Part 3: Facing the Past

[sniderman]

Jack calls up the other car. "Put it on speaker," he instructs Magnus. "You guys are going to want to hear this." Magnus sets the phone on speaker then places it on the dash where he and Hal can both listen. Webb's face sets firm as he grips the wheel tighter. Lucas proceeds to summarize his findings...

"According to this, there was a University of Oregon college student who was home for Spring Break, visiting her folks here in Timber Grove. Girl by the name of Audrey Burke. She left the house one afternoon and never came home. Her parents never heard from her again. They reported her missing after several days when she didn't return back to school or back home. She just up and vanished."

"The police never thought to connect her disappearance with Baxter's killings that were happening at the time?" Webb asks incredulously.

Lucas looks over the file for more information. "Actually, that was the first conclusion they reached, that she was another one of Baxter's victims. But her body wasn't found with the other six that were buried together. Baxter never admitted to killing her, a body was never found, so she was just chalked up as a missing person."

"Sounds like the police at the time just wanted to wrap up this whole sordid business," Magnus' voice comes across the phone. "They had Baxter dead-to-rights for six proven murders. What's one more going to prove?"

Jack leans in to speak at the phone and his teammates in the car as he looks at the file on Lucas' laptop.

"Looks like we're actually not far from the Burke residence, according to the last address in the report. Just a few miles away in the suburbs. It's been 15 years, so who knows who lives there now?" Jack leans back, gets his phone, and dials the listed number. The electronic trill rings a few times. "It's ringing, but there's no answer. No machine or pick-up."

Hal's voice comes across the speaker. "If her parents are still alive, would...Audrey...hold them responsible for her death as well?"

Jack scowls. "Possibly. The spirit feels betrayed by everyone who allowed this to happen: Baxter killed her and buried her in an unmarked, forgotten grave. The park rangers didn't discover Baxter's crimes until it was too late. The police were unable to find her or give her justice. If the wraith feels her own family has forgotten her after all of these years..."

Webb's jaw clenches as he grips the wheel tighter.

"OK fellows, seems we have some choices to make and we need to make them fast," he states. "Where are we going, and what do we plan to do when we get there?"

[funfungiguy]

"I think we should swing by her parents place first. I don't know if we'll gather any useful clues or information, or if they'll even want to speak to us, but it's on the way and Seven's on the move, and I have a nasty feeling it'll be too late if we go out to the woods first and spend a lot of time looking for we don't know what," Lucas says.

[segeorge]

Webb nods.
I tend to agree, Lucas. Although I wonder if we all need to go -- maybe it's time we split up, at least temporarily. Professor, what do you think about heading over to the parents' last known address, while we continue on to Tillbrook? Your point about her -- Audrey's -- parents being a potential target seems possible. They may seem like the next "logical" people to blame for her being forgotten. Any evidence that they continued to look for her might be useful.

[merias]

"I still don't think it's a good idea to split up...I say we go together to the parent's house, a few of us can quietly watch the perimiter while the others go inside," Magnus says.

[greyarea]

Hal weighs in. I agree that splitting up is not a good idea, but I do think that time is of essence. The longer we dally, the more likely Seven will strike again.

We need to find those remains so she can be put to rest and her family notified. I'm not sure what kind of clues we'd get at the parents' house though: maybe we can discover something there, maybe not. But since the majority seem to feel that's a good place to investigate, I'm for it.

While the others talk to the parents, Hal will investigate (via smartphone if necessary; via PC if possible) to try to pinpoint where the others were buried and see if he can discern a pattern or something that will help them find Audrey/Seven's remains.

[segeorge]

Webb reconsiders, thinking out loud:
Hmmm. We don’t even know if her parents still live there. So it could be a dead end. Alternatively, if the parents are targets, Audrey may already have been there.

If the parents are home, having 5 strangers show up could be daunting; Magnus’ idea to have some of us on watch makes sense; and to not delay our investigations, I can call the Tillbrook Park office from the car to find out what I can about where the rangers were and what they were doing when killed. That would also have me – and everyone else – on hand just in case we’re needed. [Tim, when getting to the parents’ house, this is what Webb will do, unless we see a situation that requires immediate action]

Then we can all head to the park. Although if it gets much later, we may need to stop off somewhere for flashlights. I might have one in the trunk, but I’d have to check [i.e., roll]

OK, Jack, can you direct us to their house?

