Sud-Ouest

Subject: Sud-Ouest Mon Nov 12, 2012 11:05 am

http://goo.gl/maps/4mmiv

The Sud-Ouest building is between the Theatre and El Bodegon, but not on the Saint Catherine Street. It's quite in a private street, hardly available to car drivers as the section is narrow. The place is known enough to locals and residents as the place is quite big and noticable. And it's right next to a middle school.

Friday Night.
The door is open as there is a car that just entered the inside court. There are few movements inside, but apart from a few lights, the surroundings are dead.

Subject: Re: Sud-Ouest Thu Nov 29, 2012 2:18 pm

Carrion's arrival seems uneventful for the moment. The street is quiet but she still looks around to make sure no one is following her after she's manoeuvred her scooter in after the car to the inside of the courtyard and off to the side to make sure it doesn't obstruct anyone wanting to enter or leave.

Once she's happy that no one is following or watching her she makes her way uncertainly to the entrance of the building. Before entering she pulls out her phone and makes a phone call to Pierre.

Pierre:

Subject: Re: Sud-Ouest Mon Dec 03, 2012 10:18 am

The place stays very silent. Pierre answers the phone quite fast.

phone:

He doesn't let her any real chance to answer and hangs up.

Subject: Re: Sud-Ouest Fri Dec 07, 2012 4:42 pm

Carrion blinks for a moment before going to type her text message.

Pierre:

When she's slipped her phone back into her pocket she takes one last look around before making her way inside.

Subject: Re: Sud-Ouest Mon Dec 10, 2012 9:27 am

Pierre doesn't answer yet. It's clear he's busy as hell.

The Sud-Ouest building has been being emptied over the past few months, something about moving the publishing and the HQ elsewhere, under the financial pressure as this place is worth its price (localization and size are interesting, with many speculators wishing to acquire the place to make it profitable). Yet it has been like this for years, while this time it seems serious. Carrion can't help but think Theodore wants it to stay there.
The place is quite silent, but as she was told, it's not empty. A few people are working inside in the main floor, checking information, making the layout, and proof-printing the newspapers for it to be sent to press so it could be delivered on Saturday morning to the retailers and to the subscribers. It's madness, the few people inside are shouting at each other corrections, layouts, new infos and ranting about random errors ; the typical newspaper pre-printing rush, actually. Carrion may step in easily in the middle of the madness, and not be as noticed as she could be, until the guy walking from computer to computer with tons of papers in the arms sees her. It's a man with short black hair, in his 40's, who hasn't slept for two days at least, and who is smoking despite being in a closed up building. He's wearing a sweater and some jeans, both stained by the fresh ink of the printers (he probably changed toners or else).
(Publisher) Hey yo ! You're Teddy's gal ? Erwan what the hell are those spelling mistakes of a three year old ? And justify me this text, that colom is too wide..

He's not particularly happy to see her, and certainly in a hurry as he barely gives her any attentions. The others seem stressed enough but they obey and respond quickly.

Subject: Re: Sud-Ouest Mon Dec 10, 2012 11:05 am

Carrion's eyes wander the room warily, she looks for any sign of trouble and possible exits she may need to use, her posture says that she's at ease though. She watches the Publisher with mute interest waiting for him to finish shouting at his subordinates, when the exchange is finished she speaks up for the first time.

Yes, he explained what I was looking for?

She doesn't really care if he is happy to see her or not, so long as he co-operates with her he can hate her for all she cares but for the sake of fostering good relations she adds.

Would you like some help with that?

She gestures to the mass of papers in his hands.

Subject: Re: Sud-Ouest Thu Dec 13, 2012 1:20 pm

The man refuses the help. He puts down most papers on a nearby empty desk, but not empty of 'things'.
(Publisher) No actually he didn't tell me much, something about double checking a few things ? I dunno nor do I care. Perrot's things are there. She quit a couple of weeks ago but didn't come take her things yet. You can browse that as long as you don't make a mess. Good luck !

He points to a few stacked up boxes on yet another table, which was probably a computer desk a life-time ago. It has no dust but as any journalist will tell you, it has its own logic as far as classifying and putting away things. It'll take hours to read everything, and hours more to understand the notes and put everything together to find the information she needs. The man isn't being mean about it, he's just very very stressed, and quite bossy. He takes back part of the papers to give them out fo the person doing the layout.
(Publisher) This font, not that one, and check out the interlines.

Subject: Re: Sud-Ouest Sat Dec 15, 2012 4:43 pm

Carrion follows him and looks when he points at Perrot's desk nodding her head slightly. She doesn't offer up any further explanation as to her purpose.

Thanks, I'll be out of your hair as quickly as possible.

Moving to the desk she pulls out the chair and sits taking the first box and methodically going through it's contents. When she finds something of interest she photographs it with her phone, inspects the quality of the image and continues looking. When she's done with something it goes back exactly as she finds it.

storyteller:

Subject: Re: Sud-Ouest Mon Dec 17, 2012 8:37 am

Eyes:

Subject: Re: Sud-Ouest Thu Dec 20, 2012 12:24 pm

storyteller:

Subject: Re: Sud-Ouest Sun Dec 23, 2012 6:13 pm

After three hours of meticulous search and information gathering, Carrion finally can come up to a few solid conclusions and leads to follow.
First of all, the journalist was very into her work, and very investigative about it.
A few information Carrion has heard of already appear in the papers, mostly about the death and deceased, the different trails followed by the police as it went by. There are many misses (romani people being arrested, some ex-prisoners released that were interrogated as they thought it was their modus operandy), but unlike the police, the journalist seemed to have sorted all of the disappearances and body founds into several categories ;
Young women of foreign origin or foreign looks (mainly from the Maghreb, but also from Croatia, Romania, Bulgaria...), mostly found in the suburbs of the city, in wastelands, waste disposal centers, or even trash. They have gone missing and found a few weeks later, and were suspected to have run away, or go back home, and the police didn't care much, as the parents were thiefs, lowlifes, beggars or illegal immigrants.
Students or young workers, of both genders alike, who have gone missing on bar nights, some of which were found a couple of weeks after in the river, with the official cause of death being accidental drowning. In a case or two, they were witnesses when the victim fell into the river, but they are far more numerous than accidents should be. The police has begun putting on fences on the docks, and making prevention and repression policies around town, but it didn't stop students from being out drinking to excess.
The journalist also reported a few missing women of all range and all origins, but their bodies were never found. Many would fit into the precedent categories, as some bodies took several weeks, months or even years to be found.
The Nosferatu can catch a few names of each kind of stories, be it the victims, their missing signs, obituaries...), as well as their families, their addresses and the places some of them were seen at (bar names, street names...). But she'll need to compile those on a map, to make an eventual route, which would take several nights to investigate and retrace them, as one can't spend all the night ringing bells (people are sleeping). The names alone don't ring a bell, apart from Louise's who came up in this third unknown section (she didn't seem to be the drinking kind, according to her family, but she was not from Bordeaux, maybe she came to drink...).

The clocks of life's affair was also investigated on by the journalist, but it's clear it wasn't investigated upon with the same nerve (obviously, it was just a little article to give information on what happened, but no more and no less, Sud Ouest isn't a great investigative newspaper). The lead of "they were stolen for their value in the black market" seems to be the most probable one for the public.

Subject: Re: Sud-Ouest Sun Dec 30, 2012 1:53 pm

Carrion settles into the routine of research with ease she doesn't seem to notice the time go by.

When she is satisfied with her work she stops and double checks the photographs she's taken ensuring that they are of sufficient quality then finishes up by placing everything back where she found it.

When she's finished she looks at the clock on her phone, deciding she has a moment she takes a look around from where she is sitting looking for the man she spoke with before.

Subject: Re: Sud-Ouest Tue Jan 01, 2013 12:20 pm

By the time she has finished going through every paper and putting most of them back properly, many of the workers have left the building. The publisher has taken place behind his own desk, and seems quite satisfied with his work. It has been sent to press an hour or so away, but he's working on the online edition. He gives a look at the Nosferatu when she's finished, curious and far more relaxed than earlier. He's drinking a cup of coffee.
(Publisher) You done honey ?

Subject: Re: Sud-Ouest Tue Jan 01, 2013 1:01 pm

Carrion doesn't seem surprised that the place has emptied out a bit since she last took a glance over her shoulder. She stands and stretches, her back clicking as she does so. The sound of it seems much louder now there is less going on around her.

She makes her way over to the Publisher a small flush comes across her cheeks when she hears the pet name and she leans against the side of his desk silently observing him for a moment, taking note of how different his is now compared to when she first met him.

She gives his coffee cup an almost longing side long glance before meeting his eyes once more, she smiles at him when she's no longer looking at the coffee.

Yeah, I think I'm done now, thanks for letting me look over the paperwork.

Subject: Re: Sud-Ouest Tue Jan 01, 2013 6:49 pm

The man drinks from his cup then signs over to the coffee machine which is in a corner. The machine still contains one third of coffee left.
(Publisher) No problem, I owe Theodore a favor or two. What were you looking for anywah ? Ah, want some, go for it. I can stay a lil' more but I gotta go to sleep soon.

He's a little discrete about his relation to Theodore and switched subjects fast enough. He is not lying about being in a hurry for sleep though, he wants to go home but he's doing the extra mile.

Subject: Re: Sud-Ouest Tue Jan 01, 2013 7:14 pm

Her eye follows his gesture to the coffee machine and she frowns but she pulls it off her face quickly enough.

Oh, thank you but I can't drink coffee any more.

Instead she picks up his cup as he speaks and inhales the smell, savouring it like a starving man does his last crumb of food. She can feel the warmth seeping through her gloves and it brings an unguarded smile to her face. She places the cup back down quickly enough though. She considers her words carefully before speaking.

...I don't want to get you in trouble, ask no questions and I tell no lies.

There's a pause for a moment before she speaks again. She certainly didn't miss that he changed the subject from Theo fast enough.

Besides you look like you could do with a good day's sleep. I'm done now so don't feel like you need to stay on my account.

Subject: Re: Sud-Ouest Mon Jan 07, 2013 12:36 pm

The publisher shrugs, if she doesn't want coffee it's fine with him. He finishes up his own cup and smiles with satisfaction.
(Publisher) Alright then, I guess I'll find out in the non-published news !

He laughs, but it's a forced one ; he knows he shouldn't know. He makes a vague gesture towards the exit.
(Publisher) You can leave if you're done honey, I still got some work to do, then the kids, then the wife, then sleep. I would have kick you out if I was finished already !

He's not mean, but it's clear he's telling the truth.

Subject: Re: Sud-Ouest Mon Jan 07, 2013 12:55 pm

Carrion nods her head in understanding. She smiles again when he mentions kicking her out.

I understand. It was a pleasure meeting you, and I hope the rest of your work goes quickly so you can go home soon.

She seems to mean what she says in a kind way. With her business concluded she gives him a small hand shake and makes her way out. Her scooter was where she left it and with a quick glance around she starts up the engine and makes her way to her next destination.