Hired Help

Juliette felt the nausea before she could see anything. Rubbing her temple, she felt a large lump.

She tried to listen but heard only the sounds of the street. Opening her eyes revealed nothing, since she was in a room that was almost pitch black but her eyes soon adjusted.

It didn't appear that anyone was with here, which she found surprising to say the least. Good, but surprising.

Slowly she sat up, keeping as silent as she could. Listening carefully she could clearly here the street, it seemed, from down below. Cautiously she stood, reaching out in the dark for any objects she may bump into. Her toe softly struck what seemed to be a wooden crate and she followed it to a wall.

"I'm not even tied up." she muttered. She followed the wall and came to a door, which was locked. Her fingers felt the knob and she tried to imagine it in her mind, wondering if it was a lock she was familiar with. Gaining no knowledge by touch she went to the other end of the door and felt the bolts that held it in place.

Juliette smiled as she realized one of the pins was loose.

Slowly she worked it from underneath until finally freeing it. Turning the pin upside down she used the slimmer end to carefully force the other two pins up and out of their slots. After what seemed an eternity, she felt the door shift ever so slightly and she knew she was successful.

Allowing the door to lean a bit loose in the frame, since it was still locked at its knob, gave her just the slightest bit of light. Juliette pressed her cheek to the crack, trying to understand her situation better.

At the farthest corner that she could see was a pair of man's boots, though she couldn't see if they were occupied by a man's feet or not. They rest of the potential person could be hidden behind a table, or, they could just be boots. She screwed her eye in the opposite direction and was thrilled to see that a very grimy mirror was hung on the opposite wall.

The mirror gave her a wonderful view of the room. A large bed dominated it and she could now see the man's boots appeared empty. She could see what she reasoned was the rooms door and realized that it was open. It appeared that the room was unoccupied and she decided to brave it.

Carefully and slowly she pulled the door back, waiting for the loud popping sound that she knew would come once the knob's tongue left its groove. It did and her heart hammered, waiting for the arrival of whoever had locked her in in the first place.

Nothing happened.

"Where are the bad guys?" she said under her breath. None appeared and she cautiously stepped into the room.

Juliette searched the room for a weapon and wasn't having any luck, though it was becoming a little more apparent where she was. The drawers of the room were full of dirty lingerie and a few "items" she didn't quite recognize but thought she had an idea of what they could be for. The bed had some strips of leather tied to its headboard. Peeking out of the open door she saw another room with another bed set up similarly. All in all it helped her reach one conclusion.

"I'm in a damn whorehouse."

Well that was certainly interesting. But where were the whores? Why weren't these beds occupied?

Juliette crept through the next room and reached its door as well. This one was closed and she tested the knob, pleased that this one was unlocked. Opening it a crack she could see the hallway but she also saw two men.

The men were speaking frantically to one another, and the one on the left looked vaguely familiar. It registered that she had seen him before and now that she had to think about it, she had seen him in a few places.

The man had been in the tap room in an inn outside Denerim, the last place they had eaten before entering the city. Had she also seen him talking to a page? She was positive she had seen him in the Market Place last night.

How had she not noticed him? He'd been following her off and on for a week!

He turned himself slightly while speaking and she saw that he wore a sword at his side. She was familiar with the sword too, she realized rubbing her temple.

Desperately she tried to listen to their conversation but couldn't hear them over the noise she could hear from below. Suddenly the man she did not recognize departed down the hallway and the man she knew was about to open the door.

Juliette leapt back and pressed herself against the wall the door would swing into. He entered the room and immediately proceeded through to the next. Juliette realized that he was heading to the room he thought she was locked into and knew she had to act fast. She saw a poker by the fireplace, grabbed it and followed him into the next bedroom.

She swung the poker into the side of his knees, sweeping them out from under him. He landed with a thud and she pushed her heel into his throat and held the poker an inch above his right eye.

"Say a word and you will be blind!" she threatened in a loud whisper. His eyes were full of fear and she gave his throat a good press to make sure he believed her.

Juliette leaned about a foot away to the bed post and pulled a heavy leather strap from it.

"Raise your hands."

Like a fool he complied, not even trying to force her off balance. She was thrilled to realize that this man was no fighter. She quickly bound his hands and he dropped them onto his chest.

"Why did you attack me?"

"I, "his voice strained from her foot "I didn't mean to but you saw me."

"Doing what?"

