Chapter 19 Kidnapping Department Missing Children

The kidnapping of Billy Harper--to use Sergeant Thomas Willey's curious mish-mash--was a laurel for "off the beaten path."First, the FBI never set out to investigate the matter.Regarding the absence of the FBI, Inspector Quinn explained that he really didn't want to bother J. Edgar's doctors with such a trivial question. But the detective said that after Ellery had solved the case.At the time, the case did not look simple. Billy, Harper was only seven years old - a brilliant but unlucky kid, all agreed. It must have been an unpleasant experience when you were seven years old and taken from your father's big house next to the park to live in a small hotel room on the other side of town.You live with your mother, who has a swollen nose from crying, and a nanny who is pretty but not a father.

"Divorce" and "Lloyd I would never give up the past ten years of my life so easily" were all the bitter words Billy heard.The parents' war also involved a mysterious creature called "Jarrel Jones," which he had overheard from upstairs that terrible night. (I heard that Jarrell Jones is a "supermodel", he has no idea what that means, aren't models all airplanes and ships?) There is a word he doesn't understand, "obsession", which appears several times Back, there was also a somewhat scary word called "custodial rights," which made his parents very angry.Eventually Billy's mother said something as sharp as ice—"six month trial separation"—without knowing what it was. "In six months, if you still want to marry this girl, Lloyd, I will divorce you as you wish." Afterwards, the mother and Miss McGovern took Billy to the one on the other side of the park. In the small room, he abandoned his father.Every Friday afternoon Miss McGovern would take Billy to see his father.At times like this, the most wonderful man in the world would be stiff and gentle, and it freaked Billy out because his dad wasn't like that at all—he used to growl and fight really hard.It's no different than meeting strangers.Billy wandered sadly about the old house on those Friday afternoons, wandering from cellar to attic.The house has also become a stranger.Although he didn't understand what the whole thing meant, it was a devastating blow to him.

Later, Billy Harper was kidnapped. He returned from his father's house on the fifth meeting day, and was taken away a few minutes after six o'clock in the evening.Miss McGovern sobbed that she had only turned her back for a fraction of a second—on her way back from Mr. Harper's she had posted a letter at the park's west exit—turned back and Billy had disappeared. Miss McGovern was annoyed at first, thinking that he had gone off into the park again, ignoring her strict orders.But she couldn't find him, and this made her worry, and she went to the police.The police couldn't find Billy either.The police station in the park called Mrs. Harper's house and Lloyd Harper's house separately, and the parents came immediately. They both said that Billy hadn't come home, and then they said "home" was sad and vague. The wording was debated.The officer on duty patiently tried to figure things out.As night fell, the police department notified rangers throughout the park that a seven-year-old boy had gone missing.At three o'clock in the morning, the last inconclusive report arrived, and it became clear to all that there might be a more grim explanation for Billy's disappearance.So an all-hands alarm was issued.

Lloyd Harper was a wealthy man, and the Harpers were often referred to in veiled newspaper columns.One of the columnists also wrote a story about what happened to little Billy "through the park" on a Friday afternoon. Things are getting serious. Detective Inspector Quinn of Police Headquarters took over the case at eight o'clock the next morning.By 9:06 a.m. the postman delivered Lloyd Harper's letter; at 9:12 Inspector Quinn made a surreptitious phone call; It was Sergeant Willie, under the command of the Inspector, who had let him into the house. "The e-goat is in big trouble now," said the sergeant to Ellery slyly.

Ellery saw his father sitting in the lounge, as if watching.The little detective went to him at once. "The FBI? No, not yet, boy," the Inspector whispered kindly. "This case is kind of funny. . . . Yes, there was a blackmail letter, but let's wait for Pigott to finish interrogating the nanny. . . . Who are you asking? Oh, the pretty lady sitting there pissed off. She's the third, Jarrell Jones. Harper had an appointment with her last night. Of course he didn't, so she came here in a huff this morning. He settles accounts, and it just happened to happen. I bet she's going to regret it, lol! Don't talk." Jarrel Jones was beautiful, and Mibs Harper—at least this morning wasn't beautiful at all. .And yet Lloyd Harper stood beside his wife's chair, bearded and empty-eyed, his back to his dearest lover.

