Crow hears the others approach, recognizing Buchvold's all-too-familiar stiff stride and the creak of Vedarrak's leather scabbard as the group draws near. Noting so many footsteps, he prepares to feign a double-take; that Serd's and Kingsley's presence honestly
does catch him a bit off-guard only adds authenticity to his surprised look.
Shooting a momentary glare at Dirac -- he had, after all, suggested that only
trustworthy aid be brought back, and "Brother Crow's" dislike of the Borcan is already an established facet of his facade -- the bard gestures to the tracks he and the young Dementlieuse had followed to this point. Vedarrak, more of a seasoned professional than his cousin, takes heed at once, halting the group before their trail can further erode those of the unknown quarry, already fading under the rain's impact.
Shading his eyes (and his makeup) from the drizzle, Crow acknowledges Kingsley's slight smile of greeting with a discreet wink, then stands aside as the new arrivals draw closer, to inspect the mysterious ring beneath the glow of Dirac's rapier-hilt.
Llana wrote:“Why would anyone leave their ring behind? It’s hardly the type of item which one loses easily, so it could hardly be an accidental loss.”
The bard has his own theories, none particularly pleasant. He proffers one of them for the Fraternity members' consideration:
"Lose it, no. Have it
taken from one, perhaps more plausible: if an attendee witnessed some treachery in progress, the culprits could have rendered him senseless or worse, then hauled him off the grounds to hide their misdeeds. Or, perhaps, the abduction of one of the Brothers was their true purpose in coming here. Brother Dirac and I followed the trails of two others to this point, and the imprints from one man's boots were quite deep, as they'd be if he carried a dead body or living captive.
"In either case, such a victim's assailants might have divested him of his ring, in the belief that the perimeter's detection-spells would register and record its passage. Perhaps it would be prudent to
count heads -- and rings -- as soon as possible, to learn who among us has gone missing since this morning? Whether they're betrayers or betrayed, we need to know who is unaccountably absent."
And maybe, he silently adds,
uncover the other
spy -- or spies -- in the process.
The bard isn't unduly worried about his own imposture, if such a census of attendees is attempted. Save the last couple of minutes, he has been constantly in the company of at least one true member since the evening's lectures, and his previous harmonica-playing would have been heard by dozens of witnesses, to vouch for his own activities since the security-alert. As for the last, brief moment when he was left alone with the telltale ring, he can hardly be accused of tampering with it himself, as he's not budged an inch since Dirac went to fetch help: his own tracks in the mud testify to that.
"Hmm. Are we sure that it is recent, sister?" Buchvold interrupts.
"Why would someone have discovered it before now? The grass is long here, so we can assume that whoever tends the grounds has not checked for some time. Even assuming it is relatively recent, we can't make any assumptions, It may have happened at any point in the evening."
In keeping with "Brother Crow's" demonstrated distaste for the Borcan -- and because he's still a mite peeved over certain of Buchvold's remarks to Serd -- the bard executes a masterfully understated
snicker, then observes:
"Rather a lucky break for the
owner, if so, that the ones Dirac and I were chasing happened to practically
step on the thing on their way to who-knows-where. Really, what are the odds? Perhaps Viktor and the others should have that statue tidied up a bit, if it's as popular a vista for passers-by as that."
The ingenuous tone in which he delivers his comment is sufficient to keep the
sarcasm in Crow's reply just shy of rudeness ... but only just. His voice then turns more serious, as the VRS spy turns his considerable charismatic gifts toward steering the gathered vipers' course.
"In any case, it might be prudent to leave the ring -- under guard -- for later examination. Unless I'm very much mistaken,
it's not likely to melt in the rain in the next half an hour; the tracks Brother Dirac and I followed, on the other hand, are vanishing as we speak! Do any of you gentlefolk know how to read such spoor in detail? Or know of someone else in attendance who may? Best if we learn as much as we can, and follow the trail as far as it runs, before we inspect more durable clues.
"Especially if one of our fellows
has been carried off, against his will and to the profit of the enemy."
"Who [u]cares[/u] what the Dark Powers are? They're [i]bastards![/i] That's all I need to know of them." -- Crow