On Fleet Street near the offices of The Scoop, two cars that had been leased the day before from the Savoy Hotel pulled up on the side of the otherwise quiet street. They arrived past midnight, one several minutes before the other. The two cars had been twins the day before, identical except for the number plates, but now one of them appeared to be considerably badly damaged. Tommy and Rosalie sat in the undamaged vehicle, and Walter, Millicent, and Leo pulled up in the damaged one.
This message was last edited by the GM at 15:48, Sat 15 Apr 2017.

Walter turns to Leo, "I expect we should go break the news."

Seeing the others pull up behind them, Rosalie slid out of the passenger's seat and closed the door behind her.  Her eyes widened at the state of the car.  "That doesn't look good," she said quietly to Tommy.  Anxious because of Leo's cryptic message, she started forward to meet them halfway.

"Ouch."..
Tommy nodded as Rosalie spoke. The car didn't look well at all. Why hadn't Leo mentioned it on the phone? Feeling vulnerable without Moretti the reporter glanced anxiously in his mirrors and over his shoulder.
As Rosalie started to get out of the car he found himself anxious. Maybe this whole thing was getting to him.
"Tell them we have a better place to talk. A safe house. Not far from here.".

ooc - if only because we can meet the Moretti player there and not miss him out.
This message was last edited by the player at 05:29, Tue 18 Apr 2017.

Leo's limbs suddenly felt extraordinarily heavy as he had to get himself out of the car to share the bad news. Giving voice to an event always made it seem more final, and the weight of being the to give it voice visibly weighed on Leo. He was slightly hunched over when he stood, and his movements lacked both grace and speed.

When eventually they did meet halfway, Leo wondered at Vincent's absence, but his news shouldn't be allowed to get stale, so he spoke to his niece without delay. "I'm glad to see you and Tommy are doing well." He paused a moment. "Unfortunately, there's no way to make this easier or better, Rosie. Stan's dead." His studies seemed to suggest that drawing out the telling of something like this only made things worse. The physician opened his arms to offer an embrace to his niece, who likely needed some comfort right about now.

Leaving Leo to break the news to Rosalie, Bo comes up to the driver's window of the other car.

"Where's Vince?" he asks with a cold foreboding stealing up his spine.

Tommy nodded as Walter approached, winding down his window and let the cold night air creep into the vehicle.
"Don't worry, Moretti is mostly fine. Took a bullet; he's gone to get fixed up and will meet us as the safe house.

Why was Leo being so evasive on the phone? What happened at your end?".

Rosalie stared at her uncle in shock, unable to process what he'd said.  For a brief moment, she thought he was joking, that it was all a terrible gag they'd decided to pull, that Stanley would pop out of the back seat to give them all a laugh.  But in her heart, she knew that Leo would never joke about something so tragic, especially not after Jackson.  His tone, his gesture of comfort, his serious expression all told her that he was, in fact, not joking in the slightest.  Stanley Bishop was dead.

"B-but... how?"  She could no more control the quiver in her voice than she could control the tears that streamed down her cheeks.  "You... you were all together!  Safety in numbers..." 

Logically, of course, it wasn't an argument that could hold water.  Her own trio had almost been reduced by one by a single bullet.  Just a few inches higher and she'd be giving Leo the news of Vincent's death.  But Rosalie wasn't thinking logically.  She could only think of the strong, handsome man that had held her in his arms as they swept across the dance floor.

"As crazy as it may sound at this moment, I am the happiest I have been in years," Stanley said with a smile.

His smile was infectious.  She rested her cheek on his shoulder again, thinking of happier times and happier things.  Just for a moment, she could almost forget why they were in London and their reason for leaving home in the first place.  Almost.

The blood drained from her faced, leaving her deathly pale.  She shook her head in disbelief and backed away a step, one hand pressed to her chest, feeling as though her heart might explode.

"No... no, it can't be..."  She stumbled into the car as her vision narrowed, leaning upon it for support as the darkness pressed in from all sides.  Her breath came in soft, sobbing gasps that wracked her trembling body.  For the second time that evening, the quiet reserve, that normally kept her together so neatly, quickly unraveled and Rosalie came undone.

How many more will die before this is through?

In reply to Thomas Cotton (msg # 7):

Walter's voice is low, toneless, his eyes unfocussed.

"Stan's dead. We got separated and he... Somehow he got suffocated, Leo says. We found him behind the warehouse. He's back at the hotel in his bed now, waiting for the cops to find him."

He turns narrowed eyes on Tommy, boring into him. His voice takes on an edge.

"What's this about Vince? Where'd you leave him?"

Leo frowned briefly at his own memories of losing Stan. Rosie's tears elicited some from Leo, causing him to grab the bridge of his nose to keep them from flowing freely. The physician's head hung for a moment, but he forced himself to look at his niece. He sighed. "We started out in groups of two, with Bo and Stan together, Millie and I together. Stan and Bo were planning to sneak into the warehouse, but only Bo managed to get close enough without getting spotted. When they saw Stan and saw through the show that Millie and I were putting on, the three of us all retreated."

