23/02/2020 - Investigating Jackson Elias (2)

Wednesday 16 January 1935

Detective Inspector Poole

Cassandra and Jeziah work late discussing events and making preparations for her to disengage from the day to day running of Astor Motors. Jeziah suggests they meet the others at an expensive restaurant at lunch tomorrow. In the morning, Jeziah telephones Alex and Zalkador to inform them of the meeting at the restaurant at 1pm. He reminds them that there is a dress code.

Alex and Tiger begin to work out how to have someone else run their shop while they are away. Zalkador has an appointment that morning, but otherwise his calendar is relatedly clear.

Cassandra and Jeziah go to see the Police and are interviewed by Detective Inspector Poole. He takes their account of events and asks what they know about cults and what Jackson Elias was doing. He does not seem to want to give them any information about the investigation, but asks them to hand over all correspondence between them and Mr Elias.

He takes their formal statements and has them sign. As they leave, he asks about next of kin for Mr Elias.

Drawing the Team Together

Alex and Tiger arrive first, with Alex in a dinner jacket and Tiger wearing his old Army uniform. Zalkador arrives late in poshest outfit and has the waiter announce hi, but is disappointed that not everyone is there.

Cassandra and Jeziah arrive late, delayed by the Police. Cassandra tells them she wants to track down the clues and find out what happened. She will need their help in order to do this.

Alex immediately offers to help. Zalkador discusses money and proposes he is paid an hourly rate. Jeziah says a weekly rate would be more appropriate. Zalkador holds a tarot reading to determine if he should go with them, but it is inconclusive. He suggests that they look into more clues and see if things are clarified. Jeziah suggests he should follow where the money leads him.

Telephoning

After lunch, Jeziah has a telephone brought in to their room by the restaurant staff and begins to make calls. He calls Miriam Arkwright at the British Museum Library. He asks about her correspondence with Jackson Elias, but she is reluctant to betray any of Mr Elias’s confidences. She finally agrees to see what he wants to know if he comes to her office at the Library during working hours.

Jeziah then calls the Penhew Foundation, but is unable to speak to Direct Gavigan, who is busy. He says he wants to talk about the Carlisle Expedition and the secretary recalls that was several years ago. An appointment is booked for 3pm on Friday in Mr Gavigan’s diary.

Emerson Imports

Jeziah then calls Emerson Imports and speaks to the Manager, Mr Emerson. Jeziah pretends to be Jackson Elias and asks about his latest import of him, but Mr Emerson checks and there is nothing in his records. Mr Emerson suggests that he also check with Ju-Ju House.

Alex Stevens says he knows Ju-Ju House, it’s an African Antiquities shop that is a rival to his business.

There is no number for Jonah Kensington of Prospero House.

They then resolve to go visit first Ju-Ju House and then Prospero House. They leave the hotel and Jeziah drives them in the automobile.

Ju-Ju House

When they arrive at the address for Ju-Ju House, they find it is in a dark and dingy arcane of shops along with other shops selling food and curiosities from other cultures. The shop front has African masks and head dresses, carvings and other paraphernalia.

They go inside and find an elderly African gentleman in a slightly worn suit and waist coat behind the counter, Silas N’Kwane. His English is not great and he is suspicious when he sees his rival, Alex Stevens, amongst this group of white people.

Jeziah has a conversation with Silas, but doesn’t get very far. He doesn’t know Jackson Elias and he doesn’t know who Jonah Kensington is. Silas relaxes a little when the Great Zalkador buys some masks from him and he makes them all tea. It is strong, African tea.

They decide to leave and head for Prospero House.

Prospero House

They discover it is a large, though not that expensive building. A small plaque on the door says

Prospero House
Publishers
Proprietor Jonah Kensington

They proceed inside and discover it is a large printing warehouse. There are books stacked everywhere and the sound of printing machines churning fills the building.

They approach a secretary, asking for Mr Kensington. She says he is the owner and she will need to know what they want. Jeziah mentions Jackson Elias, who she knows of and when he mentions Mr Elias is death, she rushes to tell Mr Kensington.

Jonah Kensington has them come into his office. He is a well-dressed man with a slightly bookish, clerical appearance. He wants to know all about how Jackson Elias died and they fill him in.

When they start to mention the Carlisle Expedition and Jackson’s investigation into it, he knows all about it – Jackson has been sending him regular updates. Jackson planned to write a book about the subject.

Jackson Elias’s Notes from Kenya

Jonah has a letter that Jackson sent him recently which was marked “Open on the event of my death.” He does so and the note basically asks him to complete his investigation into the Carlisle Expedition and avenge his death.

He also tells them he has several notes from Jackson while he was in Kenya and he takes them out. His secretary has written up short summaries of what each contains and he reads them out.

1 – Outlines the various tribes Jackson spoke to in Kenya.
2 – Jackson’s visit to the place where the Carlisle Expedition were massacred. There is no vegetation. The locals say it is cursed by the God of the Black Wind.
3 – Interview with Johnstone Kenyatta. He tells of the Cult of the Bloody Tongue and the Mountain of the Black Wind.
4 – Jackson’s investigation of the Cult of the Blood Tongue. No records exist of the cult, but there are many rumours and similar dark stories.
5 – A short section suggesting that the reason for the Carlisle Expedition’s trip to Kenya is somewhere in Egypt and more investigation is needed there.
6 – Interview with Lt. Mark Selkirk, leader of the group that found the remains of the Carlisle Expedition. The bodies had not decayed. Selkirk thinks the Nandis were not behind the death of the Carlisle Expedition. Also – none of the bodies were white people, despite what the inquest said.
7 – Interview with “Nails” Nelson, a mercenary, who says he met Jack Brady in Hong Kong two years after the Carlisle Expedition was supposed to have been killed.
8 – Notes from Jackson on how to structure the book.

Taking the Documents

Jonah admits he is not in a position to avenge Jackson Elias’s death. Cassandra tells him they are going to investigate it he agrees to hand over the notes he has into their care.

Cassandra gets the feeling Jonah is holding something back but is unable to find out what. Jonah asks if any of them are writers and Jeziah makes out that he is. He suggests that they could finish Jackson’s book for him, which Jonah agrees to.

They leave but are left with the feeling that Jonah is hiding something. Tiger Johnson agrees to stay behind to watch what he does.

Return to Ju-Ju House

They realise that Silas N’Kwane may know more about the Cult of the Bloody Tongue and decide to go back there. They arrive to find him packing up.

When Jeziah asks him about the Cult of the Bloody Tongue and the God of the Black Wind, N’Kwane becomes angry and tells them to go away, he is closed. Jeziah blocks him from walking away with his cane, but the old man is spritelier than he looks and ducks back into this shop and locks the door.

They consider what to do, but it is now dark. The dingy alley and the strange African masks in Ju-Ju house begin to spook them, so they leave.

Erica Carlisle is in London

Jeziah drops the others off. On the way back to Astor Motors recalls that Erica Carlisle was arriving today. When he gets there, Erica has sent two telegrams. The first this morning informing them that she will be in London for 3pm and another at 6pm telling them she has checked into the Hilton Hotel.

Jeziah calls Erica at the hotel and Cassandra tells her Jackson Elias is dead. Erica panics when she learns he was murdered by a cult in his hotel room – she is in a hotel.

They arrange for Jeziah to pick her up and take her back to the Astor Manor.

End of Episode Two