Speaker 1: Welcome Back, Brave Souls. In the first act, Detective Lake
and Detective Pool stumbled up the twisted threads of Joyceville's
darkest secrets. From a suspicious confession to a list of
eccentric suspects, they uncovered the first pieces of a puzzle
that leads them straight into the heart of this quiet
little town, Joyceville, a town so quiet it's easy to
forget the secrets buried beneath its peaceful exterior. But behind
the veil of small town charm lies a network of deception, manipulation,
and dangerous power plays that stretch far beyond what the
eye can see. We've only scratched the surface, but what's
coming next will push us deeper into the murky waters
of corruption, where corporate giants like Blind Corp pull the
strings from the shadows. So sit tight. The next chapter
of fog Bound Deceit, We'll take you further down a
path if you dare to walk. The stakes are rising,
the mystery deepening, and the pieces of this deadly game
are about to fall into place. Keep your wits sharp,
because the story you thought you knew is just beginning
to unravel.
Speaker 2: As the investigation of McDonald's house continued to stir up
more questions than answers. Detective Lake and Detective Pool found
themselves drawn into the strange underbelly of Joyceville, where the
fog still foggy seriously anyway, the never ending fog seemed
to hang heavier over certain parts of the town. It
was here, amid the haze of mystery, that the next
lead took them to a place where people gathered to
do business of a very peculiar sort, a tavern tucked
away just off the main road, where the drinks float
almost as freely as the rumors. The air was thick
with cigarette smoke and the clinking of glasses.
Speaker 3: This is where the heart of joyce feels real. Mystery beats.
Speaker 4: I bet well, if the heart's beating, it's probably from
too much whisky and too many Gerbil races. The bar
is filled with rough looking characters, many of whom are
nursing drinks whispering to each other. There are several worn
tables in the back where patrons gather to place their bets.
Posters of Gerbil racing events line the walls, showcasing cartoonisht
Gerbils in mid race.
Speaker 3: Seems like everyone here has got a hand in something.
Speaker 2: What can I get you, gentle peeps? That's right, this
is my cameo. I'm also playing the bartender.
Speaker 3: This is an odd place to gather information.
Speaker 5: Pool.
Speaker 3: Why do I suddenly have a drink in my hand?
Speaker 4: Can't help you there? But about this place, well, you
never know where a lead might pop up Lake. Besides,
I've heard rumors that Gerbil racing enthusiasts off and over here.
Unusual tidbits. Also, these caffeine drinks are the worst goat milk.
Speaker 2: What about it?
Speaker 3: We're drinking goat milk.
Speaker 4: That explains less, and it concerns me more.
Speaker 3: Move along, Pool Lake.
Speaker 4: This place reeks of secrets, lavender oil and onion rings.
Let's find out what McDonald was really up to.
Speaker 3: Looks like quite the crowd tonight. Must be a big
race coming up.
Speaker 2: What can I get for you? Find detectives? I'm a
natural at this acting stuff.
Speaker 4: Two whiskeys please, three whiskeys, make that four whiskeys, five whiskeys.
Speaker 2: I'll bring you a bottle.
Speaker 4: Two bottles, all right, dial it back a bit up,
slow down?
Speaker 3: Two iced waters and an iced tea over corrected, Miss
kyl Old fashioned and a Manhattan.
Speaker 4: There we are.
Speaker 2: You got it.
Speaker 3: Hold the goat milk.
Speaker 2: We don't have any goat milk?
Speaker 3: No, I mean, here handle this.
Speaker 4: Here's mine too, okay, Oh why is it warm?
Speaker 3: So it looks like McDonald wasn't the only one with
a thing for gerbil racing.
Speaker 4: Hard to say. Everyone hears betting on gerbils. They all
know the stakes. They're too attached to be objective.
Speaker 2: He gestures towards the Burley enthusiast, a large man sitting
at a corner table. The man is talking animatedly with
a few others, his face flushed with excitement as he
gestures wildly, spilling his drink.
