Chapter 5

The mystery takes a sudden twist, and even Sherlock is left without an answer!

“Well Watson,” began Sherlock as he leaned back in his chair, “what did the detectives say?”  

“They said that this could definitely be the work of some notorious gang,” replied Watson, “but that it would be one that they have not heard of before now, which means that this could be some new, radical, and unpredictable gang that we are dealing with.  They also…”  

“Here are your breadsticks,” said the waiter, “enjoy!”  

“Thank you” said Sherlock and Watson.  

“You were saying?” asked Sherlock as he reached for a breadstick. 

“They also said that they were going to notify the Parliament to step up security of the building and even the individual members of Parliament to make sure that they are safe until this case is wrapped up.” said Watson, “They don’t want to take any chances with this.”  

“They have a good reason not to take a chance,” replied Sherlock, “if this is some new gang, we know nothing about it or how far they will go in trying to carry out their threats. What did they discover when they dusted for fingerprints?”  

“That’s just it,” replied Watson, “the found mine and yours, so that means that we are no closer to catching the man behind this murder, he must have been clever enough to wear gloves while he was taking whatever was under those steps.”  

“Well, that is true about the gloves,” said Sherlock, “only a fool would make such an obvious mistake as to leave fingerprints all over a place he has broken into or on something he has stolen.”  

“That is true, I just wish that we had some kind of a lead from that page.” replied Watson.  

“Of course we have a lead!” exclaimed Sherlock.  

“What is it then? Because I certainly can’t see it!” said Watson.  

Just then the waiter returned with their food.  “Here you are sirs, and here is some extra cheese in case either of you want any more.”  

“Thank you.” replied Sherlock and Watson.  “Now back to what I was saying,” said Sherlock, as he took a bite of his spaghetti, “the lead is quite obvious, if your fingerprints and mine are the only ones on that page, that means not only that the man who was there last night was wearing gloves, but that it is entirely a fake.” 

“How can that be!?” exclaimed Watson.  

“Simply,” replied Sherlock, “that page is supposed to be one from Mr. White’s journal, which means that his fingerprints should be all over that page, but since they are not, that means this page is a fake, or more precisely, a plant, meant to throw us off of the trail of whoever did this. Unless Mr. White wore gloves while writing in his private journal, which I highly doubt, especially since there were no gloves lying around his house, and he would have no reason to conceal his fingerprints from his own journals, so this is definitely a fake journal entry. Besides, it isn't his handwriting, judging from the notes and codes we found while we were examining his home.”  

“That is amazing,” said Watson, “I guess that trip was not a waste after all.”  

“Oh, it was worth the time for sure.” replied Sherlock.  

“So what did you come up with?” asked Watson around a mouthful of chicken Alfredo.  

“I was able to narrow down the possibilities of what that key goes to very considerably, with the help of a locksmith friend of mine, as well as a knowledge of the various locks around Mr. White’s home.” replied Sherlock.  “It either opens that shed near the front driveway, or it opens whatever little chest or safe was hidden under the front steps.”  

“That is great news!” exclaimed Watson, “How did you figure that out?”  

“It was simple enough,” said Sherlock, “I asked the locksmith what that type of key typically opens and he told me it is usually heavy locks commonly used on sheds and barns, or the ones used on safes and lock boxes.  We would do well to return to Mr. White’s and see if the shed is what this key will open, otherwise we will need to set a trap for this murderer.”  At this, Sherlock pushed his chair back and started to get up. 

“Wait,” said Watson, “aren’t you going to finish eating?”  “No time,” replied Sherlock, “and besides, eating too much will slow down my ability to think, and run, if necessary. I have eaten just enough so that I will not become weak from lack of nutrition and to keep my mind focused.”  “Very well then,” said Watson, “I suppose I have too, let’s get back to Mr. White’s residence then.”

            At this, they both got up, left money for their meal and their tip, and then hurried out the door.  They quickly hailed a cab and rode back to Mr. White's home.  On the way, they discussed more of the details from the case.  

“Sherlock, if that letter was a plant, who could have done it?  And why?” 

“Watson, at this point I am wondering that myself, I need more evidence before I start making any serious attempts at explaining the particulars of this case.  But I will say this, the key to understanding at least some of this mystery lies either inside that shed that belonged to Mr White, or to whatever box was stolen from under the stairs.  Let us hope it lies in the shed, because if it is in that box, it will surely complicate matters to a much higher degree.”  

“Yes, that would definitely prove aggravating,” replied Watson, “but I have confidence that you will be able to easily see through whatever mystery is going on here, especially once we see what's in that shed.  You have not let difficulty or uniqueness of a case stop you before.”  

“That is true,” replied Sherlock, “and as I have said before, the more unique and strange a case is, the better.  It gives me a reason to put all of my deductive skills to the test, to give me a real challenge.  Now, if you will excuse me for a moment, I am going to take a little time to reflect on all that we know so far about this case.”

Several minutes later, they arrived at Mr. White's residence once again.  Sherlock bounded up the steps and knocked on the door.  Ms. Cutter opened the door and looked surprised.  

“Oh, dear me, I was not expecting you to come back, you gave me an awful fright.  Have you found out who murdered Mr. White?”  

“We apologize for frightening you, but we needed to come back for some more details.” said Watson.  “May we come inside for a few minutes?”  

“Yes, yes, please come inside.”   Once they were back inside, Sherlock walked into the dining room and spread all of the papers out on the table.  He reached into his pocket and pulled out the two keys that they had discovered earlier.  “We already know that this key opened the clock,” he said as he pointed to one of them, “but this one we have yet to figure out what it opens, though I believe that it opens that shed out front.  However, before we get to that, I have come across something interesting while I was thinking over the details of this case that I am sure will interest you as well.”  

“Fantastic!” exclaimed Watson, “I knew you would hit upon something!”  

“Yes, and I have.  First off, we know that the journal entry was a fake, which means there is a lot more to this case than even I originally thought.  The fact that someone would go through the trouble to steal a locked box and leave a fake document says that this is the work of some devious person, one who may even give me a challenge in a game of wit and deduction.  And secondly, Mr. White must have either had something to do with this said devious person, either working with him or for him at some point in the past, but something caused that relationship to go sour and Mr. White becoming paranoid and creating codes to hide something, the question is what was he hiding and why?  And I believe that the answer, or at least a partial answer, can be found in that shed outside.”

Reviews

[Kimberly Miller]

This was really good! Except for a few grammer errors, it was great! Your flow from one chapter to another is very smooth and you keep the excitement through-out the story! Can't wait for more!

[Jeremy Hiles]

Thank you very much! Yeah, I am sure there are a few grammar errors, I will go back and try to find and fix them! Thank you for your review! Next chapter should be coming in the next couple of weeks hopefully! :)

[Kimberly Miller]

Your welcome! Yeah, well I am the worst for grammer errors, and I know you want to improve, I only meant to say that in a kind way, sorry if I came across unkindly. :)

[Jeremy Hiles]

:) Haha, oh no, I didn't think it was mean, I knew you meant it in a kind way! :)

[Kimberly Miller]

Oh ok, good. I didn't want to come across rash or harsh! :)

[Jeremy Hiles]

Haha, nope, you didn't! It's all good! :)

[Kimberly Miller]

Good! I would never want to come across like that. :)

[Jeremy Hiles]

Haha, I don't blame you! Me either! :)