The Secret of the Old Bag

Anyone who goes after other people’s money can cost a person even their life…

Count Wielgorsky’s chief manager, Mr. Popov, disappears without a trace. He went to inspect the estates and collect the proceeds, but he never returned. Witnesses say they saw him at the ferry: Popov was swimming in a boat to the other bank, to the railway station, holding a briefcase with money. But at the station, he never appeared.

To investigate the incident, it is assigned to judicial investigator Ivan Volovtsov. He pays attention to one of the possible culprits—there are traces in the man’s house that look like the aftermath of a brawl, but there is no direct evidence. Volovtsov is already leaning toward the version of an accident when, suddenly, he discovers one strange detail that changes the course of the investigation…

A historical detective story about a crime from the beginning of the last century that vividly conveys the spirit of the era—like you can hear the clatter of wheels on the cobblestones, the roar of the market, the ringing of church bells, and the sharp whistles of city policemen.