Chapter 493 - Sit Down and Rest (1/2)

Chapter 493 Sit Down and Rest

Holmes booked a carriage, and the three hurried over to the chemical plant.

“Conspirator?”

Gregson was surprised.

“Didn’t you say that this was a crime of pa.s.sion? The suspect obviously did not plan. The reason why he killed Molly was that she resisted fiercely. It frustrated the killer. And as you said earlier, there were only two people left in the textile factory.”

“This is the last key that complements my reasoning, and it is also the most important key,” Sherlock deduced with surety in his voice.

“I found the answer later in the chemical plant. Paul lived in a shared house, and his roommate also worked in the chemical factory. These guys leave work half an hour later than the textile factory. Paul had left the chemical factory first, intending to look for Molly as usual. However, Molly wasn’t at the place where they often met. Paul felt that something was not right. So, he went to the textile factory and saw that it was closed. In the end, he returned to the chemical factory.”

“Huh?”

“His roommate, Pearson, was still there at that time, so Paul fetched Pearson to go find Molly with him,” Holmes went on.

“Something interesting is coming next. Paul and Pearson split up to look for Molly. Now, Paul didn’t manage to find her, but his roommate, Pearson, accidentally ran into John, who happened to be dragging Molly’s body to the river to be disposed of. Naturally, when most people come across a situation like this, they would either call the police or if they are good fighters, they would have tried to try to apprehend John first. Unfortunately, Mr. Pearson chose another path.”

“Which path?”

Gregson couldn’t help asking.

“Much like Paul, Pearson came to London when he was very young. This was his fourth job. Previously, he polished shoes on the streets, washed dishes at a restaurant, and helped to look after horses. At night, he would sleep in the stable. Such lads must have experienced the hards.h.i.+ps of life at a very young age. Knowing there was no one he could rely on, he had to seize every opportunity before him. On that fateful night, when he saw John by the river, he realized the opportunity he had been waiting for all this while had finally arrived.

“Pearson persuaded John, now in an extreme state of panic and anxiety. He told him he could help with this matter, and although John naturally didn’t trust strangers, but the situation at that time wasn’t in his favor. There were not many options for him to choose from, and as a last resort, he could only choose to believe Pearson.

“After that, Pearson proved that he had lived up to this trust,” said Holmes, as he turned to Gregson again.

“Remember how you told me that you found Molly’s clothes under his bed? I thought it was weird at that time. Since he dumped the body into the river, why did he have to take her clothes off and put them under his bed?”

Gregson was embarra.s.sed. “This… is a problem… Why didn’t I notice it before?!”

“But if Pearson were the one who did it, then everything would make perfect sense. At first, he persuaded John to take the clothes off Molly. He then brought them home and put them under Paul’s bed so the police would question Paul but not Mr. John. As for the carpet in his office, John handed that task to Pearson too. This guy seized every last opportunity in front of him. In a way, his plan was a huge success. I thought we had to wait a long time to slip up, but to my surprise, he ends up making such a low-level mistake.

“He didn’t even think of burning the carpet in the first place. Instead, he p.a.w.ned it.”