Miss McGovern spoke breathlessly.No, she had nothing to hide.The letter she had turned her back on to Billy Harper Jr. yesterday?It was a letter to her boyfriend.Mr. Harper will tell you his name is Ralf Kranschmidt.Ralf Kranschmidt used to be the driver of the Harpers...yes, he was short-tempered...sometimes he did drink a little too much... "Two weeks ago I fired him for being drunk," said Lloyd Harper curtly. "He was quite angry at the lack of notice." "Lloyd! You really think—" "Looks like he's out for revenge," Willie said sadly. "I know you don't want to get involved, girl. What's this guy's mailing address?"

"Central Post Office, Deposit Office," said Miss McGovern in a low voice. "We've always been in touch like this, and as long as one of them is still looking for a job—" "Where is Kleinschmidt hiding?" Detective Pigott roared. "I don't know! Can't you trust me? Anyway, Ralph wouldn't—he couldn't do such a thing..." Inspector Quinn nodded unexpectedly, and Piggott took her to Police Headquarters. "We're wasting precious time," Lloyd Harper snapped. "I want my baby boy," Moebs Harper moaned. "Detective, blackmail letter!"

"Yes, the blackmail letter." Inspector Quinn produced an envelope. "Ellery, what do you think about this?" The envelope was square, large, heavy, cream-coloured, and obviously valuable.Lloyd Harper's address was written in such a crude handwriting that it was almost illegible.The envelope had arrived at the local precinct the night before.Judging by the postmark, it was mailed about two hours after Billy Harper was kidnapped. The paper inside should have come in a smaller envelope.The stationery is lilac in color and is a fine cloth paper with rough edges. In the same vague, crudely printed handwriting the following words were written, without greetings:

Not signed. "Sent it last night, it is impossible to receive it before it is delivered this morning." Inspector Quinn said, "The delivery time is a few minutes after nine o'clock..." "I know what you're thinking." Ellery pondered, "In this world, there is only one city at the southwest corner of La Brea and Wilshere Boulevards—Los Angeles, California. And the time to pay the ransom It's impossible to set it at 11:15 this morning." "Of course the kidnappers knew," said the Inspector, "that the feat of traveling from Manhattan to Los Angeles in two hours would have to wait far into the future. So, Ellery, you also agree that this letter is a fake? "

"I agree that something is very wrong..." Ellery said, frowning at the letter. "I demand action!" Billy's father yelled. "Mr. Harper, you are asking for trouble." Unexpectedly, Inspector Quinn said, "I have been thinking about your hypothesis." He took a stack of large white square envelopes from his pocket, "It's the same envelope as that letter. This is yours, Mr. Harper. You didn't take your own child away to make him leave his mother, did you? Is the blackmail letter just confusing?" Billy's father sank into a chair. "Mibs, I swear—"

