 A young girl tells a man that she is lost, gives him an address, and asks him to take her home. Later, a father and daughter come to consult Sherlock Holmes, telling him that the daughter s fiancé has disappeared, after sending a note that he was helping a lost little girl. Holmes believes that the case is the latest in a series that includes seven other disappearances in similar circumstances. Holmes and Watson trace the missing man s movements, which leads them to an apparently empty house. After a brief search, they discover the dead body of the missing man in the fireplace. It soon becomes clear that a murderer has killed several victims after luring them to various unoccupied homes.