logs that matched the camera code, and cross-referenced the time code from the store's still frames. For a moment, he thumbed the controls, speeding people back and forth. And there was Mateo, coming out of the shop. A smug grin deformed the man's face. Miller froze the image and enhanced it. Havelock, watching over his shoulder, whistled low.
The split circle of the OPA was perfectly clear on the thug's armband - the same kind of armband he'd found in Julie Mao's hole.
What kind of company have you been keeping, kid? Miller thought. You're better than this. You have to know you're better than this.
"Hey, partner," he said aloud. "Think you can write up the report on that interview? I've got something I'd like to do. Might not be too smart to have you there. No offense."
Havelock's eyebrows crawled toward his hairline.
"You're going to question the OPA?"
"Shake some trees, is all," Miller said.
Miller would have thought that just being a security contractor in a known OPA-convivial bar would be enough to get him noticed. In the event, half the faces he recognized in the dim light of John Rock Gentlemen's Club were normal citizens. More than one of those were Star Helix, just like him, when they were on duty. The music was pure Belter, soft chimes accompanied by zither and guitar with lyrics in half a dozen languages. He was on his fourth beer, two hours past the end of his shift, and on the edge of giving up his plan as a losing scheme when a tall, thin man sat down at the bar next to him. Acne-pocked cheeks gave a sense of damage to a face that otherwise seemed on the verge of laughter. It wasn't the first OPA armband he'd seen that night, but it was worn with an air of defiance and authority. Miller nodded.
"I heard you've been asking about the OPA," the man said. "Interested in joining up?"
Miller smiled and lifted his glass, an intentionally noncommittal gesture.
"You who I'd talk to if I did?" he asked, his tone light.
"Might be able to help."
"Maybe you could tell me about a couple other things, then," he said, taking out his terminal and putting it on the fake bamboo bar with an audible click. Mateo Judd's picture glowed on the screen. The OPA man frowned, turning the screen to see it better.
"I'm a realist," Miller said. "When Chucky Snails was running protection, I wasn't above talking to his men. When the Hand took over and then the Golden Bough Society after them. My job isn't to stop people from bending the rules, it's to keep Ceres stable. You understand what I'm saying?"
"I can't say I do," the pock-marked man said. His accent made him sound more educated than Miller had expected. "Who is this man?"
"His name's Mateo Judd. He's been starting a protection business in sector eight. Says it's backed by the OPA."
"People say things, Detective. It is Detective, isn't it? But you were discussing realism."
"If the OPA's making a move on the Ceres black economy, it's going to be better all around if we can talk to each other. Communicate."
The man chuckled and pushed the terminal back. The bartender paced by, a question in his eyes that wasn't asking if they needed anything. It wasn't meant for Miller.
"I had heard that there was a certain level of corruption in Star Helix," the man said. "I admit I'm impressed by your straightforward manner. I'll clarify. The OPA isn't a criminal organization."
"Really? My mistake. I figured from the way it killed a lot of people... "
"You're baiting me. We defend ourselves against people who are perpetrating economic terrorism against the Belt. Earthers. Martians. We are in the business of protecting Belters," the man said. "Even you, Detective."
"Economic terrorism?" Miller said. "That seems a little overheated."
"You think so? The inner planets look on us as their labor force. They tax us. They direct what we do. They enforce their laws and ignore ours in the name of stability. In the last year, they've doubled the tariffs to Titania. Five thousand people on an ice ball orbiting Neptune, months from anywhere. The sun's just a bright star to them. Do you think they're in a position to get redress? They've blocked any Belter freighters from taking Europa contracts. They charge us twice as much to dock at Ganymede. The science station on Phoebe? We aren't even allowed to orbit it. There isn't a Belter in the place. Whatever they do there,