Chapter 5: Further Investigations

[aine]

Luck,(50%) roll:29

Isolde looks at Melody "Yes, of course, or any young women that may have taken Lord Allingham's particular fancy?'

[HoneyDog]

Miss Pringle shakes her head emphatically.

”No my dears” says Sherbrooke. Sir William would most definitely not have associated with anyone he did not consider to be of the same social standing as himself. He had no friends here, you can be sure of that.”

[Mr. Handy]

"It seems the murderer - or murderers - must be local to the village, then," says Alexander. "Is there anyone you know of who is capable of murder?"

[HoneyDog]

Sherbrooke shakes his head.

”It must be someone from Bargrove. But I’ve known all of these people for years, and none of them seem capable of it. It’s truly mystifying.”

[aine]

Isolde thinks for a moment and then says,
"Reverend, going back to the curse, all the heirs have died before they were forty. Now I'm sure some might have died from natural reasons but, from your historical research, do you know which ones died in mysterious or unatural circumstances?'

[HoneyDog]

The Reverend thinks for a moment.

“That’s a very interesting question, dear lady” he eventually responds. “To be frank, to die before you’re aged forty is quite unnatural for a man in this day and age, so strictly speaking, all of the deaths are a little unusual. Of course, going back a bit, illnesses would and still sometimes do take us perhaps a little unexpectedly, although of course Our Lord has His reasons. But the recent deaths are all attributable to misfortune other than illness.”

He looks thoughtful. “I don’t believe in Gypsy curses, but at the very least we must admit that the Allinghams are an extremely unlucky family.”

[Philulhu]

”Was there any patterns to the misfortunes that befell the Allingham men?” asked Captain FitzWilliam, who had been sitting quietly, taking it all in.

OOC,Have we visited the site of Lord Allingham’s death?

[Mr. Handy]

"What about the new workers?" asks Alexander. "You'd ken them by now, though not as well as someone who's lived here all his life. Granted, they should appreciate Lord Allingham for giving them jobs and housing, but it's possible one of them may have some unknown motive. How long have they been here?"

[aine]

Isolde frowns,
"These misfortunes, are they natural ones such as falling into a bog or could they be construed as more man-made. I wish we could have a list of them all. There must be records, Reverend Shelbrook?"

[HoneyDog]

Philulhu,Welcome back.

OOC,You covered all this stuff about the Allingham deaths in London. As for the murder scene, you're free to visit it.

The Reverend begins to look bewildered at the barrage of questions.

“I’m sorry”, he stammers, “I’m not an expert on the Allingham family. And as for the workers, they’ve been here a couple of months. I don’t know if they have any private grievances!”

Miss Pringle comes into the centre of the room. “I’m very sorry everyone” she announces, “but it’s time for us to prepare for evening vespers. Please, the Reverend needs a rest until then. It’s been very nice having you all.”

She nods her head politely as she indicates the door.

[Mr. Handy]

"Thank you for your hospitality," says Alexander rising to his feet. "We'll be off then. Maybe we can find the constable out and about."

[HoneyDog]

“Do call again if you learn something!” calls the Reverend.

Outside the church, the shadows are beginning to lengthen as the sun begins to sink in the cold, leaden sky. It is cold, and a biting wind blows off the moors.

As they stand, pondering their next move, the companions can see a muffled figure riding a bicycle by the village green. The person wears a policeman’s helmet. Luckily, he is heading their way.

[Rooter]

Percy waves to get the policeman's attention.

[HoneyDog]

The bicycle pulls to a stop and the policeman pulls off his scarf to reveal a pale but windburnt face. He is a fairly big middle-aged man, with a shock of red hair under his helmet.

“’Ello ‘ello, what’s all this then?” he says in a business-like manner.

OOC,Hallifax is unlikely to be impressed by any of your characters apart from Captain Fitzwilliam. Persuading him to reveal any official reports or information will require a successful Credit Rating, Debate or Law roll.

[Mr. Handy]

"Good evening, Constable," says Alexander. "I'm Dr. Alexander Campbell. My friends and I are guests of Lady Allingham. She's asked us to look into her late husband's murder, and you'd be the best one to talk to. I'm sure you know more details than anyone else - except the murderer, that is."

OOC,There is no Debate skill. Will Persuade do? If not, I can use Credit Rating, which barely succeeds. Persuade roll (60% skill) to convince the constable: [dice]0[/dice]

[HoneyDog]

“Ah, yes” says the Constable. “I’ve heard about you ladies and gentleman. You’re looking into the murder too, then? Well, please don’t interfere with the official investigation.”

OOC,Sorry, I meant Persuade. Mr. Handy’s roll succeeded, so please supply a convincing reason why he should help you and then you’ll get something out of him.

[aine]

"Goodness it's cold now, how utterly horrid! I'll leave the policeman to you gentlemen, I can't bear to stay outside in this wind." Utters Isolde from the depts of a quickly wrapped fur muffler. She looks this way and that for the carriage while the men talk to the Constance.

[Mr. Handy]

"I wouldn't dream of it," says Alexander. "In fact, we can be of great help to each other, as we all want the same thing. Solving this murder is a lot to ask of one man, but with all of us, we can cover more ground. Your inside information of the village and its environs will be critical, and our status as outsiders may get people to share things with us that they'd be reluctant to tell you. If we pool our information and our resources, we can work together to bring the murderer - or possibly murderers - to justice."

[HoneyDog]

The carriage is still parked by the Village Green, and Isolde heads towards it.

Hallifax ponders Alexander’s request a long time, his hand on his chin. Finally he says,

“That makes a lot of sense. But its better that you come to the station in Princetown. You never know who might be listening here”. His voice drops as he says this.

[Rooter]

"Certainly, we have a carriage at our disposal," Percy replies. "Though we were hoping to visit the site of the incident."