Whilst the retired art supplier Josiah Amberley was at the theatre, his wife ran away with a young man and a good deal of their money. Amberley wants Holmes to track her down but the latter is too busy and sends Watson in his stead. But it soon turns out that Holmes is not the only one who has been asked to solve this case. So now the question is: will the pair be able to track the runaway wife down first? And is there more to the story than they have been told? "The Adventure of the Retired Colourman" is part of "The Case-Book of Sherlock Holmes".-