Episode 30: In the Inspector's office

“What are you doing there, Philip?’ The Inspector’s voice made Philip jump. ‘Inspector! I was not expecting you…’ ‘Clearly’ said the Inspector, grabbing the report from Philip’s hands. ‘So, this finally came through. What does it say?’ He seemed unusually irate. Flicking through the pages, he let a sigh. ‘Nothing, eh? How bizarre, eh Philip?’ His voice, flatter than ever, conveyed no emotion. Philip could not tell if he was relieved or concerned. ‘Who ran the tests, Inspector?’

Episode 29: Nada

Back in New York, Philip walked into the Inspector’s office. ‘Inspector?’ He walked to the desk to leave a note when he noticed a document marked confidential lying on the top of a pile of papers’ He lifted it up and was surprised to notice that he was looking at the toxicology report of Bob Knoff. Flicking through it, he left a small sound of surprise. No toxic substances found in the fudge. No toxic or illegal substances in his stomach contents or blood. How was this possible?

Episode 28: Secrets

On the way to the airport, Philip was surprised with the Inspector’s silence. ‘So, Sir, what have you been saying for so long with the tech guys?’ ‘Oh, that’ the Inspector responded. ‘Nothing of any importance. Something about the Fedex guys’ fingerprints on the fudge parcel. As if their finding Fedex prints on a Fedex parcel is a surprise…’ Philip was taken aback. Why the inspector did not mention the lack of Billy’s fingerprints on the parcel? Why hide it? He surely must have had his reasons…

Episode 27: A Fedex drop off box

‘It was dropped off in a Fedex box 10 miles from the factory. That box is no where near Billy’s usual route from the factory home. It is in a rather busy area so someone may have dropped off the parcel unnoticed. Which brings me to my other point. The parcel had at least 15 fingerprints on it: Bob Knoff’s, the bank’s mailroom staff, Fedex staff; everyone’s except Billy’s. Now, why would you wipe your fingerprints from a box you are sending with your name on it?’

Episode 26: Overheard at the station

Back to the police station, Inspector Blu was chatting with one of the tech guys. Philip was surprised to overhear part of the conversation. ‘…It is bizarre, Inspector, but we cannot find any connection between the two. The PO Box used to deliver the envelopes was indeed registered under Billy’s name but he always paid cash and always picked up his mail in the evenings. To be honest, it could be anyone… And another thing; the fudge parcel was not sent from the factory'

Episode 25: Sweet scents

Philip looked at Inspector Blu puzzled. ‘What does that have to do with anything?’ ‘How did Bob Knoff’s smell when we got there? Think, Philip, think!’ Philip paused and thought for a moment. ‘I don’t know; sweet I would say. Yes, it smelled sweet. Like almonds. And rose petals. And vanilla...So, what you are telling me is that Bob Knoff was shipping to Billy his own vanilla to be used in his fudge? In potpourri? Whatever happened to using bubble wrap?’

Episode 24: On fudge, again

‘You are looking at a few hundred of dollars worth of vanilla, my friend’ Blu said. ‘So I was right!’ Philip said triumphantly. ‘Bob Knoff was paying off the fudge sending potpourri and vanilla pods. And Billy was probably pocketing the vanilla, selling it on ebay while Mr. Brown was unknowingly stuck with the fudge bill.’ Inspector Blu looked at Phil for what felt like an eternity. ‘No, I don’t think you are right. Tell me, what flavor was the fudge that killed Bob Knoff?’

Episode 23: In a velvet pouch

Philip left a gasp of surprise. The inspector picked up the velvet pouch and slowly pushed the petals back in the back. He unfolded a paper napkin on the table. Slowly he opened the small bag and poured the contents on the napkin. Long, dark brown stems fell on the table. ‘What is that?’ asked Philip. ‘That is fine vanilla pods, my friend. Possibly the finest in the world’ Blu said, after lifting one and smelling it. ‘From one of the Indian Ocean islands. If I had to guess, I would say Madagascar.’

Episode 22: Petals on velvet

The Inspector looked at him. ‘If that is the case, where is your proof? We have not found any trace of money exchanging hands between Bob and Billy. Expect for the parcels back and forth, no other form of interaction has surfaced. Phil thought for a moment. ‘Maybe he paid him in kind?’ Inspector Blu pulled out the envelope with the Autumn Bloom potpourri. He opened the bag and poured the dried petals on the table. A small velvet bag fell on top of the petals’ pile.

Episode 21: The conclusion?

