Well, hello sir! You're the new Scotland Yard consultant aren't you? It's my pleasure. My name is Tommas, I'm a private detective, I was hired by M'Williams' wife, Betty, to investigate his disappearance. I believe she doesn't trust your work too much. Don't take it the wrong way. The recent news about the disappearance of evidence and the delay in dealing with the bank robbery case must have contributed to this. But don't worry, it's just a bad phase. Would you be my partner and work with me to solve this?
Great! Let me present the case then.
Detective M'William, 38 years old, less than a month ago became director of the Scotland Yard, and reported missing a week ago. He holds the post of former director Robert since the London Parr’s Bank robbery. From what they say, M’William has already investigated similar cases in Ireland, and as the former director had proved unsuccessful, they decided to put Detective M'William on the case.
He was last seen on the afternoon of June 7, of our year of 1960, entering his office.
Since you are slightly late, I already stopped by the office in order to take some pictures, they are below. Take a look at them now, and I will explain all my findings to you.
This is superintendent M'William's Office. It was pretty messed up when I got here. There was still a full cup of coffee, as if something sudden had happened. Although it has already been a month since he has the office, many things were still in the boxes.
These are some official letters from the chamber of deputies requesting reports on the case of Parr’s Bank robbery in London.
Here's the current progress of M'William's investigation into the London bank robbery. There were only a few newspaper reports and some photos - the bank owner and some employees, connected by a cord, without much logic for someone who understands the case. Absolutely nothing concrete and quite an inefficien job in my view, for someone who has been on the case for one month.
Let's read what the front page says:
The London Bank Robbery Still no Clue Mysterious Affair
As telegraphed briefly last night, Scotland Yard detectives are investigating an extraordinary case, involving the mysterious disappearance of a considerable sum of money in notes and jewels from Parr’s Bank, Bartholomew Lane, Lothbury, London. The affair has caused quite a stir in City circles, and the excitement is intensified by the fact that great reticence is observed on all hands in connection with the affair.
Upon inquiry today at the offices of the bank no information was obtainable as to how the notes and jewels disappeared, neither would officials state what progress, if any, the police have made. Superintendent M’William who has charge of the case, was in consultation with the heads of his department and a large number of subordinate officials, all of whom have been engaged in the matter. The question was posed whether anything could be stated with regard to the supposed robbery without interfering with the inquires, and the answer was “Superintendent M’William cannot see any members of the Press at present, and he is not in possession of the facts”.
It has now become a front-page speculation that the crime incriminates bank employees, high ranking police officers and politicians. In the absence of official news it cannot be stated whether or not there is any foundation to this theory, neither as to what amount of money actually disappeared. In one quarter the sum is placed at £60,000, while in another it is given at £75,000.
The bank manager stated that the officials had absolutely no explanation to give. There was no sign the bank having been forcibly entered. No person not connected with the bank is allowed beyond the outer counter, but the bank manager would not state whether any of the clerks were suspected.
The police maintain the greatest reticence, but it has been ascertained that up to now none of the notes nor the jewelry have been traced.
There were lots of boxes with office supplies and documents everywhere. But many of these things seemed disposable to me, just a few reports of old cases, nothing very important for a detective to maintain today. Other than that, there were books of all kinds in the boxes - history, mathematics, philosophy, astronomy. Nothing too specific for a detective either - they just seemed to take up space.
Something interesting here! There were files on past cases, listed and dated, but there seemed to be some missing, because there was a gap in dates and numbering, mainly over the past year.
A letter from Betty's lawyer asking for a divorce. The letter spoke of infidelity.
This was a padlocked drawer, which was open. In it I found an old photo of M'William, a fake mustache and an old vest (that, from what I've been asking, the detective used a lot).
An open safe with several bundles of cash inside. I can't say if bundles were taken from there. There was also a coin purse empty.
A typewriter, it looks like the letter 'n' doesn't work.
A piano a little out of place, I didn't understand why it was there. And it was quite out of tune.
As you can see, there are some interesting conclusions we can take from this, well, let's call it crime scene. But let's put that aside for a moment. I want to show you the objects I found at the crime scene. I also went to visit places where it seems that M'William passed by on the 7th of June, and I also collected a few things I want to show you.
Key to the Office This key was in the inside, and the office was locked. As M'William was not seen for a day, his co-workers decided to break down the door on June 8th, and then they found the key inside, nobody there.
Old photo of M'William A very handsome man, slim, green eyes, wearing an Irish army uniform, looking like a low-ranking soldier.
Documents As you saw in the photos, these are the documents sent by Betty's lawyer, requesting the divorce. They were already signed by M'William.
