Detective Bennet [Comprehensive novel]

A tent was barely roomy, but it was poorly furnished.

Entering, there is a stove in the middle of the tent, and there is a folding table on the side.

There are four gas lamps on the ground, and there is a wooden shelf in the corner that collapses when pushed.A few copper basins and copper pots are placed on the wooden frame, and a few drawstrings are tied to the other corner, so that clothes can be hung up.

There is also a cloth curtain on each side, which simply creates two bedrooms.

The so called studio bedroom was very small.

There is no extra furniture, the straw mat is laid, and a few quilts are placed on it.

There is only a small space beside the straw bed for a single person to stand, where they can change their clothes and wipe their bodies while standing.

"The charcoal will be distributed every morning, and you need to fetch the water yourself. The well is located near the direction of the town, so you can find out when you ask."

Andre felt sorry for the poor conditions in the circus camp, but at least there were handymen who came to dump garbage and other things every day.

The two just put the waste water and so on in the tent, and someone will come to deal with it regularly the next day.

If the two want to improve their lives, drink some wine, take a comfortable bath, and have two hours every morning to go to a nearby town to solve it by themselves.

"Don't walk around after the show at night."

Andre raised this point and explained without changing his face, "After all, we are camping by the edge of the woods. No one can say whether there will be wild animals or not. You should also see the warning tapes pulled up around the perimeter. There will be night patrols at night." People, it’s not good to walk around and let them misunderstand them as bandits.”

This reason sounds logical, but it is different from the rumors of the undead in the circus that were spied on.

Kelsey and Sherlock didn't take the liberty to ask Andre any questions, and hibernated as soon as they arrived at the camp today.

Some are inconvenient to ask, but some can be asked for granted.

"Leader, we had a doubt before we came, where is the original cast of the flying knife?"

Sherlock said carelessly, "Did they have a conflict with the circus and were kicked out? Or did they have an accident when they were practicing with a knife?"

Andre's expression was gloomy for a moment, but it quickly turned into depression.

"It wasn't just an accident. Anna, who was the target, had her left ear cut off. You know best that when throwing daggers blindly, you must be two partners. They are used to each other and must not change partners temporarily. Anna and Steve went to the city for medical treatment. Injuries like this keep them from continuing to perform."

Speaking of this, Andre seemed to warn the two of them:

"You must pay attention to safety. Whether it's a usual rehearsal or a formal performance, don't think about other chores."

What are you thinking about?

Andre was giving the original Throwing Knife cast a last paragraph: "Steve and Anna, as far as I know they are having a quarrel over another man.

Ana wants to quit the circus and get married, but Steve doesn't want his partner leaving, at least not until he finds a new one.Practice with emotions, and nothing will happen. "

About who does Anna want to marry?

Andre said he didn't know anything.

Without saying more, Andre turned to ask about the origins of the two.

It's finally time to verify the actor's self-cultivation.

Kelsey and Sherlock seem to be eloped couples from Tsarist Russia, and it is impossible to return to the other side of the sea.

It's a pity that Watson was not on the scene, so he couldn't witness how his script was perfectly interpreted.

Otherwise, he would be extremely pleased.A good script is a script that allows the audience to enter the play, and Andre believes in this story.

The three of them didn't talk much.

The afternoon show continues, and there will be another show in the evening.

Take a rest when you need to rest, and practice after you have rested.

Circuses bring laughter to people, but the lives of circus performers are not much fun.

Two detectives infiltrate a circus but not a bit to experience life.

After sending Andrade away on the front foot, they split up to investigate the situation in the camp.

In the name of finding a water well and confirming the daily food supply, this is a stately way to go around the camp.

Three hours ago, there might be people in the circus who didn't know about the new temporary knife-throwing performer.

The explosion of popularity came very quickly.It was only half an hour before the end of the Tsarist Russian Flying Swordsman program, and the news had already spread throughout the camp.

At the moment, most of the actors are still preparing to go on stage in the backstage, while a small number of people have finished their performances in their respective tents.

These people met the Tsarist Russian Flying Swordsman halfway, and none of them struck up a conversation, and walked past the Flying Swordsman with distant eyes.

Even if there were occasional two-sentence conversations, they all ended in a hurry, as if impatiently rushing back to the tent to rest.

So far, it can be determined that the members of the Moon Bay Circus are indifferent.

