The guard frowned and probably wanted to ask why. He returned with a pitcher and three glasses, and a wet rag. Trig declined a glass and took the rag to clean the blood from his face and the backs of his hands where he’d tried to wipe it off. Kit drank his water so fast, Riju almost thought he’d be sick. He was thirsty too, but he tried to go slower with his. His stomach was already twisted with nerves, and he refused to look at Trig while he tried to calm down. Technically, he could get in trouble for a couple of things, but he was still going to be honest and get this settled once and for all.
He still had his two dolls from the pack, and Dory was in his coat. The gate guard had his pack. The silence was almost deafening, and Riju wanted to go home, get in bed with Kit, curl up, and sleep.
The shop wasn’t truly home anymore.
It took a while before a man in the usual yellow guard outfit came in. The others were equipped with basic leather armor, but he wore silver and was around forty or so. He introduced himself and said they could call him Nawson. He had another guard with him, and Riju spoke up before they could get into anything.
“You need to send someone to the Pleasure and Play toyshop in the Edge,” said Riju. “Trig has the ledger in his office, and you can open the lockbox and check what we have. It’ll match up. The contract he wrote up for Kit is in there too, and you’ll see the terms he laid out.”
Out of the corner of his eye, he caught Trig damn near burning a hole through him with his gaze.
“There’s no need to have anyone digging in my office and going through my private things,” he started indignantly.
Nawson held up a hand. “Wait a minute-”
“No, I won’t wait a min-”
“Be quiet or we’ll make you shut up. Riju, right? I only received the barest facts from the man who fetched me.”
Riju nodded as he stared at the desk. “Yeah. This is Kit.”
“Why do we need anything from the office?”
“Because it’ll show we stole nothing and how Trig was breaking the law, and I don’t think he should be allowed to stay in the Edge or have any more slaves. He also hit me this morning and-
“I never hit you!” Trig practically yelled.
Riju made the mistake of glancing at him and wanted to drag Kit out and away. Even with the guards in the office, Trig looked ready to jump up and smack him.
“Let him speak,” said Nawson. “If you haven’t done anything wrong, I think it'll be clear pretty soon. Anything else we should get?”
Riju tried to think. “I-I don’t think so.”
“Look downstairs,” said Kit. “There’s a whip on the basement stairs. Riju dropped it when Trig lunged on him, and you should take a real good look around the basement, especially near the wall.”
Riju remembered the pee puddle. “Yes, you should take a good look around. The key to the safe is tucked behind the painting of the guy in rope bondage in the office.”
“I’ll send a couple up there.” Nawson told the one he’d entered with to get another and head to Pleasure and Play. He sat. “How do you all know each other?”
Riju explained their relationship. Nawson let Kit go first to explain the day’s events.
Kit told him how Trig had accused him of being retarded and filling Riju’s head with nonsense. He’d been left there all day in the basement as if forgotten, and Trig had threatened to punish him.
“I think he planned to get me out of the way first,” Kit finished. “He wanted to go upstairs and talk to Riju, and since they started fighting, I think he knew things might not go all right. Why else chain me up down there? He could have left me to watch the shop instead of opening it a bit later than normal. I was chained so I couldn’t go upstairs and see Riju. Trig also threatened to punish me tomorrow and didn’t give me any food or water.”
“What about when you left?”
Kit explained how Riju got him out.
Nawson paused while writing on a piece of parchment. “Riju, what happened to you today?”
Riju explained everything from the morning until they reached the gate guards. When he was asked to remove the wrap, it didn’t take a genius to see his injury was genuine. His swollen wrist hurt to move. Sewing probably hadn’t helped either since he’d had to hold the cloth while using the needle with his good hand. His shin hurt, so he rolled up his trouser legs. Sure enough, he had nasty red marks on his shins and knees thanks to tripping and banging them on the steps.
Trig’s version left out all of the violence, and he made it sound as if Riju had thrown a fit over nothing and pouted in his room all day. He said Kit had helped out in the shop, and he’d gone to bed in his room. He’d been allowed to have his usual meals and water.
The blatant lie made Riju boil inside.
“How did Riju sprain his wrist?” asked Nawson. “He’s clearly hurt and bruised.”
