Sherlock Holmes and The Bulgarian Clockmaker

By Dick Gillman

A grievously wounded man with a terrible secret is brought to 221b Baker Street by London cabby, Henry Wiggins. Holmes and Watson try to save the man's life and in doing so, become entwined in a deadly plot. So begins the case of The Bulgarian Clockmaker. A visit to Scotland Yard and the office of Inspector Lestrade infuriates Holmes. Watson, however, is intrigued by a mysterious engine which is the 'prime mover' in this fast paced story. As a result of their visit, Holmes and Watson now begin a desperate search for the killer of an innocent young girl found floating in the Thames. Only Holmes's tremendous intellect and deductive powers can foil a Fenian dynamite plot destined to destroy both the Prime Minister and one of the most famous addresses in Westminster.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Dick Gillman
• Release date: Nov 6, 2014
• ISBN: 9781311377012

Dick Gillman

Dick Gillman is a Yorkshireman in his 70's. He retired from teaching Science in 2005 and moved from the UK to Brittany, France, in 2008 with his wife Alex, Truffle, the Black Labrador and Poppy, the cat. As well as writing, he is an accomplished digital artist and lives near the coast where the rugged landscape and the Atlantic Ocean influence his artwork. He still has strong links with the UK where he visits his two grown up children and his four grandchildren.During his retirement he has written well over thirty Sherlock Holmes short stories, many of which are published here. Successfully publishing both e-books and paperbacks, he has also been selected to contribute many stories to the superb, World Record beating and ongoing MX Sherlock Holmes anthology. His stories appear in several volumes published by MX Publishing and also in the monthly case solving letters entitled 'Dear Mr Holmes' published by Letterjoy. More are to follow in the latest volumes by MX and Letterjoy.Watch out for further Sherlock Holmes short stories throughout 2022 and treat yourself to his very latest seven story collection, 'Julia Moriarty - in memorium' which contains all seven stories in which Holmes crosses swords with the beautiful, but deadly, Julia Moriarty. This is available an e-book and can be found as a paperback at all major online bookstores.

Book preview

Sherlock Holmes and The Bulgarian Clockmaker

By Dick Gillman

Text Copyright © 2014 Dick Gillman

All Rights Reserved

Smashwords Edition

Original cover image created using ‘Gimp’ and from images courtesy of Flickr

‘Clockwork’ by Carl at Filter Forge and ‘No.10’.

Both images have been modified and then combined.

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Table of Contents

Chapter 1 – A friend in need.

Chapter 2 – Mihail Konsulov.

Chapter 3 – A summons to Scotland Yard.

Chapter 4 – The mysterious engine.

Chapter 5 – The death of Catherine Ward.

Chapter 6 – A shop in Dorset Street.

Chapter 7 – A beast of burden!

Chapter 8 – Mycroft takes the bait.

Chapter 9 – A map of Westminster.

Chapter 10 – Meeting Sean O’Leary.

Chapter 11 – A Bulgarian custom.

Sherlock Holmes and The Bulgarian Clockmaker

Chapter 1 – A friend in need.

It was a most distressing event late one evening in the early days of April, 1898 that marked the beginning of the case that I have here recorded as that of The Bulgarian Clockmaker.

Holmes and I had settled down after a rather splendid dinner of Dover sole followed by one of Mrs Hudson's most excellent rice puddings. The air in our sitting room had begun to take on a delicate blue haze from our pipes when we heard the sound of galloping hooves in the street below. This was immediately followed by a frenzied cry of Whoah! together with the screech of iron clad wheels and the clatter of similarly clad hooves on the cobblestones beneath.

Holmes sprang from his chair and hurried towards the window, pulling aside the heavy curtain and peering into the street below. Hello! That is the cab of Henry Wiggins and he seemingly has a fare in some distress.

No sooner had Holmes uttered these words than our doorbell rang in a fearsome manner as though someone’s life depended upon it being heard. On reflection, this was not far from the truth! Holmes and I hurried from our sitting room and were barely halfway down the stairs as Mrs Hudson opened the front door. We stood aghast as she was almost knocked to the ground as Henry Wiggins staggered across our threshold. He tottered into our hallway, supporting the almost lifeless figure of a black coated, stocky man.

Holmes took but a brief glance at the haggard face of Wiggins and his burden before rushing to assist him. Your bag, Watson! Quickly, man! I thundered back upstairs whilst Holmes and Wiggins followed me to our rooms with their burden. I had hastily moved some chairs to clear some little space before Wiggins and Holmes gently laid the man upon the carpet in our sitting room.

It was immediately obvious to me from the pallor of the man and his blood soaked coat that he was most grievously wounded. Tearing at his outer garments and then his shirt, I soon revealed a wound of a kind I had so often seen whilst serving in Afghanistan. Blood was pouring from the exit wound caused by a gunshot. I quickly gathered a dressing from my bag and pressed hard upon the wound in an attempt to stop further blood loss. The man coughed and I saw bloody froth form upon his lips. His eyes flicked open and then locked on mine. He grabbed my jacket sleeve, crying out in heavily accented English, They have them!

Holmes was kneeling opposite me, one arm supporting the man’s shoulders. On hearing this, he gently patted the man's arm, saying, You are safe here, friend.

The man’s head turned. He looked at Holmes and then gasped, They have them, the mules…. both… both of them. They must be stopped. It is my fault! His eyes closed momentarily and he continued to speak quietly in a language that I did not know. Holmes, however, spoke softly to the man, seemingly in the same tongue.

I looked down at my hands; blood was oozing freely through my fingers from the now sodden dressing that I had applied. The flow was unquenchable. Holmes turned towards me with a questioning look and I briefly shook my head. All colour had drained from the man's face. With a final gasp, he whispered in English, "You must find Pavlin…