Speaker 6: You'll hear about McDonald got himself in a real mess,
he did. I knew that old full would fall one
of these days.
Speaker 2: The detectives exchange a glance and make their way toward
the table. The Burley enthusiast looks up at them with
mild surprise, then a hint of recognition.
Speaker 3: You the law easy, there, Goldie locks were looking for information.
You knew McDonald, Yeah, I knew him.
Speaker 6: He was a regular, always placing.
Speaker 3: Big bets, betting on what exactly?
Speaker 6: Big ones. If you ask me.
Speaker 4: Betting on what exactly.
Speaker 3: The Burley enthusiast leans back in his chair, clearly enjoying
the attention. He wipes his mouth with the back of
his hand, his eyes flicking around the room to ensure
no one is listening too closely.
Speaker 6: Those Gerbils of his midnight Runners.
Speaker 3: I've heard the names.
Speaker 6: Everybody's been talking about them. Yes, I mean you know
about them, Yes, midnight Runners.
Speaker 4: No, I meant to say not.
Speaker 3: But what makes these Gerbils so special?
Speaker 6: No clue, They're not just any Gerbels. People don't know it,
but McDonald had a secret stash of these critters, special Gerbils.
McDonald wasn't just in it for the race, you see,
he was playing a bigger game. McDonald got a little
too deep into it. Folks started to wonder where he
was getting his Gerbils from, why they were faster. But
nobody asked him outright. Too much money on the line,
too many bets. But I heard, well, I heard a
few things. He found something or someone found him. Some
say it's the Gerbils themselves, something different about them. Maybe
they're not so innocent after all.
Speaker 4: Maybe the Jeribles are the murderers. Maybe mc donald was
abusing these Gerbils in some kind of way, taking advantage
of them, and they had enough and stabbed the old
geezer thirteen times in the face.
Speaker 3: That's fucking stupid. Pool.
Speaker 4: Yeah, yep, that was dumb.
Speaker 3: Girbels can't hold knives.
Speaker 4: A Gerbil enthusiast nearby overhears and chimes in, clearly upset
at the insinuation.
Speaker 5: What do you mean by that? McDonald didn't hurt anyone.
He loved those Gerbils. No one here ever harmed a
single Gibil. They're just cute, cute little creatures, nothing more.
Speaker 6: I'm just telling you what I had. People get desperate
when they're losing, and when it comes to the Midnight Runners,
people were losing a lot of money.
Speaker 3: What else can you tell us.
Speaker 6: It's not just about Jebbels. It's about something bigger, something
that's been going on under the table here. If you're
looking into McDonald, you'd better be ready to dig deeper,
a lot deeper. You might want to start with blind corn.
Speaker 2: The conversation is interrupted by the sound of a distant
car engine, revving the noise and cutting through the otherwise
quiet tavern. It's almost as if the world outside is
moving faster than the world inside.
Speaker 3: Something's off about all this, the pharmaceutical conglomerate that just
sets shop in town not but a few months ago
in order for this well gamba to pay off.
Speaker 6: Perhaps I've said too much or not enough?
Speaker 4: What's with the spoons?
Speaker 6: What spoons?
Speaker 3: We're done with the spoons?
Speaker 4: Pool? What about the mare? Simon?
Speaker 3: Suspicious? Ah?
Speaker 6: Well, not me?
Speaker 5: She whah? You know it's funny squirrels, I mean, what
are they really? They're just tiny, fluffy imposters pretending to
be Gerbils. That's right, I said it. You ever notice
how they act just like gerbils, but with slightly more attitude.
Speaker 6: Ah, I've said enough.
Speaker 5: Laughs to herself anyway. Don't get me started on climate change.
Oh no, no, we've got icepaars now right, ice spars people.
They're migrating to places they shouldn't be, eating our fish
and causing all kinds of trouble.
