PREVIOUS: 013: Meet the Mayor
General Store
When the travelers arrive at the general store, little seems to have been disturbed since Lucya was last here. Not that Jagal could tell, but with Lucya and Veren blocking either face of the doorway right now, he can't see much anyway.
VEREN: "Ah, you're back, Ms. Lucya. Can I help you?"
LUCYA: "Hello Veren...! We've got permission tae look at the crime scene now..."
Lucya pulls out Adda's note from her bag.
Veren looks over the note, vaguely surprised. Maybe. He doesn't seem much more expressive than his mother.
VEREN: "So I see. Do come in, then. I apologize for making you run around first..."
Veren backs away from the door, turning to look towards the ramshackle crime scene barrier.
đ˛ Jagal rolls Secure An Advantage to sneak into the store without Veren noticing. It's a weak hit, so the benefit is mostly just Jagal's own entertainment.
Jagal suspects he may not have been noticed yet and doesn't see any reason not to keep it that way. He slips in behind Lucya without a word. There are plenty of shelves and crates around, so he nabs a casual hiding spot while Veren's head is turned.
LUCYA: "Nay it's alright, I understand..."
Lucya enters the store and reaches to move the barrier, looking around for...
LUCYA: "Jagal!!!"
VEREN: (nodding as she reaches) "Aye, it's easiest t'just pull..." (trailing off) "...'Jagal'?"
Jagal is hard-pressed not to put his face in his hands. He's remembering now why he was so ready to run off on her before she started talking payment...
LUCYA: "Aye he's s'posed t'be helpin' me but I guess he's ran off again... Leavin' a wee lass like me tae investigate a murder..." (grumble grumble)
It doesn't seem to occur to her to look for a hiding spot in the store itself. She just starts pacing around the fallen shelf and the outline of a body drawn on the floor in charcoal.
Jagal laughs silently.
đ˛ Lucya Gathers Information, and gets a weak hit. The oracle gives us "Problem," "Challenge," and "Seek a truth." Very helpful input when playing a MURDER MYSTERY. Eventually we just decide that there's some forged evidence present at the scene that appears to implicate Togan.
Veren nods slowly, glancing at the front door and the window before letting that be for now.
VEREN: (with increasing awkwardness) "Well, I'm... here, at least?"
LUCYA: "That ye are...?"
Lucya catches a glimpse of something brown, and kneels down to get a closer look.
LUCYA: "Auh... yer pa's clothes, were they torn at all?"
Veren shakes his head.
VEREN: "I dinnae believe so."
LUCYA: "Then this is...!"
đ˛ Amelia does a quick Wits roll to decide how Lucya reacts to the situation. Weak hit.
She starts to reach for the fabric, but doesn't quite touch it yet.
LUCYA: "Auh... Can I take it? Or... But something seems strange..."
VEREN: "Strange...?" (seeming a bit distracted) "That oughtae be all right? I dinnae see why not."
LUCYA: "Humm, alright..."
Lucya deliberates for a moment.
LUCYA: "I'll wait fer the wee man tae come back afore I mess with anything... What kind a things are usually on this shelf?"
JAGAL: "Aw, well isn't that nice of you."
LUCYA: "AUHH!!!"
JAGAL: (stepping out from behind a crate)"Liiike clockwork."
VEREN: "Wh... C... Can I help you??"
LUCYA: "Auh-- H-he's with me! He just likes tae be sneeky... Jagal, this is Veren..."
JAGAL: (with a little bow) "Pleasure to meet you."
VEREN: "Er... Likewise..."
Veren nods belatedly and takes a step back, presumably to let/lure Jagal closer.
VEREN: "I... You'd asked a question, aye, Ms. Lucya?"
LUCYA: "Er, I was wondering about what's usually stocked on this shelf?"
VEREN: "Ayeâright. We keep smaller farming tools here, mostly."
Lucya winces. Suddenly she's looking forward even less to inspecting the body. Jagal steps over to peer at the back of the shelf.
LUCYA: "I-I see..." (to Jagal) "Auh, did ye find somethin'?"
đ˛ Jagal rolls Gather Information this time, and gets a weak hit.
JAGAL: (gesturing at some small metal fixtures along the back of the shelf) "These supposed to keep it anchored to the wall or something?"
