The Adventure of the Speckled Band

"The Adventure of the Speckled Band" by Arthur Conan Doyle is a Sherlock Holmes story where Holmes investigates the mysterious death of Julia Stoner. Julia died suddenly after mentioning a strange yellow-speckled bed and her fear of her stepfather. Holmes deduces that Dr. Roylott, Julia’s aggressive and violent stepfather, used a trained swamp adder (a venomous snake) to kill her by luring it through a ventilator from his private lab. Holmes's quick thinking and observation prevent the same fate from befalling Julia’s sister, Helen. The story highlights Holmes's keen deductive skills and the importance of attentive investigation.