"Sherlock Holmes - his limits." "Knowledge of Literature." " Nil." "Philosophy." " Nil." "Astronomy." " Nil." "Politics." " Feeble." "Botany." " Variable." "Well up in belladonna, opium, and poisons generally." "Knows nothing of practical gardening." "Geology." " Practical, but limited." "Tells at a glance different soils from each other." "After walks has shown me splashes upon his trousers, and told me by their colour and consistence in what part of London he had received them." "Chemistry." " Profound." "Anatomy." " Accurate, but unsystematic." "Sensational Literature." " Immense." "He appears to know every detail of every horror perpetrated in the century." "Terrible at playing the violin." "Sherlock Holmes" "Whoa!" "National bank, sir!" " That's it, go, go, go." "You'll have 100 pounds for your help." " How much?" " One hundred pounds." "Gentlemen, gentlemen, please, this is not a railway station, luggage is not allowed here." "Luggage?" "How do you like the look of that luggage, eh, son?" "You can't imagine what an excellent choice you made in coming to us!" "Mr. Tomby!" "Mr. Tomby!" "He will be so glad to see you when I tell him that you're here." "Mr. Tomby!" "Mr. Tomby!" "On the side, on the side, please, follow me." "Morning." "Good morning." "Morning." "Mr. Tomby!" "Sir, please." "Mr. Miller, come see me after your shift," " I will give you your final payment." "You're fired." "It is unacceptable to shout in the bank." " Sir—" "Gentlemen, have a nice day." "It looks like we're not welcome here." "Gentlemen, just a minute, there has been a mistake." "We are ready to serve you." "Our absolute pleasure." "You won't steal it?" "Of course not!" "Look, it's a bit rowdy here, let's go to my office." " You know, I really liked, uh..." " Miller." " Miller." "Or is he fired?" " No, no, no, he's our best employee." " Best employee Miller, come with us." " Quick!" " Yes, yes, Miller, you're with us." "Sir, and me?" "Wait for me downstairs, I'll be back soon." " Allow me, sir." " Yes, good, sure." "Ebenezer Buckley." " Mr. Buckley, are you looking to open an account?" " No, I'm looking to exchange this into gold." " Jesus Christ." "Mr. Buckley, how much is in there?" " Fifty thousand." "Miller, bring—" "Milk." "Just joking." "Whiskey, do you have whiskey?" "Miller, quick, bring some whiskey!" " Sir." " Yes?" "Perhaps you'd be willing to deposit the money at an interest?" "Oh, good God, no, interest is just as ineffectual as all this paper." "It's a pity." "As a client of this bank you could buy the gold after a month but without the commission." "Oh, yes?" " It's a whole five percent!" " Five percent?" "I'll let you in on a secret." "I have a very important deal to make in a few days." " Ah, well, we would be glad to have you amongst our clients." " Yes, of course, of course." "Mr. Tomby, Mr. Buckley, the gold is here." "Take it, son," " you deserve it." " Thank you, thank you, sir, thank you." "Nobody move!" "In the name of the Queen, you are under arrest!" "On the ground!" "I said, on the ground!" "What happened, darling, thought you could escape?" "Did you?" "Mr. Trout, you are arrested for the creation and distribution of counterfeit currency." " To the carriage!" " What?" "Counterfeiting?" " Counterfeiting." " I'm not with him, I'm the bank manager, I don't—" " How is it that you, the bank manager, can't even distinguish between real and counterfeit money?" " Don't!" " I suspected him!" "I didn't like him from the start!" "I suspected!" "Chapter Six:" "Halifax" "Doctor, open up!" "I'm busy!" "Doctor, we have urgent business!" "Give me a minute!" "Open up!" "Doctor!" "We demand you open this door!" "Why are you packing up?" "What are you doing in there?" "All right, I'm coming, coming." "Was it you?" "Did you do this?" "How dare you?" "What happened?" "You've been touched by fame, Doctor." "Look out the window." "Just look, look!" " What do you want?" "!" " Look, it's Sherlock Holmes!" " Go away!" "These are all fantasies, lies!" "Leave immediately or I'll call the police!" " Mr. Holmes!" " Go away!" "And this whole time I've been wondering, "What's he writing?" What are you writing, huh, Doctor?" " Don't touch that!" "Hands off!" " What?" "Listen!" "A "hero"!" "You can fantasise as much as you want!" "You can write about how you dissect frogs!" "But do not suck me and Mrs. Hudson into this abomination!" " What frogs?" " Do not, I repeat, do not write the exact address!" "What address?" "Wait, Sherlock, stop!" "Filthy hack writer!" "What is all this nonsense?" "Good heavens..." " I didn't mean to insult anybody!" " Really?" "Is that why you described me as an ancient granny?" " What granny?" " As a detective, sometimes I have to work incognito!" "You have to be punished!" "Hold it!" "I'm going to teach you a lesson!" "Listen..." "Sherlock." "How much did you get?" " Mrs. Hudson..." " Twenty?" "Thirty in silver?" " All right, now this is too much." " And your pseudonym is foppish as well!" "Well?" "How does it feel?" " Where have they gone?" "!" " Don't worry, they're mine." "That's exactly how Mrs. Hudson and I feel right now!" "What an abomination, what an abomination!" "Look, just listen—" "An absolute abomination." " Sherlock, don't get me wrong, but this is... this..." " Filthy hack writer, I say!" " Mrs. Hudson." " You paid for