Leo frowned. "Bo was discovered soon after, and he retreated as well. Near as we can tell, Stan tried again on his own. We heard shots and then went to see what happened, only to find Stan's body." Leo kept what few details he know of Stan's death to himself for the moment. Rosie didn't need to hear about anything clinical right now. It wasn't anything he had ever seen, either. Not that he spent a lot of time in the morgue, but he had seen death before.

Leo followed his niece over to the car and gently rubbed her shoulder as she sobbed. She was a very strong woman, but this sort of thing...it hurt. It hurt so very much.

She folded into her uncle's arms, sobbing against his chest.  The loss of Jackson had been a shock, especially given the brutality involved in his death and the closeness of their kinship.  The loss of Stanley hit her just as hard, though for entirely different reasons.  Rosalie's romantic attachments were very few.  She had loved, even been engaged, but he'd broken her heart and bruised her pride.  Falling in love had never been easy, not then and certainly not now.  It made the short time she'd had with Stanley all too brief and bittersweet.  She'd always have the memory of his kiss, but all she would ever have would be a memory.

After several minutes, she'd managed to catch her breath and pulled back from Leo, wiping at her cheeks.  Her eyes were puffy and her nose red, but she cared not at all.  "Where is he?" she asked Leo in a whisper.  "I need to see him." 

Leo held Rosie for as long as she needed, trying to provide what comfort he could. However...he knew nothing could help fill the hole in her heart. When she asked about where Stan was, Leo looked over to Bo briefly, then back to Rosalie. "We left him in his room at the hotel. I..."

Leo rubbed at his mouth for a moment, then slid his hand over the mostly gray stubble that now covered his cheeks. "I think it's dangerous to go back there. Whoever did this may have marked us. They could have followed us back there. We really need to decide what to do about Stan, then make it happen, and possibly disappear as well as we can."

"Bishop is dead?".
There was no quip, no joke, as Tommy felt himself slump.
"Shit.".
What else could he say?

The reporter looked across the road, saw Leo's sadness, Rosalie wilt-now he knew what they were talking about.
He spoke with grim certainty. "Gavigan did it. We found a note. Well Rosalie did-Gavigan was on to us somehow.". Cotton felt helpless, cursing himself for saying it. "We tried to warn you. Through Avery. But none of us could contact you until you finished at the docks...".
Too late.

He swore again, louder, wanting to punch something.
"That's why Moretti arranged a safe house. That's why we need to get off these streets. Now.". He looked back toward the others. "We need to get the others safe. I can tell you what we found at the Foundation in detail later, but trust me when I say this; Gavigan is part of the cult-and whatever they got planned is going down tomorrow.

Vincent is hurt but ok. He's meeting us at the safe house after he's been patched up. That man wants to make himself a sodding martyr-we can talk about that more later-but we had to try and meet you first.".

Little good that had done-Bishop was already dead.

"The longer we stay out here the more danger we are in.".
Grimly he turned the key to fire the engine back to life.

OOC:

Sodding? Your English is showing ;) Tommy's an American!

"Tommy," his voice is low, gritty, "Where is he? Where did you leave Vince?"

Her chin trembled and tears spilled over, but she didn't start sobbing again.  She couldn't.  He was right, it was dangerous to be on the street.  "Vincent set up a safehouse for us.  We should go there now and plan in safety.  Gavigan marked us the day we visited, knowing that we were tied up with Jackson.  He, or his men, will be looking for us, if they aren't already." She threw a glance back at the car.  "Vincent was hurt during our investigation.  He took a bullet, but I stopped the bleeding as best I could.  He has underground connections that he's used to find himself a patch man.  He said he'd meet us there when he was done."

"We went toward the pyramid to see if we could find you there until we managed to speak to Avery. Vincent spoke to some of his people-the Sabini's right? They had someone nearby who could fix up his wound. We didn't have time to do both and had to get over to you to warn you if we could.". He held up a hand to stay Bo's concern.
"Yeah I know-if we could've stuck together it would'a been better but you know what that man is like. And we found something at the Foundation which suggests nothing is going down there until tomorrow-or more precisely-at some place called Misr House.".

"So you left him at a doctor's? What's the address?" Bo grabs the man's collar and lifts him partway out of his seat. He's beginning to lose control: "Goddamit! Just tell me where you left Vince!"

Leo clenched his jaw when he heard the reason for Vicent's absence, though he nodded at the suggestion by Rosie that they get off the street. "Should we leave the damaged car here? It seems terribly easy to follow if someone were keen to do so." Unfortunately it would leave them down to one vehicle at the moment. And the hotel was unlikely to give them any more.

Leo frowned at Bo's rough handling of Tommy. "Bo, you know it wasn't Tommy's idea to have Vince go to that doctor." He sighed, hoping everyone could avoid coming unhinged. This was another wound that would likely never heal. Like Jackson's murder.

