layman hospital when they required another pair of
hands. Neither of them had ever tried to get an unconscious detective up to a
hotel room before. Luckily, Nia’s Illuminator badge seemed to override any
social faux pas they made and within a few minutes, they had Gail – still in
her bloody clothes, as neither Arthur nor Nia felt they had established the
intimacy necessary for changing them – laid out on her bed. When it was clear
her condition was stable, Arthur and Nia retired to their own room to debrief.
Academy regulations required them to share a room, just
in case Arthur went rogue.
Nia also suspected it helped keep costs down.
“Next time, you should let me handle the injuries,”
Arthur said once the door was closed behind them. “It’s part of why they sent
me with you.”
Nia pulled off of her coat and hung it carefully on the
coat rack by the door. “There wasn’t time.”
“She was bleeding and possibly poisoned. She hadn’t gone
into cardiac arrest, she hadn’t been disemboweled. I’m not saying magical
healing might not have been necessary, but you should have at least let me
examine her first.”
Nia had to fight to keep her face impassive – in large
part because Arthur was probably right. “Detective Lin is an integral part of
this investigation. We need her to be completely healthy. That won’t be
possible if we rely on mundane medical methods.”
“One, she won’t be completely healthy for long if you
keep pumping magic into her. Two, weren’t you the one who said that adding a
laymen to the investigation was, and I quote, ‘an intolerable nuisance’ that
would only make things more difficult?”
Oh, he intended to throw enumerated lists at her, did he?
Well, unfortunately for him there was no one more skilled at creating
enumerated lists than Nia Graves. “One, I have no intention of ‘pumping magic
into her’ as you so crudely put it. This was an extraordinary circumstance. Two,
I said that before she found Mister Connery’s head. I think that rather proved
her usefulness, don’t you?”
Arthur folded his arms. “So you think this investigation
is only going to get less dangerous as we go?”
“Certainly not, I’m not that naïve, but we will be more
knowledgeable and therefore better prepared.”
For several seconds, they simply stood glaring at each
other. If Arthur thought she would crumble under his chiding expression than he
was mistaken. She had admittedly had doubts of her own after performing the
healing magic on Detective Lin, but the more she considered the matter, the
more she became certain that it had been a necessary risk. Surely Detective Lin
would prefer the slight risk of magical overexposure to not being able to move
from her bed for days or even weeks. She was opening her mouth to point this
out when Arthur sighed and forfeited the staring contest.
“Look, there’s not much point in arguing about it now.
Just don’t do it again unless she’s actually dying, okay? My methods might not
be magical, but they’re a lot less risky and they work pretty well.”
Nia had the irritating feeling that agreeing here would
mean losing the argument somehow, but since she had no intention of using more
magic on Detective Lin except in the direst of circumstances she was forced to
say. “Of course, I never intended anything different.”
“Good,” said Arthur, once again giving Nia the impression
that she had unintentionally surrendered the discussion.
It doesn’t matter what he thinks. I know the risks involved
in my job and how to best mitigate them. “If you don’t mind, I have some
work to attend to.”
Arthur looked at the head, which was now lying in one of
Nia’s open hat boxes. “And if you don’t mind, I’ll leave you to that and look
in on Detective Lin.”
“Certainly. Ah, Arthur, just don’t – well, you know.”
Giving her one of those very familiar but still
occasionally infuriating sardonic looks, Arthur touched a
hands. Neither of them had ever tried to get an unconscious detective up to a
hotel room before. Luckily, Nia’s Illuminator badge seemed to override any
social faux pas they made and within a few minutes, they had Gail – still in
her bloody clothes, as neither Arthur nor Nia felt they had established the
intimacy necessary for changing them – laid out on her bed. When it was clear
her condition was stable, Arthur and Nia retired to their own room to debrief.
Academy regulations required them to share a room, just
in case Arthur went rogue.
Nia also suspected it helped keep costs down.
“Next time, you should let me handle the injuries,”
Arthur said once the door was closed behind them. “It’s part of why they sent
me with you.”
Nia pulled off of her coat and hung it carefully on the
coat rack by the door. “There wasn’t time.”
“She was bleeding and possibly poisoned. She hadn’t gone
into cardiac arrest, she hadn’t been disemboweled. I’m not saying magical
healing might not have been necessary, but you should have at least let me
examine her first.”
Nia had to fight to keep her face impassive – in large
part because Arthur was probably right. “Detective Lin is an integral part of
this investigation. We need her to be completely healthy. That won’t be
possible if we rely on mundane medical methods.”
“One, she won’t be completely healthy for long if you
keep pumping magic into her. Two, weren’t you the one who said that adding a
laymen to the investigation was, and I quote, ‘an intolerable nuisance’ that
would only make things more difficult?”
Oh, he intended to throw enumerated lists at her, did he?
Well, unfortunately for him there was no one more skilled at creating
enumerated lists than Nia Graves. “One, I have no intention of ‘pumping magic
into her’ as you so crudely put it. This was an extraordinary circumstance. Two,
I said that before she found Mister Connery’s head. I think that rather proved
her usefulness, don’t you?”
Arthur folded his arms. “So you think this investigation
is only going to get less dangerous as we go?”
“Certainly not, I’m not that naïve, but we will be more
knowledgeable and therefore better prepared.”
For several seconds, they simply stood glaring at each
other. If Arthur thought she would crumble under his chiding expression than he
was mistaken. She had admittedly had doubts of her own after performing the
healing magic on Detective Lin, but the more she considered the matter, the
more she became certain that it had been a necessary risk. Surely Detective Lin
would prefer the slight risk of magical overexposure to not being able to move
from her bed for days or even weeks. She was opening her mouth to point this
out when Arthur sighed and forfeited the staring contest.
“Look, there’s not much point in arguing about it now.
Just don’t do it again unless she’s actually dying, okay? My methods might not
be magical, but they’re a lot less risky and they work pretty well.”
Nia had the irritating feeling that agreeing here would
mean losing the argument somehow, but since she had no intention of using more
magic on Detective Lin except in the direst of circumstances she was forced to
say. “Of course, I never intended anything different.”
“Good,” said Arthur, once again giving Nia the impression
that she had unintentionally surrendered the discussion.
It doesn’t matter what he thinks. I know the risks involved
in my job and how to best mitigate them. “If you don’t mind, I have some
work to attend to.”
Arthur looked at the head, which was now lying in one of
Nia’s open hat boxes. “And if you don’t mind, I’ll leave you to that and look
in on Detective Lin.”
“Certainly. Ah, Arthur, just don’t – well, you know.”
Giving her one of those very familiar but still
occasionally infuriating sardonic looks, Arthur touched a
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