Close to Death

Detective Superintendent (DS) Tariq Khan is already concerned that the Riverview Close case will be the ruin of his upwardly mobile career. It has been bizarre from the beginning: The murder weapon is a crossbow that the murderer left in front of the house on the driveway. He knows that the crossbow belonged to Roderick Browne, but he and the other residents of the Close don’t seem capable of murder. Normally, Khan wouldn’t suspect any of them, but the murder’s circumstances and gated setting force him to consider them all. From interviews, he can tell that the residents are keeping things from him.

Khan is young and charismatic and is used to being successful; however, he feels “out of his depth” here (101). Goodwin, his second-in-command, suggests that they bring in Hawthorne. Neither Khan nor Goodwin have ever met him, but they know his reputation for solving the most difficult cases. When Goodwin mentions that Hawthorne never takes credit when he solves a case, Khan decides to call him in.

The next morning, Hawthorne arrives at Riverview Close. DS Khan is surprised at his “diminutive” stature and unassuming appearance. Hawthorne introduces them to his partner,