Adventure! RPG: Heroes of Our Time - episode 3: Killer in the Rain (part 1)

[Alex Craft]

(early March, 1924)

Rhiannon sits at home by the phone, toying with a small box of liberally carved teak - sliding the flat lid open and shut to reveal and conceal the delicate jade comb nested inside. The phone line clicks and hums as the operator connects up for an international call.

Rhiannon hasn't been in Baltimore for long, having been with Tony as he supervised the salvage operation at K.I.S. Plaza. It seems that building 2 and the unfinished building 3 managed to escape the chaos with no structural damage, but the upper quarter of building 1 is looking like a total writeoff. The architects are saying that that entire part of the building will need to be torn down and reconstructed.

Li Mei came to Baltimore this time, apparently getting tired of being tied up in family operations. She's been all over the house in the past few days, rearranging things and generally laying claim to the place. Yesterday, she mentioned her intent to head down to Baltimore's Chinatown and bringing a Feng Shui master back to consult with over the house's properties. She is off doing that now, so the house is as quiet and empty - something that Rhiannon has become accustomed to over the few months since she began renting.

The phone finally begins to ring, the sound slightly distorted by distance. The other end picks up on the third ring, a woman's voice answering, "Dr. Carter-Green speaking."

[Alex Craft]

"Hello Helen, it's Rhiannon," the slender brunette answers, her voice filled with a warmth that would be a surprise to her team mates. Rhiannon saw no reason to reveal her past life to individuals that she barely knew or trusted. "How have you been?"

[Alex Craft]

Rhiannon can hear a smile slipping into Helen's voice as she replies in surprise, "Rhia? I must say, I didn't expect to be hearing from you like this. Me, I've been quite well. I expect you haven't heard from across the ocean, but I published my book a few months ago. It is doing quite well in certain circles, though I suspect that some of that might be due to the rarity of female writers in the field."

"But I'm sure you have more important things to discuss, and calling intercontinental can't be inexpensive. I got your telegram about that Egyptian chap. What's the story with him? Did some young man finally manage to catch your eye?"

Helen says the last with a light laugh, a touch of irony apparent.

[Alex Craft]

"Hardly," Rhiannon observes dryly. Her voice immediately loses its humour and slips into deadly seriousness. "Ayed al-Luqmani is a man who pistol-whipped me and shot a fellow employee in Egypt. I'm asking after him because he speaks like a man educated at Oxford and I want to know more about him. Anything you can tell would be most appreciated, Helen."

[Alex Craft]

"Hm. Good to know your new job is keeping you busy, I suppose ..."

"In that case, I'll get down to brass tacks. I did some checking around, and I can say with near certainty that nobody named Ayed al-Luqmani has attended Oxford in the last decade or so. There are no records at any of the colleges with that name."

"However, you did give a good description - I guess I now know why he stuck in your mind so clearly - and the university doesn't see all that many Egyptian students. It took a while, but I think I matched your description with a student named Ibrahim Mustafa Sharawi. I am guessing that 'Ayed al-Luqmani' is an alias."

"From what I gather, the Sharawi family is - or was - a wealthy Egyptian clan, and they wanted their firstborn to get a good Oxford education for the good of the family, you know how it is. His records are closed, but I gather that he did well in his studies for as long as he was here - he enrolled in 1914 and left in 1916. It seems that he joined the army rather than continue with his education, though I can't tell if he volunteered, or if he was just conscripted."

"He was at Balliol College, so I went down there and talked to Aurther Smith, the Master. I was nice enough that he checked some records for me and pointed me toward a few people who'd remember Ibrahim, but I didn't get much more."

"I did find out what unit he joined, and a look through public records show a Ibrahim Sharawi getting a couple of medals for acts of bravery and whatnot - looks like he was quite a good soldier. That's about where the trail dries up, though. There's no mention anywhere of what happened to him after the war ... in fact, I couldn't even find a discharge date, so he may have just disappeared sometime during the war. Balliol doesn't have anything either, which is odd - that's a very prestigious college, so they usually keep track of their students."

[Alex Craft]

Rhiannon laughs wryly. "Oh yes, I've been kept busy. I've been shot at, pistol-whipped, chased by a speeding car, fought off airborne raiders and pretty much being kept on my toes since I started working for Anthony King. Before that, I was captured by Chinese slavers - yes, that little tale is true - and nearly got killed by a repeat murderer in New York City. Life has been nothing but, ah, interesting since I came to America. "

She chuckles. "Good to hear your book's gotten published. Good thing your particular field doesn't have a lot of old male fossils, eh?"

