A/N: I find this one to be rather easy (especially because of the title). Tell me what you think.
Disclaimer: I don't own L.
Introduction:
Crime has been slow lately, so, in his immense boredom, L hired you to be find crimes for him to solve. You are his eyes and ears. Can you solve the case before L?
As L's agent, everything you see and hear is being transmitted directly to L. In your ear is a tiny speaker allowing L to convey his instructions. Clipped to your shirt is a miniature camera so L can view the evidence with you. Good luck, and remember: everything's a clue.
Case 2: A Red Hanging
You are now in suburban New York where a man was recently found hanged. This particular case is baffling because the evidence does not indicate a suicide. Usually, murderers choose hanging as a way to kill their victims because it can be made to resemble suicide, thereby allowing the murderer to escape justice. However, there is no suicide note, real or forged, and there is no way the victim could have hung himself. Therefore, your killer is either extremely stupid or has another reason for choosing hanging. Here's what you know:
Victim: Andrew Turner
Occupation: attorney
Cause of death: broken neck
Time of death: Wednesday, 11:30 PM (approximation)
You are currently working with Ronald Ford, a detective for the NYPD. You meet him at the victim's home which is an expensive Victorian relic. As you pull into the driveway, you see Detective Ford waiting for you on the front porch.
Detective Ford introduces himself, as do you. Then you begin the questions. "Were any fingerprints found?" you ask.
Detective Ford responds in the negative. "Just the victim's and his wife's."
"Are you certain this isn't a suicide?"
"There's no way the victim could've hung himself. Come on in and I'll show you." You follow him into the house. It's old but clean and extravagant, consisting of expensive fixtures and furniture. Detective Ford stopped in the foyer and pointed to the elaborate chandelier. "The noose was hanging from that," he explained. "Turner was about 5 foot 7. The noose was about 6 feet off the floor. Plus the bottom of the chandelier is about 7 feet off the ground. There is no way Turner could've hung himself without some form of assistance."
"Was there a chair or a stool in the room?" you ask.
Detective Ford shakes his head. "Nope. Nothing beneath his feet or in this room at all." You take a look around for yourself. The foyer is empty, so you peak into adjacent rooms. Normal living room, normal hallway, normal dining room. You notice some partially burnt logs in the fireplace in the living room. It reminds you of the intense heat in Alabama, a hardship you experienced in your last case. The man must've been nuts to have had a fire going in the middle of summer. In the dining room, you notice the chairs surrounding the table. It would have been easy for Mr. Turner to hang himself if he stood on one of those chairs, but there was no evidence that he did.
You return your focus to the foyer. You examine the staircase and upstairs corridor blocked by only a feeble wooden banister. "Is it possible," you ask Detective Ford, "that Mr. Turner orchestrated everything from the second floor or the stairs."
Detective Ford responds, "Nope. We thought of that too. The stairs are too far away," he gestured to the wide expanse between the chandelier and the staircase, "and if he'd jumped from the second floor the force would've caused a more severe break to his neck not to mention it'd have pulled the chandelier from the ceiling."
You nod. "And there wasn't a suicide note?" Detective Ford shakes his head. "What about the noose?"
Detective Ford shrugs. "It was normal rope you could buy at any hardware store."
"Any signs of a struggle?"
"Not a one," Detective Ford answers. "He was free of drugs, too. I'm not sure how the killer did it, but he got Turner to do exactly what he wanted without having to drug him or fight him."
"Who found the body?" you ask.
"Turner's wife. You'll meet her soon."
"Is she a suspect?" Detective Ford nods. "Motive?"
Detective Ford scratches his head. "That's the funny thing. She got a load of insurance money because of her husband's death, but their insurance company doesn't pay up if it's a suicide. If Turner's wife killed him for the money, she'd have never made it even slightly look like suicide." You nod. Detective Ford's logic creates a conundrum.
"Was Mr. Turner depressed?" L asks through the ear piece. You ask Detective Ford L's question.