the flat until the end of this month." " Yes, I—" " So you'll have plenty of time to find yourself new lodgings." "But I didn't write a single word, not a single word about your age!" "Thank you, there are so many people outside." "Is that the great Sherlock Holmes himself?" "No, this is the "great" Mr. Watson." "The great Mr. Watson!" "Tell me, are you *the* Mrs. Hudson?" "I imagined you to be much older." "Good morning." "Dr. Watson!" "Dr. Watson!" "Doctor, come in." " Good morning to you." " Mr. Wilson has a very interesting story." "Just call me Jabez, I'm only a vendor, honestly, I'm more used to that." "Good morning, Mr. Watson." "So, Mr. Jabez, a year and a half ago you came back from China." "Yes." "You've been writing a lot." "Yes, it's true." "I've actually been copying the Encyclopaedia Britannica for two months." "The Encyclopedia Britannica?" "We are very happy, Mr. Jabez Wilson, that our note did not escape your attention." "Please just call me Jabez, I'm more used to that." "The thing is, I usually never receive any newspaper, but this one just miraculously appeared." "Fascinating, do continue." "One thing I don't quite understand, the "Red-Headed League"... what does it mean?" "Ah, that's the whole point of it— the hair colour." "Tell me, Jabez, have you experienced mockery in your childhood?" "At school, in the yard?" "From your acquaintances and from people in general?" "From women?" "Those who think that all red-heads are rogues, lustful, that they're cursed, all sorts of things like that?" " I believe it must have happened." " Yes, yes!" "Please excuse me, could I ask you..." " I just need to take some precautionary measures." " Of course." " Could I ask you to come closer?" "Closer." " I'm sorry—" " What are you doing?" "!" " I'm sorry, please accept my deepest apologies," " but I had to be sure, I'm very sorry." " Well, I understand, but—" " You cannot begin to imagine the lengths people will go to to get this job." "We've already caught three crooks with dyed hair and two more with wigs." "But you have a beautiful head of hair." " Thank you." " Would you like to try mine?" " Oh, no, there's no need—" " Come, try it, I insist." " I'm not pulling your hair, sir." " As you wish." "Could you turn around and have a look at that portrait?" "That is Ezekiah Hopkins, a Pennsylvanian millionaire." "As a red-head himself he felt so much pity for all the red-heads that he created this league." "What newspaper was it?" "Where did you get this notice?" "Here is the paper, the Morning Chronicle, and here's the notice." " May I?" " Yes." "Morning Chronicle, 27th April 1890." "Doctor, do you still have a copy of that issue?" "Be so kind as to fetch it." "Please bring it here." "So what do you sell?" "Antiquities." "It's actually more of a hobby." "I made money exporting Chinese tea, and now..." "The Morning Chronicle from the 27th April, and the Morning Chronicle from the 27th April." " But... but they're not the same..." " May I?" "But there's no notice here." "What a mystery!" " So, straight to the point." "We would like to offer you a position at four pounds a day." " Four pounds?" "That's very generous." "Your task will be to copy this book by hand for two hours a day:" "The Encyclopedia Britannica!" "Sorry, excuse me, what happened next?" "There is one condition:" "you will have to shelter another poor red-headed soul at your house." "It's all right, he can serve you, so you won't have to worry about feeding him." "Yes, of course!" "You understand, Mr. Holmes, that four pounds isn't normally easy to come by, let alone for just two hours a day." "So, every day, for two months, I copied the encyclopaedia." "I copied articles about abbots, archery, the Arctic, architecture, and was about to start the letter "b", but this morning..." "Well, to be honest, I overslept this morning." "Somehow I lost the key to my clock yesterday so I couldn't wind it up, but anyway that's probably irrelevant, more to the point is this." "This morning I went to the League as always, but it was closed and there was this note on the door: "The Red-Headed League is dismissed"." "I rushed to buy a copy of the Chronicle, thinking that perhaps it might contain some explanation, but there was no notice, only your story," "Mr. Watson, about Mr. Holmes, a very interesting story." "Doctor, would you be so kind as to close the window, it's really distracting." "I haven't been paid for the last day, so I came to you." "Where do you live?" "Well, I have a small flat near Saxe-Coburg Square." "Near Saxe-Coburg Square?" "Yes, right there." "Get ready, let's go!" "Where to?" "To your house." "I'll explain everything on the way." "Doctor, are you with us?" "How did you know that I was in China a year and a half ago?" "That is the approximate age of your tattoo." "Doctor, take a gun with you!" "Look, it's Sherlock Holmes!" "Mr. Holmes!" "Go away!" "Excellent, beautiful." "Just absolute genius." " Holmes, maybe you could finally explain what..." " Yes, what happened, Mr. Holmes?" "Watson, what do you think?" "How many red-heads are there in London?" "How would I know?" " Hundreds." " Thousands." "Thousands!" "Jabez, have you ever seen a crowd of red-heads near this league of yours?" " No..." " Consider the fact that the notice boasts "a well-paid job for two hours a