Bo turns to Leo, his face twitching, though he doesn't relinquish his hold on Tommy collar, "I don't care whose idea it was, I want a straight answer. Where did they leave Vince?"

OOC:

Walter, make a Grapple roll.
Tommy, if Walter's roll succeeds, make a Dodge roll to attempt to avoid it.

After that's resolved, it's really your choice as to what to do next.

Walter 'Bo' Brandon rolled 46 for Grapple 25%.

Turning to look at Bo and Tommy, she frowned.  "We didn't leave him, Bo.  He left us!  We tried to stop him from going off on his own, but he's proud and stubborn.   We couldn't stop him any more than you could have stopped Sta..."  She didn't quite get his name out before the realization overwhelmed her again and the emotion closed her throat.  She sobbed into her hand and turned away, unable to say anything further.

OOC:

If so determined to do so, Tommy can easily wriggle away from Bo's grief-crazed attempts to grab him by the collar and shake information out of him.

He saw the frustration in his friend's eyes and spoke to him directly, trying to calm him.

"I'm not trying to hide anything from you 'Bo. I told you; we split up at the Blue Pyramid. I rang the Sabini's 'dentist' myself to make Vincent an appointment - its a little North of here near Tottenham Court Road. He's headed there next - hell, should be there now even.

I'll drive you to pick him up later okay?".
Cotton paused for a moment, glancing toward Rosalie and Leo.

"I'm worried about him too. And we both tried to get that headstrong bloody hero to stay with us. He insisted on heading out himself so we could get to you and if he saw Zubaida alone ask her where this Misr House place is. That's where the root of this thing is at.

But when we split up we had to make a call; try and get you guys safe or stick with Vincent. We didn't know we were already too late for Bishop. But I do know that Moretti is a tough nut and we're following his plan, his call.".
He shrugged.
"Maybe it was the wrong call. But Rosalie and I aint been in this sort of situation before and the core plan still stacks up:

Right now we have to get off the streets. Get Leo and the others safe. Then we can go knock some sense into Vincent.".
This message was last edited by the player at 15:36, Fri 21 Apr 2017.

In reply to Thomas Cotton (msg # 25):

Bo's hand falls away from Tommy's collar. He closes his eyes.

"The Blue Pyramid," he mutters, "The place where this group snatches its victims. Aw, Vince...

"What's this 'dentist's' address, Tommy? No stalling."

When he has the address, he starts walking toward the other car.

"I'm gonna try to catch up with Vince, Leo. I'll cruise by the Pyramid first, but I won't go in. Then I'll see if he showed up at the bonesetter. If he didn't..." He shakes his head and gets behind the wheel of the damaged car.

"If I can't get the hideout address from Vince, I'll go back to the hotel and wait for a call. You guys collect Avery and Milly and beat it."

He throws the car into gear and heads for the Blue Pyramid.

Leo walked toward the other car as Bo moved toward it as well. "Bo, the best thing for you to do is head with us to rendezvous with Vincent. Or at least let me come with you. There's a reason I've been trying to keep everyone in pairs and threes, you know."

Leo frowned. "You do recall that I'm a doctor, right? And Vincent is apparently wounded?" That Vincent didn't trust Leo to patch him up rankled a bit. He had extensive medical training in things besides just the brain.

She turned away from Bo and Leo, focusing on Tommy.  "Give them the address so they can find the safe house if they leave.  I can't... I just can't..."  Rosalie was suddenly very weary of life.  Her reality was spiraling out of control, had started unraveling the moment they found Jackson's body in the hotel.  She leaned against the back door of the car for a moment, head bowed.  Though she'd never been particularly religious, she said a silent prayer for Stanley, for Jackson, for all of them.

"For Christ sakes Bo. You think the rest of us don't care about him? That you going off out there alone is any better than what he did?
Moretti is due to meet us at the safe house. He's probably at the fixers place now-we can put in a phone call better than you storming in to the night.".
Cotton felt exasperated. They were all tired, drained. But if Bo wanted to do his own thing then so be it. The others needed to understand what had been found under the Penhew Foundation.

In reply to Dr. Leonardo Elias (msg # 27):

Bo Bo stares into Leo's eyes for a long moment, then drops his gaze and takes a deep, shuddering breath. He nods.

"Okay, Leo, you win. I just... I don't want to leave another friend in the lurch.

"What about Avery and Milly? And our things. We're going to have to go back to the hotel. Avery can't handle everything."

He leans closer to his uncle, whispering, "It'll give Rosalie a chance to say good-bye to Stan. Tommy, too, for that matter. Sure it's a risk, but I doubt they're staking out the hotel. If they were, we'd all be dead right now."

He turns back to the others. "Thank you both."

"What about me?" she asked.

"I'll go where you lot go."

Leo pondered for a few moments then nodded. "Fine, we can all go back to the hotel to gather everything and then go to the safe house and plan what we're going to do next. We will need to be doubly cautious that we aren't tailed, however."