"Following you." he answered. "I wasn't supposed to be seen. Just keep an eye on you, report back."

"Report back to whom?" she asked.

"I ain't gonna tell you! He'll cut me to pieces!"

Juliette leaned against his throat and his face contorted with pain. She waited another minute for his skin to get that blue haze she sought and then let up.

"Report back to whom?"

The man gasped and coughed and looked at her with real fear. Good.

"Ser Jasper, Bann Ceorlic's man! He said that you was a threat and that the lady would benefit from keepin a eye on you, so I did."

"What lady?"

He didn't answer so she shoved her heel back down and once the blue returned she moved her foot.

"One more time, what lady?"

"Our queen! It's you who had her locked up when you made the new king king! I heard all about it at the tavern!"

Juliette was astonished. Anora?

"She was a good queen, used to have her maids hand out money to us folk but then that was that. I've been havin to work!"

"So you were hired to watch me, report what I did to Bann Ceorlic's man Ser Jasper which aids Anora?"

"I'm in service to help right a wrong I am!"

"Do you know a Bann Reign?"

"Everybody knows him and I ain't sayin a thing about his jobs I do cause he'll hang my nether parts on my mother's front door!"

Juliette mulled that over in her mind. "You are right to fear him, he wouldn't want me to know that he is helping the queen."

"No he wouldn't!" and his eyes widened as he realized he had confirmed her suspicions. "You tricked me! That wasn't fair!"

"You hit me in the head!" she glared at him. "Speaking of which," Juliette flipped the poker into the air and deftly caught the sharp end. His eyes widened as she brought the blunt handle against his head.

Juliette pulled more leather straps from the bedstead and bound his feet. She drug him into the dark room she had woken up in and pulled his bindings off his wrists. She rolled him onto his stomach and bound his hands behind him. Pulling the binding of his feet up she pressed his boot heels into his bottom and tied the hand and feet straps together. She found a rag and stuffed it into his mouth.

Juliette did her best to place the broken door back into its frame. Eyeing it she knew it wasn't perfect but it wasn't obvious anymore either.

"Time to go home." and she crept through the unlocked door into the hall and when she reached the top of the stairs paused. It sounded as though the rooms downstairs, a tap room as far as she could gather, was full of patrons. Deciding against trying to blend in, since someone might recognize her or worse, think she was part of the entertainment, she tried a few other doors off the hall.

The door at the end gave way to an office and she was thrilled to see a window. It was small and the drop long but she thought that if she lowered herself out of the frame rather than jumping she would be alright.

Her theory proved correct. Though she got a cat call in doing so and a couple of strange looks, she was able to lower herself and drop into the alley below.

Juliette raced away from the back of the building. She hurried a few more streets and was able to gather her bearings. She was in the lower part of the city, in the warehouse district. Juliette found the gate connecting the area to a walkway to the south side of the marketplace and hurried across.

An hour later she was back at the palace gates. She bound up the steps and almost collided with Nathaniel, Oghren and Anders.

"Where in the Ancestor's ass cheeks have you been Commander?" Oghren barked out.

Anders immediately noticed her swollen temple and Nathaniel looked enraged.

"What happened? Who did this?"

"How'd you know I was gone?" she asked.

"You received a second note from the Arlessa apologizing for missing you." Nathaniel answered.

"Oh, well, there you go. Shall we head to my rooms?" she calmly said.

Two hours later, a wonderful healing spell cast on her and a hot dinner the wardens had put together a picture of what may really be happening within the court.

"So how do we share this with Alistair and Eamon?" Oghren asked.

"I'm not sure. Obviously we are all being carefully watched." Juliette replied.

"Though not competently." Anders scoffed.

Juliette smiled at that. "Well yes, but it's hard to find good help these days."

"Perhaps I could go." Nathaniel offered." I am the newest warden, an outcast and powerless, at least to the court. Having me run an errand or two would seem a reasonable use for me."

"That sounds just horrible, boy, when you say it like that."

Nathaniel smiled at Oghren. "Thanks."

Juliette saw the sense in what Nathaniel was saying.

"He's right though, Nathaniel could go deliver something to Arl Eamon without anyone really being surprised that he is carrying messages. It would make it seem uneventful." Juliette thought about it and nodded her head.

"Let me write it up and then you can read it. If you still want to you could take it." and she stood up and headed into the study.

An hour later Nathaniel was placing the note into the Arl's hand, apologizing for the late hour and immediately leaving his presence.