[sniderman]

"I think we should swing by her parents place first," Lucas says. "I don't know if we'll gather any useful clues or information, or if they'll even want to speak to us, but it's on the way and Seven's on the move, and I have a nasty feeling it'll be too late if we go out to the woods first and spend a lot of time looking for we don't know what."

Webb nods in agreement as he drives. "I tend to agree, Lucas. Although I wonder if we all need to go -- maybe it's time we split up, at least temporarily. Professor, what do you think about heading over to the parents' last known address, while we continue on to Tillbrook? Your point about her -- Audrey's -- parents being a potential target seems possible. They may seem like the next "logical" people to blame for her being forgotten. Any evidence that they continued to look for her might be useful."

Magnus' voice pipes up over the phone's speaker. "I still don't think it's a good idea to split up. I say we go together to the parent's house; a few of us can quietly watch the perimeter while the others go inside."

Hal weighs in. "I agree that splitting up is not a good idea, but I do think that time is of essence. The longer we dally, the more likely Seven will strike again. We need to find those remains so she can be put to rest and her family notified. I'm not sure what kind of clues we'd get at the parents' house though: maybe we can discover something there, maybe not. But since the majority seem to feel that's a good place to investigate, I'm for it."

Webb reconsiders, thinking out loud: "Hmmm. We don’t even know if her parents still live there. So it could be a dead end. Alternatively, if the parents are targets, Audrey may already have been there. OK, Jack, can you direct us to their house?"

Jack shifts the laptop from Lucas' lap to his own and gives instructions to the team on how to reach the Burke residence. After 10 minutes, the two cars pull up in front of a small two-story ranch home in a quiet suburban neighborhood. You park the cars at the curb in front of the house.

* Hal volunteers to stay with the cars and do some research on his smartphone to try to pinpoint where the other victims were buried at Tillamook to discern a pattern or something that will help you find Audrey/Seven's remains.
* Webb feels that five strangers approaching the house may be a bit daunting, so he agrees to also stay back ond watch the house while also calling the Tillamook Park office and find out what he can about where the rangers were and what they were doing when killed.
* Jack also agrees to stay with the cars and watch the house -- just in case.

Realizing they drew the short straw, Magnus and Lucas walk up to the front door of the small suburban house. Magnus knocks at the door while Lucas stands slightly behind him. After a few tense moments, you see an eye peek at you through the curtains on the door then hear the door being unlocked. The door opens a crack, and an older woman glares at you suspiciously.

"Yes?" she asks.

Only Lucas and Magnus can reply at this time. I need to have you two tell me what you say or what you do at this initial encounter. Everyone else is doing research/keeping watch in the background for this move.

[funfungiguy]

Lucas asks if the woman is Aubrey's mother or relative, and if confirmed then he will explain that they are a group of investigators who are looking into their daughter's disappearance again, after she was connected to Baxter's case. Lucas doesn't mention anything about any paranormal activity at this time, but if pressed he'll say that it was discovered there was a connection with Baxter after a recent interview with the killer.

If she seems cooperative, he'll generally just ask her to tell him about Aubrey, and he'll be interested in asking if Aubrey had any connection to the woods where the murders took place.

[merias]

Magnus introduces himself and then asks if he and Lucas can come in, as Lucas talks to the woman he'll size up the house and pay attention to her demeanor, is she scared, hostile, friendly, etc? He's looking for signs Seven is already there.

[sniderman]

Before he knocked, Magnus keyed up his Smartphone's Voxxer app so those waiting by the cars can listen in on the conversation -- or contact Lucas and Magnus if needed.

"Good afternoon. I'm Lucas Roland and this is Magnus Villefort," Lucas says through the crack in the door. Magnus puts on his most charming smile during the introduction. "Excuse the abrupt interruption, but we're looking for Andrew and Cynthia Burke."

[[SPECIFIC check versus Lucas' Personality. Results:
Personality ability: 64 - Rolled 82 (FAILED) ]]

The elderly woman scowls. "What's this about?" she asks pointedly.

Lucas continues. "We're a team of...consultants...who are looking into a missing persons case from 40 years ago. We believe we may have information on the disappearance of Audrey Burke."

