[IC] Act One: Los Angeles

"I'm willing to have a look at it," Lillian replies, "If I can't solve it, then it might be an idea, but I am somewhat concerned about what they might do when they read it."

Dr Walker and Lillian return to the hotel, where they find that Samuel is still indisposed, and begin to examine their findings from the safe deposit box. The photos - of which there are about a dozen - are fading and obviously taken from concealment - there are shrubs and pieces of furniture masking some of what's going on in them. Some are obviously shot outdoors, some inside, and presumably through windows given their appearance. Each contains between three and a dozen participants, and even the least perverse of them would easily rank as amongst the most vile acts you've ever seen.

The pictures are not titillating, or sexy, or even pornographic. The outside shots are in some sort of private garden, while the indoor ones are shot in a variety of opulently furnished rooms, except for two which appear to have been taken in either the servant's quarters or a normal, cheap apartment somewhere. While there is no clothing on any of the participants to hint at social class, several wear expensive jewelry and most appear well-coiffed, though there are a couple of participants who look like they could be vagrants.

A younger Edgar Job appears in two of the photos, eagerly participating. There is one man, a Latino-looking man of indeterminate age, who appears in every photo, again participating with great gusto.

Then Lillian notices someone that she's seen recently. It takes her a few moments - not least because from the angle of the person, it's hard to make out parts of his face - but then it clicks. When she was reading through the papers, she came across this guy, a photo of him at least. She vaguely remembers seeing an obituary in the LA Times, which at the time she simply passed by - the B movie actor Richard Spend! Going back to the newspaper morgue might reveal more there.

In order to focus on something less unsavoury, you crack open the accounts ledger, and both try to work out what';s going on there. You have already surmised that it's written in some sort of code, and it's going to be a painstaking process to decode it before you can even begin to think about what it entails. Still, you get to work on it for now.

"Oh, dear, that first picture isn't indicative of what follows. Also, I recognise him!" Lillian elaborates on Richard Spend, privately resolving to take a pass on any of his movies.

Lillian has a go at the code, with Dr Walker in assistance over the next few days, hoping her affinity with musical composition is enough.

"Good Lord..." he mutters, at the sight of the material. This is hard to watch, even for someone used to the darker sides of the human psyche. The fact that he is witnessing this in the presence of a woman makes things much more awkward. He turns various shades of red, and has to loosen his tie knot.

I must examine these... they are repulsive, but might give us a hint of some sort...

Another day and Lillian begins to see merit in seeking help through their patron's influence. Perhaps they might make an inroads in to the puzzle before that, make things easier.

The photography gets forgotten for now, the envelope buried under clothes in a suitcase.

"Well Lillian, looks like you are more maths-inclined than I am, good job.... Now, time to see what doors the Winston Rogers name can open, don't you think?" he says, grabbing his hat.
"UCLA first, then back to the Times to look into that movie star fellow?"

"All that seems like a good idea, Doctor. We should follow up Richard Spend too."

Before leaving, Gabriel arranges for the envelope to be stored in a safe for customers' use at the hotel (hopefully in one of their rooms?). The encrypted ledger they carry with them, of course.

He stops a taxi cab in the busy Los Angeles streets and gives the driver the UCLA destination.

Date: 4 June 1937 Location: Los Angeles

Lillian spends the entire day poring over the accounts ledger, trying one thing or another, before making a startling breakthrough, thanks to an off-handed comment from Dr Walker, and believes she has made considerable headway in solving this encrypted conundrum, though the entirety still evades her somewhat. It's certainly not a simple code, double-layered to increase security, and she's managed to fully peel back the first layer (having the "Towncar" and "Black" clues has helped considerably - at least one of them had to be something cropping up regularly, and you think you narrowed it down to a couple of possibilities, especially since one kept getting mentioned with withdrawals of profits (at least you think so, and which was presumably "Black," ie Echavarria).

The following morning, with letters, numbers and symbols still revolving around Lillian's head, the pair of you decide to set off for UCLA.



Armed with the name of a maths professor, Stuart Tichener, you wander around the university, a new-built (less than 10 years ago) Romanesque campus that's still in the building phase - you can see new buildings being erected here and there on the outskirts of the campus. The university as an institution is older, of course, and some departments are still on the old campus, but the majority have now moved into their new buildings here, just outside the downtown city.



Prof. Tichener's office is quite spacious, though filled with books and papers everywhere, several chalkboards filled with indeterminable squiggles that you suppose are mathematical proofs.

"Professor Tichener? We are here on behalf of Miss Winston Rogers, I believe she contacted you?"

He will introduce himself and Lillian, and illustrate the cryptography problem at hand, making sure he shares Lillian's progress on it.

"Here is the encrypted document, a ledger of some sort. We thought you maths geniuses could be interested in cracking it?"