THE SHIRRIFF-HOUSE, STOCK, Eastfarthing in the Shire, on this the 10th day of Wedmath:
As I log this report to close the case, I am troubled by some of the portents that this affair leaves unanswered; but the narrative might help to better understand.
It began a few days past, while I was making my rounds down Budgeford way – now, this deserves an explanation. Even though it’s out of jurisdiction, I promised Golendad Boffin of the Eastfarthing Office I would cover his rounds while he was visiting relations in the Southfarthing; and since Goldie was to be gone for at least a fortnight, it made sense to lay up at the Golden Perch for the duration.
Now I can go on with it. That morning as I was walking through Budgeford, I was hailed frantically by Willimar Bolger. This is in itself unusual, because Will is usually a collected fellow, so that prompted me to stop and find out more. But when Will showed me the source of his trouble, I too became unsettled. For that morning, Will found an arrow sticking in his new-painted door!
Well, that started the investigation. Willimar had the presence of mind to save the arrow, and that allowed me to see several things right off: first, the arrow was long, much too long for a hobbit bow, but the arrowhead itself was definitely of hobbit-make, though it was incredibly old. Looking at where the arrow struck the door, and tracing back on its flight, I saw it could only have come from near the hedge-gate on the Scary Road. I went to scout out the location, and what did I find!
There could be seen an abandoned campsite, and by all the signs it was not a hobbit who camped here; larger feet wearing boots, trampled grass much too large for a sleeping hobbit, and a hastily put-out fire. But most of all, a journal was lying there! From the looks of it, an animal had found it and gnawed it up, for there were teeth marks on the cover and several pages were missing.
I took the journal back to Will and showed it to him (I humored his reputation of being lettered from an early age), and he read it in detail while I hunted around the campsite again for any missing pages, of which I discovered three hard by the place. Back to Willimar I went, and we concluded that whoever wrote in the journal was the mysterious archer; and to make matters worse, the archer means great harm to Will! Apparently, one of the Big Folk bears a grievance because Will’s distant ancestor slew the archer’s ancestor in battle long ago – by the same arrow that was fired – and the archer meant to use that same arrow to avenge his family’s honor!
Oh, how my thoughts swept me away at the idea: an assassin, here in the Shire! This HAD to be resolved with all haste! I demanded the journal back from Will as evidence in the case and pored through it myself. This assassin, one of the Big Folk, named himself Callum, and his clan has held the vendetta against the hobbits all these years, with the arrowhead passed down generations as a pledge to right the past wrong – and this Callum sought to avenge his clan. He hunted from his lands somewhere far north of here, all the way to the Shire, and somehow found Willimar Bolger as his target!
Callum was careless because he outlined his exact plan, including his hideout location after the arrow-shot to Will’s door. Seems he intended to hide further away, and his new camp was north of Frogmorton in amongst the bogs. I set out after a standing second-breakfast, courtesy of Willimar who wanted to read that journal further. I shouldered my bow and went hunting, keeping the Water on my left hand but heading deeper into the southern eaves of the wood, and it was on past luncheon that I found it, and Callum.
This would-be assassin had been gored by a wild boar and lay wounded and in pain; no threat to anyone, but I kept my hand on my dagger just in case. Callum’s pain made him easy to interrogate, as he was convinced he was a goner. He bade me return to Will and tell him he was no longer in any danger. Well, so I did; but what did Will say? He had read Callum’s journal start to end, and felt sorry for him – so much so, that he offered to help by making up bandages for his injuries and get him back to health! True hobbit-nature, that. So, I offered to help by gathering what was needed for a week’s supply of herbal poultice that Will whipped up, and I brought it back to Callum, who was deeply touched and told me to let Will know the ancient feud was ended.
So there it is, we solved the Odd Case of the Ominous Archer. I filed the case report with the Shirriff-House in Stock before returning to Brockenborings, where there will be a copy of the case file there as well. But there are things left unanswered in all this affair. How long ago was this battle between Big Folk and hobbits? Could it have been the old Battle of Greenfields, or some other unrecorded fight? And where was this land that Callum called home? Are conditions there so harsh that more of his ilk might find the Shire? And is there danger beyond the bounds?
I shall keep my watch and find the answers.
