A Congregation of Lies
St. Brendan's Church, Caldmere
A grant writer hired to help St. Brendan's food pantry secure state funding has discovered that thousands of dollars in charitable donations have been quietly redirected — and someone at the church has been filing false expenditure reports for nearly two years.
Everyone has something to hide.
61. Kept the only master key to the bell tower. Known to carry theological conviction to extremes — former parishioners in his previous posting in Brockton describe a priest who 'chose doctrine over people' during a contentious period in the early 2010s. Was at the church the evening before Penn was found; his car was spotted on Brendan Hill at 10:40 PM by a neighbor walking a dog. Has never publicly explained what he was doing there.
54. Operational backbone of St. Brendan's. Organized, opinionated, warm in a controlling way. Plays the organ beautifully. Biggest gossip in Caldmere — frames it as 'pastoral concern.'
64. Has run The Helm for 31 years. Blunt, tireless, maternal in a rough-edged way. Doesn't gossip — just remembers everything. Can tell you what you ordered six months ago and who you were with.
Can you name the culprit?
100% of detectives cracked this case
Read the case file, interrogate the suspects, and make your accusation — five guesses to crack it. The deduction board and the solution are for detectives only.
Caldmere, Maine.
A small town on the Maine coast where everyone knows everyone, and nothing is quite what it seems. Explore the locations and characters behind every case.