EVA QUESTIONS ANNA

Next morning (after Fenros’ escape)

Anna woke up with part of the covers over her, and Alexander's leg and arm over her. As she moved slightly his arm pulled her back against him. Never having had a man stay over before she wasn't sure how to disentangle herself without waking him up. She was comfy and she decided to lay there with him for a little while longer.

Alex had made her feel both wanted and secure whereas Verrick...Verrick and her were complicated and she had trouble figuring them out. At that exact moment she knew they were different then they had been, even though there was still love between them. She wasn't going to keep chasing after him since he didn't seem to want her. That was asking for repeated heartbreak that she didn't need. She was clearly wanted by someone else and he made her laugh and feel important.

Alexander felt a small movement next to him and opened his eyes to see Anna laying next to him in the bed.  He wasn't sure that she was awake until he saw her move her head a bit, and her eyes were open.  "I feel like the second we get out of bed some assassins are going to attack, or an earthquake will bring down the city.  At least those kinds of things seem to happen often. In one day we got assassins and obstructing the city guard.  You don't mind if I ask to wait a little longer to start the day, do you?"

Anna looked at him and smirked. [color=8dc73f] "My lord, you talk too much."[/color] She smiled and then kissed him. They didn't come out for quite a while.

Eva sat on her bed, trying to convince her knee to move at least a bit. Her little morning ritual. Some people had a hot tea, or breakfast with their families. She had to convince her rebellious limb to cooperate. [color=9e0039]"You will not betray me today, you hear me,"[/color] she mumbled. Finally, she was able to get out of bed and stand up, slowly trying to put weight on her useless leg. [color=9e0039]"Not today of all days. I finally have a chance of getting him and I sure as hell won’t miss it because I’m a cripple."[/color] She made a few small steps, leaning against her cane. There were some tears, maybe pain, maybe anger, who knows. 

She slowly got dressed and headed to her office. Garret was already waiting there for her, with breakfast and some papers. She quickly glimpsed on the papers, while chewing on a piece of bread. The city guard reported that there had been an attack on the Ale House tavern and the attack was repelled. There were several dead attackers, all with stab wounds. One dead bartender. The only survivors were apparently the owner, Anna May Smith, and Lord Markos, both with light injuries.

With the mention of Lord Markos, Eva raised her eyebrow in surprise. Wow, that girl sure does aim high. She vaguely remembered him, handsome, tall, rich. He is probably having a girl in every inn he goes to, just because he can. 

There was another report, describing a fight in the tavern last night. So that’s how Josie got his bruises. Well at least the first ones. No mention about any hooded figures or archers. There was a bearded man arguing with the earl over Josie though. Could it be him? Could his stupid “guild” be after the Ouroboros as well?

The Woodsmen. Even the name was a joke. Dirty peasants running around in the woods, thinking they are important for the kingdom. The inquisition would use them to gain information from time to time, but ignored them otherwise. They were merely crude tools. Eva chuckled. This one was a special tool, to say the least.

After the breakfast she and Garret headed to the tavern. Eva walked very carefully, ignoring the looks the people gave her. They knew who she was, most of them probably hated her, but no one dared to even look her in the eye, let alone say anything. Garret paced slowly next to her, his long steps covering three of hers.

When they arrived in front of the inn, Eva tapped on the doors with her cane a couple of times. [color=9e0039]"Well, we tried to knock. Open it,"[/color] she said with evil smile. The doors were damaged, probably in the attack last night, and only repaired to the point they stayed closed. Garret opened them with one swift kick.

The bodies from the fight were taken away by the guards, but there was no time to clean all the blood. Eva quietly moved around the room, only sound was made by her cane tapping on the floor. She tried to imagine what had happened here, and if the attackers could really be killed by one man and a young girl.

Her thoughts were interrupted by Garret’s quiet growl. Someone was coming.

Anna was already in the process of pulling her boots on when she heard the door open. Her heart jumped into her throat. She just knew in her heart it was the inquisitor. She looked at Alexander as she grabbed a couple of her knives and hid them on her. She put her finger over her mouth to shush him and she went downstairs closing the door behind her so he could finish dressing. 

Anna walked down the stairs and turned the corner and she walked into the tavern and looked at the woman with the cane and the man who was with her. There was a shiver of warning that went up her spine. She jumped slightly as if startled. Anna's voice shook a little nervous or it could be attributed to the events of the night before to those that didn't know her.

