Deducing Tragedy Part One: See No Evil

John and Sherlock walked down the hall to Lestrade’s office where in the inspector were sitting with his head in his hands. “Up and at it, Lestrade,” Sherlock said with a roll of his eyes as he sat down across from. “There is a case to solve and progress had been unforgivably stalled.”

Greg’s head snapped up and a confused look fell across his face. He looked from the surprisingly calm, although slightly annoyed, consulting detective to the doctor that accompanied him. John sighed and nodded towards Sherlock whose irritation was growing steadily as the room remained quiet.

“Right….” He started eyeing Sherlock suspiciously before continuing. “Well what do you have? From the cat head?”

“Hanna’s brother, Mark, is the next clue,” Sherlock sighed dramatically. “John would like to use your phone to give him a call.”

“Um actually-“ Lestrade shifted. “I just got the call while you were… otherwise occupied. Mark has gone missing, for two days now.”

“Is it connected?” John asked and Sherlock scoffed.

“Of course it is; don’t be stupid John,” he said staring off at the wall, bringing his hand together like he did when he was thinking. “Mark is involved in this somehow.”

“Right well they emailed me the crime photos,” Lestrade said turn to his computer before the detective even had to ask. He turned the monitor and allowed Sherlock to click-through them; scanning the photos impossibly fast.

“There!” he shouted pointing on to the screen. “The truck, there is a couch in the bed-“

“So?”

Sherlock rolled his eyes in annoyance, “so he has three couches in his home a forth would just be in the way. Also it was with his truck that he and John picked up Miss Hooper’s couch and brought it to Baker street-“

“So he’s helping someone move,” Lestrade frowned, “it could just be a coincidence-“

“Not with this man,” Sherlock said. “No this clue is perfect, obvious to me but invisible to the general population. That’s how he likes to work; his victim is the only one who knows he’s there.”

“Like when you left the flat,” John concluded.

“Exactly,” Sherlock said. “You’re getting quite good at this John. Mathers was in the flat with John and Ha- Miss Hooper… but John didn’t know that. He didn’t until after all was said and done.”

“So the couch is the next clue,” Lestrade shrugged, “what does it mean? Baker Street?”

“No of course not,” Sherlock waved off the silly man’s idea. “It’s the storage facility where Ha- Hooper kept her things, though a trip there is a waste of my time-“

“Why?”

He let out an annoyed huff before continuing, “it’s all over her old belongings, her old life; the place where she lived before Baker Street. We’ll need to contact her former Land Lord.”

“I met her once,” John said. “When I was helping Hanna move in. she was a lovely woman- James is her last name I think-“

“Helen James?” Lestrade asked looking at the computer screen.

“Yes, actually,” John frowned. “How did you know?”

“Donavan just submitted a report for a missing person,” Lestrade said. “A woman, Helen James, just reported her estranged son missing. Looks like he and his father moved to America when the boy was still very young. He came to London to visit his mother but she hasn't heard from him and he was supposed to arrive two days ago."

"Staying in a hotel room I imagine?" Sherlock asked but it wasn't really a question. "Send it to me, I’d like to have a little chat with the management." And with that the consulting detective left the room.

“What the hell was that?” Lestrade demanded standing up.

“A necessary evil,” John frowned. “He couldn’t focus on the case, all he could think about was Hanna-“

“And now?”

The doctor sighed looking out of the room where Sherlock could be seen arguing with Donavan. “Now… he’s focused.”
~8~

My head was in my hands. They had untied me when Tomas left the room, saying there was no reason for me to be tied down, I wouldn’t go anywhere. And they were right; I was too captivated to leave. I wanted to hear their stories. I wanted to know how I ruined their lives.

The two men had gone first; their stories were devastating to me. I cried and begged for forgiveness that they denied. The woman went last, she approached me with a confident sway in her stride. I frowned studying her, “I don’t know you.”

“You don’t know my face like you do those two,” she said taking her seat in the computer chair. “But you know my name-“

“Irene,” I breathed. “Irene Adler… you’re supposed to be dead.”

“As are you my dear,” she smirked crossing her legs and leaning back in the chair. “And yet here you are.”

“Yeah I guess,” I said frowning. “Why are you here? How did I ruin your life?”

“My life?” the Woman chuckled. “Oh no, sweetheart, it’s not my life we’re going to talk about. It’s Sherlock’s.”

“Sherlock’s?”

“Yes,” she said leaning forward. “You’ve destroyed my detective.”

I stood up, “he was never yours, Irene-“

“If he wasn’t then why did he save me?” she countered and I hesitated. “You have no answer to that, dear, because despite what you like to think, he was mine. For a short moment. But then he solved me, that man loves his puzzles.”

“He hasn’t solved me,” I said in a low tone as I remembered his words ‘my dearest girl- you are the greatest puzzle I will ever face and the one I will never solve.’

“Yet,” she smirked. “He’s very clever, My Detective. He will figure you out.”

“What if he doesn’t want too?” I asked crossing my arms over my chest as I started to pace.

“What if he turned his emotions back off?” Irene asked and I froze. “Which he has you know, he turned them off to better focus on solving the case-“

“How do you know this?”

“Miss Donavan and I have a special relationship,” she smirked. “I know what she likes. She really was quite disappointed that he turned them back off. She was actually starting to like him but then again Sherlock can’t keep his mouth shut for long now can he?”

I allowed a small laugh to escape, “he has no filter.”

“With a mind like that he should have to have one,” she said standing up and approaching me. “His brain is what attracted me to him… what about you?”

“Me?”

“What about Sherlock made you fall in love?”

I gave her a soft smile, “that’s the difference between us, Irene. You were drawn in by his brilliance, a mind that is one in a generation. One who could help you continue to… misbehave.”

“And you?” she asked raising an eyebrow.

“I was drawn in by his heart,” I said. “A mind like his- he could be anything in the world. He could be the most powerful man alive… but he chooses to be a detective. He chooses not to take any money for his work-“

“The puzzle,” she started but I stopped her.

“The puzzle is only one facet of it,” I said taking a step forward as her eyes grew wide. “One facet of the diamond that is his heart. Sherlock Holmes chooses to be a detective because he wants to stop evil. He wants to do good, Irene. Despite the act he puts on he is a good man.

“A good man who I saw from the moment he stepped into my life all those years ago.” I continued my advance on her and she retreated, matching my pace step for step. “You want someone to be bad with; I want someone good to be with.

She was against the wall now, her eyes wide as I stopped only inches from her face. “That is why he saved you: because he is a good man. As we’ve spoken you’ve continued to refer to him as Your Detective but you know what? Sherlock doesn’t belong to anyone, and I didn’t ruin him.”

“His emotions,” she said quickly. “He’s turned them off, how you do expect to go on with that?”

“I love him, Irene,” I said with tears forming in my eyes. “I actually love him. And I will continue to even if he can’t return those feelings. Because that’s what love it wanting what is best for that person and wanted them to be happy even if it hurt you.”

“You would step back,” she questioned. “you would let him push you aside?”

The tears fell down my cheeks as I nodded. “I would do anything… anything I had to… to make Sherlock happy like he has made me over these last few months.”

“That-“

“That is love, you manipulative bitch,” I growled through my tears. “Something you, in all the days he insured you get, will NEVER understand!”