"The Widow" Bertha

What happened next at Mr. Lancaster's estate had little to do with Bertha.

Dr. Lange and Colonel Dent were taken away by Mycroft Holmes' people. As for the "cooperative alliance" suddenly reached between Holmes and Mr. Lancaster, Bertha could not and was not interested in intervening.

Having gained so much at once, Mycroft will definitely be very busy in the days to come.

But he still did his duty as a gentleman, and personally sent Bertha back to No. 23 South Bank Street.

When the unmarked carriage returned from the town to downtown London, night had already enveloped the sky.The gray mist is like a thin shell, covering this prosperous but dirty city.

It wasn't until the carriage stopped that Mycroft, who was sitting opposite Bertha, moved his palm resting on his cane, and then raised his eyes.

The four eyes met, and the dark compartment was silent and cold, which was almost a replica of the time spent alone after the banquet that night.

It was Mycroft who finally broke the silence: "I'm sending you here, ma'am, even though our time together is short, I will miss it very much."

This time, he not only seized Colonel Dent's handle, but also grasped the evidence that the cabinet minister also belonged to the Truth Society. Mycroft achieved his goal. As a result, Bertha did not continue to live in Pall Mall Street. reason.

A "murder case" ended, and for Holmes in front of him, his intimate lover "Miss Marple" naturally turned back into "Mrs. Thames".

Bertha had no objection to this. In fact, she preferred the latter of the two identities—it was much more free to be a widow in Victorian times than to be an unmarried lady.

only……

"You made a lot of money, Mike," Bertha said calmly. "Not only did you get hold of Sir James Ward, but you also 'wooed' Mr. Lancaster, the Keeper of the Seals."

When she uttered the word "wooing", her hoarse voice was subtly drawn out, and there was a bit of sarcasm in it.

Mycroft laughed when he heard this: "Why do you have to distinguish so clearly, ma'am? The benefits I earn are naturally yours too."

Bertha's dark golden eyes were bent, as if she was benefiting from it, she didn't say much about it.

She picked up the skirt: "Just send it here, Mike. Thank you for making a special trip. It's so late, go home early and rest."

"Need a goodnight kiss?"

"..."

When Holmes' words fell to the ground, the Jamaican girl in front of her got up and wanted to leave. Hearing his voice, she just turned her head slightly, giving Mycroft a beautiful side profile arc.

Then she hooked the corner of her mouth: "Sweet dream."

But he never stayed in the carriage for half a minute.

Bertha admitted that she was a little upset. The upset was that she ran and ran to solve the problem in front of her. Although she got the result she wanted, the real winner was Mycroft Holmes.

What did he do?He found an excuse, moved his pen, and invited the person who invited him to someone else's manor.

Bertha thought that he was going to sell the Lord Seal to some extent, but she didn't expect that Mycroft actually found a fault and tricked him.Looking at it this way, it’s no wonder that he agreed with Bertha’s proposal. It wasn’t connivance or spoiling. It was just that the moment Bertha mentioned the “Secret Chamber Murder Case”, his mind had turned to calculating Mr. George Lancaster. that step.

He is sitting in front of the chessboard, and everyone, even Bertha, is regarded as a chess piece by Holmes.

This made Bertha unhappy, of course, but it didn't affect anything.

At most, it was just like now, losing the mood to flirt with him for a while.

And when Bertha came home at last, the episode brought by Mycroft could no longer affect her mood—

"—Who did you say recommended you?"

Bertha never expected that besides her unrelated "brother" Thomas Thames, there was another strange young man waiting for her at No. 23 South Shore Street.

After listening to Mickey's self-introduction, Bertha showed some surprise: "Charlie Berry?"

The young man in front of him clenched his hat tightly.

One afternoon was enough for Mickey to learn about Mrs. Thames' behavior from Thomas, but...Thomas Thames never said that his eldest sister is so beautiful!

When ordinary people see someone who is too beautiful or handsome, they will always be polite in their hearts, but Mrs. Thames sitting on the sofa is not only beautiful, but also aggressively beautiful, which makes Mickey feel a little timid when he hears her talk Li: "Yes, yes madam, I was recommended by Little Charlie."

