["[Event happened on 2024-01-01 The user is reading a book]\n<User> VII.--The Adventure of Charles Augustus Milverton. IT is years since the incidents of which I speak took place, and yet it\nis with diffidence that I allude to them. For a long time, even with the\nutmost discretion and reticence, it would have been impossible to make\nthe facts public; but now the principal person concerned is beyond the\nreach of human law, and with due suppression the story may be told\nin such fashion as to injure no one. It records an absolutely unique\nexperience in the career both of Mr. Sherlock Holmes and of myself. The\nreader will excuse me if I conceal the date or any other fact by which\nhe might trace the actual occurrence. We had been out for one of our evening rambles, Holmes and I, and had\nreturned about six o'clock on a cold, frosty winter's evening. As Holmes\nturned up the lamp the light fell upon a card on the table. He glanced\nat it, and then, with an ejaculation of disgust, threw it on the floor. I picked it up and read:--\n\n             CHARLES AUGUSTUS MILVERTON,\n                  APPLEDORE TOWERS,\n            AGENT. HAMPSTEAD. \"Who is he?\" I asked. \"The worst man in London,\" Holmes answered, as he sat down and stretched\nhis legs before the fire. \"Is anything on the back of the card?\" I turned it over. \"Will call at 6.30--C.A.M.,\" I read. \"Hum! He's about due. Do you feel a creeping, shrinking sensation,\nWatson, when you stand before the serpents in the Zoo and see the\nslithery, gliding, venomous creatures, with their deadly eyes and\nwicked, flattened faces? Well, that's how Milverton impresses me. I've\nhad to do with fifty murderers in my career, but the worst of them never\ngave me the repulsion which I have for this fellow. And yet I can't get\nout of doing business with him--indeed, he is here at my invitation.\" \"But who is he?\" \"I'll tell you, Watson. He is the king of all the blackmailers. Heaven\nhelp the man, and still more the woman, whose secret and reputation come\ninto the power of Milverton. With a smiling face and a heart of marble\nhe will squeeze and squeeze until he has drained them dry. The fellow is\na genius in his way, and would have made his mark in some more savoury\ntrade. His method is as follows: He allows it to be known that he is\nprepared to pay very high sums for letters which compromise people of\nwealth or position. He receives these wares not only from treacherous\nvalets or maids, but frequently from genteel ruffians who have gained\nthe confidence and affection of trusting women. He deals with no niggard\nhand. I happen to know that he paid seven hundred pounds to a footman\nfor a note two lines in length, and that the ruin of a noble family was\nthe result. Everything which is in the market goes to Milverton, and\nthere are hundreds in this great city who turn white at his name. No\none knows where his grip may fall, for he is far too rich and far too\ncunning to work from hand to mouth. He will hold a card back for years\nin order to play it at the moment when the stake is best worth winning. I have said that he is the worst man in London, and I would ask you how\ncould one compare the ruffian who in hot blood bludgeons his mate with\nthis man, who methodically and at his leisure tortures the soul and\nwrings the nerves in order to add to his already swollen money-bags?\" I had seldom heard my friend speak with such intensity of feeling. \"But surely,\" said I, \"the fellow must be within the grasp of the law?\" \"Technically, no doubt, but practically not. What would it profit a\nwoman, for example, to get him a few months' imprisonment if her own\nruin must immediately follow? His victims dare not hit back. If ever he\nblackmailed an innocent person, then, indeed, we should have him; but he\nis as cunning as the Evil One. No, no; we must find other ways to fight\nhim.\" \"And why is he here?\" \"Because an illustrious client has placed her piteous case in my hands. It is the Lady Eva Brackwell, the most beautiful DEBUTANTE of last\nseason. She is to be married in a fortnight to the Earl of Dovercourt. This fiend has several imprudent letters--imprudent, Watson, nothing\nworse--which were written to an impecunious young squire in the country. They would suffice to break off the match. Milverton will send the\nletters to the Earl unless a large sum of money is paid him. I have been\ncommissioned to meet him, and--to make the best terms I can.