Jessica Enlists Dixon Hill with a Seductive Retainer
Plot Beats
The narrative micro-steps within this event
Jessica reveals her fear for her life and names potential suspects, thrusting Picard into the investigation with the promise of a fee.
Picard and Jessica finalize their agreement as she seduces him with a kiss and advances a retainer fee, solidifying his role as her investigator.
Who Was There
Characters present in this moment
Intrigued and quietly captivated, masking a guarded skepticism beneath his professional detachment.
Captain Picard embodies the persona of Dixon Hill, engaging with Jessica Bradley through measured dialogue and subtle physical reactions, including surprise at her kiss. He carefully navigates the negotiation for investigative services, demonstrates intrigue and contemplative reflection, and ultimately transitions from observer to committed participant in the Holodeck mystery.
- • Understand Jessica Bradley's true plight and motivations
- • Determine whether to accept the private investigator role
- • Maintain personal and professional composure despite seduction
- • Assess the authenticity and danger of the Holodeck simulation
- • The Holodeck simulation is highly realistic and immersive
- • Jessica Bradley’s story conceals deeper truths yet to be uncovered
- • His role as Dixon Hill carries responsibilities beyond mere escapism
- • The boundary between simulation and reality is fragile and significant
Anxious but determined, balancing desperation and control to secure protection through Picard’s involvement.
Jessica Bradley exudes a combination of fear and allure, strategically using seduction and guarded revelation to recruit Picard as her private investigator. She confidently negotiates terms, offers a monetary retainer, and departs with an air of cautious determination, leaving an imprint of vulnerability mixed with resolve.
- • Enlist Dixon Hill to uncover who threatens her
- • Establish trust and obligation through a formal retainer
- • Maintain an aura of mystery and seductive influence
- • Protect herself from impending danger
- • Someone close to her intends to harm her
- • Picard as Dixon Hill can provide the necessary protection and investigation
- • Money and seduction are effective tools to seal alliances
- • The situation is dire and requires immediate intervention
Apprehensive and confused, poised on the edge of escalating hostility.
Felix Leech arrives after Picard departs, hesitating and scanning Dixon Hill's empty office with confusion and uncertainty, embodying an ominous presence that foreshadows forthcoming conflict within the simulation’s fragile reality.
- • Locate the object or person he seeks in the office
- • Confront or intimidate the occupants
- • Resolve his paranoia and suspicion
- • Gain control of the unfolding situation
- • The object or information he pursues is here
- • The office holds secrets critical to his goals
- • His threats will compel cooperation
- • The situation may unravel unpredictably
Objects Involved
Significant items in this scene
Jessica Bradley physically hands a crisp, tangible one-hundred dollar bill to Picard as an upfront retainer for his investigative services. This object symbolizes the formalization of their alliance, the transactional nature of their relationship, and the bridging of fiction with stakes of trust and obligation within the Holodeck simulation.
One of Dixon Hill’s business cards is taken by Jessica Bradley from the desk, serving as a tangible token linking Picard’s identity with his noir alter ego and confirming the legitimacy of his role as private investigator within the simulation.
Location Details
Places and their significance in this event
Dixon Hill’s Office provides the atmospheric and narrative stage for the pivotal negotiation between Picard and Jessica Bradley. The setting’s period detail and immersive ambiance anchor the scene’s noir tone, symbolizing the fragile intersection of fantasy and reality. The office’s window reveals a bustling street below, enhancing the scene's realism, while the closet door with the Holodeck exit underscores the tension between simulated narrative and external threat.
Narrative Connections
How this event relates to others in the story
No narrative connections mapped yet
This event is currently isolated in the narrative graph
Key Dialogue
"JESSICA: I'm not sure who wants me dead. My husband... My stepdaughter..."
"PICARD: Or a lover, perhaps?"
"JESSICA: (cool smile) Oh you'll say yes."
"JESSICA: (whispering) If it's Redblock, he must think I've got what he's looking for. But believe me, I don't."
"JESSICA: Here's a C-note in advance. Consider it a retainer... and next time, could you wear a suit?"