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Post by Riley Neves on Jan 29, 2009 14:22:19 GMT -5
Riley nodded, smiling almost sympathetically. "Yes... I can see that about him. Do you believe that he wouldn't hurt anyone?"
Or was the bastard good enough that he just hadn't been caught yet? Even if he didn't though, he could very well know who killed Katie and be using his position to keep it from them. She detested him just a little more.
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Post by Wesley St. Clare on Jan 29, 2009 14:30:47 GMT -5
Wesley wrinkled his brow thoughtfully for a minute. "Well.... I don't think physical violence would be his first choice... but I think if he were properly motivated, he is entirely capable of it. I do not think he would have killed Katie.... not unless there was an extremely compelling reason. But I will say this... I do believe the man has many secrets and that he would kill to keep them buried. I have no proof of that, of course... He knows how to keep his nose clean."
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Post by Riley Neves on Jan 29, 2009 15:39:44 GMT -5
"But it's a gut feeling," Riley said as more of a statement than a question. "It's wise to trust those."
She looked to Roland, unsure of where to go next. So Augustus was clean... of this, at least. She had almost hoped that it would have been him. Seeing him getting what was coming to him would have thrilled her.
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Post by Roland Ferrera on Jan 29, 2009 17:10:37 GMT -5
Roland noticed her glance in his direction and decided to step in. "As a former employee of his, I was wondering if you could provide some insight into how he treats his employees," he began. "Would you say he's loyal, or manipulative? How far would he go for one of his employees?"
He was trying to keep the question neutral, but it was difficult. He certainly had his own opinions about Rookwood, but he didn't want them to influence Wesley's response.
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Post by Wesley St. Clare on Jan 30, 2009 10:42:45 GMT -5
Wesley thought this over carefully. "Well... again... It's just my opinion, but I would say that it depends on what he thinks he can get from them. He was never particularly interested in me when I worked there, but I wasn't exactly a 'yes man', if you know what I mean. I doubt he would have stuck his neck out for me, which is why I found myself in my situation. But if he thought a person was useful to him, I think he would go out of his way to protect them. And he definitely would hide behind the job as an excuse to do it."
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Post by Riley Neves on Jan 30, 2009 11:58:59 GMT -5
"When you worked there," Riley said, "Did a Ms. Fiona Kinsella work there as well?" She was curious to see what he would say about her and her blind devotion to her boss, as well as his treatment of her. He surely couldn't treat Fiona the way he had treated her... eventually, even the most smitten girl got sick of that.
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Post by Wesley St. Clare on Jan 30, 2009 16:30:13 GMT -5
Wesley nodded. "Yes, I know Fiona," he said. "Sweet girl, a little scattered... socially awkward." He frowned. "She's very intelligent, but... she's been in love with Augustus Rookwood since the beginning. I guess it's been five years now? She just can't see that there is anything wrong with him. Everyone knows it... but whether he knows it, I've never been sure. It would be hard to imagine that he doesn't know it, but if he does know... he's very good at pretending he doesn't. Most of the time he would ignore her and it made her work even more frantically... but occasionally he would say something nice to her and she'd be over the moon. We all kind of felt sorry for the poor girl. Except for the ones who would laugh at her behind her back."
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Post by Riley Neves on Jan 31, 2009 5:14:41 GMT -5
Riley bet she could guess who laughed behind the poor girl's back.
"It may be just my opinion," She said, feeling safe enough to give her opinion to him, "But Rookwood seems much too aware of people to be unaware of Ms. Kinsella's affection. You mentioned that he knows how far he can go and still keep respect... could you possibly explain this more in depth, or give an example?"
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Post by Wesley St. Clare on Feb 1, 2009 1:52:35 GMT -5
Wesley thought about this for a minute. "Well, like I said, I overheard quite a lot when I was hiding in the department. He claimed to have no connections with Craven or Weiss, but I saw him talking to both of them in low voices. I couldn't hear what was said, but it was more than strictly business, I could tell by the way they whispered and would pull away when someone else walked in. But he covered it up to the point where no proof was ever found of any connection between them. He also knows who he can push and who he has to tread lightly with. Angelique had a run-in with him a while back, and he pushed her to the point where she practically took his head off, and it didn't even phase him. He knew how to push her buttons... and he knew she wouldn't hold back. Angie has never been good at holding her tongue." He smiled with a bit of pride at his bold, outspoken sister.
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Post by Riley Neves on Feb 1, 2009 18:59:47 GMT -5
Riley smiled. That was certainly true of Angelique, and Riley admired her for it. She could be the same way... when she wasn't working.
"Right, we'll keep that in mind." She wondered if Augustus knew more than he had let on. She honestly didn't know, and it bothered her. No one should be that good at keeping secrets.
She glanced to Roland again, a subtle clue to tell him to take over again.
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Post by Roland Ferrera on Feb 2, 2009 11:35:53 GMT -5
It was like a tag-team event. They looked to each other when they weren't sure what to do next. It was a lot easier to do when questioning someone like Wesley, as opposed to someone like Rookwood. He sort of liked the feeling of working with her, instead of against her.
