《Arcane Transcript》


 THE CITY ON THE EDGE OF THE WORLD - 1

    Finally, Claire let herself fully relax. People here almost all had cooked fruit over cracked wheat for breakfast, but it looked like somebody had made eggs and rice, even if somebody hadn¡¯t made enough for two.


    On paper, Theo had crafted the perfect position for himself. He didn¡¯t work for the military or the church, so he got to pick his own team and his own jobs. Since he contracted for both, his parents had no room to complain as long as he kept building a good reputation.


    We should have ordered pastries. Do you think she¡¯d want- I mean everyone likes pastries. Unless they¡¯re allergic. Or don¡¯t like sweets. Ugh, we should have done this yesterday!¡± Cam was saying, continually trying to push back his curls in stress.


    It¡¯ll be fine,¡± Abigail said sympathetically. She was trying to wash some of the coffee mugs that had slowly accumulated on the desks. Theo found trying to keep the office clean was a bit of a Sisyphian task and easier not to bother with, which was probably, in retrospect, the reason it got so dirty in the first place. ¡°She¡¯s not going to quit because we don¡¯t have pastries.¡±


    It¡¯s not about quitting, it¡¯s about feeling comfortable! I mean, it¡¯s awkward, going into a group of people who¡¯ve known each other for ages, right? We want her to feel welcome.¡±


    No amount of pastries,¡± Theo reminded them, ¡°is going to counteract Linn.¡±


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    Shut up, shut up, shut up,¡± Abigail said, stripping her dish gloves and drumming the back counter for attention. ¡°I can feel a caster coming.¡±


    Miss James, welcome. I¡¯m Theodore Dryden.¡±


    Thank you,¡± James said, ignoring Linn¡¯s entry. She turned to look at the office. ¡°I¡¯m Clarisse James. I¡¯ll be working as your team¡¯s tracer starting today. I hope I¡¯ll be an asset to your team.¡±


    You sound Avairnian,¡± Linn said, smiling as if that made it sound any less of an accusation.


    Yes. That is because I¡¯m Avernian,¡± James responded. There was a hint of an expression there, but it wasn¡¯t anger, it was the slightest edge of amusement. Perhaps Linn would be less of a problem than he¡¯d worried.


    Why are you here then?¡± Linn asked, putting a casual elbow on James¡¯s shoulder.


    I¡¯m wanted for execution in Avairne for desertion, so I thought it would be a bit more pleasant working here. Don¡¯t worry, my loyalty is to my work, not my birthplace. If you have any concerns, I¡¯m sure a government official would be happy to confirm my allegiances.¡±


    Well, we¡¯re lucky to have you. I¡¯m the team leader, so you can come to me with any problems. That¡¯s Linn Miller, our medical examiner, Campbell handles paperwork, and Abigail Stephanson, our muscle.¡±


    I¡¯m so excited to have another caster on the team! I¡¯ve never been any good with sense magic. I¡¯m a kinetic manipulation specialist, but I¡¯m not too bad with air manipulation. What about you?¡±


    I mostly stick to sensory work, but I¡¯m not bad with energy manipulation,¡± James said.


    What can you sense about me?¡± Abigail asked, still holding James¡¯ hand. James¡¯ muscles were tensed, as if it took effort not to recoil.


    Abigail, she doesn¡¯t have to. She hasn¡¯t even been here a minute.¡± Abigail should know not to treat another caster like a stage show.


    It¡¯s fine. I don¡¯t mind. As long as Miss Stephanson doesn¡¯t mind,¡± James said.


    Course not! I¡¯m an open book!¡±


    When you started training, you focused on strengthening your whole body at once. That¡¯s the most common method, so that isn¡¯t surprising, but you got a pretty bad knee injury around five years ago. It took...¡± she tilted her head, ¡°around a half a year to heal, I think. After that, you started learning how to switch your strength between your legs and your arms.I¡¯m guessing you also took up free-running. About two years ago, you started learning to use your casting to weaken your opponent as well, but it doesn¡¯t come naturally to you. You¡¯ve probably strengthened opponents on accident a few times, huh? Still, you¡¯re good in a fight and haven¡¯t suffered any major injuries since your knee.¡±


    You¡¯re dead on! How¡¯d you know?¡± Abigail asked. ¡°I thought traces faded away in like a month.¡±


