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THE GREAT MOUSE DETECTIVE: THE CASE OF THE OUTWITTED DETECTIVEChapter II: "Irregular Opening"REVISED EDITION
Dramatised by Diane N. Tran

I approached the door with trepidation and, as I turned the handle, my mind raced over what lay beyond the threshold. I gingerly opened it and saw the unfortunate sight of a middle-aged valet whom shivered from head to toe. His fluffy side-whiskers were plastered against his ruddy cheeks, his trousers wetly clung to his knobby knees, and his ill-fitted overcoat, his collar pulled up high to shield himself from the elements, was splattered with stains, holding a small piece of paper in his gloved hand.

Basil's eager grin fled to an annoyed grimace at the sight of the ribston-pippin of a mouse, but ran his words courteously: "Excuse us, but we mistook you for someone else. How may we be of service to you?"

"Sorry to disturb you, sirs," said the manservant with a feeble sniffle, "but my master instructed me to deliver his note. He said it was urgent and also instructed me to wait for a reply."

Basil took the note causally; but upon reading it, his expression suddenly turned cross.

"What confounded impudence!" cried he, crumbling the paper and pitching it fiercely into the fire-gate. "I have no reply for him!"

"But, sir, he said I must have a reply from you."

"Tell your master that I will instruct a reply in due course."

"Very well, sir," replied the valet dourly who promptly left, tugging his collar of his uniform higher and tented it over his head.

Inquisitively, I dislodged the note from the iron prongs of the grate and read it:
BASIL:

YOU'RE UNEMPLOYED. STOP PLAYING WITH THOSE FILTHY CHEMICALS. THAT STENCH OF YOURS CAN BE SMELT ALL THE WAY UP TO QUEER STREET. DO EVERYONE A FAVOUR AND MAKE YOURSELF USEFUL FOR ONCE! STRAIGHTEN UP AND GET A REAL JOB!

STEPHAN-GODDARD.
My brow furrowed with an angered questioning: "Who is this?"

"He is a retired manufacturer who lives just across," the detective snorted with a sneer. "He is not particularly well liked among the populace and for good reason. You might have seen him. He is the most severe man, certainly not a gentleman, with large, grizzled moustache and perpetual scowl, who trudges around the walkways like a hungry troll. He's a tyrant to all who've met him. It seems that Mr. Stephan-Goddard believes his immense wealth gives him right to domineer his neighbours. Greet him at your peril, Dawson."

"I fear that I already had the displeasure. There was a man fitting that description insulted Granada over a mere trifle. I was one of a few that came to his aid to remove the brute from his shop. Our poor barber was inconsolable for hours. I wouldn't be surprised if all the mice along Baker Street would leap at a chance to swing at him."

"Indeed, you have said a mention of this incident before. I know I shouldn't take it too close to heart, Doctor; however—."

"Excuse me, gentlemen?" came a voice.

---

<< PREVIOUS - Chapter I: "Setting Up the Board"
>> NEXT - Chapter III: "Transposition"

Description
body div#devskin0 hr { }

THE GREAT MOUSE DETECTIVE: THE CASE OF THE OUTWITTED DETECTIVEChapter II: "Irregular Opening"REVISED EDITION
Dramatised by Diane N. Tran

I approached the door with trepidation and, as I turned the handle, my mind raced over what lay beyond the threshold. I gingerly opened it and saw the unfortunate sight of a middle-aged valet whom shivered from head to toe. His fluffy side-whiskers were plastered against his ruddy cheeks, his trousers wetly clung to his knobby knees, and his ill-fitted overcoat, his collar pulled up high to shield himself from the elements, was splattered with stains, holding a small piece of paper in his gloved hand.

Basil's eager grin fled to an annoyed grimace at the sight of the ribston-pippin of a mouse, but ran his words courteously: "Excuse us, but we mistook you for someone else. How may we be of service to you?"

"Sorry to disturb you, sirs," said the manservant with a feeble sniffle, "but my master instructed me to deliver his note. He said it was urgent and also instructed me to wait for a reply."

Basil took the note causally; but upon reading it, his expression suddenly turned cross.

"What confounded impudence!" cried he, crumbling the paper and pitching it fiercely into the fire-gate. "I have no reply for him!"

"But, sir, he said I must have a reply from you."

"Tell your master that I will instruct a reply in due course."

"Very well, sir," replied the valet dourly who promptly left, tugging his collar of his uniform higher and tented it over his head.

Inquisitively, I dislodged the note from the iron prongs of the grate and read it:
BASIL:

YOU'RE UNEMPLOYED. STOP PLAYING WITH THOSE FILTHY CHEMICALS. THAT STENCH OF YOURS CAN BE SMELT ALL THE WAY UP TO QUEER STREET. DO EVERYONE A FAVOUR AND MAKE YOURSELF USEFUL FOR ONCE! STRAIGHTEN UP AND GET A REAL JOB!

STEPHAN-GODDARD.
My brow furrowed with an angered questioning: "Who is this?"

"He is a retired manufacturer who lives just across," the detective snorted with a sneer. "He is not particularly well liked among the populace and for good reason. You might have seen him. He is the most severe man, certainly not a gentleman, with large, grizzled moustache and perpetual scowl, who trudges around the walkways like a hungry troll. He's a tyrant to all who've met him. It seems that Mr. Stephan-Goddard believes his immense wealth gives him right to domineer his neighbours. Greet him at your peril, Dawson."

"I fear that I already had the displeasure. There was a man fitting that description insulted Granada over a mere trifle. I was one of a few that came to his aid to remove the brute from his shop. Our poor barber was inconsolable for hours. I wouldn't be surprised if all the mice along Baker Street would leap at a chance to swing at him."

"Indeed, you have said a mention of this incident before. I know I shouldn't take it too close to heart, Doctor; however—."

"Excuse me, gentlemen?" came a voice.

---

<< PREVIOUS - Chapter I: "Setting Up the Board"
>> NEXT - Chapter III: "Transposition"