They returned to the black coach where Gideon Phillar instructed Maxwell to take them to his home and office, he climbed up into the coaches drivers box and released the brake and guided the four horse team into a wide turn away from Pemberton Row and onto Market Street they went two blocks, and then north on Hyde Street to 213 Blackpool Terrace. It was a long three-story blackened brick building at the end of town which even housed a private driveway with a separate coach house, with coachman's quarters. He had come from one of the wealthiest families in the entire region, but as a child he was simply a skinny sickly looking young boy, but as he grew, he became quite tall and muscular before he was sent to Becksford Academy where he would study to become a doctor. Dr. Gideon Phillar fresh out of school was already a wealthy man, and he purchased the building that would become his home and laboratory and office some twenty-four years ago. Now he was now a bit older and wiser and now, having discovered a curiosity and talent for calculation, deduction and mystery, he had added Detective to his resume.
They entered through the side entrance of the building, he lit an oil lamp just inside the door and he with Sebastian Mills in tow made their way down the darkened hallway to the study where he lit three more lanterns around the room, while Sebastian set about building a fire in the fireplace. Maxwell had followed behind with their luggage, Dr. Phillar instructed the driver to go to the kitchen to see the cook and have them set about making dinner, as it was still early on, and he was quite certain that Annie Greenstreet would still be awake. After the fire was lit, he sat down in his chair, putting tobacco in his smoking pipe. He stared into the fire for several minutes watching it dance across the logs, his eyes raised slowly to meet the curious stare of young Sebastian Mills, The cook Annie Greenstreet appeared at his side and announced that she had put a lamb roast in the wood oven in two and a half hours previous and dinner would be ready in an hour or so, he nodded and thanked her. She smiled and turned to leave, Sebastian had lit his own pipe and had become lost in thought as well.
"What is troubling you, Sebastian?" Dr. Phillar asked.
"What madman kills a woman in an alley, and makes good his escape, barefoot, in the rain?"
"Mmmm, and across a muddy field no less. So tell me, Mr. Mills, when you looked at the decedents body, what did it tell you?" Dr. Phillar asked.
"The tissue on her body seemed to be torn or ripped, rather cut by a surgeon's blade." Sebastian said.
Dr. Phillar took a slow drag on the pipe, his eyes never leaving the flames.
"Mmmmm, and he stabbed her five times, three in the heart, once in the liver and when she spun around and away from him, he stabbed her once more in the kidneys as she fell up against the wall. He stabbed her in three of her major organs in the failing light in a rainy alley with slippery footing."
Sebastian Mills cast him a sideways glance. listening to his every word carefully. Now Dr. Phillar's gaze had raised to his.
"This man, has at the very least a rudimentary understanding of anatomy." He said coldly.
"A medical doctor or surgeon perhaps?"
"Mmmmmm, no my instincts tell me different, we must visit the Grimsby Tavern in the morning Sebastian. I have questions that must be asked, come now, let us get some tea before dinner."
They dined on roasted lamb and potatoes and carrots with red wine and fresh baked bread. they all sat around the table and dined together, and although Annie Greenstreet thought it improper for a house servant to dine with the master of the home, Dr. Phillar thought of the situation differently, as he always had, he insisted that she join them at the table for dinner, to which, as usual she reluctantly agreed, after all, he had known Annie for a long portion of his life and he considered her a dear friend as well. He would instruct Annie Greenstreet to not leave the residence unless in the company of he, Sebastian or Maxwell, and to especially guard against it at night. At least for as long as the murderous fiend was on the loose, it wasn't safe for a woman of any age to be walking the city streets alone at night, even with that being said Pendergrass had vowed the day previous to double the patrols of the city watch, and with an increased presence of the patrolmen, it would make it increasingly difficult to catch the culprit in the act of committing murder. They all retired for the evening, Maxwell went outside and secured the coach house and gates to the driveway closed the shutters on all windows of the house before going to bed for the night.
The next morning they rose to a breakfast of eggs and bacon and fried potatoes with glasses of mixed juice, while Sebastian collected the morning paper, he walked to the breakfast table shaking his head and handed the paper to Dr. Phillar. the sprawling headline read: "Murder most Foul! Chief Inspector vows larger police presence on city streets!" As he read the headline, a growing look of concern came over his face. Sebastian made the observation that they were making the task of finding whoever was responsible much harder, providing their murderer knew how to read. After breakfast, he had Maxwell hook up the two horse buggy and he and Sebastian would be off to the Grimsby Tavern while Maxwell would stay behind with Annie, helping her with whatever she needed as she saw fit. Dr. Phillar and Sebastian climbed up in the seat of the buggy as Sebastian leaned forward and grabbed the reins, he prompted the animals forward, and soon they were through the gates Hyde street heading south toward Grimsby Tavern, All the way there, Gideon Phillar thought of many questions and to whom he would ask them. For a man as large as the one they were looking for, hiding from public view of any sort would be a task worthy of a ghost.
~Scratch A.B.T. copyright© 2022.~
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