A Shy Suitor's Alibi Wager

Partners in Crime

This flow follows the Beresfords' attempt to disprove an impossible alibi and the discovery that twin sisters made every witness truthful.

increasing

Bearing strength in each event

decreasing

A Romantic Bet A Romantic Bet from "Partners in Crime". A Romantic Bet A Sporting Challenge Montgomery Jones hires the agency to test Una Drake's claim that she occupied London and Torquay at the same time.

A Romantic Bet from "Partners in Crime". A Romantic Bet A Sporting Challenge Montgomery Jones hires the agency to test Una Drake's claim that she occupied London and Torquay at the same time.

A Romantic Bet A Sporting Challenge Montgomery Jones hires the agency to test Una Drake's claim that she occupied London and Torquay at the same time. The wager offers him a chance to win her regard. A Personal Stake Tuppence understands that the case is also a courtship. Tommy worries that solving the puzzle may force a marriage, while Tuppence believes the wager is freely chosen.

Two Sets of Witnesses Two Sets of Witnesses from "Partners in Crime". Two Sets of Witnesses The London Account Waiters, theatre evidence, and Mr. le Marchant place a woman resembling Una in London.

Two Sets of Witnesses from "Partners in Crime". Two Sets of Witnesses The London Account Waiters, theatre evidence, and Mr. le Marchant place a woman resembling Una in London.

Two Sets of Witnesses The London Account Waiters, theatre evidence, and Mr. le Marchant place a woman resembling Una in London. Their details seem too consistent to dismiss casually. The Torquay Account Train staff, hotel workers, and a visitor place the same woman in Devon. The investigators cannot find an obvious liar, making the puzzle more unsettling.

A Failed Hypothesis A Failed Hypothesis from "Partners in Crime". A Failed Hypothesis Testing the Journey Tuppence imagines that Una traveled back and forth between Torquay and London.

A Failed Hypothesis from "Partners in Crime". A Failed Hypothesis Testing the Journey Tuppence imagines that Una traveled back and forth between Torquay and London.

A Failed Hypothesis Testing the Journey Tuppence imagines that Una traveled back and forth between Torquay and London. The hotel dinner and bedtime evidence make the proposed schedule untenable. The Puzzle Tightens Every ordinary explanation demands implausible speed or an unobserved journey. The detectives acknowledge that the accounts appear genuine rather than fabricated.

The Twin Sister The Twin Sister from "Partners in Crime". The Twin Sister A Different Possibility Tuppence recalls Tommy's joke about twins and cables Australia to verify her suspicion.

The Twin Sister from "Partners in Crime". The Twin Sister A Different Possibility Tuppence recalls Tommy's joke about twins and cables Australia to verify her suspicion.

The Twin Sister A Different Possibility Tuppence recalls Tommy's joke about twins and cables Australia to verify her suspicion. The answer reveals that Vera Drake arrived in England shortly before the wager. Two Genuine Alibis Vera was in Torquay while Una remained in London. No witness needed to lie; the identity confusion existed only in the investigators' assumption that there was one woman.

The Wager's Reward The Wager's Reward from "Partners in Crime". The Wager's Reward A Contest Resolved The agency can report how Una's claim worked and charge its expenses to the relieved Montgomery Jones.

The Wager's Reward from "Partners in Crime". The Wager's Reward A Contest Resolved The agency can report how Una's claim worked and charge its expenses to the relieved Montgomery Jones.

The Wager's Reward A Contest Resolved The agency can report how Una's claim worked and charge its expenses to the relieved Montgomery Jones. His romantic hopes have a legitimate opening. Respect and Affection Tuppence expects Una to value Jones more for winning than for receiving an easy concession. The comic case ends with love treated as a game, but not a frivolous one.

At Montgomery Jones's first visit

During the first London inquiries

After the Torquay hotel interviews

The morning after returning to London

After the solution is reported