Thanksgiving Murder Mystery Party Kit - Mysteries on the Net

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You were were just pulling up in front of the cafe when,
about 9:50am, Sue ran out trying to hail a cab. You
drove over to the restaurant and she said she’d just
received a call that her mother had been taken to the
hospital. You offered her a ride. She accepted. When
you got to the hospital, you discovered the call was a
hoax. When the two of you returned to The Golden
Gobbler, the fire department was there. Gordon’s oven
had exploded and he was dead. You called your
restaurant staff and told them the news.
You knew that The Fabulous Feast was the next stop
for Gabby, so at 9am, you left the cafe so that you
could be at your restaurant when Gabby arrived. He got
there about 9:20am and started unloading turkeys. You
left him there with your staff and returned to the cafe
about 15 minutes later.
At 8:30am, Winifred arrived in her delivery van. About
five minutes later, a person from Stopda Press delivered
a box inside. At 8:45am, Lily de Valle of Flowers and
More made a delivery to the back of the restaurant.
Then, something strange happened. About 8:55am, a
car pulled up in front of the restaurant and Grant Barry
Soose went to speak to the person in the car. The driver
looked like Thomasina Torquay.
You watched from the cafe as deliveries were made to
The Golden Gobbler. At 8:10am, a truck from Hank’s
Heritage Turkeys pulled in. At 8:20am, Gabby Goble
of Goble’s Turkey Acres arrived. A few minutes later,
Hank’s truck left.
You parked your car in front of The Golden Gobbler
about 7:55am. At 8am, as usual, Sue’s bus stopped in
front of The Golden Gobbler. She got off and you
grabbed her arm. You pulled her to the side of the
building and offered her the job as the chef at The
Fabulous Feast. She hesitated to give you a response.
You said you would be in the cafe across the street,
awaiting her decision. She went into the restaurant.
Your recollections of yesterday . . .
Menu last night. You knew something memorable would
happen.
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Say this when asked to speak:
It’s a sad day when any member of our local
restaurant community dies. And, I feel a
personal tie to Ramsey. After all, he came to
Plentyton from New Metro six years ago to
work at my place, “The Fabulous Feast.”
His turkeys were succulent and delicious. No
wonder he kept the recipe a secret. No one
seems to know for sure if it’s written down
somewhere.
I’ve lived here all my life and I understand
how much Plentytonians like a fine-dining
experience. That’s why it’s good to have
people like Gabby Goble and Winifred Nerry
in town. Winifred and I have been friends for
a long time. I don’t see how anyone could
question the quality of her wines.
Ramsey is a hard act to follow. I’ve been
trying for years to find someone who could
take his place at “The Fabulous Feast.” But, I
think my search for a new chef may be over.
Yesterday, I made a job offer to someone in
whom I have a great deal of confidence. I’m
waiting for an answer and, after what’s
happened, I don’t see any reason why that
offer won’t be accepted. When it is, you can
expect food critics to, once again, rave about
the cuisine at “The Fabulous Feast.”
Copyright, 2006
MANAGEMENT STRATEGIES, Inc.
PO Box 191 Cedarburg, WI 53012-0191
262/377-7230 jack@pachuta.com
www.mysteries-on-the-net.com
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Gobble, Gobble Death and Trouble
Your Role: Halliday Feast
You, Halliday Feast, are the owner of The Fabulous
Feast, a restaurant that was once thought to be the finest
eating establishment in town. Born 46 years ago, your
parents, Bess and Hugh Feast, ran a small diner that was
known for the quantity, if not the quality, of its food.
In high school, you met and dated Winifred Nerry. The
two of you were “an item” for a few years. After
graduation, you told her that you had decided to become a
force in the Plentyton circle of dining establishments.
You purchased a small diner and named it Halliday’s
Grill. Winifred helped you out, waiting on tables. Her
parents had owned a local florist shop, Plentyton
Plentiful Plants. With the business acumen she’d
acquired from her parents, she often suggested ways to
improve your cash flow.
Your business began to grow and you regularly
advertised for waitstaff in the local newspaper, The Horn
of Plenty. One of the waiters you hired was a native
Plentytonian named Grant Barry Soose. Soose was an
excellent waiter and you realized it probably wouldn’t be
long before he’d be moving on to bigger and better
things. Grant’s older sister, Christina, had ambitions of
running a catering business. Sure enough, after two years,
Soose got a new job in Gourdville, about 30 miles away.
Winifred’s ambitions were in a different direction. By
working in the diner, she’d acquired an interest in fine
food and beverages. When she was 23, her parents died in
a boating accident. The florist shop building was boarded
up and sat there unoccupied.
When a small winery on the outskirts of town went up for
sale, she took her savings and the insurance money that
her parents had left her and put down a deposit on it. That
was the start of Mayflower Vineyards. Winifred named it
that because she had ancestors who had traveled to North
America aboard that fabled ship. You and Winifred went
your own ways, but you remained good friends. Her
entire winery is only 30 acres in size, but she grows
several varieties of grapes and purchases additional ones
to produce quality gewurztraminers, sauvignon blancs,
rieslings and cabernets.
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