text: [Themes: Mystery]
  
  > examine the poker
  This poker hails from a time when fireplaces were the sole source of household heating, and, as such, were much larger and required pokers nearly the size of pool cues to reach properly into their recesses. Well, perhaps that's an exaggeration, but you certainly wouldn't want to be poked by this particular poker.
  
  > go south
  The central hall is a two-storeyed room, with wide arches north, northwest, southeast and east. French doors to the south open into the library, and a flight of stairs leads upstairs. The kitchen is through a discreet little door to the west. High above, the night sky is visible through a vast skylight.
  
  Loud, ponderous ticking echoes from the grandfather clock by the stairs.
  
  The hall telephone stands in its niche beneath the stairs like an inscrutable modern art sculpture.
  
  The study door to the west is almost obscured by the near-solid screen of crowded bookshelves occupying the west wall. The rest of the room is occupied with modern art. French doors open north to the central hall and southeast onto the terrace. The billiards room is through an anonymous-looking door to the east.
  
  Deborah Wolf is curled up in a comfortable armchair, reading a mystery novel.
  
  On closer inspection, one piece of modern art turns out to actually be a clock.
  
  You can also see a leather briefcase and a tide table here.
  
  > ask the deb about the alibi
  "I met Elinor in the library as I was taking out a book. That was after dinner, about 7:30 pm. We chatted until 8:50 pm. Otherwise, I spent most of the evening alone in a quiet corner of the drawing room, reading a book. Alex was there as well from about 10:00 pm to 10:50 pm. I'm afraid I didn't see anything unusual."
  
  > New
  The dining room still bears traces of the evening's entertainment. A discreet little door leads south to the kitchen, while a wide arch goes southeast to the central hall. Through another arch to the west is the conservatory.
  
  An elaborate clock keeps time on one wall.
  
  From the west, you hear the soft tinkling of someone muddling around on a piano.
  
  > go to the west
  Evidently an addition to the house before Frederic Sheppard ever bought the place, the Conservatory is only half-heartedly furnished. A few sad-looking plants testify to the man's lack of any real interest in horticulture. The dining room is back to the east.
  
  A baby grand piano sits in a corner of the room. Evidently there was some indecision as to which definition of "conservatory" to adopt.
  
  A girl in a wheelchair is parked in front of the piano.
  
  A large clock hangs from a bracket by the door.
  
  The girl in the wheelchair, a fragile-looking blonde, looks up as you enter, and for a moment you get the impression of some sort of "fight-or-flight" instinct kicking in. Then she smiles hesitantly and introduces herself as Elinor Lamb. "And you must be the police inspector investigating the murder. Oh dear, it's such a terrible shock...."
  
  Elinor absently fingers the keys of the piano, humming a little as she does.
  
  > ask Elinor about the alibi
  "I spent some time in the library. Debbie was there. That was between 7:30 pm and 8:50 pm, I think. Cedric came by later, and the two of us were together in the library from 9:05 pm to 10:20 pm. I went to the conservatory after that to continue with my music. I was alone in the conservatory for the rest of the evening after that. I'm sorry, I can't think of anything else that might be important."
  
  Elinor absently fingers the keys of the piano, humming a little as she does.
  
  > look at the notebook
  Flipping through your admittedly untidy shorthand, you pick up the following points:
  broken branch
  broken window
  annotated ledger
  tide table
  telephone call
  Cedric Crane's alibi
  Benedict Lamb's alibi
  Deborah Wolf's alibi
  Elinor Lamb's alibi
  
  > read about the telephone call in the notebook
  Sheppard called his bank manager, 8:20 pm; was concerned about finances. Manager suggested speaking to Crane?
  
  > read about tide table in notebook
  Tides: 8:40 pm (high)
  3:05 am (low)
  9:30 am (high again)
  
  > ask Elinor about the murder
  "It's just horrible. Ben and I arrived at about 3:30 pm; it's his first visit, and I wanted to surprise him with the secret passage behind one of the kitchen cabinets. But Deborah and Mr Sheppard were fixing dinner, and I never got around to doing that. We were all having such a fine time ... it seems impossible to believe that that was just a few hours ago, and the most important thing on my mind then was some stupid secret passage."
  
