A/N: A shout out to my anonymous reviewer! Trouble is a coming but not necessarily in this chapter. ;) More on that soon. Thanks!
Chapter 8
"Ok so you think that our Munchkin 'friend' is digging for something?" Elphaba raised an eyebrow. The group had met up in the study after Boq had rounded up Glinda and the green woman about thirty minutes later. They had all found the chairs surrounding the large table in the middle of the room and we're enjoying a cup of tea that Mr. Samuels had brought them.
"What exactly would he be gaining from getting dinner and a place to sleep?" The blonde asked.
"Not him per se. I spoke to the Captain before the meeting. He has eyes on the driver who brought Lord Nipp here," Councilman Fekri explained.
"Because he would disappear easily? I mean no offense to Councilman Arif or Boq but Munchkins kind of stick out amongst those inside these walls," Elphaba pointed out.
"No offense taken. Our thoughts were that it didn't mean there wouldn't be those who would 'accidentally' bump into him and pass him a note," Arif said.
"Ah, now that I buy. Or maybe stick something inside the carriage or something like that," the green woman nodded.
"Indeed. Could be our medicine thief is dropping what he stole inside the carriage so that the Munchkins could take them home," Barat suggested.
"That is a good point. Certainly would explain the timing," Glinda nodded.
"Fiyero said to me that Doctor Talib had a list of people who visited him. He's got Lieutenant Zetti and a couple of men running it down. He's given up on the smoke bomb for now," Elphaba let them know.
"Good, because my brain went to a place that I didn't like," Boq spoke up.
"I'm afraid to ask Master Boq," Councilman Chalumpo said.
"Well, what if a Wizard sympathizer had posed as a mason? I mean they could be using the medicine to make a poison," the Tin Man brought his thoughts from earlier.
"I can see why you'd have that thought though. We know that not all of the Wizard sympathizers were rounded up – just the worst of them," Fekri nodded his head before taking a sip of his tea, though admittedly he did think twice about it.
"So, we could have a mad poisoner on our hands or someone could be handing it off to the Munchkins. Neither is great," Arif frowned.
"No. If someone is stealing medical supplies for the Munchkins, that means they still do not trust us enough to ask for them," Elphaba heaved a sigh.
"Well, they have put themselves in an awkward position. Without being a part of our discussions and not coming to the table when we arrested the Wizard, they have effectively been cut off from the usual trades and supplies coming in and out of Munchkinland. None of the countries of Oz are able to be self-sufficient and that is why, I think, that at first, the Quadlings joined us. No offense, Chalumpo," Barat said.
"None taken. The difference is that shortly after Lady Glinda took power, there was a shake up in the Quadling government," Chalumpo told them.
"There was? I don't remember hearing about it," Glinda was confused.
"Well, we did try to keep it quiet. None of the officials that work with me or have visited the Emerald City were the ones who got in trouble. One of the lesser-known political players, tried to rail against you. He was arrested, flogged in front of a crowd of people, and then stripped of his position. Our President stopped just short of exiling him. Since he was made an example of, most have learned to keep their thoughts to themselves. Most would just like to go back to their lives," the youngest Council Member explained.
"That's one way to do it," Elphaba was surprised.
"Most Quadlings aren't interested in messing with the status quo, we like the status quo. That doesn't mean we're against change or anything, but we tend to think, usually, before we act," he smiled.
"I knew I liked him," Barat smirked. There was a knock on the door and they all went silent.
"It's Private Roth. I need to borrow Miss Elphaba," the young man announced from the other side of the door. The green woman didn't like that and she quickly excused herself.
To Be Continued…