Inspector Blu and Philip were having a quick lunch at the fudge factory cafeteria. ‘There seems to be fudge everywhere’ the Inspector said, noting Philip fidgeting at his seat. ‘Who do you think did it, Inspector?’ “Who do you think did it, Phil?’ ‘Oh, it is as plain as daylight. Billy killed Bob Knoff because he did not pay for the fudge he was buying. Brown killed Billy because he was selling fudge from the factory’s premises.’ Philip said triumphantly. He cracked the puzzle.

Episode 20: An order not in the system

Back at the fudge factory, Inspector Blu was talking to Mr. Brown, the account owner. ‘So, again, are you sure that there is no Bob Knoff in your customer list?’ ‘For the tenth time, no! Inspector! He has never ordered from us! He is not even in our mailing list!’ A very frustrated Chad Brown was pacing up and down his office while the Inspector was looking at a laptop screen on the desk. ‘So how do you explain the weekly fudge parcels from this place? A ghost, perhaps?’

Episode 19: Old friends and steaks

It was just after 8pm when Inspector Blue and Philip left the apartment. ‘Come on, young lad. I will treat you to a nice Nebraskan steak’ Blu said. ‘We can talk about this nasty business tomorrow morning. I just need to make a couple of quick calls’. Philip was quite surprised to hear Blu’s conversation in Arabic’. ‘I didn’t know you spoke Arabic, sir. What was that about?’ ‘Oh, I just thought that it was a good time to catch up with an old friend in Casablanca. Best damn lock picker you ever met in your life.’

Episode 18: Billy's apartment

Blue and Phil entered a well kept apartment by the old market. The sun was shining through the windows overlooking the river. In the bedroom, two large suitcases were half filled on the floor. ‘It seems our boy was getting ready for a long trip’ Blue said, looking into the empty wardrobe. ‘All the way to Morocco’ Phil said, looking at piece of paper found in the living room. ‘First class. Return ticket. Through New York’. ‘Return eh?’ Blue said. ‘I would have expected a dead man to be trying to run away…’

Episode 17: At the Marriot

Back at the Omaha Marriot, Blu and Philip settled down at the lounge. ‘A double espresso, please’ said the Inspector. ‘We only serve coffee here’ said the waitress in a tone that implied ‘Espresso? Hmpf! Where do you think you are, Paris?’ ‘Coffee then’. He turned and looked at Philip for a long time. He finally spoke: ‘So, Philip, who do you think did it? And why is everyone buying ‘Autumn bloom' in the heart of the freakin’ summer?’

Episode 16: Overlooking the lake

Inspector Blu was sitting comfortably in an office overlooking the lake. Around him, on the walls, were pictures hanging showing a young man smiling holding a large fish and a trophy, a muddy team posing after a football game. ‘So, Phil, tell me what strikes you here.’ Philip looked around puzzled. His eyes wondered from the golf balls to the Sox autographed ball. He looked at the big bowl of pecan fudge on the desk. He then picked up the empty bowl next to it and smelled it. ‘Ah…’ he said. ‘Autumn bloom…’

Episode 15: Pitchfork

Inspector Blu and Philip made their way through the factory floor. Philip started inspecting the crime scene. ‘It is quite interesting the weapon of choice, Inspector. Why would someone bring a pitchfork with them if they didn’t plan to kill what’s-his-name? And why bring the pitchfork and risk detection when they could just use one of the knives lying around the production line? I mean, how do you sneak a pitch fork in a factory?’ Philip turned his head. ‘Inspector? Inspector?’

Episode 14: At The fudge factory, inc

Omaha, Nebraska. Well, in the outskirts. A rental car pulled out at ‘The fudge factory, inc’. Blu got off the drivers side and a very terrified Philip jumped out of the passenger seat. “Inspector’ he said, ‘passing those corn syrup trucks was foolish. We barely made it by.’ Blu snorted and showed his badge to the cop guarding the entrance. At that moment, Mr. Brown came out, distressed. When will your men move the body out of the mixer? It has been two days. I need the mixer to make fudge! This is costing me money!'

Episode 13: The pen pals

Inspector Blu raised his head up and looked at the afternoon sun shining through the window. He got up slowly and pulled the blinds down. He walked back to his desk and looked again at the email he has been reading. He reached in his coat pocket and found his pipe. ‘Sod the regulations’ he thought to himself while lighting it. ‘Interesting’ he murmured, ‘very interesting. That is the same chap that Knoff was pen-paling with.'

Episode 12: Aromas of Autumn

Inspector Blu picked up a big envelope with an address in Nebraska. ‘From our fudge loving friend’ he said. ‘For the past three years, every week he got the fudge in the mail. Recently, though, he started sending an envelope back. To the same name: Billy K.’ Saying this, he opened the envelope. Philip sighed; another regulation violation. To their surprise, a bag of autumn bloom potpourri fell on the floor. Bizarre. You would think you could get potpourri in Omaha.

