(dramatic orchestral music)
(opening and closing door)
- [Sam] Hello, Verna.
- Detective?
You didn't tell me you were dropping by.
- Well, we wanted to share
the news with you in person.
- What news?
Is this about David?
You found him?
- The Luddites had him, it wasn't easy,
I barely got outta there alive.
As for David, well, this
is what's left of him.
- Oh my God!
What happened?
- Unfortunately David
suffered grievous injuries
at the hands of the Luddites.
He became inoperant, soon
after we rescued him.
- But not before we were able
to get a testimony out of him.
- Testimony?
- Drop the act, sweetheart, it was you.
you were under our nose this entire time.
- Excuse me?
- David told us everything.
This brothel of yours is
nothing but a fancy decoy,
isn't that right?
Your real trade isn't
sex, it's information,
the things that your clients let slip,
while they're tussling between the sheets.
You gather this city's secrets
with the help of the
automatons you control
and you exploit it to your own advantage,
it's how you keep your finger
on the pulse of this city,
it's how you blackmailed
Henry Avery with tax fraud.
- Why didn't you just give
them what they wanted, Henry?
- Henry, don't!
(gun shot firing)
- David wanted to run away with Madeline,
but you couldn't let him do that,
he's far too valuable an asset to you,
not to mention all the dirt he's got
on your little operation here.
So you looked to get rid of Madeline
and who better to do that
for you than David himself.
- That's ridiculous,
how could I possibly get David to do that?
- David told us you have a way of control,
some means of influencing the automs
to act against their will.
Tell me it's not true.
Tell me that after David killed Madeline,
you weren't planning on
blackmailing him into staying.
Tell me that you wanted to find David,
because you actually cared
about another goddamn person
and not just to cover your own ass.
- It's not true, I told you before,
David didn't kill Madeline!
- No?
- No.
It was Carl.
- Carl?
The hell you mean, Carl?
- I didn't,
I don't remember.
- No?
Perhaps this will jog your memory.
(mellow jazz music)
- What, Carl, no, Carl!
Uh!
Uh, uh, uh, uh!
- You see, it's in the music,
usually nothing more than
a simple control melody
to keep my Betties in order
and the patrons happy,
- Carl!
- but for David,
I had to use something more specific,
something more aggressive.
Unfortunately music only
has a certain range,
I didn't expect David to
develop an immunity for it,
but there was Carl,
standing right on the
other side of the door,
spying for you, wasn't he?
(sinister music)
- [Madeleine] Oh, David.
(mellow jazz music)
(sinister music)
(gentle melodic music)
- When I found him,
he hadn't remembered anything he'd done,
just like he won't remember
any of this either.
Think about that, Sam.
- Uh!
Uh, uh!
- I have to thank you,
you've made this easy for me.
I was worried David would squawk,
but it looks like you've helped
me with that problem too.
It's too bad, they'll have to flash Carl
for killing both you and Madeline,
he would've made a fine escort.
Sweet dreams, detective.
- [Sam] Uh, uh!
Uh, uh!
Did you get all that?
Please tell me you got all
that, you're recording, right?
- Constantly.
(sighing)
- I don't,
I don't understand.
- Hell of a grip, Carl.
Thanks for the evidence, Verna,
I'm sure the boys down at the station
will get a real kick out of it.
- How?
- David taught Carl his
little immunity trick,
isn't that right, David?
(mechanical whirring)
We knew it was Carl the whole time,
we figured you might try something,
so we decided to play
it close to the vest.
Face it, Verna, it's over, the jig is up.
- Girls, help me!
Girls!
(dramatic orchestral music)
- Hands up!
Or the next sound you
hear ain't gonna be jazz.
- Officer, I assure you,
that device standing right
there is responsible.
- Sure is, lady, tell it to the judge.
- So what am I supposed to do with this?
- It's evidence.
There's something on that
record, that affects automatons.
Pass it up the chain as high as it'll go.
- Remember when the world
used to be a simpler place?
A little robbery, a little murder,
just murder.
All this techno mumbo-jumbo,
I'll get this to someone who knows better.
- We'll need to patch David up,
before we come down to the station.
- You know where to find me.
(car engine starting up)
- You alright there, Carl?
- I'm alright, I just can't believe
we were looking for me this whole time.
- Ain't you supposed to
be, you know, self-aware?
- The irony is not lost on me, I,
I am a murderer, Detective Regal.
- That wasn't you, Carl.
We've all done things we ain't proud of,
that's just living.
What you did don't have to be who you are.
- Then who am I, Sam?
- You're better than most, Carl.
(mechanical whirring and clattering)
What's he saying now?
- David recommends we
find him a new body soon,
he has several suggestions.
- Oh, yeah?
Where's a body go to find a body?
- There are a few places in Silverside
with the necessary equipment.
- Silverside?
Damn, Carl, you trying to get me killed?
- My first attempt failed.
- You got a lot of moxy
for a robot, you know that?
Does that come standard, is
that a Swangee thing, or what?
- [Carl] I compare favorably
in the moxy department.
- [Sam] Yeah, I bet you do.
Alright, let's make it snappy,
this body ain't gonna find itself.
(dramatic orchestral music)
- Usual, Gus.
(light eerie music)
That man you were looking for,
goes by Sam Regal,
cop until about a year ago,
when he up and leaves the force.
They're stopping by the station later
with the brainbox you were looking for,
gonna give testimony.
- [Roscoe] And how might one
find this detective agency?
- The shop is on 9th and Columbus,
called Regal Investigations.
Anything else you need?
(light dramatic music)
- No,
that'll do me just fine.
Thank you,
brother.
(sinister music)