  > ask Elinor about the secret passage
  "From the study side, you turn one of the candlesticks on the fireplace, and from the kitchen side, you turn one of the hooks in the empty cabinet."
  
  Elinor absently fingers the keys of the piano, humming a little as she does.
  
  > go east
  The dining room still bears traces of the evening's entertainment. A discreet little door leads south to the kitchen, while a wide arch goes southeast to the central hall. Through another arch to the west is the conservatory.
  
  An elaborate clock keeps time on one wall.
  
  > take the tape measure
  Taken.
  
  > look at the notebook
  Flipping through your admittedly untidy shorthand, you pick up the following points:
  broken branch
  broken window
  annotated ledger
  tide table
  telephone call
  Cedric Crane's alibi
  Benedict Lamb's alibi
  Deborah Wolf's alibi
  Elinor Lamb's alibi
  Elinor Lamb's statement
  body position
  
  > read about the body position in the notebook
  Body at 12" below high water mark. 12:22 am: sea level 48" below high water mark.
  
  > go northwest
  The wide, stone-paved terrace overlooks the sea here to the west and south, and stairs lead down towards the beach. French doors go north to the billiard room and northwest to the library. The terrace itself continues to the west, around the corner of the library.
  
  The study door to the west is almost obscured by the near-solid screen of crowded bookshelves occupying the west wall. The rest of the room is occupied with modern art. French doors open north to the central hall and southeast onto the terrace. The billiards room is through an anonymous-looking door to the east.
  
  Deborah Wolf is curled up in a comfortable armchair, reading a mystery novel.
  
  On closer inspection, one piece of modern art turns out to actually be a clock.
  
  You can also see a leather briefcase and a tide table here.
  
  > ask the deb about the murder
  "It's difficult to believe that just half a day ago I was chopping onions with Uncle Fred in the kitchen. We were talking and laughing, and then Cedric Crane and the Lambs showed up, and it was just a regular kitchen party." Deborah pauses, then says, "Speaking of the kitchen, I should probably tell you: there's a secret way from the kitchen into the study. From the study side, you have to turn one of the candlesticks on the fireplace mantle to get in, and from the kitchen you turn one of the hooks in the empty cabinet. The murderer might have gotten in and out that way -- though I rather think that everybody here already knows about it."
  
  > ask the deb about Cedric
  Deborah Wolf purses her lips before saying: "Not an honest man, I'm afraid. Vain, and a little too much in love with his own cleverness. Uncle Fred never recognised any of this, of course."
  
  > ask the deb about Alex
  "Alex is my husband. He's a brilliant playwright, but he needs direction and discipline." She smiles enigmatically and crosses her legs. "I'm not sure what else there is to tell you, except to assure you that he really is a very talented man."
  
  > ask the deb about Elinor
  "I feel sorry for her, I admit. People will insist on treating her as though she's a child."
  
  > examine notebook
  Flipping through your admittedly untidy shorthand, you pick up the following points:
  broken branch
  broken window
  annotated ledger
  tide table
  telephone call
  Cedric Crane's alibi
  Benedict Lamb's alibi
  Deborah Wolf's alibi
  Elinor Lamb's alibi
  Elinor Lamb's statement
  body position
  Deborah Wolf's statement
  
  > read the deb's statement in the notebook
  Arrived early, separately from AW. In kitchen prepping dinner when others arrived. Mentioned secret access from study to kitchen.
  
  > go west
  The central hall is a two-storeyed room, with wide arches north, northwest, southeast and east. French doors to the south open into the library, and a flight of stairs leads upstairs. The kitchen is through a discreet little door to the west. High above, the night sky is visible through a vast skylight.
  
  Loud, ponderous ticking echoes from the grandfather clock by the stairs.
  
  The hall telephone stands in its niche beneath the stairs like an inscrutable modern art sculpture.
  
  > Go northwest
  The dining room still bears traces of the evening's entertainment. A discreet little door leads south to the kitchen, while a wide arch goes southeast to the central hall. Through another arch to the west is the conservatory.
  
  An elaborate clock keeps time on one wall.
  
  From the west, you hear the soft tinkling of someone muddling around on a piano.
  