Even the clown who laughed exaggeratedly was the same, he didn't have the enthusiasm he showed when facing the audience at all.

Although no one in the circus is willing to talk too much, the detective's first round of investigations is not in vain.

A form is pasted inside the tent where the meal is picked up.

Every time the catering staff gives food, the corresponding position of the food picker will be marked with a √.

At the bottom are two new lines, Vasilyski (male) and Vasilysky (female).

There are three rows on the table that are blacked out.

Carefully distinguish, the check box for the date with √ ends on October 25.

October 25 was the third day that the Moon Bay Circus was stationed in the suburbs of Chicago.

According to Andre, former knife throwing performers Anna and Stephen were injured that day.

The strange thing is, apart from the two knife throwing performers leaving due to injuries, who is the one who was blacked out in the column?

Kelsey asked the caterer casually, and the answer was that one of the handymen had left on business, without mentioning the person's name at all.

However, this answer is hardly convincing.

Kelsey discovered that the tables had a certain order.

For example, the clowns came first, the opening dancers in short skirts came second, followed by animal acrobatics, followed by tightrope walkers and so on.

This order roughly follows the order of circus performances.

The clowns first had to go to the gate of the camp to receive the audience, and by analogy, it could be matched with today's program list.

The one whose name was crossed out is in the last position according to the order of performance.

The actors in this position did not perform in the first three days, it was a freak show, and they would only be on stage in the last three days of the week.

Leaving aside the fact that we saw only a handful of Freak Show actors at camp today, the October 25th date is a delicate one.

In the early morning of October 27th, Lexie sees a virtual image of a werewolf in the mirror.

The Moon Bay Circus Camp and Lexie's Villa are at two ends of Chicago, and it takes a day to travel one way.

The black column seen in front of me, crossed out from the circus food list, could it be the 'werewolf' haunting around Lexi's villa?

Verification is progressing slowly.

Time is in a hurry, and the evening performance has ended in a blink of an eye.

At 10:30 in the evening, all the audience left, and the whole camp suddenly fell silent.

As Andre said, there are patrols at the camp.The circus performers went to the well to fetch water, and hurried back to the tent.

Perhaps because of the tiredness of the day, the actors rarely have the interest to chat.

The magician Merton is an exception.

He carried two buckets full of well water and chatted with Sherlock who came to fetch water.

"Hey! Your presence makes me less lonely. You know? I was the only one in love in the whole circus."

Merton mentioned that he was in love with one of the girls in the tutu dancer, but the rest of the circus never saw eye to eye. "They only know how to practice acrobatics, and I can't find someone to chat with. They are all guys who don't know how to be interesting."

Sherlock didn't seem to understand, so he asked bluntly, "That's not right, didn't the leader say that Anna, one of the previous knife-throwing performers, has plans to leave and get married?"

"There's nothing wrong. Anna didn't look for anyone in the circus. I heard that she found a doctor."

Merton said and shook his head, "I don't know the specific situation, but one of her ears was cut off, and I don't know how the situation is now. Hey, don't mention unhappy things, let's talk about something interesting."

Happy, nothing more than listening to Merton bragging about his love history.

Sherlock responded a few words from time to time, narrating the elopement experience of the flying swordsman from Tsarist Russia.

It was really hard for him to understand how interesting these things were, and it was obvious that Merton listened with gusto and continued talking.

Whenever there is talk, there is bound to be some news.

Even if the news is true or false, you can always find clues from it.

After a while, the two returned to the tent area.

Before leaving, Merton asked one thing excitedly, "By the way, have you heard? There are new members joining this freak show. It seems that a live mermaid has been found. I wonder if it's true?"

"Mermaid? Can there really be such a thing?"

Sherlock can't guarantee that there will be no unknown existence at the end of the deep sea, but it is ridiculous to show mermaids in a circus.

Sherlock took advantage of this to ask, "By the way, I didn't see a few freak show actors at the camp. Did they come a few days later?"

"Yes, the actors went to Chicago in batches. It has always been the same, and we have very little contact with them."

Merton consciously avoided talking too much, and pulled back to the original topic. He asked enthusiastically, "Vasilisky, are you interested in mermaids? I really want to see them."

Sherlock keenly sensed a temptation hidden in Merton's eyes.At the moment, Merton is most likely to test his attitude towards freak shows.

