Hitman 3 Death in the Family is a murder mystery set as one of Dartmoor’s pieces of mission story intel. Completing the murder mystery gives you the chance to also nab the case file, which is a secondary objective in the mission.
This Dartmoor manor houses more than one family secret, and as Agent 47, you have the unique opportunity to unearth all of them and solve the mystery: who killed Zachary Carlisle? With countless clues to find, an extended family to question, and eventually three suspects to choose from, here’s all you need to know about how to solve the Hitman 3 murder mystery.
How to Solve the Hitman 3 Murder Mystery
1. Assume the Role of the Private Investigator
The easiest way to get into this disguise is to get to the private investigator when he’s alone. With ample drain pipes and ledges to use on the exterior of the mansion, it’s easy to get to a balcony and draw him out with a distraction item when he’s nearby, such as a coin.
There are no wrong answers here, but you should be discreet so as to keep other NPCs on their routines. Make sure to follow the Mission Story as well, so you’ll always get waypoints whenever the game is using them.
2. Speak to Mr. Fernsby, The Butler
Fernsby will brief you on the death of Zachary Carlisle, which has been ruled a suicide, but you’re there to look for signs of foul play. Once he leaves you to yourself, nearly the entire mansion is available for inspecting. These next several sections can be played in any order, but here’s everything you’ll want to do at a glance, then we’ll dive in with more details:
- Inspect Zachary’s Room
- Inspect Fernsby’s Office
- Inspect Rebecca’s Room
- Inspect Emma and Gregory’s Room
- Inspect the Greenhouse
- Interview all family members plus Rosie the maid
Inspecting each room will uncover clues, while interviewing the family and Rosie will confirm or refute alibis of the many suspects. Let’s start in the room where it happened.
Zachary’s Room Clues
- Inspect the dead body with the camera
- Inspect the bedside liquor with the camera
- Inspect Zachary’s laptop
- Read Zachary’s suicide note
- Find the hidden bookshelf door using Instinct mode and open the secret passage
- Inside the secret room, inspect the Mansion floor plan
Using these six clues, speak to Fernsby once more. Together, you’ll establish a time of death and generate a suspect list. It includes the entire family plus Mr. Fernsby himself, who readily admits he has no good alibi as he was alone in his office during Zachary’s death.
If you hurry from there to the Sitting Room, you may catch Alexa Carlisle addressing the entire family (from left: Patrick, Rebecca, Edward, Emma, and Gregory) which makes rounding up interviews a bit easier, as otherwise most of the family moves around a bit.
It’s not mandatory you speak to them then, but if you choose to, save Gregory for last as he always sits in that room anyway. He won’t be hard to find.
Each interview runs three questions long and as the suspects talk to Agent 47, their information will either corroborate or refute what else you’ve heard or other clues you’ve found. You may also wait to speak to them until you’ve found all the clues in and around the mansion. If that’s more your style, here’s what other areas you’ll need to check out first.
Rebecca’s Room Clues
- Using the camera, take a picture of the notebooks by the fireplace
- Inspect Rebecca’s laptop
Emma and Gregory’s Room Clues
- Pick up the Greenhouse key next to the standing mirror
- Using the camera, inspect the dirty shoes by the window
- Beside the bed, read the letter from Emma’s mother
- Pick up the walking cane
Note that the cane shows a red icon as though it will be treated as an illegal weapon, but nonetheless, you are free to carry this openly in front of all mansion staff and residents. The icon seems to be a bug, so don’t fret.
Take the cane and look in the house for a Mysterious Switch in the floor by the middle-left staircase on the Level 1 map. Inside this room, you’ll find another letter that you can use to frame Zachary’s death as an actual suicide should you choose to. For now, keep looking for more clues though.
Mr. Fernsby’s Office Clues
On the ground floor in the southeast corner of the map, break into Mr. Fernsby’s office using a crowbar or lockpick and look for three clues:
- Inspect the lethal poison pills on the windowsill
- Inspect Zachary’s half-burnt diary in the fireplace
- Inspect Mr. Fernsby’s list on his desk
With these clues, you’ll be able to pin the murder on Fernsby if you so choose, but there’s still one more suspect who is more deserving if you wish to solve it properly. If you haven’t yet interviewed everyone by now, do so, and don’t forget Rosie the maid who is crying in the upstairs staff room.
The hardest to find among all interviewees is Emma, who is often outside in the Greenhouse. Head out back and you should have the Greenhouse key from her room, otherwise, you’ll need to pick this lock to enter.
Greenhouse Clues
When you interview Emma she seems rattled and dodgy. After she leaves, you can find one singular, vital clue: Emma’s poison dosage notes. Assuming this is the last step you take, your notes should now confirm every alibi except for three people: Emma, Fernsby, and Zachary himself by way of suicide.
Conclusion
Return to speak to Fernsby and tell him you’re ready to conclude your investigation.
He will give you a meeting with Alexa Carlisle during which time you can accuse one of those three suspects as the one responsible for Zachary’s death. If you wish to solve the murder properly, it is Emma who killed Zachary so accuse her.
Alexa will monologue about Emma’s motive and eventually thank you for the work, at which point you can either ask for a particular Case File as a reward or tell her you’ll bill her later. If you ask for the Case File, it completes your secondary objective for the mission, so you may want to choose that.
In either case, the environment remains non-hostile and you’re free to continue the level, but the mystery of Dartmoor Mansion will have been solved. Congratulations, gumshoe!
That’s all you need to know about solving the Hitman 3 murder mystery at Dartmoor mansion. You’ll also likely get the case file to complete the mission, though there are other ways to get the case file. Stay tuned for more Hitman 3 guides over the coming days.
