Entry 19

I stared at the woman who was frantically searching the bookshelves that lined the wall of the living room. Her short, bright red hair swayed as she sidestepped from one shelf to the other. Assuming she sensed my presence, she whipped around and stared into my eyes, the orange eyeshadow on her lids complemented her bright green eyes and freckled skin. She looked exactly like the missing girl from The Yard. I was unsure if my late-night research had caused my eyes to begin playing tricks on me, but I dare say that I was face-to-face with Miss Jana Wilson.

"Don't just stand there," she stated in a familiar voice. "I have misplaced the paper with the advertisement for The Red-Headed League and I cannot find it for the life of me. Help me out."

That's when it dawned on me that this was, indeed, not Jana Wilson.

"Shirleigh...?" I asked in bewilderment. "Why on Earth are you dressed like that? I barely recognised you! I thought Miss Jana Wilson turned up in our very flat!

She turned around one more, this time her posture slouched in a way that screamed "An explanation is not worth my time".

"At least I know it is a well-put-together disguise. Not that I ever doubted it," her eyes fell upon the newspaper in my possession. "That's it!"

She rushed over, snatched it from my hands, and began frantically scanning the pages.

"I should have let you know that I took it," I said apologetically. "It's just... Her disappearance really kept me up last night. I wanted to see if I could find any sort of hint or clue as to her whereabouts."

Without so much as an acknowledgement, she rolled the newspaper into a tube, placed it in a leather bag, and made her way to the door where she paused in her tracks.

"Would you like to come with me?"

"You know I will always come along if you ask," I said. "But, where to?"

"To retrieve Miss Wilson from The Red-Headed League."

»»————-　♔　————-««

"Alright, Watson," Shirleigh started. We had stopped just before reaching the windows of a bar where she had determined Miss Wilson was being held. "I need you to listen very carefully. You will go in and speak to the person behind the counter. You will need to distract them as well as keep any workers from reaching the back room, for that is where I will be entering from. I will come from the back room and make my presence known. When I do this, I need you to be particularly observant of the workers. Pay attention to their eyes, something as small as a furtive glance can be crucial to solving a case. If one of them runs off, make a mental note of where they go and the urgency in their step. I shall join you after the commotion has died down."

"That...sounds like a lot," I mumbled, scratching my head. "It sounds like the success of this operation is dependent on me."

"It is," Shirleigh stated bluntly as she placed a firm hand on my shoulder. "Good— No pressure."

"You were going to say 'good luck', weren't you," I said as she made her way down the alley. "You were going to say 'good luck'!"

I sighed when she disappeared around the corner and readied myself to carry out my part of the plan.

When I entered the building, I immediately scanned the room for any employees who were walking around or tending to the tables. I was able to spot several workers as they all wore distinct uniforms and I monitored their movements. One thing struck me as odd, however, but I suppose I should have expected it, all of them possessed hair in varying shades of red.

Nearly all of the tables were filled and the noise of everyone talking over each other almost made it difficult to hear my own thoughts.

That is until someone caught my attention.

A tall woman approached me from the side carrying an air of importance about her. She had bone-straight hair of vermillion and hazel eyes that shifted from green to blue depending on how the light hit them. When I turned to face her, she stood with a posture so straight, that she was practically staring down her own nose to look at me. She smiled but for some reason, it did not feel genial.

"Good afternoon," she said, her voice with a regal tone to it. "Is there something I can assist you with?"

"Oh, do you work here? I was wondering if there were any open seats available."

"There are a few vacant spots at the bar counter. And I do work here. I am the owner," she stated, showing me to an open seat. "Will anyone else be joining you? You seemed to be...looking for someone."

"Oh, no," I answered, doing my best to remain inconspicuous but feeling like I was doing a terrible job. "Just me."

I stared at the barstool which was a wee bit too high for me. I adjusted it so that I would be able to climb up and situate it to the counter accordingly. I felt the woman's eyes burning through my flesh with every move I made and I began to feel a bit uneasy when suddenly I spotted someone lurking in the hall behind the doors that I assumed led to the kitchen.

When I made it atop the stool, I did my best to remain as discreet as possible while also trying to catch a glimpse of what was happening behind the doors.

I watched as a group of people left their table and observed the worker who went over to retrieve the dishes.

"Are you going to order anything?"

My surveillance was interrupted by the woman staring at me from behind the counter.

"Oh, sorry," I apologised, pointing to a random item on the menu. "So, you said you are the owner? It must be nice to see that you have so many customers. Then again, it must be very stressful, especially on weekends and holidays..."

"You get used to it," she said as she turned her back to me to reach for a glass from the shelves behind her. "As an entrepreneur, you have—"

There was a sudden crash from beyond the doors and I presumed something had happened in the kitchen.

"What in the—?"