[Alex Craft]

With a laugh in her voice, Helen notes, "I always knew you'd get into trouble some day. Ever since you told off Sir Warren ... and bloody lucky you were that he was in a good mood that day. I thought for sure he'd kick you out on your bum."

...

"Not so many, at any rate. Really, I s'pose I'm just lucky someone was willing to take a risk. I've hardly the wherewithal to self-publish. Excellent timing really. With a book in circulation, I can probably count on the college retaining me for a while, now. I wasn't entirely certain of that until recently - hazards of failing to be quite as proper as one might hope."

[Alex Craft]

"You and I both," Rhia agrees ruefully. "Besides, we both know that Saint Bridget was originally the Goddess Brid, whatever Sir-bloody-Warren likes to think. Gawd, of all the male fossils..."

"I doubt I'll get much further in my education. Why don't we just say I've done a complete tangent in my focus since I arrived in America. Been studying Eastern traditions, Chinese to be exact. Besides, working for Anthony King is keeping me very busy."

[Alex Craft]

"Well, so I gather. A shame you can't continue your education, though - academia can always use a few more ladies. Still, I suppose dodging bullets is a kind of education. But seriously, be careful, Rhiannon. The job won't be worth it if it kills you."

"Why China? I mean, I'd think you'd want to avoid that kind of thing after having such a horrid experience."

[Alex Craft]

"I saved a Chinawoman from the slavers and her family took me in," Rhia explains with a rueful laugh. "They have some very interesting beliefs that chime well with my own, and my friend's grandmother is a very forceful woman. If you could get over the kow-towing to her, I think you'd like her."

Rhia glances over at the clock on her desk and sighs. "Much as I love chatting to you, if I keep this up much longer, it's going to cost me my entire paycheque. Keep yourself out of trouble, publish another book and give the old fossils something else to complain about, alright?"

[Alex Craft]

"That I can do - wouldn't want them to get too complacent, eh? It was good to hear from you again, dear, but I shan't keep you any longer. Take care."

Returning the phone to its hook, Rhiannon sets the box and its comb down on the desk and does a mental inventory. Li Mei will be back from making an appointment with that Feng Shui master soon, but the reception isn't until evening. She'll probably want to go a bit early in order to appraise Tony of the new information.

[Alex Craft]

(elsewhere)

The Baltimore shorefront bustles with activity, a big knot of which focuses around the Grey Spirit, a light cargo ship coming in from New York City in a series of hops down the coast. Dock workers descend upon the ship, unloading the vessel over the course of the day and shuttling the goods and material off to the warehouses of the dozen or so vendors with space on board.

As usual, the ship is carrying a few paying passengers along with the cargo. This handful of people walks down the creaking gangplank and either meet friends or family or head off to pursue whatever business brings them to Baltimore. Soon, the only person left behind is a young woman - maybe not even twenty - standing waiting a little aside from the docks.

Brigitte Lefevre looks up and down the docks, glad to finally be off the ship. In the past couple months she's made a trip to NYC from Europe, another round trip back to France for the car, and now this trip down to Baltimore from NYC. All that, and she never quite got past her seasickness. After all that, it's very good to be back on terra firma.

Pacing back and forth to get her land legs back, Brigitte keeps checking the shorefront - wondering what's keeping her K.I.S. contact. Someone was supposed to meet her to help offload the car, but nobody seems to be around. Then, with zero warning of his approach, someone clears his throat just behind her left shoulder.

Spinning in surprise, she finds herself face to face with a gloomy-looking, dusky-skinned man in a black derby and an aging, patched top coat. Doffing his hat to reveal a balding pate, he give Brigitte a thin smile and asks, "Ms. Lefevre? I am John Frederickson, with K.I.S. Welcome to Baltimore."

[Alex Craft]

(later)

It took a ridiculous amount of time, but the car was finally offloaded and moved off to a K.I.S warehouse - still packing in its oversized crate. Once at the warehouse, the dockhands did the grunt work of taking the crate apart and pulling away the packing material, leaving the exposed car sitting on its shipping pallet for Brigitte's examination.

Now, it is well into the evening, and Brigitte and John are the only people in the warehouse - sharing the space with rats and crates of ore samples. Brigitte has found John to be markedly terse. More than that, he's just really quiet - not for the first time, Brigitte peaks out from under the car to make sure he's still there. He is, sitting placidly atop the same crate he's been sitting on for the past couple of hours. Privately, Brigitte hopes that the rest of the field team is a little more talkative.