day", just two!" "This issue was printed out especially for you." "Really?" "Why?" "Is your guest at home?" "He is." "Well, he was when I left." "Let's hope he doesn't leave." "I really hope he doesn't leave." "What are you saying, that they want to burgle me?" "Well, if I know anything about your collection, it's that it's not valuable at all." "Watson, does Saxe-Coburg Square tell you anything?" "No, I've never been there." "Of course, this is an area for the rich, and you are poor." " Look—" " Just like me." "Why did we stop?" "Why did we stop?" "There's a policeman, sir." "Those mutton shunter bastards!" "How dare they fire at peaceful citizens for no reason?" "!" "Is he hunting you, Mr. Holmes?" "No, you, Jabez." "Whe- where are you" "Holmes!" "Careful!" " Left, left." " Careful." "Billy, call Billy, Billy!" "Quiet, quiet." "How bad is it?" "Will I die?" "It's nothing serious, the wound is through and through." "The bullet exited the body, but the wound still needs to be disinfected." "Sir, what happened?" "Mr. Wilson?" "Do you have medicine here?" " Only snuff." " Well—" " Billy, run to the pharmacy." "What do you need to buy?" " Yes, sir." " I'll write it down, every pharmacy will have it." " Understood." " All right, here, go." " All right, sir." " Quickly, Billy." " Yes, sir, I'm going!" "Mr. Holmes..." "You wanted to see the house." "I'll do it later." "Watson, you stay with Wilson." "But you were in such a hurry to see something." "I've seen everything." "Gregson!" "Yes, sir!" "How long do I have to wait for some tea?" "Right away, sir." ""'Gregson is the smartest of the Scotland Yarders,' my friend remarked;" "'he and Lestrade are the pick of a bad lot." "They are both quick and energetic, but conventional — shockingly so.'"" "I didn't say this, it's" "Oh, literature, so to speak." "Hyperboles." "I understand, I understand." "Gregson!" ""'They have their knives into one another, too." "They are as jealous as a pair of professional beauties." "There will be some fun over this case if they are both put upon the scent.'"" "I only read this this morning." "And not just you." "All of London reads it avidly." "Mr. Holmes claims that you are quick and smart." "I drink tea with milk!" "Yes, sir." "Holmes, I know you think I'm a stupid policeman, an uneducated sleuth," "a man with no imagination and logic." "Well, you're not the only one." "This is a common philistine opinion, but somehow we manage to catch criminals, robbers, rapists, and murderers!" "So tell me, Holmes, what's got your goat that even I, with my limited intellect, understand that you are talking nonsense!" "Believe me, Lestrade, I don't think that harshly of you." "I don't care what you think of me." "Which sane person would go and rob a national bank?" "A national bank!" "You can rob a national bank, Holmes, only with the help of an army." "Do you know how many armed guards there are?" "Do you know that 38 policemen patrol the perimeter?" "Do you know that the bank's safe is impossible to open?" "What I know is that any guard can ultimately be deceived, bribed, or poisoned." "There are other ways to get into a bank than just from the outside, and any lock created by one person can easily be picked by another." "And you got all this from the will of a Pennsylvanian millionaire to help red-heads?" "Not only because of that." "A policeman shot at us today." " A policeman couldn't shoot at you!" " He could!" "He did." "He did!" "Don't you find this coincidence suspicious?" "For example, the location of Wilson's house right in front of the bank, this very national bank." "But why does it have to be tonight?" "Because it was precisely today that the Red-Headed League was disbanded." "But what the Devil do red-heads have to do with this?" "If Wilson had been a brunet, the league would have been called the Black-Haired League." "I don't see any logic whatsoever." "Look, rush hour at Saxe-Coburg square happens roughly from 12 o'clock to 4 o'clock." "The burglars needed Wilson's house to be empty during precisely this time." "They created a job for him right here." "He would leave at 12 o'clock, arriving at 1 o'clock." "He would work for two hours, and then spend another hour on the road back." "Exactly the same period of time." "You've been smoking opium, Holmes." "I've warned you." "I haven't understood a single thing, Holmes, maybe I'm stupid after all." "Why don't we search the house?" "We'll find an underground passage there." " Good." " But we might scare the criminals away." " What if we organise an ambush?" " Yes!" "We need an ambush." "Send policemen, have them stand close by Wilson's house." "Ideally, we catch the criminals red-handed right in the bank." "Fine, this time I'll meet you halfway, but only to prove to you that all of this is just another opium-induced delusion." "Spaulding!" " Constable!" " Yes, sir." " Take a policeman, you'll go with me." " Yes, sir." "You're not carrying a weapon." "A weapon is needed only when an arrest is carried out, we only patrol the streets with a baton." "Bring a gun." "Sir, but you promised to let me go off early today." "Yes, the christenings... all right, call Tracey." "What's the business, sir?" "Maybe I should cancel the christenings." "No, no, don't, don't." "Yes, that's right, don't, you can go." "Yes, sir." " You're not