Cold Money by Ellery Queen

This story is an example of how true detective fiction stories are written. It is told by Ellery Queen. It is about a man named Mr. Philly Mullane. He had been registered at the Hotel Chancellor in New York. One day, the house detective, Winston F. Parker, helped Inspector Richard Queen catch Philly. He was shackled and taken from his hotel room number 913. He had robbed a Manhattan payroll and escaped with the cash. The question for Inspector Queen to solve was, Where did Mullane stash the money?

When he was arrested, the room was searched and the money wasn't located. Years later after he was released from prison, he returned to the same room at Hotel Chancellor. During that time, he never left his room. He also had his food delivered to him. Only the hotel service people entered the room.

One day, someone found him dead in his room. They weren't sure whether it was a heart attack or what. Inspector Queen and the house detective discussed who could have entered the room and killed Mullane.

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