In Too Deep

[Dracos]

"You know, you didn't answer who has the knife and...I don't get it.  Why would naming some other assassin tip the hand that Verrik is here?"

Dracos

[Bjorn]

Bjorn scrubs at his face tiredly.  "Kevin took charge of the knife," he answers, "and that probably means Ekim has it now.  

"As for the other... naming another assassin if we knew Verrik was here would tip us off that this whole thing was a snow-job.  The best lie is mostly truth, right?  So rather than taking the risk that we've already guessed what assassin is running around, they'd name the true assassin -- but point us at someone else.  And given that Durant actually was an assassin, why would we doubt them?"

[Rezantis]

Nathan shakes his head. "Now we're just jumping to conclusions.  Look, we ain't going to get a straight out answer to this, either way - and another possible explanation for the papers is that since Dorian knew he was going to kill Paul, may as well leave something incriminating on the guy behind if Paul did get him.  Somewhat reaching, but possible.  But yeah, we're not going to get a straight out answer to this.  So what do we do - or do we just sit around and wait and hope something falls into our laps?"

[Bjorn]

Bjorn shakes his head.  "All right.  Let's start from the beginning.  Does anyone here believe Paul -- or his other-self, anyways -- actually is Verrik?"

He holds up a hand warningly.  "Bear with me.  Yes or no."

[Rezantis]

"Not really, no."

[Dracos]

Dracos shrugs.  "I don't know enough about verrik to say anything there."

Dracos

[Bjorn]

With a glance at Philip, Bjorn continues.  "All right, then.  Then to get Paul free, we have to be able to prove that he isn't Verrik.   At the same time, he was an assassin working for Dorian -- who was Fletcher, by the way -- and we have to hide that fact.

"Nothing Paul can say or do will convince people he isn't Verrik, not with Verrik's reputation.  The only way we can prove what we need to prove is to find someone privy to Dreadmarch plans, and who can tell us that, yes indeed, Durant is not Verrik.  Which is why I hope that the real Verrik is running around in the Keep, by the way, because I have a hard time imagining what evidence short of catching him will be able to convince everyone.

"So.  Unless Dorian was responsible for everything, which seems unlikely, there's at least one more assassin in the Keep.  He's our best lead, as far as I can see, so we need to catch him.  Of course, we've been trying to do that all along, so we need to ask: in the face of all that's happened, what would our hypothetical assassin do next?"

"All right, let's review the facts."  He starts ticking things off on his fingers.  "I asked Paul to go check on the meeting place with Fletcher.  I also asked, unknown to Paul, Lindsey to follow him, to make sure things went okay.  When Paul got to the meeting place, Dorian came up behind him.  He admitted to being Fletcher, told Paul he'd failed at his mission, and then knifed him.  Lindsey was able to save Paul before he died.

"Then the two of them followed Dorian to the tower, caught him shooting at the Lorekeepers, and killed him.  Afterwards, Nathan and I searched Dorian's room.  We found the periapt, the same sort of arrows that had been used in the shootings, Verrik's knife, and a written confession by Dorian, where he admitted to being an agent of the Dreadmarch -- not of Solariat -- and where the Verrik accusation was made.

"As well, Paul's journal has disappeared.  On one hand, that journal incriminates him, since it as much as says that he'd done various dirty work for Fletch.. Dorian.  On the other hand, the journal also makes it pretty clear that Durant isn't Verrik.  The journal used to be in Paul's room, but it's gone.  No servants clean Paul's room, by his request.  I talked to a servant who'd be around most of the past day, and he hadn't seen anyone go into Paul's room."

Bjorn puts down his hands.  "Okay.  So far, all fact.  Now, it seems pretty obvious that Paul was supposed to die in the first knifing, unless you want to assume that Dorian could see invisible people.  This in turn suggests that Dorian wasn't supposed to die, because if Paul and Lindsey hadn't followed him, he likely would have been able to finish off Parthipan, Astryd, and Serril, and then there'd be no one left to finger him.

"I think it's also equally obvious that we were supposed to search Dorian's room and find what we did.  The stuff was just crammed in a flimsy footlocker, and the papers just lying on his desk.  It wouldn't have been that hard to hide things a little better."

Scratching his forearm, Bjorn sighs.  "How you put it together is speculation.  I've made it clear what I think, at least.  But what I think is beyond question is this: Paul is a loose end, and whatever their plan was, the Dreadmarch needs him to die in an 'accident' as soon as possible."

[Rezantis]

"Definitely."

Nathan takes another bite of breakfast as he thinks.

"We might be able to sell this to Kevin, you know. At the least he won't laugh us off as barking mad."

[Bjorn]

"Sell what to Kevin?" Bjorn asks, raising an eyebrow.  "The problem with talking to anyone about this is trying to avoid the questions that lead straight to the temple of Hammar."

[Rezantis]

"That he may not actually be Verrik - and that he may well be a loose end.  And as to questions leading back to the Temple of Hamar, well . . . the unfortunate thing is that we're probably going to have to risk that.  Otherwise our only option seems to be to leave him in the dungeon until and unless we find Verrik, and you'll forgive me for saying that your reasoning is sorta tenuous there."

[Bjorn]

"Offer me another explanation that fits the facts," Bjorn grumbles.  "Regardless.  Whether the assassin is Verrik or not, there's someone out there, and we have to catch him.

"As for 'taking that risk,'' Bjorn says, meeting Nathan's gaze evenly, "if that gets out, you are sentencing Paul to death.  He will be executed, unless we spill everything, and Kevin believes it.  That's more than a long shot."

Holding Nathan's eyes for a second more, he looks away, and shrugs.  "Kevin already knows that Paul might not be Verrik.  He's just not willing to take a risk.  Suggesting he increase the guard can't hurt, and he'd likely do it even if he was convinced that Paul was Verrik.  On the other hand, if the current protection isn't sufficient, what else can we do?"

[Rezantis]

"Alright," Nathan takes another mouthful of breakfast, "I suppose I just don't like leaving people in the lurch - or without backup.  For that matter, I'd rather he works towards our goals as well, a little past having completed that of his host."

[Dracos]

"Better in the lurch then dead.  We'll have to keep our eyes open.  Anything else before we get on with 'making sure we don't die from the obvious threat' today?"

Dracos

[Brian]

Before the conversation can go any further, Ginrai steps into the room, spotting you as he enters.

[Dracos]

"Parth, you're late.  Sit down, eat breakfast, wake up."

Dracos