Mystery, Short Story

Silent Witness

Nancy's Notes 🖊️🎶

Written for Sadje’s What Do You See #311.
Here’s where the photo prompts took me.

© Haoli Chen @ Unsplash

The quiet of the peaceful night was shattered by terrifying screams. A call placed by a concerned neighbor sent police cars racing to the exclusive part of town. Inside the house, a hysterical woman pointed to a room off the hall …. an expensively furnished office where a horrible murder had taken place. The victim, business magnate Sterling Thorne, was found dead on the floor near his desk, surrounded by scattered papers and files; he’d been stabbed multiple times in the chest. The grisly discovery was made by the victim’s wife upon her return from dinner with friends. At the time of the murder, the house was empty except for the killer, the victim and Calliope, the Thorne’s white and beige cat who had taken up residence in the front window of Sterling Thorne’s office.

As the investigation continued, Detective Jake Dalton glanced around the room and spotted Calliope. A cat lover, Dalton walked to where Calliope was perched on the windowsill, staring intently outside the window. When Dalton reached out to pet the cat, she didn’t flinch at all by the sudden touch of a strange hand. In fact, Calliope didn’t even seem to be aware anyone was there. She sat frozen on the sill staring at something outside in the darkness. So intent was her stare, Detective Dalton knew something was going on. Bending down so that his head was close to the Calliope’s, the detective followed her gaze; way off in the distance he saw the old, leaf-strewn train tracks reflected in the moonlight.

With a murdered billionaire and no clues other than the manner and approximate time of death, Jake Dalton had precious little to go on. Looking again at Calliope who remained like a sentinel on watch, he decided to take a wild chance. Calling for two cops to accompany him, Dalton opened the front door and stepped outside. Calliope jumped off the sill and darted out, taking off in the direction of the train tracks, pausing several times to look back at the detective’s car following close behind her. Calliope finally slowed down and began to walk between the tracks, stopping now and then to paw at a suspicious leaf. However, this time Calliope stopped, stared closely at the ground, and hissed.

Dalton kicked at the leaves near Calliope until his foot made contact with something hard; it was a knife glistening in the moonlight. Using a handkerchief to pick it up, Dalton saw that it was covered in sticky blood. “Looks like we got us a murder weapon” he murmured. “Bag it!” the detective barked and instinctively scanned the wooded area around them. He knew the killer had to be in there but it was pitch black …. too dark for three cops and a cat searching for a murderer! Dalton called for back up; now that they had a valuable piece of evidence, there was no way he was going to let the killer get away. The murderer would be found and brought in, all thanks to Calliope, the silent witness.

© Adam Bixby @ Unsplash


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#WDYS

This is “Folsom Prison Blues” by Johnny Cash

What do you see # 313- 3rd November’ 25

All text and graphics are copyright for Nancy Richy and are not to be used without permission. NAR©2017-present.

44 thoughts on “Silent Witness”

  1. Pingback: WDYS # 313- A roundup post – Keep it alive

  7. Wonderfully done Nancy, a truly magical murder/mystery, … a Cat / Detective combo that caught the attention straight away, … I’d definitely watch the tv film of the storyline, …knife found, …( thanks to Calliope) … next the murderer, … no hiding place methinks, …💙

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      1. The whole premise just makes complete sense, Nancy, …and of course fun too, …At the moment we’re watching something called ‘Thunderbolts’ on Disney Plus, … I’d rather watch your tv film, starring Calliope… 🤗💙

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      1. Good morning Nancy, 7.00am here in Geelong … my absolute pleasure, and I’m feeling a pleased with myself and and starting to be a bit more relaxed and positive about how my manuscript/book is progressing, having finished my first proofread last night … I’ve amazed myself with how I’ve been able to do some blogging and still manage to post an article each day … we are both looking a bit bedraggled but we are still managing to get our ‘walkies’ in … 🐶📖📘😍🎶💙🌏💕

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        1. That is excellent news, dear Ivor! You’ve been through a lot over the last couple of months, starting with your trip to Canada and now your manuscript …. it’s all good but it still takes a toll physically and emotionally. When we’re inspired to get something accomplished, we manage to find that extra bit of strength within us to get it done. I’m so pleased for you, my friend. Soon you’ll have all your work done and you’ll have so much time on your hands you won’t know what to do with yourself! 😂 I can’t wait to see the finished product! Happy Friday to you. Give Frankie a big hug from me. Woof woof! 🥰🐶📝🎶🌏💛

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