Swamped

"It seems to me you're getting sidetracked," Mudviper says suddenly. "There's going to be a rush to fill that Council seat; you need to make your case fast."

"I have responsibilities to my squad," you say. "If I can't handle leading five other Marshguards, how the hell am I supposed to make decisions for hundreds of them?"

"Fair. But don't lose sight of the big picture." She points to the notes. "You'll need to make decisions on critical matters like the poisoning, and you won't be able to avoid conversations with Doc any more. I know you're ready for it; you're just too stubborn to believe that yourself."

Ugh. There's no sense arguing with her. You're going to be seeing Doc momentarily, once Rivers and Starling return with backup.

"Fine. I'd just like to ask one favor."

"What's that?"

"When we get to Doc, send the other guards back to their meeting. Then find something for Rivers to do. Five minutes later, come back and call for Starling."

She gives you a questioning look.

"You expect that to make the conversation go more smoothly somehow?"

"No. Just the opposite. But it's got to be done."

"All right, I'll trust your judgement."

You start looking through the notes for a while, until you hear footsteps down the hall.

Now seems like a good time to pick up your cards, before everyone goes stepping on them... or before anyone with gambling debts gets upset. You put the cards away carefully, preserving the hands and piles without looking at them. Maybe you can resume the game later, if Rivers trusts you enough to believe you didn't tamper with anything, or see anything you shouldn't.

Hmm. Actually, it seems Rivers' cards are missing entirely. Not a good sign.

The girls soon come back with about eight more Marshguards. Not long after, Stinger wakes up, groggy. You support him on your shoulder while everyone else carries the troublemakers, and make your way to Doc's place.

Doc gives a quick examination. She concludes that Rotmouth's head injury is the only one severe enough to need further treatment; she chains Rotmouth to the bed in her office, and Anchor and Grips are dragged away; they'll be confined to quarters for a good while.

The rest of the guards go back to their meeting. Mudviper asks Rivers to take Stinger back to his room so he can recover properly, and you get a bag of something cold to put on your head.

You're not sure exactly what's in the bag, and you'd rather not ask. Headache or no headache, this next conversation won't be easy.

First things first. Starling's with you for the next five minutes, which means you don't want to bring up any sensitive topics. So where should you start?