By: Isabelle Wang

March 13, 1988.

Last night, Ms. Abigail Goldman, the local baker, was strangled by a telephone cord in her bakery on Elm Street. One of the nearby shop owners discovered her body. The shop owner allegedly had been locking up his shop when he noticed that Ms. Goldman’s store was still open. When he went over to lock her store up for her he noticed the limp body on the ground. The police are calling it a burglary gone wrong.

Ms. Goldman had apparently stumbled and became entangled in the cord while trying to fend off the burglar. There were muddy footprints that led to where Ms. Goldman had fallen. Her cash register and tip jar had been smashed to pieces, all of the money gone. Despite the police findings, they brushed it off as an accident, and the case was forgotten. The whole town of Stillwaters just moved on as if nothing happened.

Ms. Goldman was a beloved figure in Stillwaters, known for her warm smile and the delicious pastries that made her bakery a local favorite.

Why has the town already forgotten such a tragic event? What really happened? Was it really an accident? If not, who did this?

March 15, 1988

I did a little investigation, and the police claimed that it was just an accident, and the townsfolk were silent because they were grieving. One policeman even told me that the police had “more important things to worry about”, and that the thief probably already escaped and that it was an “accidental” death anyways. I want to believe them, but my gut is telling me that something is not right.

March 16, 1988

Today, I visited Ms. Goldman’s sister. She told me that it would have been normal for Ms. Goldman to trip because she was very “clumsy” due to her advanced age. We talked a bit more, and I thanked her and left. So far, I haven’t gathered any clues yet.

March 19, 1988

Last night, I had the oddest dream ever. In my dream, I saw Ms. Goldman covered in blood. Her blood. Ms. Goldman looked at me and screamed, “Graves did this. He’s been planning this for ages!”
In Stillwater, there were only two people named Graves. Mayor Edgar Blackwood Graves and his brother William Robert Graves.
What did she mean? Was the dream real? Did the mayor or his brother murder her? If so, why?

March 25, 1988

Ms. Goldman’s sister called me this morning and said that she found a note that Ms. Goldman had written.

The note read:

If you are reading this, then I am gone. You must know what kind of a man the mayor is. Don’t be deceived by him. I bumped into him on the streets once, and he told me with this maniacal look in his eyes, “You only have a few left”, and walked away.
Yours Truly,
Abigail

The note was a warning of some sorts, but what did she mean by “You must know what kind of a man the mayor is.”? Was the mayor someone else in disguise? Or was he part of some association? Was the note even real?

April 11, 1988

I haven’t been doing much lately, although I do visit Martha, Abigail’s sister, every couple of days. I’ve also been looking around Ms. Goldman’s study. It’s filled with cooking books, and some of what seemed to be her own recipes. Martha appears to be quite peculiar. She watches me like a hawk every time I come over.
Maybe she’s just worried that I’ll steal something? Or perhaps she’s guilty and trying to trick me into thinking she’s innocent?

April 12, 1988

I decided that it was time for a visit to the mayor. I walked over to his house on Main Street and knocked on the door. Soon, I heard the sound of heavy footsteps, and a middle-aged man with a charming smile answered the door. I inquired, “Is this Mayor Graves?”

He nodded and said cheerfully, “Come on in.” The mayor had a muscular body and looked like a perfect human. He had rows of pearly white teeth, and looked nothing like a criminal.

I walked in and the mayor gestured for me to sit. I asked, “Do you know Ms. Goldman?”

He responded, “Which one? Weren’t there two Ms. Goldmans? A baker and a librarian? They were lovely people, always helping the poor. Especially the baker.”

“The baker”, I added, “Do you know her personally?”

Mr. Graves immediately responded, “No.”

“Perhaps your brother is here?”, I asked.

He replied, “No, he’s away. My brother won’t be back for some time. He had a client in Mirthwood, and won’t be back for a few more weeks.”

The mayor seems innocent. Maybe he had nothing to do with Ms. Goldman? Or perhaps he’s also trying to trick me?

April 16, 1988

I decided to visit the police station to see if the police were willing to let me visit the bakery. The police chief told me no, but after half an hour of negotiating and a bribe, a newly recruited policeman agreed. As I unlocked the store and walked in, I immediately noticed the security cameras and rushed back to the police station to ask about it. The policeman said that they “checked the cameras”, but the “robber” wore a mask, gloves, and a black suit, which made it “impossible” to determine who it was. They told me that the videos were accessible on the monitor on the table behind the counter. I immediately ran back to the store and found the monitor. After plugging it back in, I was able to view the footage.

