"His name's Ibor Thorn. He was the one responsible for accounting--Banny oversaw the work floor." Shayliss seems to have calmed somewhat.
"When you do find them... please, don't let them escape."
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Shayliss doesn't say anything when Eostre brings up her father's justified rage. When the dwarven mage hugs her, she clings to her with a strength born of desperation. "Banny?" Shayliss' hands tremble. "Banny was... he was a slick, charming man. I didn't know him that well, but f-from what I gathered, he had a few bad habits that Daddy didn't like. He'd have the lumber mill run on well into the night, but other than that..." "...I don't know." Her shoulders slump. "He had a business partner working at the mill--I think he was brought in by the garrison. He probably knew him better than Daddy did."
Shayliss sniffs and rubs her eyes again. They're getting red, and tear tracks make their way down her cheeks. "...no...I don't know why either of them would be targeted. Banny was a hard-working man, and he swept Kat off her feet. Daddy didn't see the good in him, and they... well, they eloped."
Shayliss swallows a few times, trying to get herself together enough to speak. "...what do you need?"
Those of the party who leave the sawmill find Shayliss easily enough. She's sitting on the bank of the Turandarok River, her head in her hands. Her hands are wet with tears. Sheriff Hemlock appears to have left the sawmill for now, leaving a few guardsmen standing watch. The grieving young woman coughs as Eostre & Evelyn approach. She doesn't look up or say anything.
Shayliss trembles. "The sawmill... they--they--" She collapses and starts sobbing into Nicat's shoulder.
Shayliss swallows, and tries to speak. "K-Kat... Banny..." "Please--get your friends and follow me!"
Shayliss purses her lips and gives her father a nervous look before kneeling down and kissing Nicat on the cheek.
"Kat, that's your sister, right? What's she decided to do that upset your da? Getting married, is she?" Shayliss nods. "And Daddy just about exploded. I don't know why..." "What kind of deputy work, you ask? Well, we're heading out to Chopper's Isle to look into something. My dwarf friend and Brodert Quink have a theory about what might be causing the increase in goblin attacks...well, I mean, if there were an increase in goblin attacks, they'd have a theory about why there would be, but there's not an increase in goblin attacks, because talking about that makes folk nervous..." Nicat's rambling about goblin attacks appears to have unsettled Shayliss somewhat--it's visibly distracted her from her troubles at home for certain. "Looks like I might have some other important work to do to, Shay, seems that fellow has noted how competent my friends and I are and is recommending us for an assignment. That's life when you're a deputy, word gets around that you know your business." Shayliss giggles. "Well, once you're done with that... I'm not going anywhere." She winks. "You know where to find me."
"You want to tell me about it, Shay? Then maybe we could go hunt some rats, eh? Though I guess I've got some deputy work to do first. But I'd sure like to spend some more time with you, maybe without your da so close by." Shayliss giggles a little. It seems to have lightened her mood somewhat. "That... that'd be nice, I think. Assuming Daddy doesn't find out--he's got enough problems with Kat and Banny finally deciding to..." She cuts herself off. "Um... I shouldn't have said so much." She clears her throat. "Anyway, what sort of deputy work were you talking about?"
Shayliss looks up as Nicat approaches, her mood lightening a bit. "Oh... hello, Nicat." She looks down at the table again. "It's nothing--just family troubles." She bites her lip.
You can see the gears turning in Shayliss' head as she notices where you're looking. She gives you a smile. "Well... there is the cot's sheets here..." She says, glancing down at the cot beneath her before giving you another look. Sense Motive: ...do I really need to spell it out for you?
Shayliss' chest rises and falls rapidly as she eyes the dead rat. "N-no... I don't think it did..." She lowers her hands to inspect herself for bites, the torn part of her blouse falling into her lap as she sits down on the cot. It's obvious that she doesn't wear any smallclothes under her blouse... she's quite shapely, all things considered. Shayliss looks up at you, remembering you're still in the room with her. Oddly, she doesn't seem all that concerned with the fact that she's now half-naked in front of you; perhaps she's simply more relieved that she's okay. "Thanks for killing that rat, Nicat. If you weren't here..." She trails off. Incidentally, you can tell for certain it's cold down in the basement.
The sword bites into the rat's side, but it isn't deep enough to kill it--it lashes out in berserk panic at...
Your second blow is enough to skewer the rat on the end of your blade, where it twitches for a second before going still. "Oh... oh my heavens... is it dead? Is it dead?" Shayliss gasps, her blouse torn to bits from the rat's bite.
"Well, we have that cot in case any guests come over." Shayliss whispers as the two of you move toward the wine bottles. "We don't make people sleep in the basement--" GM Rolls:
You notice a flash of brown out of the corner of your eye in the dim light of the basement. A second later, a rat the size of a goblin races out from under the wine rack!
Your reflexes are lightning quick as the rat stops in front of Shayliss, staring up at you with large, glittering eyes. Shayliss shrieks in surprise.
Shayliss has a puzzled expression on her face when you start rambling on about smoking before you conjure up your ball of light. Then she pinches the bridge of her nose and snorts with laughter. She follows behind you, the stairs *creaking* under your footsteps. GM Rolls:
You don't hear anything, and it appears nothing has noticed you... The basement is a surprisingly large room with barrels along the east wall and a rack of wine bottles along the west wall. Directly in front of you is a large cot with what appear to be fresh sheets and a pillow. "So, I'll take a look at the wine bottles, you take a look at the barrels?" Shayliss whispers in your ear.
