The sun had barely risen when Detective Lila Jackson arrived at the lavish mansion of the eccentric billionaire, Victor Montrose. She was greeted by a distraught maid who led her to the study, where Montrose's lifeless body lay slumped over his desk, a single gunshot wound to the head.
As Lila examined the scene, she noticed the study door was locked from the inside, and the only other entry point was a window that was also locked. The gun, a vintage revolver, rested in Montrose's right hand. It appeared to be a clear-cut case of suicide.
However, Lila's instincts told her something was amiss. She noticed an unusual scent lingering in the air, a mix of perfume and something else she couldn't quite place. As she interviewed the household staff, she learned that Montrose had been in good spirits the night before and had no known reasons to take his own life.
The maid mentioned that Montrose's estranged wife, Evelyn, had unexpectedly visited him the previous evening. Lila tracked down Evelyn, who claimed she had come to discuss their divorce settlement amicably. She stated that she left around 10 pm, and Montrose was alive and well when she departed.
Lila returned to the crime scene and re-examined the evidence. She discovered a faint lipstick stain on the glass Montrose had been drinking from, which matched the shade Evelyn was wearing. Upon closer inspection of the revolver, Lila found a small, nearly invisible hole drilled into the side of the barrel.
Confronting Evelyn with her findings, Lila revealed the truth: Evelyn had laced Montrose's drink with a potent sedative, causing him to lose consciousness. She then staged the suicide by placing the gun in his hand and pulling the trigger using a thin wire threaded through the hole in the barrel. The wire was then removed, leaving no trace of her involvement.
Evelyn, caught in her own web of deceit, confessed to the murder, driven by her greed and desperation to inherit Montrose's fortune. Detective Lila Jackson had once again unraveled a seemingly perfect crime, proving that even the most meticulously planned murders can be exposed by a keen eye and an unwavering determination for justice.
