Free The Domino Pattern by Timothy Zahn

other Shorshians in the car?”
    “People react differently to infections and toxins all the time,” Kennrick said doggedly. “There are cases on record where a group of Humans have eaten the same salmonella-infested food. Some got sick, some died, some hardly even noticed. Why should Shorshic metabolism be any different?”
    I could almost feel sorry for the man, straining this desperately to find an explanation that didn’t include the word murder . But facts were facts, and the sooner we popped all the irrelevant soap bubbles, the sooner we could get down to the unpleasant business at hand. “Because this isn’t some random bug running up against a whole range of different immune systems,” I said. “For Bofiv to have swallowed that much cadmium, the stuff would have had to be raining down like volcanic ash. I guarantee someone at the table would have noticed that.”
    “You’re right, you’re right,” he said heavily. “What do we do?”
    “We let me get on with my investigation,” I said. “You said last night that you only met him a couple of months ago?”
    “Yes, when he and the contract team arrived on Earth,” he said, taking a final look at my reader and then handing it back to me. “Pellorian had invited them in to discuss a proposed joint venture in genetic manipulation.”
    “Were you the one who organized the conference?”
    “I handled the details once the plan was up and running,” he said. “But only after the initial contacts had been made and the invitations sent out and accepted. I didn’t choose any of the contract team, if that’s what you’re asking.”
    “Who did?”
    “The corporation’s CEO, Dr. Earl Messerly,” he said. “I imagine the board probably had some input, too.”
    “You have their names?”
    He eyed me as it I’d just turned a deep and fashionable purple. “Are you suggesting upstanding medical professionals would go to the trouble of bringing a couple of Shorshians all the way across the galaxy just to kill them?”
    “You know for certain that none of your upstanding medical professionals is harboring a grudge against the Shorshians?” I countered.
    He snorted. “You must be kidding,” he said. “I’ve been to full board meetings maybe three times in the seven years I’ve been with the company. I barely know their names.”
    “In other words, you can’t vouch for any of them.” I keyed my reader for input. “So. Their names?”
    Glaring at me, he ran through the list. There were twelve of them, plus CEO Messerly. I keyed in the names as he went, knowing full well that Kennrick was probably right about this being a waste of time.
    Still, I had a few Who’s Who lists among my data chips, both the straightforward cultural ones and a rather more private set that had been assembled by the Confederation’s various law enforcement agencies. Running a check of Pellorian’s people against the latter might prove interesting.
    But regardless of what the comparison turned up, Pellorian’s board was back on Earth, and we were here. “Thank you,” I said when Kennrick had finished. “Next question: did either Colix or Bofiv bring aboard any of their own food? Special treats or secret indulgences?”
    “You’ll have to ask Master Tririn about that,” Kennrick said. “He was the one sitting with them.”
    “He was the one sitting with one of them, anyway,” I said. “I trust he’s well this morning?”
    “I actually haven’t checked,” Kennrick said. “You want me to go ask him if Master Bofiv had a private food supply?”
    “Not until we can both be there,” I said. “Can you go off and amuse yourself while I shower and get dressed?”
    He made a face. “It doesn’t qualify as amusement, but I do need to give Usantra Givvrac an update. He’s the head of the contract team.”
    “At least you shouldn’t have any trouble waking him up at this hour,” I said. “Unless he’s been dipping into Bofiv’s secret stash, of