Ch.11. Amesbury Re-visited (All)

[Bullfrog]

"It looks like the gloves should be enough to keep any poison from getting to me, though I should probably wash the... liquid off these before I handle any other letters." Lawrence adds, carefully handing the Oakwood House letter to Dr. Morris, who he assumed would know what to do with it.

[Philulhu]

OOC,The Oakwood House letter is the one with the illegible writing. You can give it to the Doctor but I’m not sure what you expect he’s going to be able to tell you? Did anyone bring a camera?

[Bullfrog]

OOC,[b]Lawrence[/b] isn't handing the doctor the letter for any particular reason, just to get it out of his hands and in case the doctor wants to have a look at it.

[Mr. Handy]

OOC,I don't have one. I'm hoping the police can get one.

[Silver Priest]

OOC:   If no one has one, Alex will go outside and ask the officer to get someone down here with a camera, though it will likely take time.

[jp1885]

OOC:   Ivy doesn’t carry one.

[Philulhu]

Dr Morris took the letter from Lawrence and peered at it carefully, angling this way and that before declaring, somewhat redundantly, that the ink had run beyond the point of comprehension. ”It’s a shame we cannot read it,” he said. “It may have given us an insight into the circumstances that lead to her death.” He placed the letter on the floor and continued with his examination of the corpse.

Alex had in the meantime been back outside to ask the local cop to summon a photographer and one duly arrived twenty minutes later, closely followed by the mortuary wagon. The photographer knocked on the door and waited to be let in. He introduced himself as Henry Hendrickson, a gum-chewing, fresh-faced kid who looked straight out of college.

“Hey, Doc,” he said as he saw Dr Morris. “You want me to take a snap of the corpse?”

[Mr. Handy]

"There's also a letter we'll need you to photograph," says William. "The ink will start to fade as soon as it's exposed to the air when it's opened. It's also toxic, so you'll have to avoid touching it."

[Philulhu]

Dr Morris said he wasn’t finished with his examination so he asked Henry to deal with the investigators’ request first.

Henry shouldered his camera bag and nodded. ”Lead on,” he said.

[jp1885]

“This way young man.”

Picking up some gloves, Ivy leads the photographer to the girl’s room. She carefully fishes out the letter from behind the mirror.

OOC:   I think we left the envelope there.

[Mr. Handy]

William watches with interest.

OOC,Yes, we didn't move it.

[Bullfrog]

Lawrence follows Ivy and Henry the photographer up to Emily's room, observing the photography process with vested intrigue.

[Philulhu]

Henry obviously knew his job, despite his young appearance. He carefully photographed the envelope in situ before clearing a space on the dressing table.

As he adjusted the settings on his camera, he said, ”Can one of you remove the envelope and place the contents on the dresser for me to photograph?” He looked up from his camera expectantly, waiting for someone to take the lead.

[Silver Priest]

Protect and Serve.

Taking a deep breath, Alex does so, but makes sure to find a cloth or handkerchief to grab the envelope with before placing it on the table. Then he looks around for a knife or something else he can use to remove the envelope without having to touch it with bare skin.

[Mr. Handy]

OOC,Make sure you're wearing gloves too.

[Bullfrog]

"These ought to suffice, though you may want to clean them off first."
Lawrence offers the gloves he was wearing to Detective Reynolds.

[Silver Priest]

Alex takes them with a nod of gratitude.

[Philulhu]

Alex carefully withdrew the letter from the envelope and unfolded it on the dressing table surface. The paper was good quality, with neat copperplate writing. It was addressed to Emily but had no return address. It was dated not long before Lawrence and William had embarked upon their fateful journey south.

It read:

Dear Emily,

You do not know me so first let me introduce myself. My name is William Brophy and I am a friend of James.

You may have been told some lies about me - that I am evil and harmed James but nothing could be further from the truth! I am his friend and protector and I only wish to see the two of you reunited again. He speaks of you so often that I swear you must occupy his every waking thought!

James has told me all about you and his plans for your life together and how his father has tried to prevent it. He confided in me the real reason for his father’s displeasure. Forgive me, but I must tell you his father wanted you for himself! He had made his own plans to have you employed at his house where he could take advantage of you but flew into a jealous rage when he heard about budding romance with James. He knew he could never compete with his son so he had you banished to Amesbury to try to break your bond.

It didn’t work. As James told me himself, your absence made his heart grow fonder and you still kept in touch. His father was livid when found out and in his lustful rage, arranged for James to be murdered! It was only with my intervention (and that of my brother Robert, who was sadly killed in the attempt) that James was saved. He was badly injured however, and has spent some time regaining his strength. Only now is he showing signs of improvement, although he has a long way to go.

I beg of you - do not show this letter to anyone! His father has already hired men to try to find James (if they come to see you, you must disavow all knowledge of where he is). They may seem pleasant and concerned for James’ welfare but they cannot be trusted. Understandably, James is afraid for his life and, as painful as it would be for him, he has told me that if you tell anyone of this letter, then I am afraid he will cease any attempts to have further contact with you.

As I said, James’ health is slowly improving but there is more that can be done for him. My family has long since practiced natural healing arts and that would surely be of benefit to him. Unfortunately, in order to save James’ life, we had to leave in a hurry. In my haste I forgot my great-great grandmother’s book which contains much learning about ancient ways that I believe will help James in his recovery.

Were it safe for me to return, I would do so but I cannot risk leading them to James. If you could recover my book for me, that would undoubtedly be a major step forward in bringing James back to full health so that the two of you may be re-united. I understand that this is a big thing I ask of you, but it is the only way.

I lived at the Squatter’s Lake Hotel - you can find it on a map - and the book was hidden beneath the floorboards of the living room off the main reception. If you move the furniture in the corner furthest from the door, you will see some of the floorboards don’t look quite even. They will lift up and you will find the book beneath.

I will caution you once again that you must talk to no-one about this. James’ father is an evil man and there is no saying what he, or his agents, will do if they find out that we are working together! Go with speed and I will write to you again soon, to tell you what we must do next.

Sincerely yours,

William Brophy.

[Mr. Handy]

"Brophy did more damage than we ever knew," says William. "He's the one who poisoned her mind and gave her the instructions for poisoning others' bodies. She must have retrieved that book, which may have taught her how to do it. But where's the book now? Did she mail it to him? Or is it still here somewhere?"

[jp1885]

“Brophy certainly seemed an unpleasant and manipulative fellow. I sincerely hope the figure I’ve been seeing really is a hallucination and not the man himself...” muses Ivy, somewhat disconcerted.

“How far is this motel? Could we go and look, or send someone?”