"Where's Billy?" the wife screamed. "What did you do to my child, you—you trafficked children!" "Oh, that's enough, Mrs. H," said a voice.They all turned their heads to see the beautiful Jarrel Jones stretching her famously long legs and standing up.She is as tall as in the photo. "Look at this letter, Inspector. It's hers." "Mrs. Harper's?" Ellery raised an eyebrow. "That's right. She wrote me a threatening letter on paper like this last week." Jarrell Jones laughed. Ed's envelope to set him up for such nasty things. Unloved woman! Honey, you owe me a meal last night. Why don't you make up for brunch?" But Lloyd Harper looked at his wife. She said slowly, "Of course it's not true. I wouldn't do such a thing, Lloyd. Even if I did, I wouldn't be foolish enough to use my own stationery." "Will I use my own envelopes, Mibbs?" growled Harper. "Anyone can get my envelopes, Inspector Quinn—as does my wife's stationery. Someone wants Frame me - her - both of us!" The inspector stroked his beard exasperatedly, and then whispered, "There's no time." He pulled Ellery aside. "Boy..." "We'll wait," Ellery reassured him. "Wait until the Sergeant returns." "Willy? Where's he, Ellery?" "I asked him to come over to our house and get something from my newspaper archive. I wanted to check my memory." "What memory?" "I read the news a few weeks ago on Sunday, Dad. If I'm not mistaken, it's all clear." Sergeant Willie reappeared twenty minutes later, just as Inspector Quinn had received two reports - one of which said that Miss Nanny McGovern had not yet revealed the whereabouts of Ralph Kranschmidt. , and another said that the police searched all night through the city for Billy Harper Jr., but was nowhere to be found.Mrs. Harper was crying again, and beautiful Miss Jones was babbling at Mr. Harper, and Mr. Harper was glaring at Miss Jones with bloodshot eyes that could kill. "Thank you, officer!" Ellery grabbed the gaudy Sunday Supplement and flipped to the middle. "Ah... see?" He displayed the newspaper with exaggeration. "This is a report of a kidnapping case in California more than a year ago. The FBI caught the kidnapper and recovered the child. According to Lindbergh's law , the man was found guilty. A few weeks ago, the verdict was carried out, so that's why Sunday's story was repeated. Now let me read for you the blackmail that the California kidnapper wrote to the father of the California child Believe it." Then Ellery read, "The price of the child's safe return is fifty thousand. Wrap the small denomination bills in an oilcloth. This morning at exactly fifteen past eleven, father please drive alone to La Brea and Southwest corner of Wilshere Avenue..." "The same letter." Inspector Quinn gasped. "Exactly the same, Dad. All the way to 'If you don't follow directions, you will do so at your own risk.' Which tells us," Ellery said quickly, "who was really behind the kidnapping of Billy Harper." Everyone was as still as the little Billy's space helmet hanging from the bust of Washington behind Mr. Harper. "Billy Harper's Kidnapper," Ellery continued, waving the supplement, "not only used the ransom note from the California case a year earlier as a template for his ransom note, he copied the message from a Los Angeles street corner. Came over and turned into Harper's ransom message. That is, the kidnapper had designated an impossible meeting place! Why would he do that? Even if Billy's kidnapping was a sham - if, say, Mr. Harper wanted To monopolize the child, but want everyone, especially his wife, to think it was a kidnapping for ransom from the outside - and it is unlikely that he would use an impossible location as a 'payment' for the ransom would make the whole thing instantly suspicious. All he had to say was a New York location to keep the mysterious 'kidnapper' from showing up. Everyone would think the criminal had changed his mind, or was scared off. “So choosing Los Angeles as a place of payment doesn’t make sense in Harper’s case—if,” Ellery said softly, “if you think the kidnappers have the ability to understand how improbable that is. But suppose the writer of the Harper ransom note doesn't know that New York and Los Angeles are 3,000 miles apart?" "But sir," said Sergeant Willie, "even an idiot knows." "A grown-up idiot might know, Sergeant," said Ellery, smiling, "but even the brightest boy of seven could be forgiven for not knowing. Mr. Harper, Mrs. Harper, I am very Delighted to report that your son Billy was kidnapped by - himself! Perhaps inspired by the story in the Sunday Supplement, he eagerly copied down the California ransom note word for word. He With a piece of your letter paper, Mrs. Harper; and your envelope, Mr. Harper, he didn't realize it would involve Mom and Dad...Where is he, you ask?" Ellery Billy Harper The father grinned at the serious question, "My hunch is—for one reason or another—that Billy slipped into this house last night when Miss McGovern was off guard, coming back across the park, hah Mr Per..." They found little Billy in an old box in the attic.He huddled inside, surrounded by the crumbs of six cream cheese and jelly sandwiches, two empty milk bottles, and thirteen comic books—Sergeant Willie counted them with respect.Billy said he kidnapped himself for the fun of it, but Ellery always felt that the little boy was a psychological whiz who knew exactly what to do to bring two opposing adults back into his world.There is no way of proving this, but the important thing is that Jarrell Jones and Lloyd Harper were never seen together again, and Mrs. Harper immediately moved back across the park.