    Usually, but repeated magic uses leave pathways, sort of like building a callous. The rest is knowing how to interpret what you see. There¡¯s some really old healing magic around your knee. The fact that I can see it at all means it had to be treated a lot. The pathways for whole body strengthening are about the same age, which makes me think you got the injury because you weren¡¯t spreading your strength well enough and decided to start a different casting method. That said, the imprint shows quicker switches between legs and arms than most fighters use. People usually only redistribute strength two or three times in a fight. Switching strength tends to telegraph your moves if you use it a lot, but most gymnasts have patterns like yours. With this job, I imagine you wouldn¡¯t have much time to spend in a gym, so my guess is free-running, as that¡¯s actually quite practical for you.¡±


    There¡¯s no focused healing residue like on the knee, but there¡¯s a general feeling of it, especially around the shins and forearms. Lots of injuries, no severe ones, so I guessed lots of fights and lots of wins. Am I right?¡±


    Not bad at all. Keep it up, we might even pay you!¡±


    Cam, if you could start taking her through the paperwork. Linn, Abigail, I still need your reports from Monday¡¯s robbery in.¡±


    I¡¯m wanted for execution in Avairne for desertion¡¯ his ass. He¡¯d read her file. Clarisse James had deserted her post in Avairne, but not before killing her commander. Besides, that had been almost three years ago. The file had nothing on how she had spent that time before she crossed the border into Dalgerra six months ago.


    There were too many unknowns, and they were all sitting in a chair across from Cam in Theo¡¯s office, with Theo¡¯s people.

 THE CITY ON THE EDGE OF THE WORLD - 2

    </a> It was a strange environment. They called everyone but Campbell by first name, and even he had a nickname. She wasn¡¯t sure she could take it if they insisted on calling her Clarisse, and she was not letting them call her Claire in the office, even if Dryden put up with nicknames. ¡®Theo¡¯. His subordinates called him Theo.


    We¡¯ve got a body in the bat arbor,¡± Dryden said, standing up. ¡°Abigail, is Linn''s car charged?¡±


    Yup! I¡¯ll go get her.¡±


    What is it?¡±


    They¡¯ve identified him.¡± Dryden pushed back his hair. ¡°This is going to be worse than we thought. The victim¡¯s been identified as Caspian Handfellow. He¡¯s the son of a successful merchant.¡±


    Well,¡± Stephanson said softly, ¡°shit. Half the city¡¯s gonna be up our ass, huh?¡±


    Yeah. He was young too. We¡¯ll be tripping over reporters the second this gets out..¡± Dryden grumbled.


    What¡¯s the protocol for reporters? I¡¯m afraid I¡¯m not experienced with them.¡±


    Just don¡¯t talk to them and you¡¯ll be fine. Cam¡¯s in charge of our official statements. The good ones know how not to cause too much trouble, and the vultures are easy to scare.¡±


    She says that, but she talks to them a lot,¡± Stephanson added. ¡°She likes to talk about gross medical stuff until they get creeped out. What did that guy call you?¡±


    The grim butcher of this otherwise respectable team,¡± Linn recited proudly, ¡°whose fascination with the macabre leaves proper citizens to question who should be allowed to handle such sensitive cases.¡±


    It¡¯s really best to say ¡®no statement¡¯,¡± Dryden said, though it was unclear if he was talking to Claire or Miller.


    This is a weird place to leave a body,¡± Dryden said, crouching down to look. ¡°Putting it back here implies they were trying to hide it, but they left it where it could be easily found. Maybe he was killed somewhere near here. No blood, but the wounds look cauterized, so-¡±


    He wasn¡¯t killed here,¡± Claire said, then swallowed her embarrassment when she realized she¡¯d cut him off. ¡°Sir.¡±


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    Mmm?¡± Dryden asked, not seeming too annoyed at being interrupted.


    These wounds were made recently and slowly. I¡¯d guess each one took about fifteen minutes. With that much use, I¡¯d be able to feel it in the air if it had been anywhere within a mile or two.¡±


    Tortured and dumped then?¡± MIller asked, kneeling next to the body and inspecting the wrists. Her tone was harsh, but she manipulated the hand gently as a parent checking a child¡¯s fever.


    That would be my first guess,¡± Dryden said, looking close. ¡°Abigail, you help Linn get the body to the car. Looking into the family will have to wait until morning, but there¡¯s plenty we can do now. Let¡¯s go see what Cam has for us.¡±


    In Avairne, you¡¯d say ¡®You have worked hard and served well, may you find rest.¡¯. Here it was¡­ something about a wheel, but the blessing that came to mind was neither of those.


