Chapter 524: The Truth

The female singer watched the pale man on the bed walking towards her.

The latter's eyes shone with excitement, like a child who had discovered a novelty toy, and also seemed to have some kind of twisted attachment. The sick smile on his face was reflected on the scalpel in his left hand.

Irene Adler closed her eyes in despair.

But the next moment, there was a rumbling sound above the heads of the three of them. This was the sound of the entrance to the secret room being opened.

However, when Zhang Heng and Holmes rushed down with their revolvers in hand, they froze in place.

In any case, they never expected that they would see such a bizarre scene.

The female singer was still bound and unable to move. Father Jacob stood there with a blank expression, while a strange middle-aged man fell into a pool of blood at his feet.

The latter had an unbelievable expression on his pale face, as if he had seen the most incredible thing in the world. His eyes were wide open, and he looked at Father Jacob, as if he was asking why.

When Father Jacob saw Zhang Heng and Holmes, he threw away the bloody knife in his hand, and said calmly, "You came just in time, I killed them."

Holmes squatted on the ground, checked the middle-aged man, saw the wound on the back of his head, and shook his head at Zhang Heng, "It's hopeless."

Zhang Heng stepped over the corpse, came to the female singer, untied the ropes on her hands and feet, and removed the rag from her mouth. As soon as Irene Adler was free, she rushed to the ground. Spit, as if trying to spit out the strange smell in his mouth.

Zhang Heng was actually ready to use the [Wall of Evil Thoughts] for the last chance, but luckily Holmes found the entrance within three minutes.

When the two rushed in, they thought they would encounter a hostage-taking situation by the murderer, but the result surprised everyone.

The next moment, Zhang Heng heard a reminder that the main task was completed. Although he still had a lot of doubts in his heart, but now is not the time to entangle in such matters. Ropes tied Father Jacob up, and nearby patrolmen were notified.

Holmes stayed where he was, guarding Father Jacob while waiting for the police to send more manpower, while Zhang Heng sent Miss Singer home first.

Zhang Heng stayed at Irene's residence until six in the morning before returning to 221B Baker Street, and Holmes had already returned from the police station by this time.

He looked satisfied, completely ignored the protest of the landlord, Mrs. Hudson, and took out his violin to play. The melodious sound of the violin echoed in the room, but he didn't know the neighbor who was woken up in the next building Would he also want to rush over to kill someone?

"It seems that you have figured out all the ins and outs." Zhang Heng said.

"It seems that you can go to the theater to listen to operas for free in the future." Holmes also said.

"..."

"This may not be the most complicated case I have encountered, but it is certainly one of the most interesting." Holmes put down his violin, and finally turned the conversation back to the case.

"Father Jacob made a mistake when he was young and left an illegitimate child with a prostitute. Although I don't think it is his child, it doesn't matter anymore. The important thing is that this is what he has always been. He is willing to regard that child as his own flesh and blood, or in other words, he is using this method to punish himself and atone for the mistakes he made back then."

In fact, Zhang Heng had already learned about these things from Irene Adler, so he was not surprised at all, and motioned Holmes to continue talking.

"The birth of this child was a mistake. He was the crystallization of a priest and a courtesan after an impulse. The relationship between the two of them was not even considered love. He was abandoned by his mother since he was a child, and his father did it for his own. Reputation can only send him to an orphanage. Growing up in such an environment, his personality will inevitably become withdrawn and gloomy. Father Jacob said that there are evil seeds buried in his body, but in fact I hold a different view View."

Holmes lit his pipe, "Both the police and Father Jacob himself believe that Jack the Ripper murdered those prostitutes out of revenge for his mother who gave birth to him hastily and abandoned him, but I think he is more likely to make the scene Murder is regarded as a ritual to trace the origin of his own life, of course, at the same time, like many serial killers, he craves the attention of the world, and the letter sent to the newspaper is the best illustration."

"Uterus?" Zhang Heng raised his eyebrows.

"Yes, I think the uterus is a very important symbol in this case. It is related to reproduction and is also the place where embryos are conceived. Jack the Ripper took the victim's uterus, which means that he hopes to find his own home. For example, the targets he chooses are prostitutes who have given birth to children, drink alcohol and live with others. Through these characteristics, he connects these victims with his biological mother, and he can indeed feel the relationship between himself and the target again when he commits the crime. It’s like finding his mother, and it’s amazing, isn’t it, that Emma gave him life and he took it from those substitutes, like a complete cycle.”

Holmes blinked, "Of course, the latter part is just my conjecture. Jack the Ripper is dead. I guess my conjecture will never be confirmed... Speaking of Jack the Ripper, we Let’s talk about Father Jacob again, I have to admit that his role in this case is beyond my expectation, remember our previous speculation?”

"Um?"

"We all agreed at the time that there was no collusion in this case, so I did have a brief moment of confusion at the end when you reconnected Father Jacob and Jack the Ripper through Mark Cohen, and it turns out Father Jacob was not an accomplice to Jack the Ripper."

Holmes continued, "Jack the Ripper lived silently in the secret room under the confessional of the Sacred Heart Church, which allowed him to hear many secrets that should not have been known to a third person. When he committed the crime for the first time, Father Jacob He really didn't know that he was responsible for the case until he confessed to Father Jacob himself, and Father Jacob was in a dilemma. Of course he didn't want Jack the Ripper to kill people, but on the other hand, the latter It's his and Emma's child again, and he has reasons to protect this child out of the psychology of making up for the previous debt.

"So he made another wrong choice. He decided to hide this matter, and at the same time hoped that he could control the beast. At the same time, he also made another preparation and began to consciously guide Mark, who also has a mental illness. Cohen, using the latter as bait to mislead the police investigation, was a logical choice from the father's standpoint.

"But he obviously overestimated his ability, and underestimated Jack the Ripper's long-suppressed morbid psychology, so there was a second and a third homicide, and things were rapidly slipping out of control. It was also at this time that Father Jacob began to realize that he had no ability to prevent Jack the Ripper from committing crimes. At this time, Miss Adler came to the door. The characteristics she showed perfectly matched the goal that Jack the Ripper had been looking for. , so Father Jacob kidnapped her, but not to use her as a sacrifice to the devil, but as a test question for Jack the Ripper.

"He wanted to see with his own eyes whether his son had really overcome the devil in his heart as he had promised many times, and would not commit crimes again, but the result disappointed him... Judging from Jack the Ripper's reaction, he Knowing that as long as the latter is still alive in this world, the next victim will appear and innocent souls will die, so in the end, he can only choose to kill this demon he created himself."