Agony's inquest.

Postby Lent » Tue Sep 18, 2007 2:36 am

And that would be the end of the young Constable Charles McCoy's role in asking questions for a while. He stared at her as if she had three heads and Lentham stepped in without even missing a beat. "It wasn't that great a summer, Miss Kaczmarek. You didn't miss much. I'd be interested in hearing about this other plane sometime, actually. I can't say I quite wrap my mind around it as is. McCoy, stop gaping." He sighed, was about to make another comment and then shook his head. "So about when did you get back to Myrken then?" When did you you get back, Agnie? Best to answer carefully, because if they know about that incident at the Dagger, they might have a good idea of just when that was too.
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Postby channe » Tue Sep 18, 2007 4:57 am

"The place was called Sinari," she says, drumming her fingers on the table. "It was constantly winter, and there were -- well, some of the shit was just a marvel, some crazy projectile mini-ballistas. I got back a few months ago. I don't remember when. The days, they just go straigh' together, an' I have trouble readin' a calendar anyways. But I'm gettin' better."

She chuckles, and focuses her eagle-eyes on Lent.
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Postby Lent » Tue Sep 18, 2007 5:16 am

Lent seemed to be completely unshaken by her eagle eyes. He just went on jotting things down. Vagueness was certainly better than outright lying, on her part. "I can appreciate that, Miss Kaczmarek. I don't think I knew how to read one either at your age. It's good that you're learning. You think that Constable McCoy is about ready to ask another question on the hopes that you won't make his tongue fall out of his head again? Son?"

The younger Constable looked at his partner with a frown but nodded quietly. "Actually, if you don't mind, Miss Kaczmarek, since I do want to understand things and hear the right stories, could you tell me about your fighting the Ashfiend, in your own words?"
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Postby channe » Tue Sep 18, 2007 5:31 am

She leans back in her chair, and covers her hand with her mouth; she's quiet, for a moment, and shakes her head, almost as if she's choking back some tears. When she speaks, it's clearer.

"We were havin' a party in the barn," she says, quieter -- and far more seriously. "So ser Calomel could meet th' workers, an' all, and Mateusz got a little ornery an' his mom wanted to stay an' dance so Laranna took him home. That's the kind o' thing we do for each other in my family, y'see? We help each other out. An' I'd jus' got home from the barracks, an' Myrken's the kind o' place where you never want t' go wi'out a weapon. So I put on my rapier an' went to the party."

She pauses, and takes a breath.

"An' then the Ashfiend came. I jus' -- I had to, I --" and she looks down, heaves another breath, and looks back up. "I had to. I'm trained t' do that, you know? So I ran out to fight him, because I -- I gotta help. It was my nephew. An' I think I did pretty well, even though it was hard. I ain't never fought wi' supernatural shit before. I got healed up afterward an' both ser Calomel an' Aeryn got out fair nicely wi'out much of a bother. An' we coulda won, we really coulda."

She narrows her eyes.

"This ain't about that, is it? What the Squire said about not killin' the Ashfiend but makin' a treaty wi' 'im? I didn't break no law! There ain't no law against fightin' dirty monsters that hurt the people you love! No law a' all!"
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Postby Lent » Tue Sep 18, 2007 5:38 am

Well, this is what one gets when they let McCoy ask the questions. Lent had a serious enough look on his face now. Someone was getting hung here and it likely was his partner and not the girl. Still, he waved the younger man (who certainly did NOT want to continue) on.

McCoy cleared his throat uncomfortably. "Of course not, Miss Kaczmarek. However, it wasn't just your rapier, Miss Kaczmarek, but a kitchen knife as well, something quite understandable. A dagger is often used in rapier fighting, naturally. This is true, then? Either way it's somewhat strange just how many stories about you carrying around kitchen knives there are."
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Postby channe » Tue Sep 18, 2007 5:52 am

She shakes her head. "My dagger. I --"

And then, no. Something seems to dawn on her. "No, it wasn't my dagger. I usually fight a lot with dagger an' rapier, y'see, it's twice as effective if you're fast like me -- but I'd left it at Aeryn's. So I grabbed Mama's knife what she was tryin' to cut the roast with. An' yeah, there are tons o' stories, 'cause when I was fifteen and dumb as a box o' rocks I used to think that was cool. Ugh."

She nods.
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Postby Lent » Tue Sep 18, 2007 7:23 am

Well, THAT got a reaction out of McCoy. It was a nice bit of comfirmation that yes, in fact, those stories actually happened. "Ow!" And that ws a strange thing for him to say out of the blue. Still, he calmed down quickly, though he did rub his shin for a moment under the table.

Lentham yawned, stretching his neck, and nodded. That was quite a bit tactfulness for now. Time to let her make the connections. "There's been too much loss lately, Miss Kaczmarek. Far too much." Such a dark look to his eyes suddenly. He did not remember all of his own personal loss, but yes, he could imagine. "We've lost people big and small, and in the middle too. For instance, It's a real shame what happened to Farmer Baker. From one keeper of the peace to the other, Sister Kaczmarek," And wasn't it nice for him to refer to the Brotherhood that way, "what do you think happened there?"
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Postby channe » Tue Sep 18, 2007 11:17 am

Shitshitshit.

And yet, Agnieszka Kaczmarek looks blissfully unaware -- as if the connections are so far apart in her head that she has not yet made them. A blink -- and then, she wrings her hands together, looking absolutely distressed.

"I don't know," she says, fervently. "I don't know, aside from he got stabbed."
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Postby Lent » Tue Sep 18, 2007 11:54 am

Lentham raised his eyebrows at her. "That's strange. I didn't ask what you knew. I asked what you thought. You do seem to have a lot of opinions, Miss Kaczmarek. And nothing at all here? You wouldn't even help me with my work? Because I tell you, I'd rather head to the Dagger right now and have a drink, if only I had a good idea to tell Calomel. Ah well. I see the problem!" Lentham clapped his hands. It was the quickest she had seen him move so far "You need a clue. Give her one son."

"Huh, wha? Oh. Fine, fine. Clue. Door wasn't forced. Nothing was stolen. Almost certainly it was someone he knew. Not a bandi... ow!" Another sharp pain on his shin.

"Oh, you told her what it meant. I pray you never reproduce, McCoy. I can only imagine you raising a child. Huh, it's sort of like my daily life." And then that lazy smile to Agnie. "Well then, is there anything of a detective in you, Miss Kaczmarek? Can you do anything more with that?"
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Postby channe » Wed Sep 19, 2007 12:14 am

"No," she says, "that's what I think happened. He got stabbed. That's what I heard. I ain't a tracker or a Constable, ser, I raised cattle 'till I was fifteen and after that I been a soldier."

But she stops, considers this -- crosses her arms, uncrosses them, and lays her hands in her lap, clasping them together.
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Postby Lent » Wed Sep 19, 2007 12:32 am

Lent looked at her, long and hard. Then he lifted his shoulders into a slight shrug. "That's not giving yourself much credit, Miss Kaczmarek, unless of course you're of the quite popular mindset that indentured servants who raise cattle are raised to be cattle themselves, too stupid to at least suspect and consider. I can't imagine that's what you're saying. That's fine though. I hope you won't mind following along with me for a bit then. It might be educational for you. I can't say it'll help you much in learning to read a calendar, mind, but well learning is learning, isn't it?"

He put the flask on the table and leaned back in his chair, gaze still upon her. "When a murder happens, we try to figure out the potential motive, who benefits, what's to gain? We'll try again. What do you think someone might gain from killing Farmer Baker?"
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Postby channe » Wed Sep 19, 2007 12:47 am

It comes upon Agnieszka in a whirl: she'd suspected that they'd tracked it back to her, she'd tried to hide it, but -- well. Now that she knows, she can play the game.

The question is, how close can she cut it? She's burning at the condescension that Lent exhibits, and if he thinks that'll ensure her cooperation, he's wrong.

"I dunno," she says. "Mostly personal satisfaction, I'd think. Man was a right bastard. Cheated half the town in the market every week, hired prostitutes, even kicked the sheepdogs. I can think of a lot o' reasons, actually. A lot o' people."
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Postby Lent » Wed Sep 19, 2007 12:52 am

McCoy opened his mouth only to let out yet another yelp and rub, once again, at his shin.

"That's the spirit, Miss Kaczmarek. I knew you had it in you." Lentham picked his flask back up and tipped it at her, in a toast, before bringing it to his mouth for a steady sip. "I don't reckon that I agree, mind you, but I do appreciate the effort. Murder is a big thing. A real big thing. Maybe the biggest there is. That's a whole lot of satisfaction, right there. Average person, even here, even in myrken, isn't about to go that far for personal satisfaction. Unless you can think of some very angry sheepdogs that are very good in manipulating silverware. Tell me, Miss Kaczmarek, do you really think people might go that far just to be satisfied, end a life in cold blood, without even too much of a struggle, just like that? For instance, Agnieszka, how far might you go?"
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Postby channe » Wed Sep 19, 2007 1:01 am

"Average person can't," she says, quietly, eyeing Lent with narrowed eyes from across the table. "But special people can, if they've got the Guv's say-so. I'm not that special. But I know people who will. An' have, that is, have gone a helluva far way. This is Myrken, ser, an' I know you ain't no foreigner. You know how it is."

She tilts her head, and continues.

How far might you go?

"How far? I wouldn't," she says, clipped and final. "There are some stories, gents, that just ain't true."
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Postby Lent » Wed Sep 19, 2007 1:24 am

"You know something, Miss Kaczmarek? I pretty much believe you. You wouldn't go that far. Really, who would?" He took another very, very long sip out of that flask, letting her mull over that.

Finally, he continued. "For satisfaction alone, that is. In fact, Baker was bad, but he wasn't so bad that someone WOULD take it out of him just for their own personal glee. No, they wanted something else. First I figured they wanted the land. You want to tell her your theory, McCoy?"

"No." He was rubbing his shin from the previous few kicks, and had a sour look on his face.

"See, you're learning." A tip of the flask to his partner. "Before the Ashfiend attacked, Miss Kaczmarek, who would you have said gained the most from Farmer Baker's death?"
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