Music From a Darkened Room

[Mr. Handy]

OOC,Yes, that sounds good to me.

[Silver Priest]

And with their plans for tomorrow finalized, the agents retire to bed. No nightmares haunt their dreams tonight.

May 4th, 2000

Charley begins looking up information on the Tures. His efforts to shift through various records soon bear fruit, and he finds two addresses for what look to be the family members. Adam Ture lives back in Montreal, and is apparently a retired engineer. Daughter Elise apparently stayed in America, and now is an attorney out in California. Charley's able to find phone numbers for both of them. Who did he want to call first, and what did he intend to say?
***

Nik goes to the local paper and does some research on both the history of the home and property listings.

ooc,You'll need a bureaucracy roll to find any news stories about the house, but Nik remembers that the house has been sold in the past by[b] Ryan Realty. [/b] It seems likely they still manage the affairs of the house and could tell if it was still on the market, but he would need to go to their offices to learn more.

***
Vanessa heads to the antique shop of Elizabeth Tucker. She was apparently a DG Friendly and may be able to help.

Her store is modestly sized, but absolutely packed with various pieces of furniture carefully separated by age and theme. A few customers browse the store looking at this or that, but Vanessa soon attracts the interest of the owner. Tucker is a young and attractive woman with flowing blonde hair and designer glasses. She smiles warmly at the FBI Agent.

"Good morning, and welcome to Tucker's Antiques. Are you looking for anything in particular today?"

[HoneyDog]

Nik trawls through the paper's archives but frustratingly comes up short.

Bureaucracy,Bureaucracy 13: [url=http://orokos.com/roll/708944]Bureaucracy[/url]: [u]1d100[/u] [b]19[/b]

[Mr. Handy]

"Thank you, it's good to see a friendly face," says Vanessa with a smile. She uses a code phrase to let Elizabeth Tucker know she's with Delta Green.

[Borderline]

I first dial the daughter Elise, "Hello maam, my name is Charles Switzer. I'm conducting an investigation and as I understand it you went through a terrible ordeal some years back when your brother passed. If you would be willing to speak on that, I believe others maybe threatened by a danger that os connected to how your brother died. If you're willing, any help you provode could quite literally save lives."

[Silver Priest]

ooc,True, but that's close enough I feel I ought to give you something.

Nik gets to work researching 1206 Spooner Avenue. It's tedious work, not helped by the fact that most of the back issues of the paper are on Microfilm, and there's no way to look through them any way but one at a time. Most of the time is spent scrolling though old editions of the paper trying to find anything that fits.

He finds a few articles about the house and its residents, largely by chasing down the dates he does have. The vast majority of articles about the house are announcing a death in a tenet there. The Ture family was covered, and it's mentioned that Rebecca was apparently inconsolable after the death of her young son. The article was written as if it was some sort of terrible accident; he had been playing near the toilet, hit his head, and lose consciousness and drowned.

He also finds a few other articles. One covered the murder-suicide of George and Margaret Crease. George had shot his wife and then tried to burn down the house, but thankfully a neighbor had smelled smoke and intervened. Another covered the death of George Weaver. A local doctor, he had purchased the house and lived there from the late 60's to 1970 before he was evidently electrocuted due to faulty wiring. Neighbors described him as a well liked figure in the community. The article ends with depressing statistics about accidental electrocution and how to avoid it.

In addition to these articles, Nik finds one covering the initial tenets, the Wheelers. In may 1907, local stonemason Michael Wheeler had begun construction on a small house at the then vacant Spooner lot. It was noted that Isabella Wheeler suffered from a strange wasting disease and needed around the clock care.

Other than that, he finds nothing else that mentions the house before his eyes begin to burn from fatigue.

***

Elizabeth gives a slight nod, and says loudly “Why don't we talk in my office?” She leads Vanessa there after making sure no one else requires her help at the moment.

“I'm always happy to assist,” she assures the FBI Agent. “How can I be of service?”

**

Elise is all business when first reached, but her tone quickly becomes more guarded when the house is brought up.

“Are you doing a story or something? Trying to capitalize on my grief?” She sighs but agrees to talk to him.

“Things were strange in that house since the moment we arrived. We would see things.... an old woman in the mirror of my parents bedroom. Just a glimpse, and then she'd be gone.” her understated French-Canadian accent becomes more prominent. “I would hear a piano play at night in the living room. But we never had a piano, and none of us knew how to play one.
My mother, she was particularly affected. She collapsed on the floor of the kitchen one day, claiming to have seen a man shot himself. My father did not believe her, he never did, but he sent her to a sanitarium to a time so that she could recover. A few weeks later she came home, and things seemed calm for a time. Then Adam died, and her mind shattered. Last I heard she and my father have moved back to Montreal, and she lives in an asylum now. I do not think she will ever recover.

