Not a zombie hand, but its owner has definitely been dead for some time.
Chief Parker informs Jones and the player that a body has been reported behind the wall of a fancy penthouse, which was exposed after the earthquake destroyed it. There, both officers come face-to-face with the four-year-old mummified corpse of lawyer Stella Ziarati, dead after being bashed repeatedly on the head.
Tropes:
- Always Someone Better: Implied. After Jones finds out that Gloria and the Player took Zoe's case and actually Found something as a minor lead, he gets upset saying that the lead goes to nothing and that he searched for every clue possible. When Gloria tells him that they shouldn't give in now, he shouts that "If they really doubt his detective skills, then he's out", before storming out of the room. It's pretty clear that this is how he feels.
- Amoral Attorney: Constance accused Stella of being this, since she apparently refused to help her protect Constance's library from the City Council after they stopped considering it a historical building.
- Bludgeoned to Death: Stella was killed by being repeatedly bashed on the head with the trophy she won for best lawyer.
- The Bus Came Back: Constance Bell, the Scary Librarian last seen in Case 55 of Grimsborough, makes her return here as a suspect.
- Call-Back: Louis Leroux, the CCN reporter you previously saw on a DVD back in Case 1, makes his official debut here during the Additional Investigation.
- The Cartel: Guadalupe del Prado's father, Pablo del Prado, is a world-famous Latin American drug lord the victim had been trying to incarcerate for some time.
- Clueless Mystery: During her arrest and trial, Guadalupe refuses to give her motive for murdering Stella, and thus a portion of the Additional Investigation deals with the player trying to find answers and subvert this.
- Continuity Nod:
- Cooper Park and Constance's library reappear as crime scenes. Constance also mentions how Jones spilled ketchup on one of her books in the same case.
- Jones mentions Astrid, the dog he adopted after its original owner went to prison.
- Mazunda and Luzaguay are mentioned.
- Contrived Coincidence: Omar, one of your suspects, just happened to be hanging out in the library where Zoe Kusama was last seen, and even wrote a poem about her while he was at it.
- Constructive Body Disposal: The victim was stuffed inside the wall of her penthouse, which was in the middle of renovations and thus gave her killer the perfect means to dispose of her body. Too bad for them the earthquake struck.
- Dedication: Trudy Lively, one of your suspects and friend of the victim, dedicated a bench in Cooper Park for Stella after she went missing.
- Foreshadowing: Jones' unusual attitude regarding the Zoe Kusama case (acting suspicious when asked about it then aggressive when Gloria and the player being to investigate) hints at the fact Zoe is his girlfriend and he's been trying to find her for months.
- Frivolous Lawsuit: Trudy threatens to sue Jones when you interrogate her, accusing you of defaming her by implying she committed the murder.
- The Generation Gap: Once again, Rupert and Amir continue showing this dynamic.Rupert: I was just showing Amir how to change a lightbulb... these millennials - they know nothing about DIY!
- Get Out!: Constance yells at Jones (and by extension the player) to get out of her library after you suggest she murdered Stella with a voodoo doll.
- Greed: Christian Bateman might as well be the personification of this, being a venture capitalist who only seems to value money above everything else. For this reason, he was understandably angry when the victim's app for aiding poor people, which he spent millions in, failed miserably.
- Green Around the Gills: Jones becomes sickly green after he removes the victim's identification from her mummified corpse.
- He Knows Too Much: Guadalupe murdered Stella because she had discovered Guadalupe's father was a famous but anonymous drug lord that she wanted to take to court.
- Improvised Weapon: The murder weapon is a trophy Stella won for her lawyer abilities.
- Intrepid Reporter: Louis Leroux, a CCN reporter, debuts in this case by requesting your help with a missing person case he's been investigating for months with no success.
- Karma Houdini Warranty: This case serves one for Guadalupe, who murdered Stella 4 years ago, with the earthquake revealing the young woman's body and soon enough evidence being found to convict the former.
- Luminescent Blush: Gloria visibly blushes when Omar calls her "an Amazonian beauty" during the Additional Investigation.
- Mad Love: Omar Al Hadawi, one of your suspects, claims he and Stella were in love, but she became increasingly stalker-ish towards him when Omar made clear he wanted to be a free spirit and not be committed to a single relationship.
- Mafia Princess: Guadalupe del Prado is the daughter of a powerful drug lord, and Stella threatening to take him to court is what led Guadalupe to murder her.
