The novel The Valley of Fear by Arthur Conan Doyle is a captivating mystery about the murder of a man who calls himself by the name of John Douglas. A sawed-off shotgun blast to the head carried out the gruesome killing. John Douglas was found in his study, face mangled on the floor with a card laid beside his body and a hammer laying feet from the crime. John Douglas and his wife lived in the Manor House of Birlstone which surrounded by water acquired a draw bridge that was raised at sunset every evening. Every night Douglas did his rounds checking the house's safety through every room. Around 11 p.m, when Douglas made his round to the study he was shot dead. As Holmes and Watson investigated the crime, behind the curtain there were muddy footprints appearing as if the murderer was hiding. On the window sill there was a bloodstain from a shoe print. The window was opened and one of the two dumb bells was missing. The draw bridge being raised around six p.m. and the killing occurring at 11 p.m. Holmes figured that the murderer could not have entered the house any later than 6 or before 4 o'clock due to the arrival of guests. As the two detectives were investigating the housekeeper, a good friend of the Douglas's and, Douglas's wife, they found that Cecil Barker, the good friend of John Douglas seemed to act peculiar when questions were being asked. As did John Douglas's wife. One would think that the wife of the murdered husband would be exceptionally melancholy but this was not the case and it appeared as if she was faking her emotions. Holmes recognized Barker's footprint and saw that it was his shoes that made the muddy and bloodstains. Barker claimed that a secret society found Douglas.Douglas had a very unique background.
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Sherlock Holmes informed Cecil Barker that he was draining the moat and Holmes watched from a distance while Barker fished up a bundle and in the end was the missing dumb bell. The bundle was a pair of clothes that matched the missing convict's clothing. Mr. Douglas appears and explains that he ran into an old enemy from the Valley of Fear and he tried to kill Douglas. Douglas killed the enemy and dressed him up as himself, threw his clothes in the moat, and hid in the basement for days. He did this to protect himself against further crime. Mrs. Douglas and Barker helped make this possible. Sherlock Holmes informs Douglas that a greater threat is above him from Professor Moriarty and he should leave England. However, when Douglas left England he was mysteriously lost overboard on the vessel that would have brought him to Africa.