Crime Stories Read Online Free PDF Page A

eyes. “It’s impossible to know everything about everything.”
    “What do you specialize in, Dr. Patel?”
    “Elephants. They can smell water from three miles away. And an elephant is the only animal that cannot jump.”
    “Really?”
    “It’s true. Did you know that African elephants only have four teeth?”
    “I did not know that,” Walker admitted. It sounded very suspicious.
    “That’s nothing,” said Dr. Harry Reinsdorff, a fat man with thick, round glasses. “I’m a marine biologist, and I’m studying why sharks don’t get cancer. Did you know that sharks can smell a drop of blood in the water from five miles away? And besides the five senses humans have, they also have an extra sense called the Line of Lorenzo, which lets them detect electrical fields in the water.”
    Walker felt a headache coming on. He didn’t know if any of these outrageous facts were true or false.
    “How about you?” he asked Dr. Mark Kessler. “What do you specialize in?”
    “I unashamedly admit that I study cockroaches,” Kessler said. His bulging eyes and brown suit made him look sort of like a cockroach himself. “They’re really fascinating creatures. Their blood is white, not red. They can hold their breath underwater for more than ten minutes. And did you know a cockroach can live up to two weeks with its head removed?”
    “Yuck,” Walker said. The other suspects echoed the sentiment.
    “Let’s go over your stories again. Dr. McDermott,” Walker said, turning to the platypus specialist, “Where were you when the body was discovered?”
    “In the bathroom,” McDermott said. “I wasn’t feeling very well. Too many libations last night. I tried a drink called a rusty nail. Vile stuff.”
    “How about you, Dr. Patel?” Walker asked the pachyderm professor.
    “I was on my cell phone, checking my voice mail. I’d gotten a message from the San Diego Zoo. Apparently one of their elephants has elephant pox.”
    “And you, Dr. Reinsdorff?”
    “I was also on the phone, confirming my reservation tonight at an expensive Japanese sushi restaurant that serves sea cucumbers. They can be poisonous, unless you remove the brain at the center.”
    Walker said, “Yuck,” again, and then asked, “How about you, Dr. Kessler?”
    “I’m afraid I was just staring out the window, doing nothing at all. I’m not a very sociable person.”
    Walker had no idea what to ask next, but fortunately Dr. Myrna Simmons, the convention organizer, came hurrying over.
    “Detective Walker! I’ve got that book you wanted.”
    She handed him a copy of The Complete Encyclopedia of Animals. Walker thanked her, excused himself, and went into the other room for some fact-checking.
    He returned ten minutes later, a broad grin on his face. With dramatic flourish, he pointed at one of the suspects.
    “I’ve discovered that you are lying. I’m afraid you’ll have to come downtown with me to answer some more questions.”
    Which of the suspects was lying?
    SOLUTION: The so-called shark expert. Walker discovered that sharks do in fact get cancer, that they can only smell blood in the water from a quarter mile away (not five miles), and that the sense that detects electricity is called the ampullae of Lorenzini, not the Line of Lorenzo. He also discovered that sea cucumbers don’t have brains, therefore their brains could not be poisonous, and the man must have been lying about his sushi restaurant reservations. Incredibly, all of the other facts strange animal facts were true. The imposter soon confessed that he had snuck into the convention and murdered Dr. Reinsdorff for having an affair with his wife.

Another Amazon.com short, this one in response to the email spam we all get, seemingly all the time. I’ve remained undecided if the last page hurts the story or helps it, and I’ve cut the ending many times. Here it is uncut.
    W hen Conroy saw the message in his INBOX, he smiled.
URGENT REPLY NEEDED!!!
Allow me sir to introduce