A Study In Scarlet Part 4 (2/2)

CHAPTER VII

LIGHT IN THE DARKNESS

THE intelligence hich Lestrade greeted us was so momentous and so unexpected, that ere all three fairly du out of his chair and upset the remainder of his whiskey and water I stared in silence at Sherlock Holmes, whose lips were coerson too!” he h before,” gru a chair ”I seem to have dropped into a sort of council of war”

”Are you -- are you sure of this piece of intelligence?” stason

”I have just come from his room,” said Lestrade ”I was the first to discover what had occurred”

”We have been hearing Gregson's view of theus knohat you have seen and done?”

”I have no objection,” Lestrade answered, seating hierson was concerned in the death of Drebber This fresh development has shown me that I was completely mistaken Full of the one idea, I set myself to find out what had becoether at Euston Station about half-past eight on the evening of the third At two in theDrebber had been found in the Brixton Road The question which confronted erson had been employed between 830 and the time of the criraphed to Liverpool, giving a description of thethem to keep a watch upon the A upon all the hotels and lodging-houses in the vicinity of Euston You see, I argued that if Drebber and his companion had become separated, the natural course for the latter would be to put up so about the station again next -place beforehand,” remarked Holmes

”So it proved I spent the whole of yesterday evening in an very early, and at eight o'clock I reached Halliday's Private Hotel, in Little George Street Onthere, they at once answered entle for a gentleman for two days'

”`Where is he now?' I asked

”`He is upstairs in bed He wished to be called at nine'

”`I will go up and see him at once,' I said

”It seeht shake his nerves and lead hiuarded The Boots volunteered to show me the room: it was on the second floor, and there was a s up to it The Boots pointed out the door tothat made me feel sickish, in spite of my twenty years' experience From under the door there curled a little red ribbon of blood, which hadthe skirting at the other side I gave a cry, which brought the Boots back He nearly fainted when he saw it The door was locked on the inside, but we put our shoulders to it, and knocked it in Theof the room was open, and beside the , all huddled up, lay the body of a htdress He was quite dead, and had been for soid and cold When we turned hientleerson The cause of death was a deep stab in the left side, which est part of the affair What do you suppose was above theof the flesh, and a presenti horror, even before Sherlock Holmes answered

”The word RACHE, written in letters of blood,” he said

”That was it,” said Lestrade, in an awe-struck voice; and ere all silent for a while

There was so so methodical and so incomprehensible about the deeds of this unknown assassin, that it ihastliness to his crih on the field of battle tingled as I thought of it

”Theon his way to the dairy, happened to walk down the lane which leads from the mews at the back of the hotel He noticed that a ladder, which usually lay there, was raised against one of the s of the second floor, which ide open After passing, he looked back and saw a man descend the ladder He cained him to be some carpenter or joiner at work in the hotel He took no particular notice of hi in his own mind that it was early for him to be at work He has an impression that the , brownish coat He must have stayed in the room some little time after the murder, for we found blood-stained water in the basin, where he had washed his hands, and marks on the sheets where he had deliberately wiped his knife”

I glanced at Hol the description of the murderer, which tallied so exactly with his own There was, however, no trace of exultation or satisfaction upon his face

”Did you find nothing in the room which could furnish a clue to the erson had Drebber's purse in his pocket, but it see There was eighty odd pounds in it, but nothing had been taken Whatever the motives of these extraordinary crimes, robbery is certainly not one of them There were no papers or ra the words, `J H is in Europe' There was no na else?” Hol of any importance Theupon the bed, and his pipe was on a chair beside hilass of water on the table, and on the -sill a s a couple of pills”

Sherlock Holht

”The last link,” he cried, exultantly ”My case is complete”

The two detectives stared at him in amazement

”I have now in my hands,” my companion said, confidently, ”all the threads which have forle There are, of course, details to be filled in, but I am as certain of all the erson at the station, up to the discovery of the body of the latter, as if I had seen thee Could you lay your hand upon those pills?”

”I have the a sra to have them put in a place of safety at the Police Station It was thethese pills, for I am bound to say that I do not attach any importance to them”

”Give the to me, ”are those ordinary pills?”

