“Oh, no, I work at the palace, just in to help out here for the day.” She smiled, a little seductively. “I get off about now, would you like to go get a drink? My treat?” She sounded happy enough. Festive.
A wave of disgust flowed off the man in front of him, mingled with lust. It was shockingly strong too. Tor hit him in the back of the head, shield kicking in making the otherwise feeble blow more worthwhile. The man didn't go down though.
Kara, bless her, got the second blow faster than Tor would have thought possible after his own, and that did the trick. Box dropped to the floor with a thump.
“Everyone not working here get out.” Tor said firmly then. “This is the King’s business. Move. David, Kara, secure him. I'll get the others. We need to question him.”
Tor went to the door, a quiet rage inside him as he signaled out front and called softly, letting people by as he did.
“We got him.”
Chapter Twenty-two
Box, whose real name was Darren Smalls of Copperton, something Tor had never known at all, didn't want to admit to being a killer. No one blamed him. Not at all. The problem however, was one that Smythe, Trice and even Rolph, who'd come to talk to the man and try to get cooperation, didn't get at all.
It was fear.
Well, they could all see that, but it wasn't fear for his own life, not in this. Box knew he was dead. If he didn't talk, the nobles would kill him, but only him. If he admitted to anything, his family could be blamed for any aid they'd given him. Including food and shelter. Or in Debbie's case, work. So instead he just shut up and stopped talking almost immediately.
He may be an evil being, worse than a mere killer, a monster that did things to the girls he'd killed that… Tor didn't really want to know about it. He sat wearing a Truth amulet, with three people intimidating people haranguing him, which wasn't going to work, Tor knew. After about an hour of this Tor had all he needed. It was so clear in the man’s field that he might as well have spoken.
Still, that didn't do a lot for the families of the dead, did it?
No, they needed him to talk.
Tor left the room and held up his right hand, not knowing if it would work for him, but this was the palace after all. He took a deep breath.
“Odd request. Would someone please request the King come here? He's needed. Personally, I think only he can resolve this situation.” Then Tor stood and waited. Nothing happened for ten minutes, then, just as he was about to go and search the complex for the man himself, he rounded the corner, with nearly twenty Royal Guard, weapons out and looking ready to fight.
“Tor?” Rich sounded cautious, but ready to do his part. Physically it looked like, since he had an explosive weapon out and ready to activate, thumb hovering over the sigil. It was one of the smaller ones he'd made, but not shielded for indoor work.
“I need for you to do something, if we want this resolved for real.” He explained the situation, getting a strained look from the King. Then he sighed and stepped forward.
“Very well. It's honorable enough, I suppose.”
Tor led them into the room, a situation that made half the Royal Guard look like they were going to kick his ass personally later, taking turns, which was ridiculous. As beat up as he was at the moment he'd never last that long. Rolph froze and his face suddenly went… sly. He at least got that something was going on. He bowed to the King, a low thing that was totally outside of protocol. Quick studies that they were, Trice and Smythe followed along so smoothly the whole thing looked planned. Tor did it too, even though he'd come in with the man.
“Darren Smalls?” The King walked in front of the chair that Box was chained too.
“I'm Richard Cordes. Master Builder Tor has been reading you during the investigation and has found you to be guilty of the murders of several young girls. He also tells me that you have worries that your family will be harmed if you speak and admit your crimes. Is this so?” He spoke evenly, regally.
Box folded within moments. It was hard not too when the King of the entire land looked you in the eye. It was kind of the point.
“Yes… Sire.” The voice wasn't humble, not friendly either, which was closer to the man’s norm. It was just blank. Defeated.
“We are prepared to offer our protection to those of your family innocent of wrong doing. That is to say, if they did not aid you directly and knowingly in the commission of these crimes or commit murder themselves, they will not be harmed in any way. This is contingent on your full cooperation and a public statement, under truth oath. Wearing that amulet, so that people will know what you've said is fully honest. Otherwise, I cannot help you. Choose wisely.” Then the man simply stepped back and didn't say any more, just waiting for Box to speak.
“All… OK. What do you want to know?” He said softly, looking at the King first, but finally at Tor.
“Just the truth Box, whatever that is.” Tor made his voice gentle, even though he felt… sick. Betrayed.
Then he felt worse as the words came out. It wasn't just seven girls, there had been more that had gone unnoticed, some of them children from the city, all girls. Most commoners, street walkers and urchins too poor for the city guard to take note of, being there to mainly protect the rich after all. Box laughed darkly at that when he explained how it all worked.
It was true enough of course, Tor knew, but the nobles didn't seem to see it at all. It didn't matter at the moment, but later they'd have to discuss the reality of not being over tall and wealthy in the kingdom of Noram. It was an error for the King not to know that. Worse, from the look on his face, Rolph didn't really seem to get the idea either.
Box had to give his tale a dozen times, once for each of the families of the murdered girls, if they could find them, and once before the council of Counts. The worst one was when he had to speak in front of Debbie. Tor had thought it horrible when the Coltress family and the Wards had been there, fearing that they'd just slaughter the man on the spot. They didn't though.
They weren't, as a group, evil people, but they raged in this. Tor didn’t blame them. Carol was the worst though. Where the others, the Baron, and oddly enough Petra, who had come to show support for the family, seemed ready to kill the monster in front of them, and even screamed at him for being so evil, Carol just sat.
Coldly.
Waves of anger coming off of her. She felt nearly as despicable as Box did, to Tor at least. It was clear she wanted revenge. Understandable even. Who wouldn’t? But it wasn’t Box that she wanted to punish.
It was the Baron.
Again.
She took off after the King so harshly that six Royal Guard in the room actually pulled their weapons and pointed them at her. She laughed at them.
“Oh, isn’t that the way then?” She hissed the words, a low sound suddenly, after the yelling she’d done just moments before, leaving a void in the room. It got everyone’s attention. Even Box’s and he’d been largely just looking at the wall, if not in shame for his acts, then to avoid inflaming anyone’s passions.
The Baroness spun on Richard and took two steps closer as if to strike him. The giant didn’t move. He also didn’t sneer or make any kind of facial expression at all. Like the nobles all did when they suspected someone was about to go into combat rage.
“You.” She poked a finger at his chest, which stopped dead in the air. She didn’t care, just doing it again as George moved in behind her, obviously ready to fight her in the King’s place if it came to that. “This is all your fault. You let that man rape my little girl. Now you protect this one from honest justice! His family can’t be touched? Make all the decrees you want, you bastard, you can’t stop me. I have friends over this entire land and we’ll…” She went silent, panting and turned her rage away from the monarch.