[color=8dc73f] "Oh! I'm sorry I didn't expect anyone to be down here. I'm sorry but the tavern is closed today. We had an attack or a brawl or....I'm not even sure of what to call it so if you don't mind I have a lot of cleaning to do today." [/color] 

[color=9e0039]"Miss Anna May Smith? You are the owner of this place? I am Eva Gallard, from the Royal Inquisition. I came here to ask a few questions about the… attack. And more importantly, the events that preceded."[/color] Eva carefully studied Anna’s face, looking for anything she might try to hide.

[color=9e0039]"Did you recognize any of the men that attacked you? Were they saying what they wanted, or searching for something?"[/color] Eva looked Anna straight in the eyes, trying her best to make her as uncomfortable as possible.

Anna looked her straight in the eye and was pretty honest, she only left out tiny bits. [color=8dc73f]"Well my ...."[/color] she blushed unsure of what to refer to the earl as. [color=8dc73f]"The earl and I were upstairs, both of us were drinking heavily earlier so we were sleeping it off when I heard a crash that woke me up. I almost fell down the stairs because I was in such a hurry. When I got down here I grabbed a sword and shoved it through the man who was killing my bartender. The patrons were fighting back and they took out a few of the men. I remember Alexander passing me as I checked on and cried over my friend Chester. He had been a second father to me so I was terribly distraught."[/color]

The tears that slid down her cheeks were very real at this point as she remembered the last words Chester had said to her. She wiped her face with a bar towel. [color=8dc73f]"Please excuse my tears, I will miss him terribly."[/color] She took a minute before starting back up.

[color=8dc73f]"After that I got mad and joined the others in the fight with my knives. I'm not so great with a sword but with my knives...I almost never miss."[/color] Anna picked up the closest knife to her and looked at Eva and then she threw the knife into the wall to Anna's left without looking and it was a bullseye.

She shuddered at this point and said, [color=8dc73f]"When I ran out of knives one of the ...attackers grabbed me about the waist and lifted me off the ground and tried to...take advantage of me. He ripped my shirt open and cut my thigh with his knife. Luckily for me the earl was close by so when I screamed he killed the man with a knife to the eye. It was really quite gruesome."[/color]

Anna stopped and then said, [color=8dc73f]"Pretty much there were only one or two left and at least one or two ran out of the tavern. We really have no idea who they were or what happened. I saw that one of my tables had a hand impaled to it. That leads me to believe that the  man was playing cards and might have been caught cheating but that is all I can tell you."[/color]

[color=8dc73f]"I really wish I could tell you more but I wasn't down here."[/color] She rubbed at the injured hip. Her bandage was itching and it helped that it was convincing. [color=8dc73f]"If there is nothing else I need to change this bandage."[/color]

Eva watched Anna carefully as she talked. Even a blind person would notice the blushing when she talked about the earl. She sure doesn’t waste any time, I wonder if he is still here? She was thinking to herself, when Anna threw the knife. Hmm this girl could be dangerous. Eva tried to look as unimpressed as possible and Anna continued talking. Poor thing, saved by the handsome earl, what a fairytale. There is no way that he didn’t spend the night here, consoling her. She really wants me to believe that all of this mess was caused by a bunch of card players? 
 
[color=9e0039]"I heard that that wasn’t the first… disturbance here that night, am I right? There was a fight here earlier, between one drunk and your earl. And one of the other guests also got involved with the earl. So, this drunkard, do you know him by any chance, is he a regular? "[/color]
 
Anna just shook her head. [color=8dc73f]"I can’t say that I have ever seen him before, but lots of people come through the tavern."[/color]
 
[color=9e0039]"And the other man, the one that took the unconscious drunk away? Friend of yours, or maybe earl’s? He could be a witness to a very important case, and I am sure you wouldn’t want to thwart an official investigation, would you?"[/color] Eva asked quietly in an ice-cold tone. 

Anna wondered how she knew about that but said, [color=8dc73f]"I hadn't thought about that but I don't think the two are related. Apparently the jerk was being lascivious behind my back and it pissed off a couple of patrons. I wasn't familiar with who took him outside. He didn't come back in to my knowledge. I just went back to doing more shots with the earl."[/color]

Eva frowned. This wasn’t getting her anywhere. Suddenly she got an idea. Let’s put all the cards on the table, she thought. [color=9e0039]"Was that man by any chance Verrick O’Conner?"[/color] she added, just to see what happens.

