The Poisonous Biscuit

by Paul Edwards

  "Don't listen to her, she made all the food and without her it would never have happened. I only made a few phone calls, that wasn't hard."

  Hannah was happy as John had finally grown up. He would never have normally organised anything like this, and now that the person he loved was in prison, it seemed to have put him into a state of shock, causing him to increase in maturity with a big change of character. Hannah was so happy to see everyone. There were sausage rolls, chicken legs, sandwiches, cakes, biscuits and everything.

  Chapter Forty

  Arriving in Edinburgh Inspector Richard stepped of the train and asked for a taxi to Orangely Hall. While waiting for the taxi by the station, he had a 'proper coffee' in a 'proper cup' as he called it. Little did he know that when he arrived there would be plenty of opportunity for coffee and food. Richard was a professional who expected nothing from his clients. Anything he got was an added bonus and he knew it could not be expected, after all, this was his job. While drinking his coffee he pulled a face. It seemed there was milk in the coffee, much to his disappointment. Maybe it was a Scottish thing? He did not know why, but for some reason it was assumed that he would want milk in his coffee. Rather than say anything, after a good few sip he looked at the waitress and then waited until he knew she was looking away. At that moment he poured his coffee into the plant near him. Then he gave her his cup. He smiled.

  "Thank you for the coffee, I must get my taxi now. See you later."

  Richard was a polite man, he didn't see how it could be necessary that he complained about a little dash of milk when people were being murdered, and others unjustly arresting for murder. In prison, he knew that it was much worse for these innocently imprisoned people who had much more problems than having to deal with a little dash of milk. Not that he didn't like milk, he loved it, although in tea rather than in coffee. His coffee had to be perfect and ideally from the bean, pure coffee, anything less and he would settle for tea. Jumping in the taxi he spoke to the taxi driver on the way. Getting down the road he then realised something.

  "Stop!!! I've left my suitcase at the cafe; can we go back?"

  They went back to the station from where he picked up his suitcase and the driver kindly waited for him. This meant he had another opportunity to see the waitress again, whom he decided to give £10 to.

  "Thanks for looking after my suitcase, although a few minutes it may have been. I didn't realise you also looked after luggage as well as providing food" he joked.

  Once again, he jumped into the taxi.

  "Let’s try again" Richard said to the driver. They started going towards Orangely Hall, and then as they were already halfway there Richard raised his voice again.

  "Stop!!!"

  "What is it this time? Forgot your head?"

  "Hahaha, I think I did that a long time ago. No, no turning back, do not worry. This time I would like to dash into this shop and pick up some flowers. The client I'm dealing with, her husband has just died so I would like to show my sorrow for her."

  Out of the taxi he jumped and into the shop he went, while the driver kindly waited for him. Looking at the flowers he decided to pick the best bunch, for £35, after all Hannah was paying a lot to hire him, and he made money through other means as well as through investigating. Back out of the shop he came and into the taxi. The driver looked at him.

  "Gosh, they must be expensive, you going on a date?"

  "Certainly not, does not everyone deserve flowers like these?"

  "Erm, well by the sound of it, maybe I would still be married if I was as charming as you."

  "Ha-ha, no, I'm not married anyway, no intention of being. I just think women deserve respect. I try my best to be a gentleman, but I'm not perfect. I'm Richard by the way."

  This driver was stunned by him, how could he be so nice and on such a regular basis? He was not even on a date and he was doing this? 'Such a gentleman' no doubt the driver was thinking.

  "I am Abdul, nice to meet you Richard. I am still technically married, but my wife walked out because I got us in a debt of £30,000 and this job doesn't pay enough."

  "Oh dear, that's awful, I'm so sorry." Richard started thinking of how he could help. Then, he spoke.

  "Would you ever consider being a chauffeur in a busy city? That job usually pays better, and you only have to deal with one strange character, not several."

  "I suppose I would. Sadly though, we are about to lose our house, the one my wife lives in with the children, I have a few weeks to pay the mortgage and I can't get a loan to pay it because I now have a terrible credit rating and on top of that this job has no guaranteed income."

  Richard looked in deep thought. He went silent for a moment and then decided to blurt something out which he may or may not regret saying.

  "Let's cut to the case, I need a driver. I hate driving in Manchester. How about you be my driver, starting from next month? We'll set up a five-year contract. I will pay of your £30,000 debt which means your family will have a house. As a result, I obviously won't pay full wage as these are kind of wages given in advance and paid in good faith, but I'll pay you a portion of the wage I would've paid, in addition to the £30,000 up front."

  The driver slammed his breaks on!!!

  "Oh, you’re are so kind sir!!!! You have saved my family and my marriage. You have given me my life back sir! Anything you want and I will be there!!!"

  The driver was getting all excited.

  "Please calm down" the Inspector said after nearly being thrown through the window. "You will not be a slave, you will be employed, we don't have slavery in England, you are worth much more than that, I can assure you Abdul."

  Arriving at Orangely Hall, the Inspector tried to pay the driver.

  "Now, how much do I owe you? I'll pay extra for all the waiting around you've done."

  "Oh, oh, nothing, please."