“I don't talk to my parents. My father refuses to believe anything happened in that house, and of the four of us he was the least affected by whatever was haunting it. My mother.... when I look at her I see a victim, and I do not like being reminded of that. You want my advice, Mr. Switzer? Stop looking into this. The house is alive and it is evil. It killed my brother, and I suspect it is still killing. I just want to forget. Some things you are better off not knowing.”

[Borderline]

"Elise thank you so much, I assure you I'm not looking to profit off of this. Believe me I wish I could leave that house behind and never look back but the fact is as far as I can tell every single person involved with that house has suffered greatly. If you don't mind, you mentioned the mirror, to your knowledge was that or any other item included with the house when you moved in or where there any other physical items significantly involved? My next questions are going to be more difficult and we don't have to do all of this at once. I'd like to get an idea of what your mother was like before the house and what other experiences in the house you may know of that taxed her mind so heavily. Lastly and again I'm sorry to have to ask, do you think your brothers death was strictly due to the madness of the house or could another family member have been pulled in and somehow involved? I know it's terrible but I haven't been able to find much information so anything to give me some context would greatly help. You should know I'm working to get the house off the market and I'd love to have your permission to call on you again if you could be of more assistance and ultimately, hopefully, to tell you that an end has been put to this unholy saga."

[Mr. Handy]

"Do you know a woman named Yamilla Isari?" asks Vanessa. "She's known to shop for antiques, and I'd be very surprised if she never visited your store."

[HoneyDog]

Rubbing his eyes, Nik feels he was right to theorise that every previous owner or resident had met an untimely end in the house. The deaths cannot be coincidental.

He leaves the newspaper with his notes and goes in search of Ryan Realty.

[Silver Priest]

Charlie

Elise thinks for a moment.

"I don't really think my parents did any remodeling when they moved in. The house was up to date. The mirrors were already there; my parents bedroom was full of them, wall to wall, it was very odd, and there was nothing like that in the other rooms. I always felt a little disoriented in there.

"My mother was a kind woman, before. She had a history of what we'd now classify as postpartum depression, but had improved a few years before we moved into Spooner. Once we moved in she started going downhill, became very frightened, paranoid that someone was out to hurt her or us. She was right. I don't remember much, but she spoke of the dreams and the old Italian crone. This was near the end of our stay however, so I don't know how much of it was real or her feverish imagination. By the end she was certainly delusional.

Her tone grows a bit harsh. "No, none of us murdered my brother. I am positive it was the house in someway. I realize that sounds crazy, but living there, I began to feel like the house was its own malevolent force of nature. I do not know how my brother really died, but I am positive it killed him.

"I just want to forget, and I think what you are doing is a fools errand that will get you killed, Mr. Switzer. My father never believed any of the things we told him, and he still does not. But he hired a priest to come and exorcism the home for my mother's piece of mind. It did not work. I am not sure anything will. But you're going to do what you will, I suppose. I hope you do not suffer for it."

She ends the call.

Vanessa

"Yamilla... yes, the name does ring a bell. Pretty young Arabic woman. She stopped in a few times. Wanted to refurnish her home. She had a fair budget and purchased several items. Though truth be told, and I probably should not be telling you this... she had no idea of taste. Most of the pieces she bought were mismatched, and there was no universal theme. She seemed very manic, she'd lay her eyes on a desk she liked and then when I was ringing it up she decided to buy a table from a contrasting style. Of course I was not about to complain," Tucker smiles. "But she stuck me as the type with an excess of money and little in the way of a vision of what she really wanted.

"Come to think of it, I believe I read she passed about a year or so ago? Tragic story. I'm not a psychologist, but her behavior did strike me as unhinged. I hope she's at peace now.."

Nik

Ryan Realty is a charming little office space in the heart of downtown. Nik finds a receptionist and asks to speak with the agent in charge of the Spooner address. Shortly thereafter he is met by a forthyish (emphasis on the ish) woman. She's dressed sharply and her hair is pulled into a conservative bun style. She holds out her hand and smiles with well practiced ease.

"Hello there! I'm Barbara Turner I've been told you were interested in 1206 Spooner? Why don't we talk in my office?'

She leads him back there and begins to go through a drawer. "It's a lovely property, and as luck would have it is still on the market. We're about to do another open house for it later in the week, actually! Here we go." She shows Nik a picture of the exterior of the home. It's a small green house on a block full of them. Vibrant ivy growth scales the north face of the house. It has a porch, a simple stone affair enclosed by iron bars, three steps up. A single lamp hangs above the red door. It seems like a nice place, if a bit smaller than the average home he's seen in Meadowbrooke.

"Two story home, first constructed in 1907, I believe. Very cozy and with a lot of character! A great starter home for raising a family. Do you have a family, Mr..." she paused for a name if Nik's not yet given one.

