A few days later, another murder occurred near Mayfair.
Like the first case, the victim was a young aristocratic lady. She had been stabbed dozens of times, her throat slit, and her abdomen disemboweled. The murderer was extremely cruel and bloody.
Historically, Jack The Ripper's crimes had always been committed in the East End of London. In the 19th century, the East End of London was a crowded slum. Most of the residents were poor people and immigrants who worked as coolies for a living. Jack The Ripper's victims had always been prostitutes at the bottom of society.
And this imitator, who was suspected to be from the 21st century, had targeted Mayfair, which was the complete opposite of the East End. The victims had also changed from prostitutes to young aristocratic ladies.
So, one could imagine the impact of such vicious crimes occurring continuously in the heart of London.
Darcy wanted Anne and Georgiana to leave London.
Georgiana didn't object. She only said that she would go wherever Anne went.
Anne was a little hesitant. The time stone had been in her hands for nearly two weeks, but there was still no reaction. She had been away from Rosings for almost a month. Her mother had written several times to urge her to go back. Especially after the murder in Mayfair, if she didn't leave, her mother would personally come from Rosings to take her back.
This was the first time Anne had been away from home for such a long time.
The same problem was placed in front of her again. She couldn't stay in London forever.
Unless she married in London.
When this idea popped into her mind, Anne was almost scared to death.
God! What was she thinking!
Anne sighed. No matter what, she really should go home. She also missed Rosings very much.
She finally agreed to Darcy. She and Georgiana would go back to Rosings first. After Darcy finished dealing with business matters in London, he would go to Rosings to pick them up and go to Pemberley for a short stay.
Georgiana was very happy with this arrangement, because it meant that she could spend a lot of time with Anne.
At night, Anne stood in front of the window, looking at the swing on the lawn outside. The white hanging chair was silent under the starry sky.
Tomorrow, she would bid farewell to Shylock.
Annie had always felt that she wasn't a stubborn person who would force things. If you can't get something, you have to let it go. Being stubborn and conflicted will only add to your troubles, and it won't change the final result.
Even if it was an illness from her previous life, after the initial despair and pain, she chose to accept it calmly.
It seemed that she had never met anything or anyone that she absolutely had to have.
This was the first time.
She couldn't stop thinking about someone. However, he was also very clear that this person would not be his. He didn't even belong to her world.
This was really a sad thing.
It wasn't the kind of intense pain, but the kind of unending sadness.
Anne stood in front of the window for a long time until a knock on the door interrupted her thoughts.
"Please come in." Anne took a deep breath and said softly.
A small head popped in from the door.
Anne smiled. It was Georgiana.
"Can I sleep with you tonight?" A sixteen year old girl in a nightgown stood outside the door and asked pitifully.
Because of the recent murders, everyone in the Hôtel de Boer was in a state of panic. Even many of the maids had asked for leave to return to their hometowns.
Anne nodded. The little girl's face immediately revealed a bright smile. She ran briskly to Anne's bed, lifted the thin blanket, and crawled in.
"Anne, are you scared?" Georgiana laid on the bed, only her small head sticking out. She looked at Anne and asked.
"A little." Anne walked to the bed and sat down. "But I think that as long as we don't go out alone, we should be safe. And I believe that the murderer will be caught soon. "
Georgiana suddenly asked, "Is it that detective we met the other day? You think he can catch the murderer? "
Hearing her suddenly mention Shylock, Anne was startled. Then she smiled and said, "Yes. Mr. Holmes is an amazing detective. He'll definitely catch the murderer. "
The dim yellow candlelight on the bedside candlestick flickered. The smile on Anne's face was warm and gentle.
Georgiana looked at her thoughtfully. "Anne, are you in love with him?"
Anne's breathing stopped for a few seconds.
Georgiana asked again, "Are you in love with this Mr. Holmes, Anne?"
Anne looked at the candlelight on the bedside and was slightly lost in thought.
She said softly, "Love is too deep a word. I think I just like him a little. "
"Then does he know?" Georgiana asked with her beautiful brown eyes.
Anne shook her head. "He doesn't know."
"Don't you want to tell him?"
"…" Anne opened her mouth, but didn't know how to answer.
She shook her head and chuckled. She didn't know if she was laughing at herself or at him.
"He doesn't belong to our world, Georgiana." In the end, Anne said, "He's too far away from me. Soon he'll leave London and never come back. So, whether he knows or not, whether I tell him … it doesn't matter. "
"You're very sad." Georgiana reached out a hand from under the blanket and held Anne's finger comfortingly.
Anne smiled. "Well, I think I'll be sad when he leaves. But it'll pass. Time will help me heal all wounds. "
"Poor brother," Georgiana whispered.
"What?" Anne didn't hear it clearly because it was too soft.
Georgiana suddenly announced, "I said, I don't like him!"