The doors flung open and Shirleigh sprinted past with two chefs on her heels. We made eye contact for a split second and she winked at me before darting out the front doors of the building. I spun around, realising that I needed to focus on the reactions of the workers. That was when I realised that the woman I was talking to was no longer behind the counter. The doors leading to the kitchen were slowly closing as if someone recently passed through them and I could see her auburn hair trailing behind. The employees working the floor exchanged low whispers before a few of them followed after her.

I jumped down from the stool and oscillated in place, not quite sure what I should do next. Should I chase after the mysterious woman? Would Shirleigh be okay without me? My heart wanted me to dash out the front doors to check on my friend, but knowing her, she would more than likely get upset and say something along the lines of, "See? Emotions are a hindrance to the mental faculties needed to solve crimes"...or something of the sort.

When I had finally made up my mind to go off in the direction of the kitchen, the front doors of the building opened once more, only this time, Shirleigh walked through them in her more recognisable attire.

"Goodness, what was that all about?" she said aloud, dusting off the front of her waistcoat as she approached me.

"Did you see a girl before you came in here?" One of the workers asked with a thick accent. "Pink dress, short red hair?"

"Oh, yes, I saw her. The one with hair like fire. Couldn't miss her. She ran down the sidewalk and appeared to be giving a few people some trouble."

The remainder of the workers traded glances and ran out the front doors, leaving confused customers in their wake.

"There was a woman here, tall, straight, ginger hair," I began. "She told me she was the owner. After you came through, she disappeared down the same hallway from which you came. She turned left at the end, I saw the way her hair followed her as she ran. A few of her employees trailed behind as well."

"Wonderful work, Watson," Shirleigh placed a hand on my shoulder and smiled. "Let us go save Miss Wilson."

We bolted through the doors and turned down a seemingly empty hallway.

"Well, this is...interesting," I mumbled. "I'm positive I saw her come this way..."

Without a word of warning, Shirleigh dropped to the floor and placed her ear to the ground. She crawled around, pausing every few inches to listen for who knew what. She jumped to her feet and held her hand out.

"May I see your walking stick?"

"Oh, sure."

Without hesitation, I handed my partner my cane and she tapped the ground with it. That's when I heard what she was looking for. When she had tapped a section of the ground near the wall, a noticeable change in sound could be heard, almost as though it were hollow.

Shirleigh returned my cane and knelt on the floor once more, brushing her fingertips along the lines where the tiles met until her fingernails caught.

"Hullo!" She lifted the tile and revealed a lever. When she pulled it, several of the surrounding tiles opened up revealing a cavity in the ground. "Ready? I will go down first and see that everything is clear then I shall call to you to follow."

I nodded resolutely and watched as she jumped down. I glanced around to be sure there weren't any lingering "employees" on our trail but none were in sight. I assumed they were still frantically chasing "Miss Wilson".

"You can come down, Watson!"

I peeked over the ledge at Shirleigh who patiently stared back up at me. I tossed down my cane and threw my legs over the ledge.

"I'll catch you."

I allowed myself to fall through the air and into the arms of my companion. She let me down gently and handed me my cane. The underground room was completely dark save for the light that came through the open tiles above and a lightbulb that flickered in the distance. It was eerily silent but I had a horrible feeling that we weren't alone in this ominous space.

"Wait-" I grabbed Shirleigh's arm and pointed in the direction of the ceaselessly flickering lightbulb. "Do you see that...?"

Underneath the light, when it worked properly, a form could be seen on the ground leaning against one of many wooden posts that held the building upright. It was difficult to make out what exactly the form was but the mere sight of it was enough to make my skin crawl.

"Come, Watson! This is a matter of life and death!"

Shirleigh took off toward the light and I followed close behind in case I could provide some assistance. As we drew closer to the form, it became apparent that it was actually a person. A person with short, fiery red hair, no less.

"By Jove... It's Jana Wilson..." I gasped.

Miss Jana Wilson was slumped against the post, her wrists and ankles bound and her mouth was covered with tape. Her skin was flush and damp, dark circles forming underneath her eyes. She barely reacted to our presence, her eyelashes flitted as she tried to lift her eyes. The green orbs were glazed over with exhaustion and were transfixed on us before they seemed to light up. A spark of life overcame her as she attempted to say something but her words were muffled.

"Please, Miss Wilson, I must ask that you do not speak. You must save your energy until we are able to escort you safely to a hospital," I knelt beside her and managed to remove the tape that prevented her from speaking and glanced at Shirleigh as she removed the ties from Miss Wilson's ankles. "She must have been down here for days, maybe even the entire week she has been missing. She is terribly exhausted and malnourished. I don't think we'll be able to get much information from her until she has had some food and water."

Shirleigh nodded as she untied the ropes from Miss Wilson's wrists and cast them aside. Miss Wilson mustered all the strength she could to position herself upright before allowing herself to fall into my partner's arms. The sounds of her dry, muffled cries echoed through the room.