\" At that instant there was a clatter and a rattle in the street below. Looking down I saw a stately carriage and pair, the brilliant lamps\ngleaming on the glossy haunches of the noble chestnuts. A footman\nopened the door, and a small, stout man in a shaggy astrachan overcoat\ndescended. A minute later he was in the room. Charles Augustus Milverton was a man of fifty, with a large,\nintellectual head, a round, plump, hairless face, a perpetual frozen\nsmile, and two keen grey eyes, which gleamed brightly from behind broad,\ngolden-rimmed glasses. There was something of Mr. Pickwick's benevolence\nin his appearance, marred only by the insincerity of the fixed smile and\nby the hard glitter of those restless and penetrating eyes. His voice\nwas as smooth and suave as his countenance, as he advanced with a plump\nlittle hand extended, murmuring his regret for having missed us at his\nfirst visit. Holmes disregarded the outstretched hand and looked at him\nwith a face of granite. Milverton's smile broadened; he shrugged his\nshoulders, removed his overcoat, folded it with great deliberation over\nthe back of a chair, and then took a seat. \"This gentleman?\" said he, with a wave in my direction. \"Is it discreet? Is it right?\" \"Dr. Watson is my friend and partner.\" \"Very good, Mr. Holmes. It is only in your client's interests that I\nprotested. The matter is so very delicate----\"\n\n\"Dr. Watson has already heard of it.\" \"Then we can proceed to business. You say that you are acting for Lady\nEva. Has she empowered you to accept my terms?\" \"What are your terms?\" \"Seven thousand pounds.\" \"And the alternative?\" \"My dear sir, it is painful for me to discuss it; but if the money is\nnot paid on the 14th there certainly will be no marriage on the 18th.\" His insufferable smile was more complacent than ever. Holmes thought for a little. \"You appear to me,\" he said, at last, \"to be taking matters too much for\ngranted. I am, of course, familiar with the contents of these letters. My client will certainly do what I may advise. I shall counsel her to\ntell her future husband the whole story and to trust to his generosity.\" Milverton chuckled. \"You evidently do not know the Earl,\" said he. From the baffled look upon Holmes's face I could see clearly that he\ndid. \"What harm is there in the letters?\" he asked. \"They are sprightly--very sprightly,\" Milverton answered. \"The lady\nwas a charming correspondent. But I can assure you that the Earl of\nDovercourt would fail to appreciate them. However, since you think\notherwise, we will let it rest at that. It is purely a matter of\nbusiness. If you think that it is in the best interests of your client\nthat these letters should be placed in the hands of the Earl, then you\nwould indeed be foolish to pay so large a sum of money to regain them.\" He rose and seized his astrachan coat. Holmes was grey with anger and mortification. \"Wait a little,\" he said. \"You go too fast. We would certainly make\nevery effort to avoid scandal in so delicate a matter.\" Milverton relapsed into his chair. \"I was sure that you would see it in that light,\" he purred. \"At the same time,\" Holmes continued, \"Lady Eva is not a wealthy\nwoman. I assure you that two thousand pounds would be a drain upon her\nresources, and that the sum you name is utterly beyond her power. I beg,\ntherefore, that you will moderate your demands, and that you will return\nthe letters at the price I indicate, which is, I assure you, the highest\nthat you can get.\" Milverton's smile broadened and his eyes twinkled humorously. \"I am aware that what you say is true about the lady's resources,\" said\nhe.\n\n<System> Please remember what the user reads on 2024-01-01, save the details within the book, and retain a summary of the book the user has read so far.", "[Event happened on 2024-01-02 The user is reading a book]\n<User> \"At the same time, you must admit that the occasion of a lady's\nmarriage is a very suitable time for her friends and relatives to\nmake some little effort upon her behalf. They may hesitate as to an\nacceptable wedding present. Let me assure them that this little bundle\nof letters would give more joy than all the candelabra and butter-dishes\nin London.\" \"It is impossible,\" said Holmes. \"Dear me, dear me, how unfortunate!\" cried Milverton, taking out a bulky\npocket-book. \"I cannot help thinking that ladies are ill-advised in\nnot making an effort. Look at this!\" He held up a little note with a\ncoat-of-arms upon the envelope. \"That belongs to--well, perhaps it is\nhardly fair to tell the name until to-morrow morning. But at that time\nit will be in the hands of the lady's husband. And all because she will\nnot find a beggarly sum which she could get by turning her diamonds\ninto paste. It IS such a pity. Now, you remember the sudden end of the\nengagement between the Honourable Miss Miles and Colonel Dorking? Only\ntwo days before the wedding there was a paragraph in the MORNING POST\nto say that it was all off. And why? It is almost incredible, but\nthe absurd sum of twelve hundred pounds would have settled the whole\nquestion. Is it not pitiful? And here I find you, a man of sense,\nboggling about terms when your client's future and honour are at stake. You surprise me, Mr. Holmes.