Play@YSDC

James slips the card into his pocket and then goes to help the others with their captive.

"We'd better give this guy over to the cops" he tells them.

"No worries, miss." Irene said, "Anything to make you feel better, dearie."

Tremayne swiftly pulls a pressed white handkerchief out of his jacket top pocket and attempts to assist providing first aid.

First Aid,Skill is 30% and he rolls... [dice]0[/dice]

HP Recovered,[dice]1[/dice] HP

Tremayne looks over his shoulder. "Is there a doctor in the hotel?!"

HoneyDog wrote:James slips the card into his pocket and then goes to help the others with their captive.

"We'd better give this guy over to the cops" he tells them.

"Yes, let's see what he will say to the police".- Says Anderson.

Room 310, Hotel Chelsea

Once it becomes clear that Tremayne has managed to stem the flow of blood, at least for the moment, his wife almost collapses as she sobs uncontrollably.

He needs to tend to the wounds for a few more minutes, but eventually a doctor arrives.

The Machete,[b]Tremayne[/b] checks to see if the machete is still lying on the floor in the laundry. If it is, he'll pick it up with two fingers and bring it with him.

With a heavy heart, Tremayne heads back up to Jackson's room and his colleagues.

Fourth Floor, Hotel Chelsea

Eventually there are eight uniformed NYPD officers at the Hotel Chelsea, two in the lobby keeping potential witnesses in, two outside the front doors attempting to keep the public - and the press - out, and two on each of the third and fourth floors.

Other than keeping order and taking note of the most basic witness details, the officers do little, instead waiting for the arrival of a team of four detectives from the NYPD Headquarters building at on Centre Street. They give few details to Jackson's friends, but do reveal that Jackson's death is the thought to be the ninth in a series of ritualistic killings, that the cops believe are probably tied in to a vicious bootlegging gang in Harlem, rather than voodoo cult or similar. Until now the cops have had few leads, and so they appear grateful to James for shooting one of the perpetrators dead, and even more to the others for catching a live suspect.

That suspect is secured in handcuffs and dragged off to the police HQ before the detectives arrive.

The senior detective on the case Lieutenant Martin Poole, wants to speak to each of the investigators when he arrives, discussing how they came to be at the crime scene and what their own actions were. Like the uniforms he seems genuinely grateful of finally getting leads in a case that's been ongoing for almost two years. This process takes a couple of hours.

OOC,[ooc]To try and get through this part as quickly as possible, please could you each give a short summary of what your investigator reveals, or prefers not to reveal to Poole. There's no need to post every detail of what you say, unless you wish to - after all you've all witnessed the same events that are detailed above. Also include a summary anything you'd like to ask about yourself (make a roll using the higher of persuade and credit rating - you can make a roll even if you don't actually ask anything specific). Depending on what you say and ask (and whether Poole is a good guy or a corrupt lackey of the bootlegging gang), Poole will decide how to treat you all going forward. I've not added a photo yet for Poole, as I'm trying to sort out a common 'NPC card' template for all NPCs you meet. I should have it uploaded later today. I'm using a photo of "Jim Brass" the homicide detective from the original CSI series.[/ooc]

Clark eyes the events from the lobby, waiting for the others to go down. He will not speak to anyone but if confronted he will slip with a shy look and a "sorry mr. I don't know" statement outside.

Irene attempted to be as truthful as possible, but avoided rambling about racial connotations of the crime. She believed that this muddy the case and make inefficient. She will not reveal that they had already made copies of the evidence and only vaguely explained their relationships to Jackson Elias, she hopes that others will not offer contradictions to her testimony.

James is glad at the cops' attitude - the last thing he needs is an arrest on a murder rap.

He relates how the companions were visiting their friend Jackson Elias, only to find his room occupied by the assailants, so James fired in self-defence. He keeps the knowledge of the business card to himself, however. Jackson was a friend, and he wants to solve this mess himself.

Amy tells what little she knows and holds nothing back, hoping it will do some good. She freely and tearfully acknowledges that she loves Jackson, in case it wasn't completely obvious. She asks who the other eight victims were, pointing out that there may be some connection between them and Jackson, whom she and her friends knew very well. Thus, it would be a good idea to share this with them in case they recognize any of them.

OOC,Persuade roll (65% skill) to get the detective to answer her question: [dice]0[/dice]

Anderson will tell that he was visiting Jackson after being invited, he saw him death and followed the criminals and managed to get one (but won't tell anything about the letter).

Tremayne will explain as follows:
* He had been a friend and colleague of Jackson's since India days.
* Jackson had been traveling for sometime.
* Amy had invited all to meet with Jackson on his return.
* Jackson didn't appear so the group went looking for him, instead finding his murderers.
* Marko had no choice but to shoot one in self defence.
* Tremayne and Anderson pursued two other attackers down to the third floor, getting into a fight with the one, the last getting away.

Addendum: After gaining access to a third floor room by breaking in through its balcony, the two machete thugs grievously wounded an innocent occupant.

The Hotel Chelsea, 222 West 23rd Street - New York City
10:05pm - Thursday 15th January, 1925

After around two hours of questioning and waiting around, Lieutenant Poole tells all of the investigators that they are free to go. Gerald and Irene will not be able to return to their room tonight, but the cops expect to be finished with all but Jackson's room by the morning.

Poole shared the names of the prior victims with Amy, in the hope that some sort of connection could be established, but none of the names are familiar to her:

• Walter Van Buskirk, a private investigator;
• Rev. Elijah A. Johnson, a Harlem minister and activist who preached against immorality in Harlem;
• Michael Conley, a longshoreman from the East-side docks;
• Max Hillman, a Brooklyn based freelance reporter.
• Richard “Ritchie C.” Cederecci, a suspected low-level mafia thug;
• Roberta Barlow, a Harlemite waitress;
• Adolf Thurmond, the estranged son of a successful Wall Street stockbroker.
• One further female victim who has never been identified.

All the victims have been murdered in the same way as Jackson. The symbol carved into the victims' heads is of African origin, but the police have not been able to establish it's meaning.

The lieutenant tells the investigators not to leave New York without contacting him, and says that he may require further information from them after the prisoner has been interviewed.

James Marko

"I need to get some coffee. Anyone who wants to talk to me about what happened and what we're gonna do is free to come with me."

Amy nods, still dabbing her eyes with her handkerchief, which is now thoroughly soaked. She doesn't know what connection the other victims have with Jackson, let alone with each other for the most part, but she's hoping that the others may have some ideas or that further research into the other murders will yield clues.

"Oh dear! Where ever shall we stay now?" Irene gasped. She would faint, but she doubted that doing so would get her anywhere closer to finding another place to stay. "I don't suppose anyone is willing to us out and give us a place ta' stay?"

James Marko

"Maybe hotel management can find another room for you" James tells Irene.

"I see. I will have to ask them, then. Thanks." Irene said thankfully.

Jordan hadn't told the police anything useful. Emphasising that he had rushed in to help his friend and fellow author, but that his leg injuries prevented him from chasing after the assailants. Just like Amy, he'd asked about the other victims, but he'd also mentioned that Jackson had been to Africa and had the habit of uncovering things that a lot of people liked left uncovered. He also added that he'd be very grateful if the police managed to put an end to these thugs and avenge Jackson's death.

Credit Rating 60%,[dice]0[/dice]

After the interview he joins the others.

'I think we have all deserved a drink right about now, there is nothing better for grief to be shared, though the comfort of solitude may be equally appealing, it will more often than not turn sadness into madness.'