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One, two, three drops, then the cork stoppered the vial to drop into his pocket. That should set a simple baseline, and he shoved the dropper out of sight as footsteps sounded on the stairs. That familiar limping gait wandered into the sitting room a minute later.
“Good morning, Holmes.”
A grumble sufficed as answer. Useless things, pleasantries, serving only to waste words better kept for later. Especially in the morning. Watson would not expect him to reply.
Nor would he expect company while he ate, but Holmes claimed his chair anyway. The full cup of coffee Watson set above his plate dictated at least an hour before Holmes’ experiment showed results, but better to watch early than miss something. Quiet minutes occupied himself with toast and warm jam, though his focus never strayed far from his friend. Watson had claimed nothing to do today. Did that hold true?
Yes. The last rasher of bacon disappeared to let Watson refill his cup and claim his armchair, then yesterday’s book quickly became this morning’s diversion. Finishing the novel would keep him there for two hours if that solution worked, more if it did not, and Holmes occupied himself with his indices, though most of his attention monitored his friend.
One foot tapped impatience through a rather long block of description, but the relief of renewed story progression became the irritation of a plot twist. Smile at a witty retort. Scowl at a character’s death. Flip back three pages to reread a passage. Watson’s cup steadily emptied as the minutes passed, and the clock ticked ever closer to when Holmes expected his supplement to take effect. His own pages turned slower as he kept a closer eye on his friend.
Who abruptly froze, not twenty minutes after sitting down and with one hand still holding the corner of the page. Worryingly unfocused eyes stared through the page for two breaths. Then three.
“Alright, Watson?”
Nothing. No reaction. No response. Holmes set the index down to move closer.
“Watson?”
Still nothing, but pulse and breathing remained normal. Several seconds kept Watson staring through that page before he turned back one. That unfocused gaze appeared to skim the text backwards, then the next one turned.
“Watson, what are you doing?”
Reading, evidently. Or revealing what he had read. Slow, slightly uncoordinated movements gradually turned every page Watson had read since breakfast before he set the book aside and stood.
“Watson!”
Tried to stand. His knees buckled immediately, and Holmes lunged, barely preventing Watson from hitting the floor—or the hearth. Sitting him on the settee found hollow vacancy staring straight ahead.
“Watson, can you hear me?”
No. Or if he could, he could not respond. That empty gaze never moved even when Holmes purposely sent a jolt of pain through his shoulder. Deep breaths mimicked sleep more than consciousness, but his pulse maintained a speed much closer to wide awake—bordering on exercising. Nothing Holmes tried received a reaction, including holding the coffee cup to Watson’s mouth. That solution should have increased Watson’s information retention, not placed him in a waking sleep. Did Holmes have any way to undo this?
Not without several more hours at his chemistry set. Three drops should have taken an hour or more to produce results and lasted about four hours past that. When every possible equation showed the results harmless, he had not bothered creating an antidote for a beneficial supplement.
“No, Watson. Stay here.”
He would remember this lesson the next time he invented something. Watson neatly shrugged Holmes’ hand away as he could not do when coherent, gaining his feet before Holmes could force him back onto the cushion.
And fell again almost as quickly. Holmes rotated him on the settee and tangled his legs in a blanket to delay another attempt. Did he need to call another doctor?
Unlikely. Physical signs remained stable, and even Agar would have no more idea than Holmes. Less, probably, since Holmes would have to describe the compound. Better to deal with it himself.
Watson tried to stand—and fall—yet again. This would be a long day.