The Night Desk · Season 1 · Case 5 · Misdirection ·
The Pawnbroker's Pearls
A tray of pledges, four stops on the way to the safe, and two people who look far too guilty.
The case file
Friday, 5:45 pm. At closing, Solomon Wexley carried the tray of pledges from the window of his pawnshop on Chandlers' Lane to the safe in the back. On the way he stopped to speak to four people, one at each of four spots: the counter, the stockroom doorway, the coat stand and the office door. At the safe, a string of pearls pawned that week for $300 was gone.
Each of the four had one thing in hand that could hide a necklace: a shopping basket, a pair of kid gloves, the shop ledger or a folded newspaper. Cass Rendle was in the shop before you and has already told the Gazette it was the nephew, who owes money all over town. The lady who pawned the pearls is not much happier. Find who took them, with what, and at which stop.
Who was there
- Ronnie Wexley, the pawnbroker's nephew. Too young for his debts, too old for his excuses, cannot keep his hands still.
- Mrs. Lavinia Crane-Whitby, pawned the pearls. Old money, newly short of it, wears both like a fur collar.
- Edwin Larch, appraiser from Moberly's Jewelers. Soft voice, soft hands, a loupe on a ribbon and nothing much to say.
- Miss Prudence Ames, bookkeeper. Lavender water, sharp pencils, and a memory for every number she has ever written down.
The places: the counter, the stockroom doorway, the coat stand and the office door.
The means: a shopping basket, kid gloves, the shop ledger and a folded newspaper.
Case 5 · Friday, October 30
The questioning room
This case's night is Friday, October 30, from midnight your time. The questioning room plays here with JavaScript on; the case file above reads without it.
The inspector's note: Motive is a story; evidence is a square
Misdirection works by giving two people excellent reasons and nobody a fact. When a case hands you debts, grudges and nervous hands, write them in the margin, not on the board. Ask what each clue rules in or out about places and means, and only then look back at the motives. The guilty party in a misdirection case is very often the one whose motive you were never shown at all.
How to solve a Night Desk case, with a worked example.
The solution
The night desk's write-up appears here once you solve the case, or from Saturday, October 31, the night after it opens.