sure yourself." " Why?" "Otherwise you wouldn't free Spaulding." "It's got nothing to do with that." "I have to ask you," "I beg of you— please, do not tell anyone about our plans and intentions, and don't tell anyone where we are going." "Care to tell me why?" "Allow me to be a little capricious." "This house." "Command, place the guards, second exit from the yard." "Go." "I knew you'd be back." "Watson, why aren't you with Wilson?" "The servant didn't come back with the medicine for some reason, I had to send Wilson to the hospital." "Come on." "Where are we going?" "We're going to teach Holmes' self-confidence a lesson." "A spectacular lesson." "Pedagogy should be practical." "Go!" "He called himself Ebenezer Buckley." "His last word was..." "Halifax." "Halifax?" "Halifax." "Why did the papers not have anything about this?" "The information was classified." "It was a crime against the state, after all." "Ebenezer Buckley, also Halifax, also Timothy Trout." "Exactly." "Major talent." "Do you know what he did in prison?" "An escape!" "Got scared, Stevie, huh?" "Very funny, Tim!" "He was a magician, an illusionist." " If only he'd applied his talents to more legitimate business..." " Talent chooses its business all by itself." "But he didn't live off lucre, he lived out of happiness." "He was playing with life." "And it didn't end well." "Excellent, excellent." "He was impatient... no, wait." "He was fixing the very thing that the original makers of the note didn't have patience for." "The portrait on this one is far more convincing." "Um, I'm sorry, but... why "Halifax"?" "A dream." "He wanted to go to Canada." "Maybe he would've become an artist." "So you were saying he wanted to escape?" "Mm." "So Brixon—" "Brixon?" "Brixon was there?" "Or Wilkinson." " Was it Brixon or Wilkinson?" " I don't really remember now, maybe Python as well." "Were they all there?" "I don't see anything funny, Holmes." " Are you trying to say..." " What?" "No, nothing." "Gentlemen, it's been a pleasure to spend my time with you, but it's six in the morning and I'm going home." " Guards!" " Guards!" "What's the situation, then?" "The Crown Jewels haven't been stolen yet?" "Everything is fine, sir, we've searched the whole building from the basement to the attic." "So tomorrow I'll get my salary as usual." " Let's go, gentlemen" " Quiet!" "Where's the vault?" "Downstairs." "Gentlemen, it's here in the basement!" "What's this?" "An ambush!" "Go, go, go!" "Hurry!" "Quick, quick, quick!" "Go!" "It's Lestrade!" "Go!" "God damn it, Holmes!" " You were right!" " Believe me, Lestrade, I wasn't sure." " Lestrade, he needs to go to the hospital!" " Go, go!" "Thank you, thank you." "Patrick!" "Patrick!" " Doctor!" " Take him to the carriage!" "Thank you, thank you!" " Doctor, let's go, there's nothing else to do." "Come on!" "Follow me!" " Where are you going?" "!" " How did the patrols miss it?" " This only confirms my suspicions." " They were digging from Wilson's house." "It means that—" " What?" "It means we'll meet them there!" " But police have set up an ambush." " It'll be fine." "We'll help them." " Go, go!" " Let's go!" "Python!" "Brixon!" "Wilkinson!" " Where've you been, blockheads?" " We were here, sir!" " Where?" "We were here, sir." "Go back to Scotland Yard." "We'll talk tomorrow." "Yes, sir!" "Get on, quick!" "Watson, shoot!" "Stop, sir." " Let us cross!" " We can't." "The royal cortège." " I'm chasing a criminal!" " You must be kidding me." " Damn, damn, damn!" "Quiet!" "Have some respect!" "Get ready." "Get back here!" "I'll go for this one, you take those two." "Let's go!" "Out of the way!" " What's wrong with you?" " Stomach ache!" "Wait." "Stop wallowing!" "Get on, Watson!" "But I can't do two wheels!" " What's the difference?" " I've only ridden a tricycle!" " Go!" " Where did you get it?" " Rented it!" " Amazing." " You shoot, I'll pedal!" "Courtney?" "Shoot, shoot, Doctor, shoot!" "It's no good, we need to jump." "Jump!" "You're excellent, no doubt, but stop lying around, there's another one." "We need to take him alive!" "I'm not riding that bicycle again!" "Nobody will be riding that bicycle again, let's go!" "Spaulding." "Careful, Holmes, I missed him!" "Pity, but he won't tell us anything anymore." "That's strange..." "I swear, Holmes, I missed him!" "So how did he die?" "I don't know." "Maybe of old age?" "I'm going to find out right now." "What are you going to do, ask him?" "Yes, exactly." "You're a butcher!" "Christ!" "I'm a doctor, Holmes." "But I agree, sometimes there's little difference." "The stomach is empty, he was throwing up the whole time, just throwing up." "The liver... the liver is huge." "I think he was poisoned with something, I don't know what." "Belladonna." "Wilson's servant." "What do you mean, Wilson's servant?" "It was Moriarty!" "You know, Holmes, my reasons for distrusting you decrease by the day, yet somehow it gets more and more on my nerves." "At least now you know what he looks like." "That's the thing, I don't." "I wasn't looking at his face, but at his trousers," "there was soil on them." "I was hoping you might remember him." "Me?" "I didn't, I was..." "I was treating Wilson's wound." "Perhaps this could help us somehow." "What is it?" "You were almost in time," "Inspector." "Arrest him." "I'm afraid it's a