VEREN: "Aye." (frowning) "I suppose there's only so much force they can take, but..."
JAGAL: "But they're usually pretty stable?"
Veren nods.
JAGAL: "Hmm."
Jagal locates a similar shelf farther from the immediate crime scene and... starts climbing up the front of it.
LUCYA: "Wauhh--"
Lucya hops to her feet and runs to catch the shelf, but it doesn't budge.
Veren isn't in such a rush, but he doesn't look happy, either.
VEREN: "Please dinnae do that, sir."
JAGAL: "Nah, it's fine. I'm almost done."
Jagal reaches the top. He shifts as much of his weight as possible towards the front of the shelf, but the anchors keep it steady when it almost threatens to slightly shudder.
LUCYA: "Eh...?"
Now that she sees what he's trying to do, she just watches bemusedly and waits to catch him or the shelf, whichever falls first.
Jagal just keeps leaning farther and farther until he reaches the point of no return, but the shelf stays put. He's not exactly aiming to fall into Lucya's arms, but there's not a lot of maneuvering space when he's not jumping outright.
Lucya catches him and sets him down on his feet without comment.
LUCYA: "Aye, those are pretty sturdy! I could probably take one down, but Togan...?"
She says this completely matter-of-factly. Neither of the guys seems to doubt her on that.
JAGAL: (simply not acknowledging that she caught him) "Well, it did come down somehow."
LUCYA: "Aye, it's strange... I assume ye keep 'em in good shape, aye, Veren?"
VEREN: (frowning in thought) "I cannae say we check the brackets on the regular, but we dinnae treat the shelves roughly, at least."
LUCYA: "Alright... Can I ask about one more thing?"
VEREN: "Of course."
Lucya moves to the counter.
LUCYA: "Ms. Adda showed me a copy a the store register, and I was wonderin' if ye could tell me a lil more about the last few entries..."
Veren follows her over, but not without casting glances back at Jagal.
Jagal assumes he's not going to be of much use in this conversation and tries to decide if he should steal something over here just for the heck of it.
VEREN: "I wasnae here for Mr. Togan's purchase, I'm afraid..."
Lucya nods and looks over the register for Baerli's entry, but something else catches her eye.
LUCYA: "Aye, that wasn't what I... Eh? Whose handwriting is this?"
She points to Togan's entry. At least on the most current page, it's different from the rest of the purchases.
VEREN: (peering over) "Ah, that's me mother's."
LUCYA: "B-but I thought she wasn't there!"
Veren blinks, not seeming sure what she's getting after.
VEREN: "She was near enough t'see Mr. Togan leaving with his purchase."
LUCYA: "Aye, but...!"
LUCYA: "Well, I shouldnae make a judgement yet, I s'pose. Nay, I wanted tae ask about this man... Mr. Baerli? When was he here?"
Veren watches her for a second but drops his gaze back to the register.
VEREN: "He was already waiting outside when we opened the store that morning. Bought his things and left without much fuss."
LUCYA: "I see... He mustae bought quite a lot, eh? And then Brajan, he was here at the usual time?"
VEREN: "Aye, to both."
LUCYA: "Alright... Thank ye fer yer help, Veren. And I'm sorry fer yer loss..."
Lucya bows her head solemnly, then looks around for the sneaky wee man.
VEREN: (dipping his head) "Dinnae mention it. Thank you for your kindness."
The sneaky wee man is currently ambling through the aisles aimlessly. Definitely not casually distancing himself from a shelf that is newly missing an item.
Lucya squints at him, but decides against bickering with her investigative partner in front of the victim's son.
LUCYA: "Are ye ready tae go, Jagal?"
Jagal raises an eyebrow at the squint but likewise doesn't comment. He just gives Veren a brief, unenthusiastic wave that's a bit hard to see well from here.
JAGAL: "Yep."
Before they leave, Lucya stoops down once more to pick up the scrap of cloth, motioning for Jagal to take a look at the scene before she touches anything.
LUCYA: (quietly) "See, right here, doesn't it seem strange...?"
Jagal squats for a better look at the scrap but doesn't seem to piece together what she's on about.
JAGAL: "Not as strange as some of this, but yeah."
LUCYA: "Hummm..."
Lucya picks up the cloth and makes her way out of the store, briefly glancing over her shoulder at Veren.
