A Study in Charlotte

Charlotte convinces Shepard to allow the two teens to conduct their own investigation and share information with the police. He grudgingly gives them a month until Thanksgiving break to wrap up their sleuthing. Feeling guilty about Elizabeth, James goes to the hospital to visit her. She tells him that she can’t recollect who attacked her, but her assailant said, “Give my regards to Charlotte Holmes” (162). James immediately shares this information with Shepard and Charlotte. Then, they plan to have James visit the man the police arrested in the tunnels to see if he can identify the fugitive. Before the visit can be arranged, however, the suspect is found hanging in his cell.

Later, Charlotte and James manage to get a look at the hanged man’s corpse in the morgue. They find a tattoo on his wrist. It’s a compass with the word “Navigator” written beneath. Charlotte points out that the name Moriarty means “seaworthy” and concludes that the man was a Moriarty operative. The two sleuths begin running down the Moriarty family tree but can’t find any likely suspects. Even though James suggests August as the most likely culprit, Charlotte dismisses this theory. James learns that she was once romantically linked with him.