Excerpt from the book called The Frisby Waterless Murders
“I wonder why he would do that?” wondered Barnes.
“He’s probably a DIY person, who just has to know how things fit together. Some people are like that. They’re annoying.” Knowles was not a handyman and didn’t like people who were.
“Seat 7 was Simon Ricketts, who was interviewed by you, sir.”
“Yes, Mr Ricketts appreciated my acting skills. He didn’t say very much really other than when the smoke came in John Davis, Ellie Hammond and Desmond Stellen went to the back of the carriage with the Smedleys and the Johnsons, but then Desmond disappeared to find his wife and didn’t come back. He also said Daisy Arnold went with them, which contradicts what Betty Johnson said.”
“So that’s Desmond Stellen and Daisy Arnold who are unaccounted for at the moment then,” said Barnes, “and perhaps Marie Stellen too.”
“It does mean that Desmond left his wife initially and didn’t make sure she came with him to the other end of the carriage,” replied Smythe.
“It does doesn’t it, Linda – that’s very inconsiderate of him and very ungentlemanly too,” said Knowles, “what do you reckon, Barnesy, would you have done that?”
“I wouldn’t take my partner to a murder/mystery event, sir,” said Barnes quietly, “in fact I wouldn’t go out with anyone who wanted to go to this type of event.”
“What? Surely, it’s just a bit of fun?”
“Imagine, though, if I wasn’t able to detect who the murderer was? How embarrassing would that be, sir?”
“Especially if your partner got it right and you didn’t, eh Barnesy? What about you, Linda?”
“I’d play Cluedo with them first, sir, and see how they did. And whether they wanted to play twice rather than just once.”
“Testing the waters, good idea, anyway, who was in Seat 8? That was Daisy wasn’t it? Who interviewed her?”
“That was PC Wang, sir,” replied Smythe, “he said she appeared to be rather evasive in her answers and wouldn’t meet his gaze. She was one of the actors and her role was to be the daughter of the deceased, who was not estranged from her mother unlike the role played by Mr Ricketts who was playing the long lost son.”
“Oh yes, I forgot that bit,” said Knowles, rather sheepishly, “carry on Linda, sorry.”
“Daisy arrived with all the other actors, around 9:15 and they boarded the train together and mingled in the kitchen area until it was time to go. She was pestered by the woman opposite her for a few minutes and then when the smoke came in she sat where she was for a few seconds and then headed back to the kitchen area as she knew the way.”
Julian Worker Fiction Writing 