Author |
Topic: All is not well in Baker Street (Read 539 times) |
|
alien
Guest
|
James is wealthy widower and he lives in his house with his new attractive maid, Jessica, of whom he is crazy about. He told her this, more than once, but she was elusive most of the time, nonetheless teasing him now and then, playing her naughty little game. One day James says to her that he can't take this any more, that he must have her. Jessica says that she will sleep with him, but only if he makes a new will in which she inherits everything. This sounded agreeable to James, as he didn't have children, and he pretty much lost contact with his relatives. So the next day he makes the above will and says this to Jessica. She replies that she will be all his tomorrow after Frank, as previously agreed stops by, since Frank is making her a bit nervous. Frank won quite a sum of James's money about two weeks ago, but James didn't pay him because he thought he saw him cheating. At that moment in question, he grabbed Frank's hand to see whether he had cards up his sleeve, but Frank fell dramatically from the chair, which resulted in cards being thrown about on the floor. There was also another circumstance with Jessica unintentionally glancing at Frank's cards at a particular poker game, when she saw a card Frank swore he didn't have. Anyway, Frank was to visit James today to discuss the money he claims he owes him, swearing that he has never cheated. When Frank arrived, Jessica, being a disciplined maid, led them to the study room where she lit the candle and opened the window, since it was a bit warm in the room. They argued for about 10 minutes, which was enough for Frank to get of the chair and march out of the house, red in face. So, after Frank left with empty pockets, James and Jessica went directly to his bedroom, for a stress removing sex. Jessica, still dressed as a maid, told him that she left her new nightgown in his study room, and asked him if he would be so kind to get it, as she wanted everything to be perfect. James did as she had asked of him, but there was a shot while James was standing in the middle of the study room. The killer shot him right between the eyes using a hunting rifle, standing outside, near the window. The man was Jessica's boyfriend, who used the rifle that had Frank's fingerprints, as Frank always leaves his rifle in James's closet, since James's house is closer to the hunting ground. Frank was known as a marksman when it comes to shooting, but so was Jessica's unknown boyfriend. So her boyfriend, who wore gloves, placed the rifle on the desk by the window. She gave him from the desk drawer the exact amount of money Frank claimed to have won fairly at previous poker game, no more no less, and the killer then disappeared. Jessica closed the window to turn away police's attention from her boyfriend's footprints in the grass and flowers. The reason her boyfriend didn't enter and left through the main doors was because right across was another house, and someone could've seen him under the streetlight. Her plan seamed fine even when police, rather quickly, arrived, as everything was pointing that Frank committed the crime: the sum of money that was missing, the hunting rifle with Frank's fingerprints, the recent heated discussion between the two. But then arrived detective Alien. Detective Alien, intelligent, green and handsome, posed a couple of questions to the maid. She said that the above window was closed all this time. She heard the shot and it seamed it was fired in the study room, so she ran there, also because in that room is the closet for the rifles. She said she heard someone running through the hallway to and through the main doors, but she didn't see anybody. She then entered the study room and saw James lying on the floor in his blood. After hearing all this, the detective Alien said to one of the officers to handcuff the woman. So what beginners fatal mistake gave her away to the keen eye and deductive mind of the detective Alien?
Just two-three lines are actually important in the riddle, as the rest is just to make the story a bit richer.
|
| « Last Edit: Jul 5th, 2006, 12:24pm by alien » |
 IP Logged |
|
|
|
jollytall
Senior Riddler
Gender: 
Posts: 585
|
 |
Re: All is not well in Backer Street
« Reply #1 on: Jul 4th, 2006, 8:07am » |
 Quote  Modify
|
I guess it has something to do with the candle.
Option 1. If you open the door only (running out) it would have blown the cadle. It has not happened because the window was open and noone ran out through the door.
Option 2. Frank put out the candle using his thumb and pointing finger (why would he do that, is another question). He still had the soot on his finger but not on the rifle when they found him after the crime, but before the conversation with the maid.
Option 3. Firing a gun inside a closed room would have put out the candle, but it has not happened.
Option 4 (without the candle). There was not enough room between the body and the desk to fire a rifle and leave that hole in the body, i.e. it had to come from farther.
|
|
IP Logged |
|
|
|
SMQ
wu::riddles Moderator
Uberpuzzler
Gender:
Posts: 2084
|
|
Re: All is not well in Backer Street
« Reply #2 on: Jul 4th, 2006, 8:12am » |
Quote Modify
|
Two things occur to me:
1) a candle burns differently in a breeze as opposed to still air, so it may be possible to tell that the window had been open.
2) The trajectory of the bullet could point to the shooter being outside; either because the floor of the study is higher than the garden (and so the shooter would have been shooting upwards), or because there was insuffucient room between James' body and the wall for a shooter with a rifle to have been standing.
