Two weeks later
The sound of the smartphone ringing on the coffee table in the middle of the living room disturbed Henry's sleep, who had been asleep on the long sofa for the past few hours. He squinted his eyelids trying to open them. The bright light from the fluorescent lights on the ceiling blinded his eyes. His smartphone was still screaming for an answer. He, who was still single and lived alone, often fell asleep in the living room while watching television.
He had time to look at the clock hanging on the wall before reaching for his smartphone. The time now showed 3am. He glanced at the name displayed on his smartphone screen before answering the call.
"Yes, Paker" Henry greeted first after the line was connected.
The call was from a coworker.
"Mr. Henry has a murder case in Junee, New South Wales. It is said that someone has died. Mr. Michael has asked Mr. Henry to handle this case and he has asked Mr. Henry to go to the scene now," Paker explained anxiously.
"Junee NSW? Which area is that?" Without Henry, He got up quickly and walked towards his room to get ready.
"At the Monte Cristo mansion."
Hearing the name of the mansion, Henry immediately sighed softly. Monte Cristo Mansion was not an ordinary name. The name of the Mansion had been the talk of the town for a long time.
"Okay, I'll be there soon. Who's there already?"
"The Criminal Investigation Division and Forensic Division have arrived since yesterday. I just arrived and am still waiting for a report from them."
"Alright", I'll be there in a moment."
The line was disconnected after hearing Paker's reply. The jeans were put on in a hurry. His Vector SP1 pistol in the drawer was taken out and hooked onto the belt bolster attached to his belt. The leather jacket that was stuck behind the door was reached to hide the pistol from anyone's view.
Once done, he reached for the eagle logo hat and put it on. He briefly looked at his face in the mirror before stepping out of the room with his car keys. He had to hurry!
He managed to turn off the television that had been on since earlier and the light switch before leaving the house. In less than five minutes, he was already in the car heading towards the scene of the incident.
Henry stopped his car a little away from the scene of the incident and saw that police cars from the Criminal Investigation Division and the Forensic Division had already parked in the area near the mansion. It was also visible that several small canopies were being set up to be used as a place for them to conduct their investigation. The main road that passed through the dilapidated mansion had also been closed.
After locking the car, he continued walking towards the canopy that had been installed right on the side of the road facing the entrance to the mansion. There, several police officers were seen collecting evidence.
Seeing Henry, Paker, who was a police officer from the Criminal Investigation Division, immediately stepped closer to the man.
"Who filed the report on this case?" Henry asked, seriously, while shaking his head.
"According to them, a report was received from an elderly man who was on his way home from work."
"Where is the old man?" Henry asked.
"We questioned the old man earlier and the old man has returned because he said he had something important to say. But, the statement has been recorded."
"Who is in charge of interrogating the old man?" Henry asked again.
"Me and Paker, sir," replied a police officer with the rank of Corporal named Shane.
"How can the old man know that there is a case of murder in this mansion?
"The old man works as a security guard at the Junee Roundhouse Museum. His house is just across the street. When he passed by this road earlier, he heard people screaming. When he entered the mansion to see what was happening, he saw one of the victims dead in the middle of the mansion. He immediately called the police. While the old man was giving his statement, I had a video recording. Do you want to see the video?" Shane explained at length.
Henry nodded in understanding.
"It's okay. You've taken the old man's personal information, right?"
Shane nodded confidently.
"Good, later if we need his statement again, we'll contact him."
"Okay, sir," said Shane and continued his interrupted work.
Henry glanced at Paker.
"Has he finished investigating the inside of the mansion?"
The question turned to Paker, who had been silent and just listening.
"He's still conducting an investigation."
"Isn't anyone safe?"
"At this time, we've only found four bodies, one in the hall, one at the back door, one at the swimming pool and one in the upstairs room. Three men, one woman."
Henry nodded in understanding.
"Has the victim's identity been identified?"
"Still in process. Forensics is working to obtain the identity of the victim from the victim's body."
"Sir!"
An officer involved in this case appeared in a slightly dazed state. Everyone under the canopy simultaneously looked towards their workmate.
"Why is this?"
"We found the victim still alive on the second floor," the officer replied seriously.
Henry and Paker looked at each other for a moment before walking quickly into the mansion.
"Shane, does anyone use that canopy that's closed at the end?" Henry asked, pointing his index finger towards the canopy he meant.
Shane, who was writing something in his report book, looked in the direction he was referring to.
"If I'm not mistaken, that's a canopy for the forensics department."
"Can I use the canopy for interrogation purposes? I need a special space to interrogate the victim," Henry asked.
"Just a moment, sir," Shane asked and then stepped towards the canopy.
Henry turned to look at Paker who was comforting the only surviving victim.
"Sorry, I'm late."
A woman appeared in the canopy and made everyone there turn their heads in her direction.
"I'm Doctor Sabena, a forensic psychologist from Malabar NSW. Just call me Ms Sabena. I got a call from AFP Martin a moment ago and said there was a murder case at this mansion that required my services to interrogate the victim which is still under investigation," explained Sabena after introducing herself to the officer on duty.
The others nodded in understanding and introduced themselves to each other.
"I'm Henry, Inspector Henry. The police officer entrusted by AFP Martin to handle this case. And this is my assistant, Paker." said Henry, introducing himself and his assistant.
For a moment they shook hands.
"Who is this man?" Sabena asked as she looked at the man who looked shivering and scared next to Paker.
"This is one of the surviving victims. We found him on the second floor of the mansion," Henry answered smoothly.
Before Sabena could continue talking, Shane reappeared there.
"I've talked to the forensics department. They've allowed you to use that canopy to interrogate the victim. They can use another canopy."
"Thank you, Shane. This is Shane, my assistant too. If you have any problems, you can ask me and them for help," said Henry and introduced Shane to Sabena.
For a moment, Sabena and Shane shook hands and exchanged smiles.
Then, they took the victim, led by Paker, to the intended canopy. Several officers from the forensics department were seen leaving the canopy and heading to the next canopy.
Upon arrival, Henry told the victim to sit on one of the available chairs.