Recap / Criminal Case: The Conspiracy - Case 12: The Art of Murder

You know how some people die for their craft?

Concerned about Meera Kat's latest art project involving real lava, Gloria and the player head down to where she will be enacting her performance, hoping to stop anything from going wrong. Unfortunately, they're proven to be too late when they find Meera's body, trapped in a cage and dunked into a lava pit.

Tropes:

• Admiring the Abomination: During the autopsy report, Martine admits she actually was a fan of Meera and was looking towards her lava show, finding her indifference to pain and suffering to be intriguing.
• Alcohol Hic: Rita and Martine during their Alcohol-Induced Idiocy detailed below.
• Alcohol-Induced Idiocy: During the investigation, Rita and Martine get so wasted they decide to go for a walk to the destroyed streets of Money Mile, with Martine almost falling into a Lava Pit as a result.
• Ambiguously Evil: By the end of this case, it's left unclear just how honest Marconi is being about having been reformed and now working as a honest businessman, as his apparent connection with Zoe's disappearance despite his claims of not knowing how she is makes Jones and the player understandably have their doubts.
• Amnesiac Lover: Zoe, Jones' girlfriend, is found in this case, but she's suffering from Identity Amnesia and thus doesn't remember him.
• Antagonistic Offspring: Eleanor, Meera's mother, tells you she eventually had to face the crushing truth that she had brought a terrible creature into the world in the form of her sociopath daughter.
• Asshole Victim: Besides exploiting others' suffering for her personal gain, Meera also took a photo of Ruby's hand poking out of the earthquake debris instead of helping her then told Ruby she should be glad of being part of her gallery instead of apologizing, made fun of Megu for wanting to enter the art world, calling her “an old talentless hag” for no absolute reason, and, even though it's unconfirmed, killed her mother's cat to create her first art piece as a child. The only person who mourns for Meera's death throughout the case is her mother, and even then, she had accepted that Meera was a monster a long time ago.
• Awesomeness by Analysis: Ramirez manages to discover Ruby was the person Meera took a photo of buried under the earthquake rubble just by looking at her hand then rummaging through some hospital files sorting by height, weight, and age.
• Ax-Crazy: Christian Bateman outs himself as one of the insanest, most deranged, and irredeemable psychopaths in the entire franchise during this case, being only rivaled by the likes of Rupert Snow and Ayush Patil, which is more than fitting considering the character he's based on. Just read through his Motive Rant and judge for yourself.
  Christian: I so seldom meet people who are my equals, <Player's Name>. It caught me off guard. It stirred up something in me that I'd thought was dead.
  But when I told Meera... she mocked me! Maybe she wasn't ready to admit that she too was vulnerable. Or maybe she was truly as numb inside as she pretended to be. I'll never know.
  But for me, there was no going back. There was nothing to hold back all that anger anymore.
  Tonight, I went to see her set up the stage for her performance... I already had that wrench in my pocket, I was determined to end her life and my pain.
  That cage over the lava pit seemed like the perfect metaphor for what I felt: trapped in a destructive passion. Meera truly was talented.
  When she turned back, I knocked her out and locked her in the cage. I waited impatiently for her to wake up. And when she did... I lowered the cage.
  Hearing her screams made me delirious with pleasure! It was ecstasy! Her fury and her pain, mixing with mine! I screamed with her, I didn't want it to end!
• Back for the Finale: Ruby Armstrong, Megu Hashira, and Christian Bateman all return as suspects in this case, which is the last one set in Money Mile.
• Bad People Abuse Animals: Implied by Eleanor, Meera's mother, who claims her daughter killed their beloved cat just to create her first art piece with his remains when she was just a child, showing something was very wrong with Meera way even during her infancy.
• Big "SHUT UP!": Jones screams at Marconi to shut up when you interrogate him about his connections with Zoe's disappearance to stop Marconi from interrupting.
• The Bus Came Back: Tony Marconi, who was last seen in Case 51 of the first season, makes a surprise appearance on the grounds that he got an early prison release for good behavior.
