Reeve Anja Vey points to the scarred table. Guard Tessa draws the barred door shut and braces it while the marshal listens beyond the threshold, unseen.
Reeve Anja Vey
Place the ledger in the center. Pell, identify every altered entry, who ordered the diversion, and whether Mara’s warning was intercepted before it reached me.
The older official sets the ledger down with reluctant care. Ink-darkened pages show overwritten arrival times, a missing receiving-yard notation, and a second hand beside Pell’s initials.
Pell Ordan
The arrival time was changed after the cart appeared. I authorized the side passage, but the instruction came through a sealed memorandum bearing the marshal’s office mark.
Reeve Anja Vey
You said the passage was customary. Now you claim written authority. Name the memorandum, and explain why it never reached my desk.
Pell swallows and opens the ledger to a folded gap where a notice should rest. Mara watches him closely beside Edrin, while the older official keeps his hands visible.
Pell Ordan
The memorandum was removed before filing. I cannot say by whom. But its docket number matches the warning addressed to Reeve Vey, and someone marked it intercepted.
✓ Quest Accepted
Identify who intercepted Mara’s warning
Director's notewhole tale
I have nothing to say about this. I am silent and still, save for reaching down to run my fingers against Patters head again, trying to make sure the young fox doesn't get too antsy.
Octavius remains silent beneath the office’s cramped rafters, his fingers moving gently over Patter’s head. The young fox stays pressed against his boot, alert but quiet.
Reeve Anja Vey
A docket number does not explain a missing memorandum. Pell, who had access to the filing chest after the marshal’s office marked it received?
Pell Ordan
The older official held the key during the evening change of watch. I saw him carry the chest toward the side passage, but I assumed he served your instruction.
The Older Official
I carried no chest. Pell ordered me to clear the passage and told me the reeve had approved it.
Guard Tessa steps between the ledger and the older official, while Edrin keeps one hand near Brindle’s lead rope outside the barred door. Mara watches Pell without blinking.
Reeve Anja Vey
Tessa, search the filing chest and summon the marshal’s clerk, not the marshal himself. No one enters until we know whose mark sealed that memorandum.
Guard Tessa
Understood. Reeve, the chest is in the records alcove. I will retrieve it under witness, and leave every paper in its place until you examine the contents.
✓ Quest Accepted
Determine whether Pell’s records aided the watchers
“Lady Reeve," While we wait for the return of the guard Tessa and the evidence, I raise my hand to gain the Reeve's attention. "I am not asking to be released from your witness, but my companion is.. a still young fox. I am uncertain how much longer I can keep him still and quiet. Would it be possible to allow Patter out? I'm concerned he could cause ... disruption, or potentially damage if he becomes too restless."”
SUCCESS (Superb Persuasion, rolled -1)
Octavius raises one hand beneath the cramped rafters, while the other continues stroking Patter’s head. The fox remains pressed to his boot, alert and increasingly restless.
Octavius
Lady Reeve, I am not asking to leave your witness, but Patter is still young. May I let him out? I fear he may become disruptive or damage something if kept still much longer.
Reeve Anja Vey looks from Octavius to the quiet fox, then measures the barred door, the crowded table, and the waiting records alcove.
Reeve Anja Vey
Yes. Keep him beside you and under control. He may stretch and settle, but he is not to roam the office.
Guard Tessa
I will make room by the wall. Nothing in the records alcove need be disturbed while I retrieve the chest.
Permission granted, Octavius lets Patter slip from beneath the canvas. The young fox stretches, shakes rain-damp fur from his shoulders, then settles beside Octavius’s boot as the room exhales.
“I am concerned." I admit, a vexed, vague frown settling on my features and knitting my brow together. "If he decides he wishes to play, I do not have the ability to stop it. I raised him, but he is still a wild animal at heart, not a dog I can command with a word. I could no more command the rain to stop, unless it had already decided to of its own accord.”
