IC: CH2 - LONDON - First Thread

[Raiko]

Outside Miles Shipley's House - No.6 Holbein Mews, London
6:47pm, Wednesday 28th January, 1925

The lady remains half hidden behind the front door, "Oh? Are you interested in purchasing?"

"We don't usually allow casual viewing you see..."

Her eyes move to Timour's expensive sports car parked outside, where Elizabeth and Caroline are still seated, and her lips twist into a smile.

"...never mind. Come inside, my Miles will be delighted to show you his work."

She opens the front door fully and steps aside, waving Timour into her house.

[Decrepit]

Caroline starts tapping her foot nervously on the floorboard.

[Timour Rukov]

Timour starts into the door, then turns to peer into the car from where he's standing.

"You won't mind if I invite my friends in also?" Before she has a chance to answer, he begins waving Elizabeth and Caroline in from the car.

[Raiko]

Outside Miles Shipley's House - No.6 Holbein Mews, London
6:47pm, Wednesday 28th January, 1925

"Oh of course not dear, come inside! The more the merrier!"

While Timour waits for Elizabeth and Caroline to catch up, Mrs Shipley turns towards the staircase behind her and shouts, "Miles! We've got visitors!"

When she turns back to Timour she says, "He's such a dedicated boy you know, I just can't keep him away from those paintings of his."

She smiles, "Would you all like a nice cup of tea dears? It's such a chilly night outside."

It's much warmer inside the house, clearly Mrs Shipley likes to keep her house homely despite it's dilapidated appearance. Even standing half inside the doorway Timour can feel the warmth of the interior. He hears some footsteps and a voice from somewhere upstairs, "I'm... coming... mother!"

The voice sounds tired or distracted, or perhaps it's just distorted by the distance.

[imme]

Elizabeth eagerly leaves the car when beckoned. She quickly makes her way up to the front door, but lets Timour continue leading the show.

[Decrepit]

Hmmm, thinks Caroline as she trots off after Beth. It's just art ....

[Timour Rukov]

If the ol' fellow's painting...what sort of shape is he in? Communicating with aliens? Distracted by voices in his head? Oh...this is gonna be good!

Timour flashes the woman a smile, "Tea'd be lovely, I think." He waits at the door for Beth and Caroline to catch up, and holds the door for them.

"These are my companions, Shirley (he motions to Elizabeth and winks) and Dorothy (he motions again to Caroline). And of course I'm Maks." He smiles his most dashing smile at the woman. "We couldn't help our interest in these paintings. They sound simply stunning. I'm sure your son does very well, hm?" Timour watches the staircase fixatedly where the voice was trailing from, and makes motion to come in and settle into one of the easy chairs in the living room.

Inside he shakes. Just don't call me Timour....please just go with the aliases.....Shirley and Dorothy....don't forget...Shirley...Dorothy....

[imme]

Elizabeth raises an eyebrow and turns to Caroline. "Well, Dorothy it looks like Max has managed to get us a viewing after all."

[Decrepit]

"How delightful," "Dorothy" replies, trying to inject some enthusiasm into her voice and hoping her nervousness at the ruse doesn't show.

[Raiko]

The Shipley House - No.6 Holbein Mews, London
6:49pm, Wednesday 28th January, 1925

Once everyone's entered the house and gone into the living room, Mrs Shipley locks the front door and pockets the key. Then she walks into the kitchen to put the kettle on.

It is uncomfortably warm inside the living room, a large coal fire blazes in the hearth, and there is an unusual aroma that is familiar, but none of the investigators can quite place it.

By the time the kettle has boiled and Mrs Shipley returned with a tray full of steaming cups of tea, her son has finally arrived downstairs.

"So... you... want... to... see... my... paintings... then?" Miles Shipley is a mess; it doesn't need someone with Catherine's medical training to see that he is quite clearly insane, and probably a drug addict. He looks at those gathered in the living room though wide bloodshot eyes, staring at Elizabeth and Catherine in particular with a look that can only be described as hunger.

His voice is halting, he has nervous tremors, his thick hair is greasy and unkempt, and his skin has a sheen of sweat.

Miles offers his hand to his guests, it's shaking even before anyone accepts.

While her son shakes hands, Mrs Shipley passes out the cups of tea. Disturbingly she also looks greedily at her guests.

Mrs Shipley

Mrs Shipley.jpg (4.83 KiB) Viewed 1143 times

Miles Shipley

miles shipley2.jpeg (7.63 KiB) Viewed 1146 times

[OOC: Couldn't resist using the photo of Isaac Mendez for Miles. Unfortunately I've not managed to find a photo of him looking his worst.]

[Decrepit]

Time to go now, Timour, Caroline thinks as she takes an appraising look at Miles and Mrs. Shipley. She declines Miles proffered handshake, and she declines to take any tea. Whatever good humor she entered the door with has evaporated.

