Sherlock Holmes.

Chapter 125 Uncanny Valley (3)
It was said that the reason he was willing to help others was because he had made a fortune from mining gold.Anyway, he is relatively rich.Mrs. John Douglas, though not well known, made a better impression.She is only about 20 years old, with a slender figure and her smooth skin, she is a beautiful woman.She doesn't have much contact with the outside world, because she likes to be quiet by nature.

She is very caring and considerate of her husband, and all the affairs of the family are handled very well. The husband and wife love and care for each other.

According to legend, Mrs. Douglas was an Englishman, and they fell in love at first sight in London, when Douglas was a widower.

Some who said they knew them well said their relationship was not without flaws.His wife doesn't know much about his past.In the Birlstone countryside, idle people used to get together to talk about other people's affairs.They say, for example, that Mrs. Douglas is nervous, and that if her husband is a little late some day, she will be restless.These words are just what people say when they are free, but now that something has happened, these gossips are likely to arouse suspicion from others.

There was also Cecil James Barker, of Hails Rocky, Hampsteadshire.He has a good relationship with them and often comes to chat with them. When the case happened, he was at the scene and seemed to have an inescapable responsibility.

Cecil Barker was also considered a rich man, he was a bachelor, most people here did not know him, and he only associated with the master of the manor.He is also an Englishman. They met in America. Since they met, their relationship has been good, so the Englishman is the only one who knows Douglas' past.

Cecil Barker was very thick, about forty-five years old, with extremely thick eyebrows, deep-set eyes, and a menacing gaze that made people shudder.He didn't like to go out on horseback very much, and most of the time he drove around Birlstone with a cigarette in his mouth, sometimes driving out with Douglas, sometimes the lady accompanied him.

"He is an easy-going and generous gentleman," said the butler, Ames, "but I dare not argue with him! Buck and Douglas are really on good terms. Buck and his wife are also very good, sometimes so good that it is unbearable." No, otherwise Douglas wouldn't bother about it, and sometimes he loses his temper about it, well, that's all for that."

Next, let’s talk about other related characters. The other two are Ames and Mrs. Allen.Ames is the manager of his house. He is more capable but not very flexible. Mrs. Allen is a cheerful person who talks and laughs. She also helps Mrs. Douglas manage the housework.

In addition, there are several small servants, but they have nothing to do with the case.

There is also a small police station here, and Wilson is the director here. After the incident, Buck came to report the incident. It was about 40:[-], and he rang the alarm bell, saying that something happened to the manor and Douglas was murdered.The police arrived with him at the manor a few minutes later.

At this time, the manor was brightly lit.The drawbridge has long since been lowered, and the whole manor is in a state of chaos and disorder.

The servants were all standing there stupidly, only the butler was walking around.Cecil Barker, a man of the world, appeared as usual, and ushered in the officer, followed by a doctor named Wood.

The three of them walked into the room where the crime happened one after another, and the housekeeper followed suit, closing the door behind him, probably because he was afraid that the maid would see the horrible scene inside the room.

The scene inside the house was unbearable to witness. The deceased was lying on all fours in the middle of the room, wearing pajamas and a pair of slippers on his bare feet. His face could not be seen clearly, so it can be seen that the muzzle of the gun was close to his head when he was killed.

The doctor shone the light on the dead man, and it was clear without examination that there was no hope at all.

The whole upper body of the deceased was spattered with blood, and across his breast lay a curious weapon--a musket, the barrel of which had been sawn off a foot from the trigger.The two triggers are tied together in order to be fired simultaneously for great power.

The village police officer was evidently unprepared for such a case, so he could do nothing but say:

"Protect the site, do not destroy it at all, and wait for the superior officer to check."

Cecil Barker said: "Okay, the scene is intact, it will not be damaged in any way."

The police officer asked, "Do you know the exact time of the incident?"

"At [-]:[-], I was sitting by the fireplace, and suddenly there was a gunshot. The gunshot sounded very dull. I ran down quickly, and I probably ran down in a few tens of seconds. I saw this look."

The officer spread out his notebook and asked, "Is the door open or closed?"

"I'm sure the door was open. I saw the candle was still on. It took me a few minutes before I lit the lamp."

"Did you notice anyone in the house?"

"No, there was no one. Then the lady came down, and I went up to her and blocked her so that she wouldn't be frightened. Mrs. Allen took the lady away, and the housekeeper arrived, and we went into the bedroom again."

"Hasn't the drawbridge always been suspended at night?"

"It is true, Mr. Inspector."

"This is strange. Could it be that he committed suicide? If not, how did the murderer escape?"

"We were also wondering at the time, but later we found out that the window was opened." Buck pointed to the window.

They came to the window together, "Look here again, there are footprints."

Indeed, on the wooden window-sill there was a treaded footprint, the mark of a boot.

"Then he escaped from here by wading across the river?"

"I suppose so."

"After you heard the gunshots, you ran down tens of seconds, so he must not have completely crossed the moat if he wanted to escape!"