"It's true," Bertha couldn't laugh or cry, "You said your name was Mickey?"

"Yes."

"Where are you from?"

"I'm from London. My family's grandparents have been in London for generations. Of course, I live alone now. I have no relatives, no reason, and I am not married. My home is-"

"Well," said Bertha, dumbfounded, "that's enough, Mickey."

It’s okay to report the home address within five sentences. Looking at the honest young man in front of her, Bertha can somewhat understand why Charlie Berry recommended Mickey.

She needs a coachman, not for discounts, but a coachman, like a child wandering on the street, is tantamount to an "invisible person" on the street.They are ubiquitous, yet often overlooked, with a unique source of intelligence.

As for the people who work for Bertha, Thomas is smart enough, Sykes is philistine enough, and "Can't Catch" and Charlie Berry are children, just lacking such an honest person.

The point is that he is also very young. Bertha likes to use young people, without so many twists and turns, and given a chance, she can realize her greatest potential.

"I'll just say it straight, Mickey."

Seeing the sincere eyes of the young coachman, the last subtlety brought by Mike in Bertha's heart disappeared.She leaned back on the sofa generously: "I'm not a good person, and I won't be a good person. So in the future, you may be asked to do more things like follow Colonel Dent and ask for useful clues. You Do whatever you want with your friends, and I won’t force you if you don’t want to.”

Bertha's words fell to the ground, and Mickey showed a somewhat hesitant look on his face.

She nodded: "If you have something to say, I hate it when others cover it up."

Mickey then said: "With all due respect, ma'am, you want the coachmen to do things for you, what benefit can you give us?"

When he asked, even Thomas laughed.

"Don't worry about that," Thomas said, "Madame is so generous with herself that she doesn't even worry about what clothes I wear."

"How dare you say it!"

Bertha smiled and glared at Thomas. The young Thames was also handsome, wearing a well-tailored suit, he looked like a decent college student in the nineteenth century, but he insisted on dressing like a vagabond That's good.

"You helped me run errands and deliver letters today, so your reward is naturally indispensable," Bertha said happily, "but apart from that, I have other benefits for you."

"benefit?"

"I guarantee that from tomorrow onwards, your friends will be my friends. You are protected by the Thames, and they are naturally protected by the Thames. As much as the Thames has, it will use some of its ability to help the coachmen solve their problems. Some people bully you , find Thames; someone drives you, find Thames, if you get into trouble, as long as I can do it, I will come forward to uphold justice, how about it?"

For an ambitious person, perhaps Bertha's words would have already made his heart surge.But Mickey is not a person on the road, and empty promises are not as cost-effective as the phrase "you get paid for running errands".

The same goes for other drivers.

If you pay attention to the street situation for your wife, you can have a few more cigarettes and a few sips of wine. Such good things will continue in the future. Mickey thought about it and felt that his colleagues would also be happy to do things.

"In that case," said the young man neither humble nor overbearing, "then let's cooperate first, ma'am."

"it is good."

Bertha likes this kind of down-to-earth person, she smiled: "Thomas will pay you for running errands."

When her words fell, Thomas pointed to Mickey outside: "I'll take you out."

As for what he told Mickey again, that was Thomas' own business.

At this time Miss Jane Eyre has not returned—her luggage is still in the hotel in Northfield Town, and she will not return home with her maid Grace Poole until tomorrow when she checks out.

and……

Before Bertha left, she clearly saw Rochester stopping Jane, and seemed to have something to say.

Before the cabinet ministers tried to snatch the letter from Miss Jane Eyre, it was a hero in Rochester who saved the bewildered young Jane.

It was a good deal for him, and he hugged the girl in his arms.

With this sympathy to save the crisis, Miss Jane Eyre still wants to thank her former employer to some extent.

I hope that Rochester can perform supernormally and stop making things stiff.