Speaker 4: And the fuck are you talking about?
Speaker 5: Bees? Bees are in danger? You know, we can't let
them disappear? Or who's going to pollinate our flowers? Can
you imagine the world without bees?
Speaker 3: But you look familiar?
Speaker 7: Wait?
Speaker 5: Wait, wait, wasn't I just talking about something else, right,
the sun. Yeah, two sons.
Speaker 3: You didn't know that, did you?
Speaker 5: Laughs nervously.
Speaker 3: It's true.
Speaker 5: It's not just one son. There's two of them, and
they're always working together doing their little thing, but no
one ever talks about it, right, weird? But uh? Anyways,
why her tone falters? Why do you look like I've
seen you before? I think I heard someone call me
in the distance, not me, not by my name. Mayor
laughs awkwardly. Anyway, totally do hooy.
Speaker 2: Well that was real fucking awkward. But I mean I
was uncomfortable watching that. This is why you preparies what Yeah,
I mean, they don't know she did it, kivletz. I
did it again, God damn it. Neil got lay off
their booze. I haven't even drinking five years, and I
still think I need to quit. Anyway. The fog hung
even thicker. Somehow it was impressive over Joyceville as the
day wore on, and the air in the tavern felt
more oppressive with every moment the detectives spent within it.
The words from the Burley enthusiast echoed in their minds,
setting them on a path they hadn't quite expected this town,
its secrets, and the people tied to them. Each thread
felt like it led them deeper into a shadow they
couldn't quite make sense of. Outside the tavern, the mist
seemed to thicken as the detectives made their way to
a quiet corner of town, one that wasn't marked by
any real landmarks, just a series of dusty, forgotten buildings.
One of these buildings was where they had tracked down
their next lead. It was an old blind corp warehouse,
hidden away behind a set of rusted gates. Its exterior unremarkable,
yet there was something of the place that seemed to
hold its own sinister energy, as if it were a
remnant of something long gone but still very much alive.
Detective Lake walks up to the door, her face set
with determination. Detective Pool follows behind her, a mix of
curiosity and weariness on his face.
Speaker 3: Something about this place doesn't sit right with me, like
someone's trying to keep us away.
Speaker 4: You're not wrong, But what good's a locked door if
it's our job to figure out what's behind it. Besides,
if it's one thing we do best, it's finding the
cracks in the walls.
Speaker 3: We're getting in. Pool, no locked doors stopping us.
Speaker 4: Wouldn't be the first time. Remember that time you almost
got us locked in a freezer. I thought i'd never
get the smell out of my clothes.
Speaker 3: You were the one who thought it'd be fun to
chase the suspect into the meat locker. Don't blame me
for your bad decisions. Blind Court may have forgotten this place,
but I doubt they've forgotten what went on here, not
by a long shot.
Speaker 4: Blind Corpse good at making things disappear, but they always
leave a little trail behind. Look around. This place was abandoned.
No one's been here in years.
Speaker 3: This wasn't abandoned. Someone's been keeping it up. You can
feel it. Too much dust in the corners, too many
untouched crates. Whoever's running the show here doesn't want us
finding out anything. We both pause, examining the room as
we move deeper into the warehouse. Then I noticed something
on one of the crates. We're getting closer, Pool, I
can feel it. Pool looks over at a stack of
crates marked with strange symbols.
Speaker 4: What's this some kind of stockpile? These markings look familiar.
You've seen them before.
Speaker 3: Yeah, these are from the old experiments, the ones Blind
Corp Never wanted anyone to know about.
Speaker 4: What do you think We've just found a hidden stash
of secret weapons, some stash of underground Gerbil racing gear.
Speaker 3: Not weapons, the experiments. What happened here wasn't just about
a few lab rats or Gerbils. Blindcorp. Was up to
something bigger, something we're only starting to uncover. This was
ground zero, the Gerbils, they were just the distraction. Carefully,
I peel back the crate's lid, revealing the old lab
equipment inside. The faint glow from one piece catches my eye.
