Page 74 of The Whispering Night
[Winnie sways.]
Jeremiah: And as for Ms. Thursday, she was questioned at the museum—and she was a great deal more forthcoming about last night.
[Winnie doesn’t answer. Just crumples over again.]
Jeremiah: Ms. Wednesday—
Winnie:Winnie.
Jeremiah:—I need you to sit up. You’re going to want to see these.
[He pulls four red envelopes from the manila folder. Then opens the envelopes and withdraws white cards.]
[2:50]
Jeremiah: These are birthday cards, aren’t they? Signed as if from your father.Arethey from your father?
[Winnie snaps upright. Then catches self on table. Jeremiah, meanwhile, lays out four cards side by side.]
[3:08]
Jeremiah: Let the record show I have placed four cards for Ms. Wednesday to view, and the cards all contain birthday messages. Two are for Darian Wednesday, two are for Winnie Wednesday.
Winnie: [voice shaking] My dad is gone. How could he send me birthday cards?
Jeremiah: I’m wondering the same, Ms. Wednesday. I’m also wondering what these mean. To what framed photo is your dad referring in this card? And why write the birthday year so strangely? Happy one dash three dash T H birthday?
Winnie: You’ll have to ask my dad what it means because… well, it’s all one big cipher to me. [She slouches back in her chair and gazes left.]
[3:47]
Jeremiah: Come now, Ms. Wednesday. These were in your pocket at the museum. Why have birthday cards that are meaningless?
Winnie: Because… [She swallows.] The… well, a person gave them to me.
Jeremiah: And you took them from this [makes air quotes] person? Willingly?
Winnie: I mean, they offered the cards to me, and yeah. I… didn’t know what was going on, okay? I went to that gallery because I was… I was following some messages. [sighs, possibly with relief] And the messages led me to the gallery, where a person met me who had these cards.
Jeremiah: Andthatperson cast thesagitte aureaspell?
Winnie: No. They protected me from it. They wore a hound mask. [Her eyebrows lift, as if surprised.]
Jeremiah: A hound mask? Because it was a costume party?
Winnie: Don’t pretend you don’t know what a hound mask means.
Jeremiah: In other words,youknow what a hound mask means.
[He smiles and withdraws a photograph from the folder.]
[4:32]
Just like these hound masks from two bodies in the forest.
[Winnie coughs. Then pulls off her glasses and sets them on the table.]
[4:47]