Anna didn't blink when she said Verrick's name. She also didn't breathe, then she got an idea. Her face became angry. [color=8dc73f]"Yes it was, he is my ex fiance and the earl and I are newly together and he came in and started a fight with him. It was so awful!"[/color]

Eva’s eyes widened in surprise. Ex-fiancé? She really did not see that coming. Who the hell is this girl that a Woodsman and a baron fight over her? But she got what she wanted. Finally, a proof that he was involved in all this. Now she can legally go after him. She almost sighed with satisfaction. [color=9e0039]"Thank you for your cooperation,"[/color] she smiled at Anna, for once with an honest smile. [color=9e0039]"I don’t think your ex-fiancé will be bothering you anymore."[/color] Eva turned to leave. [color=9e0039]"Oh, and sorry for your loss. I am sure you can’t think about anything and anyone else right now,"[/color] she grinned, but hid that from Anna, so it would look at least slightly sincere.

Verrick sat outside The Ale House door listening in to their conversation. Honestly he was surprised that this woman Eva. Gritting his teeth at this realization on how dedicated she was to getting him only made things worse for him. He even growled when Anna went on to explain he was her ex-fiance, cursing when she just gave Eva a clear target for her to use as leverage. He will have to fix that...and quick. 

Hearing footsteps he hunched down, and slowly started moving towards the door, He wasn't wearing his normal cloak, just an old...and really raunchy dung smelling brown tattered one, His arrows and bow under it, causing a hump in his back, but they were covered and could not be seen.  He leaned heavily on his walking stick, keeping his head down waiting to get in the way of Eva. By all accounts and purposes he looked like a homeless old beggar.

Eva stepped out of the door, with a satisfied smile on her lips, already planning on how to best use this new information. The ideal plan would be to talk to the Superior, but he was at the castle today for meetings with the king. She frowned when she looked at the way going all the way up the hill to the castle gates. Well, we all must make sacrifices, she thought to herself.

Sudden horrible smell struck her nose. It seemed to be coming from a beggar standing in her way. She crinkled her nose and looked away, disgusted. [color=9e0039]"Get out of my way,"[/color] she growled. She would have used her cane to hit him or push him away, but she was afraid she would lose her balance. It really wouldn’t be good if she fell on the ground here in the middle of the street. Instead she just nodded to Garret, who roughly shoved the man, pushing him out of their way.

Eva was slightly annoyed, but decided not to let this meaningless beggar ruin her happiness. She continued to the castle.

Anna followed behind them and as they left she went to close the door and noticed an odd beggar outside of her door and looked up to see Eva down the street. She looked harder at the beggar and grabbed his arm and yanked him inside. 

[color=8dc73f]"Are you crazy? She could have recognized you and MY GOD WHAT IS THAT SMELL?"[/color] She said nearly gagging.  

Verrick grunted as as he was shoved to the ground, rolling hard and acting like it hurt him badly, he only grinned. He took his time to get up, just in case she looked back. He was about to throw his cloak when suddenly Anna recognized him and dragged him into the tavern. How the hell does she always recognize him? He thought to himself as she then started to gag, complaining about the smell. [color=007236] "Only way to get close enough in broad daylight. No one ever looks twice at a smelly homeless old fool. [/color]

He took off his cloak and threw it outside. He sighed, [color=007236] You shouldn't have told her we were together...It's only going to cause you more trouble.[/color]

[color=8dc73f]"It's public knowledge. If I didn't the guys on the street would have been able to tell her. If I treated her like she was stupid she would have come back for the spite of it."[/color] She put distance between her and Verrick after shutting the door back tightly. 

[color=8dc73f]"I can handle trouble in case you haven't noticed."[/color] She sighed heavily. [color=8dc73f]"So now what do we do? I need to clean this place up because the smell of blood and ale in here is just disgusting. Where can we go that would be safe? I think I need to close up for a little while and let things cool down."[/color]

Verrick growled, [color=007236]"She can still come after you to get to me."[/color] He said softly, as she walked away, [color=007236]"The inquisitors are not just trouble Anna...they are the last thing you want, or I want to deal with.." [/color]

[color=007236]"You should get out of town-"[/color]

Alexander pushed the curtain aside as he walked into the front room of the tavern, still tightening the belt on his pants.  He smiled at Anna before pulling his shirt on over his head.  That was when the stench hit him. [color=0072bc]"What smells like the inside of a rotting corpse?"[/color]  As he noticed Verrick his smile left his face. [color=0072bc]"Oh it's you.  I thought we had gotten rid of you."[/color]

Verrick noted him putting his pants on still...and with what he heard Anna say... He closed his eyes as he growled. [color=007236]"Just thought it's time for your second bath Mi'lord."[/color] he said as he looked at him.

