"I know what you mean. The stories they tell. I'd like to hear your story. - who did your thesis advisor introduce you to?"

"Echavarria," Lev says. "He worked in films. He had a great library. Rare books. Books that cost two years of my salary, books I'd never seen, books I've never even heard of... about anthropology and history and the occult..."

Taking notes. "Echvarria? Can you spell that?"

He laughs. "With all the sh-- sorry, ma'am, with all the things they have me on I can barely spell my own name."

"It's all right, don't worry about it. You were interested in his books?"

"Yes. I used to spend hours there reading about everything... the occult, cryptography, theology, astronomy, archaeology, history, chemistry..."

"I see. But it didn't keep to reading, I take it, you got involved in something else?"

"Yeah. There were... Echavarria's friends. Film people, you know. They did drugs. Especially this one, that helped with focus and concentration and hard work... They offered me some a couple times, I didn't like it."

"I see. Did they do anything else?"

"They were into this... weird religious thing," Lev says. "I'm an atheist and, you know, if I weren't an atheist I'd be a Jew, but I was an anthropologist, obviously I'm going to jump at the opportunity to participate in a cultic ritual..."

Very small laugh. "A ritual of their own devising? Or something with older roots?"

"You don't have to answer that if you don't want to," Dr. Keaton says.

"I think he must have gotten it out of his books," Lev says. "They were worshipping Gol-Goroth. They called him the Fisher from Outside, for some reason. I know he's a god of some people-- I can't remember--" he sounds frustrated.

"We can stop the interview whenever you like," Dr. Keaton says.

Writing. "Of course, I don't want to make you uncomfortable. Don't worry on my account, though, I very much appreciate even an incomplete picture. Do you know why they worshipped him?"

"Power," Lev says. "It was all about power. They could get whatever they wanted when Gol-Goroth returned. --Me, I just had a crush on the pretty girl."

"I see. So was it this group that you were with, in 1924?"

"Yes. I mean, it was them I was with when-- it happened. They say it was a sex cult. I guess I can't disprove that. No one would invite me to the sex part of a sex cult."

"I see. What was it that happened, exactly?"

"They were performing a ritual. It wasn't any different than the normal rituals. And then Douglas's crew showed up and lit the place on fire. Shot us. I managed to escape. Wound up raving about mouths and ended up in an asylum."

"Why should Mr. Henslowe have wanted to shoot you?"

"Well, we were a sex cult. Apparently."

Lev's sarcasm flies entirely over Dr. Keaton's head.

"I don't know that that warrants summary execution, is there some reason he thought it should?"

"Dr. Keaton says Mr. Henslowe was a very violent man," Lev says, "and that is part of the reason he is in this institution."