    We mourn the loss of the present, we mourn the loss of the futures you will not have. To those that should have grieved you but will never know you, let us show them kindness in your name. To those that took your future, may we bring them justice in your honor.¡±


    I don¡¯t recognize that prayer,¡± Dryden said. She nearly jumped. She¡¯d forgotten she wasn¡¯t alone.


    You speak Vayish?¡± she asked.


    Only a small, but I understand more than speak.¡± His accent was rough, clearly mostly from books, but it still brought half a smile to her face.


    It didn¡¯t feel right to use an Avairnian prayer here. It¡¯s a Salfari prayer.¡±


    Salfari? I haven¡¯t heard of it.¡±


    You wouldn¡¯t have. Salfet got absorbed into the defiled lands a few years ago. I¡¯ve never been there myself,¡± Claire clarified before Dryden could draw any tragic conclusions, ¡°I worked with a Salfari priest for a bit.¡±


    <hr>


    Is it alright if I touch the wound?¡±


    Why?¡±


    There¡¯s another type of magic in the wound, but I haven¡¯t been able to identify it. I was hoping for a closer look.¡±


    Go ahead, just be careful and- Saints, put on gloves!¡±


    I¡¯d prefer not to, if that¡¯s alright. Direct contact is best.¡±


    Wash your hands first,¡± she said instead.


    Thank you. I believe I¡¯ve gotten all I¡¯m going to get. The original magical trace is badly damaged.¡±


    Does the trace line up with the burns?¡± Linn asked.


    It does. Why?¡±


    This wasn¡¯t torture. He died of blood loss. These match slashing wounds, right? I think whoever did this changed the clothes and burned him post mortem to cover both the original injuries and the magical trace.¡±


    In that case, whoever did this wasn¡¯t powerful at all. Even if they wanted to minimize damage, anyone half experienced with fire could have burnt away the evidence in a minute or two and hid the physical injuries better. Somebody was in over their head.¡±


    That¡¯s good. Sloppy killers are always easier to catch. Come on, let¡¯s fill in Theo.¡±

 THE CITY ON THE EDGE OF THE WORLD - 3

    Linn, if you could stay and get me a toxicology report, take tomorrow off. Claire, go home. We¡¯ll need to be up early for interviews,¡± he said finally. ¡°If you¡¯re right and somebody hid the cause of death, his family will be our best chance to figure out why.¡±


    I don¡¯t need much rest,¡± Claire told him. ¡°It¡¯s important for tracers to be able to finish their work before an imprint fades.¡±


    Is there anything you need to trace, Caster James?¡±


    If I can find the murder site...?¡±


    Can you? Tonight? Do you have a plan on where to start looking or how you¡¯ll recognize a magical trace you can¡¯t identify?¡±


    No sir.¡±


    And how long do you think you¡¯ll be able to sense it for?¡±


    Depends on the location. It will last longer if there¡¯s no magical pollution drowning it out, especially if there¡¯s a lot of organic material or glass to absorb it.¡±


    But at worst?¡± Dryden pressed.


    I¡¯d say a month and a half.¡±


    Go home and get some rest, James. I expect everyone here at 5 AM tomorrow.¡±


    I killed the last man who gave me orders, burned him without warning in front of my whole team,¡¯ she wanted to say, unsure if she would have meant it as a warning or a defense, proof she wasn¡¯t a mindless pawn.


    Yes Detective Dryden. I¡¯ll see you tomorrow morning.¡±


    <hr>


    </a>


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    You¡¯re back in my morgue,¡± MIller said, eyebrows raised. She was still wearing the clothes from last night and there were deep shadows under her eyes.


    I¡¯m sorry to intrude. I wanted to avoid the reporters.¡±


    This isn¡¯t a mudroom. Learn to deal with the reporters or don¡¯t come in.¡±


    Understood.¡±


    Detective James, I was going to have pastries yesterday, but I wasn¡¯t sure you¡¯d want them, but I think I was overthinking it, so...¡± Campbell held out a tray, ¡°pastries! I made them, so I hope they¡¯re alright...¡±


    Thank you, Cam. I¡¯m sure they¡¯re excellent,¡± Dryden cut in, taking a raspberry danish off the tray. ¡°I assume you finished your report on the Handfellows before you started baking?¡±


    The Handfellows moved here from Ives and started in the grain industry. They¡¯ve done well for themselves. They have a modest farm to the south, but it has high yields and they¡¯ve invested well.¡±


    Licensed, correct?¡± Dryden asked.