\" \"What I say is true,\" Holmes answered. \"The money cannot be found. Surely it is better for you to take the substantial sum which I offer\nthan to ruin this woman's career, which can profit you in no way?\" \"There you make a mistake, Mr. Holmes. An exposure would profit me\nindirectly to a considerable extent. I have eight or ten similar cases\nmaturing. If it was circulated among them that I had made a severe\nexample of the Lady Eva I should find all of them much more open to\nreason. You see my point?\" Holmes sprang from his chair. \"Get behind him, Watson! Don't let him out! Now, sir, let us see the\ncontents of that note-book.\" Milverton had glided as quick as a rat to the side of the room, and\nstood with his back against the wall. \"Mr. Holmes, Mr. Holmes,\" he said, turning the front of his coat and\nexhibiting the butt of a large revolver, which projected from the inside\npocket. \"I have been expecting you to do something original. This has\nbeen done so often, and what good has ever come from it? I assure you\nthat I am armed to the teeth, and I am perfectly prepared to use my\nweapons, knowing that the law will support me. Besides, your supposition\nthat I would bring the letters here in a note-book is entirely mistaken. I would do nothing so foolish. And now, gentlemen, I have one or two\nlittle interviews this evening, and it is a long drive to Hampstead.\" He stepped forward, took up his coat, laid his hand on his revolver, and\nturned to the door. I picked up a chair, but Holmes shook his head and\nI laid it down again. With bow, a smile, and a twinkle Milverton was out\nof the room, and a few moments after we heard the slam of the carriage\ndoor and the rattle of the wheels as he drove away. Holmes sat motionless by the fire, his hands buried deep in his trouser\npockets, his chin sunk upon his breast, his eyes fixed upon the glowing\nembers. For half an hour he was silent and still. Then, with the gesture\nof a man who has taken his decision, he sprang to his feet and passed\ninto his bedroom. A little later a rakish young workman with a goatee\nbeard and a swagger lit his clay pipe at the lamp before descending into\nthe street. \"I'll be back some time, Watson,\" said he, and vanished into\nthe night. I understood that he had opened his campaign against Charles\nAugustus Milverton; but I little dreamed the strange shape which that\ncampaign was destined to take. For some days Holmes came and went at all hours in this attire, but\nbeyond a remark that his time was spent at Hampstead, and that it was\nnot wasted, I knew nothing of what he was doing. At last, however, on\na wild, tempestuous evening, when the wind screamed and rattled against\nthe windows, he returned from his last expedition, and having removed\nhis disguise he sat before the fire and laughed heartily in his silent\ninward fashion. \"You would not call me a marrying man, Watson?\" \"No, indeed!\" \"You'll be interested to hear that I am engaged.\" \"My dear fellow! I congrat----\"\n\n\"To Milverton's housemaid.\" \"Good heavens, Holmes!\" \"I wanted information, Watson.\" \"Surely you have gone too far?\" \"It was a most necessary step. I am a plumber with a rising business,\nEscott by name. I have walked out with her each evening, and I have\ntalked with her. Good heavens, those talks! However, I have got all I\nwanted. I know Milverton's house as I know the palm of my hand.\" \"But the girl, Holmes?\" He shrugged his shoulders. \"You can't help it, my dear Watson. You must play your cards as best you\ncan when such a stake is on the table. However, I rejoice to say that\nI have a hated rival who will certainly cut me out the instant that my\nback is turned. What a splendid night it is!\" \"You like this weather?\" \"It suits my purpose. Watson, I mean to burgle Milverton's house\nto-night.\" I had a catching of the breath, and my skin went cold at the words,\nwhich were slowly uttered in a tone of concentrated resolution. As a\nflash of lightning in the night shows up in an instant every detail of\na wide landscape, so at one glance I seemed to see every possible result\nof such an action--the detection, the capture, the honoured career\nending in irreparable failure and disgrace, my friend himself lying at\nthe mercy of the odious Milverton. \"For Heaven's sake, Holmes, think what you are doing,\" I cried. \"My dear fellow, I have given it every consideration. I am never\nprecipitate in my actions, nor would I adopt so energetic and indeed so\ndangerous a course if any other were possible. Let us look at the matter\nclearly and fairly. I suppose that you will admit that the action is\nmorally justifiable, though technically criminal. To burgle his house\nis no more than to forcibly take his pocket-book--an action in which you\nwere prepared to aid me.