When Sherlock returns to the manor, his absence has been detected and will be punished. It doesn’t matter that the letter from Winchcombe will alleviate fears of a plague outbreak. In the future, the boy will not be allowed to leave the house unless accompanied by Crowe. The one saving grace is that Sherlock will be given free access to his uncle’s library.

Later that day, he writes a letter to Mycroft, telling him about the mysterious bee-related deaths and the involvement of Baron Maupertuis. He leaves the sealed letter in the hall, assuming a maid will post it. Belatedly, he realizes that Mrs. Eglantine has been lurking around and may have opened the letter to see what it contained. That same evening, Sherlock finds a note addressed to him. It is an invitation from Virginia to meet him at a fair being held on the castle grounds the following morning at nine o’clock.

The next day, Sherlock heads to the fair on his bicycle. As he searches for Virginia, he gets pulled into a boxing match when someone shoves him into the ring with the current champion. Though he tries to defend himself and breaks his opponent’s nose in the process, Sherlock gets knocked out: “Pain filled Sherlock’s world, red and raw.