❄️ Beaumont Manor Facade // Class 4 Blizzard Isolation
COLD CASE REOPENED 2026 // CRIME: FRIDAY, 24 DEC 2004
🏛️ Beaumont Manor: The Forensic Protagonist
An English Gothic estate isolated in a Class 4 blizzard (-14°C). The crime scene, the architectural blueprint, and the official cold case epilogue.
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OFFICIAL DOSSIER
The Cold Case File: Beaumont Manor (2004)
Original inquiry: North Yorkshire Police (2004) // Reopened by Scotland Yard Cold Case Review Unit (2026) // Case Ref: #2004-XMAS
For twenty-two years, the Christmas Eve murder of Genevieve Beaumont (68) has been an unsolved file. Her heirs have kept Beaumont Manor sealed under court order, untouched since the night the police left. In 2026, at the request of North Yorkshire Police, the sealed evidence boxes were opened and every exhibit was re-examined with modern forensics. The file is now yours.
On Friday, December 24, 2004, at 9:30 PM, a Class 4 blizzard cut Blackwood Valley off from the world: no road, no mobile signal, and the manor's private telephone line down. At precisely 10:05 PM, the original Victorian dynamo failed and the whole estate fell into pitch darkness. When the lamps were lit again, the matriarch and antique collector was found dead in her private study beside the great stone hearth. Six people had shared her Christmas Eve dinner. One of them is a killer.
Genevieve never modernised Beaumont Manor: a steam boiler, a Victorian dynamo, a private magneto telephone. Every machine in the house kept a record of that night. Your task is to read them.
✝️ DECEASED // PRIMARY VICTIM DOSSIER
SCOTLAND YARD #2004-XMAS
✝ DECEASED
Genevieve Beaumont (Age 68)
Manor Matriarch & Antique Collector • £45,000 Estate Fortune
🏰 The Manor Estate Explorer
Beaumont Manor has been sealed since Christmas Eve 2004, exactly as the police left it. Explore the floor plan, select room pins, and inspect the rooms and exhibits re-photographed by the Cold Case Review Unit.
GATHERING HALL
🔍 4.5× Zoom
Grand Hall
🔥 Roaring Hearth & Gale Winds OutsideThe cavernous central hall with an imposing limestone hearth, family portraits, and sweeping staircase. Here, at 9:30 PM, Genevieve Beaumont announced her contentious new will to all gathered guests before retiring upstairs.
Forensic Items Uncovered in this Room:
📌 Suspect Deductive Cross-Off Board
Examine the dossiers of all six individuals present at Beaumont Manor on Friday, December 24, 2004 (Christmas Eve). Scrutinize their declared alibis against physical clues, stamp their statuses, or confront them directly.
UNEXAMINED
Dr. Alistair Ashford
Family Physician (Age 52)
⏱ Declared Alibi:
Departed Beaumont Manor before 9:45 PM to cross Blackwood Mountain Pass before blizzard drifts blocked the road.
⚠️ Investigated Motive:
Genevieve held an overdue £1,200 promissory note against him, settled two weeks prior.
Forensic Suspicion Index
50%
UNEXAMINED
Thomas Shaw
Heating & Boiler Technician (Age 41)
⏱ Declared Alibi:
Manually purging the central steam boiler from 10:00 PM to 10:28 PM to prevent radiator explosion.
⚠️ Investigated Motive:
Had repeatedly argued with Genevieve over unpaid bills for heating system installation.
Forensic Suspicion Index
50%
UNEXAMINED
Arthur Finch
Head Butler (Age 63)
⏱ Declared Alibi:
Descended to cellar fuse cabinet at 10:05 PM blackout to pull master breakers and fetch lanterns.
⚠️ Investigated Motive:
Threatened with dismissal without pension over alleged antique silver cataloging errors.
Forensic Suspicion Index
50%
UNEXAMINED
Beatrice Sterling
Resident Botanist (Age 34)
⏱ Declared Alibi:
Trapped in detached glass conservatory from 9:40 PM onward securing panels against hail.
⚠️ Investigated Motive:
Genevieve canceled funding for her Himalayan expedition, reallocating funds to antiques.
Forensic Suspicion Index
50%
UNEXAMINED
Eleanor Holloway
Heiress Niece (Age 29)
⏱ Declared Alibi:
Claimed reading in guest library; broke into drawing room safe to steal £5,000 for gambling debts.
⚠️ Investigated Motive:
Facing bankruptcy over £4,800 Monte Carlo gambling debts due on January 1, 2005.
Forensic Suspicion Index
50%
UNEXAMINED
Evelyn Mercer
Personal Secretary & Companion (Age 27)
⏱ Declared Alibi:
Claimed retired to her bedchamber at 9:50 PM with a migraine headache and remained asleep.
⚠️ Investigated Motive:
Discovered Genevieve had drafted a new will revoking Evelyn's £45,000 legacy and dismissing her on Dec 29.
Forensic Suspicion Index
75%
⏱ Forensic Timeline Reconstruction
Scrub through the night of Friday, December 24, 2004 (Christmas Eve), or step back to the 8:00 PM dinner with Previous Event. Pay close attention to the 10:05 PM blackout and to the exact minute of the blow, which the autopsy dossier in the Prologue gives you.
HOW TO USE THE FORENSIC TIMELINE (DEDUCTION KEY)
Genevieve Beaumont was murdered shortly after a total power blackout struck at 10:05 PM. The pathologist can only bracket the death between 10:00 PM and 10:25 PM; the autopsy dossier in the Prologue gives the exact minute of the blow. Use the scrubber slider or Play Reel ⏯ to follow the night. The tracker below shows where each person claims to have been, or was seen, at that moment. Prove or disprove each account with the exhibits, then stamp the Suspects board.
22:05 PM (10:05 PM)
⚡ Manor Electrical Dynamo Shorted — Total Blackout
⚡ 10:05 PM BLACKOUT
🕵️ WHEREABOUTS — AS CLAIMED OR WITNESSED
CORRELATION SCAN
🔬 Forensic Evidence Vault
Examine the thirteen exhibits from the sealed 2004 evidence boxes, re-examined by the Scotland Yard Cold Case Review Unit. Inspect high-resolution macro details and connect proof to the indictment.
⚖️ Scotland Yard Indictment Hall
Submit your formal case dossier to the Crown Prosecution Service. Select the primary culprit, specify the exact murder mechanism, cite between three and six items of evidence, and uncover the final verdict.
OFFICIAL DOSSIER
1
Name the Primary Accused Culprit
Dr. Ashford
Physician
Thomas Shaw
Technician
Arthur Finch
Butler
Beatrice
Botanist
Eleanor
Niece
Evelyn
Secretary
2
Establish the Method & Murder Weapon
3
Connect Irrefutable Vault Evidence (cite 3 to 6)
4
Closing Argument to the Crown Prosecutor (optional)
SY
CASE SOLVED — INDICTMENT UPHELD BY THE CROWN PROSECUTION SERVICE
Deduction Accuracy: 100%
•
Evidence Rating: 5 / 5 Stars
•
Review Unit Rank: Senior Inspector
The verdict and the full reconstruction of the night appear here once you file your indictment.