Bo gets behind the wheel of the car, prepared to drive Milly and Leo (and Rosalie, if she wants) back to the hotel.

Leo gave Bo a gesture indicating he should stay put for a moment, then headed back over to the others. "We can all go back to the hotel together. Presumably Stan's body is still there - you can both say goodbye, or we can figure out something better to do than leave him there. We can also collect Avery and our belongings before going to ground." He looked over at his niece and the reporter for any questions or comments they might have.

"Ok -it's your call Leo.".
He paused.
"I'm starting to think that if we all vanish from the hotel we will have the police and Penhew's cult on our tails. Maybe if we keep a tight watch tonight...make it through to tomorrow we can make a cleaner decision in the light of day.".

Tommy shifted the car in to gear with a determined look on his face.

"Especially since tomorrow night we are going to take the fight to them...".

ooc - over to the hotel together?
As soon as we arrive Tommy will seek to put in a call to Vincent's dentist to make sure he made it there ok. For simplicity, if Vincent happens to be there, Tommy will urge him to head back to the hotel so they can be together...it would be a shame for Moretti to miss out on our big debate.

If Moretti has NOT turned up to get his wound stitched up, then I imagine Bo and Tommy might be heading directly to the Blue Pyramid...

Returning to the hotel, they parked their cars inconspicuously so that the badly damaged one wouldn't draw the immediate attention of any of the hotel staff, and then proceeded towards their rooms in a silent procession, ending up in the hallway. It seemed that nobody wanted to go into any of the rooms just yet, as their eyes were drawn towards the door of Stanley's room. As the noise of their entry into the hall drew his ears, Avery opened the door to the room he shared with Dr. Elias.

"Good evening, sir," he said, eyeing the grim procession. "Would you all like to come in now?"

In reply to Lawrence Avery (msg # 36):

"Leo, I think I should go down and let the concierge know that someone hit the car while it was parked."

Leo nodded at Bo's suggestion. "Good thinking, Walter."

He turned a wan smile toward Avery. "And a good evening to you as well, Avery. Yes, I think we should all meet here briefly." He stood aside and gestured for the others to precede him.

"I think it a good idea. Mr. Moretti rang up a few moments ago to inform me that he was well, and had one more errand to take care of before meeting you all here, or at another location," he said, taking care to mention this before Walter left.
This message was last updated by the player at 19:25, Thu 04 May 2017.

Bo goes down to see the concierge and report that their leased car had been struck from behind while parked,

"Tell ya th' truth, pal," he slurs, "We din't r'ly notice 'til we got back here. Can't even tell ya where it happened."

Rosalie stared at the door to Stanley's room, brows drawn together in pain.  Now that she was here, so close, she wasn't sure she could walk through that door.  Closing her eyes, she looked to her uncle and then Avery.  Belatedly, her brain registered his words.  "Vincent called?"  Relief made her shoulders sag.  She looked to Stanley's door again and then turned away, moving into Avery's room so they could discuss the situation.

Leo wrapped an arm around Rosalie's shoulders as she looked over toward Stanley's room a couple times. "I'll go with you, Rosie. It will be best for you to say goodbye." He let her choose whether she wanted to do so before or after their planning session, releasing her from the half-embrace of support he had offered.

After he's done with the concierge, Bo goes into the hotel bar and gets a shot.

"Where's th' guy was on duty earli-er?" he asks the bartender with a hiccup, acting like a man somewhat the worse for drink, "He started us off right, lemme tell ya. M'cousin Stan-ley got comple'ely loaded, I mean completelely. Hadda prac'icly carry 'im up t'his room. An' then he gets all belger-- beliery-- pissed-off an' threw us out. Ha-ha-ha! Demon rum, hah? Here's to it!" He tosses back the shot and goes upstairs to Leo's suite.

"Later," she told her uncle.  "I'll see him later.  Let's talk first, while I still have a voice."  She moved into Avery's room and took a seat in one of the chairs.  She was weary, tired, dragged down by grief.  Her body felt heavy and her limbs clumsy.  Resting was a relief, but a very small one.

Tommy glanced toward Stanley's door feeling a sense of fear and mortality. Bishop had been dogged, hardy. Yet now he lay there cold and stiff.
Alone.

The thought made the reporter shiver. The Elias group was close knit, built on a loyalty that Stanley had fiercely defended. It seemed somehow wrong that they were not with him, so when Rosalie faltered from saying goodbye Tommy swallowed his reservations and cleared his throat.
"I'll go.".

With a stern nod Avery moved to unlock the ominous door in silence and Tommy slowly entered the simple room. He hadn't known Bishop well but he shouldn't be left alone.

"What happened big man?".

The body lay there cold, motionless. Difficult to expect any different he supposed and yet Tommy couldn't help but watch for some sign of life; the gentle rise and fall of Stanley's chest or flicker of the eye. Perhaps even a stern glare or rebuke. Nothing.

Without thinking Tommy paced toward the curtained windows to peer out and spoke to clear the silence.
"I don't think they know what's hit 'em buddy. Bo's all mixed up and poor Rosalie...
Leo's tough though. He'll keep the family together.".

