The final chapter
Mr. Crane arrives at ten with the county's most apologetic hat, and finds a kitchen table set with more than coffee: the deed, whole and clean. A settlement letter twelve years old that his own ledgers will spend the afternoon agreeing with. Bushel tallies that carry the remaining debt on cider alone. And, invited in at last with his notebook finally open, Leo Fisk, whose pages hold three seasons of contracts looking for an orchard exactly like this one. Lay your nine clues along the table with the rest: the unforced box, the closed notebook, the walked rows, the sure-footed lantern, the hiding week, the honest tallies, the storied frame, the unsent envelope, the faithful press. Find them in the grid. The letters left over, read left to right, top to bottom, spell out the gentlest finding this shelf will offer: what happened to the deed, and how it came home.
Use the arrow keys to move between letters. Press Enter or Space on the first letter of a word, then again on the last letter. Press Escape to cancel.
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About this case
A chapter of The Cider Press, a mystery told in word searches. Each chapter leaves you one clue; the finale needs them all.
Prefer pen and paper?
Print The Cider Press as one large-print booklet: every chapter and its puzzle, a clue ledger, and the ending sealed on the last page.
How a mystery chapter works
- 1Read the scene first.Every chapter opens with a scene from the case. The word list is drawn from it, and so is the clue.
- 2Find the words.Tap a word's first letter, then tap along to its last, or press and drag. Found words color themselves in and cross off the list.
- 3One listed word is not in the grid.Find the other nine and the word left over is the chapter's clue. Note it down, or let the case page keep it for you.
- 4The finale needs every clue.The last puzzle's word list is the clues you collected, and once you find them all, the leftover letters spell out who did it, and why.