[imme]

Elizabeth barely manages to keep from recoiling at Miles' look. "We ... have no time to visit, I'm afraid. We must be off to another engagement. Perhaps we can just view the paintings tonight and return tomorrow for the tea and a discussion of any possible acquisitions?"

[Timour Rukov]

Timour gives Miles a half hearted smile and shakes his hand enthusiastically. Time to step it up a notch...the ladies are getting antsy...

"Well, we were so interested in meeting you personally, after all. Heard such interesting things, and I believe we're interested in acquiring a painting if it's not too much trouble. Trouble is we're shopping for a friend, and he might be choosy about which one. We were hoping to take a look so that we could recommend a few to him. He's quite the art collector. And I have to admit, I'm so interested in hearing a little about them! Remarkable, I've been told."

Timour rubs the back of his neck casually and grimaces in Elizabeth's direction. Hardly the time to offend and go running back out the door.....I don't like this much either but there's no sense causing them to turn on us now, is there?

[Raiko]

"Follow me... then..." Miles turns around and starts to lead the way upstairs.

"My... studio... is in... the... attic."

[imme]

Elizabeth pointedly waits for Timour to go first, and will follow afterwards with Caroline.

[Decrepit]

Caroline glances ruefully at Beth and comes along.

[Timour Rukov]

Timour hops up from his seat and follows Miles up the stairwell. He winks at Elizabeth and Caroline and tries to go ahead of them, so that he's the first in line headed up the stairs. If anything goes on...I want to be the first in line...... Timour swallows hard and wonders what he's got himself, Elizabeth and Caroline into. Miles and his mother seemed the peculiar sort, of that there was no doubt.

Timour feels a sinking sensation in the pit of his stomach. He hoped they wouldn't be given any trouble. There's ladies here after all....he wouldn't try anything odd would he??

[Raiko]

The Shipley House - No.6 Holbein Mews, London
6:52pm, Wednesday 28th January, 1925

Miles leads the investigators up through the second floor and up a second creaking staircase to his garret studio in the attic, his mother walks up last, following the ladies. The studio door is locked, Miles uses a key to unlock it before proudly leading everyone inside.

It is a bare room with sloping ceilings, illuminated by dangling kerosene lamps. There is a skylight in the roof, but it appears to have been blacked out with paint. Under the skylight stands an easel, the canvas on it bears a few faint pencil sketches, doubtless the next of Miles' masterpieces.

Against the walls stand four stacks of painting, tow against the south wall and two against the north wall. Miles led everyone in thorough a door in the south wall, there is another padlocked door in the north wall. The front painting in each stack is visible, they truly are macabre masterpieces, each one is minutely detailed, seeming to hint that closer study will reveal details that escape the casual viewer. Their colours are vivid, seeming to bring the gruesome or otherworldly scenes to life. Looking at the paintings is disturbing, they draw you in, the scenes are repulsive, but riveting and viewing them leads to a curious mixture of emotions: the urge to leave the room immediately, is opposed by a desire to study each painting in intimate detail for hours, and this is tempered by the urge to view the paintings hidden behind the font layer.

The first stack of paintings to the north contains six paintings, the front one is a portrait of a beautiful woman, unnaturally pale, sleeping delicately on a verdant carpet of writing serpents. There is a bite mark on her neck, and as you look closer at the painting, her flesh begins to take on a sickly greenish cast. Beside it, next to the padlocked door, stands a second stack of five paintings, the front one depicts a city of dark, windowless towers made of some kind of black stone.

On the south wall the two stacks sit on either side of the entrance, one to the left is a stack of four, in the scene depicted in the first, it is night. A vast black mountain rises from a savannah. A great figure rises over the mountain, blotting out the moon. Its head is a massive red tendril. Near a temple-like building, tiny human figures lift their hands imploringly towards the creature; each wears a headdress of the bloody tongue - the exact same headdresses that were worn by the cultists in New York.

To the right of the entrance stands the final stack of six paintings, the front painting is an extreme close-up of a human eye. The pupil reflects endless rows of teeth, stacked one atop the next.

[Timour Rukov]

Timour takes a first few glances and tries hard to squelch the feelings of panic and disgust rising up. This guy's bloody well off his rocker....

He looks from one painting to the next, and flashes a knowing glance at Elizabeth. After a moment he looks at the painting of the bloody tongue with interest, and then feels a creeping, cold finger trace his spine and work up to his skull, giving him a chill that moves over him entirely. He shudders involuntarily, and quickly turns away.

"Ah....ha ha....uh....they're so.....detailed. Really great work, Miles. I'm...uh.....heh..heh.....astounded! Where did you get such....(ahem)......brilliant inspiration?"

[Decrepit]

Caroline looks closely at the paintings, finding herself drawn, despite her intentions and against a strong but not strong enough part of her will, into the painting of the beautiful woman. Almost without realizing it, she begins to rub her own neck at the point where the woman in the painting has the bite mark.

Timour was right to want to come here after all, she thinks. This is truly fascinating ...

She hears Timour's question as if through layers of water, and responds, "Yes, Miles, please do tell us."