Marcus Williams, private investigator, was sitting in his office and eating his daily tuna sandwich when a very frantic man by the name of Exebur Greengrass burst in, followed by Marcus's blubbering assistant Lawrence Gum.
"I'm sorry, sir," Lawrence blathered, her brow furrowing as she took in the sight of the harried Mr. Greengrass. "I tried to stop him, I did, but he wouldn't listen."
Knowing full well that the only male clients he received that would risk getting off on a bad foot with his pretty assistant were either married or in desperate need of his help, and that the latter usually paid exorbitantly well, Marcus Williams just smiled. "That's quite all right, Lawrence," he mused, placing his tuna on rye back on its wrapper and standing up. He put out his right hand for the newcomer to shake. "Marcus Williams, private investigator. What can I do for you, mister…"
"Greengrass," the man said, quickly shaking Marcus's hand and then taking a seat in one of the two plush red chairs on the other side of Marcus's desk. "Exebur Greengrass. I'm here for your help."
Marcus smiled and leaned back in his chair. "Well Mr. Greengrass, help is what we provide here. What do you need assistance with?" Then, turning to his assistant, "Lawrence, close the door on your way out."
His assistant nodded sharply and hurried out of the room, her heels clicking on the linoleum floor. The door closed quietly behind her as Marcus smiled at his new client.
"It's my father," Mr. Greengrass smiled sadly. "They've told me it was a heart attack, but my family doesn't have any history of heart problems."
Marcus Williams frowned and started tapping his right index finger on his thigh. "I'm sorry Mr. Greengrass, but that doesn't incline me to take your case."
Exebur Greengrass nodded and pulled out a large envelope from his jacket pocket. "Inside you'll find the money for the case. It's a fairly large sum because I need this to be of top priority."
Marcus sat up in his chair and grinned. If there was one thing this private investigator would agree to a case for, no matter the circumstances, it was a large wad of cash. Mr. Greengrass held out the envelope and Marcus grabbed it, flipping up the top and staring at the shiny golden galleons inside. He jiggled the envelope and, satisfied that the amount would cover the case, he turned to his new client.
"Well, I'll need to look into your father's case and it may take a few days to come up with information that might lead us to solving your father's suspected death," Marcus said, opening his desk drawer and placing the envelope in it. "If you like, my assistant can take down information about –"
"That won't be necessary," Mr. Greengrass interrupted. "In fact, I even have the murder weapon here with me now."
Marcus Williams stood up quickly. It was one thing for a client to have a suspicion of who committed a crime, or even what may have been used as a murder weapon, but he was very much uncomfortable with the idea of a deadly weapon in his office. As Mr. Greengrass began to pull something out of his jacket pocket, Marcus's hand was on his wand that was hidden up his right sleeve. But what happened next surprised him. Exebur Greengrass placed a small vial on the private investigator's desk. It had a small insignia of a butterfly on it and the green liquid inside shimmered.
Marcus Williams breathed in sharply and took a step back from the incriminating vial. "Butterfly's Death," he whispered, staring at the poison that had started and subsequently almost ruined his career.
He strode out from behind his desk and left his office, his strides hurried as he made his way over to his assistant's desk.
"Lawrence," he said shakily, "cancel any other appointments I have for this week. They're back."
A.N.: Hope you like this little prologue to my new little mystery! Feedback is very much appreciated! :)