Not Quite a Murder but Definitely still a Mystery

[Mereel Vaun]

Mereel nodded and plugged the address into a map of Pols Anaxes that he had downloaded from a spaceport terminal earlier in the day, "Don't have to tell me twice."

He called the map to his HUD through a rapid series of blinks, "Sirpar Hills again, great." A heavy helping of sarcasm laced his voice.

Mereel began quickly walking for the nearest exit and waved a beckoning hand at Seo signalling her to follow, "We'll stick out like sore thumbs up there, but given the circumstances that might be a good thing. "

He stepped off of the tram and back into the bright light of mid day outside. The tram had stopped itself only about twenty meters away from the next spaceport passenger boarding station, which meant that there were plenty of taxi airspeeders within eyesight as soon as they hopped off the halted tram.

He made his way over to a covered airspeeder brandishing the liveries of a taxi and hopped in the leftmost of three back seats. He waited a second for Seo to get in with him before giving the driver their destination, "Sapir hills, Pryde residence."

The human driver looked at the Mandalorian through the rear view mirror like this was just another normal Primeday afternoon for him, before returning an un-energetic, "Got it."

The airspeeder's repulsorlifts hummed to life under them and the driver took off with a course set for their destination.

Mereel tilted his helmet to the right as he looked at Seo, and a disappointing thought occurred to him.

"I'm guessing good cop bad cop is out of the question when talking to the family of a victim, right?"




[member="Seo Linn"]

 

[Seo Linn]

Sapir was a type of tea that was well known. Just based off the name of location of town they were headed and how high class this planet looked, Mereel was right when he said they would stick out. He certainly more than her, at least Seo wasn't stomping around in armor and her clothing did have some embroidery on it.

She followed him to where the taxis were and climbed into the one he picked out for them. Getting in on the other side of the speeder, there was that short distance between them of the space on the seat. The missing person's report was up on her datapad and she took a closer look at it as they travelled.

It gave a few specifics about the girl and being of the same gender, Seo was aware of the need to measure when finding clothes. The dress found appears that it would have fit the girl in the report. Even though the police had kept the evidence, Seo had taken images of everything. She would show them to the parents when they got there.

Pointing out her observation about the dress to Mereel with as few words as possible, she didn't want the cab driver to hear too much. Unless he also had any information, but she doubted that.

"Depends on the family. You do the talking, I'll do the observing and point things out to you. If they seem reluctant about something, I can press the issue."

[member="Mereel Vaun"]

 

[Mereel Vaun]

A small grin broke out on the right side of his face following Seo saying that they may actually need to use the interrogation technique on the filers of the missing person report.

While he didn't bet on it happening, the thought of Seo playing bad cop was almost just as entertaining and quaint to him as it had been earlier on the tram. Although, he now thought that Seo might actually be able to pull it off quite well. What had originally struck him as aloofness now seemed to him to be an affinity for skipping straight to the point. If she could combine that directness with a peppering of aggressiveness she would fit the role perfectly.

Following Seo's example of discretion, Mereel leaned slightly closer to her before muttering, "It's a plan. One friendly neighborhood Mando coming right up."

Mereel exaggeratedly cleared his throat and leaned back up to sit properly. Before he could get a chance to test his newly adopted charm on the cab driver, the man interjected with his very disinterested tone, "Here's your stop, Pryde Residence. Fare's ten credits.

Mereel fumbled around in his belt pouches until he found the leather capsule that he used to house low denomination credit chips. He hastily pulled out three fives denomination cards and flicked them at the cab's center console as he opened the door and climbed out of the speeder on the side facing the Pryde Residence.

His first thought upon seeing it was that 'the Pryde Residence' was hardly a fitting name for the gaudy mansion now directly in front of them.

The main building of the estate itself occupied a large swathe of land. Two large turrets mimicking ancient Anaxian architecture design jutted out from and above the rest of the structure, most of which could be easily seen over the 5 meter stone wall enclosing the entire outer area of the premises. Between the stone wall and the mansion proper there was at least 30 meters of gardens. In relation to all of this, the taxi cab driver had dropped them off in front of a small one-story gatehouse with a single window positioned in a central position in front of the mansion.

Mereel sauntered over to the gatehouse window, taking off his helmet as he walked. He often found that people were much more willing to talk to him when armored if they could see his eyes and where they were looking. A guard appeared on the opposite side of the window as he walked up to it. "Evening my good s -"

"Do you have an appointment with Lady Pryde?" The guard asked austerely.

"No, but we believe we have some new information regarding her missing daughter."

"Ah, so you're sollicitors. Lady Pryde has already dealt with enough of you P.I.s coming to her house to offer your services. Please remove yourselves from the premises at once.

"What? No, we're not private investigators. We're Jedi. Look -"

"I do not care who you are. Lady Pryde will not tolerate any interruptions from unexpected visitors tonight. If what you say is true you may request an appointment to be scheduled for a later date in this building starting tomorrow from the hours of eight to five. Should you be deemed worthy of approval, an assistant of Lady Pryde may speak with you."

Mereel sighed and glanced over at Seo. If she had anything up her sleeve now seemed like a good time to play it.

[member="Seo Linn"]

 

[Seo Linn]

Making her own observations of the grounds in front of them, Seo was silent during the exchange between the security guard and Mereel. Her hands were clasped behind her back and her face impassive to the grandeur around. This wasn't her first visit to something of a palace and the grounds were extensive. With the Dominion, she had been to Ession and where the then Archduke had lived. The library on Lorrd had originally been built by slaves for their masters and was like a palace as well.

When Mereel failed to gain them entry it was her turn.

"Mister Smith, we are not PIs or solicitors, but investigators brought on by the authorities to investigate what appears to be a potential kidnapping. Here are my credentials and Mister Anderson is my partner."

A quick flash of what appeared to be proper IDs were shown and if Mereel picked up on it, there was a slight focus from Seo on the guard with the Force.
​
"We also have some questions for Ms, Pryde concerning some images acquired by us at the scene of a kidnapping."

[member="Mereel Vaun"]

 

[Mereel Vaun]

Mereel re-donned his helmet and stepped back a few paces to stand behind Seo as she stepped in to save the conversation.

He was a little surprised when she offered up her credentials, but their proximity soon gave him an answer as to why she had done it when he sensed her use of a mind trick.

Interestingly to him though, she had only done it for the second she had shown her identification- and not while she had introduced him as Mr. Anderson. He wasn't sure if she had done it just to screw with him or because he hadn't told her his last name. Either way, the improvisation mixed with mind trick gave him a slight grin under his helmet.

The tone of the guardsman changed from annoyance to indifference, "Mr. Anderson really should have saved us both time and lead with that then."

The gatekeeper sighed, "Very well, I will inform the chief of security that you may travel unhindered throughout the residency. If you wish to speak with Lady Pryde you are sure to find her in the grand hall. She's been haunting that chamber for the last two days now.."

"But that is enough rabble from me. If you believe Lady Pryde's assistance will help you administer justice to the vile dregs in our great city, you must make for the grand hall post haste!"

The guard pulled a lever inside of the gatehouse, and the gate of the Pryde estate began a slow and noisy ascent.

The guard waved them off with a shooing motion, "Tally ho!"

Mereel gave the guard a concerned look under his helmet and began walking for the gate with Seo in tow.

As soon as he thought they were out of earshot of the gatekeeper, Mereel lowered his voice and allowed it to carry the hint of amusement he had felt,"Mr. Anderson? I don't know how, but I'm going to get you back for that one."

[member="Seo Linn"]

 

[Seo Linn]

"Thank you, Mister Smith."

His chiding of ​Mereel was not answered and Seo hoped he had taken the quick lesson from her. Most of the time, a display of truth mixed with the mind trick did the job. Only people with a great sense of mental fortitude could resist it normally. The ID she had shown was her own and through the course of the conversation with the guard, she had never actually stated her name.

