Story Starts Challenge - Day 7

Day 6: The Evidence, Deduction and Reveal

Chief (C): A word of caution Inspector – before we start accusing Lady Hargreaves we must be very sure of our facts – she has a high standing in the community and if all she has is knowledge of the sale of the paintings it may be that the death of her husband will be penalty enough… we also know that, providing she is in no way involved in the death of her husband, any half decent brief will convince a jury that the paintings were the property of both of them and therefore could not be considered stolen by her.
DIW: Of course Ma’am it was something that had crossed my mind.
C: Right Inspector, I imagine you have a lot to do – please close the door behind you.

Walsh walked purposefully down the corridor thinking about the Vicar - he wondered if the Vicar was being honest about the quotes for the repairs – it was hard to imagine a man of the cloth would intentionally deceive. For the moment he decides to give him the benefit of the doubt. He sees DC Lamb walking towards him

DIW: Right Lamb what did her Ladyship say about the gun?
DCL: She identified it right enough Sir – says she is sure it is the gun that is missing from the safe.
DIW: Have forensics come back with the gunshot residue results yet – I understand that tests were also conducted on her Ladyship, the Vicar, Jonty and Colleen?
DCL: No, they’re not back to my knowledge Sir – I’ll give them a call when I get back in the office unless there is something else you want me to do.

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The phone rings and Morris picks it up...

SM: It’s the Doc for you Sir...
DIW: Hello Doctor, what can I do for you – have you any news for me on the Hargreaves death?
Doc: I certainly do... Can you come down to the morgue? I think you’ll find this very interesting.

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Next morning, back at the Station, all the evidence form Forensics, SOCO and the Post Mortem are back. DI Walsh calls his team together to review what the results.

DIW: Morning everyone. Morris, will you talk us through the findings please?
SM: Yes, Sir. The body in the Sheds has been formally identified as Lord Hargreaves. He died from a single gunshot to the right temple. The weapon used was a revolver which belonged to his Lordship and which was normally kept lock in his office safe. The body was partially covered by a picture frame containing a picture of the gardens at Hargreaves Hall. Finger prints found in the Sheds were mostly of His Lordship, but there were also some from the Groom and others on the painting that we believe to belong to Her Ladyship’s son, Jonty. A trapdoor was discovered at the scene, but the bolt was rusted and obviously hasn’t been drawn in years. There were, however, fresh fingerprints from his Lordship on the bolt of the stable door. They also said all the tests for gunshot residue came back negative, apart from on his Lordship’s right hand.
DIW: Aaah! Now it all makes sense. Carry on Morris.
SM: SOCO uncovered a couple of items of interest in His Lordship’s Study, Sir. Amongst all the papers strewn around the office they found his Life Insurance Policy and in the safe they found this note addressed to Lady Hargreaves. Apart from his Lordship’s fingerprints, the Study seemed to have been wiped clean.
DIW: And what about the picture frames that Lamb found in the long grass?
DCL: Well Sir, these seemed to have Jonty’s fingerprints plastered all over them and I also found a knife discarded nearby and that too has Jonty’s fingerprints all over it. I think he used the knife to cut the canvases from the stolen pictures out of their frames prior to re-framing them and selling them on.

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Jonty had indeed taken the stolen paintings to the cottage, where he cut them from their frames. Early the next morning he took the empty frames out deep in the woods where he disposed of them. DI Walsh had discovered that her Ladyship was being blackmailed by her son! They (Jonty & Colleen) had told her that if she didn't help them acquire the paintings, they would tell his Lordship about her having had Jonty years before she had met him. Afraid of the exposure, her Ladyship had confessed everything to her husband.

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DIW: (Reading the letter left by Lord Hargreaves). Well this is the final piece in the puzzle as far as I’m concerned. When I spoke to the Doc last night, he told me that Lord Hargreaves was suffering from advanced stomach cancer – he must have been in terrible and constant pain. I think that, plus the devastating news about his wife having borne a son prior to them meeting, the demand from the Vicar for all that money to repair the Church and finding his paintings being sold at the Arts Sale was enough to tip him over the edge. Lord Hargreaves, wrote this note to his wife, took his gun and went to the Sheds and shot himself. What we’re looking at her, Gentleman, is suicide!
SM: But how can it be suicide, Sir when we found all the doors on the Sheds padlocked on the outside?
DIW: Yes, that one took a bit of working out Morris – but it has to be suicide, don’t you see? If Lord Hargreaves was found to have committed suicide the Insurance company wouldn’t pay out on his life insurance – he had to make it look like he’d been murdered!
DCL: No, I still don’t get it Sir.
DIW: Take another look at the photograph of the Sheds, Lamb... Pass it round. Notice the door on the far right is, in fact, a stable door – the top and bottom can be opened separately. The padlock is firmly fixed to the top of the door and is securely locked. What His Lordship did is this: He unbolted the two parts of the door on the inside before securing the padlock to the top of the door on the outside. He ducked under the top part of the door and then bolted the two parts together again from the inside, making it look like it was impossible for him to have killed himself and therefore he must have been murdered!

SM: So what do you want us to do next Sir?
DIW: Well, starting with the Vicar – I think we should get him down here to the Station and issue him with a formal caution about trying to extract money from the Hargreaves’ under false and fraudulent pretences.
SM: Right Sir!
DIW: I want Jonty and Colleen arrested for blackmail and the theft and resale of paintings from Hargreaves Hall and possibly other locations...
DCL: I’ll get on to that one, Sir.
DIW: As for Lady Hargreaves, I’ll deal with her. In theory, she hasn’t committed any crime as the stolen paintings also belonged to her. I’ll show her a copy of this letter left by her husband – I think she has probably suffered enough!

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DI Walsh returned to the Hall and presented his findings to Lady Hargreaves. He handed her the letter that her husband had written and expected her to find before the Police arrived. Being a Lady of habit though, she had not entered his Lordship's study after hearing the gun shot.

My Dearest Darling,
I am so, so sorry for putting you through all this. After you have read this letter you must burn it at once. It must look to all intents and purposes that I have been murdered – if there is any suspicion that I have killed myself the Insurance people won’t pay you a penny.

I am dying, my Darling – I tried to tell you weeks ago, but each time I looked in to your sweet face, I couldn’t say the words. All the stress over the last few days has been too much for me and I decided on this plan. I think no less of you for having a child all those years ago, but do please be wary of Jonty, I think he only cares about himself and will hurt you at the drop of a hat. Also, don’t be bullied by the Vicar into paying out a fortune to repair the Church – get your own quotes for the work and decide on which is best for you.

I’m so sorry I have to leave you like this, my sweet, sweet girl. But be assured I will love you forever.

All my love, my Darling,

H

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SM: Well Lamb, at least one good thing has come out of all this.
DCL: What’s that then, Morris?
SM: Well for once – the Butler DIDN’T do it!

THE END