CH 2: The Search for More Money

[Jenara]

"I could not find anyone, although I was preoccupied with someone watching me." She says to Ouragana, her head in the door. "And yes Jocelyn I don't not believe we are being watched now."

[JadedDM]

Paragon Inn
Brock nods and brings them each a meal of chicken dumplings he had just finished cooking up. Once Dahn pays up and Brock leaves, the halfling responds. "I'm Pearl," she says. She immediately digs into the meal with gusto. Coming up for breath and to wipe her mouth with her napkin, she responds to his question. "Sure do, hear lots of things. You'd be surprised the things people say in front of a halfling, like we're not even here. Well, I guess maybe as a gnome you get that sometimes, too? People always ignoring you because you're small, like you don't even matter? Anyway, I'm also training to become a renown bard, and bards know lots of things, so I try and learn as much as I can."

Windmill
Despite Ouragana's soft voice, someone inside apparently does hear her, because the door swings open and a bald, somewhat hefty man steps out. "What's all of this?" he demands. "What are you lot lollygagging about for?"

=============

Dahn pays two silver for lunch for both he and Pearl.

[xelphyn]

"Your enduring practice is quite evident, you play beautifully" Dahn tells the halfling.
"Hey, ya know, speaking of evident, hear anything about these murders?" He asks in a soft tone.

[Jenara]

"Would you believe me if I said I was looking to see where the lovely bread I ate earlier came from?" Arei asks sliding up to him, her dress shifting as she moves, laughing gently she flips her hair back.

"Areilion." She offers her hand, "We are looking into the Murders, and hoped we might find something like a clue. And of course it can't be fun for you." She gives him a sweet smile. "Is this your Mill?"

[JadedDM]

Paragon Inn
"I've heard a few rumors," Pearl admits. "Stuff that isn't 'official,' you know? Scuttlebutt, gossip, rumors and such," she says, taking a moment to finish off her meal. "Like! Some people say the killer is a vampire. That explains why the murders always happen at night and why nobody can find the killer. Because vampires can turn into mist or something. Although...I thought vampires sucked blood, not took out hearts. But I'm hardly an expert on the matter. There's also a rumor that the League of Freed Ones is behind it somehow. Although people around here blame them for just about everything bad that happens. But you never know with anarchists, right? I also heard some people say that the killer is a necromancer, and he's harvesting the hearts of young women to power some ungodly magic. That's my favorite one, because it sounds the most interesting to me," she rambles.

Windmill
Areilon's honeyed words seem to soften the bald man's demeanor a bit. He accepts her hand. "Brogain, and yes, I am the miller. Are you with the Wardens?"

[Jenara]

Arei shakes his hand lightly, and considers flashing one of the Badges she still carries, instead she shakes her head. "No, we are freelance, is that a problem?"

"We were just taking a look at the scene, I believe the Wardens are at a loss?" She asks with a wink.

[xelphyn]

"There was an Elven lady here recently, seemed a mercenary type... Tia, I think it was.'
Dahn beckons for a server.

[Nuke]

Val sits in the shade, stewing over all this 'investigation' talking, hoping it goes ok without her help this time.

[JadedDM]

Paragon Inn
"Oh, yeah, oh, yeah," Pearl says, nodding her head. "I know who you mean. Didn't know her name, though. She stands out, and not just 'cuz she's an elf. Seems kind of dangerous, to me. Like, the kind of person who'd stab ya for mouthing off or something. I heard she might be an assassin or something."

Brock limps over to their table when he notices Dahn beckoning for him.

Windmill
"Not a problem for me," Brogain says. "Although it might honk off the Wardens. You know that vigilantism is a crime on this island, right?" He looks around a bit. "Don't know what you think you'll find, though. The Wardens have been all over this place several times already. It's pretty disruptive, but there's nothing I can do about it. I don't know why the victims keep turning up here. The questions the Wardens keep asking me, makes me believe they think I'm the culprit. But I have an alibi for every murder. Otherwise, they'd probably have tossed me into a cell by now."

[Breila]

"You say the victims »keep turning up«" Ouragana says, looking at the miller with a serious look in her blue eyes. "What exactly do you mean by that? Did you find the bodies? And what time of day was that?"

[xelphyn]

" Have any idea as to her whereabouts?"
"What do you have in the manner of juices?"

[Jenara]

"We don't want to upset anyone, sometimes new eyes are all that is needed. I believe we are not the only ones, an elf like me?" she asks, adding to the question.

[JadedDM]

Paragon Inn
Pearl shrugs. "Dunno. She comes and goes all of the time. I once tried to follow her. I was bored. She disappeared into an alley, and when I looked down it, she was just...gone. Maybe she's a ghost! Has anyone ever tried to touch her, I wonder?"

In answer to Dahn's query, Brock says, "Ah, plenty. Lots of different kind of tropical fruits grow on the island. We got kiwi, guava, avocado, starfruit, coconut, grapefruit, mango, papaya, tangerine and pineapple off the top of my head."

Windmill
"I'm usually the one who finds them, yes," Brogain says. "When I start in the morning, at dawn, they're usually just left out here somewhere, near the entrance. Covered in blood and...ugh, I don't even like thinking about it. No telling when they were left here, but probably sometime during the night, I'd guess." Shrugging, he looks to Areilon and smiles pleasantly. "An elf? Yes, there was another one...was snooping around here a couple of days ago. She looked like a killer herself, if you ask me."

[Breila]

What is the ground around the mill like? Dirt, or pavement of some kind?

[JadedDM]

The ground is dirt, save for the gravel road leading up to the mill.