Part 9 (1/2)
Upon our return, a fugue-like state settles on hastly conundrue feords before Holes in habits I would rather not be privy to
I retire toto th of this ly impervious nature, or un-nature-I am at a loss to explain it, especially the latter At the time I wonder if I am in fact ue's too Certainly, there is a great deal I bring into question about ht Holmes is not only a chahtenment, of science and reason I am his able batman, I am not too proud to admit, as well as a subscriber to the saical creed and threatened to bring it burning down around us
Sleep, when it coiant patchwork rave
The next -induced torpor he has inflicted upon himself Perforce, I keep an appoint the autopsy on the poor, unfortunate wretch we discovered in Brick Lane
A walk in the fog-laden day does little to banish the de my nocturnal hours, but I feel a ly to behold in the naked light of the sun, as is its dirt and squalor-but they are at least entirely corporeal, rational things and I find the solidity of that reassures me
The visit to the attending physician is of little import, so I will not recount the details of it here Most saliently, I discover the victim's name is Bartholoans, the viscera and otherto theto Lestrade's investigations, Shelley is a chemist and owns property in the vicinity of where his headless body was discovered Several chemicals are noted in the autopsy, the evidence of which is found on his clothes, fingertips, even his hair I catalogue mercury, antimony and arsenical salts; charcoal, clay and ethanol, all of which are or could be used in the process of e
Despite all of this additional inforrotesque h his candidacy for the role of reatly enhanced My intention is to take all of this to Holer there and a note remains in his stead with instructions to e and do just that
Late into the afternoon, I arrive in Southwark and the so to Hol in front of a dishevelled building which looks as if it hasn't been occupied for some time A notice for public demolition is pinned to the door
I am about to knock when a shutteredon the second floor opens andfree behind him
”It's neither locked nor barred, Watson,” he says, and proain
With little other recourse, I wrench open the door and aht of worn and rickety stairs Through a second door, I ee into a room that has every appearance of a study It is a closeted space, festooned with nook and cranny, antechambers and shadoathed corridors There is one desk, fully laden, and a great lass cabinets
”Holst the raft of books, papers and academic materials He surfaces from behind a stack of volust other more esoteric subject matter
”Glad you could join me, Watson,” he says, a fat bell jar held aloft in one hand as he exaris, I say, ”Join you in what, Holust Wilhel to elucidate me
My frown evidently spurs a more detailed response as Hol liquid sloshi+ng within
”Formaldehyde,” he adds ”A solution used in the process of eing an indolent child ”A better question, Doctor, would be to who?”
Outside, the sun is dipping below the London horizon and with the cohtest resonance of the previous night's anxiety
Distracted, I answer, ”I have no idea”
”Look around, John,” he says, setting down the bell jar so he can enco of his ar further, I do as he requests
”Books, papers, beakers, jars, vials dust,” I add, ruefully ”No, no, no,” Holmes impatiently snaps ”Those are all objects in this room as any fool with eyes can perceive Tell ain, and at first notice nothing further, but then a pattern begins to forht the place to be untidy, forgotten and left to decay, but that wasn't true
”It has been ransacked,” I say, touring the small study
”More” Hol in e to one of the lass crunching underfoot
”Soo,” I say, pausing by a stack of scientific journals unobscured by the dust which is ubiquitous throughout the rest of this abode ”These are a much more recent addition” I see a treatise by von Hofmann; a paper written by Frederik Ruysch; another in Russian, which I cannot read but am able to discern its author as a Ilya Mechnikov
A quiet moment of contemplation settles in, so, belatedly, I recall my conversation with the physician and reach forthe autopsy and discovered that the victim's name was -”
”Bartholomew Shelley,” says Holmes ”A backstreet chemist and former associate of one JG Utterson” He produces a yellowed piece of paper from his breast pocket and brandishes it with aplomb ”A receipt for services rendered, I believe One that the unfortunate Mr Shelley had concealed about his person and which I liberated during my examination of the body”
”And you felt that was unworthy of Lestrade's attention?”
Holood inspector has enough to deal ithout adding this to his already challenged and overworked ht outside thehas all but disappeared and Holre illuree, ”But that is not all I learned There were chemicals found on the victi,” Hol me to fold my arms in exasperated consternation
”If you already knew all of this then as the point of ood Doctor, but no matter; we are here now, if a little behind speed”
I a for a different tack
”Who, then, is this JG Utterson? The owner of this hovel?”
”No He is, in fact, a laho uncovered the deeds to this 'hovel', including the identity of its previous owner, and then granted access to our now-headless Bartholomew Shelley”
I am still, at this point, nonplussed ”So as the previous owner and how is this relevant to ournow fallen, the shadows have deepened in the roo little to lift the gloom
”One Victor Frankenstein,” Holmes declares, and in thatdread up my spine as a solemn voice issues from the back of the roorave rasp, a deep and forbidding cadence best left to the darkest corners of the mind
Surprised, I turn to face the speaker and ae asin the alleyway next to the orks
The grotesque, the giantout e than in the hope it could actually protect us from this monster