Speaker 4: A loud bang from deeper in the warehouse echoes through
the quiet. We both freeze, our attention, snapping to the sound.
Did you hear that?
Speaker 3: Footsteps echo in the distance. We move cautiously, my eyes
darting as the sound grows louder. Suddenly, a figure steps
into view, hidden under a cap, their features.
Speaker 4: Indistinct, obviously the major Simon? Is it Major or mayor
is this a typo? Or are they both named? Simone?
Speaker 3: Are you a typo?
Speaker 5: Who are you?
Speaker 3: The figure hesitates, looking at us, then steps back into
the shadows.
Speaker 4: Are you we're looking for answers. You have them, right,
I mean a little help here, we're literally chasing our tails.
The figure vanishes into the darkness without a word, like
a stupid, useless, fucking cut.
Speaker 3: Jeez boo, you don't have to curse to be a badass.
Speaker 4: I'm sorry, Dick, I'll dial it back, but I'm real
peeved off. Obviously we all know it was the mayor
mayor right.
Speaker 3: Major mayor, mayor major major major.
Speaker 4: Mayor, mayor mayor, major mayor, Major.
Speaker 3: Major mayor, Major, major mayor, Major major, major mayor Major.
Speaker 2: Well, I suddenly don't feel bad about my sea in earlier.
You got this nail, you got this.
Speaker 3: That's no good. I move forward. But the figure is gone,
swallowed by the shadows of the warehouse.
Speaker 4: We're not getting answers here today, are we.
Speaker 3: It's the same as the others. Nothing adds up, but
something feels off. First we get Major Simone tangled up
in this mess may or maids, then the nun with
her dislike for Jerbel's, and don't even get me started
on that neighbor who claimed McDonald was stealing his Amazon packages.
A few bad neighbors and some offbeat rumors won't solve this.
Speaker 4: Yeah, it's too clean, Lake, all these weirdos coming out
of the woodwork, none of them having anything to do
with the real story.
Speaker 3: We'll keep following the money, the experiments.
Speaker 4: Everything, but hey, we're one step closer.
Speaker 3: I want to know who McDonald was really working with,
and I want to know what Blind Corp Had to
do with it.
Speaker 4: Now that's the lake I know. We exchange a look
before heading deeper into the warehouse, their footsteps echoing into
the dark.
Speaker 2: The answers they sought were slipping further away, as elusive
as the fog itself. But one thing was clear. Blind
Corpse Shadow stretched further than they had imagined, and Joyceville
was just the beginning. As the fog over Joyceville thickened,
so did the mystery surrounding the murder of old man MacDonald.
At this point, I'm honestly considering the fog as an
actual suspect. Anyway. Detective Lake and Detective Pool had gone
through the motions of the investigation, each new lead only
bringing more confusion. Yet there was one thing they could
be certain of. Forensic analyst Steve was only making things stranger.
It was just another day at the police station, well,
at least for everyone but Steve, fucking Steve being all Steve.
The day had started out normally enough, but in a
town like Joyceville, normal was always relative. And today Steve
had a revelation, a theory that no one saw coming.
Speaker 3: Steve, we need some clarity here.
Speaker 8: Oh yeah, yes, yeah, yes, I got you.
Speaker 9: There.
Speaker 10: Some theories, big theories, big, biggest theories really that could everything,
It could change everything. Well, I don't want to say
too much all it wants, but I will Henry.
Speaker 3: He starts waving his hands around like Charlie Day in
that episode of It's Always Sunny, gesturing to various papers
and files as if they'll explain everything.
Speaker 10: First off, first off, no music for me, man, guys, seriously,
why okay, let's talk about Major Simone.
Speaker 8: Now he is well, he is involved in the Kays,
of course.
