Murder at the Annual St. Simon Port Annual Chocolate Baking Contest

By Victor Paul-Elias

This novella is a murder mystery comedy about St. Simon Port, a small seaside town. The town is racked when there is a murder at the annual chocolate baking contest. Sheriff Haydon Graydon describes the case and the efforts to solve the murder. There are many entanglements in this small town and the suspects all seem to have complex interrelations with residents in the small town, the murder victim, and the other contestants. The Sheriff works to unravel all the twists and turns.

 

The novella, Murder at the Annual St. Simon Port Annual Chocolate Baking Contest, is dedicated to Dr. Jennifer Russell the Chief Medical Office for the Province of New Brunswick for her wonderful work and all the lives that she and the colleagues at Public Health New Brunswick have saved.

It is also dedicated to the untold number of front-line health workers, essential service personnel, and workers who worked throughout the Covid-19 Pandemic.

 

• Language: English
• Publisher: Victor Paul-Elias
• Release date: Feb 4, 2021
• ISBN: 9781393181606

Victor Paul-Elias

Victor Paul-Elias has been a professional writer for a number of years. It is his latest career. Victor works as a life coach, business coach, and strategic planner. He enjoyed his years of formal education at Minto Memorial High School (class of 1968), the University of New Brunswick, Canada and at Florida State University in the USA. Besides these two works of fiction, Victor has written non-fiction; professional papers and technical articles. Victor spends the year between New Brunswick, Canada and Florida, USA. Besides his work, Victor is active in sports, reading, and supporting non-for-profit organizations. Feel free to contact Victor at [e-mail] if you have any questions or inquiries.

Book preview

Murder at the Annual St. Simon Port Annual Chocolate Baking Contest

Victor Paul-Elias

Murder Mystery Comedy

2021

[e-mail]

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Cover art by Debbie Keeler

Dedication:

To: Dr. Jennifer Russell the Chief Medical Office for the Province of New Brunswick

For her wonderful work and all the lives that she and the colleagues at Public Health New Brunswick have saved.

For all the people who worked with her. The untold number of front-line health workers, essential service personnel, and workers who worked throughout the Covid-19 Pandemic.

For the Public Health specials, essential workers, front-line works, and essential personnel everywhere.

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This novella is being circulated in the hope that readers will get a smile somewhere in these pages. This is intended for a bit of relief during a difficult time of global pandemic.

Any offence that people find in characters, events, and statements are all the author’s fault. That may seem like an apology.

If you enjoyed this novella, please recommend it to all your friends.

If you disliked it, please recommend it to all your enemies.

Let whoever receives the novella from you, guess the basis of your gift.

We need to do something to help each other through this pandemic. Good deeds and contributions, no matter how small they seem, should be made to people close to you - as close as possible. In the same house, on the same street, in the same neighborhood, etc.

Be kind. Be patient. We will get through this together.

Chapter 1

1.

People say St. Simon Port is the last place on earth. It’s not that remote. But, St. Simon Port is the last place on earth you would expect a murder. I guess I should start where it all started. First, let me introduce myself. I am Sheriff Haydon Graydon. My friends used to call me ‘Dun Dun’. Some of the nasty kids in high school would make it sound like ‘dumb dumb’, but being a little bigger than most of the kids, no one ever said it to my face. Since I have assumed a position of authority, out of respect, people call me ‘Sheriff’, or ‘Graydon’, or sometimes, ‘Haydon’.

I was in my office thinking about writing a monthly report, only three months late. I had raised a lot of money with an anti-littering campaign. I gathered money one ticket at a time. I also increased awareness of littering because the amount of garbage thrown around town has decreased. While thinking about the report, I was doing wrist curls to improve the definition of my arms. Fitness and strength are an integral part of being a police officer. The phone rang. I ignored it for a while so I could finish three sets of reps on each arm. Whoever it was kept calling, so I had to quit my workout. My office is very small and there is no place to hide once the damn thing starts bouncing on the desk.

