novelraw Chapter 118, 118
Chapter 118, 118
Do you enjoy it more, Mrs. Roman, or Mr. Holmes?
If it wasn't for Mycroft's question, this question has a rhythm of choosing between the predecessor and the future.
"You also said that hot air ballooning and high-altitude climbing are two different things, why can't I enjoy two different pleasures?"
Mary did not hide her greedy nature, "Children only make choices, and I hope to have everything. Mr. Holmes, a gentleman like you, wouldn't you be unwilling to fulfill me?"
Is it really good to be so righteous and confident?
Mycroft had to admit that he was not as thick-skinned as Mr. Minton when it came to speaking up.
The next moment, Mary added abruptly, "However, please rest assured, I am not an insatiable person. It is enough to experience different kinds of happiness, and I don't want to pursue a third person for now."
Mycroft didn't know whether to be in a good mood or not.
Listen to this supplementary statement. The good news is that Mr. Minton has no plans to pursue a third person. The bad news is that the time limit "currently" has been strictly added.
However, Mary was a little more rigorous. "I'm talking about a third different form of high-altitude experience, and I don't have the idea of experiencing it with others for the time being.
You know, in such a dangerous environment, the character of the companions is very important.Mr. Holmes, you have no doubt of my heart. "
Mycroft found that he had perfected a certain skill and could selectively listen to Mr. Minton's words.
For example, ignore a bunch of restrictions in front and just listen to the sentence that won my heart directly, which is very pleasant to hear.
On the topic of high-altitude happiness, you can't just talk but don't do it.
The two quickly entered the bell tower.The weather in London is changeable. It might rain today, and the possible clues on the dial will be diluted, so we need to make a comprehensive investigation before then.
Big Ben is not something you can enter if you want to.
However, David, the captain of the guard at the entrance, quickly let the two of them pass, obviously receiving instructions from above, and also provided a series of high-altitude working equipment such as climbing tools in cooperation.
Climbing up the stairs from the ground floor, in the era without elevators, just walking up the stairs was a lot of physical work.
Here comes the problem. Before his death, Baldr was wearing a white wedding dress that was at least five or six catties heavier than a normal suit.If he didn't change clothes until he went to the top floor, it would be equivalent to climbing stairs with a heavy load.
mary wondered,
"Does the guarding system of the bell tower alternate in three shifts? If the flexible man in black climbed up the building and was not found, it can be explained by being good at hiding. A person wearing a fluffy wedding dress climbed 80 meters. Why not?" cause any alarm?"
David, who led the way, was very sorry, "Last night, someone from the patrol team sneaked out to pick rowan branches, and a few people secretly drank wine to celebrate the arrival of May Day. The patrol team was negligent and did not find unknown people entering in time. "
Shift at six o'clock this morning.
It was already dawn, and the street was still very quiet.It was foggy in the morning, and the thick fog blocked the line of sight.Not to mention seven or eighty meters in the air, you can't even see clearly within ten meters of the ground.
"Until seven o'clock, the fog cleared a lot. The guards on the ground looked up and found a person sitting on the wall above the dial of the clock tower."
David went up to the top floor as soon as he got the news. He originally wanted to pull the clock climber back, but Baldor had already turned out of the wall and hung it on the hands of the clock.
"In less than 5 minutes, no matter how much I shouted, the man turned a deaf ear and fell down."
Mycroft noted David's choice of words, "You said 'drop', not that he 'jumped'.At that time, didn't Bald ask for death? "
David shook his head slowly in confusion, "It's hard to say clearly because I didn't see the other person's face clearly. He was already head down and his back was facing me. And the wedding dress was wrapped around the pointer. I said "off" because it was wrapped around the pointer. The gauze part on the pointer slipped off.Then, the person fell down. "
In other words, the process of Bald's death seems to have happened in public, but the details are still in doubt.
In general, people tend to be preconceived.Wearing a wedding dress and climbing to the top of the bell tower in the early morning is the work of a mentally unstable person, most likely suicidal.
What is puzzling is that the appearance of wearing a wedding dress is very eye-catching, but from last night until the crash, no one was seen on the ground wearing a wedding dress.
David suspects that Baldur changed clothes on the top floor. "In an hour, the inspection team has searched the passages and stairs inside the clock tower, but found no changed clothes."
Mary also thought about this possibility, "Where's the ground near the clock tower? Has anyone picked up a coat or clothes? Maybe it's a parabolic object."
"It's not clear yet."
