One Hundred and seventy six

CHAPTER 176

Hendrick suddenly interrupted. " By the way...we'd better go inside. The snow outside is getting heavier, it looks like a bigger snowfall is coming."

Everyone agreed with Hendrick's words. Hendrick led the way inside. He opened the door of Jason's pawn shop, which was now covered in police tape. The four of them entered, filling the main door of Jason's pawn shop. There was only a banner that read Mr. Abraham's pawn shop. Abraham, a very Arabic name. A long table greeted the policemen, on which was a wooden sign that read 'closed' and when turned upside down, 'open'. That must have been the table used by Jason to serve his guests.

"According to people in the neighborhood, the pawn shop would open at nine in the morning and close at seven at night. There is a break from twelve to one in the afternoon." Peter explained everything, based on the notes he had written in his journal.

Everyone looked at Peter, before finally scanning the surroundings with mixed feelings.

"Jason's house is on the second floor, there are two rooms, and a small staircase in the corner of the floor that leads to a room. There's a rope... that the killer probably used to tie Jason's body." Hendrick pointed towards the staircase, it was the staircase that led to the second floor. He had explored before, so he could explain such details to Nicholas. "We found blood, but it doesn't seem to be human blood."

Nicholas immediately turned his head. "What do you mean?"

"It's animal blood," Hendrick said. He looked at Peter, then lifted his chin as if giving a code for the junior cop to explain again. "There are several types of animal blood, we haven't been able to determine if Jason's blood was there."

"But Jason was strangled to death," Noel said, frowning in astonishment as Hendrick's statement contradicted that of the forensic doctor at the hospital. "Weren't there no injuries other than strangulation wounds? Out of breath?"

That statement was made to Nicholas. Nicholas was silent, staring at the floors in the pawn shop attached to Jason's house. He mumbled, then agreed with Noel's words. "Noel was right. Jason was found dead of asphyxiation, he was suffocated."

"There was indeed a rope upstairs, it was in the shape of a suitable knot if it was to be used for suicide." Hendrick nodded his head. "But what did the killer do with the animal's blood?"

"Are you sure that it was animal blood, not human blood?"

Hendrick and Peter exchanged glances. After a few minutes' pause, Hendrick opened his mouth to explain, "Human blood is always warm but not like the blood of all animals except mammals and birds. We've sent the blood samples to the forensic lab, we'll know the results soon."

Nicholas sighed and put both hands in his pants pockets. "As long as the sample results have not been released, we will continue to assume that there is a suspected murder that resulted in bleeding."

"Is it possible... there are other victims?"

The joke came from Peter. He was so innocent and naive. Everyone was now looking at him with a look that Peter didn't understand. But Peter knew that those stares meant no good.

"Did I... misspeak?"

Noel let out a long breath, then pointed at Peter who was standing quite close to him. "You should be careful what you say. It could be disastrous. If there are other victims, then I won't be able to celebrate Christmas with my family. You don't want me to get angry at you for that, do you?"

Peter, who didn't mean it, shook his head. He closed his mouth tight, then looked at everyone awkwardly. Peter felt guilty and very embarrassed. He wished he could take his words back.

Afterward, Nicholas said, "There is nothing strange about the pawn shop here. Everything looks normal."

"The pawn shop is one of the public spaces, there will be many fingerprints here," Hendrick added. He had asked around and received a lot of good information. "I heard that Jason often does extra deals with some of his clients. People know that it's the VVIP guests. It seems like Jason has investors behind his business."

All of Hendrick's statements got the people in the room thinking. It seemed like everyone knew Jason. He was very popular and had a very flashy demeanor.

"How about we check the second floor?" That was Nicholas' suggestion. "I want to see the rope knot and where he was killed."

Again, Hendrick led the way. He took the stairs first, then he gave way after reaching the second floor. The atmosphere on the second floor was a bit more classic compared to the style of the ground-floor pawn shop. Classic ornaments greeted all of their senses. Including the placement of the sofa, and the television, and how classic paintings hung on the wall to fill the light brown painted walls.

"This is... a cozy house," said Nicholas, "the cozier your house, the easier it is for assassins to find you."

"You made those quotes?" asked Noel with one eyebrow rising to the top.

Nicholas lifted his face, he crossed his arms over his chest and said, "Yes, I just thought of those words when I saw this house." Nicholas turned around, looking at Noel who was now chuckling in amusement at his silly behavior, and Nicholas continued, "This is a comfortable house. Why should Jason's wife look for another man?"

"Because Jason cannot be a comfortable home for his own wife." Noel looked at the items in Jason's house, then nodded his head and continued, "He only beautifies his home, not his household."

"You even create better quotes than me, Noel," Nicholas protested. "You have the talent to be a poet, or a writer."

They all smiled at Nicholas and Noel's antics, before they finally got busy with their investigation on the second floor. Nicholas checked the surroundings, according to Peter's notes. He was just double-checking and confirming it, as all the notes from Peter were quite complete.