“It’s true, it’s all true,� said our now-recovered visitor with a sob. “My name is Clara – Clara Wentworth. And I was on my way to deliver these proofs to my publisher when I got a call to inform me that – �Here, she broke into sobs.
“Courage, Mrs Wentworth, courage,� said Holmes. “What did the caller say?�
“Mr Holmes, he said that – that the novel was dead!�
I gasped. “Who is this villain?� I said. “The novel, that beloved form of so many, which has given succour to thousands, which has entertained, informed, created a sense of community, which –�
“Stop babbling, Watson,� interjected Holmes. “Rumours of the novel’s demise have been afoot for a while. But who was this caller?�
“I don’t know,� confessed Mrs Wentworth. “The voice was completely unfamiliar.�
…“Wait,� said Clara. “I think I could hear a woman in the background. High-pitched, strident – she seemed to be saying something about cats.�
Prufrock spins a great Sherlock Holmes tale !
Comments
Comments are closed on this post.