"When was the last time they cleaned?"
"You have confirmed that you have been with your child for the past week, or that you have been in the apartment when he was at home, that you could hear any noise, and that you have not been out alone."
Thanks to her maid, Madame Eugenie could guarantee that she would always be by Dick's side.
After all, whether she goes out to buy groceries or notifies certain services to come to her door, servants do everything for her, so she, as the master, is very leisurely.
Through a conversation, Lu Li also learned the reason why Madame Eugénie divorced her husband. The man, like the drunkard Punch, was addicted to alcohol and liked domestic violence.
However, Eugenie's father was a member of Parliament and her mother was from a noble family. She quickly sought justice for her, and in court, the judge also made a ruling and gave the child to her mother for custody.
After listening to the story, Holmes was thoughtful. Dick's desire to watch the puppet show "Punch and Judy" was not just following the crowd. Seven or eight-year-old children must have their own ideas.
Is he resentful of his biological father?
But how does this relate to the disappearance case...
While Mr. Detective was deep in thought, Lu Li opened the balcony, jumped off, and stood at the place where Dick last appeared, looking around.
Evidence is limited.
Therefore, he can only connect as many of them as possible.
According to Holmes, Dick is no longer in the world as we know it. First of all, this point can withstand scrutiny. Not only the mysterious Simon from the East can provide evidence, but also the corner cafe.
But how is the other world connected to the traces on the wall?
If it is really related to the disappearance case, how should the two be connected together?
There are thousands of answers to a question.
Two questions with uncertain answers were superimposed together. Lu Li felt like his head was about to explode as soon as he thought about it.
Facts have proved that forcibly splicing certain "clues" together will not only be ineffective, but will confuse the investigators.
"Can anyone give me some tips?"
With slightly crazy thoughts, Lu Li walked back to the apartment. First he pushed open the iron door of the small garden, where there were cold-resistant turf and several potted plants.
Out of habit, Lu Li moved the basin away and checked it carefully several times without missing any possible clues.
Next, there is the door into the apartment.
The traces found in the missing person's room prompted Lu Li to check behind the door.
Crumbs!
The irregular bits of wood scattered in the corners and the traces matching the shape of the copper handle are exactly the same as those upstairs.
In an instant, Lu Li felt that he had caught something and began to check the kitchen, bathroom, and underground storage room in sequence.
"Did you find anything?"
Holmes came down the stairs.
At this moment, Lu Li was looking at a pile of debris in the underground storage room and thinking deeply.
"To enter the living room, you need to go through the first door, go upstairs through the corridor next to the kitchen, you also need to go through a door, and then go to the bedroom where Dick lives..."
"I found impact marks on the backs of all three doors, except the kitchen, bathroom, and Madame Eugenie's room."
Holmes climbed up the wooden ladder into the underground storage room, holding the still burning pipe in his hand, and asked: "Where is this place?"
"The opening method is different. If you want to access the underground storage room, you must open the original wooden door from the outside, and then tap the slide lock to close the basement from the inside."
"Because of this, there are no traces of bumps here, but the slide lock is quite aged. No matter how lazy the servants are, they will find a way to replace it."
The traces behind the door made Lu Li immediately think:
Escape.
When Dick encountered danger, he instinctively ran home, first into the house, through the living room, then through the corridor on the first floor, and then to his own room on the second floor.
Outside the room, there is a sliding balcony. It seems that the designer referred to the Japanese structure, but it can only prevent moisture and does not provide much protection.
So...why is Dick running here?
If he had to give an explanation, Lu Li could explain it——
For a child, the safest place is undoubtedly home and the room where he or she is. When he encounters danger, he will subconsciously run here.
"They are all new traces, and the connected route is still so... worthy of scrutiny."
Lu Li analyzed the situation while checking the underground storage room, "Assuming that Madam Eugénie did not lie, in fact, she is an ordinary woman, an ordinary mother, and there is no reason to lie."
"Yes, I'm sure she has nothing to do with the supernatural. When a disaster happens, you can only accept it if you are forced to accept it."
Holmes stared at the rusty slide lock and continued to smoke.
"Ma'am, do you remember the last time the locks were changed in the basement at home?"
Hearing the noise coming from the stairs, Holmes raised his eyes. He first saw a pair of high heels with broken heels, and then police leather shoes.
"About a month ago, the servant told me that the lock in the utility room was badly rusted and some money needed to be replaced."
The sound reached Lu Li's ears. He stopped looking and turned to look at the door lock. There was no rust there, but there was indeed patina, and it was definitely not something that could be produced in a month or two.
"Have you checked the door lock after this incident passed?"
Under the gaze of two eyes, Madame Eugenie shook her head. How could a woman with a good family background, financial independence and independence like her be like a housewife?
"All right."
Lu Li was a little helpless, but compared to the unexpected discovery, this was just a small problem.
"What's that maid's name?"
"where do you live?"
After getting the answer he wanted, Constable Hawkins left. He had to return to the police station as soon as possible, organize people to go to the target location, and ask an Indian named Aaliyah if the damn lock had been changed.
Lu Li repeatedly warned that he must get answers that were consistent with the facts. In response to this, Hawkins was helpless and confused. A royal police officer who had joined the establishment should be responsible for investigating such a trivial matter.
Of course, since it is a request made by the special adviser, it must be completed without compromise.
After he left, there were four people left in the apartment. A police officer acted as a background and cooperated with Holmes to help Madame Eugenie down the wooden ladder into the underground storage room.
"Look what's wrong."
This time, Lu Li did not launch a specific inquiry on a certain issue, but gave the space to the person involved.
Motherly intuition.
How well do you know your own house as an apartment owner?
…
No matter what it is, as long as it can provide key clues, anyway, she is definitely better than herself and Holmes on this kind of problem.
Sensing the solemnity in her tone, Madame Eugenie also became serious. She carefully scanned the miscellaneous items on the floor and table, over and over again, and kept recalling them.
After a long time, there was a sound echoing in the basement.
"An old shotgun is missing..."
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