The Untimely Death Box Set

by James Kipling

  Although it seemed like Chloe was trying to drive me away from investigating the murder, what she was saying was true. I did need to relax, although that was not going to happen now. I needed to regain my energy before going back to work. In fact, I had not thought of work once since the day before because I was having so much fun and I was so distracted. Now I just wanted to get this murder solved and over with before moving on with my life back home.

  Chapter 33

  I decided to relax for a while, to see if that got me anywhere. Having established where everyone was at the time of the murder, I decided to think back to the events of the day. It had been one of the most dramatic days of my life, because so much had happened in the space of twenty-four hours. I thought and thought, just like I always did when it came to working a case. Soon, I realized that was getting me nowhere, so I wrote down the names of all the suspects, and crossed out the people who could not have fired the first shot. I knew that Stephanie couldn’t have, because she was physically there when I heard it fired. Chloe had excluded the Miltons from the investigation by what she had said, so it was certainly not them. That left me with five potential murderers, and any one of them could have done it. It did cross my mind again that this could be some sort of conspiracy between two people, although I was not certain which two. Indeed, it could have just been one person, which is how these cases generally turn out.

  I then sat back and thought about the nature of the crime. Perhaps the tower itself symbolized something? I thought to myself, out of all the places in the world, why pick the Eiffel Tower to murder someone? In my mind, the Eiffel Tower represented love, and it probably did to most people. At the heart of Paris, the Eiffel Tower is considered by many to be the most romantic place in the world, so I decided that love was most probably involved in the killing. That gave a big hint as to who the murderer was, although it still could have been several people. Although I did not want to cross them off just yet, I could not help but think that Alan and Shona were most likely innocent. Although they were behind me when the shot was fired, I did not actually see them at that moment, so they could have done it. However, the shot seemed quite distant. It was a shame that I couldn’t tell exactly where the shot had come from.

  I then moved on to the second shot, and why it might have been fired. There were a number of reasons why that second shot may have been fired. First, it could have been fired to kill someone, so this may have been planned as a double murder. It could have also been fired as a distraction technique—was I made to think that this was planned as a double killing? And then, there was the possibility that it simply could have been fired by accident—it was possible.

  Sticking to the subject of the second shot, I thought more about who could have done it. Again, I wrote down all of the suspects who were in my sight when the second shot was fired. I then went around to each guest and asked them one question each—who did you see when the second shot was fired? I wrote down everything they told me.

  Frank saw Shona because she was standing right next to him. He also saw Doreen because she stood next to him. Doreen saw Frank and Brendan. Brendan saw Veronica, Stephanie, Shona and Alan. Stephanie saw Brendan, Shona, Veronica and Alan. Shona saw Alan and Veronica. Alan saw Shona, Stephanie and Veronica. Chloe saw Shona, Stephanie and Brendan. Veronica saw no one—she was simply lost in staring at her dead husband.

  As I analyzed these findings, I came to the conclusion through witness statements that the potential murderers were Chloe, Frank and Doreen. However, as I thought more about it, this might not have necessarily been true, because some people may have been mistaken and some may have even been lying. Assuming that everyone was telling the truth, Veronica, Shona, Alan, Stephanie and Brendan were seen by at least three different people, so it was likely they did not fire the second shot. This was getting more and more puzzling by the minute, but I knew that I could solve it, so I continued.

  As I was lost in my trail of thought, Chloe approached, telling me that the police wanted to see me.

  Fortunately, they spoke English, so I did not need Chloe to translate everything for me.

  “We understand that you are investigating the murder that was committed on the Eiffel Tower earlier today?” one of the policemen asked.

  “Yes, I am,” I replied. I identified myself and showed my detective’s badge. For a few moments we discussed what the limits of my jurisdiction would be. I was pleasantly surprised to find they used their authority in a constructive manner. One of the investigators filled me in on what they’d found out so far.

  “Well, we would just like to inform you that the gun used to murder Christopher Dewell has been found, and there were no fingerprints on it.”

  “Where was it?” I asked.

  “It was lodged in between two iron bars, so it must have been thrown out somehow.”

  I thanked the police, and sat back down. Chloe offered me another, ‘Death in the Afternoon,’ but I just asked for some orange juice instead. With that new information, I decided to think just a bit more.

  Chapter 34

  I could not help but think that Chloe was the one who did this. I was never one to be judgmental of another, and I never, ever assumed anything in this job, but I just had that feeling that she was the murderer. I had to admit that although I had solved perhaps some of the most complex cases in my country, I was still an inexperienced amateur. Before I went to France, I had solved only four cases (excluding the one that I solved, though justice was not brought to the murderer), so I really had little experience in these types of cases. Of course, I had solved countless gang killings, which helped me some, but it was rare that I had come across a case where ordinary people were the murderers. Even though I knew that the murderer was under the very same roof I was under, I just could not see it. Some detectives chose to attack the problem another way. To identify a potential suspect, then start to follow them and gather evidence. But I did not like to work in that way. My method of solving murders is to suspect everyone, and only identify the murderer when there is no doubt whatsoever that they did it.

