"Dear Mr. Sherlock Holmes,

I hope this letter finds you well and swiftly. My name is William Wellington, and I am the chief constable in our little town of Romsey. I write to you personally because we have read of your success in the case of the murders of Drebber and Stangerson in the papers. I confess, however, that what I am writing to you about is nothing like what you have encountered in London. A boy, John Toillard, the age of thirteen, was stolen from his home. The boy is Lord Baron Toillard's heir, so you understand if I'm writing to you with great urgency. I dearly hope you will read on and lend your mind so that we may solve this quickly.

On the morn of Thursday July 14th, Lord Toillard and his family left their estate for a social function in the city. John Toillard was left at home because he was feeling unwell, a catarrh coming on, seemingly. It was not serious according to them, but as it was out of season they feared something worse and Lord Toillard left his son to recover under the care of their butler, Jessob.

They left their estate around 10AM, and were attending a garden party with the local gentry, here in Romsey. Suddenly, around 3PM their local doctor hurried to them at the event. At first they feared John had taken a turn for the worse, but it was more sinister than that as you know. Their butler Jessob had left to fetch the doctor as John did indeed seem to get worse, but upon their return the estate was in disarray and the boy gone. After a thorough search they failed to locate the boy. They did, however, find a note demanding a ransom of £13,2; a peculiar sum indeed. Lord Toillard contacted me. I, in turn, contacted you immediately after seeing the home with my own eyes.

The article said you make quick work of mysteries by simply reading or hearing about it. I hope what they write is true and that your deductive analysis matches the praise. I will of course, follow your orders to the letter.

Yours truly,

William Wellington"

Click here to help find John

This is a mystery on Inkvestigations, our interactive detective fiction game using ChatGPT. You play as Sherlock Holmes giving orders to police chief Wellington, trying to help him to solve the case.