[Thought I did this one before, but couldn't find it, so... if you saw it before, play dumb! 
]The Dead Detective"Pretty fancy for a P.I.'s office," Sergeant Drumand commented. "Hay did all right since leaving the force."
"Until now," said Lieutenant Molly Malone. She took in the plush furnishings, the huge oak desk, and the expensive artwork adorning the walls. But the effect was ruined by Harvey Hay's crumpled form bloodying the carpet beneath the window. The summer morning sun poured through the single, open window. It was warm, but the room felt cold with death.
Molly studied the dead private eye one more time. "Looks like the killer smashed in his skull from behind."
"Yeah," Drumand agreed. "And that bloody hammer beside him is what did the job."
"Probably. It might also be what was used to stun Patrolman Grove. Let's go out to the waiting room and see what Grove can tell us."
Policeman Artie Grove gingerly pressed an ice bag to the lump on the back of his skull. "I'd stopped at the café across the road for a cup of coffee. When I came out, I heard a loud cry. It seemed to have come from this building, so I hurried over and pounded on the door. No one answered, but I noticed the door wasn't quite latched, so I gave it a push. The door to the inner office wasn't closed, and across the room...Well, you know what I saw."
"We do," Molly said. "But that's not the end of your story."
Grove frowned and shifted his big frame in the chair. "No, I guess it isn't. I did a dumb thing. Without thinking, I started toward him. A shadow fell over my shoulder, but before I could swing around...." He lifted the ice from his skull, wincing.
"So you didn't get even a glimpse at the perp.," Sergeant Drumand scowled.
"'Fraid not. I blacked out for a couple minutes. Next thing I knew Hay's secretary was standing over me screaming."
Molly glanced at Drumand. "I think it's time we question the secretary. Meanwhile, Grove, have one of those paramedics take another look at your head."
Marie Fallon wiped her eyes with a red handkerchief. "Harvey asked me to marry him. Just yesterday. And now--" She twisted the handkerchief with her nail-bitten fingers.
"Did Mr. Hay usually arrive at the office before you?" Molly asked gently.
The petite woman nodded. "Harvey liked to come in early--even when he wasn't busy."
"Then business was slow at the moment?"
"Yes. Nothing he was working on could have led to this." She sobbed softly.
"Maybe it ties in with a past case?" Drumand suggested. "He must've made some enemies in his profession."
"I suppose. Harvey didn't give me all the details when he worked on a case. He only told me what he thought was safe for me know."
"We'd like to look through his files, Ms. Fallon."
"Of course. Whatever. You know, that window wasn't open when I pulled up."
"It wasn't?" Molly glance out the window to the photographer's studio across the parking lot. "What door did you use to come in this morning?"
"There's only one--on the other side of the building."
"Thanks. Uh, one more thing. The weapon--"
"Was it that hammer? If so, it wasn't Harvey's. But I saw Jim Cassey using one like it yesterday out in front of his store."
"Jim Cassey?"
"Yes. He owns that photo place. He and Harvey didn't get along at all."
Molly and Drumand went to question Cassey.
"I don't know what you think I can tell you," Cassey complained.
"Then you know why we're here?"
"Sure. When I saw the cop cars and ambulance I popped outside to check what was happening."
"I understand you were repairing something with a hammer yesterday."
"Yeah. An awning. So what?"
"May I see the hammer, please."
"Can't. Forgot to bring it inside. I was just looking for it now, but…*expletive*! You're not saying my hammer was used--"
"Sure looks that way, Mr. Cassey."
"Well, it wasn't me. Though Hay's getting murdered doesn't surprise me. I developed a few pictures for him when he first started up. Bad stuff. Told him to take his business elsewhere. How he could follow people around and pry into their lives like he did...What a sleazeball!"
"Anyone could have done it," Drumand said, as he and Molly returned to the murder scene. "Anyone could have picked up that hammer and killed Hay." He motioned toward the open window. "If the window was closed, like Ms. Fallon said, then she must've driven up while the killer was still inside. This was the escape route."
Molly nodded, frowning, then stared at Drumand as he bent over the bloody mark on the carpet. "Of course! Why didn't I see it before. Sergeant, I think I know who the killer is."
Who does Lt. Molly Malone suspect?Patrolman Grove
Marie Fallon
Jim Cassey
Someone Else?What gave them away?