  Then, a dark thought came into my mind…will the murderer strike again? It was possible, since there could have been a second targeted victim, so it was a possibility—if not a probability—that the murderer would strike again. Then I realized that anybody could be in danger. Perhaps everyone else was thinking the same thing as well, but perhaps not.

  For now, I decided to watch Chloe very carefully, despite my opinions of this technique. I knew it was the only way to move further forward for now. Chloe was the usual business woman—she was stressed, trying to be kind, well organized, professionally dressed, and tough on the inside and out. If she was indeed the killer, she would be a tough nut to crack. I wished there would be some sort of evidence to exclude her from the enquiries, but unfortunately, I did not think that it could happen. Chloe could easily have committed the murder—she had the motive, because she absolutely despised the Wilsons—perhaps she was even hoping to get Veronica sent away for the crime? She also had the opportunity to murder Christopher—she knew the Eiffel Tower extremely well, so it was fair to say that she knew where every iron bar was, and at what angle she could shoot Christopher from. She also had the means to do it—she was both physically and mentally capable of firing a gun at someone and killing them. In a court of law, you need motive, opportunity and means. Chloe had all three. That is why I deeply suspected her.

  So there I was, deciding to stalk Chloe in order to analyze her behavior, to see if she was behaving inappropriately, considering what had happened earlier that day.

  When I next saw her, Chloe was standing at the reception desk, checking in another couple.

  “Hello, and welcome to the Sunshine Hotel!” she said, as if she was a broken record. She had carried on as if nothing had happened. She checked in this couple in the exact same way she checked in my family. It was as if she had truly forgotten about the murder!

  “Any dev
elopments yet?” she asked when she saw me, rubbing her hands together.

  “Not quite yet,” I said. “But I know I’m getting closer.”

  “Oh...right,” was Chloe’s reply. Her head started to shake slightly, as if she had been threatened by me or something. Perhaps she had been.

  I stayed in the reception room and listened to her enter the kitchen. She started to shout at the cooks in French, and she was very, very aggressive with them.

  Soon, she came out of the kitchen again, and went into the red seating area where the Miltons were seated.

  “Would you like another drink?” she asked them, in an extremely polite and friendly manner.

  I continued this for a while, watching and listening to her every move. That suspicion was still there, and it was not going to go anywhere soon. I figured that she would be on to me being on to her if I continued following her, so I decided to give it a rest for a while. Everything that she did in that twenty minutes seemed completely normal, which in itself would be abnormal considering the circumstances. I would assume that any innocent person would be respectful towards Christopher’s untimely demise, but then again, this was Chloe I was thinking about. Perhaps it was Chloe’s way—after all, she did have a business to run.

  I went out back, where I found my mother standing around, looking at the view.

  “Your poor father’s gotten sunburned,” she said, “so he’s just gone to lie down for a while.”

  “That’s a shame,” I replied, “but let’s not let it ruin our holiday.”

  “Tammy, if a murder is not going to ruin our holiday, then a little sunburn certainly won’t!” my mother said, laughing slightly.

  “That’s true,” I agreed.

  “So, are you any further forward?”

  “I’m still on the first day, remember? These things do take time.”

  “I know... but who do you have in mind as the killer?”

  “Well… I can’t help but think it may be Chloe.”

  “Chloe? No. It can’t be!”

  “Why do you think that?” I asked, inquisitively.

  “Because I saw her when the shot was fired.”

  “You what?!” I cried.

  “Joe and I were on the same ledge as Chloe and the Miltons. I saw Chloe standing right next to the ledge when the shot was fired.”

  “Are you sure?” I said, absolutely astounded.

  “I am certain. I don’t know where the shot came from, but it could not have been Chloe.”

  “Why didn’t you mention this earlier?”

  “Well, I thought I’d save it until you questioned me!”

  In all of the drama, I’d forgotten to question my own parents! It would have saved me a lot of time and mental energy, but at least I had the information now.

  “Well, this changes everything!” I said, knowing that I would have to start again.

  “Yes...” my mother said. “Anyway, how are you and Danny?” she said, trying valiantly to change the conversation.

  “Still separated,” I replied, somewhat sarcastically, hinting that I did not want to talk about it through the use of short sentences.

  “I was devastated when you broke up with him, you know” my mother said, interfering with my life as usual.

  “He’s not the one for me, Mom,” I said. “He stalks me. It’s creepy.”

  “He stalks you because he cares about you dear––he made a mistake. Your father and I made mistakes, didn’t we? When things got stressful, we separated, and then got back together again.”

  “But that was different. Your mother had just been murdered.”

  “And you were moving house. You got involved with that Alesha Christen case, and perhaps he didn’t like it. It’s worth thinking about.”

  Later that night, after another think about the events of the day, I picked up my phone.

  “Hello Danny,” I said.

  “Tammy?” Danny said on the other end of the line. “It’s been so long. I can’t believe I’m hearing your voice again.”

  “Well, you have. Look, why don’t we meet up next week?”

