Part 102: The Murder of Amadeus Bowen

[BGM: That Pesky Rodent]


I think something's wrong with this case.

What, you think this Aaron dude's innocent?

I don't know, I just think something's wrong. Let me just... for my own sake, I want to try laying things out about the case. Is that okay?

Shoot.

It's not as if we have much better to do.



Okay, so it's important to note the geography of the crime scene. The majority of the action took place on the second floor.

Walking in from up the stairs, there is a generally accessible bathroom directly to the left. Further on the left is one waiting room, and across from the waiting room is the door to Amadeus' private office. Against the wall in the center of the room is the secretary's desk.

Where Sheep worked?

Right. Also along the back wall was the door to a different waiting room to the right, and the door to a storage closet to the left.

If I'm remembering the scene correctly, all the doors had windows that could be seen through. That's how I was able to watch everything unfold, after all.

It also might be relevant to note that both waiting rooms and the storage closet all had windows. ...Well, since all the windows were found locked from the inside, it's probably not relevant, but I still think it's worth mentioning. The windows actually had little architectural slabs which could, in theory, be stood on.



Wait, you're saying you could walk between these windows?

I'm saying it would be very risky, but possible to move between windows. However, the slab outside of the storage closet had broken off a while ago. If the window was open, it'd possible to maybe move from one slab to the inside of the storage closet by leaning against the wall.

However, unless you were incredibly athletic – like Tiger or Horse level – it'd be impossible to jump out the storage closet window onto another slab. Since it fell off, it'd also probably be impossible to move from the slab outside the window of one waiting room area to the other – again, unless you were as athletic as Tiger or Horse.

That's a lot of detail for something you claim isn't relevant to the case.

My father pursued this line of reasoning a lot when looking into his defense. He thought it could be relevant. However, he was never able to work it into the case. And so, it became an irrelevant detail.

...So okay. That's the layout. The day started with Bowen meeting with a contractor who was doing construction right outside the building. Thinking about it... that was probably Horse.



Bowen's secretary – who I guess was Sheep – arrived at some point in the morning as well. Early enough to see Horse leave Bowen's office and go down the stairs. The athlete – who I guess would be Tiger – then arrived at the scene.

Bowen had a policy of only meeting with people when he felt good and ready, so Sheep directed Tiger to the waiting room to the right. The next person to arrive would be the artist – that's you, right Snake?

Correct. I was commissioned to make a sculpture for Mr. Bowen. It was a hollow metal statue of a giant wallowing in despair, made from the remains of my past failed sculptures.

I quite liked that piece.

So if I remember right, you were carrying the statue with you at the time.

Yes. That thing was bigger than me, so moving it was a real pain in the ass.

You were told you could drop the statue, and then you were directed to the left-most waiting room.



Indeed. Sheep then proceeded to take my statue, almost drop it, and then move it into the storage room.

Most people would start looking on their phones or read a magazine when directed to wait. But according to you, you did no such thing.

Indeed. I was deep in my thoughts that day. When I get in that state, it's almost trancelike. If I'm like that, I can be very simple-minded, forgetting even the most basic of things. So, while in thought, I blankly stared out the window.

Oh, but don't get me wrong. Just because I wasn't paying attention doesn't mean I would've missed something.

Sure, sure. Anyways, then the actor came in the building.

Lemme guess – Rooster?

Presumably. He was also shown to the right-most waiting room.



A bit of time passed, until Rooster's stomach started acting up. He exited the right-most waiting room and made for the bathroom.

Correct. I saw him exit myself.

A bit after that, Sheep went downstairs to the first floor to have breakfast in the break room. Around this point was the earliest the autopsy report estimated Bowen could have been killed.

But not when he was killed, right?

No. I saw her leave, and I also had a direct line of view to Amadeus' office.

After finally dealing with his stomach problems, Rooster left the restroom and returned to the right-most waiting room. Then, Sheep returned from breakfast and sat back down at her desk. This all line up with what you saw, Snake?