Almost on cue, a car pulls up just outside the open doors of the warehouse, and a man climbs out of the driver's side. Deciding that she's pretty certain that the car made it through the trip without damage, Brigitte slides out from under the car and wipes oil from her hands as she watches the newcomers approach.

* * *

Jameson walks around the front of the car and gets the door for Kate, who smiles brightly as she stands and stretches. Both are already dressed for the reception, and spare clothes for John and Brigitte are stacked in the trunk (God knows how King got Brigitte's clothing sizes).

Jameson can pick out John, getting down from a crate sitting against a wall of the warehouse. Brigitte Lefevre must be the woman (almost a girl) standing up next to a rather nice-looking car - custom job, if Jameson is any judge.

Kate smiles and waves cheerfully as she and Jameson stride into the warehouse.

[Alex Craft]

As Jameson and Kate walk into the warehouse together they step from the dark evening skies into the more brightly illuminated interior. Jameson is dressed in an impeccably tailored tuxedo sporting a non-traditional red waistcoat and bow-tie. Beside him Kate is dressed in a stunning red evening gown. Its obvious that these two will not be wallflowers at the reception.

Jameson calls out, "John! good to see you, how's the arm? Healing nicely I hope?"

He turns to Brigitte, "You must be Miss Lefevre? A pleasure to meet you, I'm Jameson Bradford, and I believe you already know Kate?

"Anthony sent us with wardrobe for the two of you, is there a hotel or apartment that you need to stop at to get ready? Once you two are dressed we're going to meet Blaine and Locky before the party."

Jameson eyes the car now that his job is done, and whistles appreciatively, "Nice ride ... looks custom how fast can she go?"

[Alex Craft]

John turns quickly to Jameson, a rare smile barely showing itself at the corner of his mouth.

"It has healed passably well, I think. Thank you."

John shifts his weight, plunging quickly downward for a few moments until his shoes clack against the floor. Pulling his cane from his inside jacket pocket he walks slowly toward Jameson and Kate. John glances down gingerly at the wardrobe provided by Mr. King.

"A short stop would indeed be appreciated for a change of clothing."

[Alex Craft]

Brigitte wipes her hands mostly clean of the oil and tucks the rag partially into her back pocket before she offers a hand to Jameson. “Brigitte. Only my professors call me Miss Lefevre.” she says to him with a heavy French accent and a playful smirk. She then nods and continues, “Oui. She and I met briefly. To be honest, it is something of a blur with all of these trips back and forth.” as she points forwards and back several times.

“We can stop at the hotel. After that long voyage, it would not mind a moment to freshen up. And I would not mind going out for a spin.”

Brigitte looks over her shoulder at the car as Jameson comments on it. With a slight smirk and a shake of her head she says, “Typical American. Worried about speed where there are far more important things like handling and fuel economy. But to answer your question, well over 200 Kilometers per hour.”

She lifts her cap off and then slips it back on as she glances around again. “At any rate, shall we go? Is anybody riding with me?”

[Alex Craft]

... But to answer your question, well over 200 Kilometers per hour.

Jameson gives a low whistle of appreciation and nods, an impressed look on his face.

“At any rate, shall we go? Is anybody riding with me?”

Jameson jabs a thumb backward indicating the Packard outside, gleaming in the light spilling from the warehouse.

"I'm driving my own car tonight but I'll take a rain check if possible. If you'd like to meet us at the bar I can give you and John you clothes now, or Kate and I can follwo you back to your hotel and keep you company while the two of you change. I'll leave it up to you."

[Alex Craft]

After a little more deliberation, Jameson and Kate return to the Packard as Brigitte climbs behind the wheel of her car. Firing up the engine, she nods in satisfaction at the machine's smooth rumble - unaffected by the voyage. Rolling slowly out the warehouse doors, she idles for a bit as John follows, closing the doors and locking them with a key the workers had left behind.

With the warehouse locked up, John drops the key into one of his coat's many pockets and turns to the cars. Shrugging, he slides in next to Brigitte and nods to Jameson, who is waiting with Kate in his car.

Following Kate's directions, Jameson pulls away from the warehouse and out of the docks with Brigitte following close behind. The twilight has faded into full dark as they reach Brigitte's hotel, provided by K.I.S. until she can arrange more permanent accommodations. They pull up near the entrance and are met by an attendant who offers to park their cars. Jameson waves him off as Brigitte pulls up, explaining that they won't be long.