Fulko's Knowledge Roll:
Aside from Banny being a greedy man who works hard at the lumber mill, nothing really suspicious about him comes to mind... perhaps its something else about the man that causes Shayliss' father to revile him? Shayliss' face adopts an expression of great relief when Nicat steps forward to go with her. "Oh, thank Desna. C'mon!" She grabs Nicat's hand and practically drags him away from the group.
Shayliss takes you further down the street, past Turandarok Academy to the general store opposite it. For the most part, it looks like any other shop you've seen, except for the water trough outside, presumably for mounts to drink from while their owners conduct business indoors. "Sorry about being so pushy back there--this is really important to me." Shayliss says, blushing a bit as she leads you inside. "You haven't seen Daddy when he really gets mad..." She moves over to a door behind the counter and opens it, revealing a wooden stairway flanked by a couple of torch sconces that descends into the dark basement below. "Um... have you got a light?"
"Yeah, bring the guy Daddy hates home to shoot a rat and hope to Desna he doesn't come home before he has a chance to leave." Shayliss deadpans. "Sounds brilliant." It's obvious that her nerves are beginning to get the better of her.
Fulko:
You get the impression Shayliss is honestly trying to get Nicat's help. If anything, she seems to be the most comfortable around him. "Because I don't want Daddy to find out." Shayliss turns to Fulko, annoyed. "He's... well, he's been having enough problems with Kat and Banny dating already--the last thing I need is for him to get up in arms about a rat in the basement." She sighs. "Besides, if all four of you went in, it'd be overkill. Really, it's one rat. I just need Nicat to help me with this."
Shayliss listens to Fulko's boasting with a quirked eyebrow before continuing. "Well... I was sorting out wine bottles in the basement of the general store, and..." She looks down, her face beginning to turn the colour of her hair. "I found a rat. One that's about as big as a dog." She starts wringing her hands. "I don't want Daddy to find out, and I panicked and didn't know what to do until you came by." Shayliss looks over at Nicat. "So, Nicat, little help? Please?" If nothing else, she appears honestly distressed...
The sun shines brightly down on Sandpoint as you begin to make your rounds. A pleasant breeze blows in from the harbour, carrying with it the familiar scent of salt. The townsfolk give the patrolling group several appreciative nods and compliments as they pass by, with some of the women eying Fulko and Nicat... some can be heard gossiping about Fulko's rugged, brash charm, and more can be heard talking about how endearing Nicat's cheerfulness and looks are. It's around the time the group is making its way down Main Street that they see a familiar face walking up the way--a redheaded girl clad in tidy peasant's garb, looking about with a worried expression on her face. When she sees the group, the look on her face turns into one of relief as she approaches. "There you guys are!" Shayliss says, walking up. "Hey, may I borrow you for a bit, Nicat?"
Shayliss looks over, barely missing Katrine plucking a bit of her salmon from her plate. Not that it matters much, because as it turns out, that bit of salmon apparently had a large dose of spices on it, if her reaction is any indication: Katrine pales and starts chugging her ale. Shayliss arches an eyebrow at her sister before turning back to Nicat. Banny sighs and shakes his head, a small grin on his face. "Smooth, Kat. No, really." "Hey, at least you got to get out of here and explore, Nicat." Shayliss sighs. "I know that if I tried something like that, Daddy would spank me until I couldn't sit for a week."
Shayliss graciously takes the seat Nicat offers her, giggling a little. Katrine & Banny sit down next to her, setting their plates of salmon down with their drinks. "I've been meaning to ask, Nicat: you juggle so well! Where'd you learn to do that?" Shayliss asks, paying more attention to the halfling than her own food. Katrine cheekily tries to sneak a bit of Shayliss' food.
Nicat's Knowledge Roll: The redhead smiles. "It certainly was." She steps past Nicat, taking a plate of salmon and a mug of amber ale. "Would you like to have lunch with us?"
You recognize the three people from around town.
The archer, with his short brown hair and scruffy stubble, is Banny Harker. He's a penny-pinching sort, and has a bad habit of running the lumber mill long into the night resulting in noise complaints, but ultimately a kind man. He works at Sandpoint's lumber mill, owned by the Scarnetti family. The brunette with long hair and innocent blue eyes next to Banny is Katrine Vinder. She comes off as being naive to some people, most notably her own father. Her affair with Banny has given the man no end of consternation, as he's convinced Banny's only dating her for her money. She's otherwise a dutiful daughter. The redhead speaking with you is Katrine's younger sister, Shayliss. In essence, she's the opposite of Katrine--more easygoing and less concerned with responsibility. She has a reputation of being a party girl--she likes drinking and dating in equal measure. Her father hasn't been paying as much attention to her activities as he has Katrine's. Katrine snickers. "Not wasting any time, are you sis? I wonder what Daddy would say..." The redhead blushes. "Shut up, Kat."
As the group dines on salmon, ale and fine wine, three people in particular walk up to the Rusty Dragon's table. Two of them are the archer, Banny, and his girlfriend Kat from before, but this time they have a very attractive redhead with them. "Katrine, don't worry so much. Your father will come around to me eventually--" Banny starts. "That's what you think. You know Dad; he's so stubborn when it comes to this kind of thing." Katrine cuts him off. The redhead spots the group--more specifically, Nicat--and hurries over. "Excuse me, are you the halfling who was doing that juggling act with glass balls earlier?" |