Sherlock Holmes.

Chapter 126 Uncanny Valley (4)
Holmes said: "I have my own principles in life. I usually do things according to the routine. I have no other purpose to solve the case for you. I just want to contribute a little of my meager strength. I don't like to show off. As long as the authorities don't find My troubles will be fine. Of course, I will not cause any trouble for them, I ask you to rest assured! However, I still have to make my own demands. In the process of handling the case, I demand my personal freedom. At a certain time, I will express my opinion."

White Mason said: "We sincerely welcome you to join us. We will answer your request, Dr. Watson, come with us! We all hope that you will mention us in your book!"

We walked along the country streets, and we saw a mottled scenery with ancient rhymes.Looking up, there are two large stone pillars in front of you, which have been eroded by wind and rain and become rough.On the top of the pillar are two stone lions, which don't seem to have the same style as before.

Walking along the winding driveway for a short distance, in a short while, a garden-like landscape came to me.Turning another small turn, a villa with the atmosphere of the Jacobean era appeared in front of our eyes.The villa, evidently dulled by countless weathers, had an old garden in front of it, lined with neatly trimmed yew trees.When we walked to the manor, we saw a wooden suspension bridge and a beautiful and wide moat. The water in the river was like mercury in the cold winter sun, smooth as a mirror and gleaming.

The manor has a history of about hundreds of years, and I don't know how many times it has experienced ups and downs.I suddenly felt a gloomy atmosphere hanging over this place. With such a lonely house, we can feel the desolation here.It seemed to me that the murder had something to do with the dark windows and the pale green water.

White Mason pointed to the window and said, "Look, that window is still open, exactly the same as last night."

"Oh, that window? Is that narrow enough for a person?"

"If the man is thinner, then there is no need to think about it. Mr. Holmes, as long as the man is not too fat, he can squeeze through if he turns slightly sideways from time to time."

Holmes, as usual, said nothing, but stood by the moat and looked across the river.Later, he observed the protruding stone bank on the opposite side, and also looked at the edge of the stone bank.

White Mason said: "Mr. Holmes, there's no need to spend any more time there. I have checked in detail, and there are indeed no traces here. Do you think that the murderer has thought of a way to leave no traces?"

"It's possible, but has the water in the moat always been this muddy?"

"It is rarely clear, almost every day, because the water comes from upstream, and the upstream soil is relatively loose."

"Is the river deep?"

"No, not too deep. The deepest point in the center of the river is about three feet more, and it is shallower on both sides, only a little more than two feet."

"Haha, since this is the case, it is impossible for the murderer to drown in this river."

"Yes, even if he is a child, it is impossible for him to drown in this river."

We walked over the suspension bridge, and the butler took us into the house. This man was as thin as a piece of dry grass. He may have been frightened, his whole body was shaking, and his face was frighteningly pale.

Police Officer Wilson is very principled, and he does everything from the beginning to the end. He stands alone at the scene of the crime.

White Mason asked as soon as he entered the door:

"Officer Wilson, is there any breakthrough in the case?"

"Sorry, not at all."

"You have tried your best, you must be tired! Go back and rest first! We will inform you when there is anything. Butler Ames, you call Mrs. Douglas, Cecil Barker and the housekeeper, we There is a situation to ask them. Guys, I will share my thoughts, and then I will listen to everyone's opinions." White Mason said.

White Mason is a shrewd and capable police officer. He does things in a down-to-earth manner and always has his own way.He understood all the circumstances related to the case in detail, and then used his ingenuity to reason and analyze.He spoke eloquently, and everyone admired him very much, and Holmes also listened as if fascinated.

"First of all, let's be sure, how did Douglas die? It may be a little strange to say that he committed suicide. Did he hide the wedding ring first, then put on his pajamas, and then went to the window and made some mud in the corner What is the intention? The blood on the windowsill is..." White Mason said.

"He didn't die by suicide at all," MacDonald said.

"Let's not consider suicide for the time being. Then he died of homicide. So who is the person who killed him?"

"We are happy to hear your opinion."

"Anyway, I'll make an assumption first, that it's the people in the manor. Late at night, when the people were getting ready to go to sleep, the gunshots startled them, and when they came running quickly, they never saw the gun. .This kind of speculation is really unsatisfactory, are you right?"

"Yes, that cannot be the case."

"However, everyone in the manor said that they rushed over within a few tens of seconds after hearing the gunshots. If Mr. Buck arrived here first, then the others would arrive here almost at the same time. In such a short time, the murderer could He took off his ring, got blood on the window sill, and left mud marks outside the corner of the wall. It’s impossible to do so many things in tens of seconds!”

"Your reasoning is more rigorous," said Mr. Holmes.

"Since this hypothesis has been denied, we should consider another possibility. Then, the murderer is someone outside the manor. However, it is quite laborious to determine this possibility. First of all, it is concluded that the murderer was in 04 : He entered the manor between 30 and [-] o'clock, and it was not difficult for him to enter the manor at this time. Because there were guests at that time, and the door was open, the murderer may have come to rob or take revenge. From this From the perspective of the special musket, the latter is more likely. The murderer could not enter the room at this time anyway, and he had to choose the curtain as a cover. He hid here until after eleven o'clock, when Douglas was about to Before going to bed, the murderer met him and knocked him down immediately. Mrs. Douglas said that they heard gunshots within a few minutes of separation, which shows that the victim and the murderer had a few words, which was also very short A few words, and then it happened."

