Nodding at him, There is certainly use in that. Have you had any encounters with people are not pleased with this cause recently?
Sense Motive:
Barnibus does not notice anything that would make him think the man was lying...so far! He gives a slight nod to Conri to continue.
If I might enquire, have you recently run in to conflict with anyone in pursuing your 'activism'? Anything seem... out of place with anyone recently? Farasha purrs
You seem... calm... considering what you have been accused of...
she tilts her head.
If not you, then perhaps your wife offended someone? Anything odd through the mail, any new admirers? Come... you should do all you can to tell us all you know...
Seems to me that you should be singing like a canary, about how innocent you are, how it's all a miscarriage of justice... nothing? Hrm...
Arching her eyebrows, Farasha paces the small room.
Is it that simple then? Will you just confess to save us the trouble of going out and finding evidence to prove things are different than your current attitude might show?
Refusing to cooperate does nothing but hurt you.
Rana studies the body carefully.
Absently scratching his mustache, Axton methodically inspects each part of the body.
Flos keeps his distance, letting the others examine the body, just signaling some details they could miss.
Where were you then?
Farasha nods at Conri's question. Why was this man holding information back from them?
She tilts her head and her eyes narrow as she scrutinises the man to see if his reactions seem dulled or odd in any way.
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"I have no interest in telling you where I was," the man says, flatly.
(You could try improving his attitude or getting him to talk with skill checks.)
_______
The victim's body is uncannily pristine from its magical preservation, her face still locked in a gasp. The stomach is marked with stab wounds, the skin around each of which is stained with blood. The wounds on her body are consistent with what the merchant told you about the killer piercing the victim from the front while holding them in the air.
Bruising around the neck corroborates what you heard of her being held by it and choked. This bruised skin has been sliced shallowly.
The woman's throat is damaged in a manner characteristic of murderer's silence. Speak with Dead will be of no use with this body.
This wound is where the hand would have been, and so cannot have been created while the person was being held in the air as the merchant testified she was.
"It seems we have been lied to..."
Linking his fingers together, "By not helping us you are only hurting your case. We are here to help you. If you claim you were not there then that means someone else did that horrible thing and we need to find the actual culprit. Something we cannot do without your help."
Vinca pushes a small wooden crate up against the table. She climbs up and gives the woman's head and neck a close exam.
Vinca's whiskers twitch, "I agree Inspector Flos. This neck wound, most unusual. Claw punctures." She holds her small paw up to the wound, her claws too small to cover the damage. "The knife wound is placed to cover their presence. I do not remember such claws on our suspect. And the witness mentioned a quick strike. Such an attack would have severed the attackers own fingers. Most unlikely...our witness needs to correct his testimony.
"I agree that this calls Mr. Yenos' account into question. But... we also can't rule out that he is telling the truth as he believes it. It was ten at night, and supernatural occurrences in human cities is not unheard of."
"Unless anyone notices anything else, here, let's see if the others are ready to head to the scene."
Vinca nods solemnly, "Yes, yes Inspector Axton. The frailty of Human eyes at night. It is why I asked him specific questions about the lighting. But as you say, what he saw and what he thought he saw could be two very different things. Either way, something is not right here."
Vinca climbs down and moves her box to the victim's waist, "Just one thing I want to check first... Vinca examines the woman's hands to see if there is any evidence of the struggle (cuts, scratches, look at her fingernails).
or
She will then inspect the clothing looking for stray hair or fibers not belonging to the victim, having Axon help flip the body to examine her back.
Farasha shrugs and glances at Conri
Nothing much else we can do if the man won't help himself...
she moves towards the exit.
evidently he does not want us to know where he was, which of course makes me all the more curious, should we have our usual wager? I'll bet breakfast we can ferret out where he was at the time of the murder before the day is out, do we have a deal?!
Sighing and getting up, Should you change your mind and want to get tell us anything so you can find the person who actually killed her let us know.
Looking at Farasha and grinning, [b]That sounds fine to me.
Shutting the door behind the three of them. Lets go find the others.
"A small cut on the hand, but no real sign of struggle. That part of the story hold up."
Vinca climbs down and puts her crate back against the wall. Dusting off her paws she turns and addresses her compatriots, "Ready to go."
Farasha closes the door behind her and Conri.
Let's swing by the morgue and pick the others up, I'm sure we'll all want to view the scene.
She tilts her head to the side quizzically
Something odd is going on, I'll bet he's involved in something illegal, or illicit!
