Monday, 4 April 2016

Murder Most Foul! - C is for Conflict - Cozy Mystery #AtoZChallenge 2016


Welcome to my contribution to the A to Z Challenge. My theme this year is Murder Most Foul, which, for you, my blog visitors, means that you will be sharing in The Case of the Cursed House, or rather the bare bones of it. 

Everyday, I will be revealing more about my developing Cozy Mystery: descriptions of scenes; character details; locations; clues to the mystery. And, at the end of each post, you will have the chance to vote on whodunnit. So, without further ado, on with the case...

Previous parts:


Story Notes Additional Details

As they head over to the pub, Aisha tells DCI Barnwell and DS Williams what she knows about the Finchers. They have been publicans at the Ewe and Lamb for nearly 10 years, having moved down from Manchester. Dave is ex-army, he can handle himself. Debbie is known to sample her own pub's wares on a regular basis. Both are well-liked and Aisha does not know of any big issues.
...

On site interview with Debbie and Dave Fincher at the Ewe and Lamb pub.

Do you know Bill Whethers?
  Dave snorts. Debbie grimaces at him.
  De - he was a regular.
  Da - not after last night he isn't.
What happened last night?
  Da - I barred him, that's what happened.
  De - Bill was on better form than usual last night. He is - was one of our best customers if you know what I mean.
  Da - which is the only reason I haven't barred him before for puffing away on that damn e-cigarette of his in the bar. It's no smoking in here, real or fake.
 So that isn't why you barred him?
  Da - no. And I didn't bar him for mouthing off at Lord Michael.
  De - he's the Earl of Oxen, he and his wife, the countess, Lady Emma, own the manor that's set back behind the pub.
Was is unusual for Bill to be having words with Lord Michael?
  De - yes, they've been firm friends since Bill came to the village.
  Da - oh yeah, they're in tight, those two, especially over the whole housing thing. His Lordship lets Bill do all the public talking about it, but he's happy to have an ally to stop the riffraff sticking around to Wittrenham.
Do you know what the argument was about?
  De - no, they were huddled over in a corner, but Lord Michael left with Bill snearing after him. And that would have been it, Bill can be a lousy drunk and he'd certainly had too much last night, but Jon was getting drinks at the bar and when he went back, Bill just erupted at him.
  Da - it wasn't pretty. Now, everyone round here knows that Jon, y'know, plays for the other team, but Bill called him a fag.
  De - told him he'd had enough of his 'weak-wristed moralising'. It was horrible. Bill told Jon in front of the whole pub that he knew Jon had been in love with him for years and that it was pathetic. Poor Jon, he pretty much ran out of here.
  Da - then that arsehole got up and threw over one of my tables, glass and booze everywhere. I went to stop him and he tried to push me over. That was it, I escorted him to the door and threw him out into the night.
...

Outside once more, DCI sends Aisha to talk to Jon Lee to see why he never mentioned the fight, while she and Williams go to talk to Lord Michael and Lady Emma. They'll meet back in the car park.
Aisha Kakkar
Age: 23
Gender: female
Ethnicity Code: M3
Job: Police Constable - Weald & Marsh Liaison Officer - an officer working with local communities, especially villages, in the Weald of Kent and Romney Marsh areas.

DCI Mags Barnwell
Age: 44
Gender: female
Ethnicity Code: W1
Job: Detective Chief Inspector Kent Constabulary Serious Crime Office

DS Kevin Williams
Age: 27
Gender: male
Ethnicity Code: W1
Job: Detective Sergeant Kent Constabulary Serious Crime Office
Other info: DCI Barnwell's bag man.

Debbie Fincher
Age: 41
Gender: female
Ethnicity Code: W1
Job: publican of the Ewe and Lamb
Other info: married to Dave Fincher

Dave Fincher
Age: 43
Gender: male
Ethnicity Code: W1
Job: publican of the Ewe and Lamb
Other info: married to Debbie Fincher

Lord Michael, Earl of Oxen
Age: 48
Gender: male
Ethnicity Code: W1
Job: Lord of the Manor
Other info: He has been friends with Bill Whethers since Bill moved into the village, but they had a fight the night before Bill's death.

Lady Emma, Countess of Oxen
Age: 43
Gender: female
Ethnicity Code: W1
Job: Lady of the Manor
Other info: married to Lord Michael

Jonathan (Jon) Lee
Age: 36
Gender: male
Ethnicity Code: O1
Job: literary agent
Other info: best friend to Bill Whethers; found Bill's body; didn't tell the police he had a fight with Bill the night before Bill died.

The Ewe And Lamb
Public House
Home of Debbie and Dave Fincher.
A few doors down and across the road from the church.



And now it's time to vote again - just take a punt - who do you think killed Bill Whethers (and yes, every character is listed - you never know ;P)?


Who dunnit?

Aisha Kakkar
Debbie Fincher
Dave Fincher
Jonathan Lee
Janice Walker
Lorri Walker
Hal Walker
Fred Walker
Alice Rigden
DS Kevin Williams
DCI Mags Barnwell
Lord Michael, Earl of Oxen
Lady Emma, Countess of Oxen
None of the above, we haven't met them yet
Don't be silly, I don't know enough yet!
quiz tool

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16 comments:

  1. Okay, so I read the bit where you said every character is listed and right above it I saw the info about the house and had a moment where I thought "IS THE HOUSE A SUSPECT???" LOL

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Now that would be verging in to the territory of my other paranormal stories ;P

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  2. Love this, it's complusive reading :)

    Mars xx
    @TrollbeadBlog from
    Curling Stones for Lego People

    ReplyDelete
  3. A fight in the pub. that's intersting. This writers seemed to have a lot of people he wanted to fight with.

    @JazzFeathers
    The Old Shelter - Jazz Age Jazz

    ReplyDelete
  4. Aha!! A murder thriller and it sounds mysterious. Enjoyed reading the questioning that makes it even more mysterious:)

    ReplyDelete
  5. What happens if they gang-killed him? Agatha C. did it...

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  6. I keep selecting "I don't know yet" as it's too early in the game to know. Or is it? I think this is why I like reading mysteries. I rarely correctly guess who did it, which makes everything such a delightful surprise when we find out who the culprit was at the end.

    Cheers - Ellen | http://thecynicalsailor.blogspot.com/2016/04/c-is-for-catamaran-nancy-drew.html

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I'm looking forward to seeing the votes over the month :)

      Delete
  7. This is truly a brilliant idea for a blog, for the challenge, and for audience participation!

    Fim

    NOTE: (Enelinwen is my Blogger ID) I'm posting in the A to Z challenge as fimnorawestcaw.wordpress.com

    ReplyDelete

Thanks for stopping by - I'd love to hear from you. :)