"That's right," said Holmes. "At least this candle speaks for itself."

"If Douglas was attacked as soon as he came in, then the candle would never stand on the table properly. This means that Douglas was attacked after putting the candle in place, and the candle was only a little lit. When Buck came, First he lit the lamp, and then he blew out the candle."

"Yes, indeed it is."

"We can't help but venture to speculate that when Douglas entered the house and put the candles on the table, the murderer sprang out from behind the curtain and forced and ordered him to take off the wedding ring and give it to him. But we do not now Maybe he knew why he wanted the ring. Later, the murderer knocked him down. We don't rule out that after some struggle between them, this hammer may be Douglas's self-defense tool. After the incident, the murderer dropped it in a hurry A card and a pistol, escaped through the window. Mr. Holmes, do you think there is any truth to this reasoning?"

"It sounds interesting, but there is still no reason."

MacDonald impatiently offered his own observations:

"I don't agree with your statement, because it doesn't conform to common sense. I can say with certainty that unless the murderer uses other means to kill Douglas, he can't leave the scene smoothly. Once the gunshot rang, tens of seconds The whole manor has arrived, how can he escape safely? Mr. Holmes, tell me your personal opinion!"

Holmes had been listening to their argument, and seemed to be passing a judgment on the ultimate victor.

"Mr. MacDonald, I have nothing to say now," said Holmes.

He approached the corpse and observed for a while and said, "It's too cruel, let Ames come in."

Emers walked in tremblingly.

"You said you often see the mark on the master's arm?"

"Yes, sir."

"Haven't you always known the meaning of this pattern?"

"Yes, I really don't know."

"Okay, as far as I can see, this pattern is branded on, and you have to endure a certain degree of physical pain. In addition, Mr. Douglas often puts a small ointment on his chin. Have you ever noticed?"

"Yes, it was put on when he shaved and scratched his face."

"Has he scratched before?"

"I'm sure it hasn't been scratched in a long time."

Holding the other arm with one hand, Holmes stroked his chin with the other hand and said, "This is strange, isn't this an ominous omen? He just shaved his face at this moment. Did he know that he was about to face a disaster?" ? Ames, have you noticed any abnormal behavior in him these days?"

"If you don't tell me, I forgot. The master has been in a bad mood these past few days and doesn't think about food or tea."

"Very well, maybe Douglas has anticipated all this. This situation is useful to us, don't you think, McDonald?"

"Your point of view is always so original."

"Don't praise me like that, let me take a look at this card! 'VV341', has your manor ever had such a card before?"

"No."

Holmes went to the writing-table, and with a test paper, he traced on each inkwell.

Holmes added: "It is now certain that the words on the card were not written here, because the color of the words does not match the color of the ink here. Where are the words written on the card, Ames, you can see." ?"

"Sorry, there's nothing I can do."

"McDonald, what about you?"

"I think it should have something to do with the brand on his right arm, probably the name of an organization."

"It's possible," White Mason said.

"Let's infer from this and see what can be pushed out. First, a member of the organization should enter the manor and lay an ambush for a short period of time. When the time is right, we will lay hands on it and use this musket to almost hit the manor. Lost his head, and then ran across the river. He left a card with the dead for one purpose. Once it is published in the newspaper, other members of that organization will know that the murder has been successful. .Then why is he using this particular pistol?"

"Very well, continue."

"And what about the wedding ring on the dead man's hand?"

"There are great mysteries here that we need to unearth."

"If I'm not wrong, the police are now conducting a large-scale search near the manor, but they have found nothing, because they have focused their attention on the outsiders covered in water."

"You're right, it's true."

"It is generally not easy for a murderer to escape from the eyes of the police, unless he has prepared a dry suit in advance, or finds a place to hide first. Now it seems that the murderer is very difficult to be caught."

Holmes took out his magnifying glass to examine the bloodstain on the windowsill carefully and said:

"This is a relatively wide footprint, a figure-splayed foot! The footprint on the corner of the wall is very vague, but the style of the sole is not bad."

After a pause, he asked again:
"What's under the table?"

"It's the master's dumbbell." Ames replied.

"There should be a pair of dumbbells! Why is there only one now?"

"Sir, I'm sorry, I haven't paid attention to this dumbbell for a long time, and I don't know why."

Holmes said to himself:
"Why not a couple?"

At this time, suddenly a tall and strong man came in, and he was Buck.

As soon as he came in, he looked at everyone and said:

"I'm sorry, everyone, to bother you, but I do have something important to tell you."

"what?"

"A hundred yards outside the hall door we found a bicycle."

We all went to see this wrecked car, which was lying on the road, like it had been ridden for a long time, and it was full of mud.We found the car to be a Ludge Whitworth, and in the back tool pocket there was nothing more than an oil can and a wrench.

