The Adventure of the Speckled Band that of Dr Roylott. Holmes and Watson arrange to spend the night in Helen's room. In darkness they wait; suddenly, a slight metallic noise and a dim light through the ventilator prompt Holmes to action. Quickly lighting a candle, he discovers on the bell cord the "speckled band"—a venomous snake. He strikes the snake with a stick, driving it back through the ventilator. Agitated, it attacks Roylott, who had been waiting for it to return after killing Helen. Holmes identifies the snake as a "swamp adder" and reveals to Watson the motive: the late wife's will had provided an annual
The Search (short story) The Search (short story) The Search is a science fiction short story by Canadian-American writer A. E. van Vogt, originally published in "Astounding" in January 1943. The story involves time travel and is told in a non-linear fashion with multiple plot twists. Drake, a travelling salesmen for the Quik-Rite pen company, awakes in the hospital with no memories of the last two weeks. His boss tells him that he disappeared in the middle of his last business trip. In an attempt to piece together what happened, he sets out to recreate the journey. While waiting for a train, another traveller,