THE CANCELED WEDDING

 THE CANCELED WEDDING

     Two months before his wedding with Anne, Alan Berwick found her corpse in their bedroom. The blood had stained his hands and dyed all the bed sheets: she had been killed with a sword by someone and he had to solve her murder immediately!

A few weeks later the lieutenant Ronald Hatherwood arrested him as the main suspected of the case. He spent three fortnights and a half inside a cell of the police station sharing that quiet and shadowy room with his wife’s killer without knowing who was that outrageous man.

Afterwards that time the judge initiated the legal proceedings and asked him to visit her as soon as possible and ordered to Hatherwood to bring the evidences of Mr. Berwick’s incrimination.

Peter Stone drove the patrol car and took his friend to the court. It was in the middle of Huddersfield and they had a traffic jam sooner arriving at the building where Diana McMillan was drinking a cup of tea and eating a piece of cake with the public prosecutor. They arrived earlier than their much-anticipated, however.

He parked his car and came into the hall of justice with the prisoner, waving at Mrs. McMillan and her boyfriend who was sitting in front of her talking with his partner about the mystery.

Alan knew that Diana was McGovern’s successor because she was his lover and pupil during the university. He met her and followed to her office which was on the last floor.

She opened the door and while Diana and Alan sat down in their chairs, McMillan’s secretary asked her something who Mr. Berwick didn’t understand because the women were talking in German: “May I open the door?” Diana’s administrative assistant questioned her.

Later, she began to inquire of Alan with the typical questions but suddenly Ronald Hatherwood and Peter Stone went into the suite and told them that they had committed a mistake: the scientific police had found something special which have demonstrating his innocence; the weapon had not his fingerprints.

Alan became the new leader of the investigation and came out of the workplace with his friends who were disappointed because of that horrendous screw-up.

“Now, Ronald Hatherwood and I have to go to interrogate Anne’s parents whilst you and a police officer are going to my home to find fingerprints and something else to find the murderer such as gloves either mobile phone or its wallet too!” commissioner Berwick told them before beginning the mission.

He drove his police car to Leeds, the town where marriage Johnson were living nowadays. They were living in Cork but four years after Anne’s birth, they decided to move to Yorkshire.

Ronald Hatherwood and Alan Berwick arrived. The two policemen alighted there and one of them knocked that wooden door which was opened by Anne’s father named Kilian Johnson a tiny and old man with a blonde hair.

“Good afternoon Kilian!” said Alan. “How are you? We are carrying out your daughter’s murder. Could we ask you some questions?” he questioned Mr. Johnson.

“Yes, of course!” Kilian exclaimed. “How can I help you?” he asked to his visitors who were sitting on the sofa.

“Explaining us what did you do the night of the murder. Did you argued with your daughter?” wanted to know Alan. “It’s important for us because if you argued with her, may well we can help you!” he said.

“Yes, we did! She asked for money because she had financial problems and I denied it because I thought that she was lying!” he told them something what Alan did not believe because while he had been with her she was in a good monetary position.

“Does she had a brother?” enquired of Kilian Johnson.

“Yes. She had a brother who lives in Manchester working as a postman!” he replied.

“Thank you very much. If we need more information we call you to meet with us in the police station!” Alan said while he went out with Ronald Hatherwood of that comfortable cottage.

At the same time, when Peter Stone knew the results of the autopsy, rang up his friend and explained him what had happened the night of the unlawful killing: she was raped by someone who hit her because Anne attempted to protect her live. The rapist saw that was a difficult challenge and his accomplice helped him to kill Ms. Johnson. It took place in a street near Berwick’s house and in order to have an alibi, they went into the house with the victim putting her on the bed where Alan had found his girlfriend, the next morning.

“Who is the rapist?” he urged to know.

“We think that was her male sibling and a friend of him!” Peter answered immediately.

“Thank you very much!” riposted Alan and put the phone down.

He began to drive his car going to Manchester and they got there at Mr. Johnson junior’s house.

When Andrew heard the bell, he welcomed his visitors and invited them to eat a piece of pumpkin pie and a cup of the best delicious milk that they’ve ever drunk.

“How can I help you, my dear friends?” Andrew asked.

“We are investigating a murder. Did you have a strengthen relationship with your sister Anne Johnson?” replied Ron Hatherwood.

“Of course!” he exclaimed “I was his stepbrother!” Andrew continued.

“What did you do the night of her death?” wanted to know Alan who began to be annoyed with the sketchy.

“First, I am going to explain you why I was his stepbrother and later I will told you what I did that evening, ok?” riposted Andrew with a rhetorical question. “Her father divorced when she was 13 years old and married with my mother who was killed in a jihadist attack. He gave me his surname because I was 12 years old and I had no family except Mr. Johnson. I met a drug pusher and we became friends. Anne began to be addicted of heroine and I offered her his services. She had a debt with him before her murder!” Andrew replied.

“Thank you. Where did your friend live?” Alan enquired of Johnson junior. “We need to ask him some questions!”.

“He lives in Liverpool” he told them.

They took the train in Manchester and got off in that ermous town of the west coast of England.

Alan and Ron walked through streets that were old and squares that were full of people who were buying in the street market, fruits, vegetables, fish, potatoes, meat, … when they found someone who helped them and showed Johnson’s friend house.

The dealer was living in an odd block of flats: it was in the middle of the city closed to the bus stop. The outside of the apartment block was likeness a sphere; the inside seemed as a triangle and his house such as square in the midst of a small semicircle.

They were invited to drink a glass of beer with coke which Ron and Alan drank with pleasure.

Commissioner Berwick interrogated him, who lied them, although his cleverness showed him the truth: he remembered the weeks that he had spent indoors the cell with the awful man and saw that Andrew’s homeboy was wearing the same clothes as that evil guy.

“I know you was Anne’s drug pusher and her debt with you because the lieutenant Stone found a chat among Anne and you where you was asking her when she would be pay the amount due.” Alan began to say “And I know too your threaten to Ms. Johnson!” continued. “Which was your plan when you saw that the debt wouldn’t be paid?” asked him.

“Well done, well done… Yes, you tell the truth, but I hadn’t a chat with her. You have told me that I was her drug pusher; it’s correct… And you have said that Anne had an amount due with me; it’s correct too. Also, you have explained that I threatened her; it’s incorrect because I not threatened her! When I saw that the debt wouldn’t be paid, I planned the murder with her stepbrother. We decided that he would be the rapist cause of he loved his stepsister but she not wanted to be his lover and when she wanted to run away of his paws fiercely, I decided to kill her to defend him!” he answered.

Andrew Johnson and Albert Firewater were arrested and supervised by the lieutenant Hatherwood right up to the judgement and the sergeant Peter Stone requested Alan how did he find the solution of the conundrum, as well as possible.

“I knew that they were the guilties of Anne’s death when I had known the post mortem results. As you told me, she was raped by a man and killed by his friend. When I inquired of Kilian, I discovered that she had a brother and Ron and I went to see him to asked some questions. He explained us something outstanding of the case: Anne was addicted of heroine regardless of we knew before in the autopsy. How can he knew it if he didn’t know the results of the necropsy? Because he was his stepbrother and a friend of her dealer. He told us the debt that she had with his friend and I implicated the drug pusher as the killer who helped Andrew Johnson when he fighted with the victim!” Commissioner Alan riposted sarcastically.

Phoenix of the Literature