\" I turned it over in my mind. \"Yes,\" I said; \"it is morally justifiable so long as our object is to\ntake no articles save those which are used for an illegal purpose.\" \"Exactly. Since it is morally justifiable I have only to consider the\nquestion of personal risk. Surely a gentleman should not lay much stress\nupon this when a lady is in most desperate need of his help?\" \"You will be in such a false position.\" \"Well, that is part of the risk. There is no other possible way of\nregaining these letters. The unfortunate lady has not the money, and\nthere are none of her people in whom she could confide. To-morrow is\nthe last day of grace, and unless we can get the letters to-night this\nvillain will be as good as his word and will bring about her ruin. I\nmust, therefore, abandon my client to her fate or I must play this\nlast card. Between ourselves, Watson, it's a sporting duel between\nthis fellow Milverton and me. He had, as you saw, the best of the first\nexchanges; but my self-respect and my reputation are concerned to fight\nit to a finish.\" \"Well, I don't like it; but I suppose it must be,\" said I. \"When do we\nstart?\" \"You are not coming.\" \"Then you are not going,\" said I. \"I give you my word of honour--and\nI never broke it in my life--that I will take a cab straight to the\npolice-station and give you away unless you let me share this adventure\nwith you.\" \"You can't help me.\" \"How do you know that? You can't tell what may happen. Anyway, my\nresolution is taken. Other people beside you have self-respect and even\nreputations.\" Holmes had looked annoyed, but his brow cleared, and he clapped me on\nthe shoulder. \"Well, well, my dear fellow, be it so. We have shared the same room\nfor some years, and it would be amusing if we ended by sharing the\nsame cell.\n\n<System> Please remember what the user reads on 2024-01-02, save the details within the book, and retain a summary of the book the user has read so far.", "[Event happened on 2024-01-05 The user is reading a book]\n<User> You know, Watson, I don't mind confessing to you that I have\nalways had an idea that I would have made a highly efficient criminal. This is the chance of my lifetime in that direction. See here!\" He took\na neat little leather case out of a drawer, and opening it he exhibited\na number of shining instruments. \"This is a first-class, up-to-date\nburgling kit, with nickel-plated jemmy, diamond-tipped glass-cutter,\nadaptable keys, and every modern improvement which the march of\ncivilization demands. Here, too, is my dark lantern. Everything is in\norder. Have you a pair of silent shoes?\" \"I have rubber-soled tennis shoes.\" \"Excellent. And a mask?\" \"I can make a couple out of black silk.\" \"I can see that you have a strong natural turn for this sort of thing. Very good; do you make the masks. We shall have some cold supper before\nwe start. It is now nine-thirty. At eleven we shall drive as far as\nChurch Row. It is a quarter of an hour's walk from there to Appledore\nTowers. We shall be at work before midnight. Milverton is a heavy\nsleeper and retires punctually at ten-thirty. With any luck we should be\nback here by two, with the Lady Eva's letters in my pocket.\" Holmes and I put on our dress-clothes, so that we might appear to be two\ntheatre-goers homeward bound. In Oxford Street we picked up a hansom and\ndrove to an address in Hampstead. Here we paid off our cab, and with our\ngreat-coats buttoned up, for it was bitterly cold and the wind seemed to\nblow through us, we walked along the edge of the Heath. \"It's a business that needs delicate treatment,\" said Holmes. \"These\ndocuments are contained in a safe in the fellow's study, and the study\nis the ante-room of his bed-chamber. On the other hand, like all these\nstout, little men who do themselves well, he is a plethoric sleeper. Agatha--that's my FIANCEE--says it is a joke in the servants' hall that\nit's impossible to wake the master. He has a secretary who is devoted to\nhis interests and never budges from the study all day. That's why we are\ngoing at night. Then he has a beast of a dog which roams the garden. I\nmet Agatha late the last two evenings, and she locks the brute up so\nas to give me a clear run. This is the house, this big one in its own\ngrounds. Through the gate--now to the right among the laurels. We might\nput on our masks here, I think. You see, there is not a glimmer of light\nin any of the windows, and everything is working splendidly.\" With our black silk face-coverings, which turned us into two of the most\ntruculent figures in London, we stole up to the silent, gloomy house. A sort of tiled veranda extended along one side of it, lined by several\nwindows and two doors. \"That's his bedroom,\" Holmes whispered. \"This door opens straight into\nthe study. It would suit us best, but it is bolted as well as locked,\nand we should make too much noise getting in. Come round here. There's a\ngreenhouse which opens into the drawing-room.