56 pages 1 hour read

Rudolph Fisher

The Conjure Man Dies: A Mystery Tale of Dark Harlem

Fiction | Novel | Adult | Published in 1932

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Chapters 14-16

Chapter Summaries & Analyses

Chapter 14 Summary

After Dart arrests Jinx, he tells Doty Hicks that he will also detain him because he confessed. The medical examiner, Dr. Winkler, arrives and tells him that the body shows no evidence of violence. This confuses Dart and Dr. Archer because they saw the wound on Frimbo’s head. When Dr. Winkler states the body is a woman’s, they rush to talk to Officer Day, who was supposed to watch the body in Crouch’s parlor. Officer Day says that he never saw a body on the couch; rather, he only saw the body that the medical examiner has. They realize that someone took the body while Dart was interrogating the suspects.

Dr. Archer tells Dr. Winkler that the most likely suspects are Jinx Jenkins, Doty Hicks, and a man hired by Spencer, Si Brandon’s rival. This man could be Jinx or Easley, though Dr. Archer doubts that the latter is involved due to a lack of evidence. Dr. Winkler suggests that the killer is the most unlikely suspect. They then joke about Mrs. Snead, Dr. Archer, and Dr. Winkler being the killer.

Meanwhile, Dart and three officers search the building for the body but find nothing. Dart says that Jinx likely knows who took the body and that he will need to question him more.