Anne was a little surprised. Georgiana had a simple and pure personality. Anne had never heard her say that she hated someone.
"Why?" Anne asked with interest.
Georgiana answered seriously, "Because he'll take you away."
What a child.
Anne patted her cheek gently and said, "Don't worry, he won't take me away, and I won't go with him. You, Darcy, and mother are all here. I won't go anywhere. "
Georgiana thought for a while and finally said, "But I've decided to hate him!"
Anne couldn't help laughing. "Okay. You can hate him. "
At this time, neither of them thought that Georgiana's words really came true.
.
Anne suddenly woke up in the middle of the night.
The exquisite silver candlestick at the head of the bed had burned out. With the weak moonlight shining in from the window, Anne saw Georgiana sleeping soundly beside her.
Anne breathed a sigh of relief. She couldn't remember if she was woken up by a nightmare. In fact, she couldn't even remember if she was dreaming.
It was really depressing. Usually, if she woke up at this time, she wouldn't be able to fall asleep again.
The night in the 19th century was no different from the night in the 21st century. It was quiet and deep, as if the whole world was immersed in sleep.
But Anne still felt that something was wrong.
After a while, she finally realized what was wrong.
Before falling asleep, she had drawn the curtains. It was impossible for moonlight to shine in. Moreover, the light seemed to be green …
Annie abruptly sat up on the bed. Indeed, in the opposite corner of the room, there was something silently emitting a green glow.
Anne gently got up and walked over barefoot to pick up the gemstone necklace.
There was no reaction for two weeks, but now it suddenly started to glow. Why?
Anne held it in her hand and looked at it for a while. Then she held her breath and looked around the room in the dark, as if she was hoping to see a door of time suddenly open somewhere.
But it only glowed. There was nothing else unusual.
Anne sat like this, holding the glowing gemstone for the whole night. At dawn, she immediately asked the coachman to prepare the carriage and went straight to Baker Street.
After greeting Mrs. Hudson who opened the door, Anne tried to calmly walk through the stairs to the second floor.
"Shylock …"
Her voice came to an abrupt stop. She found that in addition to Shylock and Watson in the living room, there was also an unfamiliar middle-aged man wearing a hat.
"Anne." Shylock didn't move from the sofa and casually glanced at her panic. This was rare for Anne. After all, this young girl who had just turned eighteen was quiet and gentle all day long, as if she was eighty years old.
"Sorry," Anne said apologetically. "I didn't know you had guests."
Shylock said calmly, "There are no guests. This is Officer Lestrade. "Then he said to Lestrade," Anne De Boer. "
Lestrade took off the hat on his head and nodded politely. "Miss Deboer."
Anne was a little surprised. She actually forgot about Shylock's crew, the "beauty" of Scotland Yard, Inspector. She really shouldn't have.
Seeing her expression, Shylock reminded her calmly, "Not that Lestrade."
Huh??
Anne was even more surprised after she understood. This is the 19th century local Inspector Lestrade? Oh, no, he's still just a police officer.
Poor Lestrade was bewildered. "I'm Lestrade," he said, "and I'm Lestrade. Do you know any other Lestrade? "
Shylock directly ignored this stupid and boring question.
Anne patiently explained, "I also know a Lestrade …" She swallowed the word "Inspector" from her throat. "He's a very upright and respectable gentleman." And he was one of the few people who gave Shylock trust and respect.
Shylock was still sitting on the sofa, thinking about the case, multitasking while listening to her. His beautiful gray-green eyes glanced at Anne with a very dissatisfied expression. Was she willing to compliment anyone?
Lestrade was interested in Anne's words. "I hope there will be a chance to meet this gentleman with the same name as me in the future."
Anne smiled and didn't say anything. She couldn't help with this.
"I don't think we need to wonder why Scotland Yard's solving rate is so low in the future," Shylock leaned on the sofa, his face gentle and his voice low, but his words were the complete opposite. "Because compared to solving cases, your officers obviously prefer to chat."
This wasn't the first time Lestrade worked with Shylock, so he knew more or less about his character and knew that it was best not to speak at this time.
There was a moment of silence in the room. Watson looked at the slightly embarrassed Anne and then turned to Shylock on the sofa. The latter still looked indifferent and calm.
The doctor felt deeply helpless for his roommate's low EQ.
Anne was quiet for a moment, then said softly, "I'm sorry, I didn't know you were discussing the case. Sorry to disturb, I …"
She glanced in the direction of the door and decided to leave first and come back another time.
Shylock looked at her sideways. What did it have to do with her? Why was she apologizing?
Not wanting to waste time on such a boring question, Shylock interrupted her and raised his hand to point at the sofa in the living room. "Sit there."
Anne pursed her lips and looked at him quietly without saying anything.
Shylock frowned, and the expression on his face was already a little impatient.
Anne sighed silently. She walked to the sofa Shylock just pointed at and sat down quietly.
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