[Mr. Handy]

"I hope so too," says Vanessa. "Can you remember where you read about her passing?"

[HoneyDog]

“Oh please, call me Nik” says Nik. “We’re thinking of starting one. It really is a lovely looking place.”

He suppresses a shudder.

“Has it been on the market long?”

[Silver Priest]

Vanessa

"It would have had to have been in the local paper, though I can't recall for certain. About a year or so ago, I think she killed herself in her house? Sorry I can't be of more help. Is there anything else I can do for you? I should be able to get you a list of what she purchased, but as I've said it all seemed very random and spontaneous."

ooc,If you need an idea, Vanessa can roll int*5. Please only do this if you feel stuck though. Otherwise feel free to continue to question her.

Nik

Ms. Turner gives a surprised blink, but the smile remains.

"Well, alright then. So, Nik, you and your significant other wish to start a family? Meadowbrooke is a lovely little community, with plenty of small town charm while still possessing many of the modern amenities of the big city. I think you'll find you fit right in here.

"It's been on the market about a year. The previous owner unfortunately passed rather suddenly. But the silver lining from that is the price for the home is less expensive than homes of similar construction, so you'll get a lot of value for the cost. Most of the units of this type go for the high 100k's, but here you can expect to pay around 120 to 125, so it's very reasonably priced. Now, I have had a few preliminary inquires, and with the open house later this week I expect it will not be on the market for much longer, so I really would encourage you to make an offer soon. Perhaps you would like an appointment for me to show the home to you and your wife?" She inquires.

[HoneyDog]

“Oh, I see” Nik says. “I’m sure my fiancée would love to see it. We should set this up.”

He is silent for a time as he looks through the photographs and notes about the house.

“The price is lower than average, though? Because of the death of the previous owner? Did something bad happen there?”

He looks at Turner directly as he asks this last question.

[Mr. Handy]

"Thank you, I would like that list," says Vanessa. Then she thinks of something else to ask.

OOC,INT x 5 roll (55% stat) about what else to ask: [dice]0[/dice]

[Silver Priest]

Nik

As he's looking through the pictures, Nik discovers a floor plan of the house:

Picture,[img]https://i.postimg.cc/2j01sDFv/tumblr-inline-pn56j3-Wmx-J1uxzqji-540.png[/img] Sorry it's so hard to read, it was the best quality I could grab.

Turner hesitates. "Well, the previous owner unfortunately took her own life. Inside the, ah, house. But rest assured, it's been thoroughly cleaned since!" The smile is back in full force.

"Yes, we've unfortunately had a few issues selling the house. There was another disturbed individual that attempted to sabotage anyone purchasing the house, so that's why it's been on the market for so long. But said individual died not too long ago, so there's really no problems.

"But enough about all that. I assure you that this home is a really good value and I believe you'll be quite happy there. When can I put you and your fiancee down for a viewing?"

OOC:   Nik can make a HUMINT roll if he likes.

Vanessa

"I'll go and get it for you." Elizabeth says.

While she's waiting, Vanessa thinks back to something she read in Agent Donnelley's notes. Wheeler furniture/books, letters? Estate? It occurs to her that a house as old as 1206 Spooner should have had furniture sold over the years, especially if its most recent owners had been buying new furniture. If there had been any estate sales in the past, those should be documented. Maybe Elizabeth could look into that, if the team decided they wanted to pursue the furniture angle and see if any of it was possessed with the same malevolent force that seemed to haunt the house.

[HoneyDog]

"Well, quite soon, I hope. She's here in town too, on another errand. This house has something of a history, then?"

HUMINT,HUMINT 73: [url=http://orokos.com/roll/709847]HUMINT[/url]: [u]1d100[/u] [b]60[/b]

[Mr. Handy]

"Has Yamilla Isari sold you any antiques?" asks Vanessa when Elizabeth returns. "What about other previous residents of her home? I have a list of people who used to live there."

[Silver Priest]

Nik

"Oh, it's an old house," Tucker says with a wave. "They all have history to one degree or another. But the important thing is that it's a great place and i'm sure you can make it your own, start a family."

Nik gets the impression the realtor is attempting to downplay the house's dark past and get a sale.

Vanessa

"No, I don't believe she sold me anything," Elizabeth says. "Just purchased items. "I'd be happy to take a look at the list you have, though my store is less than a decade old, so I'm not sure I have."

She thinks for a moment. "This home, though... I can look through old records, see if there were any estate sales. Any items sold there would have some sort of paper trail, and I could track down any antiques they may have been sold from Spooner and see where they are now. Would you like me to? It may take a day or two though, these things take time unfortunately.

[HoneyDog]

Nik

“I have a feeling that this house has more of a history than most, Ms. Turner. In fact, that’s what appeals to me. My fiancée and I have a passion for places with an unusual past. I’d appreciate if you’d be able to tell me if you know any more.”