Chapter Thirteen: Lord Have
Edgeworth pensively stared down at the sealed manilla file clutched in one of his hands while he perched his chin in the other. Though he'd received the autopsy report well over an hour ago, he hadn't seen fit to open it just yet. He was instead content to study the outside envelope while he let his thoughts drift from what he'd learned to what he hadn't yet concerning the scope of the case.
He was alone at present. Maya had wandered outside on the grounds that she needed some air. He suspected she would need a reprieve long before she departed, since coming face to face with her once captor on the scene of yet another murder probably didn't sit well with her in any respect, nor did he think would it with anyone else.
Figuring it would be a while before she returned, Edgeworth undid the twine holding the envelope shut and fished the autopsy report out of its manilla prison. He'd catch her up when she returned, but, for now, he'd continue his research himself.
The report itself was standard enough. The victim, Mrs. Claire A. Voyant, formerly known as Claire A. Fey, was found dead in the sword chamber, her death due to blood loss from a single slash to the neck and, other than the killing slice, no signs of a struggle were found on the body. The report didn't say what the murder weapon was, so Edgeworth figured the weapon's true identity was still unknown.
That, in and of itself, wasn't surprising. Many bladed instruments could fit the bill for such a small, yet deep nick to the carotid artery, so pinning down what actually did the old bat in would take some time, he expected.
Other than that, though, the report held little of interest. It told him her age, 102, (he'd actually pegged her for older than that), her status as a Synod Elder, that she survived her long dead husband and had no children, so there wasn't any immediate family to contact, but there wasn't much else that Edgeworth viewed useful to his investigation, so he put the trivial details from his mind so they wouldn't muddy the waters.
"Mr. Edgeworth? Are you in there, sir? D'you have a minute?"
Edgeworth looked up from the report.
Detective Time was on the other side of the door, knocking to be let in.
His nose wrinkled. Truthfully, no, he did not have a minute, but something in the pit of his stomach told him that if he didn't answer, the soft knocking would only continue and eventually would get louder. So, he assented to the inevitable, set down the page he was holding and picked up the envelope.
"I suppose." Edgeworth returned the autopsy report to the envelope and placed on the desk. "Come in, Time."
"Thank you, sir." The door creaked open to admit the ginger detective, though only his auburn head poked through the crack in the doorway. "I didn't want to bother you or anything while you're workin', but something's come up."
"And what might that be?" Edgeworth steepled his fingers together and regarded the freckly young man through half lidded eyes. "There hasn't been a third murder, has there?"
"Not that I know of, sir." said Time as he slipped the rest of himself inside. "Y'see, I was wanderin' around the gardens, keepin' an eye on that freaky manju salesman and having a good ol' think because I didn't have much else to do, and I ran aground of a young lady."
Edgeworth's dull glare deepened.
"How, pray tell, do your romantic entanglements warrant the need to interrupt my work in the middle of the night? You're grown enough, you should know that there is a time for work and a time for carnal pursuits."
Time flushed.
"Er, I- it's not what you think, sir. I'm not lookin' for any kind of romantic advice or- it's not like she was my type or- uh, but th-that's not the point." He blustered through his embarrassment and quickly cleared his throat, though the tips of his ears were brighter than his hair. "The young lady said she was lookin' for you."
Edgeworth's eyebrows lifted.
"For me?" He repeated incredulously. What the devil was going on? Why was a woman looking for him? He didn't entertain random solicitations from strange women in the middle of the night, and especially not during business hours.
... well, other than Maya, of course.
"Yes, sir." nodded Time. "She said she'd been told she needed to speak with you for an interview about what happened earlier. Y'know, the second murder?"
That was when he remembered.
"Ah, yes, I see. A Miss... Mercy, was it?" Edgeworth picked up the docket file that held the list of witnesses at the scene of the crime with whom he had yet to speak. "Is that her name?"
