The Mandala of Sherlock Holmes - Jamyang Norbu [76]
'See the small burn-marks on his shaven head, Mr Holmes,' said Tsering, holding a lantern over it. 'He was a Chinese monk.'
'Hmm ... yes. I have heard that certain monasteries in China have the reputation of training their members to become skilled assassins rather than holy men.' Sherlock Holmes remarked, rather abstractedly. Then he clutched his arm tighter in sudden pain, and spoke in a low hiss. 'But we lose precious time. The palanquin must be followed.'
Mr Holmes quickly explained to Tsering about the cylindrical object being taken by the mysterious person in the palanquin, and instructed Tsering to take some guards and follow it.
'... it left a few minutes ago so it won't be too difficult to catch up with it. Keep a safe distance. And don't, if you value your life, try to stop or apprehend it. I just want to know where it is going.'
Tsering quickly went off with two soldiers, while some other guards carried away the two bodies. Mr Holmes's wound was now bleeding quite severely and his face was drawn and deathly pale, so I helped him back to the palace.
18
The Missing Mandala
The Lama Yonten quickly summoned a monk physician who bathed Mr Holmes's wound and treated it with some aromatic herbal salve. Servants also brought in hot tea and other refreshments, which were very welcome to us after our trying experiences of the night. As he was being tended, Sherlock Holmes narrated to the Lama the strange occurrences by the bridge. The Lama seemed much troubled by Mr Holmes's tale.
'This is terrible, terrible,' the Lama said, shaking his head from side to side. 'But at least you have, for the present, prevented an unthinkable evil and a national catastrophe.'
'Is His Holiness all right?' Holmes inquired.
'Yes. I have just come from his bed-chamber. He is unharmed. Fortunately the assassin must have made a mistake and entered His Holiness's chapel instead of his bedchamber.'
'Humm ... perhaps,' said Sherlock Holmes speculatively. 'Though that could have been his intention all along.'
'What do you mean?' the Lama asked, puzzled.
'Well, when I was chasing the intruder, I noticed that he had something in his hand, which he tried to hand over to whoever it was in that covered litter.'
'I saw it too, Sir,' I ventured. 'It looked like a rolled-up scroll or a roll of parchment.'
'Exactly. Now it would not be unreasonable to assume that the article had been taken from the chapel. And, since our intruder did not strike me as a chance thief, one could possibly conclude that the man had intended to enter the chapel and steal the scroll in the first place.'
'So you do not think that he had any murderous intentions?' the Lama Yonten queried.
'I cannot really say,' answered Holmes, shrugging his shoulders. 'Of course, I must confess that such an intruder, armed with two wicked swords, is someone to whom one cannot confidentiy attribute peaceful intentions. But considering the facts it would seem that his principal task was not murder, but the purloining of some object from the chapel.'
'Well, it will not be difficult to verify,' said the Lama Yonten. 'The Senior Chapel Attendant is at this moment cleaning up the mess there. He will certainly know if anything has been stolen. I will have him summoned.'
He reached over for his small handbell, but Sherlock Holmes raised his hand.
'It would perhaps be more profitable to go there and look for ourselves.'
'But your wound, Mr Holmes?'
'A mere scratch. It does not prevent me from walking.'
'Very well,' the Lama nodded.
Holmes rose from the couch, grimacing slightly from the pain he must have felt. I started to go over to help him but he waved me away.
The chapel, now brightly lit with oil lamps, was still in some disarray, though a few monks were attempting to tidy it up and put everything in order. One of them — a wrinkled, toothless old chap with narrow squint eyes and hollow cheeks sprouting a few grey hairs — was clearly upset.
'Oh dear me ... oh ... oh ...'he wailed, holding up the remains of what had once been an exquisite Ming cloisonne