The Enemy Within.

I liked this a lot. The drama and situation were palpable. Always a pleasure to read your stuff, especially when it deals with the nitty-gritty.

Chapter 7:

The headlines the next morning were full of the story. "Famous man of letters run through by sword in his London study."

Out in Gloucestershire Chief Inspector Irquart had just finished interviewing the widow in her drawing room. He was unsettled. Beneath her assumed shock/grief, (call it what you will), there was something else he could not put his finger on. Perhaps the pride of being a lady had something to do with it: the family connexions though not exactly aristocratic, were unquestionably "good."This would no doubt take into account her self control, but there was still something else there that disturbed him.

His assistant joined and enquired regards the recent interview.

"Nothing there" Irquart responded, " No known enemies, generally well liked by all that knew him. Anything found talking to the staff and the neighbours?"

" Very little Chief inspector, except for one thing."

"What was that?"

"Not sure if it means anything, but the night of the murder in London, the gardener in his lodge heard something outside at three in the morning. He rose and looked out and thought he saw the figure of a young man disappearing into the early morning mist towards the front gate, but he cannot be sure as he was still half asleep."

"Could have been something or nothing," said the Chief Inspector. "Perhaps the boyfriend of one of the maids."

"Yes that's a possibility. But one thing was strange."

"Ah ha what was it?"

"Strange way of dressing apparently as the man seemed to be wearing a cape."

The End.

The Spaniard listened, but now considered it time to bring the meeting to it's conclusion.

"It seems signor as if, for you it is all about tests on your tolerance for risk. It must take a great deal of lonely effort on your part in creating the strata's of secrecy that require constant upkeep, one for the home and one for the bedroom, or beach on this occasion. There are by implication huge swaths of attendant risk involving communication. The stories must mesh. The memories must be private."

Excellent, it moves.

Dear Steve & cafolini
Thank you both for reading this piece and your input.
Take care
M.

The way it closes is also very gnostic as most of your stuff. There are clues that the signor could have been the killer, but not enough and it would be a contradiction of the enemy within personified by the signor. But there is also the possibility that the killer is a young man. The enemy within continues endlessly. Nice to have another way of showing this famous title for still another look.