Detective Bennet [Comprehensive novel]

What if Kelsey didn't like bees?

That's a really good question.

Sherlock knew that his taste for beekeeping was far from Mycroft's obsession with sweets.

Objectively speaking, for people who hate bees, living near a hive is definitely torture.

Bees need enough outdoor space. Although they can be controlled in a fixed area in most cases, it is not impossible to fly in the wrong place.

"Jerry, if you hate bees, I'm definitely going to use that as a reference to re-plan my retirement."

Sherlock rationally analyzed, "I know, you don't hate something for no reason, and the reason must be worth learning from."

These words put Kelsey on the throne of a great wise man, eliminating all inexplicable excuses.

If Jerry had legitimate reasons for not liking bees, her dear Tom would certainly change.

"Ah--"

Kelsey snorted softly. Did the rational Mr. Holmes not give her a chance to be willful?Couldn't she dislike bees irrationally?

Anyway, Kelsey really doesn't hate bees.

To be precise, she sincerely admires the contribution of various insects to solving cases.

In the vast majority of homicide scenes, it is insects of various types that arrive before investigators.

They are witnesses who cannot lie, and as a detective who enjoys solving crimes, he will not dislike the existence of insects.It is particularly meaningful to read and comprehend the testimonies hidden in the bodies of bugs, and forensic entomology came into being.

Unfortunately, limited by scientific and technological means, forensic entomology in this era is still in its infancy.

Far away.

Right now, just as far as beekeeping is concerned, it is really an interesting thing.

However, Kelsey maintained a half-salty smile, but did not tell Sherlock that she had begun to imagine the scene of harvesting honey.

With honey, be sure to make honey muffins.If Mycroft has not been strictly prohibited by the doctor from eating sugar after 30 years, he can also give him some at his discretion.

Why don't these thoughts come out now?

Kelsey: Who doesn't have a temper.

Damn Tom, he didn't choose her without asking the bee at the first time.You like rational analysis, don't you?Then let the rational Mr. Holmes continue to embarrass himself.

Sherlock: No, there was a major error in the answer.urgent!How to remedy?He has absolutely no experience.

Beekeeping is still far away, and the pursuit of the murderer is just around the corner.

The next day, early in the morning.

The two detectives return to London looking for a possible killer in the nursing home.

The murderer, male, aged 25 to 40.

Age may fluctuate, but it is certain that he is very athletic and strong, and his height is more than six feet.

On April Fool's Day, the suspect did not show up at the nursing home.He is likely to be from Sweden, or has a travel history to Sweden within half a year.

It is not ruled out that the suspect's name contains P/D, or the initials of AL.

They split up and went to four nursing homes each.

Three were donated and built in the name of private individuals, and one was supported by the London government.Nursing members are composed of long-term care workers, temporary workers and volunteers.

The minimum age for residents in nursing homes is 50.The older you get, the more likely you are to have language barriers, decline in intelligence and memory, and difficulty in taking care of yourself.

This kind of elderly is managed separately from those who can still move normally, but from the perspective of infrastructure and living material supply, it only guarantees food and clothing without more entertainment.

"The staff of the nursing home have searched all over, but there is no suspect who fits the characteristics of the murderer."

Lestrade didn't complain about how tired he was after walking all day, he just wanted to know if his deduction was wrong. "Perhaps, the murderer is hiding in other nursing homes. He may have passed through these suspicious places one day and happened to target the victim Ross."

This chance does exist.

Sherlock said to wait a little longer, "Inspector, you have also overlooked some people. At present, only the staff and management have been found, but the funders of the nursing home have not been involved.

In theory, those sponsors have the right to enter and leave the nursing home at any time, please wait for Mr. Bennet to find the list before making a conclusion. "

Kelsey has been in touch with the foundation of the orphanage in London, and through internal relations, he has found out the list of sponsors of nursing homes that are also welfare institutions.

Bring the list back to Scotland Yard, and there is a suspicious person who fits the profile.His first name is D.

"Del Gunter, one-third of the operating funds of the T Nursing Home comes from him. Male, 26 years old, grew up with his grandmother in the north of England since he was seven years old."

Kelsey obtained a rough biography of Gunter, whose parents died young and whose maternal grandmother was Swedish and married to Newcastle, England.

Gunter was raised by his maternal grandmother until eight years ago, when he moved to the South for college.

When Gunter was 20, six years earlier, his maternal grandmother had died.So, he stayed in London for four years after graduation.

"Oh! This Gunter put all his inheritance into the nursing home?"