Indeed.

A bit more time passed, and this is when Aaron Morris finally comes up the stairs and enters Amadeus' office. Amadeus had texted him to meet him in his office, that he had something important to tell him.

Importantly, Amadeus was wearing a big overcoat and was carrying a suitcase. Unlike everyone else present, he had a means of concealing what would be the fatal weapon as well as the stacks of cash later found missing from Amadeus' safe.



This is where Aaron's story starts getting nonsensical. He claims that Amadeus 'remotely fired him'. Saying that he didn't want to be in the same room as Aaron, in case Aaron got violent.

According to Aaron, when he walked in the room, a laptop started to play a message left for him that told him to pack his stuff and leave. Furious, Aaron stormed out of the room and complied.

This was Aaron's real mistake. He underestimated how thoroughly cyber analysts can vet this stuff.

No such video or audio file was found on the laptop. No files had been deleted from the laptop for a while. The bluetooth speakers the laptop was connected to which played the message hadn't been connected to any device other than the laptop.

Basically, there's no trace of this message Aaron talks about, anywhere. And that's not nothing.

Also, it's such a weird fucking lie. I mean, leaving a message in your office to fire somebody? Who's ever heard of some bullshit like that? It doesn't make any sense.

Maybe that was the point.

Huh?

Forget it.



Anyways, the important point here is that he claims Amadeus wasn't in the room at the time. Or at least, not in the room in a way Aaron could see.

Say, when was the last time a reliable source saw Amadeus alive? Would that be... Horse?

I think Sheep might have talked to him or something? I don't remember the details on that part well enough... I'll have to learn more about that.

Anyways, it was at this point that Aaron drove off back to his home. Horse saw him leaving. He and some coworkers had been working in the area for a while now. Some amount of cash bearing Amadeus' fingerprints would later be found in that car's glove compartment.

Next, 'Amadeus' texted Snake, asking him to bring the statue into his office.

It was certainly odd. I planned on talking to the man about the piece myself.



However, I knew that Amadeus liked to do things his way. I complied, and went into the storage compartment. I noticed that Sheep had been kind enough to put the statue atop a piece of cardboard and leave it on a dolly.

Wheeling it with the dolly made it much easier to transport the statue. Although, not as easy as I would have expected.

You're saying that this was likely a faked text?

That's the going theory.

Then hold on, how would Morris have sent it? I mean, he'd left at this point, right? And the phone was eventually found on Bowen's body? Then what's the deal?

It turns out Bowen had an app on his phone which let him schedule texts to be sent at a later time. And analysis revealed that the app was used on that text.

Well, that doesn't look good for Aaron's case.

Anyways, I dropped off the statue, dolly and all, in Bowen's office. At this point I was a little irritated about how I was being treated, so I didn't bother arranging the piece for him. I simply left the building.



So at this point, your testimony ends. Coincidentally, the autopsy estimates that the latest Bowen could have been killed was about when Snake left.

Oh, then perhaps I did it.

Behave.

Wait a second, couldn't he totally have done it? The secretary was gone for a good bit, right? Couldn't he have entered Bowen's office at this point?

Not possible.

Huh?

Remember – Snake wasn't the only witness. Tiger was also there, sitting in a place where she could have seen through the door window. She might not have been focused on it all the time, but the way the building was set up, the door to Bowen's office opening would be in full view of the window.

She couldn't miss it. In a sense, Snake and Tiger kept each other in check. Tiger couldn't leave the room without Snake seeing her. Snake couldn't enter the office without Tiger seeing him. And no one else could get to the office without both of them acting as witness.



A rather elegant maze of vision, wouldn't you say?

A real pain in the ass, it sounds like.

Anyways, after this, a little time passed. Rooster got fed up with waiting, left the waiting room, and stormed into Amadeus' office. Sheep tried to stop him, but he pushed past her. She expected to hear shouting, knowing her boss was not a man who tolerated such disrespect.

