Criminal Case: Grimsborough

Chapter 24: Anatomy of a Murder-Part 3

While Jones and Marie were sitting at their desks, Jones finished reading his book and he told Marie that he figured out how to solve the case. When Marie asked him what he has in mind, Jones explained to her, "Well in the book, the villain taxidermies his victim's alive just like what happened to Wilfred. And do you know how they caught him? It's actually the museum curator on page 198 who gives the detectives a vital piece of information on how the victims got taxidermied!"

Marie scoffed and rolled her eyes and Jones gave her a reassuring look and said to her, "I know that look you're giving me and I know this is real life. But still what do we gave to lose by talking to Cornelia?"

"You got a point there. And I noticed that the clouds are starting to roll in, so I think we should look at the abandoned garden once more before it rains," Marie said and Jones agreed.

But when Jones heard that it was about to rain, he thought to himself, I guess my surprise will have to till the next day. The first thing they decided to do was check out the abandoned garden and once they got there, Marie and Jones checked out the garden's junk heap. The first clue she found was a bloodied shirt with it's owner's initials stitched on the pocket and she saw that they said W.T.; which actually stood for Wilfred Turnscrew. Marie then thought of something and said, "This shirt must've belonged to Wilfred Turnscrew. The killer must've left it here while the dressed him up for the exhibit."

Jones also saw another marking on the shirt besides the blood and he asked Marie if she can take a look at it and she soon bagged the shirt so she can examine it back at the station. Marie also bagged a broken box so she can also put it back together back at the station. Suddenly, Marie felt a raindrop on her head and Jones also felt a couple and they looked up and saw that the last of the sun's rays disappeared behind the clouds and it started to rain on them. Jones soon covered himself and Marie with his jacket and said to her, "I guess we better get back to the car and head back to the station before we get really drenched." And soon they hurried quickly to Jones' car so they can get out of the rain.

Once they got back, Jones hung up his jacket to dry and he got both himself and Marie a couple towels so they could dry themselves off. As Marie was sitting at her desk examining the clues, Jones sat down at his and said, "I'm sorry Marie. I was planning for your last surprise to be outside, but I guess it's gonna be postponed."

"Don't worry about it. Once this case is over, you can show me what it is," Marie said and Jones smiled and thought, she's cute when she's understanding.

The first clue Marie put back together was the broken box and after it was whole again, Jones looked at it curiously and wondered what it was. Marie then told him, "It's a diorama Jones. I remember doing them in school and you usually take an empty box and create a small scene from a book or a play inside it."

"Thanks for the info, but to me it looks like it's just mice dressed like little people," Jones said.

When the two officers looked closer, they saw that the box's title says Hamlet and the name of the person who made it is Stanley Turnscrew. Jones then got wide-eyed and he exclaimed, "So Stanley dabbles in theater themed taxidermy and this also means that he was at the crime scene! I think it's time that we talk to him." And soon they headed out to talk to Stanley Turnscrew and they took their umbrellas with them.

Once they found him working outside, Marie showed him the diorama they found and when he saw it he thanked Marie for finding and fixing it. Marie then told him, "You can thank us by explaining why your diorama was at the abandoned garden, which is where the murder of your brother took place."

"I asked my brother to meet me there so to propose that we turn that place into a gift shop that's themed around his book and my art. I make all these beautiful mice dioramas and I happen to do everything; I even sew their little clothes. I know I can sell them for a lot of money. But Wilfred disagreed and he mocked me and called me a loser! So I just lost my temper and threw this diorama at him, but look who's laughing now," Stanley explained.