Lestrade flipped through the documents, and it was written that Gunter probably inherited nearly [-] pounds and a property in London.

This amount of money is not much for a big businessman or aristocrat with a rich family, but the Gaunt family is obviously in decline.

After his grandmother died, Gunter donated [-] pounds to the nursing home without graduating from university, and got some administrative powers of the T nursing home.

In the past six years, Gunter has remodeled the outdated equipment of the nursing home, and managed specific matters such as the supply of three meals and ingredients.

Gunter's job is as a securities investor, and his performance is known to be tepid.

On the surface, Gunter did not pursue a luxurious life, but devoted his spare energy to the charity of the nursing home.

Sherlock quickly saw the end of the information, and Gunter had a good reputation as a funder and manager.

People praised Gunter for doing charity with sincerity, doing volunteer work at least five or six days a month, such as cleaning houses, bathing the elderly, and so on.

Gaunt specializes in hard work, and he serves the insane.

This type of elderly people cannot take care of themselves, and there is no concept of Alzheimer’s disease yet, but Gunter’s services are all middle and advanced patients, and their living environment is inevitably messy.

"On the surface, Gunter looks like a helpful angel. But combined with the circumstances of this case, once Gunter attacked the object of his help, those elderly people could not resist at all."

Kelsey also mentioned, "Because of the rarity of presbycusis, there is not the slightest suspicion of Gunter from the rest of the nursing home."

Lestrade: Not to mention everyone in the nursing home, even he didn't expect it!The devil, and only the devil understands those eccentric proclivities.

"cough--"

Lestrade concealed a rich inner drama, and said seriously, "At present, we have no substantive direct evidence. It is impossible to arrest Gunter based on inference alone, and he cannot even be arrested and detained for two days. Next, what to do?"

"In three steps. First, investigate whether there is any intersection between Gunter and Woolf. Second, confirm Gunter's clothes when he was a volunteer at the nursing home, and use the portrait to visit the area where the crime occurred again, and expand the scope to find possible witnesses."

Sherlock knew that the above two investigations might be fruitless, and it would take a little more luck to catch Gunter's telltale signs. "In addition, go directly to Gunter and test his attitude towards the two deaths."

Lestrade was uncertain, "Will Gunter agree to see us?"

Kelsey pointed to the survey data, "Gunter is a benchmark image of a philanthropist to the outside world. When it comes to the murder of the elderly, even if he is reluctant in his heart, he must show a gesture of concern.

This is not to force people to be brought back to the police station. In order to maintain a positive image, at least Gunter will not forcefully refuse our visit. "

Lestrade nodded, then touched his head subconsciously, feeling like he had forgotten something.

At this time, Sherlock added, "Please prepare for the autopsy. There may be some evidence left on the bodies of the elderly who died in nursing homes.

However, unlike the last autopsy on the abused orphans, the evidence left on the bodies of the dead elderly may not be obvious enough, so you need to be mentally prepared to find no evidence. "

Lestrade: Right!Almost forgot about going to the tomb, no, opening the coffin for a legitimate reason!

"Wow! I'll keep Carter ready."

Lestrade had done the drudgery of opening the coffin last time, and he didn't want to relive the hard work in the cemetery, so he found a reliable person in charge in an instant. "Carter did a very good job investigating the cemetery of the orphanage. Carter is already a professional."

Kelsey and Sherlock looked at each other, and silently pitied Carter for three seconds.

This time it was not a decision made by the two of them. Carter also asked to 'grate' his good superior for giving him great trust.

I won't go into details.

Under the intensive investigation, no more substantive evidence has been found to indicate that Gunter was involved in the case.

Woolf's cronies have never heard of Gunter, and there is a new piece of news about the witnesses at the scene of Rhodes' murder.

On April [-]st, the day of the incident, someone saw a suspicious figure that fit Gunter's features from a distance.

The clothes are dark brown overalls, which are exactly the same style as the clothes Gunter wore when he was doing volunteer work.

The same height as Gunter's six feet, and the same build as Gunter, neither fat nor thin.

It's a pity that the distance is a little far away, just a quick glance.

Witnesses said what caught his attention at the time was that the man was walking so fast that he almost disappeared around the corner in the blink of an eye.

Not to mention seeing his face, he couldn't even see whether his pants were stained with blood.

This testimony is obviously not enough to establish that Gunter is a criminal.

April [-]th.

Five o'clock in the afternoon, the Gaunt's.