Badge This is M'William Badge from Ireland - a shiny new badge.
Mustache A fake mustache.
M'William's Vest The vest that M'William used to wear. But it was not the outfit he was seen wearing last time, on the afternoon of June 7.
Letter from Juliet A love letter from Juliet, dated two weeks ago.
THE EVIDENCES FOUND AT BETTY'S AND M'WILLIAM'S HOUSE
Box of Evidence A box of evidences found at M'Williams house, empty. On the side of the box was written: London Mafia case. Scotland Yard. April 1960.
THE EVIDENCES FOUND AT M'WILLIAM'S CARRIAGE
Butler's Outfit The complete outfit of a butler, folded and hidden under the bench.
Gold Coin Some gold coins forgotten on the floor of the carriage
That's all i've found so far. I think we have some people to talk to. Let's go after them. I haven't talked to anyone yet.
The first person I think is important to the case is Juliet. It seems like she was M'William's mistress, and mistresses always know more than they appear. Juliet is a young, single and very beautiful woman. She owns a Pub House, which, according to what is declared, earns her a lot of money.
Yes, yes, it's terrible. You MUST find him - she looked anxious. Well, yes, we were lovers for a while. But it's been a month we stopped seeing each other, since he took over Scotland Yard. He said he had to focus on the case, and with the divorce, there was a lot going on in his life, that's all.
If you want to know, that wife of his, Betty, she is terrible. She consumed him with the story of him having a mistress, engaged to do everything to make his life miserable, and when she finally filed for divorce, he readily accepted, of course. Don't think it was because of me, no, it was because of her.
If I were you, I would talk to Betty. She had many reasons for killing him.
M'William was gentle and kind. Yes, we had our problems. But I still have a huge affection for him, and I want him to be found more than anything. After all, I was the one who went after you, wasn't I? Anyway, I've known him since he came from Ireland 1 year ago, we got married after a couple of months. He has been a private detective since he got in England, before taking up the post in the Scotland Yard. We are neither poor nor rich. But the important thing is that he had always been a friendly and very intelligent man. And I say this because he was always very political, he was friends with the right people. David, for example, the deputy, I know they have been exchanging correspondence since M'William took over Scotland Yard. David is from a traditional english family, and, as far as the city knows, he is so talented that as soon as he left boarding school he became a deputy. He is one of the wealthiest men in the city. I think people like David need to know about the city's problems in order to help, don't they?
Hello detectives, welcome. It is a pleasure to try to help with the investigation, I have a great appreciation for the Scotland Yard and its detectives. Yes, me and M'William had exchanged some correspondence, just as I did with Robert, the former director. I only ask how the investigations are going, of course, in general, it is not in our interest to interfere with the police. Because of the bank robbery, and because the pressure on politicians is increasing, well, we also have to put pressure on them just a bit, right?
Now, I need to ask you a favor. I noticed recently that my office here at the mansion was overturned, only a small amount of money in small bills disappeared, so I didn't go to the police. But if you can take a look at this for me, I appreciate it.
I trust the house butler, James, extremely, but lately he has been elusive, avoiding talking to me or crossing my path, maybe you could talk to him?
Hello, eh, gentlemen. I have worked here at Mr. David's residence for years, Robert got me this job, he is my father. We don't have a good relationship, I spent a lot of family money on gambling.
No, of course not. I have nothing to do with what happened at mr. David's office. He's a good man and doesn't hesitate to help me whenever he can. My four year old daughter had been sick a week ago, and, as you can imagine, I don't have much money. So Mr. David borrowed a carriage for me to take her to the doctor. He's a good man.
I also don't know anything about Mr. M'William's disappearance. But maybe you could talk to my dad. He still works in the Scotland Yard and has an office next to M'William's. He must have heard something.
Yes, after I left my post I continued to work here, in a lower position. During the time that I held the position of director, I was working mainly in the case of the English mafia. Drug trafficking, extortion, prostitution, armed robbery, contract killing, money laundering, counterfeiting and kidnapping - that's all on them. And I believe that it all comes down to a single leader, who controls everything silently. I didn't find out the name, but I got close. I passed the entire case over to M'William, who seemed to deal with it in an exemplary manner.
This is one of the reasons why I regret his disappearance. And if you wanna know, on June 7, some strange things happened in Scotland Yard. I saw a young man leave M'William's office. Everyone thought he was interviewing a witness for a case, because he usually did it in his office, but soon after we saw M'William come in the front door. How did the young man get inside the office? It's a mystery. And, most curious, even on the night of the 7th, I was working very late at Scotland Yard, and I saw M'William near his carriage, in front of the building, while no one who was there still apparently saw him leaving his office. I know it was him because of his mustache and top hat, they are very typical of him. I must have been the last to see him, actually.
