bit. Actually the man couldn't reach Tor's face, being too tall. Instead the good looking golden blond man glared downward as hard as he could.
“Fine! So he just gets to waltz out of the palace and everything is just fine because that rapist didn't kill anyone? Am I really supposed to feel better because some little boy is on the task?” The man kept going but Tor tuned him out. Of course the guy shouldn't feel better just because he was looking into this, that would be silly. While it wasn't fun to stand and take abuse over it, what else could he do really? The man had just lost his daughter in about the worst way imaginable. If it made him feel better to yell, then Tor could take it.
After the Baron wound down a little, still fuming, Richard shook his head.
“Baron Brian Rochester did not waltz out of the palace Stephen. He didn't even walk under his own power. Tor took him out back and beat him nearly to death. Without extreme intervention he'll likely be crippled for life. Both legs and both arms were nearly destroyed.” The voice was matter of fact, but not cold.
Trice walked forward, seeming a little scared but not timid, however that worked, “It's true, I watched the whole thing myself. Baron Diddles couldn't even roll out of the puddle of his own blood when Tor left. I had to kick him over so he wouldn't drown. Didn't know about the rest of this or I would have left him.”
Baron Coltress looked down again at Tor.
“Oh. I…” He faltered and stopped speaking.
Tor just nodded.
“We'll find who did this. Even if I have to question every person in the kingdom. Smythe has a search plan and…” OK, Tor had nothing else after that. Instead of continuing to let him run off at the mouth, the King invited everyone into a sitting room so that they could talk, plan and vent. Smythe was requested and food brought in. Everyone kind of sat uncomfortably, except Trice who mainly comforted Maria.
Blessedly a cup of that brown and bitter sludge used for the after effects of combat rage came then too. Whoever thought to order it was a saint. Short of healing himself with the amulet around his neck, nothing else would get rid of the headache, fatigue and headache that was starting to rip through his skull. The rage left you slow witted and made it hard to think of anything clever too. Oh. The healing device. Right. Tor hit the sigil and felt a brief pain run through his head and body as things corrected faster than the body really liked. Half a minute later he was fine. Having the ability to think again made a huge difference when it hit suddenly like that.
The situation wasn't good and of course, Smythe didn't know anything more than he'd told Tor, basically he wanted to start interviewing everyone that knew the girls in order to find out if there was anyone that might have known all of them, or if they all frequented the same places or had similar patterns. It made sense. A solid plan. Not comforting to the family at all.
Tor just hugged people and held their hands if they wanted. Maria Ward kept clinging to him every time Trice moved away for half a second, which wasn't comfortable to him at all. He tried to use Nita and Petra as a shield, but short of stiff arming the woman, he couldn't really keep her away. Tor didn't want her to touch him.
They weren't friends and hadn't agreed to try to be, like he had with Dorgal. He could forgive her for being mean to him years before and even trying to have him attacked, which honestly, he realized, she'd succeeded in. That didn't mean he wanted her on his lap crying. Then, it would be rude to just dump her on the floor too.
Just because he didn't like or trust her, that didn't mean her pain wasn't real.
Everyone was staying at the palace that night, because the King wanted them close and to make sure that the attack on Ginger hadn't been politically motivated. The words weren't said, but it was really about protecting them all, just in case. A lot of people still had some hard feelings about Marvin and Maria, since they'd inadvertently helped the Austran Larval assassins and then declared war in a panic. Sure it was a bonehead move, but no one denied that. Not even Count Ward and it had been his idea.
Tor had dinner in his room and tried to prepare for the next day, kind of wishing that Ali wasn't so busy herself. Even if she was too tired for sex, and who could blame her working non-stop like she and Karina were, it would have been comforting just to have her close for the night. Well, it wouldn't be either the first or last night he'd spend alone, so Tor got in bed early and willed himself to sleep. It wasn't like he couldn't use the rest.
It was a few hours later when he felt it, a now familiar and intimate stirring at his groin. Ali had come back?
“Hey.”
The voice came from next to him ear, soft and husky, familiar. Trice. That was all right then, he liked her and she was even kind of his girlfriend, right? She and Ali did things together, probably even did other people together like this, so this was natural for them. Tor carefully rolled a little so that he could give her a hug and then kissed her as the work below his waist increased in pace. Tor started to reach that point were his body would simply act no matter what he did when the action stopped and a strange voice came from below the sheets.
“Patricia, do you want a turn?”
Tor's sleep addled brain didn't get it at first. Not until Trice spoke.
“Sure Maria, we can take turns.” Her voice was casual and soft still. Pleasant.
That contrasted nicely with the scream Tor let out then, he realized.
“Ahhh!” Panicked and not really able to think yet, Tor woke up half way across the room, his back to the wall, night clothes half off and shield on.
“What?” Tor screamed at Trice, not able to see her in the dark.
“Why the freaking hell would you let her in?” Tor fixed his clothing and left the room fast. That was… insane. Trice knew better too. They'd talked about how he felt about Maria. He hadn't been complimentary, if he remembered correctly. The nicest he'd been was to say he was trying to not blame her forever for what she'd done as a fourteen year old.
Worse she'd been touching him. There. Uninvited. OK, he'd put up with things like that from his friends, but that woman was the nearest thing he had in the world to an enemy and she'd been… Using her mouth on him.
Tor wanted to just leave the building, the Capital, maybe the kingdom. Instead he stopped outside the door and spinning place. No, he wasn't running this time. Heading back in Tor hit the light panel. At least both girls had dressed.
“Get out. This is my room for the night and I didn't invite you. I don't know what you two have cooked up, some form of humiliation for me no doubt? Abuse me in my sleep then go and tell everyone how horrible I am in bed? Well, let me save you the trouble. Get out now and…” Tor was about to tell Trice never to talk to him again, which seemed fair at the moment. In a while he'd probably forgive her though, so he just pointed at the door instead.
“Both of you. Out. Don't come back without permission. From me. No sneaking in on the butlers say so or anything.”
Neither girl moved. Woman really, they weren't girls any more. Fine, that just mean they should have known better. Stupid royal rules. It didn't matter if he was being rude now even.
“Out.” His voice sounded firm. If that didn't do the trick what was he going to do, use violence?
That didn't happen, apparently the combat aura was enough. The girls scrambled then. Finally.
Great, now he had to fix that too. Stupid combat rage.
It took over an hour of meditation and left him waking up grumpy, even after fixing the after effects with the healing amulet. Too much of that and he'd damage his own field again. After climbing out of the bed with its shining gold colored silky looking sheets and spread on the top, bathing in the tan ceramic tub and shaving carefully, he headed out to look for people and maybe food. Healing twice like that had left him starving. Normally not feeling need for food directly on waking, today it felt like he could eat, and might not stop.
Ever.
Normally breakfast would be served in the small dining room off the second hallway, but today it was in the slightly larger one on the other side. It took a while to find, and some hints from the guards in the walls, but he finally made it. Today was egg toast and bacon, with preserves. Eggs too. He ate a full plate of food and still wanted more, but made himself stop, knowing that it was just a feeling now, not something truly required. Eating more than needed was a waste. Right now Tor didn't have the energy to bother with it.
Rolph was across the table, looking at Tor covertly, Trice sat next to him, looking guilty and barely eating. Karina sat down the table a ways with Ali, heads buried and papers in front of them, the whole thing looking rather official really, both wore black military uniforms even. Ali looked out of place but cute as hell in hers. On Karina it just looked right. Real. Tor snagged a fifth half of buttered toast and chewed on it, still feeling half starved for some reason. Some combination of two combat rage episodes in a single day followed by the rapid healing field he used?