I scrolled to the night when Ms. Goldman had been attacked and watched. A masked figure came into the store at 9:56 P.M. and demanded that Ms. Goldman hand the money over. When she refused, he simply knocked her out before she could do anything. The baker hit her head hard and she lay unconscious on the floor. Then, the thief took all of the money from the cash register and the tip jar, carefully wrapped the cord around her, and went out. Through a window in the back of the video I could barely make out what seemed to be someone waiting for the burglar outside. The shop owner from the salon next door to her did indeed find her an hour later, and the police came soon after. The person outside had immediately brought out normal clothes, and the attacker changed into a …. a suit. The attacker was tall and burly, and could easily overpower Ms. Goldman because of his physique. The accomplice waiting outside was wearing a very familiar-looking dress. I swear that I’d seen the dress before.

In fact I had seen it earlier this week.

Something clicked in my head as I realized that Martha was the accomplice. This explained her strange behavior the other day when I was looking through the study. While I still wasn’t sure about my conclusions, I could follow Martha around and see what she did.

The librarian’s home was only a few blocks away, so I walked there. I was about to look outside the house when I heard two voices speaking from inside.

A feminine voice said smugly, “With my sister out of the way, I can take her share of the inheritance because I am the only living relative.” She laughed wickedly.

A middle-aged man’s voice replied, “Thank god your sister is gone! She was so annoying and kept on ruining our plans! We had to get rid of her when she figured out what we were doing. Let’s give the money to the members. Then they will support us even more!”

The feminine voice angrily interjected, “It’s my money, not yours!”

Then, the two started to bicker, so I moved from my spot next to Martha’s shed. I assumed that the feminine voice was Martha because it was her house, but who could the man be? I decided to just knock on the door because then, I could see who the man was. If Martha asked why I was here, I would just ask how she was, and act like I was just passing by and decided to say hello. I knocked on the door, and the yelling stopped immediately. I heard light footsteps hurrying to the door, and Martha answered. She looked out of breath and angry.

I politely greeted her and asked her how she was. She told me that she was doing fine and was having tea with the mayor. She invited me in, and I accepted. So, she and the mayor were the ones arguing. That meant that they were the ones working against Ms. Goldman. And the ones who killed her. The masked figure was probably the mayor. But why would he need to kill a baker? I followed Martha inside and found the mayor pacing around angrily. He plastered on a smile that looked fake and said hello. I told them that I would need to leave soon because of an “errand”. Martha and the mayor exchanged a look, and the mayor also said that he had something to take care of, so we said our goodbyes and left.

I needed proof to give to the police, so I returned home, took a voice recorder, and began following them. As a retired detective, I had quite a few disguises, one of which looked like how the townsfolk dressed. I also brought some camouflage clothes in case my disguise was too conspicuous. I was walking outside my house when I saw a resident hurrying urgently into the forest. I decided just to follow them.

The person changed into a black robe before meeting a group of people deep in the forest. The group wore pitch-black robes and stood in a triangular formation. I began recording, as Martha and the mayor stepped forward and gave a speech. The speech was about expanding their illegal trade network to more exotic countries because of their new earnings. In the crowd, I spotted the police chief and realized that he said no to me accessing the cameras because he was trying to cover up the crime. That also explained why only one of the new policemen agreed because the chief had not told him yet. The police chief stepped forward and assured everyone that the whole gang would not be punished, and he would defend them if they did get in trouble. I counted the members and, including Martha and the mayor, there were 47 of them. The gang discussed the profits they could earn by selling illegal imports from other country.

Before the meeting concluded, I snuck back to the town, and went to the police station to find the newly recruited officer. I showed him the evidence, and he was stunned when he realized that the police chief was corrupt. The police officer called for backup and quickly arrested Martha, the mayor, and the police chief. In an interrogation, Martha said that the mayor had been trying to “steal” her money while the mayor claimed that Martha planned the entire murder herself. The mayor had to serve a 15-year long sentence, and Martha had to serve a 9-year sentence. The police chief had a 6-year long sentence.

Eventually, the gang leaders just gave the police the names and addresses of the members. The members ended up with 3 years of jailtime each. The entire gang was very confused how I exposed them., so I explained that it was an accidental discovery. I told them how I was initially trying to figure out if Ms.

Goldman’s death was accidental or not, then I found two suspects, Martha and the mayor who just happened to be leaders of the gang. After the incident, I tried to distance myself from their crimes, so I moved far away to Sunshine Brooks. I heard that many of the gang members even decided to live honest lives and got new jobs. The gang leaders have decided to just lay low for some time. Sunshine Brooks is a great place, but it seems very similar to Stillwaters…

The End