For a moment, my estimation of the good Mr. Brae had increased somewhat, as I gathered he didn't want one of his servants taking the blame for a deed the poor soul hadn't perpetrated. I glanced at Holmes to determine his take on the situation, but I wasn't surprised that he had taken little notice of Mr. Brae.

“Would you pass the milk, Watson?”

Ignoring the man completely as one could ignore a bumbling buffoon, as Holmes had dubbed him after our previous encounter. Dutifully, I passed him the cream, which he slowly poured into his tea.

Eleventh in a string of new short stories set in the late 19th century, no fictional character is more renowned for his powers of thought and observation than Sherlock Holmes.