"Yes, sir." said Time. "She said she'd been sent by the Doctor, that crazed old harpy with the stick, to see you. According to her, the old lady made quite the scene about it, told her that she couldn't come back to the hospital until she'd spoken with you. Mind you, from the way she was going on about it, you'd think she'd just been sentenced to death if she didn't find you or somethin'. I don't claim to know the first thing about medical types, but they always seemed a bit batty to me. I mean, you'd have to be, being surrounded by all those medical charts and samples of bits and pieces of random people's body fluids floatin' about-"
"Detective Time, if you wish to live up to your name, I'd appreciate it if you got to the point so you stop wasting mine."
"Oh! Right, right. Sorry, sir. Anyway, she approached me askin' if I knew where you were and, even though I wasn't on the case anymore, I figured I might as well see if I could be of some use."
"I see. Is she waiting outside the door, then?" Edgeworth looked pointedly at the open door behind Time.
"No... not exactly." Time sheepishly closed the door behind him. "I, er, left her in the garden. She should still be there, but I can go get her if you want. It'll only be a minute or three."
"Why in the blazes did you do something like that?!" Edgeworth bristled. "In case you've forgotten, there could very well be a murderer on the loose."
More than 'very well' if he were honest, but he didn't see fit to keep Time in the loop that much.
"I know that, sir, but... er, speakin' forthrightly with ya, I wanted to get away from her as quickly as possible." Time scratched at a freckle. "I don't like her. She was clingin' to me and pawin' at me and she kept lookin' at me like I was the last nicotine patch at a smokers anon meeting. For someone who just saw a dead body, you'd think she'd have a little more need to be alone to process it instead of clawin' at a stranger like she was."
"People react to murder in their own way." said Edgeworth. "Don't try to understand it, Time. You'll only get a headache."
"Right." Time ran a hand through his hair. "So, what shall I tell her? Do you want to see her, or should I make up some hare-brained excuse so she'll clear off and you can continue your work in peace?"
Edgeworth idly wondered if that option included Time himself too, but he didn't say so aloud.
"Show her in if you would." He retrieved his notebook from his breast pocket, blandly shifted the pages to a blank page, and began to write in it.
"Alright, sir." said Time. "Do, er, you want me to get her now?"
"Now."
"... yes, sir."
"Also, Detective Time." Edgeworth briefly glanced over the top of his glasses at the young man. "Before you fetch her, there is something I need to speak with you about."
"Sir?" Time blinked, looking bewildered.
"I have some extracurricular activities that I think may be of interest to you." Edgeworth wrote down some notes on the paper, surveyed his handiwork and, with one swift motion, tore the page out of his book. "I learned earlier that a suspicious looking man was seen lurking about the village before the incidents occurred and hasn't been spotted since either murder's discovery. I want you to look into it for me."
"On this paper is a description of the man that I received. Use it and see what you can find." He passed the paper off to Time. "Normally I would have Detective Skye follow up this lead, but she's far too busy as it is, so you will have to pick up the slack in her stead."
"And this is alright, sir?" Time skimmed over the page. "I thought havin' me on the case would be a huge breach of protocol."
"This is a separate matter." Edgeworth replied glibly. "You are simply following up on a lead that is of importance to me. Whether or not it is relevant to the case at hand will be decided when and if we come to it."
"Well... that is true, I guess." Time read the page over twice, folded it up and tucked it into his breast pocket. "Alright. You can count on me, sir. I'll search this town from top to bottom and see what I can find."
"Good." Edgeworth nodded in approval. "If you must, think of it as a way to get your mind off things. By the way, have you perchance come across Detective Skye lately? I wanted to ask her about something, but she's not answering her phone."
Time's nose crinkled so it looked like more freckles had spawned out of thin air.
"Yeah, I saw her alright, and frankly, I'm not rightly shocked she didn't answer you."
"Why's that?"
"She's passed out on a bench in the garden with her hand in a half eaten bag of snackoos."
