IC - 8 - The Daughter - Everyone

[Silver Priest]

"Can you give us a time around when he started to grow distant?" Simon asks.

[Mephistophilis]

Nicole thinks, 'I'm not particularly close to Lindsay, we probably haven't talked in the phone for a month or so, maybe we exchanged emails a few weeks ago.'

'As for when dad became more distant, maybe I've overemphasised it, but we just haven't talked as much the last few weeks and I haven't heard from him the last few days.'

OOC,Something to be aware of, it is around 4am, if you don't get more than 4hrs sleep each night you will experience penalties that will persist until you sleep more than 8hrs. Of course you might want to take the risk in this critical first 24hrs but you could also handover some tasks to other police officers. If you are going to sleep Simon and Jocelyn will need to find a hotel.

[Philulhu]

Kris glanced at his watch and stifled a yawn. ”Did Lindsay raise any concerns about your father?” he asked.

[Mephistophilis]

'Like I said, I don't think they're particularly close anymore, I don't remember her mentioning him.'

[Philulhu]

Kris looked at the others to see if they had any further questions.

[Silver Priest]

Simon subtly shakes his head.

ooc,I think I'd like Simon to start reading the religious text before bed to see if he can glean anything. Of course this does mean he'll likely have to sleep in for a bit, which may make it unfeasable. I suppose he can just start reading it in the car to and fro.

[Mephistophilis]

Simon,It'll take a few hours to read the whole book, Simon could do it throughout the day or spend 2-4hrs reading it in one go (exact time taken would depend on rolls).

[Mr. Handy]

"I have no more questions at this time," says Jocelyn. "Thank you for your help, Mrs. Brown."

OOC,I'd like to get some sleep. There's a limit to how long caffeine can keep you going.

[Mephistophilis]

OOC,Meta-gaming for a moment, penalties for lack of sleep won't kick in until 8am. So you have time to visit Lindsay's house if you want. Then you either need at least 4hrs continuous sleep or you'll take penalties. You can task the day shift of police with stuff to do while you sleep in. You could also go to bed now and get the night shift to investigate Lindsay's house. You'll have to head back into Wycombe to get your cars if you're going to hotels. If you're finished with Nicole Brown let me know what you would like to do next - if you wanted you could head back to the station to share some ideas

[Philulhu]

Kris thanked Nicole Brown for her time, commiserating her again on the loss of her father and asking her to get in touch if anything else occurred to her that might be useful.

He lead the others out to the car. He glanced at his watch and said, “The niece and the cafe. The latter won’t be open for a few hours but we could go see the niece now?”

OOC,22 miles to Aylesbury. Get a local car to go?

[Mr. Handy]

"Yes, let's go see her now," says Jocelyn. "I can keep going at least that long."

[Silver Priest]

"As can I. Meanwhile, I'll get a start on this text Balfour wrote, see if I can gleam anything Lewiston found important in it."

[Mephistophilis]

Outside the Browns' house, DS Bates says 'I'm heading back to the station to brief DI Marlow; PC Holmes will drive me and we'll sort out that cat.'

She looks directly at Kris, 'Careful with this Lindsay Peale, we don't have any evidence she's involved and we don't have a search warrant, by the book okay?'

As she walks off she says 'I'll be on the phone, stay off the radio'.

OOC,Okay, so we'll head up to Aylesbury, less than 30mins away. I'll assume you'll be going in the same cars, Burke will go with the AFOs, are you going full 'blues and twos' (lights and sirens), just lights, or neither on the marked car? I'll presume the marked car is in front unless you say otherwise. Kris is driving, where are Simon and Jocelyn sat in the car? Simon, give me an English roll to start the book

[Mr. Handy]

Jocelyn will offer to ride shotgun, and she recommends that lights and sirens be turned off before they get close to the house.

[Silver Priest]

Simon sits in back, and begins to read the book.

English 94%,[dice]0[/dice]

[Philulhu]

Kris drives slowly away from Nicole Brown’s but once he’s out into open countryside, he picks up speed. The roads are quiet and he’s driven them many times and the blue lights are on warn anyone of their approach.

He checks his mirror to make sure Burke and the AFOs are on his tail, then looks around at the fields, blue-strobe lit in the darkness. Looking back to the road, he said to Jocelyn and Simon, ”So, what do you think is behind this? It seems strange that a kidnapper would snatch a child, then kill himself after she was handed over. Almost as if he wasn’t in control of his actions...”

[Mephistophilis]

Simon,[b]Simon[/b] sits in the back of the car with the light on, trying to make sense of The Book of the Passover Angel as the vehicle bumps along the uneven tarmac. The book is a cheap paperback printed by a vanity press, about 200 pages in length, skimming the first two chapters they seem to be word for word reprints of the King James versions of the books of Genesis and Exodus. There is something strange about the typesetting and orthography, it'll take him some more time to figure out what. [b]Simon[/b] does notice that the text of Exodus skips from 11:5 to 11:7, missing out 11:6 ([i]'And there shall be a great cry throughout all the land of Egypt, such as there was none like it, nor shall be like it any more'[/i]). [b]Simon[/b] is keen to get started on the third chapter, the 'Kenyan Revelations' by [b]John Balfour[/b].

[Mr. Handy]

"Maybe he was brainwashed," suggests Jocelyn. "He's apparently spent the last few years infiltrating the Church of the Passover Angel, which sure looks like an apocalyptic cult to me. Some of that indoctrination had to have rubbed off on him. Still, Balfour founded and runs it, so I doubt he wanted Lewiston to abduct his daughter. Lewiston seemed to still have been following his self-appointed mission, whatever that was."

[Silver Priest]

Simon notes the missing passage. He makes a note to research it further, gain an understanding of interpretations of it. That could explain what Balfour was omitting from his particular cult.

"Hmm?" He says, barely hearing the question. "Oh, I don't know about control, so to speak. He attempted to take the backpack, as well as had supplies to care for the girl for some time, suggesting in his own way he was concerned for her. Fanatical approach, of course. Perhaps he saw the Balfours as abusive in some way, though I did not get that impression in my brief conversation with John Balfour. Someone should consult with his former colleagues, learn if he ever spoke of the church or an enmity towards it.

"We also have to consider why he did not run when he had the chance; that is what troubles me about all of this. He went to all the trouble of hiding his identity; he had to know we'd be able to identify him sooner or later. He had to have enough tactical knowledge to understand it was better to flee. Did he perhaps possess some degree of self loathing and want to die? As for his co conspirator, indoctrinating someone else can be a tricky process. Perhaps she belonged to the church as well. Too early to say I'm afraid."

[Mephistophilis]

The A4010 is an unlit rural road, quite uneven, winding in an undulating route over hills and dips. Kris presses on in the dark, headlights illuminating a small patch of road in front.

Simon is reading in the back with the light on, there is no moon or stars visible in the night sky. The darkness presses in around the car. The blue lights of the ARV just visible through the rear window.

Kris blinks...

Kris,Roll Drive Auto