David can be sure of another thing, "the cleaning staff recalled that the corridor was very clean and there were no unknown footprints left.
If it wasn't that the deceased's shoes were too clean, or he took the initiative to wipe the footprints in advance, but would a person who wants to commit suicide wipe the shoe prints on purpose? "
Contradictions are doubts.
Until reaching the exit on the top floor, David pointed out the small window where Baldur was first found.Looking down from the window is the dial position of Big Ben, and a fragment of a wedding dress is still wrapped around the hour hand.
Mary and Mycroft fastened the leash and climbed over the huge dial from two different positions.
In the ear, the wind howled.
As soon as the wind changed from its gentle appearance on the surface, the two people in mid-air were blown violently.
Unlike when they were in a hot air balloon, the two of them had their feet in the air at this moment.
He lowered his head, his line of sight was unobstructed to the ground.Of course, I can't really see what's happening on the surface, so I feel a little more dizzy.
"If it's the sea below, the scenery will be better."
Mary said frankly, "Those onlookers who have not yet dispersed are very much like a dense rat swarm."
This metaphor sounds a bit disgusting, but it is described appropriately.
Mycroft couldn't refute, but wanted to remind him that sometimes it wasn't necessary to tell the whole truth.
The next moment, Mary suddenly looked at Mycroft quietly for a full minute.
The wind is blowing, and seagulls fly across the sky.
The sun shines, and the light reflected from the dial coats the climber with a layer of gold.
"Mr. Minton?"
Mycroft looked back puzzled, "What's wrong?"
Mary was still frank, "Obviously, I am saving my injured eyes. After being frightened by the crowds on the ground, I need beautiful pictures to calm my mood. Mr. Holmes, I hope you don't mind being the most beautiful scenery in my eyes at this moment."
Looking down, the crowd is terrifying.Looking up, the sun is shining brightly.
The most refreshing scenery seems to be far away in the sky, but it just happens to appear beside you.
Mycroft: Immediately, immediately, without delay, take back your thoughts. Mr. Minton should speak the truth.
Just listen to Mary's natural suggestion, "If you have the same need, I allow you to look back."
"Thank you for your thoughtful and generous proposal."
Mycroft tried to do so, but only held out for five seconds and looked away unnaturally.
Please forgive him for not being able to persist for too long, but the closer the distance to the sky, the greater the impact of sunlight on people.
Interferenced by the sun, he was afraid of being completely intoxicated in the most beautiful scenery.That's not good, don't forget that the task of high-altitude operations is to find the line
Sow.
After half an hour, the two inspected the left and right halves of the clock and dial respectively, and found two things.
For one, the hands of Big Ben are slippery.One swipe and there was some kind of oily trace left on the glove.If you just look at it from a distance, you can't find the abnormality at all, you will only think it is the reflection of the sun.
Second, near the gap on the edge of the dial, there is a shoe print of a small half of the front sole of a men's leather shoe.
The size is about 6 inches, which is three and a half yards different from the deceased Boulder's 9.5 inches, and the difference is obvious to the naked eye.
Both points point to speculation that someone other than Boulder has climbed Big Ben recently.
However, if the pointer is oiled, if someone accidentally drops it on the dial of the clock, it is impossible to grasp the pointer and use it to support it for a period of time.
So far, Boulder's death from a high-altitude fall does not look like a suicide incident, and it is very likely that it is inseparable from the owner of half of the footprints.
Who sneaked past Big Ben?
From the half shoe print, it is a small size among men's shoes.
Mycroft glanced casually at Mr. Minton's shoe, which he estimated at eight and a half inches, far larger than the footprint on the clock face.
Mary didn't change her face, as if she didn't care about any scrutiny at all.She wouldn't say she had custom-made shoes that looked bigger but fit inside.
Leaving this little digression aside, looking at the Patrol, all members have shoe sizes larger than 7.5 inches.
When patrolling the top of the bell tower, for the sake of safety, they basically go out in groups of three, and there has been no single patrol in the past month.It is almost impossible to have a ghost to smear the oil.
The timeline doesn't have to be that long.
The oil smeared on the pointer must maintain a sufficient amount to play the role of slipping.The last time it rained was at noon yesterday, that is, the footprints and oils appeared less than 24 hours ago.
There is reason to suspect that Baldur entered the clock tower at the same time as another mysterious person.
At night, the internal stairs of Big Ben will be locked, but so far there are no traces of a few iron doors being pried open.