He let the curtain fall closed and looked back to the pallid body. "Remember when we first met? I thought you were a grumpy bugger. But I didn't realize what you were protecting back then. I think I get it now. Well, am starting to get it.". He paused as if waiting for a response.

"Vincent has hurt himself too. We really could have used you right now.".
Tommy sighed, lost for words.
"Anyway. Where ever you are, keep an eye out for us ok? And I'll keep that promise 'bout the interview. I'll do right by you. We all will.".

The pair lingered in silence for a while. Cotton wasn't sure how long it took, but when the time felt right he stood, straightened his shirt and nodded to Bishop one final time.
"Miss 'ya big man.".

Quietly he slipped from the room to join the others in conversation.

Bo steps off the elevator and turns the corner toward Leo's rooms. He sees Avery in the corridor and Tommy coming out of Stan's room. As Avery opens the door to the suite, Bo lays a hand on Tommy's shoulder in what he trusts is a comforting manner.

Inside the sitting room he looks at Rosalie, lost in her own thoughts.

"Maybe some coffee, Avery, if you can manage it."

The hotel employees below had patiently listened to Walter's story, promising to investigate the car, but informing him that unfortunately there would be charges for the damage placed to the room.

The barman looked concerned at Walter's drunken tale, but more because the American might cause a scene in the bar. He looked very relieved when Bo left to return upstairs.

---

"Very good, sir," replied Avery at the request for coffee. He set about sending down for some to be brought up. When it came up a short while later, he took care of the whole matter and sent the waiter back down with minimal interaction necessary but all due politeness.

"Right. What are we doing?"
The group had been sat in silence-tiredness and loss sapping at their willl. But as Avery busied himself serving the fresh coffee they stirred to action. One of them had to start the tale somewhere.

"So. We made it to the Foundation just like we planned.". Cotton began his report on what they'd found.
"Started looking around and to be honest we didn't find much at first. Not until the guard heard us.

He caught Rosalie.". Tommy glanced at her, worried she was still angry at the whole thing, that Bishops loss had made her frustration more acute.
"Vincent and I...maybe we were wrong but we took him out. That's where Vincent got shot before I...". His voice trailed off as he remembered the sickening limpness of the body as his shoulder slammed in to it.
"Anyway, the wound ain't too bad. Needs patching up for sure but Moretti will be ok. It's what we found next that is most worrying.

Gavigan had a secret basement. It was full of...I don't know how to describe it. The pictures, the statue...".
He felt his skin crawl at the memory.
"It was wrong. We took what we could; some books and stuff; but we found his notes. That's what stands out most. Gavigan knows 'the Americans' are on to him. We figured that meant Bo and Bishop had been made when they revisited the spice merchants place and Gavigan meant to do something about it.". Tommy felt a cold tug, a call to glance toward Bishops room. They all knew Gavigan's revenge had already taken a heavy price.
"The notes mentioned a place. 'Misr House' AND had tomorrow circled. Something is going to happen there and we have to stop it. Before then Vincent thought we should hide. Use a safe house. But with what's happened...I don't know if that's the best call any more.

What did happen?".

"I don't think Stan was a deliberate target. If someone was after 'The Americans' meaning me and Stan or even including Leo and Milly, they could have made a play for all four of us when...

"Let me start at the beginning." He describes how they began their plan with Leo and Milly as decoys while he and Stan approached, but there was a gang of workers at the warehouse. Stan was spotted and faded, then Leo and Milly went back to the car. Bo had lingered, unseen in the shadows, but had some bad luck trying to get in close and went back to the car as well. Stan didn't turn up at the car. Then they heard gunshots.

"I figure Stan circled back for another try. When I went in to scout, everything was closed up. I figured they had captured Stan, so we decided on a rescue. Leo and I were ready with shotguns by the loading doors and Milly backed the car in and smashed them open.

"But we spotted Stan on the ground behind the warehouse. When we got him back to the car... Leo says he somehow suffocated. Not drowned but smothered somehow. We couldn't leave him on the street so we brought him back here and put him in his bed."

He's silent for a few moments, gnawing at his lip, staring at nothing.

"Anyway, if they knew who Stan was, I think we wouldn't have found the body. The river's right there and they had a ship. Easy as pie to just deep six him out at sea. Why they left him lying in the open right next to their building, I don't know. I can't explain how he was killed either. Leo?"

"Maybe you scared them off, maybe they didn't care about the body or left it as a warning.".
The reporter frowned, listening to hear if Leo or Millicent had another idea.
Bishop was a big man to suffocate-he'd have fought back hard. Yet the corpse hadn't shown signs of violence.

Tommy didn't want to hurt Rosalie with lingering details of Stanleys murder but they had to find an answer. Else one of them could be next.
 "Do you think they drugged him, or poisoned him somehow? Would that explain it?