»»————-　♔　————-««

Miss Jana Wilson consumed the most incredible amount of food I have ever seen in such a short window of time. It filled me with happiness to see her vitality gradually come back but there was also a sadness that overcame me when I realised just how horrid her situation must have been.

"Sorry," she mumbled through mouthfuls of food. "It's just so good!"

Instead of taking Miss Wilson to a hospital, she herself insisted that we bring her back to the flat so she would be able to recount the events to us in privacy. Mr Hudson had prepared an extraordinary meal for each of us but Miss Wilson managed to finish hers and had begun eating Shirleigh's leftovers.

"How are you feeling, Miss Wilson?" I asked, observing the way she moved.

"Oh, I feel so much better! Thank you so much for everything!" Her eyes lit up and then an apologetic expression took hold of her features. "And you can just call me Jana, it's totally fine! ...Um...I know you're a doctor and you wanted me to go to a hospital, but...I didn't think I could talk about what happened in one of those rooms. Hospitals kinda freak me out, to be honest..."

It used to make me glum, hearing about others' fear of hospitals, but after being rushed to such a place for my leg to be taken from me, I could understand the fear myself. But, should we not be confronting our fears rather than running from them? Easy for me to say...I cannot even bear thinking about a hospital room for too long.

"Um...if you don't mind," Jana's voice rang with determination even if she did hesitate and stutter every so often. "I could write down everything that happened. Writing comes to me more naturally than speaking. It's easier to say exactly what I want on paper than trying to express them through words."

"Of course," I acknowledged. "Take as much time as you need. We shall be here awaiting your account of the events."

Without a moment's hesitation, Shirleigh placed a singular sheet of parchment in front of Jana and held out a fountain pen. Jana nodded with the kind of resolve one needed to catch a criminal as she took the pen from Shirleigh's hands. She began to write with such profound vigour and concentration, that ink flicked across the parchment and even onto her face which she did not so much as acknowledge.

In a matter of minutes, the entire sheet of paper had been covered front to back with black ink and handwriting that was rushed yet tidy.

"I believe this is everything that happened," Jana said as she handed the paper to Shirleigh. "I was taking mental notes when something new would happen. I tried not to leave anything out, but you can ask me anything for clarification."

Shirleigh flipped the paper over and her eyebrows furrowed.

"Do you know who orchestrated all of this?"

"I have no idea," Jana shook her head. "Sometimes the employees would speak about their 'boss' but they never mentioned a name. But when I mentioned that someone came by to visit, there was somebody else with them and I definitely feel like that's the person responsible."

"But you never saw them?"

"No... It was about a week ago. I was barely able to keep myself upright by then. I'm afraid I don't remember what they were talking about either. Sorry..."

"This other person," Shirleigh continued. "Did you see them?"

Jana shook her head despondently, and then she suddenly sat up straight.

"But they were shouting," she told us. "I think they knew whoever was holding me down there. They definitely weren't happy. Their voice was feminine and even though she was mad, she sounded like a kind person."

"So there were two people having a row..." I mumbled to myself attempting to retain all of the information. "Thank you so much, Jana."

"Totally! I hope you find out who it is," Jana took on an angry countenance before her features lightened up. "Anyways, thank you so much for helping me out, I owe you both so much."

She stood up from the table and finally wiped the ink from her face.

"You're leaving?" I asked. "Are you feeling well enough?"

"Yup! I feel amazing! I'll definitely let you know if I need anything, doc. I've gotta get ready for work tomorrow!"

"Oh, about that," I started then shook my head at Jana's inquiring gaze. "Never mind. We'll talk again really soon."

She smiled and did a little hop and a wave before leaving.

"What an energetic girl," I sighed. "Do you mind if I read what she wrote as well?"

Shirleigh threw a glance at me before thrusting the paper in my direction. She then assumed her place at the mantle and began rapidly drumming her fingers.

"Hey, this mention of a honey-like smell could be a vital clue, don't you think?" I wondered staring at the parchment. "It could probably lead us to the people who were in the room with Jana on that strange day."

Silence. An eery silence.

"What's wrong?" I asked.

Shirleigh stopped her tapping and seemingly stared past the brick wall before her.

"Something's wrong..." she said.

"What do you mean?"

"I am unsure," she took a deep breath. "It feels as though someone led me to find her."

"Jana, you mean?"

She nodded.

"You think someone wanted you to find her?"

"The someone being the perpetrator."

"My word," I gasped. "You believe that whoever kidnapped Jana led you to find her? Was it the woman who owned that restaurant where we found her?"

"She was merely a pawn."

"A pawn?" I could feel quite the headache coming on. "So there is someone else behind this? Who? And...why...?

"I do not know," Shirleigh ruffled her hair. "Who and why, indeed."

I looked at the paper in my hands and I began to feel uneasy. The words seemed haunting somehow. Before the letter was merely an eyewitness account of a crime but as I reread it, it began to feel more and more like a warning.