Red Herrings :
Act Two - When Herrings are quite pickled
Incredible how naive the very rich can be when it comes to thinking logically!
The first rumblings occurred almost immediately after the red back lights of the film crews’ black van had disappeared around the corner.
A lady was startled by her reflection in a mirror! She had come in from the gardens to visit the ladies loo to touch up her makeup. As she looked at her reflection, she realized her expensive necklace of pearls had slipped off from down the front of her shimmering rhinestone embellished velvet dress! Assuming the misfortune had occurred while she had been out in the gardens, she gathered two of her friends and went out to hunt them down.
Meanwhile the rest of guests began to reassemble back inside, some taking to the dance floor as the orchestra began to play their last few pieces.
By the corner bar (which was still serving) a young lady had been talking to a male friend when, laughing, she placed a hand to her throat. Then she lost her smile as she felt around, her throat was bare it was gone!
Her friend, seeing her eyes grow ever so wide, asked what the matter was! My emeralds, she exclaimed, they are, are gone!, she exclaimed in wide eyed concern, looking around at her fashionably heeled feet. .
Fiona, a girlfriend of the lady, seeing the commotion, came over promptly. It was true, the stunning necklace her friend had been wearing around her throat was no longer hanging there sparkling. As Fiona tried to help her friend to remember the last time she had seen them, the lady with the missing emeralds pointed to a bare spot on her friends Fiona’s gown, Why Fiona, your necklace is missing too.
Can’t be Fiona exclaimed, her hand shooting to the throat of her high necked silk kimono, feeling fruitlessly for her missing diamonded choker. They both then looked around on the floor. The gentleman with whom she had been talking with, pointed out then, as both ladies had been outside watching the shoot, they may have been lost in with the hustling crowd trying to get a good view of the filming. All three then also slipped off out into the gardens to have a look, where they met up with the previous group searching for the pearled necklace
Now, no sooner as this second group had left the Chambre, a new and rather rather vocal exclamation came from the dance floor..
.A well-dressed single lady had stopped in mid-dance, now also noticing something amiss!
Her expensively jeweled necklace was not bouncing against her chest, as she had noticed it doing earlier while dancing! Her hands started to feel about for it, but it had also mysteriously vanished and, and so was the matching brooch she had worn dangling in the rather deep cleavage of her gown. Quickly she got off the dance floor and headed to the loo to access the situation.
As she looked herself over in the mirror, She thought about how the crowd had jostled in the gardens.
But she had never felt anything, not even the slightest tug or pull on her silken dress? How then ?
No, she exclaimed to herself, not him! There had been that rather nice dark skinned chap who had offered to dance with her after she had been selected to be an extra on the dance floor? It had been a close dance. Maybe he knows what happened? Was it a part of the filming? she tried convincing herself.
She left the loo and began to search for him in earnest!
But as she started to look around, questioning others… it soon became obvious that there had been dark happenings that evening.
Word spread as fast as lightning, as ladies began to check themselves over. Several more shocked gasps were heard, and one loud scream that cracked across the murmuring room like a shockwave,
The Lady in distress had been questioned by the lady from the loo. She than discovered that not one, but both of her antique chandelier style diamond earrings were gone from her earlobes! She had not even noticed, never felt t so much as a pricking! She was wailing out in disbelief!
And she also recalled the rather charming young man dancing with her earlier! And both ladies called out if anyone knew where he was, or had seen him lately?
The two security guards were soon overwhelmed by it all, staring to move in one direction as they were called off to another. Farm chickens with cut off heads would have been a quite decent description of their befuddlement!
A diamond bracelet here, …..oh my god, my rubies a voice screamed from over there,……. a sapphire and diamond cocktail ring has been slipped from my finger!! screeched a prettily gowned lady from yet another area!
Over here another lady demanded in a shrill high pitched voice, they got my diamonds too she wailed.
All eyes went to the now miserable, but rather cocky, buxom young lass, pointing a red gloved finger to the top of her luxurious red satin gown, diamonds flashing from her fingers, wrists, ears! But many observed with wry satisfaction, that the magnificent necklace of diamonds they had all noticed flauntingly dripping down the front of her gown all evening like a sparkling stream flowing down betwixt two mountains, was no longer flashing from a now bare throat.
Meanwhile a call came in, from a lady who had left after the ballroom scene. She had been in the process of undressing and discovered that her rather valuable diamond and emerald bracelet was missing and wanted to inquire if anyone had spotted it ?
People were now in an uproar, the chambre filled with chattering and yelling as people demanded to know what was going on, were the thieves still here?
Then a young man whom no one recognized was grabbed and his pockets gone through as he struggled and protested, until someone came forward and spoke up for him. Than someone yelled it must have been the filming crew, better have someone had better go after them.
