By ten in the evening, the streets surrounding the Stanton Street Cemetery are primarily swallowed in shadow. The graveyard itself is largely dark, with only a lone light to the right of the mortuary entrance and a porch light on the covered walkway of the private home’s front door providing meager illumination. All is quiet among the tombstones and in the neighboring streets.

The investigators meet in front of an unoccupied brownstone on the corner of Stanton and Ridge streets. They see no one in the area observing them, though the faint strains of jazz can heard from the south.

OOC: If the plan is to climb over the cemetery’s fence, I will presume that one of the investigators obtained a ladder in the interim. Jake Morris is in possession of his duplicate crypt key.

Arthur arrived briefly before the next man, and welcomed his fellow investigators in quietly. He made sure to fill everyone in on his conversation with the old man.

He made sure to help with setting up any prospective ladder when the time came.

OOC: So, there was another fellow before Nathaniel Bishop, William Bishop. The fellow often slept late, but he did good work as an undertaker. He spoke fondly of a great great grandmother, Agatha, even though she'd been dead for a long time.

The old man heard odd noises coming from in there--scraping, thumping, the growling of dogs. He had seen a stooped figure there as a boy. The old man, Gregori, believes the place to be a haven for restless spirits. Arthur will, of course, characterize this all as fanciful ghost stories--you know the sort, and since we've already heard the ghost stories I doubt we'll be deterred. :)

Sully strolls up the street with his ladder, his hat on the back of his head and his tie loosened, smoke trailing from the stub of his almost-finished cigar.

"What ho," he says quietly.

Jake laughs and flourishes his new key when he meets the others and a cluster by the old brownstone, flicking away the stub of his smoke in an arc of ruby sparks across the street.

"Maybe get us in, maybe not," he grins. "But I got these as well." He slips a leather case out of his jacket breast pocket that contains a set of lock picks and shows them briefly, a kid on a jaunt.

When he hears Arthur's news about the long-ago sounds coming from within the tombs, he nods.

"Pretty certain something's down there, right? But I ain't afraid of no ghosts! Bet you five bucks it's some kind of smuggling going on."

"In either case, we shall have an interesting time of it, gentlemen," he said.

He hadn't performed an act of trespass in decades, but this seemed to be the jolt of excitement he needed in his life, as things had become too dull for his liking.

Arthur had, of course, welcomed Sully and the others with their arrival.

"Well, I'll take that bet, Jake. Not ghosts, not smugglers. Attack dogs, maybe." He had a smile on his face, as one does when they're accustomed to taking on small and even frivolous bets--and accordingly, he passed over five dollars for the bet, entrusting Jake with the sum.

Having set up the ladder with Sully, he scaled the ladder, tossing a jacket over the top if he felt it was necessary. As he scaled, he asked the obvious question: "Will you be fine getting down from this side of the fence, Professor? You seem healthy enough, but I was raised better than to assume anything without asking."

"I appreciate the offer. I'm younger than I look, so I think I can manage this one, but you know...keep an eye out in case I look to be tumbling," he said with a grin.

The investigators locate a section of the eastern cemetery fence where an older crypt is positioned nearby. Each member of the group is able climb over the fence, then lower themselves down onto the roof of the structure, and from there to the ground.

The graveyard is virtually silent, the only noise that of a steady breeze which helps to brush away some of the lingering heat from the summer afternoon. A short distance ahead, the investigators notice a tall monolith, made of dark, polished marble. Drawing closer, the group can see that the well maintained memorial has been skillfully carved with the square and compasses of the Freemasons. Beneath the large symbol are two neat columns of names, doubtlessly prominent members of Manhattan’s Masonic Lodge.

Further away, the investigators can see the cluster of crypts that include the Greenberg and Tapley memorials. To the south, the two story residence sits like a hulking shadow, a chapel and a single story cottage nearby. To the west, across the oval drive, the long pale facade of the mausoleum can be seen, along with the mortuary, which is mostly swallowed in gloom.

On the other side, Arthur turned to his fellow investigators and whispered the obvious. "To the Tapley crypt first, then, I suppose?" He turned to lead the way.

"Sure," he whispers back, "Jake's got a key."

Jake's a bit confused. Wasn't the Tapley crypt the one they'd already been in? The showcase crypt.

"Isn't the Greengurg crypt the one with all the funny noises and creepy stories?" he asked.

He just hoped the key would fit that lock as well.

The Tapley Crypt sits only a short distance from the cemetery’s oval shaped drive, a few paces northeast of it. Even in the moonlight, the structure’s white exterior make the details of the memorial easy to see. The bronze door, sculpted with a depiction of a field of wheat overlooked by a sunrise, is closed.

"I've got a thought that this crypt isn't really being used, and I'd like to see if I can confirm it." He waited to see if Jake might unlock the crypt door.

Jake steps forward and tries his brand new key on the lock.

The key turns easily, Jake feeling the heavy clacks of the lock’s tumblers. The bronze door swings open, revealing the crypt’s dark interior, the scent of stale air washing over the investigators.

Without further ado, Arthur stepped in. "Come in now, all. I'd like to see about the people resting here. I don't think this place is used, and I'm not even sure that there are bodies in here. I suspect this very crypt may be one of many things that are not as they seem here."

Only three of the available spaces within the crypt are marked as being occupied, the names of each of the deceased neatly engraved where they have been interred. The names given are Edward Tapley, Regina Tapley, and William Tapley. Edward’s death was the earliest, having occurred in 1907. Regina passed away three years after, in 1910. William is the most recent death, having lost his life in 1918. The dates given for William indicate that he was only twenty years of age and his inscription makes clear that he served in the U.S. Army.

It appears that the marble facing over each place of internment can be removed with some effort to access the area where the casket was placed. The spaces are not secured with any manner of lock.

Outside, the wind gains strength momentarily, the gust whistling as it rushes past the crypt’s open door.

Jake stands in the entrance, watching the others work. His body will stop the door from closing if the wind catches it. No fun getting shut in the tomb overnight with no keyhole on the inside.

"Did anyone bring a lantern?" Sully looks around for any source of light. His cigarette lighter and matches are limited in duration.

"A lantern? That would have been a grand idea. Why didn't I think of it? I suppose I could use my camera flash. I might want to take pictures anyways, you know?" Arthur was just about ready to kick himself in the seat of his pants, but he still moved up to the tomb and got in position to pull the slab to the side so he could take a look.

With some effort, Arthur is able to move the slab covering William Tapley’s resting place, carefully easing the piece of engraved marble to the floor.

The space beyond it confirms the photographer’s suspicions: it is entirely empty. No casket occupies it.

Noting this development with interest, the professor moves to attempt to check Edward's to see if it is similarly vacant.

In reply to Anthony Wells (msg # 22):

"Let me help you, Prof." Sully lends the professor a hand.

Sully rolled 25 for STR 55.
This message was last edited by the player at 20:02, Sun 20 Feb 2022.