .?”
