Ch. 11. Paper and Ink

[Philulhu]

Wednesday March 12th, 1930 11.00am.
Fraser Mansion, Arkham, Mass.

Gerald Fraser’s home was a mile or so outside of Arkham, a big, white-painted, colonial-era house located on a hillside amid terraced gardens. A car had picked up Lawrence, Thomas and William, bringing them up to the long drive to the front of the house, where a butler let them in and bade them take a seat in the large entrance hall until Mr Fraser was ready to see them.

A sharp-faced woman sat on the opposite side of the hall, steadfastly avoiding their gaze and ignoring any attempt to make conversation. The clock in hall chimed 11.00am, and then 11.15am, and still they were kept waiting. It was only as the clock started to chime 11.30am that the door to Fraser’s study opened and Captain Keats emerged, accompanying a visibly upset couple in their middling years.

It was clear to the three men that these were Howard’s mother and father, as he shared their colouring and the familiarity in looks with his father was striking. He was doing his best to console his wife as she sobbed heavily, and they paid no attention to the three men as they passed.

Captain Keats showed them off the premises then turned and indicated that they should make their way into study. The women also rose and headed in, causing brief consternation as everyone crowded the doorway while trying not to get in each other’s way.

In the study, Fraser Snr. stood waiting. His mood did not look encouraging. He looked to the women as she took a seat at a small writing desk with a ledger and ink pens and when she was settled and Keats had closed the door, he turned to the three men and snapped, “Well?! Where’s my boy?! What have you got to say for youselves?!”

[Mr. Handy]

"I'm sorry, sir," says William. "We located him in Louisiana, where he was being held by kidnappers. We set him free and escaped with him, but the kidnappers gave chase. Your son died saving me from a burning truck. I have the burns to prove it." He shows his scars. "There was nothing left of him we could bring back, but we were able to recover a few personal items. I know that's not what you want to hear, but it's the truth. The man Brophy was responsible for what happened to your son, and he is dead too."

[Bullfrog]

Lawrence soberly nodded in agreement with William's recounting of events; he'd been dreading this moment since his departure from Louisiana, and it was an even worse experience than he imagined.

[Philulhu]

”Is this some kind of sick joke?!” bellowed Fraser Snr. “I sent you to find my son and you’re telling me he’s dead?! I don’t want trinkets - I want him back!” He was beetroot red, with flecks of sputum at the corner of his mouth. Keats put a calming hand on his arm, but Fraser just shook him off, taking an intimidating step forward.

”I’ve paid you good money... ...” He looked across at the woman, and clicked his fingers. ”Miss Ripley!” he snapped. “How much have I given these godforsaken reprobates?!”

OOC,JP - you’re up!

[jp1885]

If Mr. Fraser's demeanor is boiling over with fiery rage, the piercing gaze of his secretary Ivy Ripley is in ice-cold contrast.

"Two-hundred and seventy-five dollars all told Mr. Fraser," she replies tartly, glaring at the gentlemen as if she held them personally responsible for all her woes.

"Two-hundred up front and seventy-five for expenses," she continues, turning to her employer; clearly annoyed at him snapping his fingers at her as if she were a waiter.

[Philulhu]

Fraser glared in return. ”Two hundred and seventy-five dollars and all I have to show for it is you sorry sons of b... ... ... telling me my son is dead!” he shouted, turning his attention back to the three men. “What the hell have you got to say for yourselves?!”

[Mr. Handy]

"I'll let your son do the talking for us," says William. With nothing left to lose at this point, he holds out the letter James had written to his father. "This letter is one of the things we recovered. He addressed it to you. I don't know what's in it; it's still sealed."

[Philulhu]

Fraser Snr. angrily snatched the letter from William and stepped back to read it. After a moment, his face drained of colour and he physically staggered, holding onto his desk to prevent himself from falling. Keats was quickly by his side and helped him to a chair, before pouring him a brandy from a nearby decanter.

After a minute to compose himself, Fraser said, ”It seems I owe you an apology.” His voice was broken, his previous vigour gone. He looked at the letter he held in a tremulous hand. “James states...”

He was abruptly cut off by a screech from the hallway, with the sound of a heavy fall, accompanied by the noise of breaking glass...

[jp1885]

Ivy has never been one to sit behind a desk when action needs to be taken and so, with a curt ‘excuse me’, she casts propriety aside, grabs her handbag and heads into the hallway.

[Bullfrog]

"What was that?" Lawrence asks in confusion, starting to get up out of his chair as he turns to look towards the hallway. He would have loved to know what that letter said, but whatever happened in the hallway seemed to be a more pressing matter at the moment.

[Philulhu]

Ivy was first through the door. On the opposite side of the entrance hall, Fraser’s butler lay face-down, his head and neck buried into a glass-fronted cabinet. Blood dripped down the front of the cabinet, pooling on the wooden floor beneath. As Lawrence stepped up beside her, the butler shuddered once, and then lay still...

OOC,SAN loss rolls, please.

[jp1885]

SAN 75 pass,[dice]0[/dice]

"Oh my good lord!" exclaims Ivy. Despite this, however, her nerve holds and she rushes over to the cabinet to see if anything can be done for the poor man.

[Mr. Handy]

William follows Ivy through the door and also rushes to the butler's side. After everything he has seen, this doesn't affect him much.

OOC,Sanity roll (current level 65) for seeing the butler: [dice]0[/dice]

[Bullfrog]

SAN 68,[dice]0[/dice]

Lawrence is taken aback by the sight of the dead man, but remains calm nonetheless.
"Mr. Fraser! Captain Keats! He calls out, "I think somebody's been killed!"

[Philulhu]

”Jacob!” cried Fraser from the doorway. “My God...!”

Keats stepped across him, putting a hand on his arm as he did so, to block the view. “An ambulance, please Gerald,” he said firmly, as much to get him occupied and out of the way. It looked very much as if the butler had breathed his last.

A visibly shaken Fraser Snr. staggered off in the direction of the telephone while Captain Keats studied the scene. He glanced at Lawrence. “‘Killed’, you said. What makes you think he has been killed?”

[Mr. Handy]

William tries to do what he can for the butler, hoping it's not too late.

OOC,First Aid roll (50% skill) trying to help the butler: [dice]0[/dice]

[Bullfrog]

"I don't know if he's dead, that's just what I thought when I saw him stop moving." Lawrence replies, watching with concern as William tries his best to save the butler.

[Philulhu]

William could see that there was no helping Jacob. The butler was still, with no sign of life, his throat cut open by the glass in the cabinet door.

To Lawrence, Keats said, ”Yes, but you said he had been killed, which to my mind means he died as the result of actions of someone else. A homicide, instead of a suicide or an accidental death. Why would anyone want to kill Mr Fraser’s butler?”

OOC,William (and anyone else taking a closer look at the body) - Spot Hidden, please.

[jp1885]

"A burglar perhaps?" suggests Ivy. "Disturbed in the act?"

Spot hidden 65 pass,[dice]0[/dice]

She is about to elaborate on her theory when something catches her eye.

[Philulhu]

Ivy,The flesh around the wound in Jacob’s neck is ripped and torn.