Speaker 10: And if you wouldn't know it from the first cliss
Major Simone, you know, you see, he's the kind of
person you immediately think, wow, now, why are you involved
in something like this? And it's not obvious, right, but
there's the thing I dug in a little deeper, and
well he's a friend of McDonald's apparently, at least that's
what everyone says.
Speaker 3: You know, hold on a second, there, man, I think
you've already said that before.
Speaker 4: We're an act two, scene three. Pick it up from
as if they'll explain everything. Also, the major mayor is a.
Speaker 8: Ship hit to have the wrong page.
Speaker 10: A major mayor mayor Major Simone doesn't exist.
Speaker 4: What I told you, the Gerbils did it, like I
fucking told you.
Speaker 3: Well, y'all. Now blanc Orp right blank or b blanc Orb.
Speaker 5: I came through a festival here around without those guys.
And you know they're also big sports of mine, signing
the Chickie Chickies and speaking of the festival, big festival,
best festival, greatest festival of all times. Some may say
it's going to be a heck of a time. It's
going to be so wonderful your all comment, right, you know, hi,
contests and uh festival activities. And they're also just between us,
they're unveiling their brand new soda.
Speaker 3: It's gonna be.
Speaker 10: Amazing, right right blind Corp of course, yes, yes, oh,
Major Major Simone is real. But Major Major Mayor Simone
is her surname also Blanckgorp. Yes, the sponsor of the
festival and Simone's Simona has been getting big campaign campaign
contribution from them, which at least is just, excuse me,
a little something that you know, added up to her
culprobated ability. But no, no, she definitely it couldn't be
involved on anything criminal. So she's got a good alibi too.
Speaker 3: What is it? I didn't do it?
Speaker 4: See solid the alibi? What's her alibi?
Speaker 8: That was it?
Speaker 10: She literally just say it again, please Major Mayor mayor
Major Simone.
Speaker 3: I didn't do it.
Speaker 4: I think I'll jot it down on my journal. Scribble
scribble scribble.
Speaker 3: That's not enough, but Steve, we've seen how things can
get a little tangled up when there's money involved, right,
mayor Major Simones ties to Blind Corp. It's just a coincidence, though, right.
Speaker 8: Uh huh, there you go.
Speaker 10: Oh no no no no no no no no no
no no no no.
Speaker 8: No no no no no no no.
Speaker 10: She wouldn't no no, it's not like absolutely not no no, no, no.
Speaker 8: No reason at all. Obviously she did it. Consider her
just a suspect for now, but no, no, no, no.
Speaker 4: No no, I think I'll drop that too on my
journal scribble. He seems to be sweating now, Scribble, grasping
at his papers.
Speaker 10: Scribble, Yes, yeah, uh so let's just get uh, let's
just forget about the part. Let's just forget about a
whole thing. Okay, how about Detective Lake. You've been stepping
around quite a bit, right, huh, always in the middle
of things, looking into stuff. Could be you, you, you know,
under a lot of pressure, maybe a little too much pressure.
Speaker 3: Really, Steve, you're accusing me?
Speaker 4: Now, what's next, Steve? Maybe I did it? Scribble?
Speaker 10: Well, well, well it's they're always you know, chance, Yeah,
you two where are right there? You've been investigating a
lot lately, And I've been thinking maybe just maybe they've
been pulling the strings from behind the curtains, you know,
maybe the narrator did it?
Speaker 2: The fuck did he just say? Of course?
Speaker 8: The narrator, Yeah, the narrator.
Speaker 4: Why didn't I think of that?
Speaker 8: Have you ever thought about that?
Speaker 10: I mean, they're they're the one telling the whole story, right,
They're they're in control of everything. Who's to say they
don't know a little too much? Maybe, just maybe, just
maybe you know, they've been pulling the strings from the
behind the cuttons.
Speaker 2: Are you serious now?
Speaker 3: Not at all, Neil, not at all.
Speaker 2: Good. That's good because we all know the mayor Major
did it exactly.