    Yes. The original license belonged to the maternal grandfather forty-six years ago, but they¡¯ve passed the national inspection every year since the Handfellows took over.¡±


    Licensed?¡± Claire cut in. It was embarrassing not to know, but it was worse to make bad judgments because she¡¯d been too proud to ask. ¡°Why does a farm need a license?¡±


    Most jobs have them. Don¡¯t you have a license?¡± Campbell asked, looking worried.


    Yes, because I am a detective. Most who cast for a living are tested to make sure our abilities are up to par. But not farms.¡±


    Oh, that makes sense. You don¡¯t need a license. Most subsistence farms, farms where they¡¯re only growing what they need, don¡¯t get one, but otherwise, it¡¯s a huge risk not to have one.¡± Claire could see Campbell relaxing with every sentance, clearly in his element. He really was adorable, in a bumbling puppy sort of way. ¡°A licensed farm is held to certain standards in quality, worker treatment, and pays a percentage of profits into the farm fund. That fund pays for the farm inspections, but most of it is relief money. If a region is hit by a disaster, the difference between their usual yield and that year¡¯s yield is paid out, so most farms feel the protection is worth it. It saved a lot of families here a few years ago when the lowlands flooded. Products from licensed farmers also sell for a much higher price since merchants can trust the quality without worrying about conducting their own inspection.¡±


    Caspian graduated from the boarding school in Ives. He¡¯s been apprenticing with a cartographer. Decent grades, no arrest record. His father, Ulysses, is the third son of a clothing manufacturer. His sister, Flora, is in school as well, and recently secured an engagement to a glass caster who specializes in voice imprinting. Their relationship has been approved by the church as well.¡±


    And nothing else notable for the family?¡± Claire asked.


    Well¡­ it¡¯s a bit odd,¡± Campbell said carefully, ¡°but nobody wrote in that he was missing. He was still living at home, but nobody noticed he hadn¡¯t come home the night before last. The police report said his family seemed shocked.¡±


    It isn¡¯t strange for a boy that age to be out a lot,¡± Dryden said, ¡°but that¡¯s still good to know. If he¡¯s out at night, we might be able to find out where he goes and what he does.¡±


    Did he have a lover?¡± Claire asked.


    A lover? Nobody under forty has ¡®a lover¡¯.¡±


    And he doesn¡¯t, at least not publicly,¡± Dryden said, tapping his ear.


    Our most likely case is ruled out,¡± Dryden said. ¡°Linn finished the toxicology. Most of our murders happen in the heat of the moment, usually when people are mentally compromised, but our boy¡¯s clean. If he¡¯s out at night, he isn¡¯t partying. It doesn¡¯t look like he ever had more than the occasional drink, and not even that recently. Besides that, he had no defensive wounds. She also noted he had a few new calluses on his feet. He may have been trying new shoes, but he also may have been taking up some new activity.¡±


    Today, James will be coming to speak to the family with me. Abigail, I want you to help Cam with whatever he needs. James, I know you may have some experience here, but I¡¯d like you to let me take the lead,¡± Dryden continued. ¡°Hopefully, his family can give us a clearer picture of our victim. I imagine we won¡¯t be particularly welcome, so please keep your temper, even if they¡¯re rude. Remember they are grieving parents.¡±


    Of course,¡± Claire said, keeping any trace of offense out of her voice.


    You go wade through reporters,¡± she said. ¡°Cam and I will solve the case back here.¡±

 THE CITY ON THE EDGE OF THE WORLD - 4

    It¡¯s the same bastards you¡¯re used to,¡± Theo told her, ¡°but they have a lot less power in Dalgerra. They¡¯ve got money, but they¡¯re equal in the law.¡±


    The architecture is lovely,¡± Clarisse offered, attempting to loosen her posture and failing,


    We¡¯re in the oldest part of Saint¡¯s Landing. Most of the buildings are hundreds of years old, and anything new is required to build in the traditional style. Architects spend years trying to get a design approved.¡±


    It must be quite the achievement then, to say you¡¯ve had a design approved here.¡±


    Yes. A lot of architects from other cities come to work on houses here.¡± Prestigious ones, of course. The only way to get permission to build here was to be commissioned by somebody who could afford to build here, and none of them took chances on upcoming talents.