Episode 11: The mailman

Back at the bank, Philip was looking all over the place for Inspector Blu. Finally, he heard his bass voice at the end of a corridor. Inspector Blu was sharing stories with an old gentleman in the mail room. A couple of glasses were on the table with a honey colored liquid in them. Philip frowned-a clear regulation violation. Inspector Blu got up as soon as he saw Philip. ‘Ginger ale’ he said, winking at his new friend.

Episode 10: Even more fudge

The fire brigade needed a good three hours to drain the fudge from the clocked mixer. A gruesome sight faced everyone when all the fudge was drained. At the bottom of the bowl, Billy was found, lying face up, with a pitchfork stuck in his chest. A look of terror was apparent in his eyes and a fish was stuck in his mouth. Weird. Very weird indeed. Joseph Brown, the line manager was visibly upset. Such a tragedy! Now all that fudge would have to go to waste…

Episode 9: The hairpiece

The Monday morning shift was surprised to find the ‘Little brats’ order unfinished. Billy was nowhere to be found; so much unlike him. His phone was going straight to voicemail. Weird. Someone tried to turn the fudge mixer on. Nothing. Second attempt. Still no movement. Maybe the blades got stuck on something? The new intern grabbed a giant wooden spoon and tried to get the blades moving. And then he spotted something floated in the fudge. Was that Billy’s hairpiece?

Episode 8: The Fudge Factory Inc.

It was a quiet Sunday night at ‘The fudge factory inc’. Billy, the chief fudge taster, was working on an urgent order for the ‘Little brats’ kindergarten chain. A heavy dinner of mac and cheese, which he despised, made him sleepy. Past midnight, he was tasting the last batch. Leaning in to get a sample, he heard someone behind him. ‘Oh, it is you’ he said. ‘What are you doing here?’ The gloved hand reached to Billy. Minutes later, the only thing you could hear was silence. Something was clogging the giant fudge mixer…

Episode 7: The rats

A smiling face was staring back to him. Who was that stunning young beauty on a Californian beach?

Meanwhile, Philip did not find out much talking to the traders. Bob Knoff was well liked but that does not say much in that environment. They would think a rat was cool if he drank and smoked. He liked whiskey and fine cigars and collected plastic figurines. The kind you get with happy meals. He also liked fudge. A five kilo pack arrived every Monday. ‘From Omaha. Or Kentucky. Not sure. Why? Does it matter?’

Episode 6: J. Blu

Inspector Blu walked slowly towards the slumped body, careful not to step on the fudge that was scattered around the floor. He turned to a dark, short figure and said: ‘Philip, just get statements from everyone that was in the room. I am pretty sure that these clowns have seen or heard nothing’. Slowly, he approached Bob Knoff’s terminal. He bent over the body still in its chair and looked at the pictures stuck on the terminal. One, torn in half, caught his attention.

Episode 5

Meanwhile, at Ulysses on Stone Street it was a quiet night. Mostly regulars having a drink after work and a couple of new faces. A young woman, caught by surprise in the thunderstorm, sat at the table by the window and ordered a glass of Wild Turkey. A thunder that fell nearby caused all lights to go off. When they came back on, she was gone. Left on the table was a crisp 20 dollar bill and a napkin with the words scribbled on it ‘Where is Martha Vidauri?’

Episode 4: The man in the hat

‘Sorry we couldn’t get anyone here earlier’ he said to the traders surfing dating and porn sites, anxiously awaiting his arrival. ‘Everyone is at the bank down the road investigating a quadruple homicide-suicide. Apparently some guy did not like sugar in his coffee’ he added, eyes shielded by a trilby hat. ‘So, what do we have here? Who is Bob Knoff?’

Part 3: After the closing bell

The police needed a good five hours before they arrived. The market was closed and it was almost dusk when a gray figure in a cheap suit and raincoat walked through the doors and towards the slumped body in the corner.

Episode 2: Fudge

In a corner, a pale figure was busy watching the green letters move across the screen. A pinstripe jacket was hanging on the back of the chair and a huge bowl of fudge was balancing dangerously on the monitor. Suddenly, a loud crash cut through the silence in the bond trading room. Momentarily all eyes shifted from the black-and-green screens and into the corner. On to the big bowl of fudge smashed on the floor. And all wondered ‘Who killed Bob Knoff?’

Episode 1: An introduction

It was a particularly heavy morning at Wall St. The silence was so deep you could hear a paper clip fall on the floor. The Dow was down again, hovering around the 9200s.