Sherlock Holmes in Russia by Alex Auswaks

Author:Alex Auswaks [Auswaks, Alex]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9780709092575
Publisher: Hale, Robert Limited
Published: 2008-12-31T05:00:00+00:00

II

At about five in the afternoon we came out on to the square where the Duma stands, turned into Tversky Boulevard, turned into Mohovaya Street and went in the direction of the university.

‘I think I can just about imagine what they’ll tell me when we get there,’ Holmes said as we walked along. ‘If you have read the news in the Moscow papers, you must have seen accounts of a whole number of robberies from major publishers during the last year. Kliukin’s publishing house, as well as his book store, are amongst the biggest in Moscow both as regards the number of publications as well as the variety on sale.’

‘He probably got taken for quite a lot,’ I interrupted, ‘but it seems strange that he decided to come to us.’

Sherlock Holmes shrugged, ‘In order for you not to be surprised, and to understand the reason, you have only to remember our conversation on Tversky Boulevard.’

Without much trouble, we found Benkendorff House in which Kliukin’s store was situated. We asked whether we could see the owner, to which the shop assistant pointed at a lean, darkhaired, middle-aged man sitting at a desk. The desk stood beside one of the display windows and was piled high with papers. We approached him.

‘I had the honour of receiving from you today a letter addressed to me at the Moscow Grand Hotel,’ said Sherlock Holmes with a bow.

The publisher immediately realized who we are. He shook us by the hand, asked us to wait a few moments and went into a back room.

‘My son will be here in a minute and I would ask you to wait for his arrival,’ he said when he returned. ‘This is not the place to talk about such matters. With your permission, we will adjourn elsewhere, where you will be told in detail everything concerning my request for your presence.’

Holmes bowed silently. Only a couple of minutes passed and a young man, wearing a school uniform, walked in and Maxim Vasilyevitch Kliukin handed him a set of keys, meanwhile asking us to follow.

We followed Kliukin for a couple of hundred steps along Mohovaya Street and found ourselves at the Peterhof tavern. Up the stairs we went and along a corridor with private rooms along it. We passed several doors and entered one of the larger rooms in which, to our great surprise, a fairly large number of people were already waiting. Several rose to meet us when we came in, and Mr Kliukin introduced us.

I don’t remember all their surnames, but I did remember Messrs Yefimoff, Karbasnikoff, Suvorin and others. All those present were either publishers or the owners of major book stores.

After the initial polite exchanges, Sherlock Holmes asked Mr Kliukin to come to the point without further ado.

‘This is what it is all about,’ Maxim Vasilyevitch Kliukin began. ‘I speak at the request and on behalf of all those present. We are ten publishers and store owners from which a considerable number of books have vanished this past year.

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