Murder at Grape Point Inn Chapter 2, a crossing jordan fanfic

A/N: I have had this story running through my head for quite some time. I based the idea VERY loosely on Agatha Christie's And Then There Were None. It takes place after Crash. Please read and review. Thanks!

Disclaimer: Unfortunately, I do not own Crossing Jordan.

Chapter 2-

Couple by couple, the morgue family left their rooms. Only Jordan and Woody took note of the framed poem sitting on the dresser by the door.

'Twas the week before Christmas, when all through the Inn
The guests had all gathered in the warm, cozy den.
The suspects were talking and milling around,
In hopes that a murderer soon would be found.

The guests were nestled all snug in their beds,
While visions of mysteries danced in their heads.
The game had begun, the murder was fake,
Suspicions and accusations stood in its wake.

When down in the kitchen there arose such a clatter,
The guests sprang from their beds to see what was the matter.
Away to the stairs they all flew like a flash,
A victim was found, strangled with her sash.

The lady examines and claims her to be dead
The others stood 'round just shaking their head.
This murder was not part of the script or the deal,
This murder was unplanned, this murder was real.

Twelve strangers on the island plus a butler and a maid
The innkeeper dead, who would come to their aid?
The ferry had stopped, no one could come or go,
A killer was among them, but who they didn't know.

To their rooms they all went, each one locking their door.
Soon they heard a scream and a thud on the floor.
Again to the stairs this time upward they flew,
Another real murder, now they hunt for a clue.

Too many detectives try to take up the lead
The murder must be solved with accuracy and speed.
Fingers were pointed and assumptions prevail,
One couple knew they were hot on somebody's trail.

Nothing could be done until the light of the day,
Locked in their rooms, their fears to allay.
Saturday dawned with yet another dead,
The rush was now on to not leave things unsaid.

All lives were threatened and overcome with fear,
Trust was destroyed, no one's name could they clear.
As all guests were present though their numbers had shrunk,
Another succumbed, it was poison he'd drunk.

Poison leaves trace, a mistake he did make,
Underestimated the guests when their lives were at stake.
The good guys prevailed, he was caught in the act,
A dear life was saved, their bags were then packed.

The weekend now over, the guests left the Inn,
The murderer arrested, the good side did win.
A fine line between what's fake and what's real,
What they found was not part of the deal.

They all left the scene, it was a grand dismissal.
They drove back to town, they sped like a missile.
But they heard him exclaim, as they drove out of sight,
"Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good-night!"

"Look Woody, what a cute little poem."

"Yeah, it is pretty cute. Let's head downstairs, I want a glass of wine before dinner."

The gang all met up down stairs in the den for some wine. They were milling about and had introduced themselves to the other two couples that were staying at the inn as well.

Ted and Sharon Durham were from New York. She is an elementary school teacher and he is an accountant. They were at the inn celebrating their 30th wedding anniversary. Jennifer and Brett Carmichael were from Boston. He is an engineer and she is a nurse.

Promptly at 7:00 Stan walked into to the den. "Dinner is served, please make your way to the dining room." All of the guests filed into the dining room. Waiting on the table was an elegant dinner, complete with wine. The group chatted and a couple of people left the table at various times to go to the restroom or retrieve something from their room. As everyone completed, their meal, Stan left the dining room to begin serving dessert. Suddenly the guests heard a scream. Stan rushed back into the room moments later with a grim look on his face.

"She's dead. Judy, the maid here at the Inn is dead. Please, come look." The group slowly got to its feet to see what was awaiting them in the kitchen.

"Looks like she was stabbed," Garret announced.

"So who did it?" The Innkeeper walked into the room.

"Ahh, that is what you all must decide. Please follow me to the den." All of the guests did as the were asked.

"Once again, welcome to our murder mystery. As you saw Ms. Judy Patton was murdered tonight by someone in the Inn. You have all been doing a great job of fulfilling your roles, please continue to do so. I will leave you in here to discuss the evening's events. At 10:00, we have a policy that all guests should retire to their rooms for the evening." With that, she left the guests in the room.

"Ok, let's all think about the evenings events and see if we can determine who killed Judy." It was apparent that Woody was used to assuming the role of the lead investigator. His role sheet had also encouraged him to take a leadership role.

"Well, I did notice several people leave the room during dinner. Jordan, you left shortly after we came into the dining room, so you had an opportunity," Nigel had no problems pointing fingers at his friends. In fact, it was quite fun.

"Hey man, I went back to my room for some aspirin for a headache, I didn't kill anyone."

"I noticed that you two over there each left during the meal," Ted announced, pointing at Bug and Lily.

"I went to call my daughter's babysitter to make sure everything was alright," Lily replied, not liking the finger being pointed in her direction.

"And I had to go sing Maddie's goodnight song to her so that she would go to bed for the babysitter," Bug chimed in.

"So we have Jordan, Bug, and Lily as suspects, anyone else leave the room?" Kate asked.

"Well, the butler was in and out, wasn't he?" Jennifer asked, timid to get involved in the conversation.

"I thought he was in with us the whole time, but I hadn't seen the maid since we first arrived," Woody said.

The discussion went on for another half hour when the grandfather clock chimed that it was 10:00. The guests said their goodnights, vowing to solve the murder over breakfast, and everyone headed to bed.

Jordan and Woody headed up to their beds. They were both pretty tired from their long day at work. They chatted a bit, then decided to save intimate moments for the next night. The snuggled up close and relaxed into a comfortable sleep. As Jordan dozed off, the first few lines of the poem crossed her mind: