Storytelling With Confidence

A Captive Audience, The Final Episode

After waiting for the Three Buffoons to leave, we climbed up the ladder out of the cellar. The bartender was up there, waiting for us. I noticed his sheepish, guilty expression and I tried to wave it away with a friendly grin. "No hard feelings, man. All part of the plan."

The bartender flashed a relieved smile. "Hey, I found this in the stables - it's yours, right?" He held up my pack, which I had left outside when I had entered the tavern.

"Hold onto it for me, would you? I'll be back for it soon, after the inspector and I take care of business." I motioned to Stagger and we left rather hurriedly.

Stagger was staring at me as we rushed down the street. "Where are we going in such a rush?"

"To rescue Madigan and clear my name," I answered.

***** ***** *****

We stood behind Madigan's house, staring at the back side of the dwelling. Smelly garbage still littered the ground, and an occasional inhabitant or housemaid would exit their respective houses and pass us in the narrow alleyway. I glanced up at the second floor window above the rear doorway, still dark and empty.

"I met a fellow named Earl here last night," I mentioned to Stagger. "He was here looking for Madigan, even though he got the name wrong."

Stagger confirmed that he knew him. "We picked up Earl a few months ago. We found on him a small fortune in counterfeit coinage, and forgeries of promissory notes from various money-lenders."

"Those weren't the only bad copies," I mused, regretfully.

"Is this where we will find your friend?"

"No, but this is where we will find Madigan." I sighed and pulled the key from my pocket. "Let's go inside."

"This is Madigan's private residence," I mentioned to Stagger. "I'm sure you will notice the similar display of glasswork that we saw at the his family's mansion. I know I did.

"I first began considering the similarities when I noticed the floor-to-ceiling mirror," I said, directing his attention to the mirror on the second floor. "I remembered how the Price mansion used these mirrors to create the illusion that the interior of their house was larger than reality. These mirrors could also subtly disguise the fact that the second floor bedroom doesn't quite fill up the same floor space as the two rooms below us.

"I was also noticing the excellently crafted windows when Earl interrupted me. If I had continued with that line of thought, I would have compared the windows on the outside with the windows on the inside. The front of the house displays a bay window and a semi-circular window, while the back of these houses only has a small square window to let in some light from the alleyway. I assume that the windows back there are small because the view is so filthy.

"From inside the study downstairs, we see the bay window. From the bedroom upstairs, we see the semi-circular window. But we haven't yet looked out of the rear window, which leads me to believe that this house is hiding a yet unexplored room, and I would guess that this hidden room is behind the mirror."

At the conclusion of my dramatic reveal, I gestured flamboyantly at the mirror. Inspector Stagger looked at the mirror, first at his reflection, and then at mine. I handed him my walking stick. "As the official half of our detective team, you will have to do the honors. I'm afraid that I cannot afford seven years of misfortune."

Stagger grunted his disapproval of my superstition, took my cane, and swung it sharply at the center of the beautiful mirror. It easily shattered, revealing a small room behind it. The room was dimly lit by a small, square window, and devoid of furnishing. Bound and gagged, and lying on a filthy mattress in the center of the room, was a young man with unkempt black hair and disheveled clothing. He would have looked quite similar to my associate, but for his eyes - rather than confidence, they expressed caution.