Hello again my fellow readers, here we are with the next chapter. So last time we left off, Basil and Olivia arrive in New York City, where they receive information from a Pinkerton Agent named Thomas Barkley, that Cain has retreated out to the American West, and Basil and Olivia proceed to go out and follow Cain and take a train out west. This chapter will see them arrive in a small town, and what information Basil receives first. Enjoy.
Chapter 11
The whole trip on the train had felt long for both Basil and Olivia. They had ridden on the train for a few days now, with a few stops for others to make, as the two mice made their way to Texas. It was morning, and the train was continuing to move down the tracks. Basil was smoking the pipe in his hand, while Olivia was taking a nap by the window. He looked out the window, knowing that they had just past the Texas state line a while ago, and saw a small frontier town in the distance, which would be their destination that the train would stop at. He looked at the town and noticed that judging by the desert environment that surrounded it, with few bushy trees around it, the town appeared to be one that would most likely be south of the center of the state, and near the border between Texas and Mexico. The train was starting to come closer to the town, and Basil knew that they had made it to their destination. He looked at Olivia and shook her lightly to wake her up, but not in a rude manner.
"Olivia my dear, wake up" Basil said to her "We made it" Olivia opened her eyes softly and looked out the window before she started to get up.
"How long have I been asleep for?" Olivia asked Basil.
"For about seven hours" Basil answered "But not to worry Olivia, we will stop at our destination in due time" Olivia, now fully awake, looked out the window again, and then back to Basil, feeling if he may or may not be right about the stop.
"How do you know that this would be the first place to look?" Olivia asked him.
"Every criminal has to start out his plans somewhere small" Basil said to her "Also, you may not have noticed, but I took the message that Thomas and his men found from one of Cain's henchmen, and I ran a few tests on the paper of the note to see where exactly it was made from. I had noticed the faint traces of dust and sand that were left behind on the paper, and there was a small stamp on the note that appeared to resemble the state of Texas. Also, since Cain and his men want to stay hidden from the government, they would keep a low profile, and towns and settlements like this one would be perfect just for that." After Basil had concluded his explanation, the conductor came into the cart as the train was coming to a stop at the town's station.
"Last stop" the conductor called out "Everybody out" the train began slowing down to the station before it came to a complete stop. The mice in the small cart got up and moved around to get their bags and whatever else they brought with them. Basil was the first to get out of the seat and get his bags, before Olivia did the same as she followed her out of the cart and onto the gate plank that was placed outside of the cart as the human passengers were departing from their cart as well. Olivia went past Basil and was able to use her arm to block the sunlight, but did manage to get a good look at the town as she walked down the gate plank, with Basil behind her. The two mice stopped on the wooden boardwalk of the station, and Olivia looked around the old rusty town, and took in a deep breath of the air that was around her. It wasn't as foggy or cool as Scotland was, but if she stayed down here for a little while longer, then she could get used to it. Both mice looked up at the sign that said the name of the town, which was 'Shady Hollow'. It seemed to be the kind of name that looked as if it may or may not be true, but that was just her opinion. Basil noticed that there were a few power lines that were posted around the town and figured that it was the new age that had brought them to the town. He took another smoke from the pipe before he turned to Olivia.
"So Basil, where do we start?" Olivia asked him.
"First I believe that we must a quaint ourselves at the local hotel" Basil said to her "Then we will head down to the Sheriff's office and see if he has seen any unusual activity around this town in any recent days." Olivia nodded as they walked underneath the edge of the boardwalk and down the streets towards the local hotel. To the humans, it was an old, worn out, two-story hotel that seemed to have a small amount of rooms on each floor, but to the mice, the place was a big hotel with a number of rooms that were hidden within the walls of the hotel for any creature to stay in. The two of them went down and came across a small mouse sized door that was right underneath the human door. Olivia was the first to open the door and walk into the waiting room, while Basil came in next and closed the door behind them. The room that they were in appeared to be almost empty, with just a few mice sitting in the chairs and sofas that were placed about around the room. Basil deduced that the rest of the mice were either in their rooms or just outside in the town, since there wasn't a lot of activity going on around here. The two mice walked slowly through the room, with the only sound that could be heard came from the small fan that hung above the ceiling. Olivia walked up to the front desk, and rang the small bell that was on the desk. A minute later, the door behind the desk opened and out came a jolly looking mouse that seemed a little plump and had a big mustache on his face.
