Detective Zander blinked and his eyes were still adjusting when the Kohask pushed him out into the front lobby.

  "Come back in forty five minutes." The door closed.

  Forty five minutes. He had forty five minutes to case the scene. He returned to the gunk watching the elevator and asked, "Where's Mochi's tank at?"

  The gunk grunted and shrugged a shoulder general towards the central staircase.

  "Up here. Nevermind I'll find it myself. Please let your boss know I arrived." Zander walked past the dog food bowls and up the steps. He stopped and looked back at the small bowls. He continued up the steps and waved towards the left wall, then towards the right wall. The lights turned on. The top floor of the station was a bedroom loft. The ceiling was six feet thick glass. The stars beyond blurred and lost their edge becoming circles of light. Not like the stars Zander saw from planets or in the rocket ships. But this station existed in a realm of asteroids and larger threats, along with the occasional bandit. Having any view of space was a luxury few had. Zander prefered the video feed, damn that status symbol the window was.

  The bed was the central point of the room, it made a full circle shape with a pair of nightstands positioned on opposite ends. One had a picture, knocked on its side. An impression only the large width of a Hoshaness could make had disturbed the covers. Zander set the picture back up and stepped over a large puddle at the floor. Tears? The picture was of Mochi with quills extended and a spiky tentacle reaching from the fish tank. The photographer had done such a bad job with the image that two glasses of wine were visible in the reflection of Mochi's tank. One of the wine glasses was tipped over, spreading a puddle of wine over a table looking much like the night stands. Detective Zander searched the room for a tank.

  Walking from a side room alerted Detective Zander of another occupent he turned to face Johnny.

  "I told that gunk receptionist I didn't want to be disturbed. This is embarrising. Detective Zander you caught me in a moment here." Johnny wiped tears away from his blood shot eyes. "I'm crying my heart out. Glad to see you here. Did the tailor see to you yet. God I hope you dress better than this. I forgot to tell you the wedding has been moved up. It's tonight."

  "In Forty five minutes? You want me to solve the case in forty five minutes?"

  "Oh that would snazzy me up for sure. Just keep to that schedule the tailor is very firm about schedules. I swear I'll can the lot of gunks and send them back to asteroid mining and hire more Kohask for security, damn politics and image."

  "I'd imagine having a werewolf greeting people would be off putting." Detective Zander looked around the room. "I'm not here to discuss your hiring practices but to solve a case. You're tank has been moved. How am I going to properly inspect the scene if the evidence has been destroyed."

  "Huh, Oh yeah. I loved having Mochi in here. But no I haven't been in his room since he went missing." Johnny took a heavy step towards a closed door. "My office space. I haven't been in there for a week. I had to have my assistants bring my work to me. I had a makeshift office setup but gave that over to the tailer. Mochi's..." Johnny sucked back a sob. "Mochi's tank is in there. Left as it has been.

  Detective Zander walked into the office and stepped around the desk. He considered snooping for evidence of Johnny's corruption but settled on the task at hand. The minutes were quickly ticking away. He found the tank, overflowing with snails. Along with a half dozen rat traps hidden on the lower shelfs of the book cases. The most curious part was one case had a living rat pacing its small enclosure. The tank lid easily pushed open.

  "Could I see the other rooms?"

  "Knock yourself out Detective. Don't be late." Johnny headed down the stairs. "I'm taking my own advice. I can't be late for my own wedding. My wife will never forgive me."

  The bathroom had signs of cages behind the sinks and broom stick with marks. Zander picked up a quill that could only be Mochis. He looked around the room and settled his sights on the toilet. Could it be that simple? Zander rushed down the stairs and to the gunk.

  He started to say something but walked away as the gunk stared at him. Zander did not have the time to handle the literalness that a gunk demanded. He picked up the phone and old fashioned human device with gold and pearl decoration. "I'm going to make a call."

  "Hello service department. I'd like to know where Johnny Jesse James's sewer line is. Huhh, Uh Huh. Yes. I am authorized to know. I'm calling from his phone. You can check that. No. Look here, answer the question and tell me where a service entrance is. Yes it's an emergency. I'm on the clock. Thank you." Zander scratched a hallway designation and code on hallway. "Look here, gunk. I'm heading to get the boss's pet and will return."

  Zander stepped on the elevator, hit the access panel and punched in a service code. Who knew the station had service floors. Three floors down was the utility floor for the entire top half of the station including the line from the penthouse. Zander ran down the hallway and opened the hatched and walked across the bones of rats to a plump looking Mochi which waved its tentacles at him. "Please don't be poisonous. Atl east your full."

