Chapter 9 of 10
Beyond the last sleeper lies railroad country: the baggage car with its lashed cargo, the mail car nobody enters without a bond, and at the end the caboose, the crew's world of bunks, stove and coffee pot. The sheriff and Charlie find everything ordinary until the rear bunk room, where the cot wears hospital corners no brakeman ever tied, a hurricane lantern burns low, and on the fold-out table: a fountain pen, a tablet of cheap paper, three oranges in a row. Charlie looks at that cot a long time. I make beds for a living, he says. That bed was made by somebody who learned in a good house and improved on it. The sheriff touches nothing. For the first time all day he looks less like a man hunting a victim than one deciding whether to knock.
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 Overnight Berth, a mystery told in word searches. Each chapter leaves you one clue; the finale needs them all.
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 colour 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.
Prefer pen and paper?
Print The Overnight Berth as one large-print booklet: every chapter and its puzzle, a clue ledger, and the ending sealed on the last page.