"Hello there sir, and mam" the innkeeper said greeting them in a positive tone "Welcome to the Shady Hollow inn, how may I be of service to you"
"Yes, we would like to rent a room" Basil said to the man "My student and I are just visiting from England and we just want to make a stop here for a short time" Olivia looked at Basil, thinking if that was the best he could come up with, but she let that aside.
"English folk?" the innkeeper said to them surprised "Well we don't get much visitors around here that often" He went over to one of the desks and opened a cart that had a list of keys that go to a certain room "Would you two like one room to share or be separate?"
"We'll just share a room" Olivia said to the innkeeper. The mouse nodded and looked for any keys to a room that was available. He finally picked up a key and gave it to Basil.
"Room number 34 on the second floor" The innkeeper said to them "Enjoy your stay" Basil gave a nod to the innkeeper before Olivia followed him up the stairs to the second floor to find their room. The walk was tiring since it was a long flight of stairs, but they didn't mind. They made it up the stairs and found their room. When Basil unlocked it and opened it, the room was revealed to be very spacious with two beds, a bathtub, a mirror with drawers, and everything else that could make someone feel comfortable. Olivia set her bag on one of the beds while Basil set his bag on the other bed, while also placing his chemistry set on the counter that was in the room. After they had everything placed where it needed to be, Basil turned over to Olivia.
"Right, now here is what we shall do" Basil said to Olivia "I shall walk down to the Sheriff's office and see if he knows anything unusual that has happened, while you look around town and see if there is anything you can find, is that clear?"
"I understand Basil" Olivia replied "Maybe I can ask some of the people here as well"
"Good girl" Basil remarked, seeing how she has gotten smarter over the years and the way she has become a go-getter type mouse "Now let me just set a few more things up from my bag and we'll be off" Olivia rolled her eyes, wondering why Basil had to take that whole chemistry set with them, but since he was a man of elementary and he did like to take a closer look at things, so she didn't mind. She went over to her bed to unpack as well, and put her dress aside in case she would need it for later.
After they had spent some time unpacking, Basil and Olivia walked out of the room, down the stairs and out of the building, leading them back out on the hot, dusty streets of the town. Basil had a few things under his vest, including his magnifying glass and revolver, while Olivia had her pick out clothing with her and just some boots.
"Now then Olivia, do you remember the plan?" Basil asked her to remind her.
"Yes, look around town for anything and meet you in the saloon with whatever I have" Olivia replied. Basil nodded and walked down the dirt road before he turned back to Olivia.
"Now you be careful now Olivia" Basil said to her.
"Don't worry about me Basil" Olivia said to him "I'll be fine" she turned around and went to explore the town as Basil walked over to the Sheriff's office. He made it down to the old jail house where human and mice criminals would be taken in if they have committed a crime and then sent down to a bigger jail later if possible. He walked past the doors and into the small jail cell where the sheriff, who appeared to be sitting on his desk reading the local newspaper.
"Ahem" Basil said to get the Sheriff's attention. The mouse looked up from his paper, placed it aside on his desk and looked at Basil.
"Anything I can do for you?" The sheriff asked him.
"Why yes I believe this would be a perfect opportunity for help" Basil said "I'm looking for someone that a friend of mine and I have been tracking down and I suspect that either that creature or some of his men were last seen here."
"I don't even know if I would even care" the sheriff replied "I am the sheriff but why would finding someone be important to you"
"Well then I do believe that I have not fully introduced myself yet" Basil said "My name is Basil, with Scotland yard, I'm well known in England as Basil of Baker Street"
"Wait a minute" The sheriff said as he got up once he heard the name "Basil of Baker Street? Well I'll be damned. I've had some kids that have read all about you"
"Well it is nice to hear about some admirers" Basil said "But I came here for something else"
"Well then what's a British Detective like you doing out in the middle of nowhere?" the Sheriff asked him.
