Sherlock Holmes Faces Death Page #2

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at Houston Station

at this hour is the

New Castle Express

from North Cumberland.

There goes the night,

thou cometh from

North Cumberland.

Obvious, isn't it?

Quite.

Now tell me, how dark deep

was Hurlstone

Towers last night?

Well that's what I came

to see you about, Holmes.

About ten o'clock

last night

I was sitting in the li...

how did you know that

I came from Hurlstone?

You wrote me that

you volunteered

for medical service

within the realm.

With your experience

what post could have

been offered you

other than to

put you in charge

of a home of

convalescent officers?

Only one such home

has been opened

in North Cumberland

in the last month

and that's Musgrave

Manor at Hurlstone.

Simple reasoning,

a child could do it.

Not your child, Watson.

What?

I never had a child.

I very nearly did though.

Did I ever tell you about

that widow Twikem,

a very narrow escape?

I just found out in time

that she had the most

horrible little squirt

about three and a half.

Yes, Watson.

I think we better

stick to Hurlstone.

Oh, sorry, What?

Oh Hurlstone.

It's a grim old

palace, very spooky.

Don't tell me that

you met a ghost.

Well not so

spooky as that.

Ghosts don't stab people

in the neck do they?

Or do they?

Not well-bred

ghosts, Watson.

Who was stabbed

in the neck?

My young assistant,

Dr. Sexton.

When?

Last night.

Any idea who did it?

I have no idea.

You reported it?

Well, no, no I didn't.

Why not?

Well you see is it...

My dear fellow, what

you're trying to say is

the officers in your care

are all fine fellows,

wonderful war

records and so on.

Is that it?

Precisely.

So you thought perhaps

a private investigation.

Exactly.

Rather right and

proper thinking Watson.

We're just in time

to catch the nine thirty

train for Hurlstone.

But my dear fellow,

there's no immediate hurry.

Isn't there?

Your patients are all

victims of combat fatigue.

Any one of them

might go over the

edge at any moment

and from what

you've told me

there's a killer

loose at Hurlstone.

Great Scott, you

may be right.

Come on, Watson.

We haven't a

moment to lose

only hope we

shan't be too late.

You were right, Watson,

about Musgrave Manor.

Houses like people have

definite personalities

and this place is

positively ghoulish.

It certainly is.

Hello.

What's that?

Just the old greenhouse.

No, no, that

pile of leaves.

It's only a

pile of leaves.

Why?

Doesn't it strike

you as odd, Watson,

that a pile of leaves

should be raked up

in front of a

greenhouse door?

No gardener in the

world would do that.

Geoffrey Musgrave.

That's all very

interesting,

Inspector Lestrade,

but what, may I

ask, does it prove?

What I'm trying

to prove is this

that Dr. Sexton

went down...

Twice now, inspector.

You were stunned.

Naturally.

You were out longer

than you thought.

That's the point.

What point?

Just this.

The man who attacked him

had time to get

back in the house

before Dr. Sexton

near came to.

Yes.

Yes.

And this here glove...

oh, and this here glove

what I picked up at

the scene of the crime,

belongs to a certain party

right here in this house.

I say.

Well that glove

belongs to my brother.

Huh?

Do you suggest that he

intended to murder Dr. Sexton?

Who knows?

The man whose hand

fits this here glove

will bear a talking to.

Very well.

My brother's down

at the stables.

I'll take you

to him myself.

Thank you.

It's the quickest way

to put a stop to this

blithering nonsense.

Come on.

Oh, Mr. Phillip,

better not go out in the

night air without a coat.

Take mine.

Thanks.

Well I won't need this.

No, oh, nor this.

Well, shall we go?

Why if it ain't

Mr. Holmes?

Good evening, Lestrade.

Come to give us

a hand, have you?

Always happy to

help, inspector.

Thanks but I don't think

I shall be needing any.

Why if it isn't

Dr. Watson.

Gentlemen, this

is my friend,

Mr. Sherlock Holmes.

Mr. Phillip Musgrave

and Dr. Sexton.

How do you do?

How do you do.

I'll just put him up to

spend a few days with us.

That's very good of

you but as you see

Scotland Yard's

already taken charge.

Oh really?

That's most unfortunate.

If you don't

mind, Dr. Watson,

I'd like to have a little

talk with your brother, sir.

I'm afraid you can't have

that pleasure, inspector.

Oh no?

I've got bad news

here, Mr. Musgrave.

We've just found your

brother in the lime walk.

He's dead.

You can't mean it.

No.

Look here, Holmes,

if this is one of

your little jokes.

Murder's no

joke, inspector.

That's right, Mr. Holmes.

Nobody's saying it ain't.

Murder?

Well let's get going.

I'll take charge now.

But it's quite

within my rights

as a local justice

of the peace.

I'll come with you.

Wait a minute you fool.

Don't go barging

in like that.

Don't maul me.

Surgical instruments.

You know Watson, the

instruments that save life

are hardly more

pleasant to look at

than those that take it.

Hmm.

Grisly thought, Holmes.

You rang, Dr. Watson?

Yes, Brunton.

I want you to

take some men

and go down to

the lime walk.

Me, sir, well I can't sir.

I'm sorry but

I simply can't.

My stomach, you know.

I really couldn't

look at a corpse.

Corpse?

Well I...

How did you know that

there was a corpse?

Obviously he was

listening at the door.

I'll take care of

the matter, doctor.

I was listening too.

Come along, Brunton.

Remarkable woman.

Housekeeper, I suppose.

She's very efficient.

Same type as

Marianne Carpenter,

the trunk murderess.

Extraordinary house.

Yes, it's is indeed.

Now Watson, if

you don't mind

I'd like to have a word

with your

extraordinary patients.

Let me remind

you, Holmes,

that my patients

are just patients.

Quite so.

All normal men,

sound in mind and body

and no sign of

psychoneurosis.

I quite understand.

And Holmes even

normal people

are sometimes a little...

Precisely.

Hello Mack.

Oh, I must have

taken a wee nap.

Mack I want you to meet a

very old friend of mine,

Mr. Sherlock Holmes.

Captain Mackintosh.

How do you do?

I have heard of

you, Mr. Holmes.

Sorry to have wakened you.

Oh, that's

quite all right.

See you later.

Yes.

Sit down Mack and go

on with your sleep.

Poor chap.

He got wounded in a

trench on Josher Hill.

The German Tanks

went over him.

Watson?

Huh?

Have you any idea

how Jeffery Musgrave

met his death?

He has a depressed

skull fracture,

wait a minute

Holmes, it isn't.

Isn't it?

Why not?

No edema, no bleeding,

no contractinous tissue.

Precisely.

The blow on the head was

delivered after death.

Musgrave was killed

by a sharp instrument

thrusted between the

base of the skull

and the top vertebrate.

Great Scott.

Should we go up now?

Hello Langford.

Hello there.

Been away, haven't

you, haven't you?

Yes, I just been

out of London.

I brought my friend back.

This is Mr.

Sherlock Holmes.

Major Langford.

We'll see you at dinner.

I hope so.

I hope so.

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