The Date of One's Own Death

Colonel Khodasevich was not happy that he agreed to do a favor for his country neighbor. Denis asked him to investigate his father’s murder. A few days ago the jeep of the firm “Drevekспорт” Boris Konyshev’s—had blown up in midair. Everything in this story was out of the ordinary. The will was read right at the wake, where, besides Denis, there were two of his sisters: Rita and Natasha, who had lived abroad until then; their stepmother Tamara; the housekeeper Vika; and the deputy of Konyshev Sr. Himself. The father bequeathed all his fortune to his wife, and—here’s the oddity—Vika received one hundred thousand dollars. The children and the faithful deputy were left with nothing. But despite the scandal, they decided to spend the night at the stepmother’s home, and at night she was stabbed. And it was clearly done by someone from the household. Khodasevich racks his brains: who? One of the sisters? And Rita and Natasha had plenty of reasons to hate their father and stepmother. Denis slept with Tamara, putting horns on his father, and under her will he received everything. But you can’t fool a colonel—piece by piece, he uncovered the truth and identified the criminal…