Charlotte pushed open the door of 221B Baker Street. Inside, Mrs. Hudson was sitting on the sofa, knitting a scarf while flipping through a fashion magazine and humming a slightly off-key tune.
"Ah, Charlotte, welco ho." Mrs. Hudson set the magazine aside and greeted her with a smile.
"What are you doing?" Charlotte asked.
"? I'm knitting a scarf for you, dear." Mrs. Hudson smiled. "It should be ready by tomorrow or the day after, so you won't need to buy one."
Charlotte glanced at the ball of yarn and the fashion magazine on the chair, montarily at a loss for words.
"Thank you, Mrs. Hudson."
"You're welco, darling." Mrs. Hudson shook her head with a smile. "By the way, I baked so cookies. Would you like so?"
"Sure, I'll have a few. It'll help restore my blood sugar." Charlotte didn't refuse.
Mrs. Hudson plated so cookies for her and watched as Charlotte returned to her room. She then sat back down and resud her knitting.
The ticking of the wall clock echoed softly through the quiet room, a monotonous yet comforting lullaby.
So ti later, as the lingering glow of sunset stread through the windows, bathing the room in a warm orange hue, the familiar sound of the front door opening finally ca from downstairs.
When Russell pushed the door open, the first thing he saw was Mrs. Hudson knitting a scarf in the living room.
"Hello, Mrs. Hudson." He walked over, picked up a cookie, and popped it into his mouth. "Why the sudden urge to knit a scarf today?"
"It's for Charlotte." Mrs. Hudson sighed sowhat helplessly. "Russell."
"Hm?"
"I have a favor to ask." Mrs. Hudson stopped knitting and turned to him. "You said it yourself."
Russell nodded and took another cookie.
"When you have ti, please take Charlotte shopping for so proper clothes. Her closet is nothing but bathrobes, and she doesn't even own a decent thick coat. That simply won't do."
"Doesn't she have a trench coat?" Russell asked vaguely.
"Can that even be considered proper clothing?" Mrs. Hudson gave him an exasperated look. "This morning when she left the house, I nearly felt sick. If I hadn't stopped her, she would have gone out in that thin trench coat again."
"So what did you make her wear?" Russell's curiosity was piqued.
"Your clothes." Mrs. Hudson said calmly. "You two are about the sa size, so I went to your room and picked sothing out. It fits her perfectly."
Russell's chewing slowed for a mont.
"Mine?"
"What's wrong? If you mind…"
"No, no objection at all." Russell waved his hand. "I only have a couple of outfits anyway—I'm happy to give them to her. I was just wondering if she went into my room."
"No, I went in myself." Mrs. Hudson looked at him with the eyes of soone who had seen it all. "Don't worry. I understand that teenage boys need a certain amount of privacy."
"In a way… you're right." Russell nodded and breathed a sigh of relief.
I need to find ti to hide those things.
This room isn't very safe… I should see if I can turn that great gadget into nano-tech armor for my phantom thief costu.
Wiping his hands, he continued, "I'll take her shopping for clothes one of these days. But I probably won't have ti for a while."
"That's fine. Do what you think is best, but do it soon." Mrs. Hudson glanced out the window. "It's been getting colder lately. Before we know it, it'll be Christmas."
"I know." Russell replied, then carried the half-empty plate of cookies upstairs.
Charlotte was still curled up in the large armchair, wearing her usual bathrobe and deeply absorbed in reading the ledgers.
Russell was still in the clothes he had worn all day, showing no intention of changing.
Hearing the door open, Charlotte looked up at him. She noticed his gaze on her outfit and tensed slightly.
"This… Mrs. Hudson told to wear it first." She explained sowhat awkwardly. "I wanted to go to Fleet Street, but she absolutely refused to let go out in that trench coat."
"I can understand that." Russell nodded lightly and casually placed the biscuit he was holding on the table. "Wearing that thin trench coat in this awful weather would be unbearable."
"But I never expected Mrs. Hudson to pick out one of my sets for you…"
He paused, his eyes lingering for a mont on Charlotte's slightly oversized black coat and gray sweater before giving his honest assessnt.
"Not bad. It suits you well."
"Really?" Charlotte averted her eyes from his face and pretended to focus on the ledger in her hands again. "Your sense of aesthetics was surprisingly good this ti."
"You can keep it if you like," Russell said, pulling out a chair and sitting across from her as he picked up a cookie. "Mrs. Hudson asked to take you shopping for new clothes when I have ti. That way you won't have to keep wearing the trench coat all winter."
"We'll see how it goes."
Charlotte continued to avoid giving a clear answer.
The two chatted casually. Russell took the opportunity to tell Charlotte about what he had felt at school that day.
Charlotte then shared the information she had gathered on Fleet Street and the existence of the two ledgers.
"I see," Russell concluded after listening. "So the one who spread that ssage on Fleet Street was Hannigan's servant?"
"Probably one of the people I called in for questioning at the ti." Charlotte said, swinging the ledger in her hand. "Of course, that's not particularly important. This is what really matters."
"Hannigan's ledger."
Russell understood at a glance what it was.
"Mhm." Charlotte nodded lightly. "If we're going to start investigating his personal connections, this list is the most effective starting point."
"So they've been ruled out?"
Charlotte nodded. "Did Mary say when the article would be published?"
"Well, if she goes to The Guardian tomorrow, it should appear the day after."
"Friday," Russell said.
"No need to rush. We still have one more day."
"One day is enough for to verify everyone listed in the ledger one by one," Charlotte said.
After a brief pause, Charlotte seed to rember sothing and added casually, "Oh, right. Once we find the culprit, let's go to The Tis together."
"What for?" Russell asked, puzzled. "Are you planning to sell the information to them?"
"They'll have to pay so price if they want us to talk, won't they?" Charlotte shrugged. "The editor-in-chief of The Tis made a deal with ."
"What? You're selling the information directly to them?"
"That's just one part of it." Charlotte said. "I also have to participate in an interview."
"Our interview?" Russell frowned. "Are you sure that's okay?"
"Mhm." Charlotte nodded firmly. "Henry Scott himself said so."
…
…
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