Three young men rushed out at this, got into their sports cars and sped off..
Then, in the midst of the squabble and calling for heads to roll atmosphere that had permeated the St David’s Chambre, came the oddest news yet…
Three young ladies were nowhere to be found…
The twin 21 year old daughters of a local baronesses had not been seen since the filming in the gardens!
The pair were rather bratty, snobbish to a fault, and used to daddy seeing that they got their way, and wants, in life. Since most usually avoided the pair, no one could quite pinpoint when the last time they had been seen. But one thing was a certainty, they would be found together. Thick as thieves that pair was!
Than a multimillionaire business man came forward, had anyone seen his 25 year old wife? She apparently was also nowhere to be found! Many knew of her, a rather mousy looking, bold as brass lady who usually got her way. But those that knew her well, knew she would not go off without bragging to everyone where she was going!
The Baroness put up her usual fuss, and a search party was called for.
Meanwhile, the baffled for hire security cops finally decided it was way past time to call in the local CID .
20 minutes after the call went out, the men returned from searching out on the gardens and surrounding grounds… Nothing had been seen or spotted.
Soon after a chief inspector, two Sargent detectives and three constables arrived, sirens wailing…
The response triggered by the fact that so many wealthy and high ranking citizens of the community were involved!
After taking in some preliminary notes, the inspector immediately dispatched out a description of the missing girls.
The twins were both fair skinned blondes, long hair, wearing long gowns of the finest satin. The gowns had been identically designed, one was green, the other red. Their jewels were both the same, waterfall earrings, matching necklaces, bracelets and rings, and brooch, all white diamonds. Each set was insured for over £ 100,000!
The millionaire’s wife was a darker skinned lass, with long raven black hair. She was wearing an emerald green taffeta dress and matching gloves. Her jewels had mostly been pearls of the finest quality, a full set like the twins, but only worth half as much. However, she had been wearing a museum quality diamond and emerald tiara, which put the value of the twin’s jewels to shame. It had once belonged to an arch-dukes mistress some 2 hundred years ago, and carried about it a rather sinister history of adultery and double crossed owners.
Funny, thought the Chief Inspector, keeping it to himself, that it was deemed by these people that the value and history of the jewels worn was almost as important as the fact that the ladies sporting them had vanished also!
But he took their thoughts rationally. So thievery may have been a cause for the jewels disappearance, but what was the cause of the ladies disappearance, and why were they being detained?
But whatever the value of the stolen ice may be, his focus would be on finding the abducted ladies, and bringing swift justice to their kidnappers. The rest could take a back seat. Though it was probably that the two went hand in hand. Find the kidnappers and one would surely be finding the missing valuables.
The Inspector dispatched one of the detective sergeants and two constables to visit area hotels in hopes to track down where the film crew and the actor and actress had stayed, or were holed up?. They also had a description of the van and 3 letters of its registration. So a call was put out for it on all the highways and roads in the area, and approach with caution as there may be hostages on board!
The chief inspector did not see fit to notify the airport or train stations. Figuring the kidnappers would stay close to home with the victims. Especially considering how said victims were dressed, they definitely would attract attention anywhere in the publics eyes.
In the interim, two more calls came in.
One was a lady asking if anyone had found her rather valuable brooch, she was sure it had been lost amongst the hustle and bustle that had gone on during the filming.
The second was from a gentleman whose wife had foolishly lost her diamond pendent ( and its diamond chain) and could someone please look about the gardens for it, that’s a good chap !
Both were extended requests to visit the station in the morning.
The remaining Detective Sargent and the remaining constable, along with the two security guards, pulled those who had lost valuables first from the still chattering guests, and began to take down detailed statements.
These statements, when collected by the Inspector, soon took on a clear pattern, albeit a rather puzzling pattern… and it did not quite involve anyone on the film crew!
Quite a few of the female guests, some of them those that had lost jewels, recalled dancing with a dark skinned young man in an expensively tailored tux whose name apparently was one , Arthur R something or another. This young man, had been quite the charmer admiring and touching the swooning, obliging Ladies in a rather pleasant fashion as he had admired their attire, and yes that was right, our jewels… om my gosh many exclaimed, he had a keen interest in my jewels, many are the ones that are gone! Could he have nicked hem then, as we danced!
Their descriptions matched the same man whom the Lady in distress who had lost her antique chandelier style diamond earrings, recalled dancing with… She remembered that he had wittily suggested she wear her long hair up, and he had lifted up her hair on either side, as he told her how much more beautiful she would look for her upcoming wedding! She had gushed her thanks, trembling excitedly as she had had her gaze locked in his deep grey eyes as he had brought back down his hands, letting her hair swish back over her face. She had thrown her hair back laughing gaily, and… and did not recall feeling her earrings dangling after that !!!