    Do architects need licenses as well?¡±


    No, but their designs do need to be approved through city hall.¡±


    How did you handle it?¡± Theo asked her, ¡°When nobles committed crimes, I mean? I¡¯ve heard it¡¯s almost impossible to prosecute a noble in Avairne. It must have made your job quite difficult.¡±


    It was, but there were ways to manage it. If a more important noble pushed the case, it became impossible to bury. If the crime was against a noble of higher status, I could pass evidence to them or their family to bring forward. If not, there were a few nobles willing to stand up for what was right, though none that could take every case without losing credibility.¡±


    You weren¡¯t in trouble for passing on evidence to civilians?¡±


    Not at all. Who would deny a noble something they wanted? In fact, I was written up a few times for refusing to divulge information on cases to nobility.¡±


    And when there was no noble to back you up?¡±


    In that case, all I could do was pass the evidence to whoever I could. Passing it to a parent would rarely lead to prosecution, but they sometimes seemed to keep their child in line, even if it was only to protect the family¡¯s name. Passing it to a fiance, or the fiance¡¯s family, could also be effective.¡±


    I¡¯m glad I¡¯ve never had to make such a choice,¡± Theo said. ¡°The dead were lucky to have you on the case.¡±


    Thank you.¡±


    You must worry what will happen now that you aren¡¯t there.¡±


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    It¡¯s been three years, Mr. Dryden. I did my worrying, and it¡¯s not as if I was the sole voice of reason in Avairne. I am simply thankful to be able to continue my work. It doesn¡¯t matter where. The weight of a life doesn¡¯t change across borders.¡±


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    <hr>


    Good morning,¡± he said, trying to match their dignified somberness, ¡°my name is Theodore Dryden. I¡¯ll be taking the lead on the case. I promise I will be doing everything in my power to bring your son justice.¡±


    Thank you,¡± Mrs. Handfellow said, a crack in her voice finally betraying her grief. ¡°Please catch whoever did this.¡±


    Is it alright if I ask a few questions? We¡¯d like to learn a little more about Caspian.¡±


    Of course. We¡¯re honored that somebody from the Dryden family would choose to look into our case.¡±


    You mentioned that Caspian was out at night quite a bit. Do you know who he was usually with?¡± Theo asked.


    He was a cheerful young man. Liked to go out drinking after work with some boys he grew up with,¡± Mr. Handfellow said. ¡°Let¡¯s see. Eric Aldercy, Basil Morris¡­ I think the Montague boy. Henry?¡±


    Hugh,¡± Mrs. Handfellow offered. ¡°They¡¯d stay out late quite a bit, and he¡¯d go to work in the morning so we just assumed we¡¯d¡­ missed him.¡±


    Is there anyone he¡¯d had issues with?¡±


    Of course not! Caspian was a sweet, quiet boy. I can¡¯t think of a single soul that hated him,¡± Mrs. Handfellow said.


    To your knowledge, was Caspian involved with anything illegal?¡±


    What a disgusting thing to ask,¡± Mr. Handfellow hissed. ¡°Of course not! My son is the victim of a horrible crime, not a criminal!¡±


    I¡¯m sorry, sir. These are standard questions. I mean no disrespect towards him.¡±


    Well, he wasn¡¯t!¡± Mrs. Handfellow told him.


    What about enemies of the family?¡±


    None that would go after Caspian. He asked for us to pass the family business on to Flora a few years ago. He was quite taken with map making.¡±


    Detective Dryden, may I ask something?¡± James said from the doorway.


    Go ahead.¡±


    Forgive me for being blunt, but I¡¯d like to know why Mr. Handfellow is using influence casting on detectives.¡±


    Don¡¯t blame my husband for your emotions just because you¡¯re unstable,¡± Mrs. Handfellow hissed.


    I¡¯m afraid there¡¯s a misunderstanding. Caster James has recently joined my team as a tracer. I believe her comment was based on magical signature, not supposition.¡±


    Well, then you¡¯ve added a poor tracer to your team. I¡¯d like her to leave,¡± Mrs. Handfellow said. Mr. Handfellow was still clearly in concentration on the cast, as a sudden shift in emotion right after the accusation would only make them look more guilty.


