Part 129: Scarlet Star

(There's only one place I now in this apartment that's got a lighthouse.)
(The roof. This is it. Time to get myself up there.)

I push the button for the roof.



Huh?



Music: Deep Distrust

Lighthouse There's a majestic lighthouse monument on the roof. A light is shining from it.



Remember that in the secret room, the condor's beak points to the diamond?



Wall There's a shadow being cast on the brick wall thanks to the light from the lighthouse.


Brick 1 Some of the bricks have begun to deteriorate.
Brick 2 Some of the brickwork looks pretty shabby due to wear and tear of the rain.
Brick 3 There's nothing interesting about this part of the wall.
Brick 4 The surface of the brickwork is in bad shape and partly coming away.
Brick 5 The edges of the bricks are weathered and crumbling.
Brick 6 There's a thin layer of filth covering the entire surface of the brickwork.
Brick 7 Up close, I can see hundreds of tiny cracks in the brickwork.
Shadow The condor shadow's beak is stretching across the bricks.

Lighter brick The surface of the brickwork is slightly dirty.

Strange. This brick looks newer than the others...



I've got it! This is it, the Scarlet Star!



The coldness of the beautifully shining jewel spreads through my hand.

"Item: Locate the Scarlet Star, which disappeared at Hotel Cape West 25 years ago." So this is the thing you've been searching for, is it, Will McGrath? And with it comes the truth of what happened all those years ago.







I guess eye superpowers are hereditary.

My dad made a promise with Frank to enable him to leave his shady past behind. He snuck into the manager's office, cracked open the safe and stole the Scarlet Star.







Then Michael McGrath arrived on the scene, and he shot and killed my dad.









Maybe...when he died...he was clutching this very thing in his hands.



The jewel gradually starts to grow warmer in my hand. It feels as though the stone is transcending the 25 years since it was held by him, bringing us together again. As I dwell on this, I feel a warm, melting kind of sensation from it.

Looks like I'll be fulfilling the requirements of that order after all. Time to give this to the one person left who bears the responsibility of Kathy's death.

*Elevator noise*



The elevator opens and somebody emerges.









I assume I have you to blame for switching the lighthouse on, do I?
Yeah, I did it alright.
Then I must also assume...



What?

Music: Resolution
Just how did you know that there was a switch inside the room in the first place?
What happened to you not even knowing where that place was?
I apologise.



Naturally, I was aware of what the room contains, too.

Music: Sharpened Blade


Show 1950 hotel photo
I suspected as much. It was inevitable that you would discover the secret that this apartment building holds.
Show Condor records
I... I couldn't stop him...
Show photo and police badge
I shall leave it to you to deal with this matter.
Show Scarlet Star
No, it couldn't be...

Why did you need to lie?

If you knew about the hidden chamber, why did you need to lie?
Let's just say I had no intention of discussing my knowledge of that room with anybody. I breathed a sigh of relief when I decided to sell off the building,
safe in the knowledge that the secret would disappear once the building is demolished.
I suppose, looking back, I was hoping for a little too much.

...Then why didn't you just sell and demolish the building immediately?

I never imagined you'd take to snooping around and looking into the building's past.
Then, Mr Hyde, when you came round looking for information, I thought to myself:



So I had to decide...
On the one hand, I could leave while everything was still shrouded in secrecy, or I could risk letting everything come to light. It was essentially a gamble.
What do you mean a "gamble"?
A gamble to see if you'd be able to find that room or not.
So you gambled everything on me and whether I'd find it?
Precisely.



What were you trying to hide?

What were you trying to hide?
The crimes that he committed of course! His time as Condor's ringleader, the stolen jewellery and illegal sales... Not to mention keeping it all under the LAPD's radar, despite one of them being involved.
And lastly, the unfortunate killing of Kathy.
The crimes committed by George here in this very building... They needed to be kept hidden. All of them. And I intended to do just that. I was planning to take these truths with me to the grave.

...Why? For what reason?

But, as we can both see, that proved futile.

How did you think it would end?

How did you think it would end?
I was fully aware that there was little hope I'd keep everything secret.



So you appreciated what was at stake should you lose your gamble?
Yes, but as soon as we started talking about the secret room, my mind was made up.
If you found the room, I would lose my gamble, and then I'd need to let you in on everything I knew.
If you failed, however, then I wouldn't need to talk to you on the subject any further.
Then my gamble would have paid off.

What made you think I'd find it?

What made you think I'd find it?
I knew it would take a focused individual, and you more than fitted that description. I could see it in your eyes.
Damn right I'm focused!
You don't think I'd waste my time looking around this place without good reason, do you?
No, of course not.
I was truly surprised when you came to me and told me you knew about 25 years ago.
The fact that the safecracker Michael shot turned out to be your father...
I doubt anybody could've anticipated that one.
Yeah, what're the odds, huh?
Maybe I knew, Mr Hyde... Even as you arrived at my room today, I knew what was going to happen.
Somewhere deep down I must have realised that you would uncover the whole thing.

Music: Mulling It Over


Have you found everything you were looking for?
Yeah, I think I have. Michael's 13-year-old diary, the proof the connects the LAPD and Condor,
even the Scarlet Star. I've uncovered them all.
You found the Scarlet Star?
Certainly did. Michael McGrath left some helpful clues behind. They led me to the hidden chamber and helped me get it. I have it now.
Is that so...
Here, take a look. *gives the Scarlet Star*
So this is the Scarlet Star.
Sure is.
Your husband didn't take the disappearance of it lightly and killed Kathy as a result.
The Scarlet Star going missing was where this whole horrible ordeal began.
Not quite. Condor's theft of the Scarlet Star in the first place is where it really started.
If George Patrice were still alive, I'd be showing the thing to him, and we'd be having a very frank chat about his crimes.

...Assuming he wouldn't just kill you and take the Scarlet Star off your body.

I'm sure you would, but as he's no longer with us, that will never happen.
True. The same with Michael.



What?
I was only concerned with keeping it hidden, not keeping it for myself. Since you found it, you've earned the right to keep it. In fact, everything you found is as good as yours. The room and all its contents.
Which, by extension, means that disposing of it all also falls to you.

Mags just doesn't want to bother moving all those stuff out of that small crawlspace

Are you sure about this?
I am.
I understand.
Okay then, I suppose it's time for me to tell you everything.