Speaker 8: So I'm just Cyan, just Cyan.
Speaker 2: We couldn't.
Speaker 10: We can't rule out anyone, right the narrator, you Lake,
you pull. You listening right now, always listening, audience, always listening.
Speaker 4: And hungry for more.
Speaker 2: Major Simone, who's been listening with casual interest, suddenly chimes.
Speaker 3: In, all right, all right, Steve, just being Steve. Yes,
I've been here this whole time.
Speaker 5: By the way, I think we're gonna get We've got
enough suspects, so for now, so as I stand up
from my desk, is stretching now, okay, but I still
more concern about the fall fest of all.
Speaker 3: That's kind of like the real reason I'm here.
Speaker 5: So I'm just saying, I think we need a committee.
If you want to volunteer our vaunt old to be
part of it, to handle snacks public.
Speaker 10: Yeah, yeah, I mean, yeah, yes, yes, yes, of course,
of course, the snacks, but the mada, the mad.
Speaker 5: There's just a little tension here going on, Steve be
and Steve, So we're gonna cut through all that.
Speaker 3: Move that aside.
Speaker 5: Put it on your technicolor pin board, and we're all
going to get through this, Okay, one apple pie at
a time. Now, amigos, amigos, amigos, amigos. Now, who's with
me for the first Joyce Bill Annual Ball Festival Planning Committee?
Huh yes, Sipulemoss, right of course.
Speaker 8: Piece in definitely not the murder here.
Speaker 10: And some moment two, well, you know, too busy with
festival prep to be doing any murder of any type.
Speaker 8: You're right, silly, may Ha surle me all right, Steve,
You guys are so good at this.
Speaker 3: We were close, too close for comfort. Just when I
thought we were starting to piece it all together, something shifted,
a whisper in the dark, a figure that slipped away
before I could get the answers we needed. Joycepil is
not a place that gives up its secrets easily, but
we're getting close.
Speaker 2: Lake.
Speaker 4: We were right on top of it. But whatever's going
on here, it's bigger than we thought. Someone's trying to
make sure we don't find out. The thing is, they're
not gonna like what happens next.
Speaker 3: This is no longer just about McDonald. This is about
blind corporation, about the mayor, Major, Simunna. This is about
the things they've buried here in Joyceville for far too long.
We're going to dig deeper. We'll find the answers, even
if we have to tear this town apart.
Speaker 4: I've got a feeling. Act three is gonna make this
look like a Sunday straw, and if I'm right, the
next twist, it's gonna knock the wind out of us.
Speaker 3: We're not done yet, we're just getting started.
Speaker 4: Obviously, the Mayor Major did it. Obviously, But why Blind Corporation?
Speaker 3: I think so too? Who Blind Corporation?
Speaker 2: Don't miss the next chapter. As the past comes crashing
into the present. The truth is closer than ever, and
it's waiting to be uncovered. But remember, in Joyceville, no
one walks away clean.
Speaker 7: This episode is made possible by listeners like you. Visit
our website at lifdesign dot net. Forward Slash Excuse Us.
Speaker 1: For support or additional information, please visit our website or
Patreon page at Patreon dot com. Forward Slash Rap Full.
Speaker 7: Art Tonight's production of Excuse Us, a mystery drama with
delightful undertones of humor and eldritch horror.
Speaker 9: What's produced by Rebecca Lakepool and Rodrigle Pool. Written and
directed and performed by Rodrigo Pool in association with R
and R Side Audio Theater.
Speaker 7: Music and sound effects by Epidemic Sound some other sound
effects who have recorded live on set. Voice modulation by
eleven Laps. If you're enjoying this production, please make sure
to review or subscribe to our show wherever you listen
to your podcast.
Speaker 1: Check out our Patreon page for bonus content.
Speaker 7: Until next time.
Speaker 1: This is Rodrigo Poor saying thank you very much for listening.
Speaker 5: H