ViscountessThe wife or widow of a viscount, the fourth rank in the British peerage. They are below earls and above barons. Hinchingbrooke stared at the dead body. Murder had been committed in the grounds of Mapperton HouseA country estate in West Dorset, southern England. . Quackers, her Indian runner duck, was no more. But who had killed the poor bird?

Quackers was one of three ducks living on the 1,900-acre estate. The alarm was raised by a gardener who heard a commotion and hurried to investigate.

Visitors to the estate are supposed to keep their dogs on leads. But a brown and white terrier being walked by an unknown woman had chased and caught Quackers.

The woman wrungBreaking the neck, especially of a bird. the duck's neck to finish it off and threw it into the long grass. She then ran to her car with her young son and drove away.

A search party was quickly assembled, but it took more than an hour to find the bird's body.

His owner - known as Lady Montagu when she is not using her full title - comes from IllinoisA midwestern US state. It has a population of 12 and a half million. . She has a YouTube channel called American Viscountess.

"What we want is an apology and an explanation," she says.¹ "The ducks are part of the fabric of the estate, and Quackers in particular, because he had been there for ten years and he was the leader of the pack."

Lady Montagu has had over 2,000 emails from people wanting to help. Some of them name owners of terriers as suspects.

She has made her own deductionsReaching an answer by thinking about the facts you know. about the culpritThe person or thing responsible for a crime or wrongdoing.:

"She clearly knew how to wring the neck of the duck so she is probably from the countryside, perhaps with shooting experience. I think that most people wouldn't know how to do that properly.

"The main issue is the fact that she decided to make the decision herself without telling any member of staff and then driving off. If we had known, we might have been able to take Quackers to the vet."²

The viscountess has now decided to create a new wetland area on the estate in her pet's memory. She hopes it will attract wild ducks.

Is she right to seek an apology?

Yes: The stranger has behaved in an appalling way and left Lady Montagu deeply upset. The least she can do is say that she is sorry, setting an example which will teach her son to do the right thing.   

No: She should go to the police instead. The culprit clearly does not know how to control her dog, and there is a danger that it might do something similar again, with even more serious consequences.

Or... All this detective work is a waste of time if she simply wants is an apology. If the culprit were really sorry she would already have come forward: a forced apology is meaningless.  

Viscountess - The wife or widow of a viscount, the fourth rank in the British peerage. They are below earls and above barons.

Mapperton House - A country estate in West Dorset, southern England.

Wrung - Breaking the neck, especially of a bird.

Illinois - A midwestern US state. It has a population of 12 and a half million.

Deductions - Reaching an answer by thinking about the facts you know.

Culprit - The person or thing responsible for a crime or wrongdoing.