When the gate was opened just barely enough for them to fit through, he motioned for them to get a move on. Taking the lead this time, he had essentially given them clearance to go anywhere throughout the house. The property might be another issue, but right now Seo wanted to get a look at the girl's home and then worry about the exterior later.

"He said we could wander around the house as we want. Do you want to start with her room or do you think we should speak to Ms. Pryde first?"

If they spoke to the mot​her first, there was the chance they would not be welcome long enough to get a look through the rest of the house. Then again, if one of them did NOT go speak to the woman, they may still get removed.

[member="Mereel Vaun"]

 

[Mereel Vaun]

Mereel shrugged off the fact that she had chosen to completely ignore his declaration of getting her back. It would really only be worth doing if she cared, but he would find a time to do it still anyway. He was a man of his word after all.

He reeled in his less than professional thoughts as he considered Seo's question. "Don't think I left too good of an impression on that guard. Poking our heads in any rooms before we talk to the good Lady might draw suspicion.."

He considered the option of dividing and conquering, but he didn't want to go talk to the Lady without Seo backing him up, not after what had just happened at the gate.

He also didn't want to go to investigate the room alone because he really wanted the opportunity to introduce Seo to Lady Pryde when they first met her.

"Unless you have any objections, I think we should pay Lady Pryde a visit together first. I think I'll be able to get further talking to the Lady than with the guard, but I think you should be there to back me up just in case it's a repeat of the gate."

[member="Seo Linn"]

 

[Seo Linn]

"This is the first time you've done something like this."

There was not a hint of doubt in her voice when she said this.

"I've been involved in a few investigations."

This was beside the point, but it might tell Mereel he could learn a few things from her if he paid attention. Nodding when he said he felt it better to pay a visit to Lady Pryde, she did agree. Lifting an eyebrow, it was the only sign she gave indicating she had any doubt ​about him speaking for them. It would be interesting to see if he did better the second time than he had the first.

"Agreed. I will follow your lead then."

[member="Mereel Vaun"]

 

[Mereel Vaun]

Mereel blinked his eyes twice in a mixture of mild surprise and utter confusion at her very confidently spoken assertion. She wasn't wrong, but he didn't know why she had just mentioned it now. The bit about her being involved in other investigations did pique his interest though. He caught the raise of the eyebrow, but decided to ignore it.

Initially, he just gave a slight head nod in response to her telling him to lead on, but he eventually caved and started addressing her other point as he lead them up the main path to the Pryde residence's front door.

"Uhh.. Yeah, this is a first for me. Closest thing I've done to this is animal tracking, but I've got a keen eye for it and an aim to match. What sort of investigations do you have under your belt?"

Two guards armed with blaster pistols in the same getup as the gatekeeper opened the two large main doors as they approached, remaining silent and staring straight ahead as they did so.

Mereel stopped in front of the guard on the left to ask for quick directions to the grand hall, and the guard answered him with as few words as possible and without breaking eye contact with a point past Mereel's shoulder.

As they entered the mansion, Mereel stopped paying attention to the finer details of things. All he kept track of was how many guards they walked past, six, and how many more turns down hallways they had to take before they got to the grand hall.

As they approached the main hall, he heard the sound of something crashing to the ground and the sound of a woman yelling.

A guard standing outside the door to the hall wore a face of indifference during all of this, but as they approached he displayed a sign of life,"Please, turn over all of your weapons before entering the hall. Even if you are with the police we can't risk the security for tonight's festivities."

[member="Seo Linn"]

 

[Seo Linn]

She paid attention to some details along the way in. The way the grounds were laid out, any routes patrols might go on and what parts of the house faced which direction. No notes were made on the datapad, but might be put in there later.

"I see. Some advice. Pay attention to details. Sometimes the smallest of signs are a clue. When you have to work with people, watch their body language. Generally when a person isn't telling the whole truth, there are subtle signs. Best example is not making eye contact."

