Vague Shadows

“I could get them off a little faster if you’d stop moving, Laicee,” John sighed, fiddling with the cuffs and the bobby pin. Donovan stood against the wall, observing us as Lestrade paced back and force and continued to ask questions.

“Queen Mary’s Gardens, you’re sure?” he demanded, clasping his hands behind his back. I nodded vigorously, inadvertently tugging at the handcuffs. John let out a grumble and gave me a look.

“Hold still,” he said again, and I reluctantly stopped moving.

“He thought that’s where Moriarty was holding John, but I’ll bet anything that he set a trap for Sherlock, and he walked right into it.”

“Why would Sherlock do something like this, all this trouble for his flatmate?” Donovan asked, and I glanced at her.

“He’s not as heartless as you think. John’s the closest thing he has to a best friend, and Moriarty made it seem like he was in danger.”

“We’ll go after him,” Lestrade assured the room just as the handcuff snapped open. I pulled my hand away and rubbed my wrist tenderly, already beginning to pace.

“Right. You and Donovan can take one side, John and I will take the other-“

“Laicee, you’re staying here,” Lestrade argued immediately, and I stopped moving. I looked up at him and narrowed my eyes.

“No. I don’t think so. I’ve been over this with Sherlock-“

“And how did that go?” John mused, and I gave him a look.

“I’m going this time, whether you lot like it or not.”

I heard the front door open, and I frowned, glancing down the staircase.

“Who’s coming-“ I cut off the moment I saw his face. “Oh, for Christ’s sake. You’re kidding me. Anderson? At a time like this?”

“Told you she wouldn’t be keen on it,” John muttered, and I whirled to glare at him. Instantly, my mind pieced together exactly what was going on, and my eyes widened.

“I am not being babysat by fucking Anderson!”

“Laicee, come on,” John sighed as Anderson smirked at me. “I want you here, and I want you safe. I can’t focus on what’s happening if I’m worrying about you.”

“You sound just like Sherlock, and I didn’t listen to him either. I’m coming with you. I’m giving you all a choice: I can either come with you and we can stay together and help one another, or I swear I’ll follow five minutes behind and put myself into more danger. Anderson can house sit, but I’m not staying-“

“I’ve got a pair of cuffs, in case you’ve forgotten,” Lestrade informed me. “I will use them, Laicee. Either stay here by choice, or I’ll force you to stay.”

I said nothing, only glowered at the Detective Inspector. John slipped on his coat as Donovan headed back downstairs with Lestrade. He glanced over at Anderson and I, then closed the space between us and gave me a tight hug.

“Please, Lace. I thought I lost you once already. Don’t make me fear that again.”

“Find him fast,” I whispered to him, hugging him back before we pulled apart. John gave a swift nod, warned Anderson to keep an eye on me, and then disappeared down the stairs.

We stood still for a moment, waiting until the cars drove away. Once the flat was silent, Anderson glanced down at me.

“Right, go watch tellie, or do a puzzle, whatever you do with your time,” he said dismissively, starting to wander towards Sherlock’s bedroom. “I’ll just be taking a look around-“

“You keep your grimy little hands off of Sherlock and John’s things,” I warned him, giving him a look. “Why don’t you sit and watch tellie while I go help the big boys?”

“If you try to leave, I have rights to restrain you-“ he began, and I laughed. He gave me an incredulous look, and I rolled my eyes.

“You really think I’m afraid of you, Anderson? Your knees are shaking so bad I can barely hear your empty threats.”

“That’s it, come on, back in the cuffs-“ he snapped, grabbing my sore wrist. I jerked my arm from his grasp and shoved him back a step.

“Touch me again, see what happens,” I invited, my voice dangerous. Anderson swallowed hard, but he attempted to steel himself against me.

“I-I’ll call Lestrade, I swear it-“ he said, pulling his phone out. I had to act now, because if I hesitated, he could tip off the others. Without another thought, I rushed forward, grabbing his phone from him easily and throwing it across the room. I easily maneuvered him around and shoved him back towards the fireplace, then grabbed his arm and slapped the cuff on his wrist. He lunged for me, but was pulled short, just like I had been.

As he began to yell, I kicked the bobby pin away and gave him a smirk.

“Right, you have fun here, and I’ll take care of the important matters at hand.”

I ignored his angry shouts as I raced out of the flat, not even bothering with a coat. I hailed a cab immediately and jumped into the back, shouting Queen Mary’s Gardens and then sinking back into the seat.

The cabbie drove fast, sensing my urgency. I arrived not even ten minutes later, and was already sprinting towards the locked gates before he drove off. I launched myself at the steel bars, climbing swiftly and silently. I dropped down onto the other side, and paused for a moment to catch my breath. I had no idea where to go; I’d only been here a couple of times, and I wasn’t the best at remembering places.

