14 - THE PRISONER'S DEAL
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Sylvain
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"Fee?" I call out as loudly as I dare, hunting around in the alley behind the church where he had said to meet back up with him.
"Over here," a groggy, hoarse voice says and I follow it to where he is slumped in the shadows behind a heap of broken down crates.
He doesn't get up as I walk over. He just blinks at me sleepily and rubs his forehead with a pained look.
"I'm so glad you're safe," I whisper, sitting down next to him and pulling him into my arms. We need to head back to the police precinct immediately to fill Felix in on what Agust found, but I figure we can spare a moment to be together.
Besides, I'm not even sure he can walk right now. He looks half-dead.
When I hold him close, he doesn't stiffen or pull away. He just melts against me and mumbles something I can't hear.
"What?"
"Nothing. Where's Dimitri?"
"With Agust. They've caught the killer's accomplice. They're working on getting information out of him."
"Alright," he replies vaguely, as if he didn't quite hear me.
"How long have you been awake for now? Almost two days?"
"I don't know. Doesn't matter."
He wraps his arms around my waist and tucks his head under my chin. He smells like sweat and dirt and garbage but I can't bear to push him away or make him get up just yet.
"What happened to you?" I ask.
"Found another body."
"What? Where?"
"Outside the shack. Dead a week or two at least."
"Shit. Really? Do you know who-"
"Not right now," he murmurs. "Give me a minute. I'm…"
"Exhausted," I say.
He swears quietly in response.
Lifting him up to his feet, I say, "The accomplice is behind bars. Agust is doing his job and investigating. There's nothing that immediately needs our attention. Let's get you a bath and some food and we can go to the police precinct in an hour. An hour won't make a difference to the investigation but it will for your health and sanity. Come on."
He doesn't protest as I lead him over to my horse and lift him into the saddle. Swinging up behind him, I nudge my horse into a canter and ride back to the manor house.
"No, no," Felix mumbles when it finally dawns on him what we are doing. "We need to talk to the police."
"I'll send word to them that we will rejoin them in an hour. Don't argue with me," I say, dragging him into the house and asking a servant to draw us a bath.
It's like leading a sleepwalker around as I bring him to the kitchen, sit him down in a chair and pile food on a plate in front of him. He eats automatically, staring into nothing with unfocused, squinting eyes. Wherever his mind is, it isn't reality.
What did he find in the woods that has shaken him up? Or is it simply sleep-deprivation? Maybe it's both. He's not going to make it through another day with any kind of energy or coherence if he doesn't take care of himself.
Right now the cruel truth is that he can't afford to sleep for a night and get his strength back. He has to hold out at least a few hours more. But food and a bath will go a long ways.
As soon as he has eaten and drank enough to satisfy my concern, I lead him through the house to the luxurious washroom attached to his chamber. Inside is a steaming bath and a stack of fresh towels.
Still acting automatically, he tugs off his clothes and climbs in, sitting in the water and closing his eyes. I perch on the edge of the tub and pull the pins out of his hair, combing my fingers through it.
"You going to fall asleep?" I ask.
"No," he mumbles.
I hand him a washcloth but he just stares blankly at it. After a minute, I decide to just give him time to recover and not expect him to do anything. Dipping the cloth in the hot soapy water, I brush the streaks of dust and dirt from his face and neck and shoulders. He hugs his knees and rests his forehead on them with a quiet mmm noise.
My touch seems to revive him a bit and he takes the cloth from me and finishes washing up. After he has dried off and brushed his hair, he starts to walk out to his room to get clean clothes but he sways blearily and grabs onto the towel rack to steady himself, spitting a curse between clenched teeth.
"Take it easy for a moment," I say.
"I don't have time to take it easy! I've already wasted too much time."
"Stop it. You aren't any good to anyone dead on your feet."
I reach for his hand but he swats it away. "I'm fine."
"Are you now?"
"Yes. Stop babying me. I've been through worse. I'll be fine."
When he tries to walk again, I scoop him off his feet and carry him into the bedroom.
"Put me down!" he says, struggling to get out of my arms.
"Fucking hell, Fee. Just- just- Stop it, alright?"
I dump him roughly onto the bed where he sits and looks at me with a similar resentful expression to the one that Wolfie gets when you pick him up without his permission.
"I'm fine."
