The Horror at Red Hook
Max Trifan for Robert Suydam
Robert Suydam is a corpulent scholar in his late 60s, steeped in occult lore and infected by a hunger for more. Once a respected scholar, Suydam withdrew from society, letting his mansion, and body, decay as he plunged deeper into forbidden studies. In his youth he spent years abroad in Europe, the Middle East, and Asia exposing him to arcane traditions and dark promises. Now, Suydam has ventured into Red Hook not to hide, but to act.
Suydam’s ultimate goal is immortality, and his method is union with a cosmic entity: Dayika Hezar, the Thousandfold Mother, an avatar of Shub-Niggurath. Diagnosed with Bright’s disease and facing death, he turns to the cult for rebirth. But too late he learns that in this marriage, he is not the groom, but the offering. To break the pact, he ensorcels Cornelia into a Christian wedding, hoping to outwit the gods. The results are catastrophic. Driven by pride and desperation, Suydam becomes both the herald and the victim of the very horror he sought to command.
- male adult
- american
- Urbane
- Theatrical
- Sydney Greenstreet
SUYDAM (firm): My health is my concern. Suffice it to say, I must work while I still can. I am... on the cusp of something important. (pause) I think that will conclude our interview Mr. Malone, I have work to get back to. Good day to you sir. (Raising his voice to call to Lazlo standing just outside the study door) Lazlo, you may show the gentleman out.
SUYDAM: Because Red Hook is a crossroads. A convergence. I spent most of my twenties traveling through Europe and Asia. I studied folk traditions, shamanic rites, burial customs, invocations. Some villages took weeks to reach, and the road was not always kind. Bandits, disease, mistrust. But I found knowledge. Deep, buried things.
SUYDAM (turning to Malone): And you, sir. Your testimony was appreciated. Honest men are in short supply. You did what was right, even if it displeased my dear niece. For the record, Cornelia, those funds from the trust weren’t squandered. They were redirected. Investments in property. Some even in Red Hook. Curious place... with curious possibilities.
