Midnight Soireé from C'rysta Winter

The Setting

A Black Orchid. An Indian Cobra. The Drawing of an Unknown Artist and the Sounds of a Flute.

Perrot, weary of his nomadic lifestyle, had purchased a small estate amidst the heath on the outskirts of a picturesque village. The residents readily accepted him into Madame Elsa’s illustrious circle and considered him an amusing, entertainingly loquacious new member. Perrot and his friend, Inspector Jeff, receive an invitation to a Midnight Soirée. Perrot is delighted. After all, the celebration is a welcome distraction from the imminent November gloom.

 

Madame Elsa captivates her guests with an exotic, breath-taking performance, whereupon an elderly gentleman suddenly collapses to his death at the hostess’s feet. A mystery. When another guest dies under the same circumstances, Perrot and Inspector Jeff believe the murders are intertwined. Perrot suspects something terrible, does one of the guests play a diabolical parlour game? The only question is: who is directing this game and who is an extra?