"If you say that one more time, I swear to the goddess-"
His scowl fades and the sharp look in his eyes softens. "I can't let anything stop me. I have to see this through. There's so much more going on than we thought and I can't rest until we have figured out what."
Kneeling down in front of him, I pick up his hand in both of mine and say, "Nothing in this world can stop you when you have your mind set on something. Just let me help you if I can. I love you."
He stares at me awkwardly for a moment then lifts my hands and presses his lips against my knuckles. It's such a sweet, old-fashioned gesture it surprises me.
"I love you too," he murmurs.
I smile up at him. "Knowing that, I feel unstoppable too. And we have hope now - real, solid hope. Once we break that suspect and get him to talk, we will know how to find the killer and we will end this. We won't be in the dark anymore." I stand up and let go of his hand. "Come on. Let's go."
He is a little steadier on his feet as he gets dressed and buckles his sword belt back on. As I reach for the doorknob, he stops me and puts his arms around me. Pressing my back up against the door, he kisses me hungrily, his energy rising up, fueled by a deep need for comfort.
Running my fingers through his long, silky hair that is still hanging loose around his shoulders, I kiss him back with the same longing. It's a clumsy kiss - wet, fumbling, desperate and raw with an intimacy I haven't felt before from him. He isn't seeking arousal or affection, just the reassurance of love.
I swear I have never loved him more than I do in this moment. This weary, beaten-down version of Felix is him at his lowest. And yet here he is, at the edge of his sanity and strength, persevering, unyielding, and full of passion still.
"I love you," he says again, his breath hot and raspy against my lips. "You… you…" He kisses me again, then leans his forehead against mine. "You never give up on me."
"I never will," I whisper. "I believe in you with more certainty than I believe in anything else. And I love you with everything in me."
One more deep, yearning kiss then he lets go of me and says, "Let's go."
This time when I take his hand, he doesn't pull it away. And when we get back in the saddle of my horse, he sits behind me and wraps his arms around my waist, resting his head against my neck.
At the police precinct, I find Dimitri pacing restlessly around the entryway.
"Has he said anything yet?" I ask.
"No. He has not said a single word."
Felix walks in after me and Dimitri goes over to him with a look of concern. "Did you meet with any trouble in the woods?" he asks.
"Nothing alive," Felix answers. "But I found another corpse - a week or two old, buried outside Asmer's house."
There is a heavy gruffness to his voice but his expression is alert and I can tell his mind is firmly anchored in reality, at least for now. He pulls a scrap of paper from his pocket and hands it to Dimitri. "Does this mean anything to you?"
I look over Dimitri's shoulder at the drawing and study it in confusion. "I've never seen a crest like that. Was this carved on the body?" I ask.
"Yes. Along with a bunch of other weird symbols. Our crests weren't anywhere on him. Just this one. And the man was different from the other victims - older, strong like a soldier."
I glance at Dimitri's face and my heart falls at the look of dread in his wide eyes.
"You recognize it," Felix says.
He nods slowly, still staring down at the drawing.
"Well?" Felix asks.
"We cannot speak of this here," he says in a hushed tone. It almost sounds frightened. But what the hell could frighten Dimitri? He is the most frightening thing in Fódlan.
"My lords," Inspector Agust says, walking over to us. "Now that Duke Fraldarius is here, do you wish to question the prisoner?"
Dimitri tucks the piece of paper into his pocket quickly and looks at Felix who nods with a determined frown at Agust.
"I'll get something out of him, one way or another," he says darkly.
I'm a little worried to find out what exactly that means, but to a certain point, I wouldn't stop Felix from using force if he has to - not after what this killer has done and what he might yet do.
The three of us follow Agust to the jail cell where the prisoner is waiting. As we walk, Agust explains, "His name is Sterling. He was one of the soldiers assigned to my unit to help and has been present for all of these events. I had some suspicions that one of our own could be involved in helping the killer get in and out of places undetected. I needed time to investigate carefully. I won't accuse one of our men without irrefutable evidence. While I had you and Margrave Gautier in holding to buy myself time, I searched through every record made of the original investigation and found enough reason to narrow down my suspicion to him. When I pulled him aside to ask questions, he tried to run but we caught him before he could get far. In his house we found traces of the ingredients used in the poison."
"But you don't think he is the killer himself?" Felix asks.