SUCCESS (Superb Persuasion, rolled +2)
Octavius
I am concerned. If Patter decides to play, I may not be able to stop him. I raised him, but he remains a wild animal, not a dog commanded by a word.
A vexed, vague frown knits Octavius’s brow. He reaches down again, running his fingers over Patter’s head as the young fox watches the crowded room.
Reeve Anja Vey
That is a fair warning. I would rather have the truth about his limits than a confident promise you cannot keep.
Guard Tessa
Then we will account for him as an animal, not a trained hound. I can keep this wall clear and protect the records.
Patter leans into Octavius’s hand, tail flicking once before settling. The room gives him space, and the fox remains beside the boot instead of ranging.
Reeve Anja Vey
Keep him close, and let him stretch if he needs to. Your honesty has settled the matter. Tessa, retrieve the chest when ready.
Beyond the barred door, the marshal’s muffled orders continue, but inside the office the tension eases enough for Guard Tessa to move toward the records alcove.
Director's notewhole tale
I kneel down, a pose that takes weight off of my bad hip, and I could hold with ease for hours. It also keeps me closer to the lanky almost-adult fox, keeping him occupied with small, light scratches and tickles beyond more than just the crown of his skull- If he got tired of attention on only that
Octavius lowers himself to one knee, easing weight from his injured hip. He remains silent beside Patter, scratching beneath the fox’s chin and along his ears.
Patter’s tail gives a slow sweep across the floor. His restless gaze follows Guard Guard Tessa toward the records alcove, but he stays close beneath Octavius’s steady fingers.
Guard Tessa
The chest is here. I will open it where all can see, and no paper will leave this room.
Guard Tessa returns carrying a narrow iron-banded chest. She sets it beside the ledger, checks the older official’s hands, and produces a ring of labeled keys.
Reeve Anja Vey
Begin with the marshal’s mark. If the memorandum was intercepted, its seal, docket, or filing cord may still tell us when.
Pell Ordan
If the memorandum remains there, the ledger will not be the only thing that condemns me.
The first key turns with a dry click. Octavius continues small scratches through Patter’s fur as the chest lid rises, revealing tied documents, empty spaces, and one blue-waxed packet tucked beneath them.
Director's notewhole tale
While my hand continues its wander around Patters head, neck, chest, and shoulders, keeping him engaged with the pleasurable sensations that never still, I study Pell Ordan closely, watching his hands for any tell that he might lunge in one direction or another. I know he's in hot water, and he know
Octavius remains kneeling beside Patter, his hand wandering in light scratches from crown to neck, chest, and shoulders. His eyes stay fixed on Pell’s hands.
Pell keeps both palms visible beside the ledger, but his right thumb rubs repeatedly against his forefinger whenever Guard Tessa touches a document.
Reeve Anja Vey
Tessa, lift the packet without breaking its seal. Pell, do not move from that table.
Guard Tessa pinches the blue-waxed packet free. A narrow filing cord remains tied around it, bearing the marshal’s office mark and a fresh smear of black ink.
Pell Ordan
That packet was not there when I last examined the chest. Someone planted it after the memorandum vanished.
Patter leans into Octavius’s steady tickling, tail sweeping once across the boards. Pell’s shoulders tense, and his left hand edges toward the ledger’s folded gap.
Guard Tessa
Your hand, Pell. Keep it where I can see it. Reeve, the seal is unbroken, but this cord was tied recently.
Director's note
Nothing in my actions change. I listen, and watch Pell, ready to act if he gets any 'bright' ideas
Octavius remains kneeling beside Patter, his injured hip relieved by the pose. His fingers travel in light scratches from the fox’s crown along neck, chest, and shoulders.
Patter leans into the shifting attention, tail brushing the boards in a slow rhythm. Patter watches the table, but stays anchored beside Octavius’s boot.
Octavius says nothing. His attention stays on Pell’s hands, tracking every twitch while Pell Ordan stands confined beside the ledger and the sealed packet.
Pell Ordan
I am not reaching for anything. Guard Tessa has made that clear, and I have no wish to worsen my position.
