A Sherlock Holmes Case
Mr. Bennet adjusts himself on the seat, and takes a deep breath before starting his story.
"I work as Professor Presbury's secretary, and have been with him for many years. I am even married to his daughter, Edith, and I would consider the Professor and I to be quite close because of this. He is quite old, 61 years old in fact, and is engaged to a much younger lady, Alice Morphy. Yet, that has never bothered me or my wife, and does not seem to bother anyone else."
You take a mental note the age difference between the Professor and Alice, and motion for Mr. Bennett to go on.
"It all started after he came back from a trip that he told no one about before leaving. He left for a fortnight, and I only knew that he went to Prague after seeing a letter from a close family friend. When he got back, he was different, and everyone noticed it, even his loyal Irish Wolfhound. The dog started to attack him on occasion, without reason. We had to tie up the dog to keep him from hurting the Professor."
"Are you sure that the Professor has not been wearing anything different that could cause the dog's temper to be going crazy?" asked Watson. You only shake your head and chuckle to yourself a little to the comment. The dog has been loyal for a reason, and the Professor would never wear something to anger the dog if he liked the dog that much.
Mr. Bennett shook his head. "Not from what I can see or remember. He looks virtually the same to me."
With a bit of disappointment, Watson motioned for Mr. Bennett to go on, while sneaking a glance of annoyance at you for having laughed at him. Although it was funny, the behavior of the dog is important, and you take note of it.
"He also has some unique letters coming into the mail for him. They each have a cross under the stamp of the envelope, and he told me that I cannot and must not open these whatsoever. I trust him very much, but that has always been a part of my job as his secretary; to look at his mail. However, I obeyed because of my trust in him, and only passed those letters on to him, unopened. I never saw any return mail for them." Mr. Bennett paused for a second, hoping for some evaluation.
You keep on taking mental notes, but have not come up with any sort of hypothesis just yet. You motion for him to continue his story.
Mr. Bennett looks even more unsettled as he continues to the next part of the story. "This is when things get a little...out of hand. You see, he can still talk and teach like he normally does, and he is still as smart as ever. But, his behavior and mood changes so much while at home. He will have random mood swings, and has bizarre habits. One night, I was walking in the hallway, and I caught him crawling on all fours all the way down from his room. I tried to ask what was wrong with him, but he only swore at me."
Right then, the maid came in once again, this time with a woman. Mr. Bennett instantly recognized the face, and was surprised at her being here. He stood up but stayed where he was. "Edith? I told you I would be back home just a little later tonight. Is something wrong, dear?"
You automatically make the connection that she is Mr. Trevor Bennett's wife. You look at her suspiciously, trying to see if there is anything off about her. There seems to be nothing out of place.
Edith looks toward her husband with an apologetic look, but then faces you. "I have some information myself about what has been going on with my father. Please, take the time to listen?"
You look at Mr. Bennett, who does not oppose, and think for a moment before deciding. She is the daughter of the Professor, but maybe she only wants to see Mr. Bennett, or she wants to help her father out in some way.
You make your decision.
"I work as Professor Presbury's secretary, and have been with him for many years. I am even married to his daughter, Edith, and I would consider the Professor and I to be quite close because of this. He is quite old, 61 years old in fact, and is engaged to a much younger lady, Alice Morphy. Yet, that has never bothered me or my wife, and does not seem to bother anyone else."
You take a mental note the age difference between the Professor and Alice, and motion for Mr. Bennett to go on.
"It all started after he came back from a trip that he told no one about before leaving. He left for a fortnight, and I only knew that he went to Prague after seeing a letter from a close family friend. When he got back, he was different, and everyone noticed it, even his loyal Irish Wolfhound. The dog started to attack him on occasion, without reason. We had to tie up the dog to keep him from hurting the Professor."
"Are you sure that the Professor has not been wearing anything different that could cause the dog's temper to be going crazy?" asked Watson. You only shake your head and chuckle to yourself a little to the comment. The dog has been loyal for a reason, and the Professor would never wear something to anger the dog if he liked the dog that much.
Mr. Bennett shook his head. "Not from what I can see or remember. He looks virtually the same to me."
With a bit of disappointment, Watson motioned for Mr. Bennett to go on, while sneaking a glance of annoyance at you for having laughed at him. Although it was funny, the behavior of the dog is important, and you take note of it.
"He also has some unique letters coming into the mail for him. They each have a cross under the stamp of the envelope, and he told me that I cannot and must not open these whatsoever. I trust him very much, but that has always been a part of my job as his secretary; to look at his mail. However, I obeyed because of my trust in him, and only passed those letters on to him, unopened. I never saw any return mail for them." Mr. Bennett paused for a second, hoping for some evaluation.
You keep on taking mental notes, but have not come up with any sort of hypothesis just yet. You motion for him to continue his story.
Mr. Bennett looks even more unsettled as he continues to the next part of the story. "This is when things get a little...out of hand. You see, he can still talk and teach like he normally does, and he is still as smart as ever. But, his behavior and mood changes so much while at home. He will have random mood swings, and has bizarre habits. One night, I was walking in the hallway, and I caught him crawling on all fours all the way down from his room. I tried to ask what was wrong with him, but he only swore at me."
Right then, the maid came in once again, this time with a woman. Mr. Bennett instantly recognized the face, and was surprised at her being here. He stood up but stayed where he was. "Edith? I told you I would be back home just a little later tonight. Is something wrong, dear?"
You automatically make the connection that she is Mr. Trevor Bennett's wife. You look at her suspiciously, trying to see if there is anything off about her. There seems to be nothing out of place.
Edith looks toward her husband with an apologetic look, but then faces you. "I have some information myself about what has been going on with my father. Please, take the time to listen?"
You look at Mr. Bennett, who does not oppose, and think for a moment before deciding. She is the daughter of the Professor, but maybe she only wants to see Mr. Bennett, or she wants to help her father out in some way.
You make your decision.