[[SPECIFIC check versus Lucas' Personality with a 10% bonus for the name-drop. Results:
Personality ability: 64 + 10% = 74 - Rolled 18 - Margin of Success: 56
Action Table results: 56 "Attack Margin" cross-indexed with Column 2 "Ability Checks" = CK result (CRITICALLY FAVORABLE) ]]

The door swings open and the scowl disappears from the woman's face. She looks surprised, eager, and hopeful. "Oh yes? Why, I'm Cindy Burke. Did you find Audrey? Do you have word on what happened? Please, after all of this time, I never thought we'd hear anything regarding her disappearance."

Magnus clears his throat. "Mrs. Burke, may Lucas and I come in to discuss this matter and ask you a few questions?"

[[SPECIFIC check versus Magnus' Personality with a 20% bonus. Results:
Personality ability: 52 + 20% = 72 - Rolled 54 - Margin of Success: 18
Action Table results: 18 "Attack Margin" cross-indexed with Column 2 "Ability Checks" = H result (HIGHLY FAVORABLE) ]]

"Oh, yes, of course. Come in!" she says as she ushers Magnus and Lucas into the house. Jack, Hal, and Webb continue to do research on their respective devices while they eavesdrop on the interview. (NOTE: I'll feed you anything you three find out later, but I've made a note that during this "downtime" is when you're doing your investigations...)

As they walk in, Magnus sizes up the house and Mrs. Burke's demeanor, looking for signs "Seven" is already there.

[[GENERAL check versus Magnus' Perception. Results:
Personality ability: 62 - Rolled 90 (FAILED) ]]

Magnus can't tell if Mrs. Burke's nervousness is due to fright or excitement. Mrs. Burke directs the two to sit on a nearby floral couch in the front living room. She shuffles over slowly (you estimate her age to be around 80) and she sits as well.

"So what do you know about Audrey? Do you have any new leads or information? Oh, I wish Andy -- my husband -- were here. He passed away 15 years ago, but he never gave up hope that we'd find out what happened to her one day."

Between Lucas and Magnus, you summarize what brought the team to Timber Grove -- primarily focusing on the "copycat killings" and the interview with Baxter (and skipping the details of Audrey's supernatural reign of vengeance from beyond...). Mrs. Burke's face darkens during the tale.

"Andy and I knew that devil had something to do with Audrey's disappearance, but the police were never able to find anything at the murder scene. They looked for a while, but they eventually just gave up," she says.

"And what of you and Andy?" Magnus asks. "Did you ever give up hope?"

Mrs. Burke stands up. "Come with me," she says as she walks throught the room and starts up some stairs. Magnus and Lucas follow her to a room on the second floor. When she opens the door, you see the bedroom of a young lady -- Audrey's room -- which has been kept clean and untouched over 4 decades.

"I come in here once a week to clean and tidy up. I've kept her room exactly like it was since the night of her vanishing," she says. "Except for one thing..." Mrs. Burke draws back the sleeve of her housecoat showing a small charm bracelet around her wrist. "This was Audrey's. She left it on her nightstand the day she vanished. I've worn it since that day."

On the dresser, Lucas sees a photo of a young woman holding a scruffy little dog. You see that it's Audrey.

"That's Audrey and her dog, Muffit. Muffit was heartbroken when Audrey never returned. He just lay up here on her bed and pined away for her until the day he died," Mrs. Burke says sadly. "She loved animals. She was studying to be a veterinarian at Oregon State. She had a real knack with them."

Lining the walls of the room are sketches and drawings of various forest and nature scenes done in pencil, charcoal, and other mediums.

[[GENERAL check versus both Lucas' and Magnus' Perception. Results:
Perception ability: 62 and 60 - Rolled 55 (SUCCESS) ]]

Magnus and Lucas examine the sketches. Featured in many of them is a large patch of wildflowers in an open glade-like area. Magnus snaps a photo of two or three images.

"Did Audrey draw these? They're quite good," Magnus says.

"Yes, she did. She loved drawing nature scenes at Tillamook," Mrs. Burke says.

MEANWHILE OUTSIDE...

[[GENERAL check versus both Hal, Jack, and Webb Perception. Results:
Perception ability: 62, 60, and 68 - Rolled 57 (SUCCESS) ]]

The three men stationed outside are on full alert, watching for anything untoward. All three of them scowl and sniff the air. There is a faint scent of flowers that seems to be growing stronger...