Pell’s right thumb stops rubbing against his forefinger, then resumes more slowly. His gaze flicks toward the packet before returning to Reeve Anja Vey.
Reeve Anja Vey
Your position worsens whenever your account changes. Tessa, leave the packet sealed and inspect the cord beneath the wax.
Guard Tessa bends over the packet without disturbing the seal. Patter’s ears twitch at the faint scrape of cord against paper, but Octavius’s steady touch keeps him settled.
Director's note
I stay quiet, watching cautiously
Guard Guard Tessa turns the packet beneath the lamplight, tracing the cord’s fresh knot with a small brass probe. The blue wax remains unbroken.
Guard Tessa
The cord was retied after sealing. Beneath the knot is a second mark, scratched into the wax and partly covered.
Reeve Anja Vey leans closer without touching the packet. Pell Ordan’s right hand stiffens beside the ledger, fingers spread as though resisting an impulse.
Reeve Anja Vey
Describe the mark, Tessa. Do not break the seal until we know whether this packet belongs in my records.
Guard Tessa
A narrow tower crossed by three short lines. It is not the marshal’s office mark, and it was added after the wax cooled.
Patter settles beneath Octavius’s wandering fingers, receiving quiet scratches along his neck and shoulders. Octavius watches Pell Ordan, whose gaze fixes on the packet again.
Pell Ordan
That is not evidence of my doing. Anyone handling the chest could have marked it, and you have no proof I knew the packet was there.
Director's note
I stay quiet, watching cautiously
Octavius remains kneeling beside Patter, easing his injured hip while his fingers wander in light scratches from the fox’s crown to his neck, chest, and shoulders.
Patter relaxes beneath the steady attention, tail brushing the boards. Octavius watches Pell’s hands without moving, tracking every twitch beside the ledger.
Reeve Anja Vey
No one accused you yet, Pell. Tessa, compare that tower mark with the seals and symbols in the chest.
Guard Tessa searches the opened records while keeping one hand near the packet. Pell’s fingers curl once, then flatten against the table under Anja’s stare.
Guard Tessa
Here. A copied tower mark appears beside three intercepted notices, each concerning arrivals from the eastern road. None reached the reeve.
Pell Ordan
Those entries prove only that notices went missing. They do not prove I intercepted them, or that this packet belongs to me.
Reeve Anja Vey
Then we will open it under witness. Tessa, record the seal, the cord, and every word inside. Pell, keep your hands visible.
Director's note
I stay quiet, watching cautiously
Octavius remains kneeling beside Patter, one hand moving in gentle scratches from the fox’s crown along his neck, chest, and shoulders. His attention stays fixed on Pell’s hands.
Patter’s tail brushes the boards in a slow rhythm. Pell stands rigid beside the ledger, his fingers spread visibly while Guard Tessa positions the packet beneath the lamplight.
Guard Tessa
The seal is intact. I will break it now, with the reeve and every witness watching.
Tessa cuts the filing cord, then lifts the blue-waxed packet toward Anja before opening it. Pell’s right hand twitches toward the ledger’s folded gap, but stops.
Reeve Anja Vey
Pell, keep both hands flat. Tessa, read the contents aloud and preserve the order of every page.
Guard Tessa
The first page names three eastern arrivals, including Mara’s party. Beside each is an instruction to divert them before they reach your receiving yard.
Pell’s face loses color. Patter presses into Octavius’s continuing touch, while Anja turns the page herself and finds a final line bearing Pell’s initials.
Quest Complete
Determine whether Pell’s records aided the watchers
Skill Upgrade: Persuasion Superb→Legendary
Director's note
I stay quiet, watching cautiously
Octavius remains kneeling beside Patter, his fingers wandering in light scratches from crown to neck, chest, and shoulders. His gaze never leaves Pell Ordan’s hands.
Guard Tessa
The final line reads: “Upon arrival, divert the cart under clerk authority. Confirm receipt by mark of Pell Ordan.” His initials follow.
