It was a sunny day in Cancun, Mexico. Mr. Miguel Alvarez, a billionaire, looks down at the traffic and lively rush from the little working-class people coming home from work. He smirked as he relaxed on his couch and .watched the TV blare bad news that he didn’t care about. Who needs other people when you’re rich? Miguel grabbed his diamond-studded TV remote and hit the big red power button. He had his remote designed so whenever he hit it the TV exploded and he got another for sheer enjoyment. Of course, all of them were diamond-studded as well. He lifted his body off of his diamond- studded couch because he had to go to his bathroom. He then went to his personal pool. He came back to take a shower and nap. As he was lying in bed, room service came in, and cleaned the bathroom. An hour later, his dinner servant came in to find Miguel Alvarez sitting in his chair. “Dinner, Mr. Alvarez!” The dinner servant said. Alvarez remained still.
“Mr. Alvarez?” the servant repeated in a worried tone No reply. The servant gasped and dropped the trays of food Seconds later, she passed out on the floor. * * * “He was such a nice man. Always willing to lend a hand, so selfless, I can’t believe he’s gone...” the servant, Ms. Vasquez stammered on, hyperventilating, while George Nellikson, a private detective, attempted to console her so he could retrieve the information he wanted. After he achieved some level of temporary calm, between sobs he was able to make out “He was sitting... watching TV.... I went in with his dinner... didn’t move... Then I fainted... Then I woke in here....” Then she burst back into tears. Nellikson rolled his eyes and put his face in his hand. He sighed audibly, utterly disappointed. He got no information. “Was there anyone near Mr. Alvarez in the last twenty-four hours?” “Yes, there was...” “Who?” “Three men, cleaning” “Names?” “Antonio Reyes, Carlos Lopez, and Ricardo Lugo, Miguel’s servants”. “They must be the perpetrators then” “CHARGE THEM WITH THIRD-DEGREE MURDER!” “We do not have the necessary evidence yet,. Bring in the suspects for questioning,” “Anything we need to do, Mr. Nellikson,” Ms. Vasquez left the room and returned shortly with with Antonio Reyes “Yo no hice nada! Usted no tiene ninguna prueba! Es mentiroso! ¿Qué estás haciendo conmigo! Déjame en paz!” Antonio blubbered. “¡Silencio! Nadie te está acusando todavía. Sólo tenemos que hacer unas cuantas preguntas. En Inglés, por favor.” Nellikson replied. Antonio seemed to calm down a bit. “Now, we just need to ask you some questions. No need to get excited,” Nellikson soothingly explained. “I will do best,” Antonio replied in English, which he was not very good at. “Good. So, Mr. Reyes, what exactly were you doing when you last saw Mr. Nellikson?” “I clean bathroom. I use Oxi-Clean to get the tough stains out. Bathroom shiny now,” “Were you near Mr. Alvarez?” “He watching TV when I clean,” “Why exactly did you choose this job?” “Me poor, no money. Nobody else pay me,” “Thank you Mr. Reyes. You may leave now,”Nellikson dismissed Antonio. Now Ricardo Lugo entered the room. “Sit,” Nellikson requested. “No speak English,” Lugo replied “Muy bien, entonces. ¿Qué estaba haciendo cuando vio por última vez el Sr. Alvarez?” (What were you doing when you last saw Mr. Alvarez?”) “Entré después los otros dos. Hice el anuncio camas trajo nuevas almohadas. El Sr. Álvarez parecía dormido en su sillón favorito viendo la televisión cuando entré,” (I came in after the other two. I made the beds and brought in new pillows. Mr Alvarez seemed to be asleep in his favorite chair watching TV when I entered.) “Hmmmm... Gracias por su tiempo. Puede irse ahora. (“Thank you for your time. You may leave now.”) Ricardo Lugo got up to leave. “I wonder...” Nellikson pondered. “Why would anyone murder Alvarez in the first place? His wallet is still full as it was before.....” Nellikson lifted up the wallet of Alvarez. He opened it up and pulled out a 1 dollar bill. Lugo turned around and said “Alvarez nunca se llevó nada menos que un veinte!” “Alvarez never carried anything less than a twenty...” Nellikson repeated somewhat hypnotically. If Ricardo did not lie, then someone had replaced the money. George Nellikson grabbed a bill and rubbed it. After a second, he gasped and dropped it to the floor. The bill was a counterfeit! Carlos Lopez came in. “Hello, what do you want from me?” Lopez said. “What were you doing when you came in?” “I was changing the curtains, he wanted them changed every 48 hours.” “Did you notice anything out of the ordinary?” “Yes, in fact, Mr. Alvarez was laying down in his chair, silent as the clouds passing in the air.” “Thank you for coming.” Lopez left the room silently. Hmmm... This is puzzling. Give me a second, I gotta use the restroom. When he emerged, he said “That was pretty intense. Anything I could clean up with? “The only supplies we have are under the sink,” “Okay then, thanks,” Nellikson awkwardly replied. He went back in and looked under the sink. He saw Kaboom Foam-Tastic and grabbed it. He started to spray it on the floor, but then he realized that it corroded the floor. He then decided that Kaboom Foam-Tastic wasn’t the cleaner that he wanted. He put it back under the sink and looked for the Oxi-Clean. After further review, Kaboom Foam-Tastic was put there by Lopez. That was a GOOD clue! The fuzz came and arrested him. He was charged with first-degree murder. Case closed.
