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Summary: The Octopus of Fate has Witherall in its clutches once again
Review: It is 1942, all able-bodied men in the New England towns of Carnavon and Dalton Hills have been drafted, and Leonidas Witherall, as a respected pillar of the community (now owner of Meredith's academy), finds himself elected to the boards of directors of many institutions that have lost their people to the war effort. After attending the board meeting of Haymaker's Department Store, Witherall goes to the 'lost and found' in order to get an umbrella to cope with the sudden rain storm outside. He enters the room, is 'biffed', and wakes up in a wicker hamper used to carry French bread, in a horse drawn cart making deliveries around the Dalton Hills area. He grabs a loaf of French bread as he exits the hamper, and arrives home, intent on making a complaint about the treatment of new members of the board of directors, but can't articulate it via letter, so decides to visit Haymaker's home. Of course, Haymaker is there, murdered.

Complicating matters is that Haymaker has been stabbed to death with the Samurai sword that 'Pink' (the lady of the case) had left out on her porch to be collected for sale at the Victory Swop Meet that night. And Pink, unfortunately, had jilted Haymaker twenty years before and gotten on the bad side of the local police department.

Witherall and Pink unite to solve the crime of Haymaker's murder, dealing with the insidious coils that bring an oil lady who drives around in a mink coat, a young man who resents that he's been declared 4F, and the Air Raid Warden leader who is intent on tracking down Witherall for his report.