Case 0016 · October 30, 2026

The Haar at the Leith Bond

The fog came in off the Forth. Somewhere inside the bond, a full cask began to roll.

Tonight's case — free to play Difficulty: ●●●●●

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No graphic violence, no jump scares: a fair whodunit puzzle, about ten minutes a night.

The briefing

The haar rolled in off the Firth of Forth on Friday evening and swallowed Leith whole. Inside an old stone whisky bond on the docks, warehouse keeper Isobel Fraser was doing her last rounds among the casks.

The rest of the briefing is waiting in the case file.

The victim

Isobel Fraser, age 64Bond warehouse keeperIsobel kept the keys of the Leith bond for forty years and knew every cask by its number and its smell. She was finishing a book about the old warehouse, and every autumn she audited each cask against its owner's papers.

The suspects

Callum FraserWarehouseman · Nephew
Ailsa MurrayCask broker · Client of the bond
Graham LennoxCooper · Colleague
Kirsty MurrayGhost-tour guide · Ailsa's sister
Duncan RennieOwner of the bond · Employer

How to play this case

DifficultyFiendish (5/5)
The suspects5
TimeAbout ten minutes

5 suspects and 16 pieces of evidence wait in the file. Sweep your flashlight across the scene, listen to every voiced statement and pin what doesn't add up. You have three accusations to name the killer, the method and the motive; after that, the morning paper tells the whole story.

About this case

Case 0016, “The Haar at the Leith Bond”, opened on October 30, 2026. Difficulty: Fiendish (5/5). It puts 5 suspects and 16 pieces of evidence in front of you, all connected to Isobel Fraser. Like every Midnight Casebook file, it is a fair puzzle: there is no trick ending and no outside knowledge needed — everything that points to the answer is somewhere in the scene, the evidence or the statements.

Case notes

The Haar at the Leith Bond opens on a Friday evening, when a thick sea fog rolls in off the Firth of Forth and blots out the Leith docks. Inside an old stone whisky bond, among long rows of casks, keeper Isobel Fraser is making her final rounds of the night. She has held the keys for forty years, knows each cask by its number and its scent, and is writing a book about the warehouse. At 22:47 the night watchman hears a long rumble from within, and the hush of the fogbound bond is broken for good.

Five people knew that building well: her nephew, a cask broker, the cooper, the broker's sister and the owner. The file asks you to weigh timings on a night when nobody could see far, what each person understood about the casks and their papers, and who stood to gain or lose from her work. One of them is lying, and a single document deserves a second look.

Rated five of six, with sixteen pieces of evidence, this is a demanding case for players who enjoy being beaten a few times before the picture comes clear.

Questions about this case

Is “The Haar at the Leith Bond” free to play?

Yes. It is tonight's case, so it is free for everyone until the next case opens at midnight. Play it in your browser or in the Android app — no account needed to start.

How hard is “The Haar at the Leith Bond”?

“The Haar at the Leith Bond” is rated Fiendish (5/5) on the Midnight Casebook scale. Difficulty follows the week: Monday's case is the gentlest and the weekend's files are the toughest, and most players close a daily case in about ten minutes.

What if I get stuck on “The Haar at the Leith Bond”?

Hints open one at a time: the first points to evidence worth a closer look, the second to a contradiction, the third explains one part of the puzzle. Free players get one hint per case, plus an extra one on hard cases during their first seven solves; Casebook Pro unlocks all three. Each hint costs 10 points and each wrong accusation 20, but time never counts against you.

Do I need to download anything to play “The Haar at the Leith Bond”?

No. Like every Midnight Casebook case, it plays in any modern browser at midnightcasebook.com/play, and there is also an Android app. Sign in with Apple or Google when you want to keep your streak, scores and badges on every device.