Interrogation: Find the Liar

Five suspects. Exactly one statement is false. And the one who lied is not always the one who did it. Sometimes they are covering for someone. THE CASE A dark room, a single lamp, papers on the desk. The terms are given to you up front. "It happened in the library. The weapon was a candlestick. Whoever held it is your culprit. And they were at the scene." Your job is to ask, to listen, and to name someone. WHAT YOU CAN ASK - Where were you at that hour? - Did you see them? - What were they carrying? That is the whole list. You cannot ask anyone whether they did it. You cannot even ask what they themselves were carrying. Where the weapon was is something you learn only from people who were in the same room. Real interrogations work the same way. Pressing one person gets you nowhere. Something only gives way when their account is set beside somebody else's. A LIE IS NOT JUST A DENIAL The…