The Oriental Casebook of Sherlock Holmes (41 page)

“No charges were pressed?” asked Holmes.

“A thief is a thief is the common attitude here. The boy was found on the road outside Moran’s house and was taken to the local hospital. But he said nothing after his recovery and has since disappeared altogether.”

Vansittart spoke quickly in a low voice. Holmes did not reveal his own knowledge of Moran and his crimes, however, for fear that he should interrupt Vansittart’s account. In his mind’s eye, however, he returned instantly to the Reichenbach Falls in Switzerland, to the moment when Moran began throwing huge rocks down upon him.

“What else?” he continued. “He is an inveterate gambler, who plays constantly for high stakes. He rarely loses, but God help the winner, for Moran deals harshly with those who dare to best him. And he has a half sister, Franziska van Rhede, who aids and abets him in his crimes. Fortunately, she lives elsewhere, much of the time in Pondicherry, I believe, but visits him on occasion. I have never met her, but the natives are terrified of her, saying that she takes on the form of a gigantic bird of prey at will and goes soaring in the sky at sunset in search of victims.”

“Where is Moran now?”

“It is difficult to say. He rarely goes to Colombo these days, but spends most of his time camped at a place called World’s End. It is one of the most beautiful and dramatic places on the island. It is in the southern highlands, and is a kind of high plain, filled with the wild game that attracts him. At the end of the plain, however, is the most dramatic precipice in the world: a straight drop down of some five thousand feet. Moran hunts all day, feasts in the evening, and sleeps almost not at all. It is as if the inner cruelty dissipates somewhat in
shikar
. Otherwise, there would be more incidents like the one with the young burglar. Cruelty, gambling,
shikar
, high living. He needs constant replenishment of these nutrients, and he is not at all averse to criminal activity to meet his ends.”

Wellesley returned to the table at that moment, and Vansittart immediately changed the subject. “Perhaps,” he said, “the place for you to begin would be Pearl Town itself.”

“The Pasha wishes to speak to this gentleman,” said Wellesley.

“What about?” Holmes asked

“‘Archaeology. He seems to have noticed some similarities between the pyramids in Egypt and the ancient ruins of Ceylon.’”

“I shall be most happy to give him my views. By the way, Vansittart, please check the bottom of the Pasha’s tea cup before the bearer removes it. There is a message attached to it, I believe.”

Holmes left Vansittart with a surprised look on his face and went over to where the Pasha was sitting.

“Welcome to Ceylon, my dear professor,” said the Pasha. “I hope your stay is fruitful . . . and not too long.”

“I gather you would leave this paradise,” said Holmes.

“Earthly paradises are difficult for a devout Moslem,” he said with a smile, “and this one is more difficult than most. One of our great Arab travellers journeyed to India in the eleventh century. He begins his book by saying of the people in this part of the world that we have nothing to do with them and they have nothing to do with us. I am a man of the desert, who needs only enough water to keep alive and no more . . . but enough. Life has nothing for me now. My country is enslaved, and I, alas, shall never look upon the Nile again.”

Holmes studied the man closely as he spoke. Though he lacked for nothing as a prisoner, it was the very servicing of his needs that was destroying him. The Pasha was very thin, almost emaciated, and was clearly not in good health. His eyes were dull, his skin an unhealthy sallow colour, and Holmes judged that he consumed large amounts of opium, cocaine, and alcohol. Scars on what he could see of his arms supported this. He was obviously a weak and sickened man.

“You are destroying yourself with opium,” said Holmes.

The Pasha smiled. “You are right, but what of it? Before I came to Ceylon, I had never touched it, nor had I drunk a drop of liquor. Now, they are my constant companions, my only relief from the tedium and pain of exile. I cannot live without them. Yet, because of them I have terrible dreams. I flee from the wrath of Brahma through all the forests of Asia. Vishnu hates me, and Shiva lies in wait for me.”

“You know your De Quincey quite well,” said I.

The Pasha grinned. “At last a literate gentleman. Yes, I have much time to read, and De Quincey is a favourite.” He paused for a moment, and then said, “A French philosopher, perhaps the great Descartes himself, has asserted that one should travel in foreign lands but be mindful not to spend too much time away from one’s homeland lest one find oneself a stranger upon one’s return. It is now twelve years since I was separated from my people. My memory of them, of my own family, grows dimmer daily, and I am sure that few remember me. Surely by now I should be permitted to return.”