"Miss Mercy." Edgeworth stood up in greeting when the plump young woman came into his office. "Thank you for coming at such short notice."
"You're welcome, Mr... Edgeworth, was it? Yes, that's it, isn't it?" Mercy's bowed to him while her gooseberry eyes scanned quickly around the room. "Um, excuse me, but where's Mystic Maya? Is she not here?"
"Miss Fey has ventured outside for a reprieve of sorts." said Edgeworth. "She was not feeling well."
"Not feeling well? Hmm. I see." Mercy eyed Edgeworth with an expression akin to a shrewd vampire sizing up its next meal. "Then, she isn't going to be helping you with your investigation? You're all on your own now?"
"For the time being." Edgeworth replied. "Do you take some issue with that? If so, I can arrange for this interview to be postponed until she returns."
"No, no, no, that's quite alright." Like someone had flipped a switch, Mercy giggled an overly emphasized giggle, took the seat had once housed de Killer and readjusted the hem of her habit so it was above her knee rather than below it. "You're quite kind for offering, though."
"Think nothing of it." Edgeworth stiffly appraised the young woman in front of him; though a far cry from how she'd been when he first saw her, the recent depiction of her behavior that he received from the detective seemed to resonate. "What has happened has been an ordeal for everyone involved, so it's only fitting to allow that as an option."
"I see." Mercy sighed wistfully. "You're so kind to be concerned about us all, but even though I'm the one who found the body, the one I worry for is Mystic Maya."
"Oh?" Edgeworth's left eyebrow arched. "Why is that?"
"Well..." Mercy turned her gaze downward in thought. "She has been through a lot lately, especially now there've been these horrid murders happening right under her nose. I can't say I'm at all taken unawares that poor Mystic Maya isn't feeling well. She's not said anything, but she's been so tired lately and hasn't been eating for weeks. You can tell by the effect it's been having on her skin. It's aging her."
Personally, Edgeworth thought Maya looked just fine, but he kept his silence in favor of keeping Mercy talking.
"If that's the case," He picked up his notebook and jotted down a few notes. "It's only fitting that we proceed with the interview immediately. You were the first to discover the body, were you not?"
"Yes, I was." Mercy wrung her hands in her lap. "I went to check Mrs. Voyant and that's when I found her dead on the floor of the sword chamber. Oh, it was simply horrible, the way she was, all curled up in a ball like a dead spider!"
"Was Pearl also there when you found Mrs. Voyant?"
"She most certainly was." said Mercy. "She was lying on the floor, bleeding from her head. It looked like she'd been struck with something, but I couldn't see what."
She must've been alluding to the chest that had been knocked upside in the corner of the chamber.
"What did you do when you found the body?" asked Edgeworth.
"I didn't want to leave, but I knew I had to do something, so I ran out looking for help. I couldn't do anything on my own."
"I see." He wrote down some notes. "Why did you go to check on Mrs. Voyant in the first place? Was there something amiss that gave you pause for concern?"
"Not exactly. I had given her some pills about an hour before I found her."
"And was she alive when you gave her the pills?"
"Yes, she was." said Mercy. "She told me that she had just finished talking with you and that she was ready for her medication, so I set the tray with the glass of water and the pills down next to her and left."
"You didn't stay with her while she took her medication?"
"She didn't like it when I watched her. She said it made it hard for her to swallow." said Mercy. "I'm not sure why. She was blind, so it shouldn't have made a difference."
Edgeworth pensively tapped the pen against the tabletop, considering her words, while she watched him fervently from her seat across the desk. He wasn't astonished by her stare, though. Most witnesses were like this, always chomping at the bit to reveal any information they had, and even more keen to latch onto what the interviewer revealed in their questions, no matter how innocuous.
After all, it wasn't every day one was caught up in a murder. One had to savor these moments while they lasted.
"Did she take them once you left?" Edgeworth finally inquired after a moment's silence.