Then it came time to answer what investigations she had been in before.

"On Lorrd where I was raised, I did some lost items and people cases. Mostly items though. With the Jedi, I've investigated murder and arson."

When she mentioned Lorrd, Seo herself gave a tiny tell she wasn't aware of. A slave as a child, she was given a tattoo to mark her as property and she did a movement of her left arm like she didn't want to remember it was there.

Reaching the front door, the guards there opened them and allowed them to enter. He stopped to ask directions which were given and that provided Seo the opportunity to make some personal observations. Things about the guards, how they acted, what they wore, where they stood and various other things.

When Mereel stopped paying attention to details, she did not. She did the same thing as she done on their approach to the house. Anything could be a clue. After a short walk, they approached the main hall and were stopped before they could enter. They were requested to turn over their weapons before they could enter the room.

"What festivities?"

She made no ​motion to remove her saber and waited to see if Mereel would himself or not.

[member="Mereel Vaun"]

 

[Mereel Vaun]

Most of her suggestions were things he had already heard while watching crime holodramas, but he gave her advice real consideration because she was an actual person right next to him and not some D-list actor on screen. In fact, he began applying her advice almost immediately, keeping his attention primarily on her as she talked about her investigations.

It was a little thing that caught his eye, but he noticed that she swung her left arm back a bit when she brought up her homeworld. While not entirely strange, it wasn't a completely natural looking movement. He made a mental reminder to himself to bring up Lorrd later to see if she would do it again and refocused his attention to the task at hand, starting with the security guard asking him to cough up his weapons.

Mereel's tells of annoyance with the guard's request were far less subtle than Seo's tell with Lorrd. There was a visible tensing of his shoulder guards and he let out a heavy sigh as he began unstrapping his arsenal. "The Lady is hosting a masquerade ball. Commemorating some bloody petty family issue no doubt."

As Mereel got done handing over his KC-95 and his 'Lucky Seven' blaster pistols, he could clearly tell that Seo had no intention of handing over her lightsaber. Even if his left arm wasn't a weapon, he had plenty of weapons he could sneak into the room undetected on his suit, but he realized Seo probably didn't have armament to spare.

While he didn't know how to use a Jedi mind trick, he had decent enough slight of hand and scary enough weapons to keep the guard's attention for a second. "Mind the dets."


As he said it his right hand forcefully pushed his two frag grenades into the guard's free hand and his left hand pulled the saber clipped from his belt and hovered it next to Seo's side for a second. As hoped for, the guard looked down at the frag grenades with a worried frown on his face, "Bloody hell man. Be more careful or you'll kill us all."

Mereel used the opportunity to move the saber from his left hand to the right before passing it along to the guard, "- My bad, I'm a bit of a ditz. Oh and here, the lady's saber. That'll do it."

He shifted his footing slightly to get his shoulder's blocking the guard's line of sight on Seo as the guard opened the door and they began walking in, "If you break any of that you buy it, and if you break the saber I'll break your neck."


Mereel's threat was somewhat drowned out as they entered the grand hall. With her back towards them was a woman with brown hair yelling at an ice sculptor who was on his hands and knees inspecting the fragments of a very much broken piece of work. The sculptor looked like he had just seen his pet kicked by a stranger, "I said krayt! Not k'kayeh! Do you know how many guests that would have offended?! All of them! That's -"

Mereel cleared his throat audibly to make their presence known, and Lady Pryde's posture changed in an instant. What had previously been a lean over the ice sculptor became a perfectly erect stance as she turned to greet them. The middle aged, around 40 or so year old woman with a freckled-face gave them a perfectly feigned smile as she walked over to greet them. She looked Mereel eye-to-T-visor, "Oh what a pleasure! I've been forward to discussing the terms of our contract. What was it again, Ordo Fett?"