Patter’s tail brushes the boards as Octavius’s hand keeps him settled. Pell Ordan’s fingers flatten against the table, but his eyes dart toward the barred door.
Pell Ordan
That line could have been added after the fact. My initials are easy enough to copy, and the packet was already tampered with.
Reeve Anja Vey
The instruction names your authority, matches your diversion, and concerns three missing arrivals. Tessa, compare the handwriting with Pell’s ledger entries.
Guard Tessa lays the packet beside the ledger and studies both under the lamplight. The older official leans forward, then stops when her hand moves toward her sword.
Guard Tessa
The hand is not Pell’s. But the initials were added by the same person who altered the arrival times. Reeve, someone used his authority deliberately.
Director's note
I stay quiet, watching cautiously
Octavius remains kneeling beside Patter, easing his injured hip. His fingers wander in light scratches from the fox’s crown along his neck, chest, and shoulders, never quite still.
His gaze stays on Pell’s hands. Pell Ordan stands rigid beside the table, while Guard Tessa keeps the packet and ledger beneath the lamplight.
Reeve Anja Vey
Then the initials were borrowed, not written by Pell. Tessa, who altered the arrival times, and who had access to this packet?
Guard Tessa
The same hand altered the ledger after the cart arrived. The packet was placed in the filing chest, but its cord was retied afterward.
Patter leans into Octavius’s continuing touch, tail brushing the boards. Pell’s fingers remain flat, though his eyes flick toward the older official and then the barred door.
The Older Official
I had the chest key during the evening watch, but Pell ordered the passage cleared. I never opened the chest, and I never saw that packet.
Reeve Anja Vey
Tessa, search the older official and secure the chest. Pell remains at the table. If either man moves without permission, bar them separately.
Director's note
I stay quiet, watching cautiously
Octavius remains kneeling beside Patter, easing his injured hip while his fingers travel from the fox’s crown along his neck, chest, and shoulders. His attention never leaves Pell’s hands.
Guard Tessa circles the older official, keeping him beneath the lamplight. Reeve Anja watches the search while Pell stands rigid beside the table, both palms pressed flat.
The Older Official
There is no need for this. I carried the key because I was assigned the evening watch, not because I served the watchers.
Guard Tessa
Then you will not object to being searched. Raise your arms, and keep your eyes on the reeve.
Tessa finds a small iron key, a folded strip of blue cord, and black sealing wax beneath the older official’s surcoat. The wax matches the smear on the packet.
Reeve Anja Vey
You claimed you never opened the chest. Explain the cord and wax before I decide whether the marshal hears this through the door.
Patter settles more heavily against Octavius’s knee, soothed by the wandering scratches. Pell’s right thumb twitches toward the ledger, then stills beneath Anja’s fixed stare.
Director's notewhole tale
I stay quiet, watching cautiously. Though later I should suggest that the wax may match the same on the fabric Patter had found by the camp. Later.
The Older Official
The wax is for routine gate seals. The cord is spare. I carried both because the evening watch requires repairs and resealing.
Guard Tessa
Routine seals do not explain why your wax matches the packet, or why your cord matches its fresh knot.
The older official’s jaw works as he glances toward Pell. Pell remains rigid, palms flat, while Octavius’s fingers wander through Patter’s fur, keeping the fox settled beside his knee.
Reeve Anja Vey
You carried the key, the matching wax, and the cord used to retie an intercepted packet. That is no longer a collection of harmless duties.
The Older Official
Pell gave me the packet after the cart arrived. He said the reeve had ordered its removal from the chest. I did not read it.
Pell Ordan
He is lying to save himself. I told him only to clear the passage, and he had the key before I ever touched the ledger.
Guard Tessa steps between the men and secures the iron key in her palm. Patter’s tail sweeps the boards once, then stills beneath Octavius’s continuing scratches.
“...Lady Reeve, may I speak?" I ask gingerly, finally letting my eyes leave Pell to move towards Anja. "I ... may be noticing a pattern I had not realized before.”