Bald and another mysterious infiltrator either possessed proficient lockpicking skills, or secretly allocated the door lock key in advance.
David stated that the key inside the clock tower has never been lost. As for whether there are lockpickers, he is not sure about this kind of thing.
But given that the inspection team would be absent from work last night and sneak out late, the captain's guarantee cannot be 100% reliable.A determination needs to be made as to whether members of the patrol were intrinsically related to the deceased Baldor.
Before that, no more suspicious traces could be found inside the clock tower
.
It seems that the mysterious person acted quite carefully, and would leave half a footprint on the dial. He should be confident that no one would climb out of the sky to check.
In fact, not only rigorous investigators climbed to the mid-air to check, but also experienced doctors conducted autopsies.
It was Dr. Jekyll who was in charge of the autopsy.Boulder's fatal cause of death fits the profile of a fall from height, but with a twist.
If you are not an experienced coroner, it is easy to overlook the difference between new and old injuries from a fall.Fortunately, part of the broken head was preserved, showing that Baldr had suffered a brain injury in recent months, and there was congestion in the skull.
Combined with the ancient courtship witchcraft of putting wool knots on the roof, it is reasonable to speculate that the cause of Baldr's head injury may be related to this.
This is inconsistent with the testimony of his colleagues in the same office.
All three colleagues said Boulder was in good health and he never took time off due to illness.Furthermore, I have never asked for personal leave, and have maintained full attendance this year.
Corpse bones don't lie.
That shows that Baldur concealed his injury from the outside world, and it is likely that the cause of the injury was shady. He couldn't be ashamed to say that he climbed onto the roof.
Whose roof did it climb?
That's another mystery.
Mary asked around, and Bald had no friends close enough to talk about his personal feelings.
He only revealed a little bit to the public that he did have a sweetheart, an English lady with red hair.
"Even though red hair is rare, it's not easy to find people in London or even in England."
Mary hoped that Baldur would get in the habit of keeping a diary, and perhaps be able to give some hint.
Mycroft spent the afternoon exploring Bald's house, but said that the diary should be forgotten. "There is no relevant record, at least not even a piece of paper was found in his home."
Six pm.
What shouldn't have come still came.
The tabloid news all made a concerted effort to catch today's big ben crash incident with a special book.
It is clearly pointed out that the deceased is psychopathic, otherwise it would be impossible for a man to disguise himself as a woman.Suspected to be deeply emotionally hurt, because he failed to pursue the man, he jumped from the landmark building.
For the time being, no newspaper has found that the deceased took office in Whitehall, but this does not prevent newspapers from making various comments on it.
There is only one central idea, homosexual love is a crime against the law.The bell jumper deserves his death, not to mention who he was jumping for when he was dug out.
rejected by admirers
The deceased, is it because he is a very righteous heterosexual, or because he is also gay but despises the deceased.
His bones were still cold and his cause of death undetermined, and such reports had been flying all over London.
Why would the tabloids do this?Why not suspect that the deceased may have been framed for murder?
Is it for the so-called resistance to homosexual crimes, or is it to seize hot spots to stimulate newspaper sales?
I believe anyone with a little intelligence will understand.
Even if they know everything, many people still buy tabloids to see what it is all about.
Mary also bought back all the newspapers that mentioned "Big Ben's death", but she had a different reason.
"If the suspicious person with the half-shoe print has a deep feud with Baldur and hopes that Baldr's reputation will be ruined after his death, maybe he will provide the exclusive news to the tabloid newspaper. know the inside story."
Therefore, you need to read the newspaper carefully, maybe you will find clues.
A large stack of newspapers is full of sensational content, "The man in the wedding dress, you should die in prison earlier", "Call for clues, who is this perverted man", "Polluted Big Ben" and so on.
Mycroft said seeing such content affects appetite.
Although he considers himself a staunch celibate, he just encountered an unexpected heartbeat very accidentally, and it is absolutely impossible to take on Baldor's miserable role, let alone let himself fall into such a pathetic situation.
Appetite is affected because these reports completely ignore the truth and only blindly incite hatred.
Perhaps, we should be more honest.What he cares about is that Mr. Minton will fall in love with a man in the face of such overwhelming reports.
Mary looked up, not surprised to see that Mycroft hesitated to speak. "What's the matter? You seem to have something to ask? Please speak up, Mr. Holmes. It is your duty to let you know. I have given you the right to ask as you please. Not bad?"
Mycroft: Sounds nice doesn't it?However, the cunning Mr. Minton did not guarantee an answer.