[Alex Craft]

Jameson parks the car at the curb and turns the engine off. He gets out of the car and pockets the keys as he walks around to open the door for Kate. Together they walk into the hotel following John and Brigitte.

[Alex Craft]

Brigitte slips out of the car and opens the trunk, pulling out her bags as the doorman calls over a bellboy. Handing the bags over, she then closes the trunk and collects the wardrobe that Jameson and Kate brought for her and Dr. Mystery before walking in with the garments hanging from a finger over her shoulder. She nods to Jameson as he holds the door and walks in.

Immediately Brigitte walks over to the desk, checks in somewhat impatiently and heads to the elevator. “Are you coming up or are you going to wait here?” she asks in a general question toward Jameson and Kate as the elevator doors open and she steps in, waiting for Dr. Mystery.

Once she has specified the floor she lets out a long, somewhat impatient sigh. “Father was always much better with these kind of events. I knew they would become part of the job eventually, but I still prefer the sounds of a garage and the smell of oil and petrol as opposed to a band and champagne and roses. Ah well. C'est la vie.” She shrugs and looks about for a moment as she tries to recall the lessons on etiquette her mother had taught her. Her eyes drift up to the brim of her hat which she grabs and pulls off with a slightly embarrassed grin having just realized they were indoors. She runs a hand through her somewhat short, russet hair and then tucks her hat into her back pocket.

The elevator operator announces the arrival at the requested floor along with a soft –ding- of a bell. The doors open and she steps out, following the bellboy. He sets down the bags and opens the door with a twist of the key and a flick of the wrist. “Here we arm, Ma’am.” He says with a pleasant smile as he gestures into the room. Brigitte walks in and hangs the clothing in the closet before turning to the bellboy. “Merci” she offers to the bellboy as she reaches into her pocket and withdraws a money clip. “Do me a favour and keep an eye on the two cars out front.” she says as she hands him a five dollar bill.

With a broad smile the bellboy replies, “Yes Ma’am. Enjoy your stay.” as tucks the bill into his pocket and then exits. Brigitte fetches her dress from the closet and a smaller bag from within her luggage as she mutters to herself in French, “I just get in from a transatlantic voyage and then have to be at a formal reception as soon as I get in.”

She walks over to the bathroom and sets down her bag and hangs the dress on the back of the door. With a significantly more chipper tone and a soft smile she leans her head out and says, “I’ll just be a couple of minutes.”

[Alex Craft]

“Are you coming up or are you going to wait here?”

"We'll come up if you don't mind," Jameson replies as they step into the elevator. Jameson begins to whistle a low tune between his teeth and taps at his sides, almost as though searching for something he's forgotten.

Once into the room Jameson heads for the room's small bar and readies a drink for himself, "Would anybody like a libation to get the evening off on the right foot?" he asks as he pours himself a double whiskey.

[Alex Craft]

John trails slightly behind them as they make their way from the cars to the hotel room. Upon entering the hotel room. John gathers the clothing that was brought for him, laying it on a nearby table. He follows Jameson toward the small bar.

Quote:

Would anybody like a libation to get the evening off on the right foot?

John nods, "Perhaps a Gin and Tonic would do nicely, thank you very much Mr. Bradford"

John waits politely for Ms. Lefevre to finish dressing so that he might dress as well.

[Alex Craft]

"One gin and tonic coming up. Oh, and John, please call me Jameson at least, if not James, we're friends you and I after all."

Jameson downs his whiskey quickly and sets to work preparing a gin and tonic for John and a cosmopolitan for Kate. As he pours the two drinks he calls out, "Anything for you Brigitte?"

[Alex Craft]

The only reply to Jameson’s question is the constant white noise of the shower that has been running for a minute or two now as Brigitte showers after her transatlantic voyage. A couple of minute later she slips out, dries off in the bathroom and begins to get dressed and prepare for the reception. After several more minutes she steps out of the bathroom, more or less ready. Though Brigitte may be almost a girl, now with her cap and mechanic’s coveralls replaced by a dress and jewelry and the smears of oil and grease replaced by skillfully applied cosmetics, it becomes obvious now that she is most certainly a woman and an attractive one at that.