"I am very glad that you have asked. You see, a friend and I have been pursuing a criminal that goes by the name of Cain" Basil said while taking out the letter that he had in his coat "In New York, the police caught one of his associates that received this letter, but he killed himself before he could be detained by the police. There is a small trace of dust and sand on it, as well as a stamp on it that judging by the symbols, could originate in the Texas are, particularly a small town like this one" The Sheriff took a closer look at the note that Basil was holding in his hands, but what really got his attention was Basil's mentioning of Cain.
"I wouldn't be so sure about finding Cain" the sheriff said to Basil "He can be unpredictable, even I'm not sure if I'm good enough to catch him."
"Believe me when I tell you Sheriff, I understand what he is capable of" Basil said In fact, I witnessed some of his work back in London. But I am not asking you to come with me; I just want to ask if you have seen anything unusual that might have happened here recently"
"Hmmm, I didn't think about it at the time but I think I saw a few things around here" The Sheriff said "Last week I saw several mice moving in with a few boxes that I didn't know what was in it. I went over to ask them what was in those boxes, and they told me it was none of my business. When I asked them again they said it was a delivery for their boss" Basil took in what the Sheriff said and figured that it must have been a delivery.
"Is there anything else that you heard from them?" Basil asked them.
"Not much" the sheriff replied "I did overhear them talking and say that it was very important for them to make sure it gets to their boss, but I didn't find out anything else" Basil looked at the sheriff, feeling that he may not have a lot of good info, but he did know some whereabouts.
"Why thank you for sharing some of that with me old chap. I think that it has been the most helpful" Basil said. The sheriff nodded as Basil picked up his pipe that was lying on the table, and started to walk out the door, but only turned around once he remembered something "Then again there is one more thing I forgot to ask you. Have there been any disappearances of mice around the town?" The sheriff looked at him, tilted his head and then got up out of his chair.
"You know, now that you mentioned it, there have been some folks that disappeared from the town. Sometimes they're just a few folks that lived in this town, and sometimes there are folks that arrive her from the train. One time there was a family that lived outside of the town on a small farm. They were around for a while, until one night we heard sounds coming from the place. We went down there and the whole place had been raided and the family that lived there was nowhere to be found. We're not sure where the family was or what happened to them, but if it is Cain, then I suggest that you be careful. I've heard that he is a dangerous rat to go after. Most deputies that I am friends with say that some of them are afraid to catch him"
"Believe me sheriff I am well aware of that" Basil said to him "I will remember to be careful, thank you for your information"
"Always a pleasure Mr. Basil" said the sheriff, who tipped his hat to Basil as the mouse detective walked out of the sheriff's office. Unknown to Basil, a group of five mice in trench coats looked up from a hill, with one of them looking through a pair of binoculars, while the rest were near him and waited for a reply. Once he saw Basil walk out of the Sheriff's office, he turned to the others that were with him.
"Yeah, he's here" the mouse said to the rest of the gang "What does the boss want us to do again?"
"Like he said he wants us to find Basil in any of the settlements down here and make sure that he is taken care of" the mouse holding the binoculars nodded until he noticed something off in the distance. He brought them up to see what he was seeing, and he saw a young girl that was snooping around town as well.
"I see a girl down there too" the mouse said to his gang "He might be with him"
"Of course he's with him you idiot" the leader said before he turned to the others "And we all know what to do" the rest of the gang nodded and cocked the guns that they were given in their bags before heading over to their prairie dogs, which they mounted with ease "We'll take each one at the same time" the leader said to them "Two of us will go after the girl, the rest will find Basil" the others nodded before they snapped the reins to their animals, sending them down the hill and straight towards the town.
That's it for now. It looks like Basil and Olivia are in for a fight now, but don't worry, they will receive help from someone, but I won't show you who it is until the next chapter. The only hints that I can give you is that he is an OC, and that he is not as old as you think he may be. I was going to introduce him in this chapter, but I didn't have enough time, so you'll see him in the next chapter. Anyway, I hope you guys liked it, leave some reviews and I will update soon. So I will see you guys the next time I post. Bye.