"I'd say so. I didn't see her take it, but when I came back, the pills were gone and the water glass was drained dry. I took the tray from the scene, which is why nobody saw it. At the time, I didn't realize it was part of a crime scene or else I wouldn't have touched it. The last thing I want are my fingerprints on anything crime scene-like."
"When you removed the tray, is that when you found the body?"
"No. Not that time." said Mercy, looking thoughtful. "I called to her, but she didn't answer and I didn't see her, so I figured she wasn't around. She likes to walk the halls sometimes. So, I returned about twenty minutes later and looked in on her to see if she'd come back, but when I saw that the door to the chamber behind hers was ajar, I got worried. You see, the door had been closed when I went in the first time."
"So the door was already ajar when you arrived, but only after the second time." Edgeworth murmured quietly. "Was there anyone there?"
"Not that I could see." said Mercy.
"Why were you the one whom delivered the pills?" asked Edgeworth.
"It's part of my duties as a nurse in training in the two year course." said Mercy, puffing out her chest proudly. "You see, I'm training to be a nurse."
"Yes, I gathered that." Edgeworth replied flatly. "So, how far are you into your two year program?"
"I'm still in the beginning stages."
"How long does that translate into for years?"
"Six."
"Six months?"
"No. Six years."
Edgeworth looked up.
"I'm sorry?"
"I've been training for six years." said Mercy.
"That's... a rather long time to be in training, isn't it?"
"No, no, it's perfectly normal." The young lady protested with an almost bitter tone to her voice. "You see, the head doctor just has very strict guidelines for nursing students and while I'm naturally following them to the letter, with all my other preoccupations, I've had no choice but to keep my studies at a slower pace. I ought not, though. I'm already doing such a good job, there's no reason why she shouldn't let me proceed to the next stage."
"... naturally."
"So good to see you're a man who can see the truth of the matter." continued Mercy. "I've just been busy with other things, that's all."
Edgeworth bit back a snort. She'd have to be if she'd been interning that long in the two year program without graduating.
"You spoke of some preoccupations. Would you please elaborate?"
"Hm, let's see..." Mercy tapped the side of her cheek. "I'm training to be a nurse, and then there's my day job in the city as a secretary, and I'm in a great many of the arts, so that takes up a chunk of my time. I'm also going to start a school, and I'll even go back and get my masters in engineering, and then I'll write a great novel-"
'And then you'll be a fairy princess, a cowboy, and a ballerina?' Edgeworth thought drily. This woman clearly had no idea what she wanted to be when she grew up.
"-but those are taking a backseat to what I'm really working on. You see, while I may be busy with everything else, I still am well on my way to becoming a spirit medium."
"Oh?" Edgeworth's eyebrows raised a millimeter. "Have you channelled anyone yet?"
Mercy's mouth thinned into a tight line.
"Well, I..." The previous pride she'd had floundered about like a fish on a dock. "That's... er, I'm just not ready to show it off yet, that's all."
He took that as a no.
"So, you are a nurse in training." Edgeworth steered the conversation back to the main point. "That means you were present at the hospital last night, is that correct?"
"Yes, it is." nodded Mercy. "I had to take off for about an hour, but I came back as soon as it was done."
"What time were you back at the hospital?"
"Around 9:30 pm." said Mercy. "That's when I saw, erm... never mind."
Edgeworth's eyes narrowed behind his glasses.
"Saw what, Miss Fey?"
"Well, I... I don't know if I should say this more." Mercy tugged reluctantly at her habit's sleeves. "Mystic Maya is awfully fond of her little cousin and she's just as cute as a button, I don't want to get her in trouble, and Phil said- oh!"
Mercy clapped a hand to her mouth, her eyes wide.
"What did Phil say?" Edgeworth inquired sharply.
Mercy suddenly started to howl.
"He said that if I told you what I saw, he'd make sure I'd regret it!"
