James Brighton Society, Chapter 3: Pages 5-6
Page 5, 6 Panels- Grem's Workstation, Downtown Washington D.C. Panel 1: Cut back to Tasha in the same setting and layout that we saw her in during the last of the previous page, including a shot of the aforementioned drawing in the background. Her body language and mannerisms shift immediately to a level of condolence and empathy toward hearing the hidden meaning behind the story. DET. RANDOLPH [moving toward Grem]: My condolences...When did it happen? Panel 2-3: We move back to Grem, moving toward the right side of the desk. The robe in his hands is a little higher into view to the point that we saw the bottom of it gently touch the tabletop. In Panel 3, a few seconds later, we move to a ceiling shot as the inventor starts to lay the piece of clothing upright on the table as he speaks. You can see the Detective start to appear in the bottom of panel view in Panel 3. You can also see the letters "JBS" in white on the lapel of the robe. GREM [nods gracefully, Panel 2]: Cheers! It happened many moons back. She died from fa--an illness. Not gonna lie...still hurts like Hades. Anyway... GREM [Cont., Panel 3]: [clears his throat] To work! Panel 4: We shift back to a table level shot of the good Detective. She carefully observes the piece of clothing with a watchful, yet curious eye. Her gaze split between the robe and Grem as she speaks. You can see the white ceiling in the background, illuminated by the glare of his work lights. DET. RANDOLPH [notices the logo]: I noticed the JBS on the lapel. You have any idea what it might mean? I'm thinking it may be an Axis code, but-- GREM [Off-Panel, to Det. Randolph]: James Brighton Society... Panel 5-6: A two-part set of panels that focuses on the same side shot of the table, with the Detective on the left side and Grem standing on the right side. In Panel 5, we see Tasha still looking on the same part of the robe that we saw her in in Panel 4, pressing her right hand on the fabric as she speaks. In the next panel, she tilts her head up toward Mr. Allen to address him properly. GREM [Cont. explanatory, Panel 5]: They're a super-rich, super-secret organization based in Europe from the turn of the century. They dealt in a lot of highly advanced tech and...other things that'd take a loong time to explain. DET. RANDOLPH [Panel 5]: Was he a member? He didn't look rich, judging by his apartment. GREM [Panel 5, Bubble 2]: Possibly, though I doubt it. They only take in those who are the closest to the levers of power. More likely though that he works for someone who does- Senator Buchanan ring any bells? DET. RANDOLPH [to Grem with a high degree of intrigue, Panel 6]: The Chairman on the Senate Intelligence Committee? GREM [thinking, Panel 6]: Yeah, that sounds about right. I think he was his Chief of Staff or something. Page 6, 5 Panels- Grem's Workstation, Downtown Washington D.C. Panel 1: We cut to an action shot of the good inventor Grem a second later as he starts to move along the edge of the table. His left hand gently touches the silk of the robe as he speaks and passes it by. You can see a little flash of yellow from the other work light hit his head at the same moment. GREM [Cont.]: My guess is that, like any good underling, Mr. Brennan slipped in the organization alongside his more powerful boss. Hoping to lap up as many scraps as he can like a dog. Panel 2: Cut to an action shot of Det. Randolph a few moments, walking in the same direction of the room that Mr. Allen is. Her focus is split between the piece of clothing on the work table and Grem as she speaks; the wheels of deduction firing on all cylinders. You can see the rest of the messy work station in the background, along with the front door. DET. RANDOLPH [following along on Grem's thought]: Okay. There's still the question of why he hid it in the floorboards of his bedroom. GREM [Off-Panel]: That's an excellent question. Panel 3-5: A three-part set of panels that centers on Grem as he stands in front of one of the walls where a framed landscape drawing is hung. In Panel 3, we see him press a button on the lower right corner of the gold frame. In the next two panels, the picture starts to open up at the middle and (in Panel 5) a metal counter emerges with a device that looks like a hand trowel with a screen in the center of it. GREM [Cont., to Det. Randolph; Panel 3]: One that I hope to have an answer for pretty soon. GREM [slightly uneasy compared to Panel 3, looking directly at the frame; Panel 4]: (Well, part of one anyway)...