My best bet was to head towards the centre and see what I could find, so that’s what I did. I kept myself to the shadows, creeping along. Far off, I could hear Lestrade’s voice. They weren’t being particularly carful, but at least they were heading the opposite direction from me.

As I slipped between a row of rose bushes, I heard a murmur of cold laughter, and I froze. I held perfectly still, not even breathing, as I tried to pinpoint it. The laughter came again, and my head snapped to the side. There, off to the left, about a hundred yards between the trees and bushes, I heard the murmur of a voice I didn’t recognize.

I forced myself to go slowly; any false movement, any shiver of the bushes, and I could give myself away. It took me nearly five minutes to creep along plants and vegetation, but my patience paid off.

As I reached the end of the tree line I’d been following, had to skid to a stop to keep from running into the lake; I’d reached the centre of the gardens, and I’d found what I’d been looking for. I crouched down at the edge of the lake, keeping myself hidden in the shadows. Up on the observation hill that hung over the lake, I could see two figures standing over a kneeling figure.

Immediately, I identified the kneeling figure as Sherlock, and my heart came to a screeching, painful halt. He was doubled over, his breathing labored and his body shaking. One figure I named immediately: Moriarty. I matched him easily to “James”, the lying little snake that almost got me killed. The other man was a mystery, but it wasn’t hard to guess which side he was on.

“You’ll serve as the perfect message,” Moriarty sneered to Sherlock, who didn’t even look up. “Mess with my work, and I’ll make you pay. How do you think your precious Detective Inspector will react when he sees your dead body in the morning?”

My jaw tightened; he was doing this all for a message? He would really kill Sherlock just to get Lestrade and Scotland Yard to back off?

“He’ll pull back, he’ll leave me the hell alone,” Moriarty hissed, kneeling to look at Sherlock in the face. “I can get my job done, and Scotland Yard will be too scared to take action. They’ll be too incompetent without their little mastermind piecing my clues together.”

The other man reached down and grabbed Sherlock by the hair, pulling his head back to make him look at Moriarty. Sherlock swayed on his knees, and would have fallen over if the man’s hold hadn’t been so strong.

You’ll pay for this, I snarled to myself as Moriarty gave Sherlock a sickening grin.

“Your poor Johnny boy, imagine how his heart will break. And that pretty little whats-her-name, your little servant girl. I’m sure she’ll be devastated. But don’t worry, I’ll keep her in good hands.”

Moriarty threw his hand across Sherlock’s face; the other man dropped his hold, and Sherlock slumped to the ground, unmoving. Moriarty righted himself, straightened his tie, and nodded at the man.

“Sebastian, take care of him. I’m not getting myself dirty tonight.”

With that, Moriarty turned and stalked down the hill, disappearing into the trees. The man –Sebastian- knelt down. He had spray paint in his hands, and he began to write something on Sherlock’s chest. I didn’t wait any longer.

Springing up, I began to sprint around the side of the lake, pulling my phone out as I went. I hit John’s speed dial and cursed at him for letting his phone ring three times before he answered it.

“Laicee, is everything-“

“Observation lake, at the centre of the gardens,” I hissed into the phone, my eyes locked on Sebastian and Sherlock as my legs carried me faster and faster. “I can get to them, but I don’t know how long I can keep the attention on me!”

“Laicee what the hell, you’re supposed to be at home-“ John all but snarled as I cut him off again.

“John! Not the time to get mad at me! Listen to me: Observation Lake, centre of the gardens, bring Lestrade!”

I hung up and pocketed my phone, then focused on running. Sebastian had just tossed the can of paint aside, had just reached to grab Sherlock, when I raced up the side of the hill.

“You touch him again, I’ll kill you,” I said quietly, stopping about ten feet from Sebastian. He looked over at me, slight confusion on his face. Slowly, he stood, keeping his gaze on me.

“Laicee Bennett,” he said dismissively. “Could’ve sworn I had you killed a while back.”

“I’m stubborn,” I told him, nearly crying in relief when he turned away from Sherlock. Sebastian smirked and took a step forward.

“And I’m thorough. I never leave a job unfinished,” he promised me; I swallowed hard, but held my ground. All I had to do was hold out until John showed up.

Without warning, Sebastian lunged at me, and the two of us tumbled to the ground. I felt his large, powerful hands wrap around my neck and pin me to the ground. My vision blurred, and I gasped for breath. My hands scrabbled desperately at his, and as I slowly began to lose consciousness, the only thing I could manage to think was,

Please let Sherlock live long enough for John to find him. Please.