    Sir? Should I step outside?¡±


    I believe we both should. This clearly will not be a productive meeting.¡±

 THE CITY ON THE EDGE OF THE WORLD - 5

    I¡¯m sorry if I interfered with your interview,¡± Claire said once they were outside. Perhaps she should have waited to tell him after, but that might have made it harder to untangle his thoughts. Besides- she just couldn¡¯t stand the feel of somebody in her head like that.


    Not at all. By the time it wore off, I could have forgotten any number of important details. Besides, the reaction of a person who just got caught is always telling. Could you tell what emotions he was trying to suppress?¡±


    Of course,¡± Claire said, trying to keep it from sounding like the brag it was. Emotional manipulation detection had been her first training ground, after all. ¡°They weren¡¯t trying to cause any positive emotions, mostly trying to suppress awareness and curiosity.¡±


    That matches my theory.¡±


    Are they suspects?¡± Claire asked. Really, it was two questions: ¡®is there a chance they did it¡¯ and ¡®do we have the political capital to treat them as suspects¡¯. They¡¯d mentioned Dryden¡¯s name. She¡¯d have to look up exactly who his family was.


    I don¡¯t think so. Even if I doubted their grief, which I don¡¯t, I can¡¯t see them putting him in commoners clothes and letting people find the body. Whatever they¡¯re hiding, I think it¡¯s about image. They might know how he died, or maybe it¡¯s totally unrelated. Maybe Caspian had an illicit lover or an unfortunate hobby of some sort. Investigations can turn up all sorts of things. For now, Flora is our best chance. She seemed a lot more distressed, and less worried about appearances.¡±


    So are we going to see her?¡±


    No. We give her time to think, and we collect evidence. If it¡¯s something that could hurt her family, she might need an extra push.¡±


    Should I return to the office?¡±


    No need. I sent the names of Caspian¡¯s drinking buddies to Cam. We should have their addresses any minute. And you know what I bet they¡¯ll know?¡±


    What, sir?¡±


    Absolutely nothing.¡± Dryden grinned. ¡°In fact, I¡¯d bet good money not a single one of them has gone drinking with Caspian Handfellow in weeks.¡±


    <hr>


    Honestly, not to speak ill of the dead, but I think we were all kind of relieved when he stopped showing up for drinks.¡±


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    Why is that?¡± Dryden asked, looking perfectly unbothered by Aldercy¡¯s disrespect to the dead. Of course, good information was better than respect.


    No offense to the guy, nobody can say his heart wasn¡¯t in the right place, but he was a bit of a buzzkill, you know? Couldn¡¯t talk to girls at all, and would be breathing down the back of your neck to make sure you were ¡®respectful¡¯, barely drank, in bed by ten. I don¡¯t know why he even went drinking with us. He never seemed like he was having any fun. Couldn¡¯t take a joke to save his life. I mean, like I said, a good guy, but not somebody you want to go let loose with.¡±


    Do you know why he stopped showing up for drinks?¡±


    No idea. Most of us assumed he¡¯d made some nerd friends at work and was spending time with them.¡±


    And can you think of any sort of trouble he might have gotten into?¡±


    Not really. Like I said, Cas was virtuous to a fault. He could have a bit of a temper though. One time Hugh was hitting on a girl and said¡­ well, turned out it was Cas¡¯ little sis¡¯ and Cas laid him the fuck out. If you ask me, righteous little¡­ Caspian probably got in over his head trying to defend some girl¡¯s honor or something.¡±


    He was a bit quiet at first. We were a bit worried, honestly. The poor kid was working himself to the bone. He was working so many hours that we got genuinely concerned for his health, but he settled out eventually. Beautiful work too. That¡¯s his map there.¡±


    Impressive, right? He¡¯d be out there at 4 AM with wading boots and a depth crystal. We said he didn¡¯t need to get the depth measurements. He was supposed to just be updating an old tourist map, but he kept insisting this would be helpful. He was right too. They had to stop selling them as souvenirs to make sure there was enough for locals, not that it did Caspain any good. We¡¯re paid by the project, not on sales.¡±


    He liked to spend his breaks sketching things he saw,¡± his co-worker said. ¡°I told him if maps ever didn¡¯t work out, he could go work for a biologist.¡±


    Find out who did this. None of us are sleeping easy, knowing somebody killed that boy and walked away.¡±