From Dr Watson to Sherlock Holmes Esq:

Holmes,
As requested, I have attached my initial notes on our current escapade for your eventual perusal. Assuming, of course, that you will still be alive when that time comes…

December 9th
At my behest, Sherlock Holmes eventually arrived at my lodgings in order to peruse the apparently ‘dangerous package’ sitting on my living room table. My companion, in his inimitable style, produced a stethoscope and proceeded to listen to the aforementioned parcel for several minutes. After deducing that it was not a bomb (as he had reason to believe), Holmes took it out to the street where he passed it to one of his infamous urchins to dispose of. It was a minute or two later while I was pouring much-needed brandies for both of us, that we discerned a slight ‘bang’ in the distance. Lestrade duly informed us that the urchin was sadly no longer with us and the package had in fact been a canister of nitro-glycerine which the boy presumably had jiggled about a little too much.

Since there was little either of us could do, Holmes proposed that we should forget the matter for the moment and proceed with our investigation into what he is calling ‘the Case of the King’s Ransom’.

December 11th

Holmes and I boarded the next available locomotive bound for the east-coast line, towards Balmoral. Holmes plans to stay a night in Aberdeen (with our old pal Logan McRae) before setting out for the castle. Naturally, he has not availed me of the details of this investigation, save for veiled hints that Moriarty-type villains may, or may not be, lurking in the vicinity of Balmoral. For my part, I have spent my time sketching Holmes’ profile, as he gazes mutely out of the window.

More to follow…

Watson