"The discovery of this fact is very important to us, because this car has been registered, and we may be able to find out where the murderer came from. Then why did he leave the car here again? He can now move with only two legs. To where? It is incomprehensible, Mr. Holmes," said MacDonald.

Holmes said softly: "I don't think so." Misunderstanding

We entered the room again, and White Mason asked:

"Have you checked the study thoroughly?"

Macdonald said, "Looked up."

"Okay, now let's let the people in the manor talk about it! Let's talk about it here, Ames, let's talk first!"

Emers looked honest and explained everything clearly.

When Douglas moved into the manor five years ago, Ames became his servant.Douglas is very rich, and he made his fortune in America, which Ames knows better.What makes Ames feel uncomfortable is that the master treats him very well, treating him like his own relatives.Furthermore, the owner is very courageous, he has never been afraid of anything, the reason for lifting the suspension bridge every day is not for safety, but to maintain a traditional habit of the manor.

Douglas rarely traveled far, let alone a city like London.However, the housekeeper said that the day before the incident, the owner went to Tombridge Wools to do some shopping.The owner was not in a good mood that day, as if he was thinking about something uneasy all the time, and lost his temper easily.In short, he was very abnormal that day.On the night of the incident, when the butler was about to lie down to rest, he heard a bell, and he got up and rushed to the master's bedroom, because the house where they came was far away from the master's house, and they had to pass through several corridors.He said that he did not hear the gunshot, and that Mrs. Allen had also arrived, and they ran downstairs together, and saw Mrs. Douglas also coming down the stairs, walking slowly, and did not see anything unusual.Before she got downstairs, Mr. Barker ran out, stopped her, and advised her to go back.

At that time, Mr. Barker yelled loudly: "Our Jack (the owner's pet name) has been attacked, but no one can undo it. I beg you. Go back to me now, please."

Mrs. Douglas' expression did not change at all, as if all this had nothing to do with her, and accompanied by Mrs. Allen, she returned to her room.

Later, Ames went into the study with Buck and witnessed everything, when the candles were extinguished and the oil lamps were lit, it was a dark night.After a while, they came to the hall, Ames lowered the drawbridge, and Buck went to report the crime.

Everything on this is what the housekeeper Ames said.

Next, we asked Mrs. Allen.What she said was basically the same as what Ames said. She was relatively close to the front hall. When she was about to sleep, she heard a rapid bell ringing. She didn't hear the gunshot either. She said that her ears had some problems.She heard what sounded like a foot stomping heavily on the floor, but she said it was about half an hour before the bell rang.She came to the front hall with Ames, and Mr. Buck ran out from the study with a pale face. He insisted that Mrs. Douglas go back to the room, and Mrs. Allen accompanied her back.

Mrs. Allen went into the bedroom with her and kept reassuring her.Mrs. Douglas had no intention of going down, but her whole body was shaking, and she seemed a little panicked.Mrs. Douglas returned to the room, and sat down near the fire, with her head on her hands.Mrs. Allen spent the whole evening with her.

As for the other servants in the manor, they went to bed early, and they didn't know what happened that night.Maybe it's because they're so far away.

Mrs. Allen gave us these facts with great distress.

We questioned Buck again, and he told what he had seen, and there was nothing newer for us.He put forward his own opinion, saying that the murderer must have made the blood on the window sill, and he also agreed that the murderer escaped through the window.He said that was the only way to go without the drawbridge being lowered.

But he also couldn't explain why the killer didn't ride his bicycle.

Mr Barker said Douglas was not very talkative and never talked about his past experiences.He emigrated from Ireland to America in the youth and vigor of his youth, where he had become rich.They met in California, and they used to run a mine that was doing well.But the good times didn't last long. When his career was booming, Douglas made up his mind to leave there. At that time, he was still alone.Buck also sold his property and came with him, but Mr. Buck always had a feeling that Douglas was about to face a disaster.Perhaps Douglas also felt all this, so he gave up his career and came to this quieter place.Mr. Buck also guessed that there was probably a secret gang, which had been watching Douglas until he was dead.But it was just a feeling he had, and Douglas never mentioned it to him.He said the card was probably left by the secret gang.

"How long have you been in California with Douglas?" Macdonald asked.

"About five years," said Mr Barker.

"Mr. Barker, you say he was a bachelor then?"

"Yes, he was alone then."

"Then do you know something about his ex-wife?"

"I'm sorry he didn't tell me about her. I've seen pictures of her. She was a beautiful woman of German descent who died of typhoid a year before Douglas and I met."

"Is Douglas regularly associated with somewhere in America?"

"He has been to many places in the United States. He said he particularly liked Chicago, and he said he was familiar with that place. In addition, he and I often talked about some coal mines or iron mines."

"Does he often discuss politics and other issues with you? Do you think that mysterious organization has anything to do with politics?"

"No, he never talks about it."

"Do you think he is more mysterious, or that he has engaged in some criminal activities?"

"I can assure you, absolutely not. I know him best."

(End of this chapter)