"No. He has no discernable motive, no personal connection to you, and no history of mental instability or criminal record. He doesn't fit the profile of a serial killer. But we did find a fair amount of gold in a hidden safe in his home. I think it far more likely he was bribed by the killer to gain access to Fraldarius Manor. We won't know for sure until he talks but I have no doubt he is involved in this matter."
"Hm," is all Felix says. "We'll see how long he-"
He stops mid-sentence and freezes when we walk into the jail and he catches sight of the prisoner Sterling.
"What the-" he breathes.
"What's wrong?" I ask him, looking from his shocked face to the prisoner who is staring back at him with an unreadable expression.
"Duke Fraldarius," Sterling says, speaking up for the first time.
Felix recovers from his shock and his whole body goes tense. He walks calmly over to the bars and studies the man. "Talk or you will regret it," he growls.
"Are you going to torture me?" he asks curiously.
"I'll do whatever I need to to get the information I need. For your sake, don't find out how far I'll-"
"Felix-" Dimitri warns but Felix ignores him.
"Tell me what you know of Riordan Asmer," Felix orders.
"He killed a lot of people," Sterling says.
"Are there more bodies we haven't discovered yet?" Felix asks. "Any buried by his forester shack?"
The careful, impassive expression on Sterling's face does not falter, but he doesn't answer and his eyes momentarily dart away from Felix's face.
"I want full immunity," Sterling says.
"For what?" Felix asks.
"Not only telling you who is behind the killings but leading you right to his front door."
Dimitri touches Felix's arm and pulls him aside with me. "If he did not kill anyone by his own hand then it is in your purview to grant him immunity."
"I know that," Felix replies testily.
"You have never had to play the role of judge before. It is not an easy thing for a ruler to do," Dimitri says. "I have had to many times in the aftermath of the war."
"I'll grant him anything he wants. He's not going to live through the night," Felix says.
"You are going to lie to a man and kill him without trial?" Dimitri asks in alarm.
"He's not even alive," Felix growls. "Now for the love of Seiros, trust me and follow my lead. I will explain everything soon."
What is Felix doing? Whatever he found in the woods has given him leverage over Sterling; that much is obvious. I just hope whatever his plan is, he is in sound enough mind to think it through. I have no choice but to play along with him for now, though.
Felix yanks his arm free from Dimitri's hand and walks over to the prison bars. "I will grant you immunity," he tells Sterling. "Whatever crimes you committed in complicity are less important to me than the person who has been slaughtering my citizens. Lead me to him and you will earn your pardon."
"He lives in the-"
"I said lead me to him. You're coming along," Felix says. He glances at Agust. "Release him."
"My lord-" the inspector begins but Dimitri interrupts him.
"Whether or not you see fit to comply with Duke Fraldarius's orders, you will certainly comply with mine. Cuff the man and release him, Inspector."
Good old Dimitri. Gentle as a kitten sometimes, terrifying as a dragon other times. Maybe if I got an eyepatch and a great fur coat people would show me the same amount of respect.
Once Sterling is free, Agust double checks his handcuffs then draws a dagger. Keeping the blade in one hand, he holds the chain of the cuffs in the other and says, "I wouldn't advise you to try anything, soldier. You will have my knife to your back, not to mention three of the most dangerous warriors in Fódlan with you."
As we leave the precinct, Agust motions for a handful of police officers to accompany us but Felix says, "That won't be necessary, Inspector."
Agust hesitates then calls them off. "Where are we going?" he asks Sterling.
"To the northern edge of town. There is a home at the dead end of Jasper Street where he is staying."
"How much do you know about Hamish Morcliff?" I ask, causing Felix to glance over at me with a questioning look.
"Probably less than the King of Faerghus does," Sterling says.
"How long has he been in Fraldarius territory?" Dimitri asks.
"I suppose I do know more then. He returned here three months ago."
"And you have been in his employ the entire time?" Dimitri asks.
Sterling does not reply and when Agust digs the butt of the knife into his back he says contemptuously, "Asmer was the one who did the killing. Morcliff kept him like a rabid dog on a chain, feeding his sick bloodlust by tossing him victims."
