A Shadow In The Valley
Huxley Doddering, the gardener
A Brindlewood Bay Mystery by Mol @molomoot
with thanks to Nick Spence @NickSpence1
& The British Library for the artwork
The Invite:
To the esteemed membership of the Murder Mavens book club,
You are hereby cordially invited to luncheon at Grimsvale
Manor, for the purpose of discussing a most grave and
concerning situation.
We do apologise for the inadequacy of our explanation, but the
written word would do most poorly to properly illustrate our
conundrum.
We eagerly expect you,
Lord and Lady Grimsvale”
Presenting the Mystery:
Present this mystery by reading out the invitation then
describe the Mavens arriving at Grimsvale Estate.
Paint the Scene: As the Mavens arrive and the camera
pans across to Grimsvale Manor, what details indicate
the long and storied history of the house?
As the mavens approach the house, no-one comes out to
greet them, and on further inspection, it transpires that
there is no-one at the house at all.
There is a scene of the mavens wandering the halls of
Grimsvale Manor, the long shadows casting an eerie
gloom over the estate, despite evening still being a while
off. Where could everybody have gone? How can there
be no signs of what might have happened?
Establishing Question: One of the Mavens has met the
Lord or Lady before, what were the circumstances of
their meeting?
Traces of the Suspects
Due to the fact that everyone known to be at Grimsvale
Manor has disappeared, the only clues as to their
natures are the things that they have left in their rooms.
Lady Arrabella Grimsvale
- An immaculately neat and organised room, glass
cabinets full of many esoteric things labeled with
a small elegant cursive handwriting.
- "Visited the Archives with V today, the Pancotian
Alignment that I specifically requested to view
was unavailable due to “unexplained
circumstances”, - a diary entry, set out on the
writing desk beside an inkwell and pen.
Lord Augustin Grimsvale
- A horde of tomes, arcane implements and relics.
Piled haphazardly high and sprawled on every
surface. Even the bed is littered with papers, all
covered with a mess of writing and black ink.
- "But what about the connection with the
Visconnti Caves? That throws the Montgomery
theory completely out the window! The mystery
continues to confound me…" - from a mess of
index cards and string pinned to the wall
Mildred Sinclair, the housekeeper
- A sparsely furnished room with a single bed, a
picture frame of two young children, and an old
television displaying fizzing static.
- "Reminder: Check underneath the rugs in the
dining room, his Lordship likes to hide his
spillages." - written on a post it note stuck on a
cluttered whiteboard
- A small cottage on the edge of the grounds,
inside are many blankets and throws and an
empty fire grate still full of slightly warm ash.
- “No matter what I plant in the west bed, nothing
seems to root” - page from a well used and
muddy journal
Aedgar Grimsvale, the cousin
- Empty suitcases are strewn across the floor,
faded clothes hang off the backs of chairs or
cupboard doors, the shelves sag with the weight
of large crystals, trinkets and books. Salt has
been sprinkled along the window ledges, brown
herbal medicine bottles sit atop the dresser and
charms on each wall.
- "The Tower, Inverted Sun, The High Priestess,
The 10 of Coins.” - spread on the table, with a
burnt out candle and an empty pack of incense.
Winston Walridge, the investigator
- A neatly packed suitcase sits on the bed, and the
dresser holds a stack of files on all the guests. A
folder of research on the house and its
inhabitants sits on an otherwise bare desk.
- "The night in Prague? Unaccounted. Follow up
with the hotel, bar, dry cleaner. Bear the brown
sauce in mind.
Buy milk." - a reporter's style notebook placed
neatly on top of a folded black suit
Ruby Ruddington, the historian
- Large cardboard boxes of books and artefacts
stacked and labeled, organised by a barely
logical system.
A case and handbag are sat on the bed,
nightclothes thrown carelessly on the pillow
- "A winters fire never burns as bright, with the
door left off its latch" a half finished poem
scrawled in a mostly empty notebook
Paint the Scene Clues
The Grounds of the Estate; 1. A secret passage
As you wander the gardens and take in the landscape, 2. Empty bottles with a lingering smell
what aspect of the valley makes you feel small and 3. Recently churned earth
exposed compared to the house behind you? 4. Not enough vehicles for the number of guests
5. Scratch marks in the woodwork
The Hallways of Grimsvale Manor; 6. Burnt out electricals
The lamps and lights barely seem to illuminate the long 7. A broken window
and winding hallways of the house. What impossible 8. An interrupted ritual
event does the unsettling quality of the light make you 9. A voicemail asking "why wasn't I invited"
feel is going to happen? 10. Documents questioning the ownership of the The Crown Of Shadows
house
The Dining Room; 11. A well cleaned and carefully carved bone Due to the particularly strange circumstances of this
The table is set for a sumptuous dinner, eagerly awaiting 12. A ripped painting titled Shadow mystery, an additional Crown is available to the Mavens
a feast to be served. What familiar item is conspicuously 13. Too many suitcases for not enough luggage who attempt to solve it while at the Manor.
missing from the table? 14. A map of the grounds, strange markings pinpoint However, the shadows in the valley have a particularly
one location disconcerting aspect to them; while the Mavens are in
The Great Library; 15. A stained brown envelope full of cash the dark, they may not don the Crown of the Queen, only
Many bookcases, packed with all manner of esoteric 16. A picture album, full of photos of darkness the Crowns of Shadow and Void.
tomes and texts, cover every wall. Which book 17. Graffiti reading "They Know" ● Describe a moment you were lost and alone in
immediately catches your eye? What strange topic does 18. A list of names, all the ink has bled obscuring all the dark
it cover? but one ● Describe a glimpse of something monstrous
19. A stack of black lights lurking in the shadows
20. Awful smelling stains in disconcerting shapes ● Describe the terror that still keeps you awake at
night

Void Clues While at the Grimsvale Estate, also consider using the
1. Whispered voices echo from the shadows. following special Keeper Reaction:
2. A deep black liquid drips down the wall.
3. The darkness, deep and hungry, fills the room.

TURN OUT THE LIGHTS

4. A piercing scream tears through the gloom.
5. Painted figures turn in their portraits to face the
darkest point in the room, then black ink leaks
from their eyes.
6. A nearby lightbulb pops, from now nothing can
illuminate that room.