Lilith's Office
Bay City
Early Summer
Just Before Sundown

The thing about the PI business is that you never know what's going to walk in the door. It's an old cliche, sure, but sometimes the classics are classics for a reason. Even regular PI's know that, in between the workaday insurance scams and infidelity stakeouts, there's a whole universe of random oddities lurking and ready to land.

For Lilith, who's far from a normal PI, and who's seen a sharp increase in her less usual cases since the recent changes in Bay City, there's so much weirdness lurking out there that sometimes she'd give anything to sit in her car outside a mouldy motel waiting for some straying husband or wife to show their face.

It was early summer and, while the heat hadn't really landed on the streets just yet, but the sharpness and freshness of spring was  gone and the dull weight of the dog days could be felt lurking in the breeze. In Lilith's office, about an hour after sunset, the barest hint of wind drifted in through the open window with the smells and sounds of the streets, the cacophony of crowds and traffic mixed with the scents of oil and hotdogs and urine that not even the strongest wind could completely wash away.

There was a knock on the door. Three short, quick, polite raps that spoke of someone who signed their full name to text messages and straightened bad pictures on the walls of cheap hotels. She called for them to come in and the door opened and in came a man, white, something like late-20's-but-45-at-heart. He was dressed in a three-piece suit despite the heat and, although it was a nice suit, Lilith's practiced eye suspected that it wasn't his nicest. She thinks maybe he dressed down for this visit.

He came in and, just before he sat down Lilith saw the barest hint of distaste cross his features, as though he wasn't sure he wanted to even sit in this chair, in this office. But he sat, ramrod straight, eyes sharp and focused, looking for all the world like a bird that suspects a predator is hidden nearby.

"I have a problem," he said, "A close family member has gone missing. I'm worried she might have gotten mixed up with something... complicated. I'm lead to believe that you are the person to speak to about... complicated cases. My references also speak highly of your discretion. I hope they did not misrepresent you?"
This message was last edited by the GM at 19:02, Wed 09 June 2021.

Before client's arrival:

Lilith was sitting in her office, browsing for information on the mysterious punk and smoking a cig. Unfortunately, no new leads can be found. She looks out the window, watching the traffic. Teenagers are walking the streets, minding their own business. Their blood smells so good! She opens a bottle from a hidden drawer and takes a sip of blood. Right then, someone knocks on the door. She hides the bottle and pretends that she's doing something on her laptop.

"Come in!"

Lilith measures the man from head to toes. She doesn't recognise him, but she's a bit suspicious about the way he dressed.

"I can assure you that what happens in this office, stays in this office. Do you have a picture of her? Any details like, age, name, what she was wearing, last known location, was she involved in something? Any enemies? Tell me all you know." She opens her notebook and starts writing. Even if she has a laptop, she still loves taking handwritten notes, which will be transferred to her laptop once done.

The man nods. "It's my cousin. My uncle's family has always been close and I'm afraid his daughter has always been troubled. Struggled with addiction and mental illness. Hallucinations. Delusions. Paranoid fantasies. All that. We tried. We did our best to help her. Therapists, rehab, everything. But she always relapsed. We thought maybe she was getting better, but recently she vanished. No contact for a month or more, which isn't like her. Her mother is inconsolable."

He pauses. Sighs. "You understand this is difficult. My family is... well, a prominent one. And we don't want our business on the front page or going viral. My parents, or her parents, would never agree to me doing this. Which is why I need your absolute assurance of privacy."

He opens his jacket, takes out a small envelope, holds it out to Lilith. Inside are a small number of pictures, all candid shots, looking printed from phone shots.

And the woman in all four pictures is Tessa.

The man's eyes well up with tears. "We all fear the worst. Can you help?"

Lilith nods and takes notes, thinking that a month is a bit too much for a missing person to be found... alive.
"Hmm... I see. I do understand the privacy needed for this job. No worries!"

Seeing Tessa in the pictures, she pauses for a moment, but not long enough to raise suspicion.
"Just for your info, a month is a lot for a missing person... I do not want to give you hopes yet, nor to your family, but I can assure you that I will do my best to find some leads. So, I get she was last seen a month ago, at home?"

Lilith pushes the tissue box forward, then she stands and goes to the buffet where she has a coffee machine and an electric kettle for tea. She opens a box with around 12 tea aromas and shows it to the client.
"Would you like a lavender tea? It helps with stressful situations."

After he answers, Lilith asks a few more questions, which she usually asks for cases like this one.
"How was her relationship with her family? Especially her mother? Which are the places she usually visits? I need some starting points for my searches. I will also need your phone number or any other way to contact you, for when I have some news."

