This Featured Detective Is One to Sing About
The Dear Holmes “Featured Detective” Program honors one detective per mystery for their clever and well-thought-out solution to the case. To learn how to send in your own solution, visit Dearholmes.com/solve.
Dear Sleuths,
Since lending a hand to Lady Bellamy and company, we’ve been hard at work with other cases, like that of the mysterious Yuletide Cipher. Thankfully, that ordeal has been neatly wrapped up, and we can now dedicate some time to a more festive occasion: the naming of our newest Featured Detective.
When Lestrade first brought forth the two odd telegrams, detectives had little doubt that something was amiss — the question was, like Watson suggested, was this “something” a threat to the Queen’s safety, or merely another ploy to pilfer toys? To some investigators, it seemed clear that the cryptic messages were obscuring a more serious plot, however, some speculated they were nothing but smokescreens… this of course was tough to determine until Lestrade sent over additional evidence.
Once the inspector uncovered the other telegrams, and gathered more information regarding O’Flaherty and his associates, it became clear that we were facing frighteningly complex conspiracy. And further complicating matters were still the enciphered telegrams, for at this stage, some of our sharpest detectives were deducing: these were no simple substitutions. Whether it was a sort of “rotating key”, or another similarly variable cipher, the evidence suggested that more than one “key” was going to be needed to understand all of the telegrams. Yet the nature of the key eluded most investigators until the very end of the case, as did the true crimes underway.
Detective C.E. Webb, of C.E. Webb & Associates, Cedar Creek, TX, was quick to notice we had a shape-shifting cipher in our hands, and relentless in their attempts to illuminate it. What’s more, they were one of but a handful of sleuths who took note of O’Flaherty’s helpfully festive whistling, and of the fact his “attempted escape” had been gravely misinterpreted.
Like a tried and true Featured Detective, Detective Webb addressed every angle of this criminal investigation, and kept Holmes and co. posted with recommended courses of action each and every step of the way.
Congratulations from the Dear Holmes Team to C.E. Webb & Associates — a special reward will soon be on its way to your door!
Honorable Mention(s) to Detective Olson, first to detect a clue in Flaherty’s whistling, and Detectives Anita L. & Delos N., for impressive code-cracking efforts.
Want to be next month’s Featured Detective? Learn how to submit your solution by visiting DearHolmes.com/solve.