December 2013
Lillian Newman ran a little detective agency. Well people would ring her if the cat went missing or lost a hand hag. Nothing exceptional but it kept her busy and she got to know everyone's affairs. She was helped by a young chap Robert, maybe because he had transport – well, a bicycle – and could do all the running about for her. One morning early she had a call from Margery Atkins, a cleaner who went to one of the old chaps she worked for. She found him dead in bed. Well she panicked and rang Lil as she didn't know what to do. Lillian went straight round to the house and looked at the corpse. There were tablets on the table and a note but the scary thing was the man was wearing a lady's dress and there were a pair of large red shoes on the mat by the bed.
Lily didn't want to touch his neck because he was wearing lurid make-up as a woman. She had to ensure he was dead before she called anyone, so lifted the skirt to feel his feet to see if she could feel any warmth. She couldn't. He was stone cold. She didn't know why she did it but she put the shoes on his feet but they were too small. Didn't fit.
Anyway she sent for an ambulance and left them to it when they arrived.
He was recorded as taking his own life and that was the end of it.
Robb said it was strange being dressed as the bloke was and decided to find out more about him. Apparently he worked the clubs as a female singer and very popular, not the type to take his own life.
Lillian had a strange phone call from a lady stating she was the guy's daughter and could she have the keys of the house as she wanted to clear it out. There was no compassion in the voice and she thought it was a bit soon to sort him out before even the funeral. The daughter said she wasn't surprised he took his own life, the way he had lived. Disgusting was the word used.
Robb, a bit more worldly, said, 'Seems funny, what was she in such rush for?' and having the house keys he talked Lil into going with him to the old boys house to have a look round.
The house was very old and full of antique furniture, pictures that looked worth a lot of money. In the second bedroom there were three wardrobes full of glamorous lady's evening dresses, shoes galore and wigs. There was also a large box of make up on a desk with light bulbs all around. Just like a theatre.
While they were there a knock on the front door made him jump but he answered and an oldish man asked to see Ham.
Robb told him Harry was dead and the old fella was stunned. He was apparently the pianist for Harry's act and they were booked to do a concert on Friday next. When he found from Robb that he had committed suicide he couldn't believe it; he was so keen about doing the show. He knew Harry had been worried that he had cancer, but the doctor had just cleared him. He asked about the funeral as he knew lots of theatre people would be wanting to attend; he had been so popular.
Lilly on hearing this said the daughter hadn't wanted anyone to know, just wanted a small ceremony, no flowers and no vicar. She had still her suspicions of the reason of the man's death, so Robb rang around the crematoriums to find out which one would be doing the deed. He found it was a fair distance from the area so Lil contacted Charles the pianist, as she thought it was tragic that Harry should just be bundled away like that.
Consequence was there was a really big turnout much to the obvious dismay of the daughter.
Meanwhile the daughter has asked Lil to do a valuation of everything in the house as she was going to sell it all and did not want to be cheated by some crook of a buyer.
While they there working on the lists, a woman drove up with a large van and a burly chap and said she was Harry's first wife and she was going to take all her possessions that were still on the property. Lil wasn't having any of that as they were responsible while in the house and shut the door, put on the alarms and said she would call the police if they didn't go away.
The valuation finished Lil tried to contact he daughter for payment for the work and she would give her back the keys. She got the husband on the line who was distressed because his wife had just died from an accident; fell under a train he said.
Lil hadn't liked the woman but didn't want her dead, and who was going to pay the charges now?
Next thing she knew another younger women asked for the keys, she was Harry's daughter from another marriage and wanted to clear the furniture. It was definitely hers but the second wife had bought the house some time ago and was going to put it on the market, so wanted it empty.
Lil by this time was certain there was dirty work afoot and went to the police. They said thank you but it wasn't murder and this was out of their jurisdiction so in other words mind your own business.
Robb was a whiz on the computer and thought he would search a few things out. When the daughter fell under a train there was only one other person on the platform, a Muslim woman in a burqa. Lil said the girl who called in had been wearing a long black coat and black scarf when coming to the house. Lil was still wondering who was going to cough up for the work they had done on the valuation, so held on to the keys.
Then the second wife, who owned the house came back to take over, turning up with another lorry and there was hell to play, second wife's bully boy was all but strangling Lil screaming it was all hers and she was going to have it. The police were called and all taken into custody.
It all came out that the daughter and the other sibling were conspiring to get the contents of the house and share. Harry wasn't supposed to last long with cancer but when they found out that he was probably going on for years they conspired to kill him. Unfortunately Harry was having a drink with an old buddy of his at the time. They, thinking they were alone with him, having drugged and near strangled him, turned and found the other old guy and they killed him. He looked a little like Harry so the girls put him on the bed and put so much make up on his face, putting on the red dress so that it would look like their father. They took away the father, in fact to hide him while they got all the money and when trying to get him into the boot of the car discovered he was dead as well.
The second daughter was scared her sister was going to give the game away, and it was she that pushed her sister under the train.
Well when it was all over Lil and Robb celebrated; all had been solved, the invoice paid and she and Robb celebrated by putting up their hands together in a high rise, or was it a high five?