In 1921 there was a detective called Jeremy House, who lived in London. One day a women called Anna Brown came to his office and told him about a tragic occurrence. She looked afraid and it took a while until she had calmed down enough to start her unbelievable story. She told him, that her husband was almost killed. He was in a coma and being treated at the University College Hospital guarded by Scotland Yard. She had no idea who could do such a horrible thing to her love. The police found a knife without any fingerprints on it. Nothing was stolen, or even touched.
The police found broken glass in the kitchen, which was most probably from the cabinet, where she used to store her cash for shopping. She never stored much cash, only what they needed for the week. On one piece of glass was a little bit of blood. They also found a hotel invoice. The Neighbours camera at the front of the house picked up a mysterious black van. Unfortunately, the vehicle registration plate could not be identified and only a bit of a person’s head was visible. The police tried to analyse the DNA, but the blood was too dirty and the proof useless. The woman asked Jeremy House to take the case, even though the police hadn't finished their investigations. She was afraid that the person in the van could come back and that her husband was in great danger. After the women left his office, he sat in his old, cheap leather armchair and smoked a pipe. A new case to work on. He already knew what was to be done.
The very next day he took the tube to visit his good old friend commissioner Reynolds. As he was on the train, he thought about what the woman had told him. Perhaps the intruder was someone well known by the Browns. He would ask the police if they had checked all their friends and relatives, which is normally their first step in an investigation.
Commissioner Reynolds welcomed him and asked what he could do for him. He showed him to his new office and then after that they spoke about the case. The Police already found out that a class reunion took place the previous weekend and were consulting each former classmate.
Two ones are still missing. Jack Wilson and Dan Evans. The police believed that they were still in the city.
After their talk Jeremy House went to the Hotel. Reynolds had given him the address. He went to the entrance hall and found a woman at the reception. He showed her his identity card and explained to her, why he was there. He asked if he could see the rooms of Jack and Dan. She gave him the key card. In the meantime, he got a call from Reynolds. He told him that Jack had already been found and that they believe he had nothing to do with it. He had an alibi.