However... a bit of time passed, and nothing happened. Curious, Sheep looked in the room, to see Rooster twirling around in Bowen's chair.

What, so Rooster was just poking around the victim's room alone for a bit? Ain't that suspicious?

It is odd. Might be worth asking about. At the time, Rooster claimed he was just admiring the room. Sheep kicked him out of the room and, at this point, he left the whole building, fed up. However, at this point, Sheep got worried, not knowing where Mr. Bowen was.



She tried calling his phone, but got no response. If she had really listened, she might have heard the phone going off in the safe. After a bit more time, Sheep began to worry where her employer might be. She called 911 about a person who had gone missing.

A bit of an overreaction at that point, don't ya think?

Well, she was right to overreact. Anyways, a cop that happened to be nearby was sent to check out the place. That cop was presumably Bunny. Sheep explained the situation to him, and in turn Bunny began to search the area.

Before too long, he decided to open the rather large and conspicuous safe in Mr. Bowen's room. Inside, he found the body of one Amadeus Bowen, stuffed in his own safe. Some amount of cash had seemingly been moved out of the way to make room.

It was at this point the office was declared a crime scene, and Tiger was asked to leave.

Wait, so Tiger was just sitting there the whole time?

That tracks.

Amadeus was found to have been bludgeoned to death with a statue in his office. A statue that would later be found in a river nearby Aaron Morris' house. He was also strangled with a thin, wire-like instrument.

Coroners actually argued over whether or not this was the thing that killed him and the blow to his head was post-mortem, or if this simply knocked him out.

[BGM: Silence]


So, yeah, that's the case.

Impressive memory, Mouse. Especially for someone not involved in the case.

Yeah, you know it better than I do.

Like I said, my dad talked about it quite a bit.

So, like... That's cool and all, but what's the point?

Hm?

[BGM: Eyes of the Dragon]


I mean, by your own story, it's clear that Brian's dad did it, right?

That would indeed be the natural conclusion.

When you combine everybody's testimonies, the time of death, the money in the car, the odd story about the pre-recorded message, and the stolen master card... Yeah, it definitely looks that way. I mean... that's what I thought for the longest time. But if there's more to the story, then maybe...

I was at a loss for words. It's not like I could come up with a solution. How could I? The world had been unable to, prior to this point. However, Dog clicked his tongue.

You know... I think there's actually a hole in that story.

What do you mean?

For the first time, Dog thought carefully about his next words.



You know when I showed everybody the knife?

Yeah?

Well, I was reaction testing.

I'm a pretty good poker player... which means I'm pretty good at reading people. And while it was minor, when I showed off that knife, I thought I saw a tell.

I wasn't sure before if I was just imagining things or what, but... Recounting the story like that, with a suspect in mind–

[BGM: Punching Bag]


Before Dog could continue, something very strange happened. All of a sudden, heavy metal music began to blare throughout the room. It was coming from some speakers on the wall I hadn't paid much mind to before this point. I guess it was a stereo system meant to play music? I tried to ask Dog what was happening, but whatever he answered, I could barely hear. I mean, it was blaring loud. Why did speakers even go this loud???

Dog began to walk up the stairs heading to the door, trying to see what the hell was happening. However... he wasn't the one to open the door. It swung open on its own. And from the door came a gloved hand, holding a shotgun. ...Holding a shotgun right to the head of Dog. No, no, no, no NO! This wasn't good. I tried to run forward, but the chain connected to my neck held me back. God damn it Dog, why did you need to so thoroughly imprison us when we were on the same team?!

It seemed as though Dog was frantically trying to convince the person of something. Although it seemed like a moot point, with the music being as loud as it was. But his face was flushed with something. Something more than just horror. It was... recognition in his eyes. ...After a few seconds, it was clear that negotiations were not in the cards. Dog began to turn his head towards us. And in that moment, I saw the shotgun recoil back.

*BLAM!*



It recoiled, because it had just sent a bullet flying through Dog's head.

