The cases for 2026-09-22

Days from the nearest port, the Aurelia is a locked room with an ocean for a moat. The brooch left its cabin; its owner did not. Chart the promenade deck, front to back. 4 passengers, 4 cabins, and no two accounts that quite agree — start with Rafael Mendoza.

1. 1. Whoever spent the evening at the observation deck was in a lower-numbered cabin than whoever spent the evening at the cocktail bar.
2. 2. The passenger in the crimson kimono was right next to whoever spent the evening at the verandah cafe.
3. 3. Rafael Mendoza was right next to whoever spent the evening at the observation deck.
4. 4. Ambrose Whitby was in the cabin right before the passenger in the crimson kimono.
5. 5. Ambrose Whitby and whoever spent the evening at the verandah cafe are the same person.
6. 6. The passenger in the crimson kimono and whoever spent the evening at the grand staircase are the same person.
7. 7. Whoever spent the evening at the verandah cafe was in the cabin right before whoever spent the evening at the grand staircase.
8. 8. Whoever spent the evening at the grand staircase was in the cabin right before whoever spent the evening at the observation deck.
9. 9. Rafael Mendoza and the passenger in the crimson kimono are the same person.
10. 10. Vivienne Aubert and the passenger in the velvet cloak are the same person.
11. 11. Vivienne Aubert was right next to whoever spent the evening at the grand staircase.
12. 12. The passenger in the captain's blazer was in the cabin right before whoever spent the evening at the grand staircase.

By the time the chapel bells rang, every story matched: locked library, missing volume, a corridor of scholars who saw nothing. The rooms know better. Place every professor before the college calls its hearing. The file names 5 professors; Reader Vane's statement sits on top of the pile.

1. 1. Provost Crewe was right next to the professor reading the Greek primer.
2. 2. Dean Holloway and the professor who claimed to be at the archives are the same person.
3. 3. Dean Holloway was right next to the professor who claimed to be at the dining hall.
4. 4. The professor reading the botanical atlas was in the room right before the professor reading the map of antiquity.
5. 5. Dean Holloway was in the room right before the professor who claimed to be at the wine cellar.
6. 6. Reader Vane was in the room right before the professor who claimed to be at the archives.
7. 7. The professor who claimed to be at the music room was in the room right before the professor who claimed to be at the pantry.
8. 8. Chaplain Sykes and the professor reading the botanical atlas are the same person.
9. 9. Don Whitlock and the professor who claimed to be at the music room are the same person.
10. 10. Dean Holloway was in a lower-numbered room than the professor reading the volume of sonnets.
11. 11. The professor reading the botanical atlas was in the room right before the professor who claimed to be at the dining hall.
12. 12. Dean Holloway and the professor reading the Greek primer are the same person.

A fake painting surfaced at last night's opening. Each guest stopped at a different spot along the gallery wall. Trace their evening, spot by spot. Statements were taken from all 5 patrons; Imogen Frey's is the first page.

1. 1. Ezra Bloom was in a lower-numbered spot than whoever arrived at 7:20.
2. 2. The patron looking at the bronze bust and whoever arrived at 7:35 are the same person.
3. 3. The patron looking at the woodcut was in the spot right before the patron looking at the marble torso.
4. 4. Ezra Bloom and whoever arrived at 9:40 are the same person.
5. 5. Imogen Frey was right next to the patron looking at the miniature.
6. 6. The patron holding the lemonade was in the spot right before whoever arrived at 8:50.
7. 7. The patron holding the martini was in a lower-numbered spot than whoever arrived at 7:45.
8. 8. The patron looking at the tapestry and whoever arrived at 8:50 had exactly 1 spot between them.
9. 9. Whoever arrived at 9:40 was in a lower-numbered spot than whoever arrived at 7:35.
10. 10. Hugo Marchetti was in a lower-numbered spot than Greta Lindqvist.
11. 11. Greta Lindqvist and the patron holding the champagne had exactly 2 spots between them.
12. 12. Ezra Bloom and the patron holding the lemonade are the same person.
13. 13. Cyrus Vane was in the spot right before Greta Lindqvist.
14. 14. The patron holding the champagne was right next to whoever arrived at 9:40.
15. 15. The patron holding the club soda was in a lower-numbered spot than whoever arrived at 7:35.
16. 16. The patron looking at the miniature and the patron holding the lemonade are the same person.