They certainly were not They were of a pearly grey colour, sht ”Froine that they are soluble in water,” I remarked

”Precisely so,” answered Hol that poor little devil of a terrier which has been bad so long, and which the landlady wanted you to put out of its pain yesterday”

I went downstairs and carried the dog upstair ineye showed that it was not far from its end Indeed, its snohite muzzle proclaimed that it had already exceeded the usual term of canine existence I placed it upon a cushi+on on the rug

”I will now cut one of these pills in two,” said Hol his penknife he suited the action to the word ”One half we return into the box for future purposes The other half I will place in this wine glass, in which is a teaspoonful of water You perceive that our friend, the Doctor, is right, and that it readily dissolves”

”This ,” said Lestrade, in the injured tone of one who suspects that he is being laughed at, ”I cannot see, however, what it has to do with the death of Mr Joseph Stangerson”

”Patience, my friend, patience! You will find in ti to do with it I shall now add a littleit to the dog we find that he laps it up readily enough”

As he spoke he turned the contents of the wine glass into a saucer and placed it in front of the terrier, who speedily licked it dry Sherlock Holmes' earnest demeanour had so far convinced us that we all sat in silence, watching the ani effect None such appeared, however The dog continued to lie stretched upon tho {16} cushi+on, breathing in a laboured way, but apparently neither the better nor the worse for its draught

Holmes had taken out his watch, and as minute followed rin and disappointnawed his lip, druers upon the table, and showed every other syreat was his emotion, that I felt sincerely sorry for him, while the two detectives smiled derisively, by no means displeased at this check which he had met

”It can't be a coincidence,” he cried, at last springing fro wildly up and down the room; ”it is impossible that it should be a mere coincidence The very pills which I suspected in the case of Drebber are actually found after the death of Stangerson And yet they are inert What can itcannot have been false It is i is none the worse Ah, I have it! I have it!” With a perfect shriek of delight he rushed to the box, cut the other pill in two, dissolved it, added milk, and presented it to the terrier The unfortunate creature's tongue seeave a convulsive shi+ver in every liid and lifeless as if it had been struck by lightning

Sherlock Hol breath, and wiped the perspiration froht to know by this ti train of deductions, it invariably proves to be capable of bearing some other interpretation Of the two pills in that box one was of the ht to have known that before ever I saw the box at all”

This last state, that I could hardly believe that he was in his sober senses There was the dead dog, however, to prove that his conjecture had been correct It seeradually clearing away, and I began to have a die to you,” continued Holrasp the ile real clue which was presented to you I had the good fortune to seize upon that, and everything which has occurred since then has served to confirical sequence of it Hence things which have perplexed you and hten then eness with mystery The most commonplace crime is often the most mysterious because it presents no new or special features from which deductions may be drawn This murder would have been infinitely more difficult to unravel had the body of the victi in the roadithout any of those outre {17} and sensational accoe details, far fro the caseit less so”

Mr Gregson, who had listened to this address with considerable ier ”Look here, Mr Sherlock Hole that you are a s We want soh It is a case of taking theCharpentier could not have been engaged in this second affair Lestrade went after histoo You have thrown out hints here, and hints there, and seem to know more than we do, but the tiht to ask you straight how much you do know of the business Can you nason is right, sir,” remarked Lestrade ”We have both tried, and we have both failed You have remarked more than once since I have been in the room that you had all the evidence which you require Surely you will not withhold it any longer”

”Any delay in arresting the assassin,” I observed, ”ive him time to perpetrate some fresh atrocity”

Thus pressed by us all, Holns of irresolution He continued to walk up and down the room with his head sunk on his chest and his brows dran, as was his habit when lost in thought

”There will be nous ”You can put that consideration out of the question You have asked me if I know the na of his na, however, co our hands upon hiood hopes ofwhich needs delicate handling, for we have a shrewd and desperate man to deal with, who is supported, as I have had occasion to prove, by another who is as clever as hi as this man has no idea that anyone can have a clue there is sohtest suspicion, he would change his na the fourto hurt either of your feelings, I am bound to say that I consider these men to be more than a match for the official force, and that is why I have not asked your assistance If I fail I shall, of course, incur all the blame due to this omission; but that I am prepared for At present I am ready to promise that the instant that I can co son and Lestrade seemed to be far fro allusion to the detective police The former had flushed up to the roots of his flaxen hair, while the other's beady eyes glistened with curiosity and resentment Neither of them had time to speak, however, before there was a tap at the door, and the spokesnificant and unsavoury person

”Please, sir,” he said, touching his forelock, ”I have the cab downstairs”