story Chapter 2

[matt_s]

Recent events had been strange, to put it rather lightly. From a brief survey of his compatriots, they seemed to not have had an overly restful night's sleep either. But they were on the trail and owed it to Broder to see it through. With a deep breath, Coupard said, Allow me, and deftly operated the latch and opened the box, waiting to see inside with bated breath.

[Caystodd]

Livingston turned and reached into Maria's bag and produced two rubber surgical gloves. She held them in her hand and stepped forward so she could see what was in the box when Coupard opened it.

[Butchern]

The top of the metal box opened with a clang against the table. A horrible smell wafted up from the box as it opened.

 

Inside the box, wrapped in plastic that was covered in tape, lay the feathery misshapen body of a large black bird.

Edited October 19, 2022 by Butchern
redundant word (see edit history)

[Sir Lazeabout]

"Gazooks!" Malcolm puts his hand over his mouth. "I think we can forego our plans of trying to secure a specimen of those disagreeable fowls for study. It seems Abraham had the same notion."

[matt_s]

Indeed. said Coupard. But now it is ever clearer that those blasted birds are at the center of all this, if indeed there was any remaining doubt. I will ask the bank manager regarding the history of this box as far as confidentiality allows and then perhaps we can remove ourselves to a place that would allow a more thorough examination of the specimen.

 

Heading over to the banker, Coupard politely will inquire to the nature of the bank's interactions with Broder and if any special comment or memo was attached to this particular reserved deposit box.

[Caystodd]

Livingston put her back to the door and donned her rubber gloves. She motioned with her head for Maria to come stand beside her as she moved the specimen from the box to Maria's purse so they could secret it out of the bank without a fuss.

 

She quietly peeled off her gloves and shoved them down into the bag as well.

 

She gave Maria an apologetic look.

[Butchern]

On 10/19/2022 at 3:40 PM, matt_s said:

Heading over to the banker, Coupard politely will inquire to the nature of the bank's interactions with Broder and if any special comment or memo was attached to this particular reserved deposit box.

The banker stood as Coupard entered his office, and they chatted for a minute about the history of the box. The banker couldn't not be much more help than Broder's son had been.

 

"He rented the box . . . in person, if I remember correctly . . . about a month ago. The box is paid up for 61 more days." He checked the ledger in his hand to be sure. "Professor Broder never filled out a ledger with the bank so that its contents might be covered by the bank's insurance, but that isn't all that unusual. These boxes usually only contain papers of a private or business nature and not worth insuring. He visited the box one . . . no, twice . . ." He corrected his memory by looking down at his ledger. "The last time was about a week and a half ago. He did not look well then."

[matt_s]

I thank you kindly for your time and assistance. We may reach out via telephone with further inquiries, but for now, I believe we are almost ready to take our leave. Coupard says to the banker before rejoining the others.

 

He will wait for the others to finish up sequestering the specimen among their personal effects. In a quiet voice, Coupard says,

We have the bird, and I think we might wish to strike while the iron is hot. Is there an appropriately furnished and sufficiently private location for us to examine it? The banker did mention that Broder visited the box about a week and a half before today, and was not looking well. Perhaps a second examination of Broder's medical records and autopsy is in order, but I'd reckon the bird should come first.

 

[Sir Lazeabout]

Malcolm nods.

 

"Indeed, indeed! We have a most excellent physician with us - perhaps she can discern some informative anomalies in the creature's insides!"

[Caystodd]

Livingston raised an eyebrow.

 

”I have little experience with autopsy, and even less with necropsy. But the library at the College should have adequate resources on avian anatomy by which we might make useful observations and comparisons.”

 

Once she said the words out loud, she wondered, for the first time, what she might actually find when she cut the bird open.

[matt_s]

Coupard nods in response to Livingston. Academic knowledge was always more narrow than an outside might expect. And even in one's own field, a reference to a textbook or journal article could come in handy frequently.

 

That sounds like a fine idea, Doctor. At the very least a steady hand with a scalpel and forceps will come in most handy.

[Butchern]

It took most of the morning at the College to secure dissection instruments and a laboratory that would be away from prying eyes.

 

Then they headed to the library to find books on avian anatomy.

[matt_s]

Finding the volumes on avian anatomy was as simple as lodging a query at the librarian lounging at the front desk reading the local paper. But Coupard was in his element here, and he paced through the stacks running down one Dewey Decimal code  - which he, naturally, knew by heart in all areas of the sciences - after another. Of course, he couldn't ask the librarian directly. They had implicitly given an oath to "tell no one" to the late Broder, and in any case Coupard could hardly go up to the library and ask Good morning, kind madam. Do you by chance have any tomes on birds that stalk people in their waking life and in their dreams? Or what about mysterious rocks that befuddle all sorts of scientific equipment? Jolly good, I will head right to section 18.1C.

 

Coupard had met people who had come to the university with nonsense queries before. He had always written them off as cranks. Now, he was not so sure. As he ventured from shelf to shelf, jotting down the occasional note on a pad of paper, Coupard tried to shake such ideas from his head. No time for such introspection now.

[Sir Lazeabout]

Malcolm does his modest best to help the others look for the right literature, though he finds his thoughts brooding less on the details of ornithology and more of dark legends of black wings and dark, all-seeing eyes...

[Caystodd]

Livingston headed straight for the card catalog while Maria stood by to be sure than no one looked over her shoulder.

 

It was a bird. How hard could it be.