"Novelty things appear in front of you, always take a look."

Sherlock didn't show too much enthusiasm, but he didn't show the slightest disgust either, "You don't need to spend money on the left and right, it's good to see the mermaid."

"Yes!"

Merton nodded approvingly.

Without further ado, the two separated on the spot.

Go back to the tent.

After confirming that no one was listening, Sherlock and Kelsey lowered their voices and exchanged today's income.

"Merton is very likely sent by Andre to test our attitude. During this time, we must perfuse him. I have a bad guess about the mermaid he mentioned."

Sherlock didn't know if he was thinking too much. Watson's military doctor friend Leo came to solve the disappearance of a brother and sister.

Sherlock pointed out, "Leo mentioned the missing little sister Peter, she would have a fishy smell. If you put a fish tail on her, it would be a realistic mermaid from smell to appearance."

Most freak show actors are born with flaws.

But the huge performance profits will inevitably dehumanize people, violate the taboos of life, and try to create deformed people who attract people's attention.

Ironically, the best victims are often children from the slums.

Children's bodies are easier to shape, but it is difficult for slums to care about the lives and deaths of others.

Kelsey frowned, guessing the worst.

"There's no solid evidence right now, hopefully there isn't a missing fishy girl turned into a mermaid, and we'll find more clues in the next few days."

"If the werewolf Lexi saw was the one crossed off the catering list, he should still be alive."

Sherlock hoped to face the 'werewolf' head-on, "Maybe, the werewolf can bring us more inside information."

As for tonight, I can only rest first.

First tie the heavy curtains that enter and exit the tent with knots from the inside to prevent outsiders from entering at will.

The two started to light a fire and boil water, ready to wash and sleep.

This time I will take a closer look at the so-called door curtain of the bedroom. The two curtains are hanging lightly, and there are no fixed things such as ties.

What can such two curtains block?

When the wind is stronger, they will float up, and they can't even talk about sheltering from the wind.

"It's already cold at night in November, but the small tent also has small benefits. There is a fire in the main hall, and it's not cold to sleep in the cubicle."

Sherlock said and looked at Kelsey, "Jerry, what do you think? It won't be so cold that you come to hug me for warmth at night, right?"

Kelsey smiled, "You think too much, I'm not afraid of the cold, nor do I feel cold. By the way, Tom, you don't have sleepwalking, do you?"

"of course not."

Sherlock said with certainty, "In the middle of the night, I will never come uninvited. Dear Jerry, please don't doubt that I am really a standard gentleman."

"Wow! Tom, you say you are a standard gentleman?"

Kelsey nodded irresistibly, "Okay, as long as you are happy."

What tone is this? !

Sherlock has always controlled himself to a certain degree, never offending Kelsey too much. "No matter how you listen to your tone, you actually criticize me. Don't talk about others, I'm sure I'm a gentleman enough for you."

Speaking of it.

Sherlock stared at Kelsey, who was dressed in women's clothing. The scar on her side face did not affect her beauty at all, adding a bit of rebellion to her beauty.

"Now, I can consider myself a gentleman without guilt."

As Sherlock said, he leaned forward and got close to Kelsey, "However, Mr. Bennet, are you sure you can do it too? Why don't you admit it, I'm not wrong."

As soon as these words came out, the tent suddenly fell silent.

The distance between the two was less than half an arm, and under the dim light of the fire, what they saw and heard was a bit hazy and almost blurred.

About half a minute.

Only the crackling of the firewood could be heard, 'crack-crack-crack--'

Kelsey suddenly broke the silence, "Admit it? What do you admit? Oh, yes, you want me to admit that I am not a gentleman. But, I have a question. My Mr. Holmes, what kind of person do you say can't be considered a gentleman?" A gentleman?"

Kelsey said with a smile, and instead of retreating, he reached out and stroked Sherlock's bow tie.

I saw her fingers caressing the bow tie again and again, as if she was treating her beloved with tenderness.

"You see, the answer is sometimes very simple. For example, a gentleman would never do this to you. In this way, you can easily exclude me as a gentleman."

Kelsey said slowly, "Is it as you wish now? Sherlock, do you want to guess again, what would I dare to do to you if I am not a gentleman? Be bold and say it, if you are not sure, I will do it Done."

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