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Death Among the Winter Leaves

Case 027 · 29 October 2026 · Easy

On a night of hard frost, the great botanical glasshouse stayed warm and bright behind its misted panes. Inside, rare plants from warmer countries steamed the air while a charity gala moved uneasily through the paths. Before midnight, Gertrude Ravensworth was found dead among the shadows of the winter garden, the doors locked and the staff in shock. The police quickly learned that the night’s donations were in dispute, reputations were at stake, and tempers had flared long before the lights flickered and the music stopped.

Suspects

• Percival Merrick

  Glasshouse curator

  Percival Merrick oversaw every plant and every shipment that entered the collection. Gertrude’s public accusations that he had falsified conservation reports threatened both his career and the funding that kept the glasshouse open.

  178 cm

• Jasper Gaunt

  Wealthy benefactor

  Jasper Gaunt had poured money into the winter garden in exchange for quiet influence. Gertrude had begun to hint that she would expose where some of his earlier donations had truly come from.

  184 cm

• Ursula Clayborne

  Event coordinator

  Ursula Clayborne managed everything from guest lists to late deliveries under crushing pressure. Gertrude had recently blocked a permanent post for her, citing mismanagement and missing funds, and the argument between them on the previous week had been heard across the glass.

  165 cm

Possible weapons

• the iron dumbbell

  A solid training weight kept in a staff corner for improvised exercise sessions between shifts.

  1.3 kg

• the brass reception-bell

  A small bell taken from the front desk, its sharp ring usually cutting through the murmur of the glasshouse.

  400 g

• the coiled garden-hose

  A length of flexible hose used by staff for watering the plants along the paths of the winter garden.

  800 g

Places

• the fern alcove

  A damp, shaded recess crowded with ferns and low stone benches, half-hidden behind a curtain of fronds.

  Indoors

• the misted orchid walk

  A narrow path lined with orchids under fine spray nozzles, where the air hangs heavy and the glass above drips constantly.

  Indoors

• the central palm court

  The broad heart of the glasshouse, where tall palms reach almost to the roof and guests usually pause under their towering leaves.

  Indoors

Evidence & statements

1. Percival Merrick was the one carrying the iron dumbbell.
2. Jasper Gaunt was the one carrying the brass reception-bell.
3. Whoever stayed in the central palm court was carrying the heaviest of the three objects.
4. Whoever was in the fern alcove was carrying the lightest of the three objects.
5. On the wet tiles of the misted orchid walk, a clear trail of soil from the killer’s shoes matched the only disturbed patch of earth near the body: the killer spent those minutes in the misted orchid walk.

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