Whatever happened we need to decide quick if we are heading to the safe house or entrenching ourselves here for an attack. If Gavigan was behind it they could be coming for us even now.
If we run though it's gonna look real suspicious. Barrington will hunt for us and we lose our credibility-we might need that if...when...we take the fight to the enemy tomorrow night at Misr House.".

"Whoa, Tommy! What fight are we going to take where? We don't even know how to find Meezer House, let alone what we might walk into with a couple of pistols and some shotguns.

"Why do we even want to attack this cult? My advice is to pack up and get out of England before the cops yank our passports. Tonight. Get to the continent and regroup, figure out our next move."

Leo listened as the tales started being exchanged, nodding in time to the statements that were made. He frowned at the final exchange between Tommy and Bo, then considered for a few moments. He interjected with some of what he knew about Stanley's death. "Stan was asphyxiated, of that I'm certain. And while there aren't any obvious signs of struggle, when I examined him it was apparent that his mouth had been forced open wider than it should have been. I believe his pistol was also discharged, though I didn't exam his firearm as closely as his body."

The physician mulled over what was being discussed about the Misr House. His first question was for Tommy and Rosie. "You said you took what you could - can we see what you got away with? Also, I assume it will now be obvious to Gavigan that someone was in the room where he had that calendar and the information about the Misr House? If so, it's  a good bet they will either lay a trap for us, or at the very least know that it's likely we'll be trying to get to the Misr House tomorrow. Which makes it extra-dangerous."

Leo stopped short of making any sort of recommendation, instead looking to his niece for her opinion.

"We won't get very far," she replied to Bo, her voice distant and small.  She closed her eyes as Leo described Stanley's death, pressing her fingers to her forehead.

At Leo's question, she wearily handed over her satchel for his inspection.  "Thomas and I took books and scrolls, mostly, but Vincent found a couple of relics that might be of interest.  He left the guard in the basement room.  If Gavigan returns there, he'll find him.  It is possible that they might change the location of the ritual, but we don't even know where the mirror is now, so Misr House is the only thing we have to go on at this point."

"The letter I found was one that Gavigan, presumably, was writing to someone named Omar Shakil.  He mentioned the death of the spice merchant and that he'd be taking control of the two branches of the Brotherhood.  He also mentioned two American men that were seen loitering in the area of the spice shop and that he suspected they were associated with another pair of Americans, a man and a woman, that had visited him.  That is, of course, Uncle Leo and myself.  He mentioned Jackson, as well, and the man named Mukunga that murdered him."

"He pointedly stated that he would be disposing of us before the next ritual.  The ritual at the Misr House.  If they have the mirror, and it is some sort of mystical artifact as most believe it to be, then they could very well kill us all with its magic."

Cotton frowned as he listened.
"Head to the continent? Leave Gavigan free to do whatever he likes to anyone he likes here? We can't just run.".
Maybe it was the reporter in him; they still didn't understand this thing and the mystery had sunk its hooks into him.

"I'm not sure how a magic mirror can hurt us, but we do know a man with a sharp stake can. If we run, knowing what we know, Gavigan is sure to send people after us. He was in touch with the this Mukunga guy in New York; who knows if he has more people back home. We have to face this, involve the police maybe, bring it to an end.".

Leo was right - some time tomorrow morning Gavigan would find out his lair had been uncovered and would guess Misr House was no longer secret.
"You're right doc.". There was a good reason Leo led the group, he thought of things that should have been obvious to the others. "So where does that leave us? Right now maybe we have the upper hand. We could hit the place before Gavigan realizes we even know it exists.".
With Vincent injured and Bishop dead the group around him seemed decidedly small.
This message was last edited by the player at 16:01, Mon 15 May 2017.

Bo sat quietly for a bit, mulling something over.

"I don't like that we haven't heard from Vincent yet. Tommy, can you get in touch with his bonesetter and try to find out what's going on?

"Rosalie, this letter you found, did it look like a file copy of something Gavigan had already sent? Or did it seem like he hadn't completed it yet?"
This message was last edited by the player at 18:34, Mon 15 May 2017.

Bo's words piqued Tommy's interest and he leant forward intrigued.
"And did it have an address?
You know, we could always send another letter in its place...".

Glancing over to Avery the reporter raised an eyebrow.
"How long ago did Mr Moretti call to check in Avery? I have the number and address of his fixer - it might be that we should head down to collect him.". His gaze returned to Leo. "But I figure that depends on our plan of action. If we want to lay low or get outta here, Moretti's safe house is ready for us...".

Leo frowned as he listened to what his niece had to say on the subject. It only deepened as the others chimed in. "Okay, so first things first. We are not staying here tonight. In fact, we are going to leave as soon as is practicable and head to Vincent's safehouse to sleep. If they're planning on disposing of us before the next ritual - which is apparently tomorrow night - then I fear they know of this hotel room. They could be moving on this location as we speak."

He looked over the others. "The only other crucial item at this moment is Stan. What do we do with him? Leave him, or bring him along so that the authorities aren't on our tail? They don't know he's dead, yet. Vincent will know how to quietly dispose of a body, if it comes to it. Or he'll be able to contact a cleaner if it's not his particular specialty."