The detectives asked around when the last time anyone could remember seeing this suave young chappie, with the bloody cheek to lift an unsuspecting ladies jewels !
But he appeared to have vanished soon as the film crew had begun to dissemble on the dance floor to head out for the garden scene. No one had remembered really seeing him in the gardens…
But several remembered meeting with him the year before! And this was noted.
But, unbeknownst to the Chief inspector, some had seen the young man, and knew a bit more of what had happened to him! But it would not be until much later in the investigation, before those young ladies who did were tracked down, would finally tell their story……!
But, Then there was the Priest!
A description of a rather nice, but clumsy!, be-spectacled priest that no one claimed to really know or had seen before that evening, was given by a number of ladies, some of whom had been victims.
He had first appeared with the film crew, and had walked in with the actor, so they assumed he had been with that group…
During the filming, he had been in and out of the crowd, both inside and in the gardens, brushing, bumping into people, and then getting then them into conversation.
Then there were also the two ladies!
It appeared that there had been two mysterious ladies who had been seen earlier amiably chatting with quite a few of the guest, many of them would be later victims, before the film crew arrived….
Then during the filming, these ladies were standing next to a guest, when the priest had approached and then seemingly accidently bumped, or stepped on a gown. Tripped, the guest’s balance was caught and steadied by the quite charmingly helpful Ladies whom had been standing next to the unfortunate lady.
These mysterious Ladies would than wander off, leaving the victims to chat with the equally, charmingly, thoroughly apologetic Father!
One lady was described as a fair skinned, blonde, wearing a slippery gown of red taffeta, no gloves and her only jewelry was a pair of rather small dangling diamond earrings. She had dazzling blue eyes, that after many whom had met her, remarked upon.
The second was a darker skinned young brunette in a slick tightfitting green satin dress with a wide matching sash. Many thought she was the sister of the similarly dark skinned man wearing the tux who had been charming the jewels off of the ladies he danced with. But they really could not give a reason why they thought there was a blood relationship between the two. Like the blonde, her only jewelry was a small pair of shimmering emerald earrings, and she also wore no gloves on her ring less fingers.
The priest did not seem to know the ladies, and none of the three had been seen with the dark skinned gentleman in the fancy tux, whom many had definitely remembered as being present at the previous year’s event….But most definitely the priest or the two women had not been spotted back then!
But no jewels had been reported missing at that years function, or ever as far as anyone of the regular attendees could remember.
So what it came down to was that almost all the victims remembered being brushed up against, tripped off balance, or apologetically bumped into, the two young ladies, either by the priest, or on their own as they all tried to get a better view of the dance floor and the filming in the gardens.. at the time, nothing had really been thought of it, but now it all appeared to have had a much more sinister aire about their actions!
Another, not so surprising, fact soon emerged. None of the missing jewelry had been paste, or even costly imitations. They all had been real, and the most expensive sparklers had apparently been chosen for harvesting!
The thieves had chosen their victims, and their jewels well… definitely not amateurs. Although the total value was not yet known in these early stages of the investigations, and taking in consideration of embellishment, it appeared to be adding up to a staggering amount that the thieves had nicked that evening.
They troupe of thieves had known what they wanted, and had used obviously well practiced techniques in acquiring them.
He immediately had the all the descriptions that had been accumulated dispatched, to check against Interpol’s collection of known thieves and kidnappers whom may be in the area!
After the all the rest of the guests had been interviewed, and statements collected, The Inspector called it an evening, releasing the guests.. Most of whom happily swished away from the now joyless atmosphere of the large, somberly lit Chambre.
He had his officers recheck about the grounds, and the gazebo and the gardens not really finding type of clues caught in the beams of their torches light.. A small grey stone cottage with a green iron door was found at one end of the gardens, hidden from view by the hedges. It had been noted and looked around… but it also failed to yield any clues.
The baroness and the millionaire, with their entourages, stayed behind and questioned the chief inspector a bit. they were not ready to retire until their girls had been found. He saw them not unlike small puppies worrying a bone.
Kidnapping, white slavery, and worse were the concerns they bandied about. Finally, the inspector was able to qualm their anxieties enough that he was able to persuade them to leave.
Two constables, one each were dispatched to stay at the baroness’s castle and the millionaire’s manor, to be there when the ransom demands were made.
They never were made, nor ever would be…. A ransome demand….!
It was finally time for the authorities to call it a night …..
It was 4 am when the Harried Chief Inspector finally claimed his bed……..
At 4:20 his phone began ringing
and ringing……..
End of Act 2
“Quand on rencontre un mystère, on croit généralement être scélérats cachés “
Author Unknown
To be Continued 😉
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