\" The place was locked, but Holmes removed a circle of glass and turned\nthe key from the inside. An instant afterwards he had closed the door\nbehind us, and we had become felons in the eyes of the law. The thick,\nwarm air of the conservatory and the rich, choking fragrance of exotic\nplants took us by the throat. He seized my hand in the darkness and led\nme swiftly past banks of shrubs which brushed against our faces. Holmes\nhad remarkable powers, carefully cultivated, of seeing in the dark. Still holding my hand in one of his he opened a door, and I was vaguely\nconscious that we had entered a large room in which a cigar had been\nsmoked not long before. He felt his way among the furniture, opened\nanother door, and closed it behind us. Putting out my hand I felt\nseveral coats hanging from the wall, and I understood that I was in a\npassage. We passed along it, and Holmes very gently opened a door upon\nthe right-hand side. Something rushed out at us and my heart sprang into\nmy mouth, but I could have laughed when I realized that it was the cat. A fire was burning in this new room, and again the air was heavy with\ntobacco smoke. Holmes entered on tiptoe, waited for me to follow, and\nthen very gently closed the door. We were in Milverton's study, and a\nPORTIERE at the farther side showed the entrance to his bedroom. It was a good fire, and the room was illuminated by it. Near the door I\nsaw the gleam of an electric switch, but it was unnecessary, even if it\nhad been safe, to turn it on. At one side of the fireplace was a heavy\ncurtain, which covered the bay window we had seen from outside. On the\nother side was the door which communicated with the veranda. A desk\nstood in the centre, with a turning chair of shining red leather. Opposite was a large bookcase, with a marble bust of Athene on the top. In the corner between the bookcase and the wall there stood a tall green\nsafe, the firelight flashing back from the polished brass knobs upon its\nface. Holmes stole across and looked at it. Then he crept to the door of\nthe bedroom, and stood with slanting head listening intently. No sound\ncame from within. Meanwhile it had struck me that it would be wise\nto secure our retreat through the outer door, so I examined it. To my\namazement it was neither locked nor bolted! I touched Holmes on the arm,\nand he turned his masked face in that direction. I saw him start, and he\nwas evidently as surprised as I. \"I don't like it,\" he whispered, putting his lips to my very ear. \"I\ncan't quite make it out. Anyhow, we have no time to lose.\" \"Can I do anything?\" \"Yes; stand by the door. If you hear anyone come, bolt it on the inside,\nand we can get away as we came. If they come the other way, we can\nget through the door if our job is done, or hide behind these window\ncurtains if it is not. Do you understand?\" I nodded and stood by the door. My first feeling of fear had passed\naway, and I thrilled now with a keener zest than I had ever enjoyed when\nwe were the defenders of the law instead of its defiers. The high object\nof our mission, the consciousness that it was unselfish and chivalrous,\nthe villainous character of our opponent, all added to the sporting\ninterest of the adventure. Far from feeling guilty, I rejoiced and\nexulted in our dangers. With a glow of admiration I watched Holmes\nunrolling his case of instruments and choosing his tool with the calm,\nscientific accuracy of a surgeon who performs a delicate operation. I\nknew that the opening of safes was a particular hobby with him, and I\nunderstood the joy which it gave him to be confronted with this green\nand gold monster, the dragon which held in its maw the reputations of\nmany fair ladies. Turning up the cuffs of his dress-coat--he had placed\nhis overcoat on a chair--Holmes laid out two drills, a jemmy, and\nseveral skeleton keys. I stood at the centre door with my eyes glancing\nat each of the others, ready for any emergency; though, indeed, my plans\nwere somewhat vague as to what I should do if we were interrupted. For\nhalf an hour Holmes worked with concentrated energy, laying down one\ntool, picking up another, handling each with the strength and delicacy\nof the trained mechanic. Finally I heard a click, the broad green door\nswung open, and inside I had a glimpse of a number of paper packets,\neach tied, sealed, and inscribed. Holmes picked one out, but it was hard\nto read by the flickering fire, and he drew out his little dark lantern,\nfor it was too dangerous, with Milverton in the next room, to switch on\nthe electric light. Suddenly I saw him halt, listen intently, and then\nin an instant he had swung the door of the safe to, picked up his\ncoat, stuffed his tools into the pockets, and darted behind the window\ncurtain, motioning me to do the same. It was only when I had joined him there that I heard what had alarmed\nhis quicker senses. There was a noise somewhere within the house. A door\nslammed in the distance. Then a confused, dull murmur broke itself into\nthe measured thud of heavy footsteps rapidly approaching. They were in\nthe passage outside the room. They paused at the door. The door opened.