Holmes listened to this still proud man with great sympathy and said, “I cannot help you. I can only tell you what you already know: that your freedom can only be granted by Government after appeal of your sentence.”

The Pasha’s expression became more intense. “All appeals have failed to go beyond the Governor,” he said. “I cannot rely on the mercy of those who placed me here. But you, my dear sir, can help me. Or to speak more correctly, we can help each other.”

He looked Holmes directly in the eyes and said simply, “I have the pearl.”

Taken aback by his words, Holmes managed to conceal his surprise. The Pasha’s look also told him that he knew of his mission and his true identity. All of this had been told to him of course by Wellesley.

“I have been authorised to spend money for the pearl, not to bargain the release of a prisoner for it,” said Holmes.

“I am aware of that. We too have our sources of knowledge, and ways, devious at times, of learning things. Let me say that the pearl is a thing of incomparable beauty, and that my agents are prepared to deliver it to you in return for my release and safe passage to Egypt. If we cannot strike a bargain, we are prepared to deal with other governments with whom we are already in touch. My request is that you present my offer directly to those who have given you this mission and give me their reply. You are of course free to tell Vansittart or Governor Gordon the whole of our conversation.”

Here he smiled and said, “This might lead to my confinement in prison somewhere . . . or to my execution. In either case, the pearl will be sold to the highest bidder and the funds used against you in Egypt.”

Holmes returned to Vansittart and reported his conversation. Vansittart visibly paled at the suggestion that the Pasha be released in return for the pearl, but he agreed that the offer must be communicated to London.

“That is when I received your message,” interrupted Mycroft, who, during Holmes’s long account, had listened with great interest.

“Indeed, my dear Mycroft, it was precisely at this perplexing moment that I asked you to notify the colonial secretary. My message was brief: object of search located pending final confirmation, in the hands of agents of Arabi Pasha, who as owner demands his release in exchange. Ask authority to negotiate with Pasha, including granting his release, if necessary.”

“An urgent cabinet meeting was called,” continued Mycroft, “which, I am told, lasted well into the night. All the arguments for and against releasing the Pasha were enunciated, including the possible outcry in Parliament should the real reasons for his release be uncovered. Mr. Gladstone listened to all arguments and then stated his views. In anticipation of the success of the Holmes’s mission, he said, the plans for a new crown and title for the Queen had been initiated, and it would be most unfortunate if the pearl were not secured at this juncture. The Pasha was now in possession of the pearl, and of that there appeared to be little doubt. If the price was the Pasha’s liberty, then so be it. He had been exiled for over twelve years and his return to Egypt after so long a time posed no serious threat to British rule in Egypt. An act of clemency by the Prime Minister, on grounds of age and declining health, quietly reported in the papers would be enough to explain his release. When all was said and done, the Pasha might be more of a nuisance in exile in Ceylon than free in Egypt. There was no end to inimical parties, certain foreign powers that need not be mentioned, ready to strike a bargain with the Pasha and attempt to free him. Better free him than have him escape. Mr. Gladstone then added, to a resounding ‘Hear! Hear’ from the Cabinet, that ‘the saving of the one hundred thousand pounds that might have been expended for the pearl would have the firm support of the Chancellor of the Exchequer.’

“And so,” continued Mycroft, “the Colonial Secretary came to me at once, with the message that Sherlock be notified that he had the necessary authority to free the Pasha if he indeed thought that the best resolution of the matter.”

Holmes had returned to his Chetty Street hotel, where he awaited Gorashar’s return and the response from Mycroft. The latter was first to arrive. One of Vansittart’s orderlies brought the response from London. The Cabinet had agreed to the Pasha’s release but with conditions: once returned to Egypt, the Pasha would be under solemn oath not to engage in any public activity whatsoever. He was to remain a private citizen and to hold no public office. He would be allowed to leave Ceylon as soon as possible in the company of Mr. Sherlock Holmes and an adequate military guard. So that there would be no delay, arrangements had been made with the captain of the ship, the
Susannah II
, now at anchor in Trincomalee harbour, to wait for the arrival of special guests of Government. Mr. Holmes was authorised to carry the pearl with him. In Alexandria, he was to deliver it to General Gordon, who would see to its safe transfer to London. Mr. Holmes was also to be afforded every facility for his trip to England should he desire to return directly from Egypt. In a separate note, Vansittart said that the Pasha had agreed to all conditions and was already preparing his departure. Holmes wrote out a short note in reply, asking Vansittart to arrange their travel to Trincomalee.

