Private investigator Ian visits his friend unannounced, only to discover the man lying in bed, not asleep but dead. Ian resolves to find out how his friend died and, if he was murdered, to bring the killer to justice. But the details of the case are bizarre: the door of the condo unit is locked and the only other occupant is a bodybuilder, Horst, found sitting on the living room couch, half asleep or drugged. Ian calls 911 and the cops, when video footage showing no one entered or left the condo around the time of death, fixate on Horst as the most likely suspect. Ian is convinced Horst is innocent and offers his services to help the police solve the mystery of his friend’s death. But the situation is complicated, not only by the self-contradictory nature of the physical evidence, but by the fact that Ian increasingly finds himself drawn to Horst. Worse, the lead police detective shows increasing signs of interest in Ian himself. Love and death become strangely intertwined, their resolution not easily discovered. Is Horst as innocent as Ian believes? Can Ian help solve the locked-room mystery?

Bliss

Witness: Well, I woke up sometime later, feeling confused. I sometimes do after a nap. I went into the living room, sat down, and then there came a knock at the door. That was when that friend of Quentin’s came in.


Witness: I guess. I think he gave me his name, but I wasn’t really fully awake at the time. I take sleeping pills sometimes.


Officer: Did you take a sleeping pill today when you had your nap?”


Witness: (considering) Well, I’m not sure. Maybe.


“And that was it!” The detective put the paper back into the folder. “To all further questions he’s only ever said, ‘I have nothing to say to you.’”


I nodded. “I think he has an issue with cops.” Then, unable to help myself, I added, “Or maybe it’s just your charming personalities.”


The detective appeared to brush this aside and just looked at me. After a minute of silence, he cleared his throat and said, “Do you have any suggestions or observations?”


Chapter 12