It appeared to be a draw.
The bookmaker counted off the last seconds on his pocket watch. Then he announced the end of the match. Those few who had won their wagers whooped with joy while the angry losers tossed their tickets to the ground.
Many of them returned to the pub while others arrived for the next match. The owner of the terrier lifted the dog out of the pit and put him in a cage, while the bookmaker gathered up the torn bodies of the dead rats with a shovel.
Among those who stayed was the mysterious stranger, who put his winnings in a portmanteau.
I had no idea why he fascinated Holmes so, but before I could ask him the detective turned to the innkeeper. He whispered something to him, but the innkeeper only shook his head.
“I don’t know him, it’s the first time I’ve seen him. He took a room late this afternoon. I think he arrived by the last train. You know, we are pretty famous here, all sorts come. I don’t try to hide it; it’s legal and popular hereabouts.”
“And is rather profitable,” said the detective coldly.
“And what of it?” said the innkeeper. “We are not as high and mighty as you gents from London. Nobody would come here for bridge and hot water.”
Holmes turned his back to him before anyone could notice their little exchange of opinions, and he pulled me aside to a bale of straw. Meanwhile another dog had been put in the ditch and wagers were being placed. The stench of urine and tobacco mixed with the smell of blood.
“Do you see that man?” said the detective pointing at the stranger.
“Yes, I noticed you eyeing him. Do you think he is important?”
“Perhaps. I suspect that he is Colonel Tankosić.”
“Who is that?”
“Do you not read the papers? Vojislav Tankosić!”
“I do not recall ever reading about him. What’s it all about?”
“The colonel is one of the most important Serbian nationalists,” Holmes explained. “He is a member of the Young Bosnia party, made up of Serbs, Croats and Bosnian Muslims who seek the independence of Bosnia and the unification of all of its occupied territories. Tankosić and others recently founded an even more radical organisation called the Black Hand. The atmosphere in the Balkans is tense; they are preparing for war. The members of the movement are even voluntarily enlisting in the Serbian army. Tankosić leads a Serbian irregular militia that is fighting the Turks in Macedonia.”[22]
“But what is he doing here?”
“I am afraid that he too is headed to Glinney. Anges is a necessary transfer point.”
“You think he is on his way to a meeting with Alice?”
“Precisely. The consequences of such an alliance could be far-reaching.”
“How can a Serbian activist threaten England?”
The detective wiped his sweaty brow.
“The whole world is now a boiling cauldron; you know this all too well yourself. One small spark and everything will explode. You heard what Mycroft said, and Alice is playing her hand. She has already obtained control over the factories. She knows our strategic plans and can blackmail the government, or she can sell secrets to our enemies. If war erupts, her position will only strengthen, as attention will be directed elsewhere. And it will gain her considerable profit. If she supports the Black Hand they will certainly cause the explosion that she needs and her dream of war will come true. The Black Hand will achieve its political objectives and Lady Darringford will satisfy her lust for power and money.”
A sad prophecy. There would never be peace in the Balkans, which was exactly what our lady wanted.
“She spared no time in arranging to negotiate with the Black Hand,” I said.
“It was her only play. Now that she knows about us, time is of the essence.”
“What shall we do?”
“First we must confirm whether it is in fact Tankosić.”
“Will you introduce yourself?”
“I will do it another way. Wait here, I will be back directly!”
So saying he entered into the crowd. The next match was already well underway. The peasants and the stranger were in a kind of frenzy and rhythmically chanted the name Green Danny, a pit-bull terrier who was just now acquainting the rats with his fangs.
Blood spurted from the ruptured arteries and each geyser led to much cheering, applause and stamping. From the back row I watched as Holmes slipped through the crowd to the side of the mysterious man. At the railing the detective leaned as far forward as he could and began waving to encourage the animal combatants. The men behind him did not appreciate this and it led to much shoving and jostling.
I assumed this was the detective’s intention. He immediately apologised and pressed himself against the stranger in order to give the unhappy lot behind him a better view. Then I lost track of him as the roaring crowd closed in. I could only guess what was going on in the ring.
The mass of bodies blocked my view as the spectators pressed forward as close as possible. It served the detective’s ends perfectly. Some twenty minutes later he came back without anyone having noticed anything amiss.
“It is indeed him,” he said. “I managed to search him in the confusion. He is not carrying identification papers, unfortunately, but I found a ticket in his pocket for tomorrow’s morning train to Glinney. It must be him. As soon as Tankosić comes to an agreement with the Darringfords they will reveal Lord Bollinger’s strategic plans and will equip him with those monstrous weapons whose patents they stole. War will be inevitable.”
“He must be stopped immediately! He must not get to Glinney.”
“No, that will not help us,” said the detective. “He is no doubt expected at the castle, and if he does not appear, Alice’s suspicions will be raised and she shall again disappear.”
“But what else can we do?”
“You are right about one thing, we must act immediately. Midnight is coming. If we set off for Glinney now, we will get there before daybreak.”
“You want to travel there by night?” I said horrified.
“There is no alternative. It is our last chance to catch her!”
“It is all too fast!” I croaked. “How will we get there? We don’t have any means of transport. And assuming that we do make it all the way to Glinney, what do you want to do when we arrive? We have no way to conquer their fortress and we will never rouse the police so early.”
“If you permit, I will address these questions on the way,” he said, hurrying out of the barn.
We returned to our room and changed. Holmes grabbed a bag and threw in the most important items that we would need. On the table he left the innkeeper money and a letter in which he asked him to inform certain people should we not return by noon and to send the rest of the luggage to Mrs Hudson in Fulworth.
Only then did he start to arrange transport.
There were only a limited number of methods to choose from. In front of the house stood a parked car and in the stable there were several horses. He chose the latter, even though the car was much faster. They did not belong to us, of course, but Holmes decided that we were entitled to steal them for the higher good.
“If at all possible we will return everything,” he said, for good measure scrawling a note with his address onto the boards of the stable.
“Although nobody would hear us start the car, we would never get near the castle in it,” he continued. “In the stillness of the night the sound of the engine would alert them to our presence miles away.”
He threw a couple of saddles over two burly geldings, tightened the belts, threw the bridle and led them out of the stable before anyone noticed the theft.
22
Tankosić was a member of the Central Committee of the Black Hand (Црна Рука), a secret organisation officially called Unity or Death. It was founded in 1911 by Serbian nationalists and participated in the assassination of the heir to the throne Archduke Franz Ferdinand in Sarajevo on June 28, 1914 by activist Gavrilo Princip. Princip had wanted to join the Mladá Bosna movement, but was rejected due to his small stature. He therefore went to Prokuplje to request a personal interview with Tankosić, who rejected him because he was too weak. It is possible that this refusal was one of the reasons why Princip later tried to compensate for his lack of physical strength by committing an exceptional act. The assassination compelled Austria-Hungary to take action against Serbia, which led to the First World War, just as Holmes feared back in 1911.