That was when I was informed that the body of Judge Heralding was found on the floor of the auditorium stage of St. Simon Port County High School, dead as can be. I was shocked. First of all, as I said, murders happen in St. Simon Port as often as UFO landings. This is the one and only; murder, we haven’t had a UFO landing yet. Second, I have been a sheriff for five years and never heard of a Judge Heralding. There must have been a Judge from out of the county visiting in the area. That might mean I had an assassination on my hands. I had seen a motorcycle downtown last week from out of town. It had to be from away because there are three motorcycles in St. Simon Port. I own one of them. Mac McMaster owns one. The other motorcycle is owned by Lilly Simmering. I think she just has it because it drives her sister crazy. She rarely rides it.

That left me to wonder about a member of a bike gang following Judge Heralding to St. Simon Port. When a judge is killed, it’s serious business. There may have never been a murder in our town or county before, but that doesn’t mean I wasn’t ready.

Unfortunately, I rode my motorcycle to work because the Department vehicle had been in Louie’s garage for a warranty check. I hoped that I wouldn’t upset everyone at the crime scene by arriving on my Honda 450 cc Black Bomber. I planned to drive slowly to avoid startling an already traumatized citizenry. They might not be aware of the threat of a bike gang killing, not having access to the information I do, and none of my training and insight.

Police

I arrived at the St. Simon Port County High School to find a few people outside the front door. All eyes turned to see me walk into the main area. If this was a movie, I would be seen waving my muscular, bare arms to heavy metal rock and working the room. I began my initial investigation. Judge Heralding, it seems, was not really a judge. He was a judge of a cooking competition. I had forgotten that the contest was this week. I hadn’t explored the bike gang theory yet, but was now ready to rule it out. It was unlikely that an out-of-town bike gang was seeking revenge on a cooking competition judge. I wondered why a pie in the face was not revenge enough against the Judge. Apparently, people take cooking contests far more seriously than even I ever imagined.

My training taught me that murders were committed either for love, money, or revenge. As I describe how I conducted this investigation, I will use lay terminology to enable readers to understand the intricacies of my profession. I know of the thousands of readers who follow my story, some of you will be better able to understand the technicalities. But, I will keep it simple for the sake of the uninitiated and untrained. Betty Notting was waiting for me when I arrived at the scene of the crime; the stage of the auditorium. Her eyes were puffy and red from crying. There were a number of people huddled in the far corner of the room, looking nervously toward the body and then diverting their attention when I made eye contact with them. I found that very suspicious. I immediately realized I was the only one thinking clearly, so I took control of the crime scene.

What the Hell happened here, Betty? This may have not been the best kick-off for my investigation.

Judge Heralding fell dead right here. She pointed to the body. It was comic to me that she would state the obvious to a professional investigator, but I encouraged her to continue. Go on, Betty. I waved my hand, showing I was anxious to hear what she saw.

Well. She shrugged. That’s it. We were setting up for the next round of the contest and we looked over here and the Judge was on the floor. Nobody even heard him fall. She looked at the crowd who all nodded in agreement.

I turned the Judge over so I could see his face.

Should you be moving the body? Betty pleaded.

I chuckled. I am the law, Betty. This is what I do. I didn’t want to make her feel bad. She is not a professional. This grimy scene would have been very stressful for her.

Do you think he died of a heart attack? She pleaded to me.

It is premature to make a statement at this point. I patted her shoulder. Leave it to me. I have to determine if it’s murder.

We’ve never had a murder in St. Simon Port, have we? She was almost in tears.

No. But, don’t worry. I will commandeer the scene and stabilize the area. You’re not be in danger.

Betty looked around at the crowd which by then was about a dozen people who huddled in the corner, and a few people having a coffee on the other side of the room, doing their best to avoid staring at the scene and my investigation. Have you investigated a murder before?

Huh. I scoffed. I have been trained for just this situation. You’re in good hands.

Hi, Dun Dun.

I looked behind me and saw my mother’s cousin, Aunt Eunice Saulter. Aunt Eunice worked part-time for me as a clerk. I wouldn’t say she had a great attendance record, but not much happened in the Sheriff’s office. Aunt Eunice was a nurse, so I allowed her to enter the crime scene. She hadn’t finished her training because she quit after one year. Actually,