The rain had subsided by the time I arrived at the Ruffley estate, a sprawling mansion on the outskirts of Melbourne. I’d been hired by Chris Ruffley, who’d reported that his father’s glass installation had been destroyed. Before I could get started on my investigation, I needed to meet with the family and gather some initial information. Mostly, I wondered if any of them had a history of glass balustrade destruction.
As I stepped out of my car, I was met by Chris and a young woman.
“Thank you for coming, Ms Callahan,” Chris said, leading me into the mansion. “This is my sister, Emily.”
“Pleased to meet you,” I said, shaking Emily’s hand.
Chris led us to a spacious living room, where we sat down on plush couches. “So, we’ve visited the scene of the crime, but what can you tell me about the glass installation?” I asked.
“It was our father’s pride and joy,” Emily said, her voice cracking with emotion. “He spent years working on it. It was the centrepiece of his art collection.”
“And now it’s gone,” Chris added, his face set in a grim expression. “We need to find out who did this. It’s not like I can book Melbourne glass repair to get it fixed, so we need to bring them to justice.”
I nodded. “Of course. Do you have any idea who might be responsible?”
“We have our suspicions,” Emily said, her eyes narrowing. “There are a few people who had a grudge against our father.”
“Such as?” I prompted.
“Well, there’s our cousin, James,” Chris said. “He was always jealous of our father’s success.”
“And then there’s our former housekeeper, Mrs O’Malley,” Emily added. “She was let go a few months ago, and she didn’t take it well.”
“Those are no good,” I said. “In my vision, while touching the shattered glass, I heard the word ‘dad’ whispered as the crime was done. Therefore, the only possible suspects are you two. Unless you have another sibling?”
Emily and Chris shared a look before they both turned to me and said, “Ricky.”