Chapter 2 - The Mystery of the Silent Violin

 
The Mystery of the Silent Violin
Detective Mehul walked into the music hall. The room was quiet, and the lights were dim. Beside him, Detective Aalia smiled and played with her pen. She always found ways to lighten the mood.
“Sir, the famous violinist, Victor Lane, was found hurt backstage last night,” Aalia said. “His expensive violin is missing. The police don’t know what happened.”
Mehul nodded. “Let’s look around.”
 
The Scene of the Crime
Backstage was messy. Papers were everywhere, and a broken music stand lay on the floor. Aalia saw a broken teacup near the dressing table. “Sir, the tea is still warm. Someone was here not long ago.”
Mehul saw a small notebook on the table. The last note said:
“I can’t keep this secret anymore. They will come for me.”
Aalia read it and laughed. “Who’s ‘they’? The violin police?”
Mehul ignored her joke. He picked up a crumpled paper nearby. It was a receipt for a storage unit from the day before.
“A storage unit?” Aalia asked. “What’s a violinist hiding there? Extra strings?”
Mehul put the receipt in his pocket. “Let’s talk to the people here.”
The Suspects
In the green room, three people waited:
  1. Clara, Victor’s helper, looked nervous. “Victor was acting strange all week. He said someone was watching him.”
  2. Marcus, the stage manager, crossed his arms. “I saw him arguing with someone in the alley after the show. I couldn’t see who it was.”
  3. Isabella, Victor’s rival, smiled. “Victor had many enemies. Maybe someone finally got tired of him.”
Aalia whispered to Mehul, “Sir, Isabella looks guilty.”
Mehul shook his head. “Focus on the facts, Aalia.”
detective stories ad - 1
The Puzzle: The Broken Music Stand
Mehul looked at the broken music stand. A small piece of cloth was stuck in the hinge. He held it up. “This looks like it’s from a coat.”
Aalia nodded. “Fancy cloth. Maybe someone in a nice coat did this.”
Mehul said, “Check the dressing rooms for coats with tears.”
Aalia smiled. “On it, sir!”
The Dressing Room Clue
In Victor’s dressing room, Aalia found a coat. One sleeve was torn, just like the cloth from the music stand. She also found a small key taped inside the collar.
“Sir, look!” she said, holding the key. “It says ‘Storage Unit 12B.’”
Mehul took the key. “Let’s see what’s in the storage unit.”
The Storage Unit
At the storage facility, they opened Unit 12B. Inside was a stack of old newspapers, a locked violin case, and a letter. The letter said:
“If you’re reading this, I’m in danger. The violin is not what it seems. Find the truth in the music.”
Aalia frowned. “What does that mean?”
Mehul opened the violin case. It was empty, but inside was a sheet of music with strange symbols.
“A code?” Aalia asked, excited. “I love codes!”
The Puzzle: The Musical Code
Mehul looked at the sheet music. The symbols matched musical notes:
♩ = A, ♪ = B, ♫ = C, ♬ = D.
The code was:
♩ ♪ ♫ ♬ ♩ ♪ ♫ ♬
Aalia thought for a moment. “That’s ‘A B C D A B C D.’ What does that mean?”
Mehul said, “Maybe it’s a pattern. Let’s try it as a locker code: A=1, B=2, C=3, D=4.”
detective stories ad - 2
The Locker Discovery
Back at the music hall, they found a locker with a number lock. They tried the code: 1-2-3-4-1-2-3-4. It opened! Inside was Victor’s violin and another note:
“The truth is in the sound. Listen carefully.”
Aalia groaned. “More riddles? Can’t we just catch the bad guy?”
Mehul picked up the violin. He saw small writing on the back: “To Victor, from J.”
“J again,” Mehul said. “This is important.”
 
The Revelation
They went back to the green room and talked to Clara. “Who is ‘J’?” Mehul asked.
Clara looked scared. “I… I don’t know.”
Aalia crossed her arms. “Come on, Clara. We found the violin. We know Victor was hiding something. Tell us.”
Clara started crying. “It’s my father, James. He made that violin for Victor years ago. But Victor never paid him. My father wanted it back.”
Mehul asked, “So you took the violin?”
Clara nodded. “I didn’t want to hurt Victor. I just wanted to help my father.”
The Solution
The cloth from the music stand matched Clara’s coat. The musical code led them to the locker where the violin was hidden. The writing on the violin showed Clara’s father was involved, and her confession explained everything.
Answer: Clara, Victor’s helper, stole the violin to give it back to her father, James, who made it but was never paid. The broken music stand and the coded music were the key clues.
As they left the music hall, Aalia smiled. “Another case solved, sir. You’re really good at this.”
Mehul rolled his eyes. “Just get in the car, Aalia.”
She laughed. “Yes, sir!”
detective stories ad - 3