--SMQ
|
|
IP Logged |
--SMQ
|
|
|
Grimbal
wu::riddles Moderator
Uberpuzzler
Gender:
Posts: 7527
|
|
Re: All is not well in Backer Street
« Reply #3 on: Jul 4th, 2006, 9:51am » |
Quote Modify
|
Maybe
his and her footsteps, in the blood, to the window, then to the drawer, to the window again...
Or maybe
The detective was the guy sitting on the veranda of the house opposite the main door. He saw Frank leave earlier. He heard the shot. And he is damn sure he didn't see anybody run out. You know, he is secretly in love with the maid and spends his evenings just watching the house for a few glimpses of her.
Or maybe
Dead mosquitos under the candle?
|
|
IP Logged |
|
|
|
alien
Guest
|
|
Re: All is not well in Backer Street
« Reply #4 on: Jul 4th, 2006, 10:02am » |
Quote Modify
 Remove
|
on Jul 4th, 2006, 8:12am, SMQ wrote:
1) a candle burns differently in a breeze as opposed to still air, so it may be possible to tell that the window had been open.
--SMQ |
|
Yes. That is what I had in mind, or should I say, that is what Conan Doyle had in mind, reading one of his books. It is my story though, as I didn't copied it from the book. And hell yes it burns differently, as I myself had done a little experiment with a fan and a candle.
on Jul 4th, 2006, 9:51am, Grimbal wrote:
Or maybe
Dead mosquitos under the candle? |
|
Curious. What do you mean by that? If anything.  I mean, I did not come across something like this reading Doyle's book. 
on Jul 4th, 2006, 9:51am, Grimbal wrote:Maybe
his and her footsteps, in the blood, to the window, then to the drawer, to the window again... |
|
She made one mistake, not seven mistakes.
|
| « Last Edit: Jul 4th, 2006, 10:37am by alien » |
IP Logged |
|
|
|
Grimbal
wu::riddles Moderator
Uberpuzzler
Gender:
Posts: 7527
|
|
Re: All is not well in Backer Street
« Reply #5 on: Jul 5th, 2006, 1:48am » |
Quote Modify
|
on Jul 4th, 2006, 10:02am, alien wrote:
Curious. What do you mean by that? If anything. I mean, I did not come across something like this reading Doyle's book.
|
|
Well, mosquitoes are attracted by light. If the window is closed, they will collect outside of the window and die on the window sil. If the window is open, they will come in and burn from the candle heat. Try to leave a light on and the window open during one of these hot summer nights, you will see what I mean.
And what Conan had in mind, I don't know. He is a barbarian anyway. I've even heard he is half human, half machine...
|
|
IP Logged |
|
|
|
graphia
Full Member
Gender:
Posts: 202
|
|
Re: All is not well in Backer Street
« Reply #6 on: Jul 5th, 2006, 2:14am » |
Quote Modify
|
I'm not sure if I understand the answer, did the candle have wax dripping all over the place instead of just one spot because of the movement?
|
|
IP Logged |
|
|
|
alien
Guest
|
|
Re: All is not well in Backer Street
« Reply #7 on: Jul 5th, 2006, 10:25am » |
Quote Modify
Remove
|
on Jul 5th, 2006, 1:48am, Grimbal wrote:
Well, mosquitoes are attracted by light. If the window is closed, they will collect outside of the window and die on the window sil. If the window is open, they will come in and burn from the candle heat. Try to leave a light on and the window open during one of these hot summer nights, you will see what I mean. |
|
Interesting.
Graphia: the wax was dripping opposite to direction of the airflow. If you have a fan you can make the same little experiment as I did, or you can just take my word for it. Take your pick.
|
|
IP Logged |
|
|
|
Roy42
Senior Riddler
Gender:
Posts: 418
|
|
Re: All is not well in Baker Street
« Reply #8 on: Jul 8th, 2006, 12:10am » |
Quote Modify
|
If the window was closed, would not the glass be shattered everywhere? 
What is the name of this book?
|
|
IP Logged |
Regards,
≈Roy42
|
|
|
alien
Guest
|
|
Re: All is not well in Baker Street
« Reply #9 on: Jul 8th, 2006, 8:10am » |
Quote Modify
Remove
|
I didn't say that she closed the window right after the conversation, and she didn't have to drag him in the bedroom either.
It is one of his books that have more stories in it. Cannot remember the name of that particular story. Actually, in that story, Holmes deduces that the window was opened just briefly, because of the draft, powder and the candle. So the candle burned differently than in this story.
|
|
IP Logged |
|
|
|
|
RIDDLES SITE
WRITE MATH!
Home 
Help 
Search 
Members 
Login 
Register
Reply
Notify of replies
Send Topic
Print