"One of the many oddities of the institute, it seems," Barnaby neutrally replied. To be honest, he didn't fully understand it, much less the implications behind a speedy recovery. Given their captors' resources, though, that was hardly the most shocking thing they were capable of doing to him.

At least the judge had a relatively peaceful night. Of course, Barnaby realized it was entirely possible he ignored his advice and ventured into the hallways anyway. Yuri Petrov wasn't a short-sighted man, however, even if he occasionally came across as a little absent-minded. At any rate, he appeared unharmed, which was really the heart of the matter. Although Barnaby had little personal attachment to Petrov, he knew that Stern Bild would not take a judge's death lightly. That was especially true if there had been a (former) hero there to prevent it. Tarnishing Hero TV's reputation was the last thing he wanted to do, especially when he thought of the tremendous debt he owed Mr. Maverick.

There was little reason to voice those thoughts out loud. In a deliberate attempt to appear at ease, Barnaby lifted his utensils and began cutting into his waffles. "May I ask who your roommate is?" he asked.