  “I’d love to.”

  I felt a lot better after that. Perhaps deep down, he was the one, and I did care for him. My life was crushed when he broke up with me, but now, perhaps we could pick up the pieces and start fresh. But for now, I still had a case to focus on.

  Chapter 35

  I thought, as usual. I thought and thought and thought some more. After a long thinking session that produced no result whatsoever, I decided that since I hadn’t gotten that far by focusing on the first and second shots, maybe I should try a completely new angle and focus my attention on the gun that was found on the boat. How did it get there, and was there a link to the murder?

  I tried to remember where everyone was, and what they were doing at the time of the murder. I remembered where everyone was sitting—the Sandersons and Brendan were seated behind me, Stephanie was right in front of me taking a photo, Veronica was behind us talking to the Miltons, and Chloe was sitting there, doing whatever she was doing. Then—just like that—it came to me. I knew who the murderer was. One person out of that bunch was doing something else, and that person did what they did for a different purpose. I now knew who fired the first shot, and who fired the second shot. The whole thing had come together. This was a very cleverly planned murder, but it still did not defeat me.

  My confidence somewhat restored, I headed downstairs to make the announcement that I had solved the murder. I will admit to being a little proud, because it only took me a few hours, which was a new record for me.

  “Hello, Tammy,” said Chloe. “How are you getting on with the investigation?”

  “I have solved it, actually,” I said.

  “You mean, you know who did it already?” she said, with a very puzzled look.

  “Oh, yes,” I said, rather smug but also very confident.

  “Who is it then?” she asked.

  “I will explain everything when we are all gathered together. Could you do that for me?” I asked.

  “Of course. Come on though, give me a clue at least!”

  “Alright then. I will give you several. Consider the following things: the structure of the hotel, the structure of the tower, the boat ride, the stairs of the tower, an ice cream, the red seating area, and the swimming pool. Given all of that information, you should be able to link each one together and then work out who killed Christopher Wilson.”

  Chloe just stared at me blankly. “I think it would be best if you just explained everything to me in a moment,” she said, rushing off to get the guests.

  Chapter 36

  As usual, all of the suspects were gathered in the room, waiting for my announcement.

  “Well, then,” I said. “It’s time a few confessions are made, isn’t it?”

  I looked around the room, knowing for certain who the killer was. I looked at this person.

  “I really don’t know quite where to start on this one, to be honest,” I said, looking at the police in the background. “Let’s see, I think I’ll start with this. I know for a fact that this was indeed a conspiracy.”

  A few faces looked around the room, shocked.

  “Yes, it was. I had already established where everyone was at the time of the first shooting, and where everyone apparently was at the time of the second shot. This gave me a big hint as to who was involved in this conspiracy. It was funny, really, because these conspirators managed to discuss their crime right under my nose, and I didn’t bother to notice. When I look back at it, I now realize how stupid I have been. Five conspirators were involved in this, and there were three innocent suspects. Before I announce who the conspirators were, I would like to take you back to the night before the shooting, to last night, at the cocktail party. When I went outside for some air, I was quite astounded to hear Christopher Wilson kissing another woman. I automatically assumed at the time that he was kissing S
hona. However, I now know that Christopher was kissing Stephanie!”

  “What?!” cried a shocked Stephanie. “How did you work that one out?”

  “It was easy, Stephanie, although I did not directly see you, I heard the woman say that no one had seen her. If this had been Shona, or even Chloe, then that would not have been the case, because Shona had informed Alan that she was going out for some air. Therefore, someone had seen her leave the building. You, on the other hand, could have easily left the building, because everyone was so focused on Veronica Wilson, and because Brendan is so sociable and friendly, you would be able to slip out for a few minutes.”

  “So you think I’m the killer?” she said.

  “I did not say that...” I said, unable to finish the sentence appropriately. “But Brendan found out, didn’t he?” I said.

  “What are you talking about?” she said, looking at Brendan.

  “Brendan found out about it. I don’t know how, but he did. I assume he did actually see you when you came back in. Anyway, both you and Brendan wanted to save your relationship, and you were determined not to let Christopher wreck your lives. When you went back to the suite that night, you overheard the Sandersons arguing about Shona’s affair with Christopher. That was when the light bulb went off in your head. Knowing that Veronica also hated Christopher Wilson, you arranged to meet somewhere to discuss this event, and decided to meet in the morning, because that would be when everyone else was busy trying to get out, so you would not attract any attention. Stephanie went up to her room, with me tagging along, to help her look for some sun cream. However, that was a lie, because the only reason she went up there was to change the red towel from her balcony to a blue towel. Veronica, Brendan and the Sandersons were all sitting in the red seating area when we left. This corresponded with a red towel. When Stephanie changed it to a blue towel, they immediately moved out by the swimming pool, which is… blue. This is because my parents and Chloe were all around the reception area, which is in close proximity to the red seating area. Stephanie knew that the swimming pool area would be more private, so you could all discuss the murder plot there. Oh, and you could see Stephanie’s balcony from the red seating area because their apartment was directly above it.”