Sighing and glancing back at the door before responding, That does seem likely.
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From the courthouse in the upper district, you travel to the victim's house in the middle district. The large home is in a well-landscaped neighborhood.
The home is elaborately painted with a mural depicting a desert oasis, palm trees covering a pond which reflects a setting sun. The guardsperson who had been watching the scene leaves as he sees you arrive, giving you a thumbs up signal to indicate that there has been no interference.
Even as you approach, you can see the gap which would allow anyone to see and access the area behind the house, which you can see contains a large pool.
As you approach, you see a woman run out of her house, toward you. She steps up to greet you. "Hello--" she pants, out of breath. "You're the guards who will be investigating Keli's murder? Is it true that you've arrested Ralish?"
Well trained at not answering questions, Farasha simply turns the conversation around
Good afternoon miss...
Then she continues
I'm detective Aeval, I like to ask what your interest is in the situation? How do you know Keli and Ralish?
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"They're my neighbors," the woman says, "and dear friends. I know Ralish would never hurt her."
As she speaks, a young child runs up behind her. "Mommy?" he says. The woman stoops down. "Go back inside, sweety."
"Are those the... the guards?" he asks. He looks at you.
"Yes they are," the woman says. "Now, go back inside."
The boy looks up at you.
Farasha blinks slowly and smiles, listening to the woman, nodding in thanks for her answer. She then glances down at the boy and crouches down.
What have we here? Curiosity is a good trait I've always thought! Farasha winks at the woman and turns her smile on the boy.
Now what have we here for a boy with such good manners and cleverness?
Rummaging around in her belt pouch she comes up with a small twist of candied fruit.
Feigning a little reluctance, she stares at the treat for a moment, before offering it out to him.
Now then, we can't have you go unrewarded, but you should listen to your mother and run along ok?
She straightens and turns her attention back to the boy's mother.
Thank you for helping us out, we're just trying to get to the bottom of it and any information would be useful, no matter how trivial it might seem!
she turns away and then turns back almost immediately
Ah just one thing, you don't know where Ralish might have been on the night the crime occurred, if not in Keli's vicinity?
Her face is calm and friendly, but her eyes are watching the woman like a hawk.
Smiling at Farasha's behavior but keeping quiet and letting her take the lead on this.
As Axton approaches the residence, he casts heightened awareness on himself and starts to look around, focusing on the area where the witness said the murder occured, as well as any unusual characteristics of the location. He is only half listening to Farasha's conversation with the neighbor, but he gives the conversation his full attention when she sends the boy away. Holding his fox, Redtail, in his arms and gently petting it, he approaches the boy.
"One moment, child. Before you go, did you see anything you want to tell us? This is my friend, Conri," Axton says, bringing in a more likeable colleague. "He and I want to make sure that the person responsible for what happened to Mrs. Tamdig goes to jail, where they can't hurt anybody else. Do you have anything you want to tell us? Or ask us?"
Conri smiles and kneels down in front of the child. Easily putting a smile on his face, "My friend there is right. We never know what might help us find the bad guy. But it always takes brave people to help us."
Axton moves on to continue searching the area.
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The woman sighs at Farasha. "Sadly, I do not," she says. "I did see Keli out back by herself a few hours before... before..." she gulps, it would have occurred, and there was no light from the house. That leads me to think he wasn't home.
-----
The child looks up at you nervously. "I... I can't. I'm sorry." He steps away from you, before turning around to go back inside.
Flos uses his prestidigitation cantrip to create small toys for the boy, and make "magic tricks" to try to distract him, ease his worries, and get in his good graces.
"I know you want to tell us something, and you need to know we are good ones, and want to help the good people of the city, and catch the bad guys. Can you help us? No one will get mad at you, and you will help us win the day, and protect the innocent."
Shaking his head and moving so that he is again crouched at eye level with kid, "She is right. We need all they help we can get.
Axton moves on to continue searching the area.
[dice=Perception]1d20+4+2
Not seeing anything noteworthy at first glance, Axton begins a more thorough search of the area.
Farasha nods at the boy's mother
I appreciate your assistance and recollection of the night's events, however what you are essentially telling me is that you don't know for sure either way. That's fine don't worry, but we need to understand the facts as they are.
She taps one clawed finger on her lips
You saw nothing else untoward, not just on the night but perhaps over the preceeding weeks? No strange comings and goings? No visits from strange people at odd times? Any break from their usual schedule?