Ethor Halus and Menalaus Cree come in and have a seat, Menalaus limping as he goes. Ethor seems visibly nervous while Menalaus seems agitated to be here. Menalaus has his trusty, little notebook with him. Immediatley after being asked about the night in question, he goes back to the 16th and reads through the events of the evening. This is the second time the adventurers have heard about the days surrounding the party. There’s mention of a thin man with a  green cloak asking for directions to the Stonehill Inn. Menalaus went ahead and showed him the way. The day Ethor got sick was the early morning of the 17th. He’s adament that he felt sick shortly after Menalaus arrived and that Manalaus is the one who offered to watch Harbin’s house. Menalaus gets angry, says that that’s a lie. 

The adventurer’s watch them talk back and forth and notice that both of them seem to be telling the truth — at least as far as they can tell. Lilvari uses her powers to enter Ethor’s mind — slightly at first, just to see what swims on the surface. She sees worry, and nervousness but nothing devious. If she were to guess, he’s the type that fears confrontation. She tells him that she’d like to pry a little deeper, and that he shouldn’t mind if he has nothing to hide. He lets her. She asks him about that night, about what he remembers from his meeting with Menalaus. Being in his mind as she is, she can actually see his thoughts. She sees Menalaus approach, but there’s something strange. At first she can’t pinpoint it, but as she watches him  get closer, it comes to her. Menalaus isn’t limping.

According to Sildar, Menalaus has had a limp since joining the Neverwinter Guard. Menalaus says that he got it from an owlbear attack more than a decade ago. He starts to lift his pant leg to show them the scar but is told that doing so isnt’ necessary. Lilvari and the others think that they are dealing with a shapeshifter or someone who can alter their form in some way or another. Unfortunately there aren’t any more clues here. Hopefully Helmshold can offer something more.

Downtime…

In between the interrogation and the funeral, the adventures make use of some well deserved downtime. Having been asked to play her flute at the funeral by Halia, Mystic stays in her room and practices constantly.

Mercarri helps Sister Garaele with religious services, such as fixing up the shrine of Tymora and cleaning up areas of Sister Garaele’s house to ready it for incoming supplies. Sister Garaele is grateful and promises to help Mercarri whenever she needs it, whether it’d be a discount on a potion of healing or a kind word whispered in a noble’s ear should Mercarri wish to speak with someone above her station.