About this young man, he is very similar to my son, tall stature, well-defined features, handsome. But, before you follow that path, I know it was not James, because the stranger had yellow eyes, not blue ones.
Good. I think we're on the right path, my friend. This carriage story is very strange. We found butler clothes in it, and we know that James had borrowed M'William's carriage. What's more, it was seen near the crime scene, and M'william was next to it. We'd better clear this story up first.
Fine. I didn't need the carriage to take my daughter to the doctor. I am in serious financial trouble. I heard that M'William had a large sum of bills and gold coins in the safe at Scotland Yard, so I went there to check it out. I dressed as M'William and went in through the front door - because of the hat and the mustache, and because we are naturally very similar, nobody suspected anything. I left at night, through the window, through the fire escape.
But I have nothing to do with M'William's disappearance, and I no longer have the gold coins with me either. It was just what I took, I didn't take anything else. Paper is traceable and I'm not the type of person who knows how to deal with that, you know.
And how did i get in in the Office? I had the key. I found it at Mr. David's office, the day I inspected it. And you want to know what else I found? Many bank account titles abroad. And Juliet's Pub House? It seems to be in the name of Mr. David too. And so, I also found a paper with some numbers written down in sequence, and a letter from M'William along, saying that everything was well kept in the safe. And that the most important thing was also in the office, but in a more hidden place. That's what made me think that maybe M'William had money in the safe.
Yes, the Pub is not in my name, I only manage it. So what? This should not be a surprise, David owns many businesses across London. David made a fortune during the war because of the financial speculation, that's when he first met M'William. The pounds, gold and jewels James found? M'William and David are both rich (and still friends) beause of those years. This James guy is a little thief who is telling you only half-truths to save his own skin.
I’d rather you talk to my lawyer, you’ll see that my transactions are all legal. Me and M'William have shared a certain treasure since the end of the war, that he kept with him in Ireland, because of taxes: essentially gold, pounds and jewelry.
Well, since you asked, as far as I know, M'William decided to come to England at the request of Robert himself, because M'William was known for being an excellent detective and Robert wanted help in the cases he was working on.
Robert was perplexed, as if he had never heard anything more absurd in his life. - Yes, how did you figured that out? That's exactly it, I heard about M'William's reputation in Ireland and I sent him a letter. I didn't expect him to take my post, it is true, but well, he was conducting investigations well, and that was what mattered to me.
Detectives, I was looking at my husband's things, you know, to see if I found out something relevant. And I found this anonymous letter, written to my husband, apparently. I thought it was better to show you.
"My dear, she is not who you think she is. - she is much, much worse. She has changed since our war years. I am sorry for what I have to do, you will always be very dear to me, and I hope that one day you will understand, and forgive me. Goodbye." - the "n"s were handwritten.
I started looking for inconsistencies in the speeches. And for me the biggest inconsistency was how someone who took the Mafia of England investigation as seriously as Robert could admit that someone as reckless as M'William was doing a good job - when he clearly wasn't. So I had to look for a reason why Robert wanted to make it look like M'William was competent. When we asked Robert why he invited M'William to come to London, he seemed genuinely bewildered. Therefore, the (so to speak) partnership between the two could only have come later. And what reason would have David to lie that Robert was the one who invited the missing man to London? There had to be something about this coming that he wanted to hide, correct? So was my line of reasoning.
Another major inconsistency between the speeches was how Betty referred to David, as a man who became a deputy as soon as he left boarding school - while Juliet told a totally different story. Betty's story struck me as a common sense known to the London population, while Juliet's could only be known to someone who knew David and M'William very well. And David immediately afterwards confirms the story that both men met in the war, so I tend to trust this version of the facts.
However, if the two man had made their fortune during the war and really shared a treasure, as Juliet said, what would explain Betty's version, that the two were "neither poor nor rich"? It seemed to me that David had a lot more money than M'William. Just like Juliet. The fortune must have come from somewhere else.
The last time we spoke to Juliet, she mentioned jewelry found by James. But James didn't say anything about jewelry to us, nor did we know that at the time. How did Juliet know that there were jewels hidden in M'William's office? Either she was there and saw it, or M'William had told her, or told someone who told her. I have more to believe in either of the latter two hypotheses, because a woman like Juliet would not go unnoticed in the Scotland Yard.
Now about the two men who were seen at the office on the 7th of June. One mystery is solved: one of the men was James, he enters the office dressed as M'William, steals the gold coins and leaves throught the fire escape in the middle of the night, and then takes M'William's carriage back home (or wherever).