He nodded very slightly at her and turned his attention back to Wesley. "In your opinion, does it make any sense to you at all for an intern to begin work on an assignment that takes place outside of the department? I know that Rookwood likes to keep tabs on his employees, but what can an intern do to learn about the job if she's working at Hogwarts as a teaching assistant?"
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Post by Wesley St. Clare on Feb 2, 2009 11:54:12 GMT -5
Wesley frowned. That didn't really sound like a typical sort of assignment for an intern. But then, it had been a while since he'd been working in the department...
"Someone is supposed to be an intern in the Department of Mysteries, but working here as a teaching assistant?" he said.
There were only two teaching assistants at Hogwarts--Bellatrix Black and Arachne Weaver. He didn't particularly have high opinions about either of them, but that was partially tainted by what Natalie had said about them both.
"It does sound odd to me. Rookwood used to work the interns mercilessly. But perhaps he's got her doing things for him while he's here for the tournament?"
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Post by Roland Ferrera on Feb 5, 2009 23:09:34 GMT -5
Roland nodded. "Yes, that's what he claims. And of course, when we questioned him about it, he claimed he couldn't tell us, as it was part of the job."
An idea, a dark and hateful one, suddenly occurred to Roland. Based on what he had observed and been told about Rookwood, the man was really quite the misogynist. He was also a manipulator, who used his position of power to exert influence on his employees, and to hide dirty dealings behind the secretive nature of his job. Might such a man use his employees for things... other than business?
The idea was distasteful, and he almost hesitated to mention it. After all, if true, it might indicate that all Ms. Weaver was guilty of was sleeping her way to the top. And why would he not want the clearly willing and easily manipulated Fiona for such a task?
"Wesley," he began slowly. "Do you think Rookwood is capable of taking advantage of his female employees?"
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Post by Wesley St. Clare on Feb 8, 2009 18:44:19 GMT -5
Wesley frowned, the idea having not occurred to him. Usually, in a department as close as the Department of Mysteries, rumors of such types of behavior were known to go around. But he'd never heard of any rumors of that about Rookwood. Of course, that didn't necessarily mean it didn't happen, only that Rookwood was better than the average person at covering such things up.
"Well... I've never known of him to do it before, but that doesn't mean anything. I do believe he's capable of it."
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Post by Roland Ferrera on Feb 9, 2009 22:34:11 GMT -5
Roland nodded grimly. It was only an opinion, of course, but Roland agreed with Wesley. He actually thought that Rookwood was capable of a lot of despicable behavior.
"OK, well... I think that should do it, then, Wesley. We would like to talk with your daughter, however... perhaps tomorrow? We wouldn't want to interfere with her class schedule or anything, so let us know when it would be a good time to talk with her."
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Post by Wesley St. Clare on Feb 9, 2009 22:38:30 GMT -5
Wesley smiled. "I will. I know she would be grateful to find a way she can use her powers to help people. She's not a seer... she's an Empath. She can see things that have happened or that will happen in the future, based on emotional impulses, or on lingering emotional imprints. If you took her to the scene of the murder, she might be able to tell you what Katie saw before she died."
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Post by Roland Ferrera on Feb 9, 2009 22:51:49 GMT -5
Roland glanced over at Riley with an eyebrow raised. He'd heard of Empaths, but they were terribly rare. They were also, as he understood, extremely fragile. They were supposedly very prone to insanity or suicide. He immediately felt sorry for Wesley, who had already lost a wife and one daughter. He hoped that the youngest daughter was strong enough to fight the kind of darkness that Empathic abilities so often caused.
"Thanks again, Wesley," he said at last, standing up. "We'll talk with you tomorrow."
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Post by Wesley St. Clare on Feb 13, 2009 18:44:27 GMT -5
Wesley stood as well. "It's no trouble, really," he said. "I'll talk to Natalie tonight and see if she can help you. It was good to see you again, Roland." He shook Roland's hand, then turned to Riley.
"It was nice meeting you as well, Riley. I wish the both of you luck in your investigation. Whoever killed Katie deserves to be punished, and I have every confidence that the two of you will be able to solve the case."
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Post by Roland Ferrera on Feb 16, 2009 23:20:16 GMT -5
Roland smiled again as Wesley said goodbye to Riley. He had a lot to think about, and he was rather hoping that his latest theory about the bizarre connection between Arachne Weaver and Augustus Rookwood turned out to be untrue. But, unfortunately, it would explain a lot about the situation.
A few minutes later, when they were outside in the hall, Roland turned to Riley. "I know I said I wanted to talk to Slughorn, but I actually think it might be a good idea to call it a day and go back to the office to discuss what we've learned. It's actually been a long day."
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Post by Riley Neves on Feb 17, 2009 0:21:03 GMT -5
Riley shook Wesley's hand, smiling warmly at him. Speaking with him had been a vast change from speaking with Augustus, though she had an idea to get information from him... it was a stretch at best, but maybe it would work.
"You've been a great help. Thank you," she said, then following Roland outside the office.
She nodded when he suggested calling it a day. "Sure, that sounds fine, though I'd like to speak with Natalie... tomorrow, maybe?" If Roland left, it would give her the oppertunity to speak with Augustus alone.
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