It was a sunny day in Cancun, Mexico. Mr. Miguel Alvarez, a billionaire, looks down at the traffic and lively rush from the little working-class people coming home from work. He smirked as he relaxed on his couch and .watched the TV blare bad news that he didn’t care about. Who needs other people when you’re rich? Miguel grabbed his diamond-studded TV remote and hit the big red power button. He had his remote designed so whenever he hit it the TV exploded and he got another for sheer enjoyment. Of course, all of them were diamond-studded as well. He lifted his body off of his diamond- studded couch because he had to go to his bathroom. He then went to his personal pool. He came back to take a shower and nap.
As he was lying in bed, room service came in, and cleaned the bathroom. An hour later, his dinner servant came in to find Miguel Alvarez sitting in his chair.
“Dinner, Mr. Alvarez!” The dinner servant said. Alvarez remained still.
“Mr. Alvarez?” the servant repeated in a worried tone
No reply.
The servant gasped and dropped the trays of food Seconds later, she passed out on the floor.
* * *
“He was such a nice man. Always willing to lend a hand, so selfless, I can’t believe he’s gone...” the servant, Ms. Vasquez stammered on, hyperventilating, while George Nellikson, a private detective, attempted to console her so he could retrieve the information he wanted. After he achieved some level of temporary calm, between sobs he was able to make out “He was sitting... watching TV.... I went in with his dinner... didn’t move... Then I fainted... Then I woke in here....” Then she burst back into tears. Nellikson rolled his eyes and put his face in his hand. He sighed audibly, utterly disappointed. He got no information.
“Was there anyone near Mr. Alvarez in the last twenty-four hours?”
“Yes, there was...”
“Who?”
“Three men, cleaning”
“Names?”
“Antonio Reyes, Carlos Lopez, and Ricardo Lugo, Miguel’s servants”.
“They must be the perpetrators then”
“CHARGE THEM WITH THIRD-DEGREE MURDER!”
“We do not have the necessary evidence yet,. Bring in the suspects for questioning,”
“Anything we need to do, Mr. Nellikson,”
Ms. Vasquez left the room and returned shortly with with Antonio Reyes
“Yo no hice nada! Usted no tiene ninguna prueba! Es mentiroso! ¿Qué estás haciendo conmigo! Déjame en paz!” Antonio blubbered.
“¡Silencio! Nadie te está acusando todavía. Sólo tenemos que hacer unas cuantas preguntas. En Inglés, por favor.” Nellikson replied.
Antonio seemed to calm down a bit.
“Now, we just need to ask you some questions. No need to get excited,” Nellikson soothingly explained.
“I will do best,” Antonio replied in English, which he was not very good at.
“Good. So, Mr. Reyes, what exactly were you doing when you last saw Mr. Nellikson?”
“I clean bathroom. I use Oxi-Clean to get the tough stains out. Bathroom shiny now,”
“Were you near Mr. Alvarez?”
“He watching TV when I clean,”
“Why exactly did you choose this job?”
“Me poor, no money. Nobody else pay me,”
“Thank you Mr. Reyes. You may leave now,”Nellikson dismissed Antonio.
Now Ricardo Lugo entered the room.
“Sit,” Nellikson requested.
“No speak English,” Lugo replied
“Muy bien, entonces. ¿Qué estaba haciendo cuando vio por última vez el Sr. Alvarez?” (What were you doing when you last saw Mr. Alvarez?”)
“Entré después los otros dos. Hice el anuncio camas trajo nuevas almohadas. El Sr. Álvarez parecía dormido en su sillón favorito viendo la televisión cuando entré,” (I came in after the other two. I made the beds and brought in new pillows. Mr Alvarez seemed to be asleep in his favorite chair watching TV when I entered.)
“Hmmmm... Gracias por su tiempo. Puede irse ahora. (“Thank you for your time. You may leave now.”)
Ricardo Lugo got up to leave.
“I wonder...” Nellikson pondered. “Why would anyone murder Alvarez in the first place? His wallet is still full as it was before.....”
Nellikson lifted up the wallet of Alvarez. He opened it up and pulled out a 1 dollar bill.
Lugo turned around and said “Alvarez nunca se llevó nada menos que un veinte!”
“Alvarez never carried anything less than a twenty...” Nellikson repeated somewhat hypnotically. If Ricardo did not lie, then someone had replaced the money. George Nellikson grabbed a bill and rubbed it. After a second, he gasped and dropped it to the floor.
The bill was a counterfeit!
Carlos Lopez came in.
“Hello, what do you want from me?” Lopez said.
“What were you doing when you came in?”
“I was changing the curtains, he wanted them changed every 48 hours.”
“Did you notice anything out of the ordinary?”
“Yes, in fact, Mr. Alvarez was laying down in his chair, silent as the clouds passing in the air.”
“Thank you for coming.”
Lopez left the room silently.
Hmmm... This is puzzling. Give me a second, I gotta use the restroom.
When he emerged, he said “That was pretty intense. Anything I could clean up with?
“The only supplies we have are under the sink,”
“Okay then, thanks,” Nellikson awkwardly replied.
He went back in and looked under the sink. He saw Kaboom Foam-Tastic and grabbed it. He started to spray it on the floor, but then he realized that it corroded the floor. He then decided that Kaboom Foam-Tastic wasn’t the cleaner that he wanted. He put it back under the sink and looked for the Oxi-Clean. After further review, Kaboom Foam-Tastic was put there by Lopez. That was a GOOD clue! The fuzz came and arrested him. He was charged with first-degree murder. Case closed.