Edgeworth's insides curdled at the sight of the hysterical woman in front of him and it was only his sense of professionalism that kept him from bolting.
"Why did he threaten you?" He asked calmly whilst trying desperately hard not to make a break for it out the nearest window.
"B-because I saw P-pearl." sniveled Mercy. "I saw her l-last night at the hospital and Phil told me not to tell you. He said it would make it look bad for P-pearl and the evidence already was against her and she's the main suspect and all."
"I see." Edgeworth made a small note in his notebook. "Was this last night?"
"N-no." Mercy shook her head. "It was about an hour ago. He came back from delivering the autopsy report and told me flat out that if I said anything about what I saw, I'd regret it. You see, he saw Pearl last night too, right when I did, so he knows what I know and-"
"What were you two doing at the time?"
"We were... going over inventory I think." Mercy swallowed down some mucus and sneezed. "I got a lecture from the head doctor because I had to leave temporarily for some counseling and didn't tell her about it, so I was stuck going over the stock rooms and jotting down what we had and what we didn't. It's a frightfully tedious job."
"Why was Phil there?" queried Edgeworth. "Surely you don't need two people counting inventory."
"That's what I said. However, Phil didn't think I could do a good job of it. He said I'd just muck it up, the big jerk."
Admittedly, that wasn't the kindest way he could have put it, but if her predilection for flitting from occupation to occupation was any sort of indication of her work ethic, Edgeworth saw the reason behind the junior doctor's suspicion she might not be thorough.
"Describe, if you will, the events that took place last night." He flipped to a new page. "Also, if you wish it, I can arrange for some police protection."
"You'd do that?" Mercy peered woefully at him through her fingers. "Really?"
"Yes, but only if you tell me exactly what happened at the time you saw Pearl."
"I..." Mercy's sniffing subsided a bit. "I suppose, if you mean what you say."
"I assure you, madam, I seldom say what I don't."
"Oh. I see. So, it's all settled then. Well," Mercy's sniveling vanished and she leaned forwards like she'd arrived at the beauty salon with some juicy gossip to dish upon. "Last night, I was working inventory with Phil when, all of a sudden, I heard a crash coming from the storeroom next to mine. Naturally, I went to investigate and who did I find rummaging around the cupboards, but Pearl, of all people. So, curious as to why she was milling about the storeroom, I asked her what she was doing and she said she was going on a trip and needed a bag. However, the thing is, I thought that was a little weird since the other day, Mystic Maya told me that she'd sprung for this cute little leather suitcase for Pearl for her birthday at the end of February, practically paid a fortune for it. I didn't understand why she'd spend so much money on a suitcase, but the thing's supposedly got a hundred year warranty on it, so it'll last longer than Pearl will. The tag line for the company is 'they'll fight over it when you're dead', which I think is just frightful bringing death into a company's slogan, but Mystic Maya was certain she'd picked out a good product for Pearl, though I'm not sure that stain of leather was appropriate for someone as delicate as Pearl. Black leather's cold and stark, but I suppose the tobacco stain wouldn't hold well with her either since she doesn't like smoking-"
"If we could get back to the crux of the case, madam." Edgeworth put an exasperated hand to his temple; this woman gave Wendy Oldbag a run for her money. "You spoke of a bag. What did it look like?"
"It's big, orange and baggish." said Mercy. "As for what she wanted it for, I didn't ask for more details- I'm not a busybody gossip, you see- so I gave her what she was looking for without a second thought. Pearl's such a good girl, I never would've thought she was up to anything. Anyway, she took the bag from me and darted out of the room without so much as a 'thank you'. I could scarcely believe it. Here I was having taken time out of my busy day to help her and she just up and left without so much as a 'by your leave', almost careening into Phil like she was a bull charging at a red flag. Nearly knocked him over and then when he tried calling to her, she just took off."
"Did you see her again?"