  This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version.

  Zander's watch ticked to eight-forty-three. "I got time. Let's go. Who flushed you down here?" He picked up the squid and yelled in pain as the creature extended its quills into his skin. Zander dropped to the floor and squinted. "That's my heart racing isn't it." He took quick breaths. "I told you not to be poisonous." Zander picked himself up and ran for the elevator. He didn't need to worry about holding Mochi. Mochi was firmly attached. He punched the top floor but the elevator stopped at the restaurant floor. Zander leaned on the panel and kept pushing the top floor. Diner's screamed, glasses shattered. The check in stand tipped over as the receptionist flashed a green card on the system and closed the elevator.

  Zander stumbled out of the elevator and towards the closed doorway that held the Kohask. "I'm here. I'm on time. Found the pet. I got Mochi. I think my face is numb." Zander collapsed to the floor. "I think I'm going to sit here for a moment." Mochi detached and flailed on the tile when Detective Zander passed out. He came to when his watch chimed that nine sharp. Zander wrapped Mochi into a table cloth. The gold and pearl phone did not stay as he'd attempted the table cloth and wine glass trick. "Magic was never my strong suit Mochi. It's a phone and fifteen minutes. Not worth killing someone over right." He walked into the room and bumped into a tuxedo hanging by the door. No Kohask waited.

  Zander opened the other doorway and entered into the wedding proper. Johnny was at the podium with Jessica June. Johhny was missing a space for an extra groomsmen. Sandra was one of Jessica's bridesmaids. Detective Zander held up the table cloth and started unwrapping it.

  Guests on both sides of the aisle complained about his smell. Johnny shouted in Joy. Jessica glared at him. "I found him. I found him."

  Johnny said, "Everyone. Everyone. This is the happiest day of my life." He took a knee. "Jessica, Will you marry me in fifteen minutes? A mulligan if you will."

  She nodded and glowed under her cheeks at Johnny then glared at Zander.

  Johnny walked over and took Mochi from Detective Zander. “Did you … You smell. Take the suit the tailor made up for you and use my shower. Chop chop. Johnny’s getting married in fifteen. Full show from the top.”

  Detective Zander grabbed the suit, cleaned up and was still adjusting his tie as we walked back into the wedding room with a full minute to spare. He joined the other groomsmen staring across at Sandra who had a blue scarf around her neck and blue ribbons in her hair.

  The wedding went in a blur and Johnny stopped in to chat up with his groomsmen. “Detective Zander. I’m glad you made it as my last stand as groomsmen. That made my mother very happy. Even numbers on the left and right you see. Tell me about Mochi.”

  “Yes. Well not much to say. Your pet found his way down a sewer pipe. You might want to make sure his room is better secured. I’d recommend a camera and a biometric lock. Also consider feeding him some rats. Mochi seems to have a soft spot for them.”

  Sandra interrupted as the music played for kore dancing.

  The Kohask wrapped her arms around him. “Detective. A pleasure meeting you again.”

  “How exactly did you end up here?”

  “I flew a ship of course. And I didn’t crawl up the sewer line.”

  “I didn’t climb up through the sewer.”

  “Smells like. I’m not as literal as a gunk you know. I’m aware that you mean why am I a stand in for Johnny’s wedding. My brother is a tailor. And Jessica had concerns one of her bridesmaids wouldn’t attend. I was recruited for the role of bridesmaid. Something about Johnny’s mother wanted symmetry.” She twirled Zander around.

  “You were supposed to twirl.”

  “Don’t be silly. You couldn’t reach high enough.” She twirled him again and dipped him.

  “You do smell like a sewer.”

  “I showered.”

  Sandra sniffed the air and then Detective Zanders chest. “You missed a few spots. I could help you.”

  “I don’t need help showering. I didn’t know Kohasks wore clothing, beyond practical things like spacesuits.”

  “I’m wearing clothes. She flipped the scarf around. In fairness this was a dress before I ripped up a good portion of it. But that’s because I don’t like blue. Red is my color.”

  The dance was coming up for another twirl. Detective Zander put his feet down, stretched his arm up high and stood on his toes.

  Sandra squeezed beneath his arm and bent her knees deeply to make it work then spun around. “You proved your point. I also smell skowjam poison on you. Very deadly stuff. If the initial reaction doesn’t cause a heart attack the slower acting dose gets you.”

  Detective Zanders' eyes fluttered.

  “There it is. I should take you home. You’re going to have a very bad headache tomorrow.”