Felix and I exchange looks and I fall back a step to walk beside him and whisper in his ear, "Dimitri told me that the son, Hamish, locked himself up in Morcliff Manor after his father died and no one heard from him until he was drafted into the war. He fought for Cornelia and supposedly died in the siege of Fhirdiad. Apparently he denied his father's crimes until the end. The government kept tabs on him but never found signs of him being involved in what Francis did."
"How could he possibly believe that scumbag was innocent?" Felix hisses angrily.
"Apparently he claimed that his father had been forced to but he never said by who and no one could get him to testify at the trial. He just shut himself away and wasn't really seen or heard from until the war."
"'Forced to,'" Felix scoffs. "Disgusting."
"I'd be happier about my theory turning out to be true if it hadn't led to these horrible consequences."
Felix nods. "It was a good instinct. But listen, there's much more going on here. I can't talk about it yet, but stay on your toes. This is not going to go how we think it will."
His ominous warning makes my heart sink but I don't dare question him with Agust and Sterling so close by. Taking my lance from its sling on my back, I grip the hilt until my knuckles are white and scan our surroundings warily as we cross the city.
"Who killed the body left in Fraldarius Manor?" Agust asks Sterling. "Asmer is dead."
"I think your boy Hamish got desperate enough to get his own hands dirty for once. Or maybe Asmer peaked his interest in murder. Who knows," he answers.
"Who did he get the hallucinogenic poison from?" Agust asks.
"Some fancy mage in Fhirdiad, I imagine. I have no way of knowing."
"There were ingredients in your house."
"Because Morcliff asked me to buy them. I don't know what he was doing with them. Any other questions, Inspector? If you want to write them down, I can work on the list once we are through here and your killer is behind bars."
"You're staying behind bars too until those questions are answered," Agust growls.
"Fair enough," Sterling says. "But the duke is honor-bound to keep his promise at some point. I'm taking quite the risk ratting out Morcliff. That man is a monster and getting on his bad side is about as terrifying as getting on yours. I'm not doing this lightly."
"Really? Because it seems like-" Agust begins but Felix cuts him off.
"Inspector, our questions for this man can wait until after the killer has been apprehended. Let us focus on the task ahead."
"I have one more question I would like answered," Dimitri speaks up.
"Fire away, your highness," Sterling replies.
"Do you really think you can escape if you are leading us into a trap?" he asks.
Sterling does look slightly startled at that but he answers calmly nonetheless. "I don't imagine I would. I've set my course selling out Morcliff. You will find him alone. He has no other allies or confidants now that Asmer is dead. I'm not stupid enough to try to play the three great war dogs of Faerghus with my hands cuffed behind my back."
I stick close to Felix as we walk, casting sideways glances every so often at the strained hypervigilance in his manner and the fierce, thoughtful scowl on his face. He is plotting something.
Is he in any shape to coherently plot anything? What is he keeping from us?
Finally we reach Jasper Street and follow it down to its end on the outskirts of the town where we find a small, one-room house surrounded by an iron gate. Dimitri wrenches the lock off the gate with ease and pushes the door open.
Weapons raised, he and Felix and I approach the door, Agust and Sterling following along behind us.
"One wrong move and you're dead," Agust threatens Sterling.
"I'm aware," he says.
Agust looks at the three of us and says, "Spread out and surround the house quietly. Try to get a glimpse through the windows of who is inside. Once we're-"
Felix nods at Dimitri and he raises his lance and kicks down the door.
As we bolt into the house, leaving an exasperated Agust behind, I take stock swiftly of the sparse, brightly-lit room.
Within stands a man a couple years older than us - deathly pale, stark white hair, haggard but not frail. There is a vicious, gleaming scalpel in his hand.
And tied to a table is a girl - naked, gagged, eyes wide as the moon in terror, blood dripping scarlet across her skin from the half-drawn crest sliced into her stomach.
It all happens in a flash.
Felix dives at Morcliff, evading his frantic attack.
Dimitri roars in and seizes Morcliff's arms, wrestling them behind his back and pinning him down against the floor.
I run to the girl and swiftly draw healing magic to my hands, sealing up the incisions before she can lose more blood.
While I cast the spell, she just stares up at me with the kind of spine-chilling terror someone gets when looking a demonic beast in the eyes.
"Sylvain!" Dimitri says.
"I healed her!" I reply. "She's alright!"
As he drags Morcliff to the other side of the room and binds him to a chair, I untie the girl and remove her gag.