Mereel had to stifle back a laugh. That was the exact"name of an alias he had used while sneaking himself back onto Mandalore back when force users were.. less than desired planetside. He cleared his mind and made his voice austere and stately sounding, "No Ma'am, we're investigators with the PASF. My name is Ordo Anderson, and this here is my partner -"

He pointed at Seo with a casual swing of his left arm, "Mrs. Anderson. -"

Lady Pryde interrupted, showing a joyful expression as she started looking back and forth between Mereel and Seo, "OH! A police couple! How sweet!"


"-very." Mereel was grinning from ear to ear under his helmet, "Anyway, we're investigating a kidnapping and we thought it may be connected to the case of your daughter. If you could help my better half by looking over a few of our pictures?"

Lady Pryde looked like her mood had actually improved when he mentioned the pictures, "Oh well of course, anything to bring Luna home!"

[member="Seo Linn"]

 

[Seo Linn]

She had to give Mereel credit when it came to dealing with the guard at the door asking for their weapons. When he 'took' her saber, it was genius on his part. On general principles you never take the weapon of a Jedi (or Sith) away from them unless they are a prisoner. For him to have even asked was something that offended her. The fact he gave up his own saber so she could keep hers meant a great deal to her.

I owe you for that. Thank you.​

Such a simple message, but it would be clear to him. It was all she said before they arrived to speak to Lady Pryde.

The open almost violence that happened in front of them was a clue to Seo on the temper the woman had. It was clear, she felt superior to the workmen she paid. Mereel made a throat clearing sound that alerted her to their presence. How she reacted to the fact a Mandalorian was present was interesting as well. Lady Pryde had worked with them before.

It was a very good thing Seo took things in stride most of the time. When he introduced them, it was along the same lines as she had the guard at the gate. Even then she had said he was her partner, he just took it a step further and implied they were a married couple working together. While it might be very Jedilike, but she would get pay back for that another time.

He suggested Lady Pryde take a look at the evidence they had recovered from the train, Seo took the hint and brought the datapad out. Just as she did that, an alert came in about the ring he had found. Ignoring that for the moment, she pulled up the images she had taken and held the pad out to the woman to look at. It almost appeared to be an open and closed case for identification of the girl. She still needed to be found though and they needed to go through her room for clues.

[member="Mereel Vaun"]

 

[Mereel Vaun]

As Seo began showing Lady Pryde the images she had taken, Mereel's commlink chirped to life. He muted his helmet's external audio emitters and began walking along the side of the great hall to try to prevent Lady Pryde noticing the occasional bob of the head or other sign that he was taking a call.

"Vaun."

A wet, silky sounding voice responded,"Ah good, we were worried you might not pick us up on this frequency. Results are in for the ring."

He heard Lady Pryde's voice talking to Seo from the other side of the room, "That's my poor baby's school uniform. Surely she had to have taken that off herself? No one would dare disrobe a daughter of the Pryde family." She sounded as sure in her declaration as Seo had sounded when she had said this was his first investigation.

"Yeah... and?"

The watery voice came back sounding very distracted,"Oh, right. Fingerprints on the ring have a 99% match with Luna Pryde. But, we also found another pair of prints.

"Well, except for maybe that fiend child of the Terythns. That boy is an absolute bantha. But I suppose I can't fault him alone, the whole family is comprised of savages."

Mereel was getting tired of the PASF's crime lab caller pretty quickly, "Well? Spit it out."

Still sounding distracted,"Oh, yes, yes. The other pair of prints seem to indicate that Jonathan Pryde touched the ring rather recently."

"Relation?"

The watery voice took a few seconds, "Oh yes, they're related alright. He's Luna's older brother.".

Mereel hadn't been paying much attention to where he had been walking, and found himself standing still in the middle of a cleared out area of space in the middle of the grand hall when he finally looked back to Seo.

Lady Pryde was looking right at him."Oh, how adorable. Is your husband much of a dancer sweetie?"

[member="Seo Linn"]

 

[Seo Linn]

"I am sorry, but since this an on going investigation, I am unable to assume anything or give out full details."

