The lumber mill

“The lumber mill”
Rise of the Runelords episode
Episode no.	Episode 24
Date	2009
Game Master	Abbe
Characters	Dorothea Honeypot Nathaniel Nell Velicia
Episode chronology ← Previous Next → "Return to Thistletop" "The fortune telling"
Rise of the Runelords chapter list

In this chapter the sheriff asks the heroes to investigate a double murder at the lumber mill.

The lumber mill

Nathaniel came looking for us and found us eating breakfast at the Rusty Dragon. He said that Sheriff Hemlock wanted to see us, so I brought the food and we went to the garrison. Sheriff Belor Hemlock told us that during the night there had been an awful murder. Two people had been killed at the lumber mill and he wanted us to take a look at it. Partly because of us having handled the goblin threat so well and partly because a letter had been found at the bodies that was addressed to Honeypot.

He held up a piece of paper and started reading from it.

You will learn to love me in time as she did.
Give yourself to the pack and it will all end.
Your lordship.

I had a few thoughts about the text in the note. The wording "pack" is used about rats, dogs and wolves. Honeypot said that it was used about mules too, but she probably doesn't know that pack mules is something completely different. Maybe it involves werewolves or maybe the murderer had seen Honeypot using her magic to transform into a wolf as she did when returning from Thistletop.

Hemlock told us that the two bodies were Banny Harker and Katrine Vinder. They had been found early in the morning by Ibor Thorn. It was he and his partner Banny Harker that took care of the daily operation of the mill for the owner, the Scarnetti family. We went there to see the lumber mill for ourselves.

When we got there, there were lots of people gathered outside, but they let us through while a low murmur spread through the crowd.

We entered the lumber mill and the first thing I noticed was lots of blood that had been splashed around. Even though there was sawdust all over the floor it still hadn't soaked up all blood. There was a body cut to pieces by the saw and another one hung on the wall. That body had had its face removed. It was a terrible sight and I felt sick. I volunteered to question the people outside and left immediately. Honeypot followed close behind.

When we got out it turned out that the people gathered there were scared of Honeypot. They had heard about the letter, left by the murderer for her. I still asked around and heard a lot of rumors. Banny Harker had had a not so secret relationship with Katrine Vinder and her father hadn't liked that any better than Nathaniel's with his other daughter. It seemed as if no one really believed that Ven Vinder had killed them, but it was an easy answer so many told it. Several seemed to think that Banny Harker might have been involved in illegal activities. Some said that he might be dealing with gangsters. Others thought that he might be skimming the books or take bribes. Some said he had shady deals with rhenne, but I thought that the most reasonable rumor was that Titus Scarnetti had found out that Harker was stealing from him and killed them both. I was also told that the lumber mill had been running all night but they couldn't tell if it had been in use all night.

As we imagine the murder might have happened.

As the others came out we returned to the garrison. When we got there the others told us what they had found out. There had been a seven-pointed star carved in the body of Harker. They had found footprints of bare feet that had stepped in blood. They had also found the same footprints in mud on the pier??? leading up from the water. I asked why there would be mud if the murderer swam there. They also told us that they had found an ax that Harker might have used to defend himself with, and that they found some really gory stuff on it's edge. They thought it was bits of an old corpse. At least it smelled like it. There had been a terrible smell of old rotten corpse on several places but not all over the place.

Honeypot used the old bits from the ax to get information about the murderer by using a magical ritual. It took quite some time but she found out that whatever it was, it's vulnerable to radiant energy but not to silver and therefore probably not a werewolf but might be an undead monster.

Then the sheriff told us it wasn't the first murder. Two days ago the guards patrolling the long coast road, while passing Bradley's Barn at Cougars Creek, had seen a mad man running about. They arrested him and checked the barn. There they found three dead bodies of known conmen and swindlers. The mad man turned out to be Grayst Sevilla. The swindlers was identified from a letter and had all been banned from Sandpoint by the sheriff and he wasn't surprised that they would meet a violent end. The letter was about property and gold and about "make rich". It was signed by "Your lordship".

I thought about who could be called lordship as it would be a male noble. There aren't that many families that can live up to that title. The Kaijitsu family is headed by a woman, Ameiko, and the Deverin's too. Mvashti isn't really any nobles even though they were among the first to live where Sandpoint was built and besides they are lead by a woman too, Madame Niska Mvashti. The Scarnettis are my main suspects as they own the lumber mill and is led by a man, but on the other hand old Ethram Valdemar had some sickness and has been cured over and over again. Maybe he is some undead creature... Nathaniel added that the Foxgloves also are nobles in the area.

Hemlock told us that he had arrested Ibor and Ven, the last one mostly because he had lost his temper when told his daughter was dead. We talked to Ibor. He agreed that Harker might have been stealing from the mill.

I went to see Ven Vinder in his cell. We started talking, but he wasn't very friendly as he was still had a grudge against me for Nathaniel's misstep with his other daughter. When Nathaniel entered the conversation it got worse. We left when he was just screaming threats.