Session: 11 There's a Tree Where the Doves Go to Die Report

General Summary

Thursday Evening January 15, 1925 - Monday Morning January 19, 1925 We wait for the police to show up, talking some last minute observations and such. We realize that all the cultists, though modernly dressed, have the same red scarf-like object of clothing tied around their heads. We answer the questions the police have for us, but withhold information specifically regarding the occult activities Jackson Elias seemed to be interested/involved in. After a while, a detective (Lt. Martin Poole) comes in and starts asking some more pointed questions. He finds Edward particularly suspicious (after a critically failed persuade roll), "asking" him to join him at the police station for further questions. We run into Leviticus on our way out of the building, and he decides to accompany Edward to the station while Jack goes with Monte to help get Elias's affairs in order. Leviticus and Edward are left in an interrogation room for a while, most likely in an attempt to unnerve them. When Lt. Poole returns, he immediately asks what we know about African death cults. He talked with another occult historian (Dr. Mordecai Lemming - basically a debutante who thinks himself a mythologist) and they came to the conclusion that this symbol is from the Bloody Tongue, a Kenyan cult with origins in dynastic Egypt. Lt/ Poole also asks for alibis for several dates up to about a year ago. He confirms the alibis and informs us that Captain Walter Robson, Captain of the Harlem district, is taking over custody of the witness. He also mentions, somewhat offhandedly, that Robson can be persuaded to help certain people out (implying he might be corrupt). We're dismissed, and as it is about 3 am, we retire for the evening. Monte helps set things in order, getting a funeral arranged for two days hence. He also gets a bit of information on Elias's recent history and travels, which are widespread. We also learn from Elias' lawyer Carlton Ramsey that we are included in his will. We all reconvene Friday afternoon to discuss what to do and where to go. We think that the public library and Lemming's house might provide the best answers. The library comes first, and we spend pretty much the rest of the day there. We don't learn much more than we already heard, only that the cult's continued existence is up for debate. We do, however, come across a news article that mentions a place in Harlem that could be a better font of information on all things Kenyan. The place is called the Ju Ju House, but it grows too late to really do anything with this information. The day of the funeral, Edward spends some time tracking down the address of Mordecai Lemmings in the morning. We all then go to the small funeral, where we identify a handful of the individuals (including Langston Hughes). The ceremony is simple and nice, but ruined by the reporters who begin asking questions. One, Rebecca Shosenburg, does mention Hilton Adams, a person in prison for a series of occult murders nearly identical to this one, and wants to know how he could be related to this case. We have a brief conversation with Elias's lawyer Carlton Ramsey, who reminds us of the will reading. We decide that we want to talk to Hilton, leaving a letter with Rebecca Shosenburg (the reporter asking about him). She responds almost immediately the next morning, inviting us to come talk to her that morning. She seems quite excited to talk to us, and somewhat relieved that we showed up. She begins giving use her reasons as to why she thinks he's innocent and says if we wish to speak to Hilton, we should first try talking to Millie Adams, his wife. We talk to Elias' publisher, Jonah Kensington, who reveals that Jackson believed that not all the members of the Carlyle Expedition were killed. He begins sharing notes and documents from Jackson giving an insight into his mind and the state of his research. It seems like the more Elias looked into things, the more his mind deteriorated and became jumbled. As we leave from our meeting with Kensington, we are asked to meet Millie Adams in Harlem in an hour. When we get there, we are invited inside to the auditorium of the theater. Millie seems guarded around us, perhaps due to the nature of our interest in her husband out of the blue. She seems determined, but that may mask the desperation she feels. She claims that Hilton and his friends looked into the murders and death cult, but this drew the attention of the police. They threatened them to letting the matter rest. She doesn't know a lot of details because Hilton kept it from her. A couple things she does know is that he used a red scarf as a bookmark for his journal, he mentioned the Ju Ju House, and that he always made a point of not bringing his knife with him on patrols (a knife was used as evidence against him). She also thinks this cult is paying off the police, and that Hilton was the one they decided to lay the blame on. She tells us that once a month, in the early hours of the morning, a large group of people would gather in the night of a new moon. She also saw some suspicious crates brought to this place, and she thinks that may be connected to some disappearances. Leviticus feels she's hiding something, and after some prompting, she admits that she feels that once the cult finishes going after her husband, they'll come for her. She agrees to arrange a meeting with her husband. We walk over to the bar Millie mentioned to see if there was anyone worth talking to. Although we stand out, we make our way inside. Rebecca points out a table with four men (The Friends of Hilton Adams) in it before leaving, so we go strike up a conversation to see if they know anything. They claim to have given up looking into the situation because it was a dead end, but it seems that they are unhappy with the situation, like they were slowly forced into giving up pursuing the issue. We heard that Hilton tore some red cloth off a mask from an assailant, but other than that, all evidence was just based off observation. This incident also was the spark for police intervention. With the newly acquired information, we call it for the day and get ready to go to the will reading on the next day.

Campaign

Masks of Nyarlathotep Campaign

Protagonists