bit late, he's dead." "Arrest Sherlock Holmes." "Lestrade, you're insane!" " Take him away." "Quick!" " I knew it." " I knew!" " Quiet, quiet, quiet!" " Go, go." " I knew it, Inspector!" "Don't worry, your sentence will come to an end one day too." "It wasn't very entertaining with you here, but no worse than with cockroaches." "Well," "well, I think" "I've packed." "You know what?" "I'll give you this book." "How about it?" ""The Wildlife of Canada"." "It helped me through." "I've decided to quit." "So, if you're going to look for me, I'll be in Halifax." "Thirty five years for you." "Thirty five years is..." "Timothy Trout." "I'm still here." "Hands behind your back, out with your belongings." "Don't, don't!" "No, don't!" "You deserve to be in court!" "All of you imbeciles!" "Unbutton your jacket!" "Yes, sir!" "What is this?" " This is silk!" " Blue silk, sir!" "Who was friends with Constable Spaulding?" " Why aren't you unbuttoned?" " Sorry, sir!" " Helmet!" " Did you get an inheritance?" " No, sir!" "Who knew Courtney?" "Or Faith?" "Who?" "Nobody?" "!" "Helmet!" "Your weapon!" "At the munitions, sir!" "If it's longer by even half an inch..." "Sir, I knew Spaulding a little." "He was always suspicious." " Yes, yes... yes, strange." " They were always strange." " They're not our friends!" " We didn't talk, no." "Out!" "Everyone get out!" "Sir, what do we do with Holmes?" "None of your God damn business!" " He's demanding a lawyer." " Me!" "I do the demanding here!" "Everyone else is pleading." "Bring me the keys to his cell." "Yes, sir." "Yes, sir, Minister!" "Yes." "I arrested him." "Yes, sir!" "Yes, but he's demanding a lawyer, sir, he threatened to call..." "Sir, can I be honest with you?" "This is a very serious case." "No, sir, I'm not threatening you." "The thing is, sir, in the police... sir, it's just that three of those involved in the robbery appeared to be policemen." "Sir, I've warned you." "Yes, Holmes seems to suspect it already." "I await your orders, sir." ""...when trying to escape"." "Yes, sir." "Yes, I'll report to you when finished." "Sir." "Perhaps I'll do it, sir?" "An attempt to rob the national bank!" "The criminal is arrested!" "The continuation of the amazing adventures of Sherlock Holmes!" "An attempt to rob..." "He wouldn't leave you." "He would help you out!" "Well, I went to Lestrade and—" "What is he charged with?" "Classified." "What nonsense." "I will go to Scotland Yard myself!" "Let's wait till tomorrow, then..." "Suspecting Holmes of committing a crime is as ridiculous as suspecting you of exhibiting bravery!" "No- but" " I- look, I went there, and I've been to the editorial office, and I kicked up a big fuss, so..." "You know what I think—" "I'm not interested in what you think!" ""...when trying to escape"?" " Why do you say that?" " What's in your pockets?" "Why did you come?" "You will tell me everything right now." "But you know it all." " Maybe not all." " Maybe you're blind." " Do not forget yourself, Holmes!" " Drop the politesse!" " You know perfectly well that there's a gang working in the police!" " Can you be quiet?" "Even you are scared of them." "I don't believe it." "I don't believe you, Holmes." "These people go under knives and bullets to save your miserable lives!" "They are on this side of the law!" "They were born under this law and under it they serve!" "Do you know who trapped Dante in ice in the underworld?" " Who?" " Lucifer!" "Who was a son of God, in case you'd forgotten." "And being tortured in his very jaws are Brutus, Cassius and Judas!" "They are not traitors." "Brutus and Judas?" "All right." "We will leave right now, but under one condition:" "I will be in charge of the entire upcoming investigation." "Inspector, do you... do you really want to know everything?" "Empty!" "Looks like I won't come out of here alive after all." "We'll see about that." "Line up!" "Releasing the prisoner!" "Releasing the prisoner!" "Quick!" "Releasing the prisoner!" "Quick!" "Move," " before they realise." "Where to now?" " I need to go home." "You're crazy!" " That's the last place you should hide." " That's why they won't look there." " All right, keep walking." " Are you insane?" "!" " Quiet!" " A shot to the liver is fatal." " Watson, what are you doing?" "!" " Run, Holmes, go!" " Show me where the cab is before Lestrade changes his mind, go!" " I was trying to help!" " Go, I'm telling you!" "What a hero!" " In a few hours police will be searching for you." " Excellent, we have two hours." "Thank you, that was delicious." "Inspector, I'd advise you to eat, we have a long night ahead." "I'm going to tell you everything— that is, if you're ready to follow my thoughts, of course." "Stop taunting." "What were the names of the burglars?" "Spaulding," "Faith," "Courtney." "So, the burglars were doomed from the start." "You must be joking, sir." "You can only rob a national bank with the help of an army." "Do you know how many guards there are?" "Do you know that 38 policemen patrol the area both day and night, and that the safe is impossible to break into?" "I know." "But I also know that the police can be bribed, put to sleep, and deceived, and that there are other ways to get into a bank than just from the outside." "If a lock has been made by one person, there will always be another who