Wow. Just, wow.
Cherry figured that there would probably be bloodshed as a result of her little 'game', but even then she was surprised at how quickly the twins both leapt to murder.
If they had shown the slightest compassion for what they believed to be a stranger in the same dire circumstances as themselves, they would have swiftly discovered her trick and could have cooperated. In fact, if they had done that then Cherry would have let them go and called their facial disfigurement punishment enough for their crimes, at least as far as she was concerned. If they were executed later for plotting to assassinate their queen, that was out of her hands.
As things stood, one twin was dead at the hands of the other. He could go on living with that knowledge. Perhaps he'll even feel some guilt for the first time in his life.
In any case, she would wash her hands of them. Job well done.
"Where did you run off to this time?" Corvo questioned her as she skipped up to him.
He was waiting with Emily by the big canal that ran through the city.
"I gave the Pendleton twins a chance to choose kindness. They did not," Cherry smiled.
"Of course they didn't. Why would you expect anything else?" Corvo asked.
"You should always give the option! People might surprise you," Cherry claimed. "Don't you think so too, Emily?"
"No. Those two couldn't show any kindness even to save their own lives," Emily said with conviction.
"Mm, an astute observation in hindsight," Cherry agreed.
Corvo caught her insinuation, but Emily seemed to have missed it.
"You sure you want to take Emily back to the Hound Pits Pub? Nami is great with kids, and Reiju is probably okay with kids," Cherry changed the subject.
"I'm not a kid," Emily interjected.
"She'll be safe there, and it's better if I don't give the 'loyalists' any hints that I know what game they're playing," Corvo sighed.
"Game?" Emily asked, scrunching up her brow.
"He means they want to put you on the throne while they control things behind the scenes," Cherry blurted out. Something Corvo would have preferred she didn't say, given the funny look he was giving her.
"Oh, they want to make me a puppet!" Emily caught on immediately. "Mom warned me many times to be wary of 'schemers' trying to make me a puppet."
Corvo looked a bit surprised, but Cherry didn't know why. It made plenty of sense to start teaching the heir to the throne about politics early on.
"A good queen must listen to her advisors, but come to her own conclusions. If she lets others decide for her, then she may as well not be queen," Emily recited.
"That's true," Cherry nodded. "Though you should be careful not to simply do the opposite of what you're told, lest you be manipulated in another way."
"Wha-! I didn't even think of that!" Emily's mind was blown. Apparently she hadn't quite grasped her Mother's meaning.
Cherry hoped she would have someone who could actually teach governance to her in the coming years.
…
Who could have done it?
Havelock hadn't a clue which faction would have arranged for Burrows' office to be bombed. Most of them seemed to have at least tentatively aligned themselves with his government. The ones that hadn't were incapable of pulling even a failed assassination attempt off. They would have gotten caught.
It probably helped to draw attention away from Corvo's retrieval of Lady Emily, but in the long run it was going to turn up the heat significantly.
"This is a disaster!" Treavor threw open the door, barging inside. "Burrows is going to be out for blood! Even if he's a coward, he can't afford to let this stand!"
"And he's going to use the bombing as an excuse to consolidate more power," Havelock added. "Removing your brothers might not even sway things our way in parliament, now."
"Oh, when I find out who did this…!" Treavor growled.
"Leave it be, Pendleton," Havelock warned. "Whoever did this is either well connected or has very skilled subordinates. Moreover, they are the enemy of our enemy. We should try to bring them on side first and foremost."
That sobered Treavor somewhat. "You're right, as always. I'll see if my contacts have learned anything of value."
Havelock nodded. It was better to use what they could, and dispose of what they couldn't. Everything needed to go smoothly, or else they'd go the way of the Queen's killers in due time.
Treavor marched off and Havelock went back to pondering. As a military man, he must surely be capable of coming up with a suspect or two, even without hard evidence.
Could Daud have turned on them? It wasn't really the man's style, but that could be a ploy to distance himself from a second high profile murder if he thought things weren't looking good for the Lord Regent.
He felt like he was on to something there.
"Havelock," Callista called for him from the hallway. She knew better than to enter his room.
"What is it?" Havelock inquired.
"Corvo's back, with Lady Emily," Callista reported.
"Ah, excellent. Perfect timing too; the explosion will undoubtedly cause the curfew to tighten considerably tonight," Havelock was pleased with this result. Corvo was an excellent pawn. "Go and greet Lady Emily. You are to serve her for the duration of her stay here, after all."
…
Samuel was a simple man.
He once worked as a sailor, but as he grew older, the sea became too rough for him and he settled down back home working a boat on the canal. There were always people who had places to be.
His latest employers, well paying as they were, were a touch suspicious though. He didn't have a mind for politics, but his gut told him that the loyalist conspiracy wasn't totally on the up and up. Corvo seemed like a good bloke, thankfully.
His choice of company, though… Well, Samuel always kept up to date with news of the seas, so he naturally recognized one of the rising stars of the pirate world, Cheapshot Cherry.
How dirty does she fight that even among pirates she's called that?
Corvo told him to keep quiet about her. An ace in his pocket, he said. He knew how to read between the lines in the papers, so he knew the Straw Hats weren't the pillaging types; more of the 'Fuck the Government' type of pirates. So he reckoned he could keep his gob shut if Corvo asked him to.
He was more inclined to do so when she handed him a fat stack of Beri. His silence was guaranteed when she smiled at him. He felt a shiver down his spine just remembering it.
He wondered what a big shot like her was doing in his quiet little corner of East Blue, instead of gallivanting around the Grand Line. He didn't ask, of course, but he was still curious.
Perhaps she was promised a king's ransom to help put Lady Emily on the throne? An odd choice if so. She'd apparently kidnapped that King snake guy from the Reverie, didn't she? Maybe he was misremembering.
Samuel let go of the complex thoughts and focused on his boat.