Veren doesn't have the same piercing gaze as his mother, but it's still a little unsettling as he watches them carefully.
Jagal figures the guy should've been watching him carefully a little sooner than this, but hey, Veren's loss.
Once they leave the store, Lucya speaks up a little more. She looks more closely at the scrap of fabric in the sunlight.
LUCYA: "Aye, I dinnae know what it all means yet, but...! See, I'm nae investigator, but I saw this straight away when I looked round the shelf. And it looks the same color as what Togan's usually wearin'... That's mighty dire, aye?"
LUCYA: "So why didn't Ms. Keela or Ms. Adda say anything about it? Eh?"
She wiggles the fabric at him, looking for validation.
JAGAL: "Well. The wife didn't seem like one to say more than absolutely necessary, aaand I don't exactly know the other one well enough to say there."
LUCYA: "Aye, but if she wants me tae think he did it so bad, isn't this just the kindae proof she'd want? And Ms. Adda-- she's the one with the glasses-- she's in charge a the investigation, she wouldnae miss such a thing..."
JAGAL: âSureâŚâ
Jagal isn't much for taking people's word on things, but he doesnât have a lot of options on that.
JAGAL: âAhh, okay. If youâre trying to say it was planted after they looked, then your optionsâd beâŚâ (counting them off) âOne, the culp got in and out without anybody noticingâwould mesh with the thing about only Togan being seen leaving, if itâs the same person. Two, culp got in and out with permission and planted the piece while somebody was turned the other wayâin which case, Iâm guessing whatâs-her-nameâd know the list, if everybody needs a note from her. Three, it was some kinda inside job, or at least somebody that that guy wouldnât think twice about letting in with or without special permission.â
JAGAL: (crossing arms with a shrug) âIâd say a fourth, but he seems like he wouldnât be that easy to threaten for something Iâd assume heâs personally invested in. Strike some kinda deal, maybe, but that depends on knowing the guy pretty well if youâre gonna take that kinda risk, so itâd basically still line up with. Uh.â (looks down at his fingers for a second to remember how he numbered them) âThree. Suspect-wise. Either way, not a great idea to leave him completely unsupervised so he can subtly clue in whoever he wants.â
Lucya blinks.
LUCYA: "...W-well, I didnae want t'say without bein' sure, but-- aye, that's plenty a reason not tae take it at face value! We should tell Ms. Adda... but..."
She examines the cloth one more time, then tucks it away neatly into her bag.
LUCYA: "Ms. Keela shouldae been the first t'see what happened, aye? So we ought not tae let on what we know, not 'til we hear everything she's got tae say...! And then we can tell Ms. Adda, and depending on who knows what, that narrows it down!"
She looks rather proud of herself.
Jagal watches her pocket the evidence with a nod of approval.
JAGAL: "Had me worried there for a second, but maybe you got some kinda head on those shoulders after all, huh? Best to play close to your chest long as you can with these things."
JAGAL: "We hunting Keela down next, then? Think she's still standing menacingly outside the village square?" (glancing over his shoulder at the store) "Could stand to double-check points of entry at some point, too..."
LUCYA: "Why, I think that's the first nice thing ye've said about me!~"
It's short-lived, but her smile is bright and genuine.
LUCYA: "Aye, and their house is just back here. Hopefully she'll let us look at the body..."
She trails off as she remembers what Veren said about farming implements on the shelf.
LUCYA: "...L-let's check the points a entry first."
Jagal snorts at this silly little girl and her silly little smile.
JAGAL: "Careful now, I did say 'maybe'."
JAGAL: (apparently just as amused by her hesitation) "I can handle the corpse by myself if you're not up to it, princess. You can just chat it up with the alive one."
JAGAL: "Or we can go ahead here, sure. Figured I'd come back later anyway, though. Stake things out, see if anybody tries to sneak back for anything under cover of night."
She cocks her head a little, but simply ignores the condescension.
LUCYA: "Well... Nay, yer right, let's go find Ms. Keela. We oughtae get that part over with while there's still daylight..."
Keela's House
Keela's house isn't a far walk, but sunset looms close. It's quiet out here, with only the flickering of a hearth and a faint smell of bread to betray that anyone is home at all.