And the other men? The tall man with yellow eyes, that is seen leaving the office, and everyone imagines that he is a witness in some case? Because he looked like James, and M'William looks like James, my most natural thought is that he was M'William himself. But there were two problems with this hypothesis. The first: why would M'William leave his own office looking like someone else? And the second: M'William does not have yellow eyes, but green ones. About the second problem, I can only imagine that Robert lied, to mislead us about M'William's plan, because after all, that was his whole purpose all the time, wasn't it? And about the first problem, I must answer first why M'William never admitted his real appearance all this time.
Remember the fake mustache and the vest we saw at the office? They did not belong to James, as I thought at first, because James left the office looking like M'William, he did not abandon the disguise inside. Then I concluded that the disguise belonged to someone else: the man who had been playing M'William part all this time. I sent a telegram to Ireland with M'William's old photo, and it looks like he's not a detective there, that was a scam. Which is quite predictable considering his skills. His true name is Martin. He indeed lived there for a while, and as far as the Irish police knows, he was part of the mafia there. And the only reason I can imagine why he didn't want to leave the office looking like the detective, is because that would be dangerous for him - that is, someone was after him, someone that didn't know how he truly looks but only how he detective looks. And that gave me a clue as to why he disappeared.
Because of Martin's connection to the irish mafia, because of his friendship with David and because of everything James told us about David, I quickly concluded that the man Robert was behind - the head of the english mafia - could only be David. That was my mistake.
Until I read the letter. It was not a letter written for Martin, but by him - the typewritter over Martin's desk gave it away. And the recipient could only be David. Who were they talking about? It must have been Juliet's, the only one who seemed to know them since the war. Besides, it wouldn't be very smart to have all your illicit wealth in your name. Therefore, I believe that the head of the english mafia is Juliet.
Having said all that, why did Martin run away? Why now? And why Robert? What does the letter mean?
All that can be answered thinking about the answer to one simple question: what happened to the jewelry? I've always found curious that Martin kept a piano in his office, especially one that was clearly not meant to be played. Investigating further, I imagined the jewels could have been inside of it. But there was none left. James didn't seem to be aware of them. Besides, he didn't seem smart enough to search inside the piano either. My hypothesis is that Martin took the jewels and ran away with them - the most valuable part of the treasure. And, needless to say, all that Martin kept in his office came from the London bank robbery.
And why did Martin decide to steal them now, and not a month ago, when he took possession of them? I think Martin was called from Ireland by Juliet to solve some problems she was having with the Scotland Yard. Robert was getting too close to her and she needed someone of trust who could make the evidence disappear. And when he arrives here, she became a lover of Martin. But Martin really felt in love with Betty, I think, and she with him. I don't know how he justified this marriage for Juliet, but she seemed to accept it well for a while. I believe that at some point along the way Juliet discovered that Martin really love Betty and was only with her for convenience - and this must have happened at least after two weeks ago, the date of the last love letter we found from Juliet. That was the key point for Juliet to start threatening Martin, and that's when he decided to drop his disfavor and get away with the jewels. I believe that divorce is just a front to protect Betty. Knowing that Juliet would hire someone to go after M'William, Martin leaves from his office dressed as Martin. I think Juliet would rather exhibit a hired killer M'William's appearance than Martin's to protect herself and her past history.
And Robert? He is one of the smartest we have in here, my guess is that he figured everything out and put Martin against the wall. So Martin shares the treasure with Robert and asks for help to hide.
Now, the last question to be answered. Why did Betty, knowing - because I believe she knew - that Martin was part of the Mafia, come to me and ask for help in finding him? Here we enter the realm of assumptions and leave the realm of logic, my friend, but my intuition tells me that Betty did not know that Martin was on the run, she really believed that Juliet had found and killed him. She saw an opportunity to arrest Juliet for being head of the Mafia, if we discovered at least part of the plot. And why didn't Martin tell Betty that? Probably because she would be the first to be sought for answers by the Mafia, and the less she knew the better. If Martin would look for Betty later for the two to run away together are mere assumptions, but as Martin did not promptly flee to Ireland (or some other country), and as I am an optimist and I believe in love, I also tend to believe that.
And that is all I have so far my dear, do my thoughts correspond to yours? I think we have some arrests to make, huh? Let's go.
My friend, I already have my hypotheses about what happened. I already know that M'William is very much alive, and is being hidden by one of the five. But first I want to hear your thoughts.
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Key to the Office
Old photo of M'William
Documents
Badge
Mustache
M'William's Vest
Letter from Juliet
Box of Evidence
Butler's Outfit
Gold Coin
