Fic: Decoding the Message: G

[smallhobbit]

Title: Decoding the Message
Form/Word Count: 221B
Characters/Pairing:  Sherlock Holmes, Dr Watson, Mrs Hudson
Rating: G
Warning/Content: Holmes has received a message via the newspaper

 

“Excellent, I have a reply,” Holmes exclaimed.

I looked up from my book to see Holmes pointing triumphantly at the small ads page of the evening paper.  Holmes called me over to show me.

The gentleman who left something of value back of early omnibus number 7 please collect.

“I don’t see what that tells you,” I remarked.

“Read the initial letter of every second word,” he instructed.

I had managed to spell out G-L-O-B-E when he interrupted me to say, “The Globe public house at seven o’clock.  I must be off.”

He rushed out, leaving me still feeling quite bemused.  

Shortly afterwards, Mrs Hudson came upstairs and said, “Could you give this to Mr Holmes; we found it buried in the coal scuttle.”   She handed me the pipe Holmes had lost a few days earlier.  “You’ll find him in the public house over the road.”

I looked at her.  “Mrs Hudson, have you been leaving messages in the evening paper?” I asked.

She looked at me and said firmly, “Not I!”

It was clear she knew more than she was going to say, but there was no point in pursuing the matter.  It was then that I remembered Annie’s young man worked for the newspaper and sometimes created word puzzles for it.

I went to tell Holmes he’d been bested.