  "Come on, I'm not your boss yet. Here is my contact card."

  "Thank you, I will kindly decline payment. Bye." Abdul dashed of and drove down the street, leaving Inspector Richard with his suitcase stood outside this large house. It made him think back to how small his apartment is in Manchester, despite its much superior place in the sky. Richard knocked on the door and then straitened his hat, which he often wore merely in order to take off again as a sign of respect. The door opened and immediately he was blasted with music coming through the doorway. He was greeted by Hannah.

  "Hello, who are you if I may ask?"

  He took his hat of and bowed his head slightly.

  "Hello, are you Mrs Adersall? I am your night in charming Armor who you've been expecting I hear."

  "Oh, Inspector Richard? Please do come in and help yourself to some food. They've all thrown me a welcome home party. It seems things are just getting better and better."

  Everyone looked over, wondering who it was, as Hannah took this mysterious man into the dining room, where the buffet had been set up.

  "Who's that?" her Grandma whispered to her grandad. Everyone knew Hannah had a habit of making friends, but not friends in long coats with hats on. Not friends who took their hats of in the presence of a lady, as that was all apparently out of date now. For Richard however, nothing was out of date, except for those things which should never have happened in the first place.

  "These are nice little cheeses pies my Grandma has baked if you want to try one inspector. I think most of the food was made by her actually."

  "I don't mind if I do, thank you."

  Chapter Forty-One

  Helen and Kwiatoslaw thought about going to the party but were thinking of what happened at the last one. They had already lost two family members and wasn't sure if they wanted to risk following in their footsteps. It was a Saturday and they didn't have much else to do, there was the option of sitting at home or they could go and enjoy themselves.

  "Shall we go to this party?" Helen asked.

  "Perhaps, but we should probably eat here first and not there, just in case" Kwiatoslaw replied.
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  "Well, then what's the point of going?"

  Sally looked unimpressed, and what she was thinking was unpredictable, as usual. She spoke, not saying much.

  "When you've both decided let me know, I'll be in my room."

  They had a chat together about it. This moral dilemma was ridiculous. Who goes to a party and does not eat? There was a killer on the loose, and if that killer was still killer hungry, they might kill someone else? After all, they killed Jacks Sister, many days after apparently getting what they wanted. After much thought, Helen came to a decision.

  "Come on, we're going. Get your coats on." Kwiatoslaw put his coat on and picked up a breakfast bar on the way out, in his sceptical style. They headed for Orangely Hall, where all the fun was apparently going on. Orangely Hall had a great history of parties and fun. There was no place exactly like it in Edinburgh, it was to some people 'The Heart of Edinburgh.'

  Inspector Richard was admiring the beauty of the house. They walked through the parlour, him and Hannah, chatting about different things.

  "So, where did you get that chair from?"

  "Oh, that chair? That was from an Irish Tinker who was the friend of a lady who was the mother of my husband’s last wife. That chair has been through some history."

  It was a large chair, one which nobody dared sit on. It was dark red and had a brown wood holding it together. Underneath the seat was an extraordinarily complex design in the structure. Next, they came to another item which was in the kitchen, it was the coffee machine. His eyes were fixated, and he paused.

  "Is that a coffee machine, Mrs Adersall?"

  "Erm, yes, why? Thirsty?"

  "Oh, I didn't mean that, I just noticed how sophisticated the design is. I'm guessing that's new?"

  "Yes actually, most things in here are, apart from the door."

  Moving the door forwards and backwards, he noticed that it squeaked. He could not help but comment.

  "Oh dear, I think you need some oil on that."

  Hannah laughed, finding this new inspector amusing.

  "Anyway Inspector, I hope you can get me of the hook, as well as advising me on what to do with my door."

  "Well yes. How about I do that first, and then I will fix your door?"

  "We have a deal!" she smiled. They were both getting on very well and then a knock came at the door. Who could that be? Hannah went to check whilst Richard introduced himself to the other guests and got to know them. Perhaps he was trying to work out if any of them might be the killer?

  Hannah opened the door and standing there was Helen and her family.

  "Hello, please do come in" she greeted them. They came in and settled themselves down, probably wondering who this man was in his long coat, who they had never even met before, not that it was their party anyway or that they should know everyone. Sally walked toward the dining table to get her sandwich, to be followed by her Dad.

  "Stop, don't risk it."

  "Why? I am hungry. I'm not living of a breakfast bar!" Her mum came in and made her views known.

  "Listen, both do as you please. What happened before is not going to happen again. I am eating."

  While they were arguing Richard was still chatting to the other people at the party, making jokes and laughing away. They all seemed to like him; he was a lively character who would never fail to impress people. As he was talking to everyone, he was looking around, observing what was going on. He noticed that Andria started walking towards John. He started walking away, fast, and she went after him. 'What unusual behaviour' he was no doubt thinking. Richard could not help but slowly disappear and start following them. John had locked himself into the bathroom, while Andria was stood outside, saying "Come on John" as he hid away.

  "What's all this about?" Richard enquired.

  "Oh, it's just me and John messing around."

  "Ah, I see. Well, are you Andria by any chance?"

  "Yes, who are you?"