• Bystander Syndrome: Meera did this when she found Ruby buried under the earthquake rubble, opting for taking a photo for her art gallery instead of helping the poor girl escape.
• Casual Danger Dialogue: After Martine nearly falls into a Lava Pit during her and Rita's drunken stroll through the destroyed streets, they have this to say:
  Rita: Oh, Martine nearly fell into the... hic... the lava... Hahahahaha! I had to p-pull her back! T'was hilarious!
  Martine: You try walking in heels on all this rub... hic... rubble!
• Chekhov M.I.A.: Zoe Kusama, the disappeared social worker and Jones' girlfriend you've spent the entire district looking for, finally appears here during the Additional Investigation, suffering from Identity Amnesia and unable to remember what happened to her.
• The Climax: For Money Mile.
• Cold-Blooded Torture: Bateman waited until Meera woke up trapped inside the cage so he could torture her by slowly cooking her alive with the lava. You could say it was more akin Hot-Blooded Torture.
• Continuity Nod:
  • The events of Case 9 are referenced when you find a magazine cover detailing how Meera and Bateman went together to the Transmutators 9 movie premiere as a couple.
  • Gloria says she learned about Marconi controlling the Industrial Area before being jailed. Marconi also says you should know more than anyone he'd never hurt a woman, referencing his motive for murdering Cordero after he tried to rape Ginger.
• Contrived Coincidence: Marconi happened to be attending the same yacht party as the victim prior to her death, which Jones finds too convenient to be a coincidence.
• Convection, Schmonvection:
  • Gloria and the player manage to investigate the lava-infested streets of the Financial Center without suffering any adverse effects from the heat. The same goes for Martine, who nearly falls into a Lava Pit until Rita manages to pull her up with not even their clothes being damaged by the heat.
  • Averted with Meera, who died from the lava's heat after her killer slowly lowered the cage she was trapped in into it.
• Cool Boat: One of the crime scenes is a fancy yacht where the victim attended a cocktail tasting party.
• Creepy Doll: Megu made a doll resembling Meera as her first ever art piece, but Meera mocked it and told her to stick being an art collector instead of trying to create art. For this, Megu nailed the doll to a plank to calm herself.
• Cruel and Unusual Death: Even if she somewhat deserved it, Meera was still murdered in a pretty horrific way that involved being knocked out with a wrench, trapped inside a metal cage, then when she woke up, slowly cooked alive over a pool of lava just to torture her. According to Bateman, Meera screamed all the way until her death, and with a very good reason.
• Curse Cut Short: Jones calls Marconi a "sneaky son of a-" before Gloria interrupts him.
• Dead Artists Are Better: During her first interrogation, Megu says that time will tell if this is the case with Meera.
• Dead Guy on Display: The killer left Meera's body hanging over the lava for everyone to see.
• Desperately Craves Affection: During his Motive Rant, Bateman claims his love for Meera was one of the last remaining emotions he had left on him, implying it to be the case. When she rejected and mocked his advances, he decided to murder her because she broke what little sentiment he had left over.
• Eccentric Artist: Megu admits she had grown tired of being just an art collector and had decided to step into the artist's world, with her first piece being a doll of Meera which she later nailed to a plank.
• Enfant Terrible: Implied to be the case for Meera, as her mother tells you how she's sure Meera killed their cat to make her first piece of art during her childhood involving a collage made out of its fur.
• Evil Versus Evil: Meera Kat, The Sociopath Mad Artist using everyone's tragedies in the wake of an earthquake for her art pieces without caring about their suffering or grief, versus Christian Bateman, a full-blown psychopath with fantasies that involve torturing women who also enjoys others' suffering on a more personal level. In the end, Bateman ends up winning when he murders Meera.
• Eviler than Thou: As much of a selfish sociopath with little to no care for others she was, Meera definitely didn't stand a change against someone like Christian Bateman, whose mental problems are on a whole different level than hers. Ditto for Tony Marconi, with even Jones admitting Bateman could give the former mobster a run for his money.
  Gloria: It looks like Meera's found her match when it comes to disturbing ideas!