“It was just after I read the message, Watson, that I became aware of a great commotion in the street below. A large crowd had assembled, mostly Tamilians, and stood in almost total silence. After a few moments a small group of them moved from the back of the crowd to the front. They were carrying two corpses lying on bamboo stretchers. Once they reached the front of the crowd, the procession moved rapidly down the street and out of sight, leaving the street almost deserted. At that moment, Gorashar appeared to inform me that the dead were Thyagamma and Nelusko, the finders of the pearl. They had been found brutally murdered in their rooms, and the sombre crowd was taking them to the shore for cremation.”

“No one seems to know when the murders occurred,” Vansittart said. “The bodies were found only a few hours ago. They had been stabbed and their faces horribly mutilated, as if the killer had been angered by something, perhaps by his inability to find the pearl. If the pearl was the motive, the two had been murdered needlessly, since they had already sold it to the Atkinson Brothers firm and no longer had it in their possession. There are no suspects.”

“Let us examine their rooms while the crowd is gone,” said Holmes. “Perhaps we may learn something.”

Gorashar took Holmes directly to the victims’ hotel, one far more run-down than his own. The lobby was dark, and empty except for a sweeper working in one corner. Holmes placed a fistful of rupees in the sweeper’s hand, and he took them directly to the rooms, no more than two small windowless cells on the second floor. There were beds but nothing else. Bloodstains were everywhere, but there was little sign of a struggle. Whatever little had belonged to the victims had been taken. The prints of bare feet were everywhere, and whatever clues might have been were destroyed by the many who entered after the bodies were discovered.

“We are too late. There is nothing to be learned here beyond the obvious,” said Holmes. He turned towards the sweeper. Putting a few more rupees into his hand, he asked him what he had seen. The sweeper said that in the dark of the previous morning, at about four a.m., two people entered the hotel dressed in Arab costume. The sweeper saw their faces: they were European, a man and a woman. They went directly up the stairs to the second floor, remained there for a few minutes, then came down and left in a run. He thought nothing of their coming and going since nocturnal traffic in the hotel is common enough during the pearl season. It was only after the bodies were found that he associated the two with the murder. When pressed, the sweeper could say little more than that one of those who entered was very tall. He added in a voice filled with fear that the face of the dead pearl fisher Nelusko had been covered with what looked like claw marks.

“Obviously, Watson, the bloodletting which I so feared but knew would associate itself with the Moonstar of Mannar had begun. Gorashar and I returned to my quarters. He repeated his judgement that the pearl had been sold before they were murdered and that it was now in Trincomalee. I told him of the Pasha’s claim.”

“The Pasha is telling the truth,” he said, “for the present owner of Atkinson Brothers is his agent and was here for two days bargaining for the pearl. He left with it while Thyagamma and Nelusko were very much alive. But who would have killed the two pearl fishers after the pearl was sold? Do you think the two seen by the sweeper are the murderers?”

“‘We do not know for sure,” said Holmes. “Learn what you can in the bazaar. Then follow me to Trincomalee.”

Gorashar left, and Holmes went directly to the circuit house. He spoke with the Pasha, who was ready to depart, and told him that they would leave as soon as Vansittart had finished arrangements.

There was no rail to Trincomalee from Pearl Town, so Vanmsittart arranged for horses and a small armed escort. For a part of the journey they also travelled by elephant. The trip took two days and was an unexpectedly grueling one. Several times they were forced to take long detours so as to avoid the rebels under Rama IV, the rebellious king who lived in the jungles north of Kandy, and in whose hands no Englishman was safe. A few times they caught sight of these rebels, dressed in dark green, armed with rifles and daggers. Despite the dangers, however, they arrived at their destination. Holmes and the Pasha went directly to the shop of the Atkinson brothers, called
Les Portes d’Argent
, or The Silver Doors. They were led into a large room where they waited for Abdul Latif, the Pasha’s agent.