Holmes blinks, then shakes his head once, as if surfacing from underwater. "Pray forgive me," he smiles, wry. "You see? I must have a case, so that I may concentrate on the present, rather than the past or future."

Pausing to consider, he takes a swallow of tea, then nods. "The speckled band. I did say something of it, didn't I? A most peculiar affair, all around."