“Over here, Sheriff.” Ronnie went ahead of him.

“I hope nobody’s touched anything.” We heard the sheriff’s voice echoing from the high ceiling. “And what’s this dang fool stuff all over the floor?”

“It’s armor, sir. The suit of armor fell down and we didn’t think we should move it. Just in case.”

“Suit of armor? You movie types live in a fantasy world, don’t you?” And the sheriff’s voice got fainter as he entered the library.

But that was another interesting thing. We had heard him quite clearly when he was beside the suit of armor. Would we have heard a loud exchange, a shout for help, a cry coming from the library? Wouldn’t that mean that Mr. Goldman knew his attacker and didn’t think he needed to shout for help?

Chapter 22

The sheriff’s face was somber when he returned to us. I noticed he still hadn’t taken off his hat. The dowager duchess Edwina, with whom I’d been staying, would have been affronted but here nobody seemed to mind.

“Someone made a nasty mess of his head, didn’t they?” he said. “That blow was administered with a lot of force. But don’t worry. I have no doubt we’ll find the perpetrator soon enough. He was stupid enough to leave a bloody fingerprint on the window frame. Then he must have jumped out and run off into the woods. If he’s a known thug, we’ll find him.”

“And if he’s not?” Stella asked.

“He won’t get far, will he? If the fence runs all the way around the property and he can’t get past that gatekeeper of yours. I’d say he was stuck here, hoping to hide out until we all leave. But don’t you worry. We’ll bring in dogs in the morning. They’ll flush him out.”

“I don’t think dogs would be a good idea on this property, Sheriff,” Stella said.

“Oh, and why not?”

“Not unless you want a stampede of zebra, giraffe and wildebeest.” Stella said the line deadpan. “For all I know there are a few lions patrolling the grounds as well.”

“Are you trying to be funny again?” The sheriff’s bulldog face flushed red.

“Certainly not,” Stella said. “Mr. Goldman kept a menagerie of African animals. Just as exotic decorations, you understand. But I believe that a giraffe can easily kill a dog. Or a man, for that matter.”

“Was the man completely mad? He builds a castle like something out of a horror movie, then he stocks the grounds with dangerous animals.”