Read "The Vaults of Blackarden Castle" by Arthur Gask online for free on Textopian. Full text with search, annotations, highlights, and AI-powered reading aids.
THEY STOOD round the body in the dead man's study while the police surgeon, bending down upon one knee, made a quick examination. "Two blows struck," he said briskly, "the first taking him from behind when he was standing up, and the second made when he was lying here prone. Either would have killed him and death would have been practically instantaneous. Very violent blows by a strong man! See in both places where the bone has been crashed in."
He bent lower to inspect more closely and tut-tutted several times. "A very callous murderer! Note, where, to steady the head for his second blow, he pressed his foot hard upon the poor man's neck. See the dirt there from the sole of his shoe." He nodded frowningly. "Yes, a very brutal individual, the assassin here!"