Wake up. Come on now, wake up, dear.

Where am I?

Never mind where you are. And I do believe that I will be asking the questions, if you have no objections.

I know you. You're...

Yes?

You're the one who climbed up the rope of golden hair. Which means you know the girl inside. Which means... I think I see the lay of the land, lady.

Do you really?

Yeah. I'm in real bad trouble, huh?

You were casing my daughter's tower.

Now wait just a minute, here-

Weren't you?

No. I was not casing anything. Swear to God.

I just can't bring myself to believe that, dearie. Not from a low-life little thug like you. Ruffians and thieves and plunderers can't be trusted without a great deal of preparation.

Oh, I see. This is supposed to scare me, yeah? Lay out the pliers and knives and stuff, let me sweat it out imagining what'll happen to me. I've been through this before, you know.

See you in a while, okay?

Feeling talkative yet?

I was talkative hours ago. You could have skipped the dramatics.

I know, but somehow I feel that this little waiting session was necessary.

Okay, then.

Who are you, and how did you find my daughter's tower?

Well, my name is Karl. Karl Rotbach. I'm an entrepreneur from out of Bremen. I was en route to the capital, scouting out fresh markets for my business, when I stopped to lean against what appeared to be a sheer rock face. I fell flat on my face because, as I suppose you already know, there is no wall there to lean on. I went through the tunnel I found and at the other end was the tower. See? Nothing wrong with that, nothing at all.

I see.

What are you doing? Oh, put that down, there's no call for that.

You're lying.

I'm not. I'm not lying. That is the pure and simple truth.

No. You're far too emphatic in your assertions, dear. It rings false.

What do you mean it rings-

What do you sell?

I buy wheat cheap in Bremen and search for the highest prices in the areas around so I can sell there. Occasionally, I branch out and trade other goods, but mostly it's just wheat.

Ooh, you came back a little too forceful there.

Well, you accused me of lying. Of course I want to be forceful.

I can't let this go until I know for absolute certain how you found her, and who else knows. I don't like to be the bad guy, you know, but sometimes people force me into that role.

Put the hammer down. Put it down! Oh, god no, please-

You're no wheat merchant.

I am.

No, you're not. You're just slimy and untrustworthy enough to be a salesman, I'll grant you that, love. But not in wheat, or any other straight product.

Please. I'm no threat to you. Let me go and I'll forget I ever found this bloody place.

Ha, ha, ha! No.

I'm just an investor on a road trip. Nothing more. Please.

You're a wheat salesman?

Yes!

You're a Bremen wheat merchant... with gutter rat accent... knife scars on your forearms and back... and a few coppers in your purse. Merchants always carry more money than they need, Karl, come on!

I do business with everybody. Sometimes, I can even mimic the accent.

Oh, really?

I'm serious. I just hammered out a deal with a man of a... lower-class background. I picked it up, that's all. Inside of a week, my voice will just spring back to normal.

I completely believe you!

Really?

Of course not. And your magical accent doesn't explain the purse or the scars.

The scars... I got attacked by bandits a few years back.

Oh, you're precious. I love the way you had to think a moment to come up with a good excuse for them. I won't bother to pressure you for a reason why you're flat broke, Karl. It would only hurt us both to watch you squirm for a reasonable story.

Damn it, please! I'm nobody, I'm not a threat to you or your daughter. No harm, no foul, right?

How did you find her, and who are you really?

Please. I told you. I told you.

You're so stubborn, Karl. I can't stand that.

You're awake then?

Yes.

I'm really sorry about that. Sometimes you make it very hard for me to control my temper.

I'm sorry. I didn't mean to make you angry.

It's alright, dear. It's not your fault, it's just your nature. You can't change who you are. Once a piece of low-life trash, always a piece of low-life trash.

Okay.

So, I should tell you that if you screw up your answers again, I'll be very angry at you. Okay?

Okay.

