“Make sure that Remlak Gonshar remains in custody, release the others,” said the Inquisitor.

“But …”

“But, nothing Proctor Paramedes, the murderer is Remlak Gonshar.. This was obvious almost as soon as I got here, and your information helped my confirm my suspicions Proctor. Let us look at the evidence. Citizen Vareen was alive when she shut the door After Remlak and Turman left. Only one person entered the room after that time. Citizen Vareen had to be in the room, and alive to let that man in.”

“But…” Inquisitor Brake silenced the Proctor with a glance.

“Citizen Gonshar knew about the death of his wife. Who told him? Only the murderer knew that she was dead.” This time the Inquisitor silenced even the thought of an interruption with a glare. “There are many more effective ways of committing suicide than by stabbing oneself with a table knife in the middle of a crowd of people in the heart of the headquarters of the Inquisition. He could easily have hung himself, thrown himself down a staircase or cut his throat rather than his side. No, his suicide attempt was faked.”

“This means that the Toscanoni entering Citizen Vareen’s room was Remlak in disguise. Citizen Toscanoni was the only person he could easily disguise himself as and who had reason to be in this Common and who Citizen Vareen would let into the room. The boy here is too tall and thin, and he is in the Common with Citizen Gemdar. His brother, Kurman is both too short and too rotund, his cousin is to tall and too broad.”

”With a girdle, a robe and some leather polish he could color his white hair to black, color his scalp and paint tattoos on his face which would pass at a distance. He then knocked on the door, telling his wife that he had forgotten something. She let him in and he strangled her with the belt he had borrowed from his brother.. He then left and went to a Lavatorium and washed his disguise off.”

“When we question Citizen Toscanoni it will turn out that he was waiting somewhere quiet where Citizen Gonshar had asked to meet him. Citizen Gonshar never showed up and he had to hurry on to his appointment in the solarium. I have no doubt that Citizen Gonshar will confess when he is Examined, and the only witness we will need is Citizen Toscanoni.”

Without any additional command Scriptor Karpus had made note as to the Questions to be put to Citizen Toscanoni while he was being Examined on the cult matter.

“As to the reason for the murder,” Inquisitor Brake paused briefly, “I suspect that his wife had testimony that damned his brother Attavan or implicated Citizen Gonshar, or perhaps both. We will find the Truth and the Guilty shall be Corrected”

They all faced the shrine and intoned the prayer of Truth and Salvation, some with considerably more enthusiasm than others.