  Jones: Bateman is a murderer and a psychopath! He's in a different league even compared to Marconi...
• Exact Eavesdropping: Subverted. Jones eavesdrop Gloria and the player talking about Ramirez finding Zoe, but he only hears them mention some "huge news" that Gloria uses to bring up Marconi into the conversation, distracting Jones until they can be completely sure Zoe is really alright.
• Foreshadowing:
  • During Zoe's Wistful Amnesia moment, she recalls running away in a dark place so "they'd never find her again" before forgetting everything. This "dark place" might refer to the tunnel that connects DreamLife's dome with the forest outside of it, which is where Zoe escaped from and you don't learn about until Case 34. Furthermore, Zoe also vaguely remembering Marconi from somewhere hints at the fact they crossed paths while she was inside the dome and saw him disposing of DreamLife's deceased test subjects, which isn't revealed until Case 36.
  • The fact that Tony Marconi, a former mafia lord who got sentenced to twenty years without parole for murder, managed to get out of prison after just five years on grounds of good behavior, should be your first clue that he's not being completely honest about his early release and something else influenced it, something you don't discover until Case 36.
• Hoist by His Own Petard: Meera was murdered with the very cage and lava pool she intended to use in her art show.
• Hope Spot: Before Zoe is taken to a hospital after failing to recall anything, she sees Gloria and Jones together and says she "remembers that man," leading Jones to believe she's finally regained her memories of him. Nope, Zoe was actually referring to Marconi's photo that Gloria was currently holding.
• Identity Amnesia: Zoe has somehow forgotten about everything during her disappearance, including her relationship with Jones, the missing homeless people she was looking for, and even her own name.
• If I Can't Have You…: Bateman murdered Meera after she rejected him, considering it a breaking point for his already unstable mind.
• If You Ever Do Anything to Hurt Her...: A variation. Jones tells Marconi he'd better not done anything to Zoe, or else he will tear him limb from limb in retaliation.
• Ignored Expert: Ruby warned Meera that hosting her show near a Lava Pit was a bad idea, but she didn't listen. This, of course, gave Bateman the perfect source to make her death as painful as possible.
  Ruby: I warned her that an active flow field wasn't a playground! But nobody ever listens to experts!
• Last Episode, New Character: This case, which is the last one set in Money Mile, introduces Eleanor Abernathy, Meera's mother, as a suspect. Dr. Jennifer Russo, Marconi's therapist, also appears during the Additional Investigation.
• Lava Pit: The murder weapon was the very own lava pool Meera was going to show her host in.
• Lost Pet Grievance: Eleanor, Meera's mother, has been mourning the death of their cat Florence for at least a decade, as Meera, who was 25, possibly killed him when she was just a child.
• Love Makes You Crazy: Or rather, even crazier. While it's clear Bateman wasn't right in the head even before he fell in love with Meera, her rejection is what finally pushed him to such a breaking point he considered that slowly and horrifically torturing and murdering her were totally justifiable actions.
• Masochist's Meal: During one of his interrogations, Bateman tells you one of the only things that relax him after a long day is biting into red-hot chilies, as pain calms him.
• Mistaken for Gay: This can happen to Jones and the player if you're using a male avatar, as Dr. Russo asks you if you've paid her a visit for couples therapy.
  Jones: Ermm, no... <Player's Name> and I are close, but... not like that.
• A Molten Date with Death: Meera was killed by being plunged into lava, although Bateman made sure she suffered as much as possible by slowly dropping the cage she was trapped in until the heat killed her.
• Not Good with Rejection: Bateman was so distraught by the fact Meera rejected him he resorted to torturing and murdering her.
• "Not So Different" Remark: Bateman attempts to do this with the player when you find his audio diary detailing his dark fantasies that involve torturing women, claiming he just does it to relax and you, a cop who is also under constant pressure, would understand.
• Obviously Not Fine: Of the mental health variety. During his arrest and trial, Bateman insists he's a perfectly rational, not crazy man while detailing and excusing how he horrifically tortured Meera to death.
  Christian: You think I'M crazy? I'm the sanest person in this room! I'm the only one honest enough to face my darkest fantasies!
• Odd Couple: During the investigation, you find a magazine detailing how Bateman and Meera were seen together as a couple during the Transmutators 9 premiere, with Gloria calling them an unlikely couple. Later Subverted when you discover this was all a Publicity Stunt, though.
• Privilege Makes You Evil: During his trial, Judge Powell tells Bateman money and status has given him a sick sense of entitlement that led him to murdering Meera after she didn't give him what he wanted.
• Publicity Stunt: Bateman's secretary organized a date between Bateman and Meera for them to visit the Transmutators 9 premiere as one of these, considering it to be good PR.
• Reformed, but Rejected: Marconi says he's changed ever since he was released from prison and now runs a honest entertainment business, but Jones refuses to believe it and forgive him for everything he did five years ago.
• Reformed Criminal: Marconi claims to be this, but as detailed in Ambiguously Evil above, how much this is true is left to the player's imagination.
• Romantic Fake–Real Turn: After a Publicity Stunt where Bateman and Meera feigned to be a couple for the press, Bateman genuinely fell in love with her, something she didn't reciprocate. Too bad for her Bateman is really Not Good with Rejection.
• Secret Diary: Bateman has one in the form of audio recordings recounting his dark fantasies where he kills and tortures women, which greatly disturbs Gabriel and Gloria.
• Shed the Family Name: This case reveals Meera changed her surname from Abernathy to Kat, possibly to fit better her artist image. And probably, y'know, the pun.
• Shout-Out:
  • Eleanor Abernathy resembles and has the same name as the Crazy Cat Lady from The Simpsons. She's even very fond of cats, judging by her clothing choice and mourning the death of her cat for years.
  • In Chapter 2's cover image, Marconi is drawn in a way that makes him resemble Joe Pesci.
• Soft-Spoken Sadist: Christian Bateman, according to Gabriel after listening to his audio diary detailing his twisted fantasies.
  Gabriel: The most disturbing aspect of it is Bateman's total lack of empathy. His voice stays emotionless through it all, like it was nothing.
• Stunned Silence: Gloria can't bring herself to say something after Bateman finishes his Motive Rant, completely horrified at the revelation of how much of a despicable psychopath he is.
• Tap on the Head: Meera was first knocked out with a wrench before the killer trapped her in a cage and plunged her into lava. Not that she was still unconscious before she was lowered in.
• Wham Episode: Tony Marconi makes an unexpected return and it appears he's here to stay, Zoe Kusama is finally found but suffering from Identity Amnesia and not even remembering who Jones is, and her disappearance is implied to have something to do with Marconi himself, prompting the Police Department to investigate his affairs in the next district.
• Wham Line:
  • Jones delivers one at the end of Chapter 1, as it marks the return of his old nemesis and a face you probably didn't expect to see again so soon.
    Jones: I'll tell you what's the matter! My old nemesis, Tony Marconi, is back in town!
  • Then there's this one brought by Ramirez after arresting the killer.
    Ramirez: I... I think I've found Jones' missing girlfriend!
• Wistful Amnesia: Zoe has only a handful of vague memories regarding her disappearance, only remembering running away from someone in a very dark place and having seen Marconi's face somewhere.