Crime At Northland Lake (Completed)

A Link

This made Joseph furious. "Excuse me Mr. McAllister!" He banged the table and got up. "Doesn't mean that if I wasn't fond of my wife, I'd do something like that. Curse you young man!"
"Well in that case, from now on think and speak." Nick said. "Now let's get to the present. When did your wife go missing?" He asked.
"Friday night." Joseph replied as he sat down.
"Tell me what happened that night."
"Judy went to the club at nine and never came back. I went to sleep by ten and at midnight I got a call from an unknown number. It was a man. He said if I wanted my wife back, I should get ten thousand pounds and come to Northland Lake near the famous pine tree." Joseph explained.

This was the exact same story which Simon Mathews had told Nick. It seemed way more than just a coincidence to the young detective. Now, Nick was sure that the two cases were connected. "What happened after that?" He asked.
"I didn't have that much money. I was two thousand pounds short in the locker. I kept the money in the bag and went. The Lake was just twenty minutes far." Joseph replied.

'What time did you get the call?" Nick questioned.
"Twelve forty sharp."
"Simon got the call at twelve thirty. A ten minute gap." Nick murmured softly.
"What time did you reach the lake?"
"One five sharp." Joseph answered confidently.
"Simon reached at twelve fifty-five. Again a ten minute gap." Nick murmured, this time a bit louder. "What did you do after that?" He asked.

"The first thing I noticed was a white jeep that was parked. I got the bag and rushed down to the pine tree."
"Did you see anybody?"
"There wasn't a single living creature there. It was completely silent except for the crickets."
"What did you do with the money?"
"I looked around for some time to see whether someone will come. I saw that the white jeep was still there. Without thinking, I just kept the bag near the pine tree and climbed up the slope. I slowly examined the jeep. Just when I felt there was a body inside, I was attacked."
Nick sat still. He knew what was coming next. Except for the timings, every event was same to that of Simons' story. "Let me tell what happened after this." Nick adjusted his position and said, "The next morning you woke up in your own car. You were confused of what had happened. Then you went to the police station to file a complaint. Am I right?" He asked.
"Definitely." Joseph nodded.
"What was the time when you woke up in your car?"
"Seven forty five or eight I guess."
"Did you see anybody?"
"Nope. Even that white jeep had vanished."

Nick scratched his head lightly. "Give your phone."
Joseph hesitated for a while and said, "Umm, I-I don't have my phone. When I woke up yesterday, I was going to call the police. But unfortunately, I didn't have the phone with me. I'm sure the attacker might've taken it so that no one tracks down his number."
Nick grew impatient for a while. The similar problem was with Simon. "Why did Judy go to the club?" The detective asked.
"She went with her work pals."
"Where does she work?"
"Gen-X." Joseph replied. Nick gasped with his eyes wide open. Judy and Sarah both worked at Gen-X. Things seemed to get more complicated for Nick.

"What time did you go to the police station yesterday?" Nick asked.
"Maybe around eight thirty." Joseph replied.
"Did you do anything after that?"
"Nothing at all. I couldn't do anything. I was supposed to meet Deputy James yesterday but he wasn't there. He didn't even care to talk later." Joseph grew angry thinking about James. Nick felt stuck again.

"I think I'm done for now Mr. McMillan." Nick got up. "But you've gotta do a favour for me."
"What is it young man?"
"I need you to stay inside the house. Please don't go anywhere till this case is closed." Nick said. Joseph nodded with a smile as Nick walked towards the wooden main door.
"Oh ya!" Nick exclaimed. "I forgot to mention. I think it's important for you to know this. A man named Simon Mathews filed a similar missing case of his wife just before you did yesterday."
"Simon Mathews." Joseph said. "Never heard of him." He shrugged.
"And to be surprised, your story and his story of what happened on Friday night is quite similar. The blackmailer has used the same technique for both of you." Nick raised his eye brow. Joseph just tilted his head away. His reaction seemed pretty simple.
"You're sure you didn't see anybody that night?" Nick asked.
"I'm sure. If I did, I would've definitely told you." As Joseph said this, Nick walked off.
"There was just a ten minute gap between Mr. McMillans' and Mr. Mathews' arrival at the Northland Lake. Both examined the white jeep and both were attacked. Both even left the bag of money near the same pine tree. If Simon kept the bag first, then Joseph must've seen the bag unless the blackmailer took it before he came. Simon would've also seen Joseph's car in the morning when he woke up, but he didn't. How did these two men not see each other? Seems so impossible." Nick thought as he entered his white sedan.

'A strange sight at the lake. Was it a vision or was it something real? Find out in the next part.
Vote and comment!