Page 201 - The Perpetrations of Captain Kaga

Investigating the Mystery of the Talking Plant
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of tape for his partner. Fortunately, he could not and we found the
residue on the panel.”
“Now let me see if I can deduce this the way you did,” said Lugo.
“Someone with PKU or staff ID came into the control room,
probably well before midnight, and marked the spot. Then another
such person came in again while Miss Woswoot was off with Farnitt
and turned the fatal knob.”
“Wrong” said Kaga. “First of all, that second official person would
not need to have the spot marked; and second, he could not risk going
past the reception desk, the only way to get to the control room from
the other wings. No, the actual murderer has to be one of the
emissaries.”
“Oh, no,” said Lugo. “That’s not possible: none of them can open
the door to the control room.”
“But anyone can close the door. What happens if you touch the
identity sensor but don’t enter the room?”
“I suppose the door just stays open,” said Lugo lamely.
“That’s right, until someone goes in and out again. That’s how it
must have been done. The first person placed the tape marker and
went out; then he opened the door again before departing. There is
one door not easily seen from the corridor, and nobody would notice
that it wasn’t closed after all the excitement of the opening. Anyway,
the first person then left the alien quarters and had his alibi all sewn
up. Later, when everyone else had retired, the second individual came
out of its habitat, snuck into the open control room, turned the gravity
knob up to full force for a few minutes, then reset it, removed the
tape, and left the room, the door closing automatically behind.”
“But how can you determine which alien it was? The only one who
couldn’t have done it is Dr. Too-Rasoo, since he was under pressure
from midnight to 0600. None of the others can prove they were in
their chambers at 0200.”
“What you just said is only partially correct. What I had to do, after
interviewing all the suspects, was research any connections between
the aliens and the Center personnel. And I did find one. It seems
that— hush! What’s that noise? Let’s get back out of sight!”
They flattened themselves behind the ersatz Tzigian tree just in
time. The outer door opened and closed, and they heard the
atmosphere lock being activated. After a few moments, the warning

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