The Meridian Scribe

The cold open

Rain slicks the limestone facade of the St. Jude Building at two in the morning, where the top-floor drafting rotunda smells of beeswax, linseed varnish, and fresh copper shavings. Under the warm glare of a green-shaded drafting lamp, Theron Ashcroft lies sprawled across a walnut drafting table, a heavy triangular steel burin driven deep into his chest. The ink from an overturned well mingles with the widening dark stain on a hand-drawn celestial chart.

The victim

Theron Ashcroft, 53, master celestial cartographer and antique globe dealer

The lineup

• Nigel Rathbone
• Cressida Wynn
• Fabian Cruz
• Maeve Hennessey