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MuSR / Who is the most likely murderer?
Problem
Answer published by the source. Consult the official source to check your work against its answer.
question
Who is the most likely murderer?
narrative
In a chilling turn of events, Rose is found lifeless in a car, killed by a vial of acid, leading Detective Winston to the affluent suspects, Daisy and Dexter. Winston was going over the facts of the case when he decided to visit the suspect, Daisy. Daisy wasn't your typical suspect - she was a singer who always had a passion for her art form, a passion that stood in sharp contrast with her family's dismissive attitude. “I'm just trying to get ahead in life, you know?" she told Winston as they sat in a small cafe near one of her repeat performance venues - an old building that was frequently harshly criticised for its lack of cleanliness. "They never cared about my music… always thought it was just a phase. I couldn't stand their lack of support.” Getting rid of her family members from her contacts was, as she put it, a "cleansing experience". It was all very telling of Daisy's meticulous nature - she extended the same cleanliness philosophy to everything in her personal life, hygiene being her top priority; it gave a stark contrast to the venues in which she performed. After a moment of silence, she casually added, "Sometimes my sarcasm gets the best of me. I can't tell you how many family dinners I've ruined with it. My sarcasm stings so hard, it often leaves them in tears." Winston thought about Rose, who often parked her car in the same vicinity. "You were scheduled to perform at a place near that parking lot that day… right?" he asked. Daisy affirmed the fact and mentioned having seen Rose's car, acknowledging that she and Rose were the last two people in the vehicle after her show that night. As part of her performances, Daisy often integrated different kinds of acid into her routines - the same kind, as it turned out, that had been used to murder Rose. A cold chill ran down Winston’s spine as he mentally cross-checked the evidence list. “Acid isn’t a typical instrument for a singer, Daisy..." Winston quizzed, trying to keep the conversation casual. Daisy just shrugged, "Got to create a spectacle, right? Attract an audience?” Daisy had always been adamant about not attending any family gatherings - a fact that did not change even after Rose’s death. But she claimed to hold no ill-will towards Rose. As Winston got up from the table to leave, he turned one final time to look at Daisy who was now alone and engrossed in her phone. A suspect or not, one thing was certain, the story was far from over. Winston reeked of grease and sweat as he strolled into the electronics store, blinking against the twisted glare of neon and the sharp gleam of fluorescent lights. Dexter, a wiry man in neatly pressed slacks and a polo, paused in checking and restocking the freshly stocked batteries to greet him. "You look lost, sir," he called, a spark in his eyes belying the monotony in his voice. "Actually, I have a few questions for you, if that's not too much trouble," Winston started, flipping open his notepad to gather his thoughts. A flicker of unease crossed Dexter’s face, but he masked it quickly, "Sure, always happy to help." Winston dove straight in, "Know a woman by the name of Rose?" Dexter's face tightened imperceptibly. "Rose, yeah. I know of her. She left her car here to get cleaned the other day. She told me that she had found an embarrassing picture of me somewhere." "So, you work on cars too?" "I... not exactly. I was on duty when she came by. We don't usually offer those services, but I took care of it," he replied, his gaze straying to the poster advertising their recently received new stock of batteries. "What type of cleaning, exactly?" Winston asked, silently noting another stain on the pristine floors. "Uh... just vacuuming, mostly. People leave all kinds of things in their cars," he concluded, avoiding Winston's steely gaze. "I found the embarrassing photo of myself in there, the one she had claimed to have found earlier." "Must have seen a lot of interesting things." "Yeah, you could say that." Dexter's voice wavered, a hint of bitterness creeping in. "Were you alone while cleaning the car?" "Yes. What's this about?" Panic fluttered in Dexter's eyes just as Winston showed him the same embarrassing photo of Dexter that was making the rounds in town - the one Rose had found. "Oh," Dexter spoke, all hints of his usual smug demeanor nowhere in sight. "That... was circulating at the town gathering... and Rose had grabbed it and laughed at me as she shown it all around." "Right," Winston said, making a mental note as he slipped the photo back into the folder. The laughter, Rose's cruel laughter at Dexter during that town gathering, rang in his memory. Dexter spoke after a pause, "I...didn't know she still had that." "One more question," Winston started, leaving the silence to hang as Dexter looked about to collapse. "Your education...you studied Chemistry? Specialization, was it industrial acids?" "Different types, yes," Dexter confirmed, struggling to keep composure. "Hydrochloric, Sulfuric, Nitric...so many..." His voice trailed off into a whisper as Winston closed his notepad. "Interesting," Winston remarked, and headed for the door. The fluorescent store lights flickered as he strode out into the evening, leaving a bewildered Dexter behind in the now-quiet electronics store.
choices
- Dexter
- Daisy
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