\n\n<System> Please remember what the user reads on 2024-01-05, save the details within the book, and retain a summary of the book the user has read so far.", "[Event happened on 2024-01-07 The user is reading a book]\n<User> There was a sharp snick as the electric light was turned on. The door\nclosed once more, and the pungent reek of a strong cigar was borne\nto our nostrils. Then the footsteps continued backwards and forwards,\nbackwards and forwards, within a few yards of us. Finally, there was a\ncreak from a chair, and the footsteps ceased. Then a key clicked in a\nlock and I heard the rustle of papers. So far I had not dared to look out, but now I gently parted the division\nof the curtains in front of me and peeped through. From the pressure\nof Holmes's shoulder against mine I knew that he was sharing my\nobservations. Right in front of us, and almost within our reach, was the\nbroad, rounded back of Milverton. It was evident that we had entirely\nmiscalculated his movements, that he had never been to his bedroom,\nbut that he had been sitting up in some smoking or billiard room in the\nfarther wing of the house, the windows of which we had not seen. His\nbroad, grizzled head, with its shining patch of baldness, was in the\nimmediate foreground of our vision. He was leaning far back in the red\nleather chair, his legs outstretched, a long black cigar projecting\nat an angle from his mouth. He wore a semi-military smoking jacket,\nclaret-coloured, with a black velvet collar. In his hand he held a long\nlegal document, which he was reading in an indolent fashion, blowing\nrings of tobacco smoke from his lips as he did so. There was no promise\nof a speedy departure in his composed bearing and his comfortable\nattitude. I felt Holmes's hand steal into mine and give me a reassuring shake, as\nif to say that the situation was within his powers and that he was\neasy in his mind. I was not sure whether he had seen what was only too\nobvious from my position, that the door of the safe was imperfectly\nclosed, and that Milverton might at any moment observe it. In my own\nmind I had determined that if I were sure, from the rigidity of his\ngaze, that it had caught his eye, I would at once spring out, throw my\ngreat-coat over his head, pinion him, and leave the rest to Holmes. But\nMilverton never looked up. He was languidly interested by the papers in\nhis hand, and page after page was turned as he followed the argument of\nthe lawyer. At least, I thought, when he has finished the document and\nthe cigar he will go to his room; but before he had reached the end of\neither there came a remarkable development which turned our thoughts\ninto quite another channel. Several times I had observed that Milverton looked at his watch, and\nonce he had risen and sat down again, with a gesture of impatience. The\nidea, however, that he might have an appointment at so strange an\nhour never occurred to me until a faint sound reached my ears from\nthe veranda outside. Milverton dropped his papers and sat rigid in his\nchair. The sound was repeated, and then there came a gentle tap at the\ndoor. Milverton rose and opened it. \"Well,\" said he, curtly, \"you are nearly half an hour late.\" So this was the explanation of the unlocked door and of the nocturnal\nvigil of Milverton. There was the gentle rustle of a woman's dress. I\nhad closed the slit between the curtains as Milverton's face had turned\nin our direction, but now I ventured very carefully to open it once\nmore. He had resumed his seat, the cigar still projecting at an insolent\nangle from the corner of his mouth. In front of him, in the full glare\nof the electric light, there stood a tall, slim, dark woman, a veil over\nher face, a mantle drawn round her chin. Her breath came quick and fast,\nand every inch of the lithe figure was quivering with strong emotion. \"Well,\" said Milverton, \"you've made me lose a good night's rest,\nmy dear. I hope you'll prove worth it. You couldn't come any other\ntime--eh?\" The woman shook her head. \"Well, if you couldn't you couldn't. If the Countess is a hard mistress\nyou have your chance to get level with her now. Bless the girl, what are\nyou shivering about? That's right! Pull yourself together! Now, let us\nget down to business.