SUCCESS (Great Reasoning, rolled -2)
Octavius
Lady Reeve, may I speak? I may be noticing a pattern I had not realized before.
Octavius finally shifts his gaze from Pell to Reeve Anja Vey, remaining kneeling beside Patter. His fingers continue light scratches along the fox’s head, neck, chest, and shoulders.
Reeve Anja Vey
You may. State the pattern plainly, and distinguish what you observed from what you infer.
Octavius
The diversions, altered entries, and intercepted packet all use legitimate authority as their cover. Each step redirects arrivals before they reach you, while leaving someone else to claim an instruction.
The insight assembles the scattered evidence: Pell’s authority, the older official’s key, and the marshal’s mark form a repeated chain of misdirection. Yet the exact order of their cooperation remains uncertain.
Reeve Anja Vey
Yes. The pattern is not merely theft of notices. It is controlled diversion, with each participant able to blame the authority above him.
Pell Ordan
That is speculation. I followed instructions given through the gatehouse, as any clerk would.
“The wax we found on the torn cloth outside our camp... It had a slightly different texture than the wax that sealed your notice. Does this wax also feel different to you? What if the bandits trying to intercept the message wanted to plant a false missive in its place? I am concerned that this flaw may run deeper into the core of this stone than it first seemed.”
SUCCESS (Superb Perception, rolled +1)
Octavius
The wax on the torn cloth felt slightly different from the wax sealing your notice. Does this packet’s wax differ as well? What if the bandits meant to replace the true message with a false one? This flaw may run deeper into Dunmere’s core than we thought.
Still kneeling beside Patter, Octavius keeps his fingers moving over the fox’s head, neck, chest, and shoulders while studying Pell’s hands. The torn cloth lies within reach on the table.
Reeve Anja Vey
Tessa, compare all three without damaging the packet. The cloth, my notice, and the packet seal. Record texture, hardness, and any difference in preparation.
Guard Tessa places the cloth beside the blue-waxed packet, then borrows Anja’s notice and examines each seal beneath the lamplight. Patter remains settled against Octavius’s knee.
Guard Tessa
He is right. The cloth wax is softer and grainier, while the packet wax matches the reeve’s notice. The packet was sealed with legitimate wax, but the cord was replaced afterward.
Reeve Anja Vey
Then a false missive could have been prepared to resemble mine, though this packet is genuine. The interception was designed to control which message reached me, not merely to steal it.
Pell’s fingers tense against the table before flattening again. Anja’s attention shifts from the packet to him, while Octavius continues the quiet scratches that keep Patter calm.
“"Forgive my boldness, but if we find the prepared missive... We may also find a lead towards how far this goes. While certainly the bandits that followed us have a copy, there could be one here as well. Why else would Mara have been diverted away from the main... er.. receiving place?”
SUCCESS (Great Reasoning, rolled +2)
Octavius
Forgive my boldness, but if we find the prepared missive, it may reveal how far this reaches. The bandits may have a copy, but there could be one here as well. Why else divert Mara from the proper receiving yard?
Still kneeling beside Patter, Octavius keeps his fingers moving through the fox’s head, neck, chest, and shoulders. His gaze remains fixed on Pell’s hands as the room absorbs the implication.
Reeve Anja Vey
Tessa, search for a concealed draft or duplicate. Check the filing chest, the diversion notes, and the side-passage records. If a false missive exists, we will find it here.
Guard Tessa
There is a false bottom beneath the eastern-road records. Reeve, I have found a second packet wrapped in oilcloth, hidden below the ordinary files.
Tessa draws out the packet and sets it beneath the lamplight. Its blue wax bears a copied reeve’s seal, while the paper lists Mara’s arrival and orders her diverted before Anja can receive her.
Pell Ordan
That is not mine. I never saw it, and the false seal proves only that someone wanted the gatehouse blamed.
Reeve Anja Vey
It proves someone prepared a replacement message inside my gatehouse. Tessa, preserve it. Pell, the search now extends to every person with access to this chest.