"I think so, only I didn't see it at the time, and didn't think about it in that way, if only I had looked down. I was at a loss for Mrs. Douglas at the time."

The doctor looked at the scene again, sighed and said: "Except for the situation when I saw the train collide at East Station last time, there is nothing worse than this."

"Now assuming that the murderer escaped by wading, how did he get in?" The police officer asked again. Although his thinking was not particularly quick, he was still thinking about the murderer's coming and going route.

"For that, I don't know," Barker said.

"What time was the suspension bridge lifted?"

"It was hoisted before six o'clock." Ames answered first.

The policeman asked again: "As far as I know, the suspension bridge is usually lifted when the sun goes down, and the sun should be around 04:30 now. Why is it lifted at six o'clock?"

Ames replied: "It's usually like this, because there are guests today, and I will lift the suspension bridge after the guests leave."

The police officer conducted a methodical analysis: "It seems that the murderer came in as soon as the suspension bridge was lowered, and did not commit the crime until 11:30."

"The murderer must have been waiting for a long time. Because Douglas has a habit of inspecting the manor before going to bed. After the inspection, he will rest in peace. When he was about to rest, the murderer suddenly appeared in front of him. That's it. The case happened."

Suddenly the police officer found a card next to the dead man.He quickly picked it up, only to see two capital letters VV written on it, and a number like "341" underneath.

The officer held the card and asked Buck:

"You see what this is?"

Buck stared at the card intently.

"This may have been dropped by the murderer."

"What does this VV341 mean?"

After a pause he added: "VV may be the initials of a person's name, doctor, have you found anything useful?"

On the rug by the fireplace, there is a beautiful hammer.

Buck pointed to a brass-headed nail box on the mantelpiece and said:
"I saw Douglas hanging a painting yesterday, and he put it up with this hammer."

The police officer's mind went blank, and he paused for a while and then said:
"Don't move the hammer, let the London detectives handle the case! They have more experience than us." The police officer looked at the window sill and said in a high voice: "Come and see!"

When people came to look at it, they saw a very clear boot print on the corner of the wall, with some dirt attached.

"When did you draw the curtains?"

Ames said eagerly: "Just after lighting the lights, I drew the curtains."

The police officer added: "The time when the murderer entered the room must have been between four o'clock and six o'clock. After the murderer came in, he had nowhere to hide, so he kept hiding behind the curtain. It can be seen that the murderer's motive was not To kill, but to rob. But happened to meet Douglas, and in desperation he had to shoot him dead, and then ran away."

Buck anxiously offered a plan and said: "If this is the case, then he must not have escaped too far, and there is still time to search and arrest him."

The policeman thought for a while and said:
"If that's the case, he'll be dragging his feet across the moat. That might attract attention. He wouldn't dare to escape by train, and there's no train at six o'clock in the morning. But I can't get away, I can't get out of here. , you are not allowed to leave here."

At this time, Wood began to work as a forensic doctor.

Wood said thoughtfully: "Look at this mark, it may help this case."

On Douglas' right arm is a striking triangle with a circle outside the triangle.Since Douglas has a fair complexion, this mark is particularly obvious.

Wood adjusted his glasses and said:

"I've never seen such a scar. It looks like it was burned with something. Have you ever seen the brand on a cow or horse? The two are very similar. Why are there such brands? It's really hard to understand."

Buck said: "Oh, I've seen this mark before, but I didn't think about how it was left."

Emers also talked about it.

"I often see this mark when the owner rolls up his sleeves, but I don't know where it came from."

"This is yet another unsolved mystery, and even if it has little connection to the case, it should be brought to our attention," the officer said.

Ames exclaimed again: "Hey, come and see, the master's wedding ring is gone."

"Ah! How could this be?"

"It must have been snatched by the murderer. You see, the natural nugget ring on his ring finger is still there, but the wedding ring under it is gone, and the snake-shaped ring on the middle finger is also there. Why did the murderer rob him?" What about the wedding ring?" Ames thought to himself.

Buck said the same thing: "It's strange."

The officer asked, "You mean, the wedding ring is under the ring finger of the left hand, and this nugget ring is on top of it?"

"Yes, that's right."

"Then the murderer, or whoever he is, will first take off that nugget ring you speak of, then the wedding ring, and then put the nugget ring on."

"According to the current situation, the process should be like this."

The police officer thought for a long time but did not come up with a clue, so he said: "I think the case is not that simple. As for the murderer's purpose, there are many situations. It is best to let the London police detectives decide! Now , let’s wait for them to arrive! There is also my friend here, his name is White Mason. He is extremely efficient, brave and resourceful. I am just a mediocre person. How can I judge such a complicated case?” Dilemma

Mr. White Mason was a moderately tall, rosy-cheeked, strong-looking man who would not be associated with a fine police officer.He was wearing a pair of high leather shoes, and if he had a shotgun on his back, he would be a hunter!
White Mason, a Sussachs detective, drove up in a carriage as soon as he received his report, and at about five-forty in the morning he took it by train to Scotland Yard, and he came to meet us. It was almost twelve noon when we met.