Who are you? Be honest for once.

My name really is Karl Rotbach. That's true, anyway.

I understand. But who are you?

I'm... I'm a smuggler.

Ah, now that makes a great deal more sense.

I practically am a merchant, in any case. Except that I worry less about bandits and more about soldiers, you see.

I see, I see very well indeed. Now that you've established that you're a cowardly, violent, untrustworthy criminal-

HEY! I'm not violent.

Oh?

I've only ever hurt people in self-defense. I'm proud of that, lady. Not many guys from my area of town can say that.

Well, whatever helps you live with yourself, dear. Now that we've established your general character, how did you find us?

I told you yesterday. I leaned against a wall that wasn't there.

I thought we had moved past this stage of the game, Karl. Do we need to move back a step?

Please don't. Please...

The maps. The maps were key.

Describe these maps to me.

They're available in the public library back home in Bremen. They show a complete map of this area. In the earlier maps, the tower that your daughter is holed up in is clearly labeled. But any map made less then sixteen years ago is missing it. I figured that the tower must have been abandoned.

It must have seemed like a godsend for a filthy little gutter rat like you. You could stockpile your goods here and distribute them all over the kingdom.

Yes.

Are those maps still there?

As far as I know.

Do you see, Karl? Do you see how much better life can be when you just let go and start trusting me? This talk wasn't hard at all, was it?

No, I guess it wasn't.

Now I have one more question for you, dear.

Yeah?

Why should I leave you alive, Karl?

...I answered your questions honestly. I swear to you. I swear. I had to answer honestly, you left me no choice-

I know, I know, I'm sorry. But you saw my daughter, didn't you, dear? You soaked in the golden glory of her hair and you wanted it for yourself, didn't you?

No. I did not. I did not want your daughter's hair. I swear to you-

You're being too emphatic again, you thieving little rat, so why don't you just stop with the lies, hmm? Why don't you just shut your filthy mouth, just shut up, shut up shut up shut UP-

Ah, you're awake again. No, do not talk. This is Mother Gothel's time to talk. I know you saw my Rapunzel. I know you were casing her tower. I know what you were planning to do with her. You wanted the magic for yourself, and you just did not care who you hurt in the process. Do you realize what would happen to me if she was taken away from me? You're heartless. That's the problem with you and every other man in the world; none of you care about anybody but yourselves. So listen closely, because even a greasy little ball of corruption like you deserves an explanation. You know the location of this tower. You know the secret of my daughter's hair. If I let you go, you'll blab, or you'll come back with your little thuggish companions, and my daughter and I will be in danger again.

Lady, please, I won't-

Interrupt me again, Karl! Go on, since you are apparently above the laws of common decency! I will draw it out for hours if you display such rudeness and hostility again! As I was saying dear, there's no alternative. If people like you would just stop molesting us... but you can't. It's your nature, and you can't change that.

Wait! Wait, hold on. I just thought of a way you can spare me.

Frankly, I doubt it, darling, but go ahead.

You're clearly a loving mother, right? You want to keep your daughter safe from the world, right?

Of course I do.

Then let me serve you. I'm intelligent, I'm strong, or will be once I recover. You can keep me on a short leash if you want, but you CAN make use of me. When other ruffians come around, I can dissuade them from entering, or I can fight them off if it comes to that. Your Rapunzel will be safer with me on your side. I promise.

You know, I really do like your plan. I really do. But there is one problem with it.

I can solve that problem. Just let me know what it is.

It's contemptible. Stationing you anywhere near that tower is like setting the fox to watch the henhouse. I could never trust you not to run off to the King and Queen with what you know, now could I?

Lady, please-

Could I?

You can trust me. I'll do anything for you to stay alive. You give me a task and I'll stick to it, regardless of the cost. You can trust in my gratitude if nothing else. Spare my life and I'm yours forever. Please.

Good-bye, Karl. I have nothing more to say to you, dear.