OOC: I saw on Tessa's channel that she went to school. Her family have not checked with the principal / her colleagues? Or are they too afraid of this going public?
This message was last edited by the player at 08:28, Mon 07 June 2021.

The well-dressed man (Aaron) accepts the tissue and nods at the offer of tea. "You understand I know very little about this side of her life. She kept it away from us. And, truth be damned, we didn't want to know. We all just wanted her to stop causing trouble. Damn us all." Anger fills his face and he takes a few deep breaths.

"I only know a little. I know she has a friend named Omar Tiddle. Foolish name. And I know she spends time with some of the street-people who live in the old subways tunnel and underground access tunnels. But I wouldn't even know where to start with that."

"As far as my relationship, we were friends when she was younger. But we've drifted apart. I'm doing this to help her mother. Even if she'd kill me if she found out I was here."

OOC: As far as you know about Tessa, none of this is true. She's close with her parents. She goes to school like regular people. She's not on the run, hasn't been missing for a month. None of it.

After preparing the tea and a coffee for herself, Lilith walks back to the desk. She offers the tea with two sugar sachets and a spoon, then takes the rest of the notes.
"I'm going to take a picture of the pictures. I like having all the evidence both digital and physical. Just a second."

After taking a few pictures, she quickly sends a text to Tessa. "I need to call/see you later!!! Can't talk right now. Do you have a cousin named Aaron?" Then puts the phone on the desk, face down.

"Any idea where I can find this friend... Omar, you said? Any other places she used to visit?" She slips a business card in front of him. "For in case you need to contact me later. I'm usually more on the field than in the office."

Lilith becomes a bit suspicious, but she's trying to see how much this 'cousin' knows about Tessa.


OOC: Thanks for the clarification! Does he gives Lilith his contact number as well?
L.E. 00:58, Today: Lilith Voss rolled 2 using 2d6.  Figure Someone Out. :(
This message was last edited by the player at 22:00, Mon 07 June 2021.

He shakes his head. "That's all I know. Anything else would be her 'other' life and not much use to you. And..." he sighs, "No disrespect to you, but I'd rather keep that life and this one as separate as possible."

A pause.

"My number," he says, sounding almost mildly confused, "Yeah. Hang on."

And he rattles off a string of eight numbers, sounding almost as though he was making them up as he went along.

As far as Lilith could tell (and she's heard a lot of phone numbers), they didn't match any area code of exchange anywhere in Bay City or nearby.

"Tell me you'll find her," he said, "Promise me. This is so important to my family. Name your rate. I'll see it paid."

"Give me a few days to see IF I can do something. We can discuss about the payment later."
Lilith becomes very suspicious about the man, but she doesn't ask any more questions. She just wants to get rid of this client and discuss with Tessa.

Once Aaron stands and turns to leave, Lilith will quickly dial the number. After the first ring, she closes. "Did you get that?"

If Aaron is surprised about the question or the answer is no: "Your phone... Maybe you gave me the wrong number by mistake. Could you please call me from your phone so I can save your number? It's easier this way." she smiles warmly, but inside she knows this is not right. All those red flags! Something is really bad here.

If Aaron touched the cup of tea: As soon as Aaron is gone, Lilith takes his fingerprints from there, planning to go to the police and see if they have him in their database.

OOC. One more clarification: This man is NOT the mysterious punk, right? Otherwise, Lilith would've recognised him.

When Lilith makes the call, no phone rings. But then, when she mentions it, Aaron mutters something (it sounds suspiciously like 'fuck a duck') and reaches into the inside pocket of his jacket, at which point there is a ringing sound, he pulls out an older style flip phone, opens it, and Lilith's call connects.

He makes a sour face and closes the phone and puts it away.

"Do you have all you need?" he says, "I'll contact you in a couple of days. I need you to make this your priority. I'm willing to pay a great deal for speed."

He stands, does not shake hands, thank Lilith, and leaves.

On the tea cup there is indeed a very good set of prints. Almost perfect.

OOC: Not the punk, you've never seen this guy before.

Assuming Tessa has not replied yet

"This weird man... What is he planning? I shouldn't waste any minute. I have a really bad feeling about him." she takes the powder and the tape from her drawer and transfers the fingerprints from the cup. Then she packs her laptop and her notes, takes another sip from the bottled blood and rushes outside. As she leaves her office, she looks around making sure no one (Aaron especially) is following her and goes to the nearest police station.

