C.W. Patrick

Full name: Carlton Winston Patrick III Player: Jeremy Thomas On-screen character: Det. James "Jimmy" Palmer

Actor (Off-Screen, 2015)

48, Hollywood. East Coast money. Anointed "next Tom Cruise" at 19. Killed Melissa Kane in a 1987 cocaine-and-vodka crash on Mulholland Drive. Pled down. Career torched. Two marriages, multiple rehabs, 2008 possession charge. Three years clean (more or less). Box 13 is his last real shot.

Vibe: Charming when he chooses. Volatility under glass. Chain-smokes when anxious, quotes old movies when deflecting. Skeletons: All of them. Flask and a .32 in the trailer "in case the ghosts get loud."

Actor Relationships

Cory Vandermere: Cory is careful and kind with him — the only cast member who knew Carlton when. Carlton and Cory auditioned for the same role in 1988; Carlton got it. No resentment from Cory. Cory has clocked the flask and hasn't said anything yet.

On-Screen Character: Det. James "Jimmy" Palmer

46, divorced homicide detective. Two kids — Maddie (13) and Tyler (10). Fighting for joint custody with ex-wife Rebecca. Genuinely decent: never raised a hand, doesn't use, shows up for every game and play. The universe disagrees: planted evidence, an exploded garage, blood-covered parent-teacher conferences. Bumbling but not stupid. Solid instincts, real heart, personal life on permanent fire. Recent "mix-up" cost him his badge. Hired on at Box 13 to make child support.

Specialty: Old-school detective work, dogged decency, walking-disaster energy.

Notes

Session 1: Conducted the parent phone call re: Kyle Alexander's disappearance.
Session 1: Found the panicked footprints running out and back in from the outbuilding area at Kessler.
Session 1: Stepped in dog scat (failed Spot Check) — confirmed active animal presence.
Session 2: Failed Listen roll in the museum lobby — did not hear Gus's fight with Steve Blum in the basement.
Session 2: Rushed into the basement after Gus was killed; fired at Steve Blum — missed.
Session 2: Relayed events to police while offering unsolicited tips on their note-taking technique.

Bond Phase — Session 2

Action: Attended daughter Maddie's ballet recital. Roll: Failed. Result: Bond with Maddie −3.

Sanity Break — Session 8

Palmer crossed a Sanity threshold in Boston and is now having episodes where he cannot tell what is real — the seam finally taking a full mind.

He perceived a mannequin handing him a box. In reality it was a filthy suitcase he picked up off the ground.
His senses can no longer be trusted at face value: the case's imagery (mannequins, deliveries, boxes) is now bleeding into his perception and overwriting mundane objects.
At the facility he tried to climb a tree, fell, and took 5 damage; a doctor healed him for 2 (net −3 HP) before entry.
On crossing the threshold he — with the whole crew — woke committed, as his actor self Carlton, in a bare room in blue pajamas (see The Actor-Character Seam).
Escape attempt (Session 8): Carlton broke out of his room but was beaten back down by Mr. Ed and the orderlies and subdued. He was then told to go back to sleep.

The Unreliable Witness

Palmer's instinct was always right when his reasoning was off ("this just feels wrong"). Now the reverse risk applies: he will **report things that aren't there** — a mannequin, a gift, a scene — while a real, grubby object sits in his hands. In a building designed to blur reality, the teammate who can't tell delusion from truth is both a liability and, possibly, a **tuned antenna** for what the others can't see.

Character Relationships

Elias (Cory Vandermere): The one teammate Elias visibly likes. Palmer's instincts are often right even when his reasoning is off. Elias covers for his screw-ups silently. When Palmer says "this just feels wrong," Elias listens. As of Session 8, Palmer's grip on reality is slipping — Elias now has to weigh which of Palmer's perceptions to trust.