# The Body on the Library Floor The grandfather clock struck midnight as Detective Sarah Chen arrived at Blackwood Manor with grim determination and professional skepticism etched. Lord Pemberton lay motionless on the Persian rug, a sterling silver letter opener protruding from between his shoulder blades quite deliberately. Sarah's partner, Detective James Morrison, stood near the grand fireplace, notebook in hand, interviewing the visibly shaken household staff with careful attention. The study door had been locked from inside when the butler discovered the body just forty-five minutes earlier this cold evening. Sarah knelt beside the corpse and examined the victim's pale, waxy face, noting the expression of shock frozen there permanently. Three people had possessed keys to this study: Lord Pemberton himself, his wife Catherine, and his estranged son Michael living nearby. The letter opener matched a set displayed on Pemberton's mahogany desk, suggesting the murder weapon came from his own personal collection. Sarah stood and surveyed the room methodically, searching for clues that might reveal which family member had committed this terrible crime.