can pick it." " You bribed the guards?" " How else could you get into the bank?" "Do you have a key?" "Yes, gentlemen." "Yes." "Yes, absolutely." "I have a tunnel, going from that house to the bank." "At the scheduled time, the guards will go to the duty room." "And the key." "Here." "Thirty percent." "Of course, in order not to seem suspicious, Moriarty started bargaining." "As a result, they probably stopped on the number..." "Ten." "I propose a toast." "To the success of our endeavour." "And he poisoned them right there." "It's as if you were there!" "This is the key that winds the clock in Wilson's house." "Moriarty gave it to the perpetrators as the key to the bank's safe to placate them." " But why did he start something he knew was doomed to fail?" " It means that the robbery was just a cover, a masquerade, a performance to hide a much more disturbing crime." " What could be more disturbing... than robbing a national bank?" "!" " Exactly!" "How frightening could it be, huh?" "I can't get Halifax out of my head." "What's he got to do with it?" "It's funny that the policemen showed up at the bank and killed Halifax when he tried to escape." "Just like the way you wanted to kill me." " I didn't." " You did." "Lestrade, you did." "When you walked into my cell you reeked of whiskey." "I know you are a conscientious person, that's why you had to drink before..." "Why, by the way?" "Who cancelled the sentence?" "I decided it myself." "I always decide everything by myself." "Shall we go?" "Where?" "To visit the wounded." " Read the Morning Chronicle!" "Inspector Lestrade prevented the burglary of the century!" " Boy, the newspaper." "Doctor, what do you need to read that for?" "You know everything." "Lestrade caught all the burglars— or, wait, God damn it, Doctor, what have you written about me this time?" "Look..." "look, buy your own copy!" " Read the Morning Chronicle!" " Boy!" "Read the Morning Chronicle!" "That's it." "We're leaving." "Brodigan was there, I was about to get caught, quick." " But wait, I have—" " Hurry!" " ...instruments." "Whatever, I don't need them now." "Do you think I'm crazy?" " Me?" "No, I—" " But I do!" " God, I can't take having to be in hiding!" " Now you understand how criminals feel." "Inspector Lestrade prevented the burglary of the century!" "Well, I see everything is going well." " Hello, I'm not going anywhere with you." " Jabez, I—" "What in the Devil ever possessed me to come to see you?" "What in the Devil ever possessed you to live opposite the national bank?" "Hello." "I've read it, I've read it all." "Horrible." "We don't need you." "We need the key to your flat in exchange for this one." "Oh, this is the key to my clock!" "Where did you find it?" "Well, let's just say... on the bank of the Thames." "And more specifically?" "More specifically..." "Doctor, when is the next story coming out?" "In which issue?" "Get well soon." "Holmes, you have to understand..." "Holmes..." "The villains have been killed, the bank hasn't been robbed— what else could we find here?" "I've ordered that the tunnel be refilled." "The burglars weren't killed by us." "It was poison." "What nonsense." "Nonsense." "I put a bullet in one myself..." "Watson." "Belladonna." "They were poisoned about two hours before the burglary." "That's why they were running so slowly." " The poison was already in action." " God damn it!" "It means that the others are looking for Moriarty." "If it was a part of the plan, it means they're only looking for us." "Betraying their comrades?" "What are you trying to...?" " Lestrade, do you know what phrenology is?" " No." "What is it?" "An Austrian called Franz Gall—" "—let me—" "—studied human skulls and found that one can create a rather detailed psychological portrait of a human just from the bumps and dents." " Nonsense." " You don't say." "So, what?" "What do you think, how do the bumps on a policeman's head differ from those on that of a criminal?" "How?" "They don't." "Sometimes I just want to..." "Yes, Holmes, sometimes you do look rather strange." "Like a dog, I don't know, like a sleuth." "I am a sleuth." "Well." "Interesting." " Lestrade, did you say there was an order to fill up the tunnel?" " Yes." "When was that meant to happen?" "Yesterday or today." "Well they weren't in a rush." "Hold that for me." "You should taste it." "Damn, I'm so ignorant in the natural sciences." " What do you mean?" " I need to go home." "Now." "Did we find something?" "Yes." "I sense it." "I'm telling you, it's dangerous out there." "Not as dangerous as missing the crime of the century." "You know, Holmes, I like hyperboles too, but you... well..." "Wherever you go, poets are everywhere." "I beg your pardon?" "Wherever you go, poets are everywhere." "Poets are everywhere and anywhere... it's just me going to work, and I don't write any poems there." "Watson," "How much do they pay for a line?" " Ten pence." " How much?" "!" "Ten pence." " Ten pence?" "Outrageous." " A robbery." "And here you risk your life for some pennies." "Do you know how much I earn, Watson?" "Well, I..." "By the way..." "Why don't you write about us?" "About us simple folk, who guard your peace every day?" "It's true, we're not angels, we're the same common people who, sadly have to deal with criminals with murderers, and with