On the third day after Xiecha's meeting request was handed out, Gunter agreed to let the two detectives visit for questioning.

"Sorry, I just got back to London today."

Gunter apologized and said that he could not agree to meet at the first time because he had just finished his business trip an hour ago. "Is there anything I can do to help? You two don't have to worry about it, just ask."

Has Gunter really been on a business trip in recent days?

The securities company Gunter worked for gave an affirmative answer.

From April [-]nd to April [-]th, Gunter stayed in Paris for a week to participate in a cooperative project.

"Now that you have said so, where are you on the first of April?"

Kelsey went straight to the point, "A homicide related to the elderly occurred on April [-]st. This may involve the staff of the nursing home. Your figure is very similar to the suspect. Please cooperate with the answer."

Gunter was not at all annoyed at being recognized as a suspect, he just smiled helplessly and said:

"April Fool's Day, I have been at home. I need to travel for seven days after that, and I have to perfect the project plan so I don't have time to go out. If I need to provide time witnesses, it is really embarrassing for me. The two also found out that I don't like hiring domestic helpers People, cooks and laundrymen are on regular visits."

That's true.

The Gaunt house was just a two-story building.

At this time, there were no servants in the house, and the tea for the two detectives was prepared by Gunter himself.

Kelsey didn't seem aggressive, but just confirmed to Gunter, "In other words, you were at home from [-]pm to [-]pm on April [-]st? Your chef, what time did you cook dinner that day?"

"Yes, I'm at home. Joseph usually comes at six o'clock, and I'm used to having dinner after seven o'clock."

Gunter nodded very naturally, showing no signs of lying.At that moment, he also politely invited, "Joseph is coming soon, tonight, do you two want to taste his craft together?"

"No, thanks."

Sherlock didn't even drink the tea prepared by Gaunt, so how could he stay to eat. "I heard that Mr. Gunter's grandmother is Swedish. You were raised by her since you were a child. It seems that you have been influenced by a lot of Swedish customs."

Sherlock glanced around the living room, which is a Nordic home style.

Two paintings hang on the wall depicting scenes from the old town of Stockholm, Sweden, and a seascape adjoining the Baltic Sea.

Most of the ornaments and decorations on the museum shelf also come from Sweden, such as sea ship models and so on.

On the dining table, there was a half-bottle of Gelag wine, which was the Swedish specialty hot drink that appeared in the two deaths.

Gunter felt nostalgic when he heard the word grandmother, "Yes, influenced by my grandmother, I like Sweden. These arrangements at home make me very comfortable, as if my grandmother has always been with me."

"I can see that your living habits are also Swedish. Although there are four distinct seasons there, winter occupies almost half of the year. It is winter from October to April next year."

Kelsey pointed to the glag, "It makes you drink Swedish winter mulled wine in April in London. Don't mind if I ask where you got the glag? I have a friend who wants it, but London doesn't It's easy to get this wine."

Gunter said with regret that he didn't buy it in London. He went to Sweden last October and brought back a box.

"I like Gerag wine very much, and I am not willing to give it away. Who would have thought that there is only half a bottle left in a case. If you need it, I will bring you a few bottles next time I go back to Sweden."

The implication of these words is that Gunter never gave Glager to others.If you find someone with the same kind of wine, don't bother him.

Kelsey declined with a smile, "Thank you for your kindness, don't bother. By the way, one more question, how many years did you drink, is there any particularity in it?"

"It was produced the year before last, in 1878."

Gunter said bluntly, "Glag wine, I think the taste is similar, and I haven't done in-depth research on this aspect."

How it tastes is not important.

Kelsey was thinking of the bottle of glager that Woolf was given, also from 1878.It looks like the bottle label is from the same winery called Wine of the Baltic.

However, according to the survey "Wine of the Baltic Sea" wines are sold locally.Just because the year is the same as the winery, it cannot be confirmed that Gunter is related to Woolf.

A few more questions were asked, and the initial tentative investigation could only stop here.

The two detectives stood up and said goodbye. Gunter said that he would come to the door directly if he had any problems in the future. He would definitely cooperate fully to catch the murderer who committed the crime against the elderly.

It has to be said that Gunter performed impeccably.

The clues currently available can all point to him, but there is no substantive evidence that he is the murderer.

Before leaving, Kelsey glanced at the oil paintings on the wall.

Below both paintings are poetic inscriptions signed by Del Gunter himself.The handwriting seems familiar, so further confirmation is needed.

Gunter watched the two leave, not paying attention to how the chef worked in the kitchen, he went to the study on the second floor.