"Yeah," he confirms. "He actually seemed like the perfect candidate for suicide. Problems with his marriage," (you store that information for later) "his job, the guy was drowning in debt. He was as depressed as they come. You want to know my theory?" Detective Ford asks. You nod. "I think his wife killed him because of their marriage problems and tried to make it look like a suicide so she wouldn't get caught. Then she remembered about the insurance money and stopped the suicide set-up so she'd still get the money."
His theory was plausible. It seems you'll have to talk to Mrs. Turner.
Your first suspect is staying with her sister in a house not far from the victim's.
Suspect 1: Sarah Turner, victim's wife
Occupation: secretary
Motive: acquired a large sum of insurance money due to her husband's death, and she and the victim were having marital problems
Mrs. Turner's sister's house is similar to her own: expensive and extravagant. You, Detective Ford, and both women sit in the living room. Tears are streaming down Mrs. Turner's face, painting her face with dark black lines of mascara and other cosmetics. Her sister is comforting her as best she can, but Mrs. Turner's wails of misery continue nonetheless.
"I know this is very hard for you, Mrs. Turner, but I need to ask you a few questions." You attempt to be as polite and sympathetic as possible. Mrs. Turner nods, her face buried in a handkerchief. "How did you find your husband's body?"
Mrs. Turner sniffled loudly before answering. "I had gone to bed early that night because of a headache. I woke up around midnight and discovered that Andrew had not come to bed. I went downstairs to look for him and I saw…I saw…I saw – " Mrs. Turner's statement ends in hysteric weeping. Her sister pats her on the back lovingly.
You wait for her to calm before continuing your questioning. "Mrs. Turner, I understand there was quite a large insurance policy on your husband's life."
Mrs. Turner's crying becomes louder in confirmation of your statement. Her sister glares at you before continuing to console her howling sister. "I know this is painful, Mrs. Turner, but these are questions I must ask."
Mrs. Turner's sister snorts angrily. "How insensitive," she says disapprovingly. You sigh, and once again wait for Mrs. Turner to calm a bit.
"Mrs. Turner, just one more question. Were you and your husband having marital troubles?"
She sniffles audibly. "We…fought occasionally..." her crying increases to its previous intensity, "...but I'd never kill him!" Her sobbing begins to drown out her words. "Oh, Andrew! Andrew!"
Knowing you won't be getting anything more from this suspect, you slip out quietly while Mrs. Turner's sister is busy attempting to soothe her.
You arrive at Mr. Turner's former workplace and hope that this suspect won't be as emotional as the last one.
Suspect 2: Robert Keller, victim's boss
Occupation: attorney
Motive: lost a major client for the law firm
You enter the prestigious law firm with Detective Ford. Your suspect is a partner in the firm, and after a bit of waiting, you finally get an audience with Mr. Keller.
"It is a terrible tragedy," Mr. Keller says with obvious faked sympathy while gesturing for you and Detective Ford to take a seat.
You nod. "How well did you know Mr. Turner?" you ask.
Mr. Keller frowns. "Not too well," he says. "To be completely honest, I've hardly had a conversation with the man."
"Didn't you and Mr. Turner have an altercation recently?"
Mr. Keller nods. "Taylor and Phillips is a major client of ours," he explains, referring to a large business in New York. "There was a large case in which Turner represented them. He lost the case. Taylor and Phillips lost millions of dollars. They'll never have us represent them again. I'll admit, I was angry. Turner was ill prepared for the case. His work went downhill drastically. I'm not sure what was wrong with him, but it was affecting his work, and I had to let him know that this firm won't accept that."
"So you had a reason to kill him," you state.
Mr. Keller stiffens. "Why would I kill him? I could have just fired him."
You now confer with L. "Do you need more information, or do you know who the murderer is?"
"I know everything I need to," L says. "The killer is…"
Have you solved the case? Review and answer this question:
1. Who is the killer(s)?
The solution will be posted around July 5th. (I will be on vacation from June 30th to July 5th so I will not be able to respond to your reviews during that time.)
A/N: Do you want more L commentary (like the last case) or less (like this case). Please tell me your preference. Also, if you have any ideas for a mystery, I would be pleased to hear them! I have one more mystery idea in my head right now, so any other ideas would be great! If you do have ideas PM me; do not tell me in a review!