Outside is getting darker and darker as the sun is setting. Even if Lilith is awake from a few good hours, she feels rested. This would be her preferred morning. Buh-bye sun, welcome darkness! No need for sun screen, no hat, no worries. She stops at a coffee shop and orders a sweet latte with caramel topping.

At the police station people are always in a rush. Officers coming in and out, talking on their devices, angry cuffed people are seated in a temporary cell and on the hallway, some lights are buzzing and no one takes time to fix them. There are boards and papers all over the place. Since the murder of Sulejmani there was no quiet night in here. The city is going mad.
Lilith greets the people as she enters and goes directly to the reception desk. "Hi, Carla! Long time no see..." she chuckles, as she went here just yesterday with another job. "Here, your coffee, just the way you like it." she winks. Then she takes the fingerprints out "I may have stumbled upon a stalker. You know I cannot give you more details because of client's privileges, but could you please discuss with forensics and run these fingerprints down for me?"


OOC: it sounds suspiciously like 'fuck a duck' --> this was soo funny :))
I hope you don't mind me describing the things at the Police station. If something is not right, please let me know.

Carla is happy to see Lilith, as she often is. Civilian admins are frequently not treated very well at police stations. And even they aren't mistreated, they're often ignored. She takes the coffee gratefully.

"Thank you! I haven't seen you in so long. I was worried something had happened. Why you want to do such dangerous work, I'll never know." She tsk-tsks a little more as she takes the sample.

She frowns and looks around to make sure no one was nearby. And she leans over the counter.

"I'll send it down, same as always. But we've got a few of those Special Forces guys in here now, asking questions and auditing everything from the photocopier to the staff fridge. It might be a while before I sneak it in."

She discretely points across the room.

In the corner, leaning against the wall, arms crossed, talking to three young beat cops, is a tall, broad man with jet-black hair and a stocky physique. Lilith spent her life around dangerous people. Chasing them. Running from them. Looking for them. Working for them. Being looked for by them. In her experience, most cops were about dangerous as a child with a gun, which is to say volatile but ultimately manageable.

But some cops were predators in blue. Some cops were state-sponsored monsters. Some cops were dangerous.

This guy is dangerous.

"Officer Bentley," Carla whispered (and could swear that the man's attention perked up for a moment), "The worst of the bunch. He scares me. And he's got permission to basically do whatever he wants."

OOC: No, that was great. Feel free to fill whatever you like as you go along.

Looking at Bentley, Lilith feels a chill down her spine. One of the buzzing lights is right above him, making the light and shadows dance on his face, as it partially turns on and off. "This man is up to no good... The world would be a better place without corrupt cops." she thinks, then sights.

"Thank you, Carla! Just give me a call when it's done. Also, try to ignore that man. There might come a time when things will get better... get back to normal... I need to get back to work now. See ya later!"

As she leaves, she eyes Bentley, hoping he will notice "I'm not afraid of you. I've seen worse. You're just another puppet in this society. Cross my path and you will regret." then she smirks and leaves the police station.

Assuming Bentley is not stopping her from leaving:
"Now, I really need to see Tessa... And Twiddle as well." she goes to her car and stares at the phone. No reply from Tessa yet... She messages Twiddle.
"Hey there! Are you busy? We need to meet somewhere... private."

OOC: I'l put the message on Twiddle's channel as well.

I will be there with bells on. Wait...that's still an expression in this century, right? the text came back.

"My office might be compromised. Let's meet at my place. I'll be there in about 15-20." Lilith replies.

"I was hoping he would propose a location this time but no... At least he is keeping my condo hidden from predators." she rolls her eyes, sighs, then starts the car and drives to her apartment.

15-20 minutes later:
The apartment is not a big one. A two room modest condo, with black and red finishes, with more like victorian era furniture which really doesn't work with the modern appliances. The curtains are always closed and it's pretty dark inside. Turning the lights on, from the entrance, the living room can be seen, as an open space area with the kitchen on a side.

Lilith leaves her bag on the floor, takes a glass and pours some blood, then she leaves it on the coffe table and takes out her notes and her laptop. She stares at Tessa's pictures, wondering who the fuck is this guy and what does he want from Tessa. Taking a sip is helping her calm her nerves, but she knows the storm is about to begin.

Her phone vibrates with a message from Tessa. Lilith replies back:
"I'll be at my place with Twiddle. Meet us here when you can. I hope there's nothing serious with your family. Take care!"
This message was last edited by the player at 10:26, Wed 16 June 2021.

In reply to Lilith Voss (msg # 14):

On my way. Came the text.