A STRANGER AT THE DOOR- CHAPTER 7- WATER AND MEMORY

After Watson had taken Violet upstairs, Holmes spent the afternoon pulling out maps, books and newspapers. When one item failed to yield the information he was seeking, he tossed it aside and picked up another one. They covered the sitting room floor llike snow left by a blizzard.

Mrs. Hudson entered the house laden with packages. A little boy followed her with a stack of parcels taller than he was. She came up the stairs followed by the boy struggling to hold on to his parcels. Mrs. Hudson made the mistake of glancing at the scene in the sitting room. Holmes was sitting cross legged in the middle of the mess he made scowling and smoking a pipe. She shouted, "Mr. Holmes!"She did not stop to chastise him, but continued up to Violet's room.

When Watson saw all the parcels, he jumped up from the chair beside Violet's bed to assist Mrs. Hudson in finding a place to put them. He gave the boy a tip and sent him on his way. "I don't know where I can put all this in this "glorified closet''. Mr. Holmes' "things" have got to go somewhere else!" she huffed.

Violet opened her eyes and sat up. "My goodness, it appears that Santa Claus has been here!" Watson smiled to see her childlike delight.

Mrs. Hudson ordered, "Alright Dr. Watson, you can leave now. I have Violet in hand." She winked at Violet and the doctor made a quick exit from the room.

Mrs. Hudson had made a thorough job of shopping for Violet. There were two blouses and skirts, a corset, petticoats, nightgown, dressing gown, a jacket, a hat and a pair of shoes. "Now my dear, I will draw you a bath."

"Thank you Mrs. Hudson!"


When Watson entered the sitting room, Holmes was still in the middle of the floor. He had a book in his hand. "Watson I would like for Violet to look at this book," Watson took the book from Holmes and noticed the title- Cities of the American South. It was a large book containing mostly photographs of various cities. He flipped through the book. "Atlanta, Charleston, New Orleans, Mobile, Richmond, Savannah. Are you hoping she will recognize any of these places?"

"Yes," Holmes answered. "If this yields no result in triggering her memory, then we will move on to something else."

"Whatever you do Holmes, proceed with caution. Do not push her for answers she does not have now," Watson admonished him. "If you press her too far, you may never find out anything about Violet. Her mental state is precarious."

Holmes sighed, "Yes Watson, you are the physician. I will defer to your wishes."

Watson heard what Holmes told him, but did not believe it.


Violet entered the bathroom. She stepped into the tub and looked down at the water. A memory flashed through her mind. It was of falling, falling and deep, inky black water. She shuddered and moved to get out of the tub, but looked down at the clear calm water she was standing in and sat down to bathe. She made herself relax and took her time. When she got out of the tub, she went to dress.

"Oh Mrs. Hudson, thank you for drawing the bath for me. It feels so good just be clean and warm and safe. If I never find out who I am, the kindness you have already shown to me by you, Dr. Watson and Mr. Holmes would be enough. Now I have a small favor to request. Please help me with this awful hair of mine!" Violet held out a few strands of hair in disgust.

"Alright my dear," Mrs. Hudson chuckled and pointed to the chair. The ten minutes Mrs. Hudson spent brushing out her hair was heaven to Violet. Instead of pinning up her hair, Violet tied it back in a ribbon Mrs. Hudson had bought for her. Then she set to the task of dressing- undergarments , stockings, then a skirt , blouse and shoes. "I hope I look alright, " Violet said. Mrs. Hudson smiled and said, "Yes you do my dear!"

"Well then, Mrs. Hudson, I am ready to make a "grand entrance" in the sitting room." She smiled and they both descended the stairs and Violet went into the sitting room. Upon seeing Violet, Watson immediately stood up. Holmes did not, however. Watson cleared his throat and whispered out the side of his mouth. "Holmes! Stand up when a lady enters the room!" Holmes jumped up as if shot from a cannon.

Violet hid a smile behind her hand. "Hello Dr. Watson, Mr. Holmes."

Watson led her over to the settee. She noticed a rather large book sitting there. Violet picked it up and looked at the title. "Cities of the American South. Why is this here?"

As Watson sat down next to her he said, "Holmes thought if you look at the photographs of the cities in this book, you might recognize something that might give a clue as to where you are from."

She sat for a half hour looking through the book. With each city she came to in the book she looked at each picture carefully. Atlanta, Nashville, Mobile, New Orleans. Nothing about them looked familiar to her. When she turned to the pages for Charleston and Savannah, she paused and looked at each picture several times, studying them intently. Something stirred in the back of her mind, but it was so faint as to be ghostlike. "Most of these cities seem unknown to me. There is something about Savannah and Charleston that is … I do not know how to express it. "Familiar" does not seem to be the proper word for it."

Holmes said, " is a place to start. Do you remember anything about the house you lived in or family or friends?"

Distress began to show on Violet's face. Holmes seemed oblivious to this. His interest was in getting answers from her. Watson stopped him before he could proceed any further with his questions. "Violet are you tired?" Holmes shot him a dirty look which Watson returned. Somehow this exchange between the two men amused her. Her distress drained away and she could not help but laugh.

She looked directly at Holmes, but made her answer to Watson."No, I am not tired. What I am is thirsty. I would like a cup of tea."

Violet is starting to remember things, although not fast enough to suit Holmes! God bless Watson for keeping him from going too far. Thanks for the lovely reviews. I really appreciate them! By the way, since Violet is American I had her use the name Santa Claus instead of Father Christmas when she sees all the packages Mrs. Hudson had brought to her.