Guthorm seemed unable to stay away from Dewey's office.
Several times over the last bunch of days he had lingered briefly in the hallway by the door while the man was inside. Those times he did not stay long. Once, Dewey had come out to find the Norskmann making a quick grab for a noose-necked man carrying a box past the lawspeaker's door. The conversation was short and to the point and Dewey was "spared" of having a potentially dangerous package deposited outside his door by a suspect office worker. Poor Dodd was absent the next day, as far as the Viking could tell. And...the day after and the day after that too....
Guthorm lingered outside Dewey's office just long enough to make determination that the lawspeaker was not inside. He pushed the door open and closed it after him. There was nothing different this day than the other time he had been inside. He wore the same style of clothing...no noose around his neck...and carried the same small belt pouch, sword, knives, and bridle for the cart horse that he had just about every day in the offices of DCH.
And he went straight to the fish tank, curiously awed by the swimming shapes darting in and among the wavy saltwater plants, all kept indoors instead of in the sea. Kneeling down into a crouch, he admired the fish as he opened the belt pouch in a fumbling of thick and calloused fingers. With broad shoulders sheltering movement from all but the fish who stared back at him with O-shaped mouths, he produced the small orb that Tanny had tossed to him those several weeks ago. Keeping it cradled in hand, sheltering as much as himself from it's view as he could, he carefully opened the top of the tank lid and peered into the water. If all went as he planned, it would sit unobtrusively in the thick of plants and do what it did and he would come back for it and then...!
Guthorm grinned a wild grin in his beard. It was the perfect plan.
He squinted at the rock and plants and fishes' hiding places, wondering where he would put the little orb when Footsteps snuck up on hallway carpet and the door handle moved and the door opened wide and the Norskmann startled and dropped the orb before he was ready and it drifted down straight as an arrow right into the treasure chest amidst the bubbles and the baubles and the sparkly round gems and coins and the lid closed and the Norskmann spun around and there....
...there was Mr. Dewey.
Several times over the last bunch of days he had lingered briefly in the hallway by the door while the man was inside. Those times he did not stay long. Once, Dewey had come out to find the Norskmann making a quick grab for a noose-necked man carrying a box past the lawspeaker's door. The conversation was short and to the point and Dewey was "spared" of having a potentially dangerous package deposited outside his door by a suspect office worker. Poor Dodd was absent the next day, as far as the Viking could tell. And...the day after and the day after that too....
Guthorm lingered outside Dewey's office just long enough to make determination that the lawspeaker was not inside. He pushed the door open and closed it after him. There was nothing different this day than the other time he had been inside. He wore the same style of clothing...no noose around his neck...and carried the same small belt pouch, sword, knives, and bridle for the cart horse that he had just about every day in the offices of DCH.
And he went straight to the fish tank, curiously awed by the swimming shapes darting in and among the wavy saltwater plants, all kept indoors instead of in the sea. Kneeling down into a crouch, he admired the fish as he opened the belt pouch in a fumbling of thick and calloused fingers. With broad shoulders sheltering movement from all but the fish who stared back at him with O-shaped mouths, he produced the small orb that Tanny had tossed to him those several weeks ago. Keeping it cradled in hand, sheltering as much as himself from it's view as he could, he carefully opened the top of the tank lid and peered into the water. If all went as he planned, it would sit unobtrusively in the thick of plants and do what it did and he would come back for it and then...!
Guthorm grinned a wild grin in his beard. It was the perfect plan.
He squinted at the rock and plants and fishes' hiding places, wondering where he would put the little orb when Footsteps snuck up on hallway carpet and the door handle moved and the door opened wide and the Norskmann startled and dropped the orb before he was ready and it drifted down straight as an arrow right into the treasure chest amidst the bubbles and the baubles and the sparkly round gems and coins and the lid closed and the Norskmann spun around and there....
...there was Mr. Dewey.