Lucya takes the lead, knocking on the door quietly. Jagal remains safely behind her.
After a pause, the door opens about halfway. Keela stands inexpressive as usual, though she does seem somehow tired. A little flour still clings to her apron and around the edges of her fingers.
KEELA: "Can I help you."
LUCYA: "Auh, pardon me, Ms. Keela... We can come back later if yer in the middle of a meal."
KEELA: (glancing past Lucya briefly at the "we") "Waiting for it to bake. There's time if you have something to say."
LUCYA: "My friend Jagal, he would like tae, er, inspect the body... And me, I would like tae hear a what ye saw, everything ye can tell me."
LUCYA: "Togan may be a dear friend a mine, but the truth a what happened is more important, aye? If it really all points tae him..."
JAGAL: (nodding) "I've worked with mortuary folk before. I know how to handle this respectfully."
KEELA: "..............."
Keela watches them a while but nods and steps back.
KEELA: "Please come in."
Keela's home is modestly sized but well-furnished. Cool shadows pool in the recesses the fire doesn't reach, and the quiet presses in, but otherwise it's quite welcoming. She gestures to a couch, for Lucya at least.
Lucya bobs her head gratefully and steps inside. She sits down on the couch and watches Jagal and Keela. Jagal follows her in, shutting the door silently behind him.
KEELA: ".........."
KEELA: "...He's on the bed. That hallway." (gestures, then shuts her eye for a second) "...If you need assistance for the dorsal aspect, call for me."
Jagal nods as if he has the slightest clue what "dorsal" means.
KEELA: (turning to Lucya) "And you vouch for him? I can trust him alone in there?"
LUCYA: "...He won't tamper with the body. B-but if ye'd rather talk within line a sight, I understand!"
Lucya starts to get up from the couch. Jagal coughs into a fist, trying extremely hard not to laugh.
KEELA: "...I see."
Keela takes a few steps over. It's not like she was planning on sitting, anyway.
KEELA: (to Jagal) "Go ahead. Watch the freezing charm."
KEELA: "...Try anything, and you will be dealt with."
JAGAL: (still clearing his throat) "Got it."
Jagal vanishes away down the hall.
Lucya walks over to Keela's side. One glance in the room is all she needs to know she'd be no use in there-- she grimaces and turns back to the widow.
LUCYA: "S-so, I guess, starting from the beginning... Were ye in the store when it opened that day? Did ye notice anything strange?"
KEELA: "I was in the back. Nothing seemed strange."
LUCYA: "So ye dinnae see who goes in and out a there, usually?"
KEELA: "Not the customers. Not from there."
LUCYA: (nods) "And I s'pose it was just yer family in the back. So nothing seemed wrong, until...?"
KEELA: "Yes. I was restocking the firewood display when I heard the thud. Togan fled past me then."
LUCYA: "Aye, so ye went inside then and saw... What did ye do next?"
KEELA: "...Didn't see at first. Assumed a certain display fell. Went straight towards it."
KEELA: "Saw the unfinished register and payment. Took care of that. Only then."
Keela goes quiet for a bit.
Jagal can faintly be heard muttering to himself back there. Lucya folds her hands solemnly, not wishing to interrupt the moment of silence.
KEELA: "Should have known already... But I fetched Veren. Got the shelf off, enough to check. Left once I was able."
LUCYA: "I see... I'm sorry tae make ye go through all this again."
LUCYA: "Were ye there when... I s'pose it wouldae been Ms. Adda, when she looked o'er the scene?"
Keela just nods at the apology.
KEELA: "Yes."
LUCYA: "And everything looked as it did when ye left?"
KEELA: "Veren hadn't left since we found him."
LUCYA: "So we've his word tae take fer it?"
Keela watches Lucya for a few moments.
KEELA: "Yes."
LUCYA: "Alright..."
Lucya pauses to gather her thoughts.
LUCYA: "I will be frank with ye, ma'am. I've talked tae Ms. Adda, and I've seen the place where it happened, and I think there's more tae this than meets the eye. But that is t'be settled in a jury tomorrow, aye?"
LUCYA: "What I wannae know right now, is... what ye meant by Togan 'having a reason.'"
KEELA: ".............."
KEELA: "His family is dangerous. My husband found something. He was not allowed the chance to share it."
LUCYA: "..."
