Scene One
Enter our protagonist, MoltonMontro, private investigator. This is his biggest case yet. An entire shipment of Lord Nelson brand tea has been stolen from the household of intreprid entrepreneur Nelson Sexton, founder of Smartly Dressed Teas & Coffee Co. Interestingly enough, the thief has also stolen notable items from other respected community members, including several works of fine art from art collector GreatHeroJ as well as laboratory equipment from local practicioner Dr. TopHatPesky. He approaches Nelson’s private residence and knocks on the door.
The door opens, revealing Nelson Sexton, who has obviously not slept since the break-in.
Nelson Sexton: Thank you for coming at such a short notice. I was beginning to worry.
MoltonMontro: It’s no problem, really. Been quite some time since I’ve had such an interesting case to deal with. May I come in?
Nelson Sexton: Of course, of course. Please, do make yourself comfortable. I’m afraid I don’t have much to offer at the moment, all my tea is gone, as you know, but I do have some whiskey stashed away if you’d care for a drink.
MoltonMontro: Thank you very much, sir, but I’m afraid I’ll have to decline. I’ll need a clear head to tackle this case. Could you show me to the scene of the crime?
Nelson nods, opening the door wider, allowing Molt to enter. Immediately, he notices that there are several antiques on open display in the living room, including a black-hilted gold katana and a massive German zweihander. He is led into the garage, where packaging material and other debris have been strewn everywhere. A hastily erected barrier of tarp and duct tape cover the massive hole in the side of the wall, which has obviously been blown open with explosives. Molt stands there, surveying the damage.
MoltonMontro: Wow, what a mess. You say an entire shipment of tea was stolen from here?
Nelson Sexton: As absurd as it sounds, yes.
MoltonMontro: If you don’t mind me asking, why was the tea stored here in the first place?
Nelson Sexton: Well, as luck would have it, when the shipment arrived, the warehouse had been damaged. Some arsonist had set fire to the place, and there just happened to be a crate of fireworks in there. They told me repairs wouldn’t be finished until next Monday, so I had to store the goods here.
Molton takes a moment to write this down in his notebook. Finished, he gestures towards the gaping hole in the wall.
MoltonMontro: Do you have any ideas as to how this happened? I noticed some tire marks on your lawn when I arrived.
Nelson Sexton: Yes, as a matter of fact, I’ve been reviewing the security footage ever since I got home last night. It would seem that there were three burglars, and they had some military-grade demolition charges. How they could’ve gotten their grubby hands on that, I have no idea, but they blew a hole in the garage, drove a pickup truck in, loaded all the tea on, and drove off into the night.
MoltonMontro: Do you have any ideas as to who would do something like this, and why they would?
Nelson Sexton: (muses over the question) I have a couple business competitors, but as to why any of them would take the ti-
Suddenly, Molt’s phone rings.
MoltonMontro: Excuse me for a moment, I need to take this call.
Nelson Sexton: Of course.
He steps off to the side.
MoltonMontro: MoltonMontro here, private investigator. How can I help you?
Mysterious Caller: I’d advise you to stop looking into this matter. Need I remind you that curiosity killed the cat?
MoltonMontro: As a cat owner, I have a personal vendetta to whoever came up with that. But that’s besides the point. Who is this?
Mysterious Caller: (chuckles) My name isn’t important, but you can call me Benson Bexton.
MoltonMontro: That sounds awfully similar to the name of my client. You wouldn’t happen to be the perpetrator of this heinous theft, would you?
Benson Bexton: You don’t need to know. All you need to know is that I’ll pay you twice as much Nelson is paying you to stop your investigation.
MoltonMontro: If you think that my services can be called off just because some third party pays more than a client, then I regret to inform you, sir, that you are sorely mistaken. If you do happen to be the man behind this crime, by the way, then hear this: I will hunt you down to the ends of the Earth in order bring you to justice, and no amount of money is going to change that.
Benson Bexton: Whatever you say. Let me raise the stakes a bit, then.
MoltonMontro: (annoyed) I’m afraid I’m not much of a gambler, nor do I wish to play games, Mr. Bexton, or whoever you are. All I know is that I have been hired to investigate a case, and by God nothing is going to stop me, least of all some menacing voice over the phone.
Benson Bexton: Do you value your life, Mr. Montro?
Molt pauses for a moment.
MoltonMontro: (slowly) Is that a threat?
Benson Bexton: Consider it a warning.
The line goes dead, and Molt is left with the disconnect tone and to ponder the meaning behind the words of the mysterious caller.
