This piece is as much a puzzle as a piece of flash fiction, though it was inspired by the message for 30th November on the Messages website. But would you be able to guess the right answer?

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"I've left you first..." Sir Humphrey paused in his writing to chuckle mischievously to himself. Then he continued in his pristine, looping handwriting: "...choice of five pieces of jewellery. Four of them are worthless, one is worth more than the rest of my estate. When making your choice, you must explain correctly your reasons for picking that particular piece."

Sir Humphrey laid down his pen and imagined the dramatic gasp there would be as his five nieces reached this point of their identical personal letter accompanying his will. His lawyer had strict instructions on how to recognise the niece choosing the right piece for the right reasons. And they were to have only one hour in one room to work it out. Would any of them remember enough, know him enough to do it?

He picked up the tulip brooch with its bright red stone, almost as beautiful as the real thing, his favourite flower. Next to it, he personally thought his mother's multi-stoned swirling pendant was the prettiest of the five pieces. But the fountain brooch with its sparkling diamonds, or was it some other stone, reminded him of the stream where he loved to walk. Then there was the engraved gold ring with his initials that he had been given by his late wife or the pearl pendant he'd had handmade for their fortieth anniversary.

The trouble was, Sir Humphrey chuckled to himself, that there were potentially good reasons for choosing every single piece. But did any of his supposedly doting heirs actually know him well enough to guess the right reason? Or would the local cat home be buying new premises?

Of course, all it really needed was for one of them to remember how he loved crosswords, anagrams and the like. Then if they read it aloud, he chuckled again. "I've left you thirst choice..."

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