Baker Street, London. Spring was slowly coaxing the daffodils out of their bulbs, but the city was, as ever, mired in fog.
As Holmes and Watson settled down to afternoon tea in the Study, the good doctor was clearly vexed.
“What I don’t understand, Holmes, is where did the blasted thing go?”
Holmes leant back in his chair and closed his eyes, deep in thought.
“It was there, on MSDN and Technet!”, Watson continued, “I clicked Operating Systems, then Windows Home Server – and there it was. The download was there. They had keys, Holmes, KEYS!”
Holmes breathed in deeply and exhaled.
“Then it disappeared?”
“Vanished without a trace, old chap. It’s quite the mystery. I fear Moriarty is back to his old tricks again.”
Holmes placed his tea cup carefully back on its saucer and leaned forward.
“There’s no mystery, my friend. It was simply a test. They’re preparing to release Windows Home Server on MSDN and Technet shortly, and tested the website on Monday”
Watson’s face brightened as Holmes explanation continued.
“But, what they failed to account for is that thousands have been eagerly anticipating WIndows Home Server’s availability on MSDN, and as soon as it was seen online, albeit briefly, news travelled fast. Very fast indeed, Watson.”
“That’s right, Holmes. I’ve had to replace my F5 key three times just this year as I’ve been refreshing the Technet Downloads page so regularly!”
“I’d warrant”, said Holmes as he took out his pipe, “that we’ll be hearing more about this mystery in the near future.”
“The near future. Excellent, Holmes. Excellent.”
Watson relaxed in his large, comfortable chair and picked up his second slice of madeira cake.
“Those case notes really do need backing up, you know……”
