What people did in the Night

The first people he saw were the Old Mobster with two of his henchmen and the Criminal. They were in the dining car, having breakfast as if a murder hadn't happened there a few hours ago. To the Illusionist's surprise, the four of them were together.

The sun was shining on the right side of the train, partially illuminating the table where they sat.

"Could I ask you some questions?" the Illusionist inquired, receiving scowls in response.

"Do you think we're suspects? Of course, we're mobsters, so any murder is automatically blamed on us, even if it was some damn vampire who killed the girl," the Old Mobster retorted irritably.

"I just want to know about your night. Don't you want to find out who the vampire is?"

"Sure, sure. After dinner, I wanted to play cards, but the casino wagon wasn't open, so I went back to my room with these two," he said, pointing to the henchmen. "They were on security duty while the others rested, so we played together while the Heiress slept in her room. We bumped into the Criminal in the corridor and invited him to join us; he can vouch for that."

The Illusionist began to see holes in the whole explanation.

"The Cowboy said the Criminal went back to his room after being interrogated. Why did you pass by the first-class carriage?"

"I was hungry, damn it. The Cowboy didn't give me time and ordered me to go to my room, and he's got a gun, but I was starving, so I waited a while and left to see if there was still some food."

"Alright... And did you know each other before?" the Illusionist asked the Criminal and the Old Mobster.

They exchanged glances, and a whole conversation seemed to happen in that action.

"The world is small, sometimes our paths cross. But we didn't take this train together; each of us came for our own reasons," the Old Mobster answered, not giving the Criminal a chance to speak.

The Illusionist wasn't buying everything, but he chose to proceed peacefully.

"And what's the reason you boarded the train?" he asked the Criminal this time.

"My role is the Criminal; you know how difficult it is? I know everyone is blaming me just because of that. This train was a fresh start, a chance to begin anew. Maybe things would be different."

Indeed, that was the premise of the train; all of them were seeking a new story, for one reason or another. Now it was the Old Mobster's turn to speak.

"Our family does business with many stories, and we are also training the Heiress to take over the family. It's a business trip."

The mention of the Heiress reminded him of the Tarot cards.

"And where is she? Still in her room?" the Illusionist asked, and apparently, this question struck a personal chord with the Old Mobster.

"Yes, she's in her room, having breakfast with the Henchmen 2 and 4, and no one is going to talk to her without me being present, neither you nor the Cowboy."

This only made the Illusionist more suspicious of the Old Mobster. Clearly, they were all hiding things, and he was starting to get tired of it.

"I think I can wait for you to be available for that, but I need to talk to everyone present."

The Old Mobster was not happy and returned to his meal. Besides the Heiress, only a couple of people remained to be investigated. The Illusionist went to the first-class cabin, and as soon as he arrived at the door of the Noble's room, it opened. The Noble and the Lady were getting ready to leave, and the Illusionist managed to take a peek inside.

There were two separate beds, one right below the window and the other farther away. He also noticed that the couple wasn't holding hands and didn't seem affectionate in public. Additionally, the Noble appeared quite disturbed, while the Lady had a more neutral expression.

The Lady quickly closed the door, and the two of them stared at the Illusionist.

"I'd like to ask you some questions," the Illusionist said.

"Sure," the Noble replied, "but could you accompany us? We're going to have breakfast."

"Alright, could you tell me about your night?"

"How bold of you to ask that to a couple," the Lady said with a mischievous smile. The Illusionist was too embarrassed to realize that it wasn't the right time for such comments.

"Madam, I want to know what time you went to bed, if you saw anything strange, and if you have an alibi for the middle of the night when the Cartomancer was killed."

They reached the dining car. The Old Mobster turned around to look at those entering, and the Lady immediately chose a table on the left side of the carriage, catching the Illusionist's attention.

"We went to our room after we finished eating, talked for a while, and then went to sleep," the Noble said. "The Lady even wanted to take a picture of me to commemorate the first day of my train journey. Who would have thought something like this would happen..."

The Illusionist remembered that the Noble was the owner of the train line and that the murder might have affected him more personally.

He pulled out the photo and showed it to them. The Noble was smiling, with the wall of his room behind him, and a clock with hour and minute hands showing a little after two in the morning.

"You went to bed late. Did you hear anything in the corridor?"

"In fact, yes," the Lady replied calmly, "more than once, actually. When it was very late, I heard someone walking through the corridor, then other footsteps going in the opposite direction, and not long after that, another pair of footsteps."

"You didn't find it strange? Which direction were they going?"

"Of course, I didn't find it strange. This train is full of people, including the staff. The first and last pairs of footsteps were going toward the back of the train, in the direction of the dining car, while the middle pair was heading to the second-class car, but I can't know where they started or where they ended."

"And did you hear any footsteps coming back after that?" the Illusionist continued, clinging to the best information he had.

She shook her head negatively. "I was already asleep. Or if someone came back, they were very quiet. Either of the two."

At that moment, the Old Mobster and his henchmen got up, leaving the Criminal alone at the table. The Illusionist thought it was the perfect moment to go investigate the Heiress and also stood up.

"Thank you for everything. This conversation was very helpful."

Before he left, the Noble grabbed his arm.

"Please, find the culprit."

The man seemed genuinely affected by everything that was happening, and even though he didn't trust any of them, the Illusionist was determined to find the culprit. He had no other option.

"Of course. I'll catch him."