Lucya has several questions about this, but she's not sure yet which order to ask them in, or whether to ask them at all.
LUCYA: "...He told ye they were dangerous, but didnae tell ye why?"
KEELA: "And I'm still alive, aren't I."
Lucya grimaces a little.
LUCYA: "Yer actin' like they got eyes an' ears in every household..."
LUCYA: "But... well, I dinnae know what t'make of it yet. But thank ye fer tellin' me."
Keela stares at the incredulity, but at least nods at the thanks.
KEELA: (inclining her head towards the kitchen) "I should check. Would you keep an eye on your... friend."
Lucya nods and steps closer to the doorway, steeling herself for the grisly sight inside.
đ˛ Jagal rolls Gather Information for his investigation of the body. Burning the momentum he's saved up, he's able to get a strong hit!
Jagal isn't doing much to block her view, but at least there's a sheet pulled over about half of the corpse. Granted, the visible half is still clearly smashed in, with various streaks and splotches of wounds scattered about. Despite the damage, the covering that was presumably pulled up higher before Jagal's entrance doesn't seem to be bloodstained.
Jagal doesn't turn at Lucya's approach, nor is he muttering to himself at the moment. Though it looks like he was sifting through a box at his feet recently, he now stares distractedly at (through?) a little wooden charm that's strung around the corpse's neck.
Lucya tries to give the body a once-over, so she's not completely clueless about it at the trial tomorrow. She can only look for a few seconds, but she's sure of one point in favor of Togan's innocence-- if he'd actually seen this happen, he'd be an incoherent mess. She quickly turns her attention back to the makeshift coroner.
LUCYA: "Jagal, I... Auh, ye need a break, don't ye?"
With a worried look, she reaches out to touch his shoulder.
JAGAL: Jagal startles and dodges back, but at least he doesn't pull any weapons this time.
JAGAL: "Whoa, whoa, theâ" (taking a second to place himself, then squinting at Lucya) "Why're you here? Thought you didn't wanna look."
Lucya also jumps back a little.
LUCYA: "Auh-- w-well, Ms. Keela left t'check on the kitchen, and I dinnae think she's got much more t'say tae me..."
LUCYA: "Do ye wannae step outside...?"
JAGAL: (glancing toward the door) "Why, what's outside?"
LUCYA: "Y-ye were just... well, if ye'd rather talk here, that's alright, I s'pose?"
She eyes the corpse warily one more time, then turns away.
LUCYA: "What did ye find?"
Jagal snorts at her turning away. At least that seemed normal for him.
JAGAL: "Well, I don't know exactly..."
Jagal retrieves something from the box, which seems to contain bloodied clothing and tools, and holds it up casually between two fingers.
JAGAL: "Not sure if they missed this or just didn't feel like telling us, but."
LUCYA: "Eh...?"
A piece of paper... Lucya takes it and unfolds it carefully.
"Green as a meadow
Sweet as a peach
The darkest of secrets
Lie just out of reach"
LUCYA: "...Is it s'posed tae be a poem?"
JAGAL: "Well. Good to hear it doesn't make any more sense if you can read."
JAGAL: "Knowing if the victim liked poems isn't gonna help us much, huh? It was worth a shot."
JAGAL: "Actual body seems a little off, too, if you ask me. But it could be I'm just missing something..."
LUCYA: "Auh, but... This handwriting, it isnae Mr. Pearce's! Or Ms. Keela's. At least it dinnae look like what was in the store register..."
LUCYA: "What do ye mean about the body?"
Jagal nods slowly but can't really offer an opinion on matters of handwriting.
JAGAL: "How do I..." (nudges the box with his foot) "Okay, so I was looking through the stuff that was on the shelfâI assume, since they're tools, that are probably for farming, and there's blood on some of 'emâbut they don't all match up?"
JAGAL: (picking up a sickle with dried blood in concerning spots, and spinning it casually) "Some of these you can pretty much fit to him like a puzzle, but there's a couple injuries I'm not sure how you could get from any of these."
LUCYA: "So some a the stuff from the shelf is missing? If the rogue had a chance tae plant some evidence, they couldae hidden some too..."
LUCYA: "But shouldn't it all be things the store sells already? Why would they need tae do that?"