[color=0072bc]"I actually could use one, it could be relaxing seeing I didn't get much sleep last night; after the fight of course..."[/color] Alexander let the words hang in the air, giving Verrick a big grin.

[color=007236]"And I assume a close shave would be in order as well?"[/color] He said, pulling his knife from his belt. No grin on his face still, his tone serious.

Alexander rubbed his chin thoughtfully, [color=0072bc]"No I don't believe I need a shave, but -"[/color]

Anna sighed and stepped between them almost getting squished in all the male posturing. [color=8dc73f]"Hey, hey! Stop it!"[/color] She put her hand both of their chests and pushed them apart. [color=8dc73f]"Verrick!"[/color]

She glared at both of them and then she thought about letting them at each other. She was clearly just a pawn in their angst with each other.

[color=8dc73f]"I am sorry Verrick but you said we can't be together. You REFUSED me entirely. Apparently our love makes no difference to you."[/color] It killed her to say that and there were tears welling up in her eyes. Her stomach literally hurt with the pain of stress.

[color=8dc73f]"Alexander wants to be with me. He cares about me and he makes me laugh. You don't get to push me away and keep me at the same time. I'm not a toy you put on a shelf to play with later."[/color]

[color=007236] It's not clear and cut as you made it sound.[/color] He said as he sheathed his knife. His tight gripping on the handle of the blade. [color=007236]"Get out of town, tonight and quick. Go run off with your new drunk on his fleet of ships for a while, till things have cooled off. " [/color]

Anna looked at Verrick and she felt like she had been gutted. The anger and hatefulness was just so strong from him and she could take that from anyone but him. She grabbed her weapons and walked outside and went to the stalls and saddled her horse. Tears were streaming down her face and she climbed up on the stallion and kicked its sides and took off back towards where she had been the happiest. 

When she ran off he looked at Alexander, after saying nothing, he turned and walked out the door to find her, only to see her riding off. He knew where she was going...He didn't want to get any closer to her right now. Now wasn't the time. He couldn't tell her the real reasons to be with the Woodsman. Not yet. But he had to make sure she at least left the kingdom. 

He reached his own horse, hesitating as he reached the saddle, he grabbed his cloak that he had left in his saddlebags. Quickly putting it on he got onto his horse and rode off to their place...where he was sure she went. Though he had to be quick, as he had to make it to the castle before Eva could speak to Superior Jennal. 

When he caught up to Anna he jumped off his horse before it even came to a stop, throwing back the cowl of his cloak as he then said quickly in his gruff tone. [color=007236] Anna... I asked you eight years ago to trust me, you didn't then. Now, I ask you to trust me again that I don't refuse you because I hate you, It's because i'm doing so to protect you, just like I was doing eight years ago. Even more so now, I can't stop you from moving on if you wish, that's your choice, but it doesn't mean I have to like it. But what I can do is make sure you're safe, so I was serious in going with...Alexander, and travel a bit with him.[/color]

Anna looked at him a moment and wiped the tears from her face. She was sitting by the lake near where the old blanket had been in their past. It had long since rotted away from the damage of time. She got to her feet and walked over to him. She slid her arms around his waist and looked him in the eyes. [color=8dc73f]"How does us being apart make it [i]"for me?"[/i] I know your job is dangerous. I can handle danger. I can handle us not having kids and the conventional life if we are together but if we are apart....it's torture trying not to love you."[/color]

 [color=007236]"Not this kind of danger, not with what’s coming...."[/color] He looked down when she mentioned having a family, something they both wished for back then. While he still did... knowing about the constant threat of rebellion and this inquisitor constantly at his back. He feared it would not be a good time to start.
 

 [color=007236] "I know you can take care of yourself, But I need to do what I need to, to ensure that you are safe."[/color] He looked towards the city, he had to leave now to still get ahead of Eva. He pulled away from her and got on his horse. 

 [color=007236]" I'm sorry but please... will you just go with Alexander?"[/color]

Anna looked at him and knew he had to go. [color=8dc73f]"Verrick, I'll wait for you as long as I can."[/color] She felt the hitch in her voice and watched him ascend his horse.  As he left she thought about Alex and looked around. She needed to bathe. A few moments later she was in the water.