Not in the mood to deal with the uncooperative gardener, Tepo addressed Mary first:

“Miss Mary. Can I ask where you were last night?”

The maid stammered, frightened, as she felt suspected.

“Why… why are you asking? I already told the police officers. Me and Rick were at home!”

“So you two are a couple?”

“Yes.”, interrupted Rick. Seeing that Mary wasn’t doing well, he took over.

“We have met during work here.”

Nodding, Tepo mustered the bearded man. The gardener didn’t avoid his gaze. He didn’t want to be here and showed it openly.

“How was it working for the Ridourans? Did you live a good life?”

The investigators question was rather sharp. Rick was still young. He could be in the army now, but instead he took on a cushy job in this manor.

“Of course not.”, denied Rick with a snort.

“The Ridourans were incredibly demanding. Rick do this, Mary do that! We were the only two employees here but should take care of the whole manor! What a joke!”

Mary only bit her lips as her boyfriend ranted. Tepo guessed that although Rick was exaggerating, there was some truth to his words.

“Does this count for both the Ridourans?”

“Mostly, yes. Although Diana was still less demanding.”

“But Diana was a toxic person. She had a foul mouth!”, chimed Mary in.

“She constantly had male visitors. She even threw parties.”

“That’s true.”, supported Rick.

“While we house in the dirt, those rich scumbags live the high life. They are mocking all of us, I tell you.”

Tepo heard the anger in Rick’s voice. It seemed this was the source of his displeasure. Stil, the young man had it pretty well. At least he didn’t need to fear for his life every day.

“So, Miss de Ridouran had a lavish lifestyle? Where do you think she took her money from?”

“It… should be the wealth her husband left behind.”, answered Mary uncertainly.

“Should be?”

“Well, it’s not like she would let anyone access her safe. To be honest I don’t even know where it is. Diana would only take out force crystals at night.”

“But has Miss de Ridouran ever worked since you knew her?”

“Of course not.”, chuckled Rick dryly.

“What about Mister de Ridouran?”

“As far as I know… he didn’t work either.”, said Mary feebly.

But the investigator ignored her voice at this moment. Just now he spotted a hint of uneasiness flashing past Rick’s eyes. The gardener even seemed slightly fearful.

Tepo rose his brow as he addressed the bearded man:

“Hmm? Rick, do you have anything to say?”

“This…”

Feeling that pressure might only lead to an adverse reaction, Tepo left Rick time to find his words.

“I… can talk. But you guys have to promise to protect us!”

Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

Eyeing the two policemen, Tepo agreed easily.

“Of course. The police naturally protect important witnesses.”

Taking a deep breath, Rick slowly spoke:

“I think Mister de Ridouran was some sort of criminal.”

“What makes you say that?”

Four pairs of surprised eyes focused on Rick.

“I have more than once seen him in the garden. He was talking to hooded figures.

And last night… I… I also saw a hooded figure leaving the manor.”

This information was a lot to digest for everyone present. Tepo was the first to react, as he thanked Rick:

“Thank you for sharing this information. It will help us a lot.”

“It’s ok. Just don’t forget your promise! You have to protect us like you would those rich guys!”

Tepo rose his brow slightly but didn’t want to argue about Rick’s personal opinions. He was more interested in Ferdinand de Ridouran now.

“Don’t worry. But let’s get back to Mister de Ridouran.

Do you know about the strange circumstances of his death?”

“We know.”, answered Rick since Mary seemed to be frozen from fear.

“But we were there when they closet the coffin and buried him. That man is gone forever. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have dared to tell you what I saw. I still value my life.”

After a few more questions Tepo realized that he wouldn’t get any more information from the couple. He thanked them before going back inside. With a quick gaze the investigator noticed that the police officers had begun turning the house upside down.

“Everyone, if you find a safe, tell me!”, shouted Tepo.

Receiving some positive responses the investigator also joined their efforts. Since he focused on the safe, Tepo was torn between the study and the bedroom. Remembering something else, he decided to head for the latter.

The dark, wooden stairs cracked heavily as Tepo climbed them. Arriving at the second floor, a particular smell immediately wafted around his nose. It was a mixture of perfume and sweat, which came from the slightly opened door in front.

This is worse than a f*cking brothel, complained the man in his mind. Not that he enjoyed visiting brothels of course. He only came into contact with these places of sin because of his job.

Almost managing to deceive himself, Tepo stepped into the bedroom. Immediately the wide-open closet fell into his eyes. He ignored the big bed with suspicious ropes as he inspected the wooden furniture.

To his surprise not a single piece of clothing was left in the closet. A scenario immediately played out in Tepo’s mind.

He saw a hooded figure entering the manor. Since there were no signs of a brake in, they either had a key or Diana let them in. Either way the person was no stranger to the lady.

They must have suddenly attacked the unsuspecting Diana, trying to knock her out. But it didn’t work perfectly, and Diana had some room to struggle. Only after a few seconds could the figure hang Diana. It was unclear why they still went with a pretended suicide when it didn’t matter anymore.

Anyways, the figure next ripped out whatever was woven into Diana’s clothes. They seemingly knew the exact position as they were rather precise. Afterwards they came upstairs and took all the other clothes with them.

Now the question remained if those things in lady de Ridouran’s clothes were something extremely valuable or if it was something the police wasn’t allowed to see.

Tepo couldn’t answer this question yet. His eyes roamed the closet, seeking for any kind of tiny clue. Unfortunately, the closet didn’t look like it had any mysterious symbols or secret compartments. It was simply a normal storage for clothes.

With a frown of his face Tepo turned around. Listening to the approaching steps, he was certain they sounded familiar. And of course he was right, as a moment later Lond entered the bedroom.

The old chief gave the room a quick glance before chuckling:

“I could’ve bet that I would find you here. This room looks to your liking.”

“Can you take this serious?”, sighed Tepo with an exaggerated eye roll.

Feeling like their roles had been reversed, Lond shook his head.

“Found anything?”

“Rather the opposite. All the clothes are gone.”

“Someone came to steal clothes?”

“I don’t know. Have we found the safe yet?”

“Working on it.”

After this short exchange the two men continued inspecting the bedroom. Tepo caressed the velvet bed with his hand, surprised that such high-quality bedding could still be found. It was a pity that he was here for work.

Knowing that it wasn’t time to fool around, the investigator seriously continued doing his job. Together with Lond they began to sort through the two nightstands next to the bed.

It wasn’t always easy to stay serious though as they found all kinds of toys. Trying their best to keep straight faces, the two men inspected everything for any clues.

Just as they were almost ready to move on, Tepo suddenly discovered something. Knocking against the floor of the lowest drawer, something sounded off. The noise was too dull. With their experience Lond and Tepo immediately judged that they found a false floor.

Their eyes lit up. Finally, they found a clue! After fiddling with the drawer for a while a wooden plank fell off its back, quickly followed by a book.

The men were excited. Had they found a diary? Was it really this easy?

Tepo picked up the book with a solemn face. It was surprisingly light, with a smooth leathern cover. But weirdly enough its sides didn’t feel like paper. They were softer, almost like… fabric?

Frowning, the investigator opened the book. There really was no paper. Instead, small square pieces of fabric were stored inside. Lond drew a sharp breath. Both men understood that their findings match the part which had been ripped out from Diana’s clothes. It seemed the lady had prepared a lot of them.

But for what purpose? Observing the patterns drawn on the fabrics, Tepo and Lond were left with more questions than answers. Only after a few seconds did something come to Tepo’s mind. The investigator narrowed his eyes. He hoped his guess wouldn’t turn out to be the truth.