Humming softly to herself, Brigitte walks over and takes a seat on the bed, fetching her heels from her bag and slipping them one before rising to look at herself in the mirror, adjusting her dress here and there and checking her earrings. She then returns to the bed, sets down her purse and begins to remove the clothing from her smaller bag. So, how long is the reception going to be? Anybody of importance there?” she asks as puts a pair of grey slacks, a white tank-top, a set of suspenders and her cap inside before placing the bag next to her shoes, waiting patiently for Dr. Mystery to finish getting ready.

[Alex Craft]

Quote:

"One gin and tonic coming up. Oh, and John, please call me Jameson at least, if not James, we're friends you and I after all."

"Alright, Thank you Jameson."

John smiles politely, yet quite sincerely as he says this, with an air of slight uncomfortableness hiding in his eyes. He sips at his gin and tonic before heading to another room to dress himself. He returns slightly after Ms. Lefevre's emergence from the bathroom, carrying his drink in one hand, and his previous clothing, neatly folded, in the other.

"Do you mind if I keep these in your automobile, Ms. Lefevre?"

[Alex Craft]

Quote:

Originally posted by Dr. Mystery:
"Do you mind if I keep these in your automobile, Ms. Lefevre?"]

Brigitte smiles and says, “Certainement! Put them in the bag, if you like.” motioning to the smaller bag which she slipped her change of clothes into. She then adds, “And as I told Mr. Bradford, only my professors call me Miss Lefevre. Please, call me Brigitte.”

[Alex Craft]

“And as I told Mr. Bradford, only my professors call me Miss Lefevre. Please, call me Brigitte.”

" ... only if you call me anything other than Mr. Bradford. Gah, makes me sound old and respectable. I'd like to think I'm neither of one and only partly the other ...

"So Brigitte, John, are we ready to go? The others are surely waiting at the bar by now..."

[Alex Craft]

A flat, sudden sound interrupts conversation, muffled by passage through at least one wall. Jameson immediately recognizes the sound of a gunshot - nodding sharply in response to Kate's half asked question: "Was that a ... ?"

John and Brigitte likewise recognize the gunshot, quickly figuring out that the sound came from a nearby room - probably the one just next door.

[Alex Craft]

Almost instinctively Jameson goes to draw his guns ... and finds they aren't there. "Damn, what kind of bad timing is this?" he grumbles.

Jameson sighs with resignation after a second, "OK," he says as he takes off his jacket, "Kate call the front desk and have them phone the police. Maybe they have a PI on the premises they can send up as well ..."

"Brigitte, John, shall we go investigate?" Jameson heads for the door and waits for a response from the others.

[Alex Craft]

John pulls off his jacket, quickly pulling on the one folded in his arms. He folds the jacket from Mr. King, hurredly placing the garments in Ms. Lefevre's bag. Walking toward Jameson, he pulls his cane from his pocket, flipping it through the air as he grasps it's handpiece.

"Shall I lead the way?" John asks, beginning to blur out of sight to those who had not been watching closely.

[Alex Craft]

Brigitte sighs softly and kicks off her heels. She looks up to Jameson and looks about a little confused. “Where did he go?” she asks as she heads to the door as well, following Jameson closely as she keep a sharp eye and ear out for anything more from the room.

[Alex Craft]

"Shall I lead the way?"

"Indeed, I think your special talents may be just what is needed right now ... besides, I don't have a gun on me anyways."

As Jameson speaks, a grin spreads on his face, it looks as though he's looking forward to the challenge of fighting without his guns.

[Alex Craft]

Kate frowns slightly (clearly wondering about the wisdom of running after a gunshot unarmed) but nods reluctantly at Jameson's suggestion. Setting down her drink, she goes to the room's phone and picks up the receiver.

John ghosts out into the hall with Jameson and Brigitte not far behind. A couple of tenants are sticking their heads out their doors with puzzled expressions, but for the most part, the gunshot seems to have gone either unnoticed or uninvestigated.

The next door to the right is hanging ajar - half open and still swinging slowly, as if someone had just now jerked it open. The hall, however, is empty of anyone except our heroes and the aforementioned inquisitive tenants. No further gunshots have rung out.

[Alex Craft]

"I'll take a look in there" John quietly whispers back to Jameson and Lefevre.

Keeping to the wall as he swiftly sidles down to the open door, John peeks into the room, sliding through the open door if he detects nobody near it.

[Alex Craft]

"I'll take a look in there"

Jameson nods silently as John slips out into the hall toward the next room as silent as can be. Jameson turns and sees the people in the other rooms poking their heads out into the hall and motions for them to get back into their rooms.