  "I'm Richard the murder investigator, can I have a chat with John and then with you afterwards?"

  "Erm Ok."

  After waiting a while and explaining that Andria had gone, thankfully the bathroom was unlocked and out came John, looing terrified.

  "Come on, let’s go and have a chat, I'm Richard, the detective. If you let me know your concerns, you will be Ok, I promise. I'll talk to Andria later."

  After reassuring John, they both went into the computer room and had a little chat. There he told her the entire story about what had happened that day in her house. John was shaking as he was talking.

  "Calm down, there's nothing to worry about" he reassured him. After this, they got up and Richard waved at Andria, who then came over looking worried.

  "So, can you run me through your version of events on the day John claims to have been tied up? My important question is, how did you even get him tied up? Please do not make things harder for yourself. I have a file about the situation form the police station, just as I have many files. If your honest and it turns out that you are not the murderer, then this can all remain just that, a file, which will go no further as long as John agrees. Please be honest with me."

  There was a long pause. Andria was worried, should she risk telling the truth. Looking stressed as she knew he was extremely clever, she decided to speak.

  "OK, the thing is..."

  "Just a minute.... I think I heard something..."

  He looked at his watch and then back at her. "Sorry, please continue."

  "So, Ok, what I did that day was technically illegal. I drugged him up and he fell asleep, then I tied him to a chair. But he brought me flowers, and I thought he liked me. I was just having a little fun with him, at the same time as trying to make him accept that I didn't kill his Auntie, or anyone else... The police don't know I drugged him up, I told them it was consensual as if he liked that kind of thing, but Ok I lied a little. I drugged him up, but not with anything dangerous, and I did not kill anyone or drug anyone in that sense, I swear. I do not kill people, I'm just a little naughty. Hannah will tell you, at school I did similar things, but without drugging anyone. I didn't expect it to go this far."

  The inspector looked shocked, then he started thinking for a moment.

  "Hmmmm, may I ask, why did John suspect that you killed his Auntie?"

  "Because, he saw me with a box of Turkish Delight, the same sweets that killed his auntie. After that, I just wanted to make sure he didn't say anything to the police, or it would look bad. Now though, I've made things worse, haven't I?"

  "Let me be the judge of that, I'll talk to John and see if I can smooth things over with him. Don't worry, if you've been completely honest then we'll get to the bottom of this."

  Chapter Forty-Two

  'Bang!!!' A loud noise came from the dining room. Someone had fallen over, it was a lady called Rita who Hannah had not known for long. Hannah's Grandma had made some biscuits for the party, and it appeared that she had eaten some of them.

  "Call an ambulance!!!" Hannah shouted, falling to the floor to comfort Rita. Kwiatoslaw looked at Helen.

  "Do NOT say 'I told you so!'" she asserted. He had got accustomed to nothing except for bad luck happening in that house, so she expected him to comment.

  "Right," Richard said, standing on a chair, "nobody go anywhere. Hannah, lock the door and only open it when the ambulance arrives."

  After Hannah locked the door, Richard spoke to them all. He got down from the chair and they all looked at him.

  "Right, those biscuits have only just been paced there, someone has clearly tampered with them while they were in the kitchen. Who has been in there?"

  They were all frozen, naturally not wanting to be accused of something they had not done. They could lie and say they hadn't been in there, making them look bad, or be honest if it wasn't them.

  "While I was speaking to Andria in what is known as the 'Games Room,' did anyone leave the parlour? What was happening at that time?"

  A few of them admitted to leaving the room
. This caused Alison who Hannah hated to speak up.

  "What does it matter? If someone left the room, it probably just means they'd had enough of my singing and attempt at entertaining. Maybe people were going to the toilet?"

  "I will get to the point in a moment. At least you can say you was in here then. You were entertaining everyone, that is fine. Now, who left the room during that time? It's particularly important that I know."

  Everyone started mumbling among themselves as Richard got Hannah to find him a piece of paper, on which everyone could write their names on, saying where they were while he was speaking to Andria. When Hannah got back with the paper, he spoke up.

  "Right, please fill this in, and be honest because I will be talking to people and it will be obvious if you are lying about being in a room full of people. If you left even for a smoke or for the bathroom, write it down please, otherwise you will look suspicious. Let me remind you all that this is a murder investigation."

  One by one, they all filled in the piece of paper. As they were doing this, Richard was thinking ahead as usual. There was no doubt in his mind, that whoever caused the death of this woman was probably also responsible for the death of everyone else. This was clearly a psychopath on the loose. It would be too much of a coincidence that all those people died in the same house within about two months.

  After they had all finished, Richard had a look at the paper and then spoke up.

  "Right, the reason I asked for this to be filled in is as follows. While I was talking to Andria, I had to pause for a moment. I heard a sound, which for a moment I was uncertain of. Now thinking back, I am quite sure of what it was. I hope Mrs Adersall doesn't mind me saying, but in this house, the kitchen door creaks, and I am convinced that the culprit went into the kitchen during that time and poisoned the biscuits just before they got put out on the table."

  This man seemed like a genius, he noticed everything and at just about the right time. As he looked through the list, he started to ask people a few questions.