"You're going to be okay," I tell her gently. "We're going to take you home. You're safe now."
I try to help her sit up but the moment I put my hands on her she screams and throws herself off the table, scrambling into the corner of the room like a cornered animal. She grabs the scalpel up off the floor where Morcliff dropped it and brandishes it at me with shaking hands.
"Don't touch me!" she shrieks.
"It's okay. You're safe. I'm not going to hurt you," I say, kneeling down and holding up my hands in a sign of surrender.
She whimpers in fear and clutches the scalpel in both hands. "Get away from me! GET AWAY!"
"She's been drugged," Felix says. "Be careful."
My heart aches at the sight of her cowering away from me. It feels wrong to use force on someone so vulnerable, but she needs to be taken out of here and to a physician as soon as possible.
I walk closer slowly, then when I am within reach, I leap forward, dodging the clumsy swing of the scalpel, and grab her wrists, forcing her to drop the weapon. She struggles and cries out, but in seconds I have her gently but firmly pinned in my arms.
"We need to get her out of here!" I tell Agust. "Help me bind her hands then take her to a physician immediately! She needs to be sedated and cared for!"
He hands Sterling's chain to Felix and helps me. Once we have the girl subdued, he says, "You take her to the physician on Eighth Street."
I glance at Felix and he shakes his head at me.
"No, I'm not leaving here until I have answers from Morcliff," I reply. "Take her. We will haul Morcliff and Sterling to the police precinct."
"Bring him in alive!" Agust says.
"We will. You have my word," Dimitri says. "Please, Inspector. See to it that this girl is safe."
He looks both furious and uneasy at the order, but complies, taking the girl from me and leading her away. She stops thrashing but terror is still etched deeply across her expression.
After he is gone, Felix hands Sterling over to Dimitri and together, he and I stand before Hamish Morcliff and study him. He must know resistance is pointless, because he doesn't fight against his bonds. Instead he stares up at us with cold, calm hatred.
"You stupid, self-righteous pigs," he spits at us. "You took everything from me."
"We put a rapist and kidnapper behind bars," I reply, "whereas you have the blood of innocent people on your hands."
"We didn't put him behind bars," Felix snaps at Hamish. "A judge and jury did. If you can't accept that, you are a fool."
"I don't give a fuck about my father!" Hamish yells, losing his composure. "He did deserve to burn in hell! But you- you left me at their mercy! You have no idea what they took from me! What they did to me!"
"What who did to you?" Dimitri asks.
Hamish looks past us at Sterling, his eyes narrowing. "Are you going to kill me?" He laughs. "Go ahead. I should have killed myself years ago instead of cowing to you!"
"You're going to hang for what you've done, Hamish," Sterling answers. "But I'll have no part in it. The law will. You're a killer, after all. A psychopath."
"Psychopath?" Hamish laughs again. "Fuck you. Fuck all of you!"
I glance at Sterling in confusion and Dimitri holds onto the chain of his cuffs tighter. "What is going on here?" he growls.
"The man is insane. No normal person turns to such methods for revenge," Sterling replies. "He'll do anything to deflect the blame, just as he did with his father. Questioning him won't do you any good. You'd better take him in before your inspector grows more suspicious."
"I have one more question before we do," Felix says. "And I need it answered before the police arrive." He turns to Hamish and asks, "Did you kill this soldier or did Asmer? Who else is buried in those woods and yet still walking the streets alive?"
Sterling stiffens with a look of fear. Before any of us can react to Felix's accusation, five things happen almost simultaneously:
With a flicker, Sterling disappears and materializes on the far side of the room, his cuffs vanished.
He snatches a vial from the shelf and hurls it on the ground, releasing a heavy cloud of smoke into the air.
Another flicker and he is behind Morcliff, slashing the scalpel across his throat.
In the same instant, Felix and I dive at Sterling. But Felix is too slow and I grab Sterling instead. A strange sensation seizes me, like every fiber of my body is being undone then knit back together again.
When the flash of blinding light clears, Morcliff's house is gone and Sterling and I are lying on the ground in a barren field.
As my reeling senses steady, Sterling staggers to his feet and turns to me, a shimmering knife materializing in his hand.
"I handed you your killer on a silver platter. You should have taken him and lived the rest of your life in peace. Now you are all going to die!" he says, lunging at me.