It was said in answer to ​the question Lady Pryde gave when it came to how the dress had been removed. However if she looked closely, there were no signs of struggle so the dress was not torn and its condition was normal.

Once the datapad was handed back, Seo made note of the name given to her and she would mention it to Mereel and the other officers. When she looked up from making that note, she saw where he had stopped and head the question asked.

"It depends on the type of dance."

There was a conscience choice in her words. While she could have gotten a little friendly revenge on him, if they were asked to show off their dancing skills and she learned he had two left feet...well it wouldn't have gone very well. That thought had certainly crossed her mind, but Seo went with the first answer that came to mind.
​
"Mrs. Pryde, do you mind very much if we have a look through the estate for any further clues? Is Luna involved with anybody or engaged?"

[member="Mereel Vaun"]

 

[Mereel Vaun]

Mereel breathed a heavy sigh of relief as Seo provided a quick answer to Lady Pryde's question.

She could have easily taken the opportunity to have gotten him back for his shenanigans about them being husband and wife, but he had heard her telepathic thanks and just thought that her not grilling him or putting him on a pedestal to be tested by Lady Pryde might have been her way of repaying him.

In terms of the validity of her answer, she was actually kind of correct. While he couldn't breakdance to save his life, he could comfortably hold his own in most clubs and ballrooms. Years ago, he practically lived in clubs and cantinas, and he wasn't a stranger to formal events either. Time spent in both settings had encouraged him to learn how to dance appropriately in each.

Lady Pryde waved a hand to brush off Seo's first comment. "Don't fret my dear, we're all slaves to one system or another. Yours happens to be investigative procedure, mine family. I'm sure you'll inform me as soon as it's safe to tell me."

Mereel strolled back across the room to stand beside Seo.

"And engaged? Oh heavens no. Though not for lack of my trying or for lack of suitable courtiers. I gave her oh so many suggestions, but she always chased them away. I even warned her that if she didn't ship up soon she would end up married to some lowly bumpkin. "

Lady Pryde began fidgeting with her hands and moving her feet around a bit, wanting to get back to something else more important no doubt.

"Oh but there I go again, blathering on like an old woman in a book club. So long as you aren't harming tonight's festivities like this charlatan -"

Lady Pryde pointed at the ice sculptor.

"you may search about the estate wherever you think may be needed. Do ask one of the servants for directions though, I have very important arrangements to finalize."

[member="Seo Linn"]

 

[Seo Linn]

The calm and accepting answer of Lady Pryde when Seo said she was unable to answer her question surprised her a little. Luckily she was well trained by her people and did not reveal this outwardly. She could tell the woman had a few things odd about her, but it was clear she did care about her daughter. It seemed Lady Pryde was what might call 'old school' and Luna was one that didn't follow those ways.

"May we have those names you suggested? All avenues should be investigated. Have no fear, this will be handled with the utmost concern for yours and their privacy. Nothing will be leaked to the local tabloids about this investigation by the authorities."

If names were given, they would be noted on the datapad and when Mereel joined her to stand at her side he would have heard all the conversation. Seo noted how the Lady acted and nodded. Her daughter was important, but the questioning wasn't​.

"One last question before we leave to look around. What is the function for tonight?"

[member="Mereel Vaun"]

 

[Mereel Vaun]

Mereel stood still, seemingly listening patiently as Seo asked her questions. Lady Pryde? Not so much.

Lady Pryde was now impatiently scuffling her feet about on the floor. She clearly wanted to tell the two of them to scram, but something was keeping her from doing just that. An obligation to family perhaps?

"Oh, okay sweetie, but only because you asked so nicely."

Lady Pryde stopped shuffling her feet and began beaming with pride thinking on the past, "My daughter's courtiers only included the finest of the Sirpar Hill noble families. Korynn Xel, Tyro Hiram, Jonas Surtoske.. oh they were all so wonderful. I can't believe she saw them unfit for her, and when she turned down the Xels? I nearly fainted. Our blood united could have..."

