[Radio]

[highprofilerichkid]

((In response to all this nonsense.))


Yes. Milyn's alive. We faked her death so nobody would get it into their head to try again. Maybe it wasn't the best thing to do, but we didn't have much time to make a decision. I'm sorry we lied to all of you.

And before anyone asks, no, we're not handing her over to anyone for any of her proven or unproven crimes. Keeliai has the right to decide if she's guilty or not and what her punishment should be, but it'll be when there's a real representative government and a real judicial system in place, and when we've figured out what the hell is going on. Not before then. Because right now, the city is basically being run by the guy who probably tried to have her assassinated. I'm not handing her over to anything less than a fair trial. That's not up for negotiation. If you've got a problem with that, you can bring it to me.

[He may not have liked this plan, but he went along with it, and it's his responsibility to own it.]

Also, if anyone's thinking of going after her again...

[There's an odd emphasis on "anyone" - Tony knows the Foreigners probably aren't the only ones listening in.]

Don't bother.

[Cold, hard, final. The message is clear: Milyn is protected.]



[[Private, to Valdis]]

I'm sorry. [His voice is softer now. He sounds genuinely troubled.] I wanted to tell you. I didn't want you to think it was your fault for getting her killed.

I was outside when they were healing her, and everybody had already come up with the plan by the time I went back in - we all promised we wouldn't tell anyone who wasn't there. I... I don't know. I wish I'd handled it better. We should have told you.

Comments

private;

[lasergrenades]

We're gonna have a time and a half trying to keep her out of harm's way if she starts going back to the clinic. I think our new police force'll have to launch doing protective detail.

[She sounds a bit annoyed with the state of affairs, but there's nothing to be done now but handle the fallout.]

[highprofilerichkid]

...How do you feel about her running the clinic out of our kitchen? [Tony jokes.

Kind of. Because they, uh. Might want to consider that option, actually.]

[lasergrenades]

I don't think it'd be very sanitary. [Amused, and then:] I'd rather she set up shop in the spare bedroom - I could just move the clothing stuff into mine. You know, if it's actually necessary to keep her mostly in the house.

[It's starting to sound a bit like house arrest, but... sometimes that was for a person's own good, too.]

[highprofilerichkid]

I guess we'll have to see how all this falls out. I... didn't expect to have an extra roommate for this long, [he confesses. It's getting a bit cramped for his liking, to be completely honest.

Then with a little more humor, he says,] If I'd known we'd be having so many guests, I'd have planned this place with more rooms. [First his dad, now Milyn - incredibly awkward couchsurfers are a new trend, apparently.] Maybe we should build an addition.

[lasergrenades]

Yeah, me either. Things just keep getting weirder. [And this new complication of Meisheng (although it's possibly a good complication in one way or another)... it doesn't look like things are getting simpler any time soon.]

Well, if we're starting protective custody arrangements then a safehouse wouldn't go amiss. And it can double as a guest house when we're not hiding criminals-slash-witnesses-slash-victims.

[She is only mostly joking.]

[highprofilerichkid]

[Tony snorts.] Great. I'll start drawing up floorplans. How do you decorate a multipurpose jail and safehouse and guest house?

[lasergrenades]

Without anything that can be used as a lock pick, probably. And windows that don't open. [There's some other details she can think of, but unless they're actually going to draw up plans there's not much point.]