"No, I did not." said Mercy. "I didn't see her again until I came across Mrs Voyant and saw her sprawled out on the floor."
"Did she take anything else from the store room?"
"You'd have to ask Phil about that." Mercy snorted derisively. "He's the one who did the whole inventory. I was just the glorified pack mule, fetching this, carrying that, toting that bale and dragging that barge and what have you. A total waste of my efforts, really."
"I'm sure." Edgeworth shut the book; the task of getting Phil to talk was far easier said than done. "In any case, I think that's all I am going to need from you, Miss Mercy. You are free to go."
"What? That's it?" Mercy looked disappointed. "Don't you want to ask me about anything else?"
"No, I don't think that will be necessary." said Edgeworth. "You've clearly had a trying experience and I see no reason to make you relieve unfortunate memories more than necessary."
What he really wanted to add was 'since it might very well urge you to recite them in over-indulging detail and make my headache worse', but that wouldn't help his situation much, so instead Edgeworth reread the notes before him and said, "Do you have any questions? I cannot divulge much, but if anything at all strikes you as odd, please feel free to ask and I will answer it to the best of my ability."
Normally he didn't host question and answer sessions with witnesses, but for a witness as woolly as she was, it seemed like the best option to allow her to pry a little. It was possible something she asked could lead to a snippet of information.
"Hmm..." Mercy tilted her head from side to side as she chewed on the offer. "I have one question, but I don't think it's related to the case."
"I will be the judge of that, Miss Fey. Go ahead and ask it. It may very well have some bearing on the case."
The glint in Mercy's gooseberry eyes grew gleeful.
"Okay, if you insist." Mercy clucked like a hen about to brood. "What's your relationship with the Master, Mr. Edgeworth? Are you two... intimate?"
Edgeworth stared at her.
"I beg your pardon?"
"What's the nature of your relationship with Mystic Maya?" Mercy leaned forwards in her chair so much, she was practically squished against the desk's outer edge. "Are you two acquaintances, friends, or... something else? Is there something more to you two that meets the eye?"
Edgeworth's gaze grew cold. The last time he checked, neither he, nor Maya, were transformers.
"You are indeed right in thinking that has no bearing on this case." He said icily. "Why do you want to know such a thing?"
"Well… it's kind of embarrassing, but I have a wager with someone and we both wanted to know." said Mercy with another embellished giggle. "So, is it true?"
Edgeworth snorted.
Embarrassing for whom, exactly?
"Miss Fey and I are merely casual friends and work acquaintances, nothing more." said Edgeworth. "There is no concupiscent conduct between us, if that's what you're curious about."
"Huh?" Mercy tilted her head to the side.
"Erm... Miss Fey and I are only on platonic terms, and not those of a licentious or prurient nature."
"... what's that?" Mercy's pinprick eyes narrowed slightly and then widened as she continued to gaze at him, though all that did was make him internally squirm. Had she finally figured out what he was trying to get across to her in as tactful a light as possible?
He hoped she did.
"Um… alright. How strange. Anyway, I had another question, well, more like a request."
"Yes?" Edgeworth pounced on the opportunity to deviate away from the previous question. "What is it?"
"If I'm getting a security detail, can I put in a request for an officer?"
"It depends. Whom did you want to request?"
Mercy tittered an overly saccharine simper so sweet, it made his stomach turn.
"I want that cute ginger snap of a detective to escort me back the hospital. You know, the freckly one in the blue coat."
Edgeworth's gaze glazed over.
"... I'll can see what I can arrange."
(A/N- And that's chapter thirteen done. Woo! I'd wanted to get this up sooner, but I got in too late last night after a long haul of work and fell asleep at my computer before I was able to post. Luckily, I missed the computer itself and didn't end up with keyboard face. XD Anyway, thank you to everyone who favorited, alerted and commented on my last chapter. Hearing everyone's thoughts on my work really makes writing that much better and brightens my day. So, thank you all again for reading and please review!)