  > Go west
  Evidently an addition to the house before Frederic Sheppard ever bought the place, the Conservatory is only half-heartedly furnished. A few sad-looking plants testify to the man's lack of any real interest in horticulture. The dining room is back to the east.
  
  A baby grand piano sits in a corner of the room. Evidently there was some indecision as to which definition of "conservatory" to adopt.
  
  Elinor Lamb is parked in front of the piano.
  
  A large clock hangs from a bracket by the door.
  
  > ask Elinor about the deb
  "I never know what she's thinking, but she seems quite nice, otherwise."
  
  Elinor absently fingers the keys of the piano, humming a little as she does.
  
  > read the notebook
  Flipping through your admittedly untidy shorthand, you pick up the following points:
  broken branch
  broken window
  annotated ledger
  tide table
  telephone call
  Cedric Crane's alibi
  Benedict Lamb's alibi
  Deborah Wolf's alibi
  Elinor Lamb's alibi
  Elinor Lamb's statement
  body position
  Deborah Wolf's statement
  
  > ask Alex about the alibi
  "I was playing billiards with Ben from 8:15 pm until about 9:35 pm. Round about 10:00 pm, I joined Debbie in the drawing room. We were together until 10:50 pm. Sure, it doesn't cover the whole evening, and maybe I might have wandered by the study at some point, but I didn't kill the old bastard, if that's what you're thinking."
  
  > ask Alex about the murder
  "It was supposed to be a sort of working holiday -- for Elinor and me, anyway. We're working on a musical production, Twisty Passages, for the West End, and Fred was supposed to be backing us financially. Anyway, Debbie and I arrived separately: I had some stuff to attend to, and arrived only just as everyone was sitting down to dinner. That was about 5:30 pm. After dinner, we all wandered off to do our own thing. Nothing to it. Next thing you know, Ced comes pounding up from the beach bellowing for the police, and now Fred is dead and here you are. How are we supposed to get financial backing now?"
  
  Hugh Dunnett
  
  > read the notebook
  Flipping through your admittedly untidy shorthand, you pick up the following points:
  broken branch
  broken window
  annotated ledger
  tide table
  telephone call
  Cedric Crane's alibi
  Benedict Lamb's alibi
  Deborah Wolf's alibi
  Elinor Lamb's alibi
  Elinor Lamb's statement
  body position
  Deborah Wolf's statement
  Alexander Wolf's alibi
  Alexander Wolf's statement
  guest arrivals
  
  > ask Cedric about the murder
  "I actually arrived earlier than expected: Mr Sheppard was still fixing dinner when I came in the door, and I went to join him. I suppose I should have gone home straight after dinner, but that always seems a little rude. And besides," he adds with a wink, "Mr Sheppard keeps a beautifully well-stocked bar. Anyway, I wound up heading down to the beach late in the evening for some fresh air and alone time. I'd already been there rather a while when Benedict Lamb came down from the house, and we happened to wander close enough to the tidal pool at the base of the cliff to notice Fred lying there dead, and that's when we raised the alarm." He shrugs his shoulders and continues, "I wish I'd been paying more attention. For all I know, whatever happened could have happened while I was right there, strolling about on the sand."
  
  > ask Cedric about the twisty Passages
  "Currently, the main draw on the Sheppard Trust resources would be this stage musical production ... Twisty Passages, I think it's called." He glances around and lowers his voice. "I shouldn't be saying this, but then this is rather a serious business. The others will probably tell you that Mr Wolf was writing the script and Miss Lamb the music, with Mr Sheppard supplying the funds ... but musical productions generally run into greater costs than non-musical stage plays. The entire project was sliding deep into debt, and Mr Sheppard was thinking about cutting his losses. He let slip about it while we were all in the kitchen, before dinner, and there was a tremendous uproar."
  
  > ask Alex about the twisty Passages
  "Yeah, Twisty Passages is the working title. Drama, romance, swashbuckling goodness, everything the public loves, with the added bonus of actually sounding intelligent. The script is mine, the score is Elinor's, and the money is Fred's. It's the first time any of us are working on a musical, and I thought it was going very well."
  
  > ask Alex about Fred
  "I could respect the guy. Not understand him and his fussiness, mind you, but I could respect him."
  
  > ask Cedric about Fred
  "Poor chap. He was a good fellow -- not wonderful with figures, but you can't have everything."