Crime At Northland Lake (Completed)

A New Crime Scene

"What!" Nick exclaimed. "But how's that possible?" The detective rushed back to the sedan.
"I have no idea." James replied.
"Let's go together. Where are you right now?" Nick asked tensely. It took time for James to answer that, "I'm on my way to London. Got some urgent work for the family. Had to rush." There was a gap. "Just make it quick. Don't waste much time."
"Wait, if you're in London, then-" The line got cut. Nick double checked the number whether it was an impersonator. "That was definitely James. But if he's on his way to London, how does he know that Mr. McMillan has been murdered?" Nick thought as he started the engines. "Damn you deputy." He banged the steering wheel.

On they way, Nick made a call to Cole and kept it on speaker. "Hey Nick! What's up?"
"Just do what I say. Get a few officers and head to Joseph McMillans' residence. He's the guy who visited the police station yesterday. He's been murdered. Also get anything that can identify fingerprints."
"Wow." Cole exclaimed. "I mean what! That's a lot of things. I'll be there as soon as possible."
"One more thing. Is-" Before Nick could complete his sentence, the line got cut. The detective drove as fast as he could at that moment. Nick didn't want anything to be changed at the so-called crime scene. Unlike last time, the detective turned off the music and didn't pay attention to his surroundings.
His watch showed '11:35' when he parked the car at the spot where he had last time. Nick heard the police vehicles coming towards him as well. "Perfect timing." Nick snapped his finger as he saw Cole get off the jeep with two more officers.

"Where's his bungalow?" Cole asked. "Heard it's huge."
"How do you know?" Nick frowned.
"J-Just a guess." Cole shrugged. The three men started following Nick who was rushing through the branches and leaves. They reached the bungalow within a minute leaving the two officers gasping once they saw the structure. "You can show this face after you see the dead body inside." Nick said as he tried opening the door.
The door seemed to be barged from the inside. There was absolutely no sign of response. Everything seemed so quiet. "Get this thing open." Nick pointed to the wooden door. All the four men started pushing the door with great force.
After five tries, they were successful in getting in. But once they did, they were shocked to see the scene. The fan was on, pillows were all over the place, the lamp was hanging and the glass coffee table was broken into pieces.
"Man!" Cole exclaimed. "This is serious."
"Search for Mr. McMillan." Nick ordered as he went towards the kitchen. He observed that one of the drawers which had knifes were open. Nothing else seemed peculiar there. Hearing a thud, Nick rushed towards one of the bedrooms. He stood till outside the wooden door as looked upon the dead body.

The detective looked around the room guessing that there was a struggle. The other three officers came in leaving a gasp on their face. As the men wore gloves, they tried to turn the body to get a better look. "This is Joseph McMillan alright." Cole said. "Wonder how he was killed." He looked at Nick.
"Must've been an injection of poison." The detective replied. "Look at this mark." He pointed at the dead man's arm.
"Sir." The other officer called. "The backdoor isn't fully closed. I believe the killer went out from here."
Nick pushed the door open without touching the knob. "Cole, get the fingerprints on this knob. I need the results as quick as possible."
Cole nodded, getting his brown briefcase. "Get this body to the station. I need to know for how long this man has been dead." Nick said.
"Sir, I can let you know that right now." One of the pale officers said. "Just give me around five minutes." He added as he went closer to the body. Nick seemed confused with the way of the crime. He looked under the bed hoping to get something. "If Mr. McMillan was murdered here, why was there a scene created in the living room?" He thought.
The detective examined the closets but everything seemed to be in place. The only things which were out of place in the room were the two pillows and the bedsheets. He noticed a framed photo of Judy McMillan on the dresser. He felt the lady had a fascinating look. What Nick found frustrating was that the area was isolated and nobody might've noticed anyone coming in and going out. The murderer, Nick felt, wanted to get attention at the wrong place. "Sir!" Cole called as the detective bit his nails. "I've got the fingerprints on the door knob. They're fresh and definitely not Mr. McMillans." He said. "I would have to go back to the station to figure out who's fingerprint it is."

Nick thought for a while and said, "First check whether it matches your deputy's fingerprints."
"James?" Cole asked raising his eyebrow. "Why would he come here?"
"Just check it out." Nick scratched head. "One more thing. Did James tell he's going to London?" He asked.
"London? Last time James went to London was around four years ago. I don't find any reason for him to go now. In fact, he would tell me if he was going." Cole replied keeping the fingerprint sample in his case.
"Sir!" The other officer called. "This body has been dead for at least fifty minutes. You can say he was killed around eleven."
Nick nodded and took his phone out to check when James had called him. "That deputy called just after fifteen minutes the murder took place." He continued biting his nails and went into deep thought.
"Take this body to the station." Nick ordered. The officer who was rather quiet seemed to be in a rush to take the body out. "Relax buddy." Nick exclaimed. "What's your name?" He asked.
"Jacob." The officer replied hesitantly. As Nick nodded, he noticed a small white sheet of paper as soon as the body was lifted. "A note?" He picked it up. On it was written- 'Better make it quick Nick! I'm sure you don't want another crime scene in the log house.'
Nick gasped. He knew which log house the note meant. Without telling anything to the other men, he rushed out of the house and got into his sedan.

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A log house, another crime? Nick can't afford someone else to get killed. What does he do? Up next!