Jameson then turns back to Brigitte and Kate, "OK John is checking the next room out," he whispers. "We'll see what's going on and deal with it ... Kate did you get ahold of the police or Hotel Security? Brigitte, I've learned recently to not underestimate a woman ... I guess what I'm asking is; How are you in a fight?"

[Alex Craft]

Quote:

Originally posted by Jameson Bradford:
"Brigitte, I've learned recently to not underestimate a woman ... I guess what I'm asking is; How are you in a fight?"

A playful grin crosses Brigitte’s lips as she says, “See? There is hope for you yet.“ She then adds, “But to answer your question, I am a savateuse.” as she drops back into a guard position with her fists up protecting her face, head down, elbows together, left foot forward, and heels off the ground.

“If there was a spare cane, I could use that too. La Canne de Combat is taught alongside La Boxe Francaise-Savate at the salle I attend.”

[Alex Craft]

John edges into the room through the partially ajar door. He immediately notices the corpse on the floor, but circles the room and checks the adjoining bedroom and bath before focusing on anything. The apartment seems totally empty - no killer anywhere.

Shrugging, he checks out the body - a middle-aged Italian man. John's skills don't lend themselves toward investigating crime scenes, but even he can clearly make a cause of death - a bullet wound just above the right eye, shattering the brow before entering the brain pan.

Looking around, he notices a small gun not far from the corpse's hand. Considering that no killer appears to be present, this could be a suicide. Still, that doesn't really seem to add up - for instance, who left the door open?

* * *

Out in the hall, Jameson and Brigitte both notice the elevator at the end of the empty hall arriving with a ring. The doors slide open, and the attendant peeks out, clearly wondering where his passenger went to.

Both of them notice this, but only Jameson does a double take as the elevator doors close. He glances back just as the doors are closing the last foot of gap, and sees a man in a black coat standing in the compartment. This man should not have been there - the hall was empty until equally empty elevator arrived, and there isn't any way a person could have gotten to the elevator without spending some time in Jameson and Brigitte's collective field of view.

The doors finish closing, and the elevator begins to descend (according to the dial above the doors).

[Alex Craft]

After his check of the room John scurries back out, hurrying to Jameson.

"No killer in there, poor fellow with a hole in the head though. Doesn't add up..."

John trails off, looking to Jameson and Ms. Lefevre for ideas.

[Alex Craft]

The doors finish closing, and the elevator begins to descend (according to the dial above the doors).

"No killer in there, poor fellow with a hole in the head though. Doesn't add up..."

"Damn! The elevator!" Jameson pushes past John and runs full tilt for the stairs. "Quick we may still catch him!!"

Jameson puts his shoulder to the stairwell door as he turns the handle, causing the door to slam loudly against the wall. He takes two steps down the first set of stairs and jumps the rail over onto the stair leading down from the third floor. Continuing down the stairs in that manner as fast as possible.

[Alex Craft]

"Damn! The elevator!" Jameson pushes past John and runs full tilt for the stairs. "Quick we may still catch him!!"

Brigitte’s eyes go wide at Jameson’s sudden outburst and as he goes full tilt into the stairwell, Brigitte turns into her room and grabs one of her bags… A briefcase, in fact. She mutters to herself in French as her hands move over the case with practiced skill, opening it.. Oddly enough, the hinges of the briefcase are on the side into of bottom and when it opens a wheel can be seen in each half, surrounded by all sorts of mechanical parts. She grabs each wheel by the fork attached to it and yanks it out, causing them to swing down and lock into position. She then grabs a small set of handle bars and yanks them out, causing them to fold up and lock into place at one end which also seems to cause foot pegs pop out automatically. She yanks her slip-like dress up to her hips and throws a leg over the top of the motorcycle, taking a seat on the apparently padded top of the briefcase which seems to act as the seat. With a swift kick the bike starts and the amazingly compact engine growls to life.

With a broad grin and a slight gleam in her eye Brigitte asks, “Need a lift?” and allows Dr. Mystery to hop on.

Brigitte tears out into the hallway and lifts a foot as she approaches the door to the stairwell, which has been slowly drifting closed since Jameson burst through it. A mere moment before the door fully closes and latches, Brigitte lifts a foot, sticking it out in front of her and kicks the door open again. With a loud slam the door hits the wall and the growling of the engine begins to echo into the stairwell as Brigitte lets out a gleeful yell and lifts her bottom of the motorcycle to begin to bumpy descent down the stairs at a breakneck speed trying to make up time.