"So, who do we have as suspects so far?" Marcus asked. The two men walked side by side along the road through the farmland surrounding Croton, men and women laboring in the fields under the morning sun. The air was warm enough to be comfortable now, a light breeze rustling the tree branches under a mostly cloudless sky.

"The blacksmith, William," Alexander began, "he discovered the body and she was found on his property, right outside his door."

"Very good, and who else?"

"Edwin's boy, the suitor. Perhaps he developed romantic feelings for the girl and killed her in a fit of jealousy after her father wouldn't let him have her."

"Entirely possible, the young are often driven by passions rather than intellect. No matter how many tragedies are written about the perils of romance it seems that youths are determined to prove they could make it work."

"Who else?" Marcus asked after a moment of silence.

"Eh?"

"The father. Would not be the first time a man killed his child in a fit of rage or to remove them as a stain on his name."

"Ah," Alexander replied, "I didn't think of him as a suspect because there's no reason for him to do it in secret. The law gives him absolute authority over the lives of his children."

"There's a vast gulf between what is legally permissible and what is socially acceptable," Marcus said. "Yes, the law permits a man to do whatever he wishes to his children, including execute them if he decides. In reality, any man who makes use of that authority will be seen as a failure who could not discipline his offspring and would be shunned by the community. His father-in-law would almost certainly break the marriage. Only if the child committed some heinous crime would the community support him but if the child did commit deeds wicked enough to deserve death it might be too shameful to expose them publicly."

It was only a short walk out of town to reach the home that Simeon the baker directed the Inquisitors to. As the men turned and made their way down the lane to the small home a child saw them approaching and ran to the barn. A moment later a middle aged man appeared and walked towards the pair.

"Inquisitors," the man began with a nod towards each of them, "how can I help you?"

"Are you Edwin?" Marcus asked as he removed his helmet, Alexander following suit shortly after.

"I am."

"We have some questions for your oldest boy."

"Is he in trouble?" Edwin asked, concern evident in his voice.

"No, we just want to talk to him," Marcus replied in a reassuring tone.

Edwin nodded and waved a child over from the barn. The boy crept forward, eyes darting between the two men standing in their dark grey armor.

"Go and fetch Edwin from the field. Tell him to come quickly, Inquisitors are here to talk to him."

The dirty child with unkempt hair nodded and ran off barefoot through the dirt.

Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

"Stay between the rows!" Edwin shouted, gritting his teeth in anger and shaking his head.

"Mind telling me what you want with my son?" Edwin asked.

"We have some questions about the eldest daughter of Simeon the baker." Marcus replied. Alexander's eyes moved between the two men speaking and watching the boy running through the field. He saw the child reach a figure in the distance and the two began walking back together.

"About Simone? Why would the Inquisition be asking us about her? What could she have possibly done that deserves your attention?"

"We just need to ask some questions," Marcus stated again. "Your boy, has he been home all day with you?"

"Yes, I woke him up at dawn so we could get to work."

"And he was with you in the house all night?"

"Well, no," Edwin replied slowly. "He sleeps in the barn when the weather's warm enough, has since he was young."

"Does he ever sneak off in the night?"

"Why would he? He's a grown man, I give him freedom to come and go as he chooses. If he wants to spend time with his friends I won't stop him so long as he's always able to work the next day."

"Did he go out last night?"

"Not as far as I know, ask him yourself." Edwin said gesturing to his son.

Alexander turned towards the younger Edwin as he approached the group. He was roughly the same age as Alexander though shorter and with the stocky build of a lifelong farmer, one who has always known hard work but rarely hunger.

"Edward, the Inquisitors have questions for you about Simone."

"Simone? Did she do something wrong?" the young man asked, blinking in surprise.

"No, she didn't. I'm sorry, but Simone is dead." Marcus said, his voice was firm and clear. Father and son gasped in surprise. "The smith, William, found her just before dawn this morning."

"She can't be dead, she... how?" the young man asked, his voice breaking.

"We're not sure. Might be sickness, might be murder, we're still trying to figure it out." Marcus replied, "Do you know of anyone who might want to harm her?"

"No, everyone likes Simone. She's always kind and friendly, doesn't act like she's better than everyone else just because her family has some money."

"When did you last see or speak to her?" Marcus asked. Alexander shifted his gaze between the two Edwards, observing how they reacted to his mentor's questions. He became aware that his left hand was resting on the hilt of his sword. He raised his hand to rub his chin before letting it dangle at his side. Marcus had told him years ago that while an Inquisitor's weapons must always be visible, touching them is hostile and people who feel threatened are less cooperative.

"I dunno, last… week? a few days ago? When we went in to town for supplies."

"Did you go anywhere last night? To visit friends, into town, perhaps?"

"No, I was here all night, I swear." the younger Edwin said, his voice cracking as tears welled up in his eyes.

"Well, thank you for your time. And I am sorry for the loss of Simone," Marcus began with a pat on the young Edwin's shoulder, "If you think of anything that might help, please come find us."

The two Inquisitors nodded at the father and son before turning and walking back down the lane, donning their helmets once more when they reached the road.

"What do you think, Alexander?" Marcus began as the two started the walk back into town.

"Well, he seemed genuinely surprised to hear Simone was dead," Alexander began, "and he kept referring to her as if she were still alive. What did you think of the father? Could he be a suspect?"

"Ah yes, the elder Edwin. I suppose it is possible he felt insulted by Simeon rejecting his family and killed his daughter as revenge for the offense to his dignity. Though it was Simeon who slighted Edwin, not Simone, and to kill her would require that Edwin sneak into town in the night, somehow lure the girl out of her home or otherwise find her by herself already out, and then kill her and leave without anyone noticing him. Not impossible, but not likely either."

"Let's hurry to speak to Simone's friend, see if there's anything she can tell us," Marcus said as he quickened his pace with Alexander speeding up to match him, "if we don't find something soon I fear nothing but a guilty conscience prompting a confession will tell us who killed Simone."