\" He took a note from the drawer of his desk. \"You\nsay that you have five letters which compromise the Countess d'Albert. You want to sell them. I want to buy them. So far so good. It only\nremains to fix a price. I should want to inspect the letters, of course. If they are really good specimens--Great heavens, is it you?\" The woman without a word had raised her veil and dropped the mantle\nfrom her chin. It was a dark, handsome, clear-cut face which confronted\nMilverton, a face with a curved nose, strong, dark eyebrows shading\nhard, glittering eyes, and a straight, thin-lipped mouth set in a\ndangerous smile. \"It is I,\" she said; \"the woman whose life you have ruined.\" Milverton laughed, but fear vibrated in his voice. \"You were so very\nobstinate,\" said he. \"Why did you drive me to such extremities? I\nassure you I wouldn't hurt a fly of my own accord, but every man has his\nbusiness, and what was I to do? I put the price well within your means. You would not pay.\" \"So you sent the letters to my husband, and he--the noblest gentleman\nthat ever lived, a man whose boots I was never worthy to lace--he broke\nhis gallant heart and died. You remember that last night when I came\nthrough that door I begged and prayed you for mercy, and you laughed in\nmy face as you are trying to laugh now, only your coward heart cannot\nkeep your lips from twitching? Yes, you never thought to see me here\nagain, but it was that night which taught me how I could meet you face\nto face, and alone. Well, Charles Milverton, what have you to say?\" \"Don't imagine that you can bully me,\" said he, rising to his feet. \"I\nhave only to raise my voice, and I could call my servants and have you\narrested. But I will make allowance for your natural anger. Leave the\nroom at once as you came, and I will say no more.\" The woman stood with her hand buried in her bosom, and the same deadly\nsmile on her thin lips. \"You will ruin no more lives as you ruined mine. You will wring no more\nhearts as you wrung mine. I will free the world of a poisonous thing. Take that, you hound, and that!--and that!--and that!\" She had drawn a little, gleaming revolver, and emptied barrel after\nbarrel into Milverton's body, the muzzle within two feet of his shirt\nfront. He shrank away and then fell forward upon the table, coughing\nfuriously and clawing among the papers. Then he staggered to his feet,\nreceived another shot, and rolled upon the floor. \"You've done me,\" he\ncried, and lay still. The woman looked at him intently and ground her\nheel into his upturned face. She looked again, but there was no sound\nor movement. I heard a sharp rustle, the night air blew into the heated\nroom, and the avenger was gone. No interference upon our part could have saved the man from his fate;\nbut as the woman poured bullet after bullet into Milverton's shrinking\nbody I was about to spring out, when I felt Holmes's cold, strong grasp\nupon my wrist. I understood the whole argument of that firm, restraining\ngrip--that it was no affair of ours; that justice had overtaken a\nvillain; that we had our own duties and our own objects which were not\nto be lost sight of. But hardly had the woman rushed from the room when\nHolmes, with swift, silent steps, was over at the other door. He turned\nthe key in the lock. At the same instant we heard voices in the house\nand the sound of hurrying feet. The revolver shots had roused the\nhousehold. With perfect coolness Holmes slipped across to the safe,\nfilled his two arms with bundles of letters, and poured them all into\nthe fire. Again and again he did it, until the safe was empty. Someone\nturned the handle and beat upon the outside of the door. Holmes looked\nswiftly round. The letter which had been the messenger of death for\nMilverton lay, all mottled with his blood, upon the table. Holmes tossed\nit in among the blazing papers. Then he drew the key from the outer\ndoor, passed through after me, and locked it on the outside. \"This way,\nWatson,\" said he; \"we can scale the garden wall in this direction.\"\n\n<System> Please remember what the user reads on 2024-01-07, save the details within the book, and retain a summary of the book the user has read so far.", "[Event happened on 2024-01-09 The user is reading a book]\n<User> I could not have believed that an alarm could have spread so swiftly. Looking back, the huge house was one blaze of light. The front door\nwas open, and figures were rushing down the drive. The whole garden was\nalive with people, and one fellow raised a view-halloa as we emerged\nfrom the veranda and followed hard at our heels. Holmes seemed to know\nthe ground perfectly, and he threaded his way swiftly among a plantation\nof small trees, I close at his heels, and our foremost pursuer panting\nbehind us. It was a six-foot wall which barred our path, but he sprang\nto the top and over. As I did the same I felt the hand of the man behind\nme grab at my ankle; but I kicked myself free and scrambled over a\nglass-strewn coping. I fell upon my face among some bushes; but Holmes\nhad me on my feet in an instant, and together we dashed away across the\nhuge expanse of Hampstead Heath. We had run two miles, I suppose, before\nHolmes at last halted and listened intently. All was absolute silence\nbehind us. We had shaken off our pursuers and were safe. We had breakfasted and were smoking our morning pipe on the day after\nthe remarkable experience which I have recorded when Mr. Lestrade, of\nScotland Yard, very solemn and impressive, was ushered into our modest\nsitting-room. \"Good morning, Mr. Holmes,\" said he; \"good morning. May I ask if you are\nvery busy just now?