'Obviously you spotted the two quite readily.'
'As we left the Bristol Kempinsky. I will confess their presence was a surprise, Watson. It. would seem reasonable to assume that they followed us from London. The puzzling question is where did they originally pick us up!'
I was baffled, nothing new to Holmes, and he continued. 'Considering recent events, had the two Chinese been watching Baker Street I would have certainly become conscious of their presence.'
'I don't see what you are getting at.'
'Simply that it is almost as if they knew we were coming to Berlin. I'm most curious as to how they, or more realistically the man giving them their orders, were privy to that information.'
Holmes's musings came to an end as we were at the door of a fairly sizeable residence. We were in a good neighborhood, but this domicile in comparison to its neighbors warranted the rating of modest, a fact which Holmes seemed to find strange as he activated the ornate knocker on a stout oaken door. -
'Watson, I expect a little more than this. Collecting objects of art is an occupation reserved for affluent members of society. Possibly, the gentleman is a dealer though I think we should have been given a business address were that the case.'
A fairly young man with burly shoulders and a swarthy face, who was dressed in livery, answered the knock and Holmes presented his card. We were ushered into a small main hall area. The beamed ceiling was two stories high, the walls were paneled in dark wood, and candlelight was necessary since the windows of the residence were small—not unlike those of a monastery or, indeed, a Rhine castle.
Having secured our coats and hats, the butler absented himself, mounting curved stairs that led from the hall to the second story area. He reappeared shortly thereafter to usher us up the same stairs. It occurred to me that the man might not speak English since he had not uttered a word since our arrival. His features were broad and, in conjunction with his swarthy visage, gave me the feeling that he was Turkish or Croatian.
A door on the landing led to a sizeable room in which a large fire was burning brightly. Though the day was sunny, the air was cold and I welcomed the heat provided by the burning logs.
A figure arose slowly from a tapestried chair by the fire as the silent retainer closed the door behind us. The man was at least six feet tall with craggy, overhanging features. Dark eyes were sunk deep in a face that seemed oversized and out of proportion. His nose was thick and his lips were broad and pendulous.
'Ah, Mr. Holmes,' he said, in a very low but pleasant voice. 'When Achmet brought your card it was a surprise indeed, though a welcome one. This, of course, is Doctor Watson,' he added, as his dull eyes swiveled toward me. 'Do be seated, gentlemen, and tell me what brings you to Berlin.'
As he waved us toward available chairs, I noted that his hands were very large and knobby and his feet were oversized as well. He was terribly stooped and presented a brooding, almost ominous picture, which was belied by his cordial manner.
While his question as to our presence must have puzzled Holmes, as it did me, the sleuth gave no evidence of it. He was intent on sizing up the man and his surroundings and I knew that every wrinkle in that seamed face was being printed on Holmes's photographic mind. He certainly knew, as did I, that D'Anglas suffered from a serious ailment. The man's unusual appearance was not natural, nor was the effort that every movement seemed to cost him. He did not give one the impression of weakness but rather seemed like a wounded elephant. Suddenly, I thought I knew the source of his suffering.
Comfortably seated, Holmes approached the question in both our minds in a circuitous fashion. 'As you were informed in a letter from Nils Lindquist, I have . . .' —Holmes corrected himself with a gesture to include me—'we have taken over the search for the Golden Bird.'
D'Anglas was nodding slowly. 'The gentleman explained the situation to me in detail as well as his ill health. I was most unhappy to hear of his death.' He paused for a lengthy moment as though in deference to the departed and then continued in a brisker tone. 'However, I would be hypocritical if I did not admit to being delighted that you, Mr. Holmes, and your associate have accepted the case. With all deference to Mr. Lindquist, had I felt that I could afford your not inconsiderable fee, I would have approached you originally.'
'In the field of art objects, Nils Lindquist was most qualified, as I'm sure you know,' responded Holmes promptly.
Our host nodded in a ponderous manner and then a spark of cunning crept into his deep-set eyes. 'I was given to understand that your services are included in the original financial arrangement I made with the late Lindquist.'
The man's tone was tentative but Holmes waved the matter aside with an impatient gesture. He hated to discuss business and while he had the reputation of charging enormous fees for his incomparable services, I well knew of the myriad cases which he had undertaken simply for the interest that they prompted in him.
'Nils Lindquist had made some discoveries in the matter of the missing golden object and I have been able to pick up parts of the trail he was following.'
For reasons of his own, Holmes did not choose to mention Barker, the Surrey investigator, and his sad end.
'No doubt you can fill in a few pieces in this puzzle,' continued Holmes. 'But, first, do we understand that our visit today surprised you?'
'I guess not,' was the reply. 'Correspondence can hardly equal a personal confrontation. Do allow me to provide any facts at my disposal.'
Holmes leaned back in his chair thoughtfully and directed a quick glance in my direction. Evidently, a suspicion of his had been confirmed.
'Mr. D'Anglas, did you not send me a cable in London requesting Dr. Watson and myself to come here to Berlin?'
The thick skin of the man's face twitched and his expression of surprise was a quick thing in comparison to his previous ponderous movements.
'I certainly did not, sir.'
'There has been no recent news, no event that has cast light on the disappearance of your possession?' persisted Holmes.
'None at all. But this telegram? ...'
'Was signed with your name. No great problem, that. But it presents interesting grounds for speculation. I must assume that Doctor Watson and I were decoyed away from London. Therefore, something is going to happen there, probably already has, that is connected with this case.'
D'Anglas was nodding again. A sharp note of interest livened his slow and pedantic speech. 'This bogus telegram, if it was to serve the purpose you suggest, certainly indicates that the Bird is in London.'
'And that someone involved with the Bird knew not only that you had instigated a search for it, but that I was involved.'
'My interest in locating it is obvious since I am the legal owner. However, before you ask, let me state that I have not mentioned your taking over the case to anyone.'
'Yet someone knew,' I said.
D'Anglas looked at me in surprise as though he had forgotten my presence.
'An immediate question,' said Holmes. 'After the Bird disappeared in Constantinople, you secured the services of an art expert in England. What prompted that move?'
'The current market in art. The Golden Bird is a well-known piece. The finest private collections these days are in England. I assumed that the Bird was stolen not for the worth of the gold but for its appeal to a collector.'
'Which answers, in part, another question,' commented Holmes. 'An object of that size would weigh, I assume, in the vicinity of three pounds.'
'Two pounds, seven ounces.'
'Hmmm,' said Holmes, calculating mentally. 'Thirty-nine ounces, then.'
'Actually thirty-one, Mr. Holmes. Troy ounces are the weight measure used for gold and there are twelve troy ounces to a pound.'
'Interesting,' commented the sleuth who was seldom corrected on a technical matter. 'With the finest gold at certainly no more than six English pounds per ounce, we have an object whose metal value would be around one- hundred and eighty-six pounds. Less than a thousand American dollars.'