JAGAL: "Seems like stuff that'd be hard to hide. Like, his forehead here? Swear to Njord it looks like somebody smacked him with a solid pole or something." (gestures emphatically but not helpfully) "Got the whole... double... thing. Going on."
JAGAL: (giving the sickle a wave) "Which, got some handles here, but they're not thick enough. And then another stretch looks like a whole other shelf-edge-whatever, but I might just be remembering the spacing wrong..."
Jagal finally puts the sickle back.
JAGAL: "Only reasons to risk taking something back'd be 1. it's worth money, 2. they can trace it back to you if they look at it long enough, or in this case 3. it'd somehow clear your fall guy of suspicion. For all three options, I wouldn't mind finding it, personally."
LUCYA: "I see...! We definitely need tae look at that shelf again!"
Lucya seems pleased with the headway they've made on their investigation, but her smile is tighter than usual.
LUCYA: "As far as Ms. Keela goes... I dinnae think she's lying. She was in the back rooms all morn, and working on the display outside when it happened. She didnae see anything afore that, and she left the place in charge a Veren afterwards..."
LUCYA: (even more quietly) "She also told me about Togan's 'reason'... She said Mr. Pearce knew somethin' about his family? But she dinnae know what, exactly..."
Jagal is too busy being proud of himself for getting to sound clever(?) to worry about the specifics of her expression.
JAGAL: âRight⌠So, think Veren offed his old man, or just doesnât pay a lot of attention?â
Jagal looks slightly more thoughtful at the next part, though he mostly seems to be talking to himself.
JAGAL: âHuh. So it was him. Somebody took up the gauntlet, then? How much would you need to knowâŚâ
LUCYA: "I dinnae know about that, but he's nae telling us all he knows, either..."
Her eyes go wide.
LUCYA: "Eh? Ye knew about--" (stops herself) "M-maybe let's talk about this when we're out a her house..."
KEELA: âTalk about what.â
LUCYA: "Auh!"
LUCYA: "W-well, it's as ye said, aye? If what yer husband knew is why he was killed, and we figure out what it was, we wouldnae wish tae put ye in danger..."
She hopes that half-truth sounds convincing.
KEELA: "..........."
JAGAL: "Well, I'd rather not be in danger, either. You can keep your conspiracy theories to yourself."
JAGAL: (to Keela) "We probably oughta head out before it gets too dark, though. Thanks for having us."
LUCYA: "Aye, thank ye kindly... We'll see ye tomorrow, I s'pose."
Lucya curtsies with a little less of her usual flair.
KEELA: "......."
Keela nods and steps aside. After a glance to ensure nothing untoward happened in the room, she just watches the two silently as they leave.
Jagal still plans on putting a good deal of distance behind him before even trying to discuss anything. If he even intends to do so.
Lucya remains silent until the house is almost out of sight.
LUCYA: "We oughtae go make sure that fabric is... what I think it is."
JAGAL: "Allll right."
Jagal feels like he should know what she means already, but he figures it'll become clear in the very near future, anyway. No need to strain himself.
As they head for the stocks once more, Lucya matches pace with Jagal. She tries to keep her voice low, but there's a frantic edge to it.
LUCYA: "How did ye know about the secret-- did Ms. Miga really tell ye that much?? What's going on?!"
JAGAL: (with casual evasiveness) "I know there's a secret, and that it's still being used against them, but what it is, well..."
LUCYA: "Used against them?! Y'mean Mr. Pearce was..."
LUCYA: "B-but what is it? I dinnae even know what they're talkin' about and I was supposed t'marry intae the family..."
JAGAL: "Now, now, you really think she'd trust a complete stranger, enough to just tell him the secret that's dark enough to keep her away from her own son in the stocks?"
A beat passes.
JAGAL: "Orrr maybe she did but swore me to total secrecy. In which case I'd require some real good payment before parting with any of it."
LUCYA: "I'm already paying you!!"
Lucya looks like she's gearing up to fuss at him, but then they turn a corner and she sees Togan.
LUCYA: "...Nay, but I shouldnae go behind their backs. If Togan willnae tell me, I'll go talk t'her myself."
Jagal's not sure whether Lucya's present irateness or the thought of her getting chewed out by Miga again is funnier, but at least someone here is having a good time.
NEXT: 015: Just One More Thing