\" \"Not too busy to listen to you.\" \"I thought that, perhaps, if you had nothing particular on hand, you\nmight care to assist us in a most remarkable case which occurred only\nlast night at Hampstead.\" \"Dear me!\" said Holmes. \"What was that?\" \"A murder--a most dramatic and remarkable murder. I know how keen you\nare upon these things, and I would take it as a great favour if you\nwould step down to Appledore Towers and give us the benefit of your\nadvice. It is no ordinary crime. We have had our eyes upon this Mr.\nMilverton for some time, and, between ourselves, he was a bit of a\nvillain. He is known to have held papers which he used for blackmailing\npurposes. These papers have all been burned by the murderers. No article\nof value was taken, as it is probable that the criminals were men of\ngood position, whose sole object was to prevent social exposure.\" \"Criminals!\" said Holmes. \"Plural!\" \"Yes, there were two of them. They were, as nearly as possible, captured\nred-handed. We have their foot-marks, we have their description; it's\nten to one that we trace them. The first fellow was a bit too active,\nbut the second was caught by the under-gardener and only got away after\na struggle. He was a middle-sized, strongly-built man--square jaw, thick\nneck, moustache, a mask over his eyes.\" \"That's rather vague,\" said Sherlock Holmes. \"Why, it might be a\ndescription of Watson!\" \"It's true,\" said the inspector, with much amusement. \"It might be a\ndescription of Watson.\" \"Well, I am afraid I can't help you, Lestrade,\" said Holmes. \"The fact\nis that I knew this fellow Milverton, that I considered him one of the\nmost dangerous men in London, and that I think there are certain crimes\nwhich the law cannot touch, and which therefore, to some extent, justify\nprivate revenge. No, it's no use arguing. I have made up my mind. My\nsympathies are with the criminals rather than with the victim, and I\nwill not handle this case.\" Holmes had not said one word to me about the tragedy which we had\nwitnessed, but I observed all the morning that he was in his most\nthoughtful mood, and he gave me the impression, from his vacant eyes and\nhis abstracted manner, of a man who is striving to recall something to\nhis memory. We were in the middle of our lunch when he suddenly sprang\nto his feet. \"By Jove, Watson; I've got it!\" he cried. \"Take your hat! Come with me!\" He hurried at his top speed down Baker Street and along\nOxford Street, until we had almost reached Regent Circus. Here on the\nleft hand there stands a shop window filled with photographs of the\ncelebrities and beauties of the day. Holmes's eyes fixed themselves upon\none of them, and following his gaze I saw the picture of a regal and\nstately lady in Court dress, with a high diamond tiara upon her noble\nhead. I looked at that delicately-curved nose, at the marked eyebrows,\nat the straight mouth, and the strong little chin beneath it. Then I\ncaught my breath as I read the time-honoured title of the great nobleman\nand statesman whose wife she had been. My eyes met those of Holmes, and\nhe put his finger to his lips as we turned away from the window. *****\n\n\n                     THE STRAND MAGAZINE\n                     Vol. 27  MAY, 1904\n                THE RETURN OF SHERLOCK HOLMES. By ARTHUR CONAN DOYLE.\n\n<System> Please remember what the user reads on 2024-01-09, save the details within the book, and retain a summary of the book the user has read so far."]
[{"question": "Summarize the content of the book I read from 2024-01-01 to 2024-01-09", "answer": "Watson, Sherlock Holmes, Charles Augustus Milverton, Lady Eva Blackwell, Inspector Lestrade, blackmail, love letters, wedding, nobleman, Milverton's house, Milverton's study, burglary, fake engagement, maid, breaking into safe, mystery woman, murder, gunshot, burning papers, escape, Baker Street, police pursuit, moral dilemma, secrecy, ruined life, husband's death, identity protection, famous lady, shop window, dynamic duo, illegal actions, prison cell, bandanas, dramatic confrontation, speechifying, veiled woman, scaling wall, fleeing scene"}]