A Marquess Fallen in the Orangery
During the height of the Midsummer Masquerade, amidst the scent of blossoming orange trees and the strains of a Viennese waltz, Lord Archibald Ravenscroft—notorious master of social blackmail—was discovered slumped over a cold marble bench. His crystal flute of peach ratafia was shattered, pooling with a venom that took his life in twenty minutes.
Every suspect carries 3 hidden secrets and conflicting alibis for the 10:30 PM dance window.
Reconstruct the torn letter, identify the chemical venom, solve the Regency parlor charade, and decode the fan cipher.
Lord Archibald Ravenscroft
9th Marquess of Ravenscroft (1765 – 1813) • Aged 48 Years
Reputation in the Ton: Feared throughout London as an unscrupulous political extortionist, moneylender, and archivist of aristocratic scandals. Behind his immaculate pearl neckcloth and arrogant smile lay a private vault packed with the ruined reputations, gambling IOUs, and forged wills of Mayfair's highest families.
"The deceased exhibited extreme bilateral pupil dilation, violent cardiac arrhythmia, and cyanotic bluish discoloration of the lips and fingernails. Death occurred approximately twenty minutes following the ingestion of a toxic botanical extract dissolved in alcohol. The stomach contained traces of peach ratafia."
The 6 Persons of Interest Present at Danbury Court
Regency Suspect Lineup