It's just that Miss Jane Eyre is not at home right now, and the huge mansion looks empty. I really don't know how she survived when she lived alone before.

Fortunately, it didn't take long for Thomas to come back.

The young man who entered the door did not forget to close the door. He was still wearing the beige coat without a single button, looking casual and suave.But who would have thought that this young man who looks like a prodigal son actually has so many children with his family?

Maybe it would be nice to take over some little Thames, Bertha thought wildly in her heart, she likes lively places.

As soon as Mickey left, Thomas became more casual. He didn't need Bertha to greet him, and he sat opposite Bertha: "Ma'am, you rewarded Mickey. What about the postman?"

Bertha snorted: "Mycroft's man, let him reward himself. Where is Dr. Lang now?"

Thomas: "Well, Mr. Holmes has taken it."

The "Sherlock Holmes" in his mouth naturally refers to Sherlock Holmes.

Bertha suddenly became interested: "It seems that Little Shelly asked something."

Thomas frowned slightly when he heard the words: "This... I don't know either."

"You don't know either?"

"Yes."

Thomas looked a little guilty: "The plan was a success. Sykes took people to the second floor of the bar. Mr. Holmes changed the upstairs room that hadn't had time to be decorated into a secret room. He wanted to trick Dr. Lange. But I didn't expect..."

"how?"

"I didn't expect Dr. Long to collapse when he saw the mural on the wall. He said something that I couldn't understand at all, but Mr. Holmes thought it was very useful. If you care, why not...ask yours lover?"

"Ask him what he does," Bertha said indifferently, "Send a telegram to Shelly."

"I sent someone to erase the murals in the hotel."

Mentioning those murals, Thomas showed a bit of disgust.

Knowing that he is sensitive to this aspect, Bertha couldn't help laughing: "Wipe it, and find someone to renovate it."

The bar next door has been refurbished for so long, and it can be regarded as coming to an end.According to the date, the upstairs hotel room will be finished within two weeks, and it is time to find a person in charge of the bar.

Bertha put this matter on the agenda from the bottom of her heart: "You should go back early, don't keep the children waiting, just remember to send a telegram."

Thomas didn't stay for long, and got up immediately: "Good night, madam."

After saying goodbye, he left the mansion, and before taking two steps, he almost bumped into the hasty postman.

"Mr. Thames," the postman was surprised, "you are leaving so late?"

"you……"

Thomas looked at him suspiciously—he just ran to the town to deliver the letter in the afternoon, and now he has changed back to the postman uniform to work. Doesn't this man take a break? !

"I should ask you this, are you delivering the letter so late?" Thomas asked.

"Oh."

The postman showed the envelope in his hand to Thomas: "It's a letter from Mrs. Thames, but it was sent to the White Horse Hotel. I took it after I found out."

"White Horse Hotel?"

Thomas immediately became vigilant: not many people knew that Mrs. Thames was Miss Marple!

Perhaps it was because Thomas' expression was too obvious, the postman immediately explained: "The letter is not for Madam, but for Miss Jane Eyre. They also know the sender, that is Dr. Bartz whom Mr. Rochester introduced to Madam."

Hearing this, Thomas' face looked better, but he looked at the postman again, and then thought of the topic just now, and his expression became more subtle.

Mr. Postman paused: "What happened?"

Thomas felt uncomfortable all over: "It's nothing, I just think Ma'am seems to have quarreled with your master."

postman:"……"

The two young men stared at the streets of London at night for a while, and finally Thomas tried again: "Do you think we should try to persuade them? Or do something."

The servant holding the letter immediately put on a puzzled expression: "What did you say just now, Mr. Thames? The wind was too strong and I didn't hear it clearly. I have nothing to do and I will deliver the letter first. Goodbye."

Thomas: "..."

It's so foggy tonight, it's windy!Thomas watched the postman run away speechlessly, as if he was afraid that Thomas would drag him into his master's housework.

Well, since he didn't care, Thomas decided not to. He believed that the lady knew it well.

How about worrying about the letter from the White Horse Hotel... Doctor Butts?Sounds a little familiar.