No Place Like Holmes by Jason Lethcoe Read Free Book Online

unwrapped the sealed package inside his uncle’s satchel, he was sorely disappointed. Instead of delicious pastries or cheese or fruit, there were a couple of dried herrings and some kind of black, lumpy sausage that looked horrible.
    â€œBlack pudding,” his uncle said. “Blood sausage. It’s made from the blood of cows. You mother always loved it, so I thought you might too.”
    Griffin felt his stomach lurch. How disgusting! If this were what his uncle ate, it was no wonder he was always so short-tempered. However, Griffin was so hungry he thought he may as well give the food a try. He picked up one of the small fish by its tail and tried nibbling at its undersides.
    It was awful. But Griffin felt sure that as bad as it was, it had to be better than the black pudding. Somehow he just couldn’t picture his mother enjoying that, no matter what his uncle said. He ate as much of the fish as he was able, trying to imagine it was something else. But even with a photographic memory, he couldn’t force the image of a lovely sandwich of sliced chicken and cheese onto the greasy little fish.
    Finishing his strange meal, Griffin placed what remained of the fish and the untouched black sausage back in the satchel. While he had been eating, his uncle had been reading a copy of the London Times . After closing the leather satchel, Griffin noticed a small article on the front page of the paper that read,

    ROBBERY AT LIMEHOUSE DOCKS
    Police investigate the disappearance of imports arriving from China. The Shanghai Scorpion , a ship recently arrived from Hong Kong, bore several items of value for induction into the British Museum, including several ancient vases and some precious works of art given to Her Majesty from the Emperor.
    Police were relieved to discover the treasures untouched, but fifteen hundred kilograms of fireworks were reported missing. The circumstances around the disappearance remain a mystery. Police suspect that the fireworks robbery was carried out by eager celebrants of an upcoming Chinese holiday.

    â€œUncle, I mean, Mr. Snodgrass?”
    â€œWhat is it?”
    â€œDid you happen to read the article on the front page, the one about the robbery?”
    His uncle peeled down an edge of the paper and gave him a withering stare. “Of course I did. I read every section of the Times ,” he replied coldly.
    â€œDon’t you think that it sounds oddly suspicious?”
    â€œNothing outside of the ordinary, I assure you,” Snodgrass said, returning to his paper. “It is as the police said, probably a group of Chinese ruffians who are too poor to afford their own fireworks. I don’t have time to meddle with such trifling affairs.”
    â€œBut it is strange,” Griffin said. “After all, the robbers stole only fireworks and left the most valuable contents untouched. If they had stolen the Emperor’s treasure and sold it, they could have purchased as many fireworks as they wanted. Also, to steal over fifteen hundred kilograms of fireworks would require more than just a few people. Converting kilograms to pounds that would be . . .”
    Griffin did some quick mental calculations. “Three thousand three hundred pounds. That’s a lot of fireworks.”
    Rupert Snodgrass lowered his paper, and Griffin felt as though his uncle were seeing him truly for the first time. He thought for a moment that maybe he would concede that Griffin had a point; he seemed to be considering something. But then his countenance changed.
    â€œIt’s probably not as important as you think,” Snodgrass replied. Puffing out his chest, he said, “I have been a detective longer than you have been alive, boy. I may, out of necessity, have to bring you along on this investigation, but it does not mean that you are anything other than an observer. Please keep your opinions to yourself.”
    Griffin nodded absently, but he wasn’t really listening to his