offenders." "And there you are, writing some filth about us." " For ten pence." " You were right, we can't go home right now." "I'll send a messenger." "I know where we can hide." ""Across this bare space there was scrawled in blood-red letters a single word— Rache." You sure can exaggerate." "Lestrade, are you sure they won't find us here?" "Yes, this is a safe house, only a few people know about it, all of whom are reliable." "I never doubted you for a moment." "Quiet!" " Who is it?" " Me." " You brought it?" "Were you followed?" " You offend me, sir." "Good job." " So how are things?" " The house is clean." "Well, actually, Mrs. Hudson always keeps it clean, my friend." "Not in that sense." "Nobody suspicious is out there, although there was one moustachioed guy near the house." "Moustachioed?" "Yes." " Half of our constables are moustachioed." " Exactly." "Maybe it was a constable." "I did everything you asked." "I threw a stone at the window, and the owner ran out and dragged me by my ear." "By the way, you owe me a tuppence, she pulled really hard." "Lestrade, give him two pennies." "Careful." " Right, I'm leaving." " Good job." "Good job." "Go." "By the way, I don't recommend you stay here for long." "Why?" "Did they track you down?" "No, there are a lot of policemen around." "This is a police hideout." "How do you know?" "The whole street knows." "Lestrade, you told me this was a reliable place!" " I'm leaving." " Off you go." "Mr. Watson." " The murderers are Masons?" " "Halifax"." "Of course, he was a counterfeiter." "So what's the connection between Halifax and Moriarty?" "Any good, sir?" " Not bad." " Can I go now?" "No, Mr. Trout." " You'll work for a while longer." " I won't work here anymore." "Not even if you kill me." "I think we can do that any time." "And you won't be working here." "Then where?" "Take a look." "Are you serious?" "How could I possibly get there?" "Who would accept me with my record?" "Mr. Ebenezer Buckley has a crystal clear record." "And if I escape?" "Why would Moriarty need a counterfeiter of Halifax's calibre?" "I've never seen such a masterful forgery." "Do you know how many of these are in London?" "A lot more than you think." "I'm telling you, even I've never seen anything like this." "Not even the bank's employees— and they have sharp eyes— not even they recognised the forgery." "Do you know why?" "Unlike usual counterfeits, this one was made using the same machine that prints the genuine article." " Where are we going?" " I know a place, but it's not exactly welcoming to policemen." " We'll have an army protecting us here, so to speak." " Mr. Watson!" " How has life been treating you?" "A pleasure to see you." "Of course, we will tolerate your civilian friend, but narks have no business around here." "Who are you calling a nark, buddy?" "Either he leaves by himself or—" "Inspector!" "Corporal of the Seventh Infantry Regiment," "Fitzpatrick Lestrade!" "Liar, that's where I served, I didn't see you." " What year?" " From '70 to '80." "In '72." "You don't fool us." "I was there from 1855." "I transferred to the reserve in 1853." "Who was the boss there?" " Colonel Dooley." " Who?" "Dooley." "The Toothpick." " It's our man!" " Welcome!" " This is our man." " Do you know how loam differs from sandstone?" " Well, I didn't taste it—" "The composition." "Composition." "Loam is slightly sour." "Sandstone is fresh." "Which means...?" " What?" " What?" "Remember you said that the tunnel was filled up two days ago?" "It was raining the day before yesterday, but the soil was dry there, and it was loam." "Even though they use sandstone for these cases." "What... how does... sorry, but I don't..." " Could you get to the point?" " No." "I don't believe it myself and you shouldn't either." "By the way, you, John, are an inattentive person." " Who are you calling inattentive?" " In that issue of the Chronicle, there was indeed a notice, a very modest one." "Read." " "An engineer is required..." - "An engineer is required for works..."" " Yes, "works and constructions underground."" "They obviously found him." "Watson... do you have ten pence?" " One and three." " Robbery!" "One and eight!" " All right, one and three." " Take it, you little extortionist." "I can charge more for the insult." "And I can beat you up." "Thank you, Tom." "Barman!" " So, where were we?" " The engineer." " We've seen the tunnel." " That was a hole, for which they didn't need an engineer." "What are they going to do, build an underground?" "A second tunnel." "They didn't fill up the entrance to the bank, they were finishing the second tunnel." "To the bank?" "To The Royal Mint." " Well, lad, is everything all right?" " Yes, yes, thank you, sir." "It's not a hard job." "Don't even think about stealing a single penny, we have it all counted." "If I did I wouldn't go for just a penny, sir." "Moriarty arranged for Halifax to work in the mint, right under everyone's noses." "I didn't believe it myself, I wondered, why would Halifax work in the mint?" "Sorry, Holmes, I can't do this without a pint." "Barman!" " Three more!" " Were they trying to rob the mint?" "Don't be ridiculous, that's impossible." "Moriarty wants to rob the whole of England." "They copied the printing machine?" "Who told you that?" "A forged note from the bank." "From inside the