NO!

Why, when everything else was so loud, could I hear my own scream with such crystal clear accuracy?! Why was that what I was able to hear? After firing the shotgun, the gloved hand which had been holding it retreated back behind the doorframe. Dog, on the other hand, put his two seconds left of life to some use. One of his hands, he clasped around his own mouth. And with his other, he stuck out three fingers.

I had... no idea what this meant. But he looked me dead in the eyes when he did this. He was doing it for me. It was unnerving, the sight of Dog staring me down with blood rushing out the side of his head. I don't know at what point he stopped seeing me. But I know at what point I stopped seeing him... because a few seconds later, the lights in the basement went out.

It was pitch black. At the same time, the music stopped. I could very clearly hear the sound of footsteps going down the stairs. I could hear the footsteps approaching. And I could hear the sound of a shotgun being pumped. I closed my eyes, trembling and shaking. ...And then I couldn't hear much of anything.

… … …

… …

…

[BGM: Cock a Doodle Doo]


U-um... hello? Is this the right place?

Ah, Pig! So good of you to join us! Come have a seat, let me pour you a drink.

Rooster was standing at the bar tap, acting like a bartender.

Been watching noir recently?

How did you know?

Just a guess. Well, it's good to see you guys. I'm surprised we're allowed to enter this place. I thought the police would be keeping it under surveillance.

We were, but it became clear pretty soon that Dog didn't plan on returning to his bar when he was on the run from the state.

So if no one's here running this place, how was it all unlocked?

Locks are really more of a suggestion than anything.



Anyways, is this everybody?

Everybody who we know is still alive, at any rate.

Don't speak like that. I'm sure Mouse, Snake, and Dragon are all still alive!

Unfortunately, the odds of that drop day by day.

Ox? Since when did you become such a pessimist?

We talked back in that high school, right? Anyways, I also didn't think Dog planned on killing those three when he kidnapped them. But the practicality of keeping three grown adults as hostages for weeks is quite difficult.

If they don't show up soon...



Well, maybe this is the matter Dog wishes to speak with us about. I imagine he didn't call us here for no good reason.

Uh, yeah, about that. Are we sure this is a good idea? Meeting him like this? Shouldn't we have, I don't know, brought the cops or something?

Hey, we did bring a cop. Bunny's here, after all!

Yeah, heh heh, you got me there.

… Uh, well, basically, I was very strongly suggested not to contact backup.

St-strongly suggested?

Obviously it would be ideal to contact the correct authorities. However, Dog made it pretty clear that he wouldn't be showing hide nor hair of himself if he heard about the cops poking around. As an ex-cop himself, he probably has connections that could inform him if we tried anything.

At this point, I think it's just best to comply.

This feels unwise.

Yeah, I thought we didn't negotiate with terrorists!

Well, Dog should be showing up soon, right? Then we'll start to get some answers about this whole crazy incident. And we can finally wrap things up – end things for good.

[BGM: Silence]


???: Oh, we'll be bringing things to an end alright.

A wave of panic shot through the room as the group flashed back to the last time they heard a digitally altered voice.

*pssssssss...*

However, before anything could be done, the entire room flashed bright and filled with smoke. The group was in chaos. There was pushing, shouting, screaming. And the sounds of loud electric shocks. One by one, the sound of bodies hitting the floor echoed through the bar. The lights flickered out, and the already prone bodies were put to sleep for sure.

It was a wipe.

… … …

… …

…



Waking up in an unfamiliar environment after being electrocuted, bound, and gagged isn't something you should feel deja vu about. However, as my head spun, I felt just like I did when I woke up in Brian's crazy death game. And as I looked around my surroundings, the similarities didn't end there.

[BGM: Rat's Awakening]


I realized I was in another classroom.

I realized there was something strapped to my stomach under my shirt.

I saw a computer, with a Mouse image attached to it.

No.

No, no, no.

No, there's no way.

This couldn't be happening! Not again, not again!!