Episode 2

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Things are heating up for your contact, Julia Adler. The Board of the Cadence Theatre has put the Cadence up for sale in the wake of the bad publicity from Viola's murder. Now the clock is ticking. Will you be able to solve the mystery before the Cadence is sold?

Back in the 1930s, it appeared that Viola had been feeling oppressed by her mother, Olga, in the time leading up to the murder. She had been carrying on an affair with an unnamed person over the course of her engagement to Hector. Hector, meanwhile, had sent a letter to Olga, thanking her for her involvement in their relationship.

A police interview conducted after Viola's disappearance shows that Evelyn was the last person to see Viola before her disappearance. She mentions that Viola was distressed when she left for a dinner engagement. Police interviewed all of the suspects in the murder except Ruth Erikson, who was not available for comment. Additionally, someone had a lockbox delivered to the Cadence - what could it have contained?

Hints

Coded Letter

  • The writer uses the term "backwards" to describe their method of writing. Another item in this box could be helpful to understanding this cipher.
  • The writer also mentions that the truth will emerge when Vanity becomes Elegance. The capitalized letters in this phrase may suggest something about the cipher method used here. Notice that these letters also appear on the handkerchief.
  • The writer is using an Atbash cipher, which reverses the alphabet so that A = Z, B = Y, and so on.

Delivery Slip

  • This is a variation code that the writer, Joe, has already used once before.
  • In the grid drawn onto the delivery slip, the letters "MNO" are in the top-right corner. Try arranging the rest of the alphabet around these letters using the same method as the stage directions from Episode 1.

Florist Order

  • Examine the florist receipt in the DELANCY folder on MIchelle Gray's virtual desktop online. Pay attention to the flowers ordered and the time written on this order. It can be checked against another document in this episode and a document from Episode 1.
  • The dog roses mentioned on the florist order are also mentioned on the police report from this episode and on the rehearsal notes from Episode 1.

Ledger

  • The code on this ledger is a shift cipher. The shift itself relates to the two numbers in the time signatures that correspond to each encoded phrase. The cipher guide on the virtual desktop may help you decipher this code.
  • The top number in each time signature refers to which letters in each word are being shifted (1 being every letter, 2 being every other letters, 3 being every third letter, and so on). The bottom number refers to the number of spaces by which each of these letters is shifted.

Police Report

  • This document includes interviews with each suspect except Ruth Erikson. Use other documents in this and future episodes to confirm suspects' alibis.

Reveals

Coded Letter

  • Deciphered, the phrases are, in order:

    • Darling
    • Mother
    • Ruth
    • never been cast in Duo
    • every single one of them I've been with you
    • Mother
    • Hector
    • film premieres
    • I need to get out of this city. But my contract and my engagement make that impossible
    • make a choice of my own
    • Hector
    • reception plans
    • Mother
    • meet in my dressing room while they're busy
    • See you soon
    • Viola

Delivery Slip

  • Joe has written "Let me know if you need help hiding this from him" on the delivery slip.

Florist Order

  • Joe mentioned getting flowers, specifically dog roses, for Viola in the police report and the rehearsal notes. This order shows that he was at the flower shop at 6 PM.

Ledger

  • The encoded phrases on the ledger read, in order:

    • Gifts
    • Loan 30% interest
    • Everything's going to be okay now that you're coming back.
    • Get in touch about loans.
    • Call bank about mortgage.
    • Loan 30% interest
    • Gifts
    • Olga
    • Buyers? Ira?

Solution

  • Joe Sampson's alibi checks out and can, therefore, be eliminated as a suspect.
  • In the police report, Joe acknowledges taking the cane, which would later become the murder weapon, from Olga. However, in Evelyn's testimony, Evelyn admits to taking Olga's cane to Viola's dressing room. This means that anyone with access to Viola's dressing room around 5:57 PM would have had access to the murder weapon.
  • Joe claims he left the Cadence Theatre at 5:23 PM to purchase flowers for Viola. This is corroborated by George in the police report. Joe also said that he returned from his errand at around 6:30 PM and that Viola, her belongings, and the trunk in her dressing room were already gone.
  • Joe's alibi can be confirmed with the florist order. The time written on the order places him at the shop at 6 PM, only three minutes after Viola's approximate time of death. The address of the florist's shop is 616 East 75th Street. The Cadence Theatre, as stated on its website at www.cadencetheatre.com/visit and on Julia's letters, is located on the corner of 39th and Broadway. Joe could not have traveled 36 blocks in three minutes between the time of the murder and the time he signed for the flowers. Therefore, Joe could not have killed Viola Vane.

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