Rising Suspicions

Writers: Cymiri, Miriah
Date Posted: 14th May 2014

Characters: Daimhin, Karhal
Description: Daimhin and his Captain have a heart to heart
Location: Amber Hills Hold
Date: month 6, day 24 of Turn 7
Notes: Mentioned: Loella, Corran, Chupsin, Makarl, Crolarin, Lantriv [ONPC],
Petriv [ONPC], Benani

Karhal

Daimhin had not been able to face the infirmary. Add the
halfway-guilty discomfort of Chupsin's presence to his incapability to
deal with the sight of a man he so admired incapacitated so wickedly-
and with no result to report on that end either- he'd found endless
reason to avoid doing what he desperately wanted to do.

But when word had reached him that Loella had harangued her husband
into mobility, it seemed the perfect time to seek him out. "Karhal? Sir"

His hair was still faintly deranged- mainly from stress-fueled
yanking- but he wasn't standing on form today. He was here to see a
friend.

Karhal sat in his chair, feeling completely useless and gritted his
teeth at the feeling. He wanted to be up and moving around, but he had
not recuperated well enough yet. Strength would come gradually, they
had said. He wanted to throttle the healers. He wanted his old
strength back now. There were things to do, a Lady to find...more
important than him sitting on his rump in his home. It didn't matter
that his eyes were still shadowed and his face pale, or that he could
scarcely stand for more than a few minutes. He kept pushing himself,
but it didn't seem to be helping. His body simply wanted to sleep.

The sound at the door perked him up. "Daimhin? Come in, sweet Faranth,
save me from the boredom."

"I'm not so sure I'm capable of that one, Captain."
And the weariness did show in his eyes and the lines under them, but
Karhal's perky reply had done a lot to brighten Daimhin's face.
"I see Loella has you well in hand."

Karhal arched a brow and drummed his fingers against the arm of his
chair. "Thanks." His tone was dry as he looked Daimhin over. "You've
looked better." He frowned. "What's the news?"

"Sweet bollicking Faranth all. I'm not convinced we're even looking in
the right places, to be honest, but I suppose it's got to be done."
His eyes flickered over the man. "How are you really?"

Though weakened physically, Karhal's mind kicked into gear. "Well,
with the weather, I don't think whoever's taken Lady Benani could have
gone far. He'd have had to have some place to take her." Frustrated,
he rubbed his brow. "Honestly, I'm weaker than what I'd like. I want
to be out there searching...doing something and we don't have the
canines fully trained for search yet. Except for Livie and she won't
search without me."

Daimhin sighed quietly.

"I agree, sir. And I'd have every hill in this hold scoured by now if
the sharding snow would feck off. I've had men out, but there's not
much even the best herder trackers can do in the face of a blizzard.
Corran, Lantriv, Petriv...they're good men. They're not lying when
they say they can't do it."

He scrubbed his face, and was amazed at the frustrated words that
suddenly poured out.

"But sir, I believe- I truly, deeply believe- that whoever took her
has a craft connection.Now, maybe it's just someone who swiped a pair
of knots, or maybe that poor fool was just in the wrong place at the
wrong time, but I refuse to believe the Lady so stupid as to go
wondering off with some unknown person. You'd as much sell me that
they were wearing a bag over their head saying 'bad guy' at the time.
We've no evidence of a struggle and no evidence that she was coerced
to a clandestine locality. From all we've managed to gather from the
investigation, she walked out calmly and then was taken. The only
solid clue we have is that the lady was last seen with a crafter- one
person says harper. It's either that, or it's a guard that did it and
by Faranth if it's one of us then you can hang me along with them
because I don't believe it. And I *checked*.

But there's not a man or woman in this Hold who'll hear me when I say
all this, because it would mean one of us- someone they know- and they
don't want to hear it. They've convinced themselves this is some
black-eyed bogie from a harper's story who somehow managed to swipe
the Lady in a full room without her screaming once because it's more
comfortable to think like that, and it's doing endless harm."

He squeezed his eyes shut. Maybe he was tireder then he thought,
because he'd firmly intended to say nothing of any of that for fear of
Loella scalping him.

"I believe you." Karhal rubbed his chin. "The only other possibility
is that she just left of her own free will. I highly doubt it, but we
do have to consider it as well." He looked up at Daimhin and gestured
to the chair near him. "Sit down, man, before you fall over. There's
klah on the counter. Loella left it warm after I had my fill." His
brow knit in thought. "People aren't going to want to believe it was
someone in the hold." A thought came to him. "Daimhin...there were
reports of items missing from Benani's belongings. Little things, and
then letters. I thought it was perhaps one of her maids but..." His
eyes narrowed in thought. "..there's a connection there. I know it in
my gut. And then the poisoning as a distraction. I think this was
planned out well in advance by someone intelligent, who knew the Hold
well but could blend in. You say it was a crafter. Does anyone stand
out to you?"

"The Lady did not leave of her own will, because she would not poison
you to do so." Daihmin said it very simply, but there was a bedrock of
confidence under it. "Anyone who can do that has wickedly evil intentions,
and no matter what, I do not believe she would do that. People can be driven to
flight, but evil- that is something else." To the rest he nodded curtly.
Only then did he sink into a chair as commanded.

"Anyone who has been here a time, who knows this Hold- there's no
point in looking at the traveling crafters. But that's most of them-
Makarl..." He winced involuntarily, hurriedly trying to keep if off his face.
"... Crolarin shards, even Chupsin falls in that category...."
He trailed off for a long minute, wondering if he dare say what had
been niggling at him since the incident. When he did speak, it was
very soft. "Crolarin came back in from the ranges the next day, you know."

"I doubt it was Chupsin. I don't think the man has enough passion in
him to do something so drastic." Karhal leaned back in his chair and
frowned. "Crolarin? The Harper? Well, he had been planning on leaving
and the weather could have kept him from it, but still...it's a very
close coincidence. Perhaps too much of one." He drummed his fingers
over the arm of his chair. "Is he still here?"

He snorted softly at the opinion of his estranged friend. Karhal had
patently not seen him after the death of his wife. All the same, he'd
been staring directly at the man for most of the proceedings, he was
happy in himself that it wasn't Chupsin- about the only man besides
Karhal he really would discount.

"He comes and goes, sir. Looking. Searching like the rest of this hold
right now. Though how the shards and dust he's managing to stay out
there in this I don't know. I... I had someone attempt to follow him,
sir, only to be told in absolutely no uncertain terms that the honour
of certain people are above question. I...dislike that idea."

Karhal's eyes narrowed and his lips thinned. "No one's honor is above
question. The next time he leaves, search his rooms under my
authority. The coming and going is too suspicious by half."

Daimhin's eyes squeezed shut in relief. To have finally shared the
worst of his suspicions was relief enough, but to have them taken
seriously- finally- was like the lifting of a weight. "Thank you, sir."

"And get some rest, Daimhin. You'll be no good to anyone without it."
Karhal's gaze was unwavering. "We need you to be fully rested and
alert."

"I'll rest when I have results, sir." But despite the serious conversation,
one impish smile did manage to flash across his face. "I don't have a lady
to nail me to the bedsheets, like yourself."

Karhal quirked a brow upwards. "She hasn't resorted to nails just yet.
It might be best if you didn't give her any ideas." His frown
returned. "Don't make me order you to rest, Daimhin. Eight candlemarks
of sleep. If you aren't rested, you can miss something. I need you at
your best, Daimhin."

"Yes, sir. Just so long as you promise to do the same, sir."
Daimhin twitched his own eyebrow back at his friend.

Last updated on the May 25th 2014

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Rising Suspicions