After greeting, White Mason muttered: "This case is very complicated."

He also said: "You stay at the Westwell Arms Hotel first. It is more convenient here, and the conditions are also good. The most important thing now is that we must finish the case before the press arrives. These newspaper guys are very special. They are not easy to deal with, and their presence will add to our troubles. I have never dealt with such a complicated case before, but, Mr. Holmes, it is to your liking. Dr. Watson, hurry up and go with us! I will Ask the servants to bring you your luggage."

The detective's kindness and directness made an excellent impression on me.After walking for a few minutes, we arrived at the hotel.We moved our luggage into the room and began to discuss the case.

Holmes listened intently to the explanation of the recorder MacDonald.

After hearing his story, Holmes breathed a sigh of relief and said, "Yes, it is indeed quite strange. I have never encountered a more strange case than this before."

Mr. White Mason heard Holmes express such emotions, and said excitedly: "You also think this case is strange! When Wilson mentioned this case, I acted immediately, but when I got here, I felt that there was nothing I could do. You have been told everything Sergeant Wilson reported to me."

Holmes asked again:

"Then what do you think about it?"

"I've checked the hammer carefully, but I can't draw any conclusions. If Douglas wanted to use the hammer to protect himself, it would definitely leave marks when the hammer fell on the ground. But now there is no trace of it." White said Mason.

Officer McDonald reminded: "Let's not think hard because the hammer left no trace. The two triggers of the musket in the case were tied together, which increased its power. This shows how much hatred there is. From this point Look, he came prepared. This musket is not long, less than two feet, so it is easy to hide. The only thing found on the musket is the three letters 'PEN', which are located between the two guns. on the groove of the barrel. It is obvious that other letters must have been sawed off as a result of the barrel being sawn off."

Holmes went on: "Let me make a bold guess. The letters E and N are not too big, but the letter P is written in a larger, cursive style, isn't it?"

"How do you know such details?"

Holmes smiled at us and said:
"You know a small arms manufacturing company in the United States, which mainly produces arms."

White Mason looked at Mr. Holmes with admiration.

"Do you have a photographic memory, otherwise how would you remember such an ordinary military factory? I am so impressed."

Holmes made no reaction to White Mason's compliment, and continued:

"Can we do something with the gun?"

White Mason said: "In my opinion, the murderer was an American, because this kind of weapon is often used in a place in America, it should be an American musket."

MacDonald put forward a different opinion: "That may not be true. So far, we still cannot determine whether foreigners have entered the manor, and you are now saying that the murderer is an American. It is a bit early!"

"Now, there are many signs that we can't prove, for example, the business card, the blood on the window sill, the boot marks in the corner and the window."

"We should focus on the Americans in the manor, and we should not consider people so far away. You should be clear that Buck and Douglas are both Americans. From all these signs, this is a deliberate murder. Perhaps Someone set it up."

"Is that Ames?"

"Then what's impossible? Do you think he can be completely trusted?"

"Is he worthy of our suspicion? He has lived with his owner for more than ten years, and his performance has always been very good. He said he has never seen such a gun."

"He said he hasn't seen it, but it doesn't mean it doesn't exist. Everyone has also seen that the barrel of the gun has been cut off, so that it can be hidden casually."

"In any case, he said he had never seen such a musket."

Macdonald shook his head and said, "Until now, we haven't been able to get a consensus on whether outsiders entered the house, and further investigation is still needed."

He paused and continued: "This is a bit too bizarre! What kind of accident is it that an outsider who fell from the sky armed with a weapon broke into the manor and killed Mr. Douglas? It is simply strange. Let us listen to Holmes' opinion! Perhaps only he can make a reasonable judgment."

Holmes frowned, and then said calmly to Macdonald: "Mr. Macdonald, I like to judge such cases very much, but I still want to hear your arguments."

"Okay! This is obviously a murder case that has been prepared for a long time. The disappearance of the ring shows that the purpose of the murderer's coming here is to steal. Let's look at the geographical environment here. The house is surrounded by water. Since it is a premeditated The murderer should have known these circumstances. Then he must find a way to escape for himself! If he chooses to ford across the river, then he must work hard on the musket, that is to say, use the musket The sound of firing should be as low as possible, so that few people can hear or recognize that it is a gunshot, so that the murderer can have a chance to escape. But it is not the case. This is really strange, Holmes, What do you say?"

"Mr. MacDonald, what you said is very reasonable. We really need to think about many issues. Then we need to check whether there are traces on the outer bank of the moat. Mr. White Mason, have you checked these?"

Mr. White Mason said: "The bank of the river is made of stone, so it is not easy to leave marks. I also checked, and I found nothing suspicious."

"Is there no sign at all?"

"Yes, indeed not."

"Mr. White Mason, can we go into the manor? Maybe there is something worth thinking about."

"Mr. Holmes, of course you can go to the manor, but I think it's better for me to tell you the situation before entering." White Mason said nervously.

Inspector Macdonald interjected: "You can trust Mr. Holmes as a man. We have worked together on several cases. He has real detective talent."

(End of this chapter)