Leo's mouth went into a thin line, his lips pressed together. "As for the rest of it - if we can get a lead on the Misr House and hit it soon, we should do that. Otherwise, we'll either need to make a dangerous play at it, or be on a boat when they try to use it. It's possible they may only be able to view us with it, and if we are on a ship, it will be difficult for them to use it profitably."

He looked around at the others. "Any thoughts on Stan?" He hated that their fallen comrade had to be treated in such a way, but right now, Leo's primary focus was survival.

Walter turns to look at Rosalie.

"It did not appear to be a copy.  I assumed that it was an unfinished letter that he'd not had time to send, or perhaps one he'd left for someone to find when they visited his secret office in the basement.  It wasn't addressed and it wasn't signed."

Her eyes dropped to the floor.  "I don't know what we should do about Stanley.  If we leave him here to be found, the police will be searching for us.  If we take him with us, we will still have to leave his body somewhere and it will likely be found, unless... Vincent's contacts might know where we could take him to be..."  Her voice quivered and she paused, visibly struggling to retain her composure.  She took a steadying breath.  "...where he could be properly cared for, perhaps cremated."

"Regardless, it isn't safe for us here, any longer.  The safehouse would be the best place for us to go.  If they come looking for us here, and find us gone, perhaps they'll think that we tucked tail and ran."

"Stan's undressed. To take him out would mean dressing him and trying to walk him out again without arousing suspicion. Then we'd have to put him in one of the cars and drive him to the safe house.

"Seems like a good chance we'd get caught somewhere along the way.

"Leaving him in his bed with no signs of foul play... Well, I was hoping the medical examiner would write it off to natural causes.I doubt they could make it out as murder."

"If you want them to find him in bed, to write it off as natural causes, then we can't leave the hotel.  We'd have to stay, otherwise it would be suspicious.  So, we take him with us and risk getting caught, we leave him and risk the police coming after us, putting us in the middle of a two-front war, or we stay and risk being attacked by the Brotherhood.  All options have risks."

"Vincent... he might have another idea.  This sort of thing seems to be in his wheelhouse." She grimaced at the thought of some unknown thugs coming to get rid of Stanley's body like he was a piece of rubbish to be thrown in the bin.

Tommy nodded.
"We cant leave Stanley here while we vanish. The only way that makes sense is if we are leaving the country.
Bo, there must be a fire escape we could take him out through?".
He glanced to Avery incase the man had any suggestions about the layout of the hotel.

"Hiding at the safe house tonight feels too much of a half way option to me. It gives time for Gavigan to find out we've been to his evil lair; that is the only card we have up our sleeves.

Either we decide to flee properly, or we decide to take them on.
Taking them on...either we act quickly with the element of surprise now, or if we are planning to wait till tomorrow, we cant do hit them alone if they know we are coming...".

He stood and began to pace, torn by indecision but a desperation to act.
"I'll go with whatever you think is best.".

ooc - keeper, is there a fire escape or back way to/from the hotel we could feasibly take the body through without being found?
If Avery could comment on Moretti that would be great too.

"Do you know what time the guard arrived for work?" Bo asks, "Was there much blood in Gavigan's office where the guard was killed? And did you leave the back gate and door unlocked?"

"As I said, Mr. Cotton, Mr. Moretti rang up just a few minutes ago. Moments before you all arrived," he said.

---

OOC:

From what I can tell, I can't find pictures of the Savoy with fire escapes, so unless you can show me otherwise, then no.

It was a relief that Vincent had called so recently rather than some time before as Bo might have feared. Leaning over the desk in the room Tommy scribbled a copy of the number to Vincent's fixer and handed it to Bo incase he'd want it later.
Answering the more immediate question Cotton described how they had left the Foundation.
"We cleaned up as best we could given the circumstances. The body is in Gavigan's secret study and I locked the door we came in through behind us. I think Vincent left a trip wire down there too-if we get lucky Gavigan might just break his neck when he shows up at work tomorrow morning.".

"And the address if you have it, Tommy. Safe house address, too."


Bo nods like he's made up his mind.

"I'm thinking maybe we should see to it that Mr. Gavigan and his secret study have an accident first thing tomorrow."

"We don't even know if he'll be at the Foundation tomorrow.  Rushing in without a plan will get more people killed, Bo.  Haven't you... haven't you figured that out by now?"  Her chin trembled and she set her jaw in an attempt to drive off the emotion.  "We need to make a decision about Stanley.  Do we run and leave him?"

Leo frowned as the conversation turned back to what they might do to Gavigan and his foundation, though his face softened at his niece's question. "We could get him out through the back entrance to the hotel. Unlikely we'd run into staff, and we could have two of us ahead of the party of three, and another trailing behind. I'd feel better if we get him out of here."


03:36, Today: Dr. Leonardo Elias got the result "Without a doubt" on the magic 8-ball.  Rear Entrance?