- Oh, No... Not Again!: Jones' has this reaction when you suggest investigate the library, since that means crossing paths with Constance Bell.
- O.O.C. Is Serious Business: While Jones is known for having a temper, especially during the first game, this installment shows him to be way tamer in his interactions. So seeing him coming back to that old attitude when he storms off after thinking that Gloria and the Player doubt his detective skills, you realize how messed up the situation can be. Especially since the one he gets mad at alongside Gloria, is the player.
- Persona Non Grata: Constance has banned Jones from entering her library ever since he spilled ketchup in one of her books, but decides to make an exception in this case due to being part of a murder investigation.
- Pet Dress-Up: Plopsie, Guadalupe's pet pug, appears wearing a sweater and a necklace.Jones: Well... er... I have a dog too, called Astrid. Although she doesn't wear clothes...
- Purple Prose: Omar tends to speak with these due to being a poet.Omar: Oh, what fine human specimens I see before me! Please, stay awhile and enjoy some jasmine tea while I pen my thoughts on your exquisiteness!
- Revisiting the Cold Case: The whole case involves trying to find who murdered and hid Stella's body four years ago, making it the first and only instance of a cold case serving as the main focus of an episode in the franchise.
- Rich Bitch: Guadalupe del Prado, a Mafia Princess who murdered her best friend just because she was trying to take her drug lord parent to court.
- Seeking the Missing, Finding the Dead: Most of your suspects had been trying to find Stella on their own merits (killer included), but it ends up being for nothing as she's revealed to have been dead for four years.
- Shout-Out:
- The case's title comes from a The Killing episode of the same name.
- Christian Bateman is a dead ringer for American Psycho character Patrick Bateman and is likely named after his actor, Christian Bale, from the film adaption.
- Trudy Lively resembles Kim Wexler.
- In the Penthouse scene, there is a satirical version of Salvador Dalí's The Persistence of Memory.
- In the Cooper Park scene, there is a toy unicorn resembling the characters of My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic.
- Bendrick's is a parody of Hendrick's.
- Blabber is a parody of Blogger.
- Salvador Bali is a parody of Salvador Dalí.
- Sleek High Rise Apartment: The victim is found inside of her own home, which is a fancy department/penthouse owned by venture capitalist Christian Bateman.
- Skewed Priorities: Christian Bateman during his introduction.Christian: First the earthquake destroys my penthouse, then I find a corpse in my wall! I can already see the value of my property plummeting!Jones: Mr Bateman, you seem more concerned about your finances than the body in your wall!
- Speak of the Devil: Jones says this word for word when Christian Bateman calls you to ask for your help seconds after Jones mentions him.
- Surpassed the Teacher: Stella, who was much younger and served as a pseudo-pupil for Trudy, beat her in a becoming a partner for a firm both of them were trying to get, which made Trudy resent her.
- Tempting Fate: The following exchange when going to investigate the library.Jones: Oh good, I don't see Constance. She-Constance: David Jones, how many times have I told you to stay QUIET IN THE LIBRARY?!
- Terrible Pick-Up Lines: Martine tells you one somebody sent to her in a dating app.Martine: <Player's Name>, listen to this chat-up line: "If you were a veggie, you'd be a cutecumber."
- Thicker Than Water: Guadalupe uses this as a justification for having killed Stella, claiming that protecting her family from being incarcerated by Stella was more important than anything.
- Time Capsule: The victim participated in one of these prior to her death, which the earthquake unearthed and left behind a bunch of clues.
- Trophy Violence: An award Stella achieved for her legal work is what was ultimately used to... adjourn her.
- Vehicular Kidnapping: It's implied this is what happened to Zoe Kusama, as Omar claims he saw her walking outside of the library before a black car approached her and she disappeared along with it.
- Voodoo Doll: Constance made one of these resembling the victim after she refused to help her protect the library from the city council.
- We Used to Be Friends: Stella and Guadalupe were best friends until Stella discovered Guadalupe's father was Pablo el Loco, a famous drug lord she wanted to take to court. It's the reason why Guadalupe killed her.
- I Will Find You: During the Additional Investigation, Louis Leroux approaches you to request help in a missing person case, where Zoe Kusama disappeared without leaving any trace months ago. Jones was apparently also put in charge of the case, although there haven't been any leads besides finding her phone in the library.
- Wounded Gazelle Gambit: Guadalupe put missing person posters of Stella all over Grimsborough and acts heartbroken when you inform her about Stella's death. She's also the killer.