bank." "Wait..." "And Halifax?" "This whole case with the forgeries?" "Why did he go to the bank?" "Didn't he understand he would be killed?" "Poor Halifax, I'm sure he didn't go there for profit, but for the beauty, for the audacity." "It was spectacular." "Spectacular and fatal." "Like all great tricks." "Let's drink to Halifax." "Wait..." "Wait a minute, why do we have go to the mint right now?" "Why not tomorrow?" "Why not yesterday?" "Because the crime will take place there precisely today." "At what time?" "Between 12 and 8." "Goodness, Holmes, take it easy, how- how- how can you be so precise?" "Because today, the printing machine gets a new mechanic," "Jabez Wilson." "The red-head!" "Of course, it won't be him." "They just used his good name." "Did the boy tell you that?" "Yes, nothing is a secret for a child in this world." "He just ran around eavesdropping on the employees and figured everything out." "Bright boy, he'll go far in life." "So what are we looking for here?" "The entrance." "We have a maximum of half an hour, maybe an hour at best." " And then?" " And then your colleagues will come and kill us." " Blast." " Scared?" "Oh no, it's the beer." "Sorry, gentlemen, one second." "Where, Lestrade?" "Where are you going?" "No, we don't have time!" " Just do it here." " Honestly, I wouldn't—" " I'm not a puritan, I'll turn away." "To be honest, I really wouldn't mind..." "The Devil." "I've ruined the foundation." " What?" " Where?" " Here." "You were right." "Couldn't have done this without a pint." "Oh, boy, oh boy." "Hold my glasses." "Done." "This is why they needed an engineer." "Smells like a morgue." "Like a devil!" " A true devil, Inspector." " Let's go." "Wait, we need to close up the entrance first." "Hold this." " They'll notice it anyway." " Well, let's hope that they, as common policemen, won't pay attention to details." "Yes, even if they notice they'll have to go back." "Now, let's go!" "There's someone here." "The engineer, poor guy." "God damn it, it's unbearable." "Here." "I told you." "I still don't understand." "Why would they need to drag this machine here?" " What do you mean?" "They'll replace the real one with it." " Why?" "Quite simple, gentlemen." "Tomorrow the auditors will spot a fault, the machine will be replaced with a new one, and Moriarty will have a true, original machine from Her Majesty's Royal Mint..." " and infinite possibilities." " Oh my God." " The Devil!" " But that could ruin the nation's entire financial system!" "Money will turn into sweet wrappers." "My salary is small enough without this happening." "We wouldn't have enough to buy toothpicks." "Holmes, we can't- we can't allow money to become as useless as sweet wrappers!" "Holmes, Holmes, we'll get arrested!" "All the guards are outside." "So now what do we do?" "That which I despise more than anything in the world." "We wait." "We should block their escape route." "We'll have to wait until they bring the machine in." " I'll shoot them as soon as they appear." " How do you know how many of them there'll be?" "We'll have to wait." "According to my estimation there should be—" "Three." "Even if there's ten we still have to wait!" "Quickly, quickly, quickly, not a sound." "Quickly, hurry up!" "Help them." "Careful, the chains." "Quick, go, careful." "Stop, stop, there's a hole." "Gentlemen!" " It's him!" " Who?" " Moriarty!" "If you break the machine, none of you will be paid." "Of course sir, I understand." "Hey, did you hear?" "I beg of you, be careful." "I said that—" "Watson, take these rats by the entrance!" "Your sector is on the right." "Sherlock!" "Escaped!" "Holmes!" " Watson!" " What is it?" " You have bullets?" "Yes." " Holmes, shoot!" " Cover me!" "Holmes, take the gun!" "Holmes!" "What were you aiming at?" "This is the police!" "Drop your weapons and come out with your hands up!" "I'm Inspector Lestrade!" "Cease fire!" "I'm Inspector Lestrade!" "I'm the Inspector of Scotland Yard, Lestrade!" "I," "Fitzpatrick Lestrade, do solemnly and sincerely declare and affirm that I will well and truly serve the Queen" "with fairness, integrity, diligence, and impartiality," "upholding fundamental human rights and according equal respect to all people." "Repeat after me!" "And I will, to the best of my power, cause the peace to be kept and preserved and prevent all offences against people and property;" " and that while I..." " And that while I continue to hold the said office I will to the best of my skill and knowledge discharge all the duties thereof faithfully according to law!" "...thereof faithfully according to law." "Gregson!" " Yes, sir!" " Are you there?" " Yes, sir." "Who's with you?" "Higgins!" "Higgins!" "Yes, sir!" "Turn on the light." "Line everyone up!" "Everyone line up!" "Line up!" "Hurry up!" "Attention!" "Lestrade, look at the trousers!" "They died on duty!" "Well?" " Yes, sir!" " I can't hear you!" " Yes, sir!" " Everyone to the shooting range tomorrow!" " Yes, sir!" "Line up!" "Quickly, quickly, quickly!" "Everyone line up!" " I said, quickly!" " Mr. Holmes," "Mr. Watson," "I am very grateful for everything you did, but bear in mind:" "if anything leaks to the newspapers, your corpses won't ever be found." "Attention!" "In your stories, John, if you still plan on writing them... describe me as him." "Halifax"