Open the safe and take out one of the photo albums.

Open it, all are photos of the old woman.Each one corresponds to the elderly dementia patients in the T Nursing Home.

In the first 49 photos, a capital A was added to the bottom of the portrait.

Gunter held the photo album and leisurely approached the sofa.

So what if the detective came to the door, evidence, evidence is necessary to arrest a person and bring him to justice.

Gunter smiled disdainfully, looking at the remaining photos, who should I choose next?

**

Eight o'clock at night, 221B Baker Street.

When the two detectives got home, both Watson and Mrs. Hudson had eaten their dinner.

After simply washing up, Kelsey did not go downstairs to eat directly, but looked through the dusty documents for several years.

"Yes, that's it."

Kelsey found an old letter from the archives.After the Ripper case ended that year, the letter was stored for six years, and the sender of the letter has not been found.

'Knock knock—'

There was a knock on the door.

Sherlock asked outside the door: "Jerry, you haven't gone downstairs, I brought the dinner up. Would you mind eating in your room together?"

"Of course I don't mind." Kelsey said and opened the door, only to see Sherlock holding the tray in both hands.

Dinner includes soup, vegetables, scrambled eggs, bacon, and a honey muffin.

With just one glance, Kelsey can be sure that the last honey muffin is 100% not Mrs. Hudson's cooking.

"Thank you."

Kelsey took her share and they sat down at the table.

"Don't doubt it, I just made the honey muffins."

Sherlock said solemnly, "A few days ago, we talked about the topic of bees, but we stopped abruptly. Beekeeping is actually to make people feel happy. For example, to obtain honey to make food, so that you can eat satisfactorily And to be happy, that’s the most important thing.”

Subtext: Beekeeping or something, how can it be more important than dear Kelsey.Even if she hated bees capriciously and for no reason, Sherlock would accept it without hesitation.

Tonight, Sherlock brought a honey muffin made by himself as a token of sincerity.

"Jerry, you know, I don't have that kind of rhetoric. I'm used to rational analysis, but I don't mean to belittle your feelings. Honey muffin, hope it makes your dinner enjoyable."

The dining table, two seconds of silence.

Kelsey couldn't help laughing.Sherlock guessed right in time and fulfilled her little wish of eating honey muffins, so she admitted one thing as she wished.

"I don't dislike bees. I can't say I like them very much, but the process of keeping bees is very interesting. My dear Mr. Holmes, your retirement plan is very good."

Sherlock breathed a sigh of relief and smiled sincerely.

Very good.He and Kelsey have basically the same preferences, and they can maintain a tacit understanding without major differences whether it is working or retirement life.Now that there is a general idea of ​​the future plan, there are only a few steps left.

— Formal confession and marriage proposal.

Sherlock thought of the half-painted plaster egg and had to finish it fast.

The two had dinner happily.

When the maid cleared away the plates, Sherlock didn't leave immediately.Easter eggs are to be painted, but attention must also be paid to the homicide of the elderly.

Sherlock asked, "Jerry, is there something wrong with the two Gaunt paintings? I think you looked at them a little too much."

"Yes, Tom, you know me best."

Kelsey fetched the old letter he found just now, "This is a threatening letter sent to the news agency when the Jason the Ripper case broke out six years ago. The letter claimed that the police were incapable of finding the murderer, and the murderer would Dig out more kidneys."

Kelsey said that there were many provocative letters, true and false, but this one was special.It was the first letter to carry bloody viscera, claiming to have cut the victim's kidneys.

With the arrest of the Ripper, the authenticity of this letter was also verified.The letter was not written by the murderer Yas Kamiski, and the so-called human kidney was also proven to be faked from animal offal.

"The appearance of this letter added fuel to the flames. At that time, major newspapers published relevant headlines, which would definitely stimulate the real culprit to commit the crime."

Kelsey's judgment was not wrong at the time. He conducted an overnight investigation with Lestrade and others, and arrested Kamiski who was stimulated and accelerated the crime that night. "After the case was closed, I asked the inspector for the original provocative letter. It made me a little concerned, and I always felt that it was not an ordinary follow-up."

However, this letter was sealed for six years.

There is no way to find the sender in the vast crowd.

Sherlock looked at the old letter, his eyes fixed.

The handwriting of the provocative letter is surprisingly similar to the oil painting signed by Gunter.

Six years ago the Ripper committed the crime, and six years ago Gaunt's grandmother died.Similar timelines, similar handwriting, are these all coincidences?