Before the door finished shutting, I was already running back up the stairs. By the time I reached the great detective, I was out of breath and sagged against his desk for support.

Holmes looked up from his writing and stared with piercing eyes. “How many times have I told you? Don’t sit on my writing-table, you’ll break it.”

“Don’t talk to me like that, I pay to live here and more than you at that!” I rapped the table once for emphasis.

He looked offended. “Live where you like but stop that noise. It breaks my concentration.”

“All this irritation is purely subjective and I’d like to remind you that you asked me to live with you.”

He ignored the first part. “It was a convenient business solution. Now quickly,what did that ass of an inspector say?”

“You really should be nice to him. He’s just doing his job.”

“A bad one.” He snapped his fingers twice. “Time is of the essence.”

“He said, ‘There wasn’t one at Trafalgar Square.’”

Holmes closed his eyes. “Interesting. We pick up the trail in Rome then.”