CASE FILE · No. 003 · 1892
The Red Wax Letter
MAYFAIR, LONDON · DIFFICULTY: FELONY
THE BRIEFING
On a cold March evening, Sir Alistair Fenwick — a wealthy collector of rare manuscripts — was found unconscious in the locked reading room of his Mayfair townhouse. The room showed no sign of a struggle. A half-burned letter sealed with red wax lay in the fireplace, and one volume was missing from Fenwick's private collection: a first edition containing handwritten notes from a disgraced royal physician. Fenwick survived, but remembers only the sound of the clock striking ten and the smell of cigar smoke near the doorway. Four guests had visited the house that evening. Each claims to have left before the incident. The butler recorded arrivals, the coachman kept departure times, and Fenwick's catalog may reveal why the missing book mattered.
CLUES ON THE TABLE
- 01.Sir Alistair Fenwick was found unconscious in the reading room shortly after 10:00 PM.
- 02.A red wax letter was partially burned in the fireplace.
- 03.One rare book is recorded as missing from the private collection.
- 04.All four evening guests claim they had already departed before the incident.
- 05.A witness mentioned the smell of cigar smoke near the reading room doorway.
/ THE EVIDENCE
Database Schema
The tables we have warrants for. Cross-reference them carefully.
- suspect_idINT
- nameVARCHAR(100)
- occupationVARCHAR(100)
- relationship_to_victimVARCHAR(100)
- arrival_idINT
- suspect_idINT→ suspects.suspect_id
- arrival_timeTIMESTAMP
- recorded_byVARCHAR(100)
- departure_idINT
- suspect_idINT→ suspects.suspect_id
- claimed_destinationVARCHAR(100)
- departure_timeTIMESTAMP
- recorded_byVARCHAR(100)
- book_idINT
- titleVARCHAR(150)
- shelf_codeVARCHAR(20)
- is_missingBOOLEAN
- last_seen_byINT→ suspects.suspect_id
- statement_idINT
- witness_nameVARCHAR(100)
- statement_timeTIMESTAMP
- statement_textVARCHAR(500)
- mentioned_suspect_idINT→ suspects.suspect_id, or NULL
/ THE QUERY TERMINAL
Interrogate the records
This is your magnifying glass. Run queries to explore the tables and chase down clues — the terminal won't solve the case for you, but it will surface the evidence you need.
/ THE NOTEPAD
Your field notes
Jot down leads, suspicious names, patterns you've spotted. The page is yours.
/ THE ACCUSATION
Name your suspect
One name. No second guesses. The constable is at the door.
NEXT IN THE PILE
The Covent Garden Swindle →"The box office was full every night. The safe was not. Someone has been skimming the receipts."