Bo bows to the pressure of his relatives.

"Alright. If anyone stops us, we tell them Stan's sick and we need to get him to the hospital. Somebody better go get the car and have it waiting outside.

"What about the suitcase full of guns? Not to mention our other luggage and those books and this stuff Tommy and Rosalie just brought in and the stuff Vince got before? We coming back for all that?"

Leo shook his head. "No, I think we should take it all with us now. Whoever isn't helping Stan down the stairs can carry suitcases."

He looked around at the others. "Rosie, Avery, and Tommy - pack everything up while Bo and I get Bishop ready. Once we're all ready to go, Avery can fetch the car while Rosie and I will precede the trio of Bo, Bishop, and Tommy down the stairs, making sure everything is clear. We will load the three of you in with Avery, Bo taking the wheel. You will drop Avery at the other car and he will retrieve Rosie and me. We'll all travel to Vincent's safehouse together. Capisce?"

He looked around at the others. "Also, as many of us should be packing heat as possible, and at least one in each car. And at least one of Rosie and me. What do we have in the way of handguns?"

"We have the three shotguns and Stan's pistol."


He turns to Avery: "Did you check Vince's room for weapons while you were packing his things?"
This message was last edited by the GM at 04:19, Mon 22 May 2017.

Leo nodded. "Okay, Bo. You take one of the pistols, and Rosie...I think you're a better shot than I am. Perhaps the other can go in your handbag?" Leo looked hopefully toward his niece, but left the decision to her. "Otherwise, I'll take it."

"Whoever is riding in the front passenger seat of each car should have easy access to one of the shotguns. The car with Rosie, Avery, and me will carry the other shotgun so everyone has access to at least one gun. Capisce?"

Leo waited for any other thoughts, but both demeanor and facial expression suggested he was ready to move. "And in the unlikely case we get stopped, our story is that we're trying to get our friend to the hospital."

"I can take the pistol," Rosalie said quietly.  She rose from her chair.  "Excuse me for a moment.  I need to... I need to see him alone before we go."  She shuddered to think of Stanley's corpse being muscled to the car and flopping about as they drove, but she knew it was necessary. They couldn't, she wouldn't, leave him behind.

After taking the key from Avery, she moved across the hall and let herself into Bishop's room, closing the door behind her.  From a distance, he appeared to be simply sleeping on the bed.  Closer, she could tell that he was still, too still.  Still in shock, she couldn't really believe what she was seeing.  Sitting on the bed beside him, she touched his hand and found it cold.  She caught a sob in her hand as the tears streamed anew.

"Stanley," she whispered.  "My darling... what did they do to you?"
This message was last edited by the GM at 04:20, Mon 22 May 2017.

Tommy nodded, it was good to have purpose.
"I'll get packed as quick as I can.".
Swiftly he moved to his room. The reporter didn't have a case of smart suits or sumptuous dresses, instead he was used to travelling simply and was able to pack quickly.

When he was done he returned to the main room and paused to leaf through the telephone directory while he waited for the others for any mention of Misr House.

Tommy finds a telephone directory for London, but can't find any listing for Misr House.

---

OOC:

I edited the earlier posts, indicating that Stanley had only one pistol on his person, not two. Rosalie, if you're taking it, here are the stats that you can plug right into your character sheet in the weapons section:

[ ] Colt 1903 hammerless       _50_    _1d8__     __99__  _15__   _3__  _8__  __8_

Tommy, give me an Idea roll.


This message was last edited by the GM at 14:27, Tue 23 May 2017.

She spent several minutes with Stanley, holding his cold hand in her own, weeping for what had been lost and would never be.  It took the sound of movement from the others to rouse her from her grief.  Realizing that they needed to leave as soon as possible, she finally released Stanley to his fate, gazing at his face for one moment longer before she rose from her chair.  Following her uncle's orders, she collected Stanley's Colt and added it to her bag, taking little comfort from the additional weight.  Having a gun hadn't helped Stanley survive.  She couldn't help but wonder if they would all reach the same fate.

Her own room was packed up in record time.  Most of what she'd brought was clothing that could be sent ahead or left behind in storage.  She made herself a small bag of essentials and then moved on to help the others with their things.  When it was time to leave, Rosalie was ready.

Leo helped get things packed as well as he could, but he frequently checked on the door to Stan's room so that he would know as soon as Rosie was done. He again offered her an embrace and his apologies when she was done, then got to the business of both packing and supervising the packing.

Once everything was finished, Leo took a deep breath and let it out slowly. He wasn't accustomed to a transient lifestyle, but it seemed like he'd have to get used to it in a hurry.

OOC: I'm fine being done with this thread unless anyone wants to interact with Leo again before we get to the safehouse.

Placing down the telephone directory Tommy stood to help Avery load one of the heavy trunks on to a luggage trolley he had somehow appropriated.
The plan was in motion.
"Lets get to the safe house and make sure Moretti is safe. Ready when you are.".