7. I- will tell you what i heard him say over the phone

Mr Richard Langley led Manchester to the security room and asked the butler to wait outside while the detective did his job. Manchester could see a glint of anxiety in the butler's eyes and he took a mental note of that. As a detective, all kinds of reactions were important to him.

With the doors closed Manchester was faced with two large monitors hanging on the walls, a desk with a keyboard and mouse, along with two chairs. He sat down and Mr. Langley did the same, watching the young detective skillfully scroll through the visual images on the screen.

//Transferring security footage via wireless network//

//Transfer complete //

// You may select footage Vid_123 //

Manchester scrolled down the screen and as soon as he spotted the videos, he clicked on it. It was a two hours long footage so he put it on fast-forward until he spotted someone in it.

This footage was from a surveillance camera in the garden, and it was ten minutes to the hour of theft, it captured someone lurking behind the bushes in the garden, wearing a black hoodie.

Richards's eyes widened in shock, this footage wasn't there when they checked earlier, so where had it come from and who could it be?

"Do you know who this person might be sir?" Manchester asked. He couldn't quite match the figure on the screen with the servant he had met, but Mr. Richard Langley should know better.

Unfortunately, the elderly man shook his head from side to side,

"I don't know who this is. Do you think it might be the thief?" He said, overemphasising his British accent for a second...

"I can't say," Manchester replied

"I need images from another angle."

// System Notifications! //

//Analyzing Footage from the third surveillance camera//

// Retrieving footage... complete !//

// Transferring security footage via wireless network//

//Transfer complete !//

//You may select footage Vid_126//

"Just a second let me attempt to retrieve other footage," Manchester muttered, acting like some technical wizard at work.

"Got it!" He exclaimed and opened the footage, only to be left speechless by what he saw.

"Emma?" Mr. Richard Langley's jaws dropped in astonishment,

"Emma stole the necklace? What for?"

"I cannot be so sure, sir," Manchester interjected, the footage has only told them who was lurking in the bushes but not who stole the necklace.

"I'd like to bring Emma in here please."

Mr. Richard Langley sprang to his feet like a servant and headed for the door, he instructed the butler to call Emma to the security room. The butler nodded and did as he was told to, and in no time Emma was standing next to Manchester, her eyes glued to the screen with her eyes wide open.

"I'd like to ask you a few questions," Manchester began,

"Starting with why you were lurking in the bushes?"

"I...I can explain." As she tried to speak, Mr. Langley cut her off with a loud voice.

"Oh, you better start explaining!"He thundered, his voice echoing off the walls,

"Explain why you stole it ...

"Mr. Langley please," Manchester chimed in,

"Allow me to handle this."

"Miss Emma, can you explain this footage because I know you were at the garden, and you claimed to have seen Atkinson there right? So what is this about?" He folded his arm after pausing the video and locked eyes with the lady.

"Yes I was in the garden," Emma began,

"And this was me lurking in the bushes in a hoodie, but I put on the hoodie because I was cold...

"In the middle of summer? You liar!" My Langley thundered, but Manchester tried to calm him down once again,

"Go on, Miss Emma."

"I swear on my name, Detective that all I was doing was eavesdropping on someone's conversation, and uhm... it was Atkinson. I was listening to Atkinson's conversation with someone in the garden."

"And did you know who it was and what they were saying?" Manchester asked, but Emma shook her head from side to side.

"I could barely hear anything because he was whispering on the phone but that is just it. I didn't hear anything that would be useful to you sir."

"Oh please, these cock and bull stories will not save you or Atki...Atkinson!" Mr. Langley started again, this time he stood up and called for the butler, asking him to bring Atkinson to the room immediately.

"Emma, the problem here is that you are the only maid with access to the computer room, and all the footage from yesterday till this morning has mysteriously vanished. You keep pointing to Atkinsons but all the evidence points to you. So even if you didn't steal the necklace yourself then you had a hand in it."

//+ 300 Exp //

//Two potential suspects: Emma (Chief maid at the manor). Atkinson (Cheif guard at the manor)//

"I can promise you, sir. I have nothing to do with it."

Just then, Atkinson entered the room, he knew by the look on their faces that a bombshell had been dropped, but what was it?

"You sent for me?" He said.

"Yes, Mr. Atkinsons. I have a question and I don't want to start beating around the Bush. Just answer me yes or no."

Atkinson nodded his head in agreement so Manchester proceeded.

"Did you make a call at the garden around the time the necklace went missing?"

"Yes."

"With whom?"

The room was thrown into silence as Atkinson just stared at Manchester without saying a word.

"With who!" Mr. Langley thundered,

"Didn't you hear the question? Answer him!"

"With a friend," Atkinson answered briskly,

"It has nothing to do with the stolen necklace I swear, it was just a random conversation. "

"A conversation that was so interesting, that Emma had to hide in the bushes to listen?" At Manchester's words, Atkinson and Emma cast nervous glances at each other.

"I don't believe the both of you," Manchester stood up briskly, his voice dripped with disdain.

"And I have enough evidence to arrest the both of you as potential suspects, we will settle the rest at the station."

"Please sir, " Emma fell to her knees in front of Mr Richard Langley,

"I promise that I have nothing to do with the theft, please. Okay if you want to know what I overheard him saying on the phone I will tell you, but please do not arrest me I beg you."

"What did you hear?" Manchester asked, his voice was firm and he showed no sign of empathy towards the pleading maid,

"Tell me everything you heard."