"Oh, but you have me babbling like a brook again." Lady Pryde began shuffling again.

"Tonight's masquerade is in celebration of my son selling off his meager business. Seems my boy has finally accepted his role in the bigger picture of his family duties. He made a good effort of it, he really did. But I am relieved to no end that he sold it off. If that is all?"

Lady Pryde clearly wanted to get back to finalizing arrangements.

[member="Seo Linn"]

 

[Seo Linn]

As each name was given Seo made not of them on the datapad and forwarded them to the investigators assigned to the case. They would handle the questioning of these other families since she and Mereel were with the Pryde's. Not showing any reaction and keeping her face neutral, she listened to the reason for the celebration and wondered to herself why it was a masquerade and not a normal ball. Maybe they could ask the ask the others around and allow the lady to get back to her business. Putting the datapad back into her pocket, the notification about the results of the ring still unread, she looked back at Lady Pryde and nodded in thanks.

"No that is all. If there are any further questions we have for you though, we will return to ask them. Thank you Lady Pryde."

Taking a hold of Mereel​, she would at least put on the show of being married to him until they were out of the room and not within sight of the Lady. Once they were out and he could get his weapons back, she waited until he had done that before speaking again.

Since they could still be heard by any number of employees, she kept her observations out of what she said and instead focused on the next step of the investigation she felt they should take.

"I think we should go through Luna's room and see if we can find anything there. Do you have any other suggestion?"

[member="Mereel Vaun"]

 

[Mereel Vaun]

What appeared to be polite patience was actually just Mereel standing still beside Seo as he was finishing his interrogation of the PASF crime lab tech over commlink. As a result, he hadn't heard Seo finish her conversation with Lady Pryde, and his shoulders began to tense up the second he felt Seo grab him. Normally when people tried to grab at him, it was because they were trying to find a way to grapple him to the ground. The reflex wasn't at all unnatural.

Fortunately, Mereel hadn't forgotten that he had introduced the two of them as a couple and caught on to what Seo was doing pretty quickly. He transitioned the tensing up into an exaggerated roll of his shoulders, feigning loosening up his arms in a stretch.

Thinking he had played that off rather well, Mereel un-muted his helmet audio transmitters and gave Lady Pryde a slight nod as Seo led them away, "Meeting you was a pleasure, Lady Pryde."

Lady Pryde had already begun rushing off to do something else, not giving them a second look as they walked out, "Of course it was dear. I'll be here should you have need of me!"

After collecting all of his weaponry from the guard and ensuring that none of it had been scratched or damaged, he returned his attention to Seo.

"No suggestions, no. But I've got a knowledge bomb to drop on you. Luna's older brother rubbed his grubby mitts on his sister's ring. Recently."


[member="Seo Linn"]

 

[Seo Linn]

She felt Mereel tense up as she took ahold of his arm, but was very glad he was able to roll with what she intended. Not ever having worn or gotten a good look at a helmet, she was unsure of how the things worked. It really did not matter right now though, but it indicated she was unaware he was listening in on a conversation she could not hear.

They took their leave from Lady Pryde and once they were out of earshot, Mereel revealed what news he had from the ring. That reminded her of the unopened message on her datapad and she took that back out of her pocket to take a look at.

There were the images of the ring Mereel had taken at the scene along with new ones taken by the officers.

"Take a look at these. I wonder what the brother wanted with Luna?"

The two of them had been given permission to look around as they saw fit, but her personal objective was Luna's room. However, she felt they should also look through the brother's room. Letting him know the plans as well, she would guide them to what appeared to be the living area of the family. She saw one of the servants and walked up to her.

"May I have the directions to Luna's and Jonathan's rooms please?"

With the directions provided, she turned to Mereel and pointed in the direction of the two rooms.

"Do you want to go in and look at the same room together or we each take one. I feel it would be better to go together."

[member="Mereel Vaun"]