Hello and welcome to my new story. After I mentioned this on Tumblr, I decided it was too good to resist, despite having several other unfinished stories :s xx I apologise and am working on them all ;) This is a Jack the Ripper story so...warning for violence. Thank you so much and I hope you like this… xx
Friday 31st August 1888
It was fast approaching midnight and the streets of London were emptying quickly as people rushed to their homes. Several women still staggered about the streets, calling and whistling to the men they passed. A lone woman strolled past a particularly loud group as she hurried down the road, avoiding looking behind her as she went. She rounded the corner, her heels clacking on the ground fiercely as she entered the street: Whitechapel.
"Do you understand, Sherlock? This is important to me! Do try and get on with the Hoopers tonight, especially Mr. Hooper's daughter. She has just become engaged and I wish this to go well, that is why I have organised this wretched evening…to win favour with them once and for all."
Sherlock Holmes nodded in frustration at his brother who quickly disappeared into the growing crowd. Sherlock sighed; it was getting late and none of them had arrived yet. Typical of the Hoopers to be late. The Hooper and Holmes families had had a bitter rivalry for years and the party tonight was an effort to make peace...and for Mycroft Holmes, an effort to seal some kind of government deal. It was to celebrate the engagement of Mr. Hooper's daughter, Molly, to an honest, hardworking man that Sherlock hadn't been bothered to learn the name of. Mycroft had given Sherlock strict instructions not to ruin the celebrations, particularly by insulting Molly or her betrothed.
Sherlock scowled as he accepted a drink from a passing waiter; parties were not really his thing. He preferred to be holed up in his flat with an interesting case to work on. Unfortunately, the Inspector had nothing for him lately. Sherlock sighed as he noticed his wife, Sarah, dancing with a guest, as were Mycroft's instructions. He rolled his eyes, laughing to himself at her attempts to illicit a jealous response. Sarah had fallen hard for him but Sherlock found her to be excitable and rather obnoxious and self-centred. She had tried and failed on multiple occasions to seduce him and his excuse of 'workload' never seemed to settle with her. She also irritated Sherlock's flatmate, Doctor John Watson, when she insisted he 'move on'. Sherlock had, naturally, been adamant he stay until he found his own wife. Sarah had not been happy; getting her husband into bed was going to be a lot harder when he is distracted this way. Sherlock found this to be the perfect excuse, however. Sarah pulled the man she was dancing with over to a corner and began to laugh loudly, frowning when she noticed Sherlock wasn't even paying attention.
The woman pushed the doors to the pub open cautiously and held her head high as she approached the bar, ignoring the stares from other pub-goers. The barman frowned as he looked the woman up and down, shaking his head.
"Sorry, ma'am, we'll be 'aving none of your lot in 'ere tonight, thank ya…"
The woman frowned and slapped a small bag of coins onto the counter and smiled brightly.
"I'd like a bed, sir. It's been a good night…"
She winked proudly and the barman rolled his eyes. The man picked up the bag and examined the coins before shaking his head once more, throwing the bag of coins back at her.
"Sorry, ma'am, you're lacking fourpence…"
The woman tucked the coins away and ignored the sniggering men in the corner of the room as she turned on her heels. Once at the door, she whipped around to face the barman, who voice loud and harsh.
"You'll see…I'll be back…I'll make my money tonight, you'll see…"
The barman nodded sarcastically as the woman turned to the sniggering men and blew them a kiss. The men exchanged nervous glances as the woman turned pushed the door open and went out into the cold street once more.
The room went silent as the Hoopers entered the hall. Mycroft signalled to the orchestra to continue playing and straightened his tie as Mr. Hooper approached with his daughter and her fiancé close behind. Sarah moved to stand beside Sherlock and slipped her arm into his, smiling coyly. Sherlock sighed deeply and Mycroft grinned extraordinarily fakely. He extended his hand which Mr. Hooper – a tall, moustachioed, well-dressed man – took with a slightly disgusted look.
"Good evening, sir. I trust your journey here was pleasant?"
Mr. Hooper nodded and shook his head towards the butler, who was trying to remove his outer garments. He glanced around, humming to himself.
"Indeed. It's good to see you have changed this place around, Holmes. I was starting to think this place was 'run down'." Mr. Hooper spotted Sherlock and Sarah and tutted under his breath. "Ah, the younger Mr. Holmes…delighted to see you again…and who is this charming lady on your arm?"
Sherlock smirked slightly before 'proudly' gesturing to Sarah.
"Sir, I'd like you to meet my…wife, Sarah…"
Molly had moved next to her father now and was looking Sarah up and down. Hmmm, a fine-looking woman, indeed. Then again, no Holmes would settle for less. Her father took Sarah's hand and kissed it respectfully. Sarah released a loud, high-pitched laugh. Molly bit her lip to keep from laughing herself and Sherlock tapped her shoulder to shut her up. Sherlock cleared his throat and gestured towards the man on Molly's arm, who was staring at her lovingly.
"Yes, yes. Who is this…uh, fine-dressed fellow with your tonight, my lady."
Molly shivered at the way he had said the last part, his eyes shining wickedly. Luckily, no one noticed this and Molly patted her fiancé's arm.
"Mr. Holmes, Mrs. Holmes and Mr. Holmes, I'd like to introduce Thomas Jones…my fiancé."
Mycroft raised his eyebrows and leapt forwards and grasped the young man's hands, shaking vigorously.
"Mr. Jones…you're William Jones' boy, are you not? Your father is a legend…rich and powerful…" The party were staring in shock at Mycroft who immediately gathered himself. "Delighted to make your acquaintance, sir, delighted indeed. Would you like a drink?"
Before Thomas could get a word in, Sarah sprang forwards; her tight bun was beginning to come loose and her make-up was in disarray. She had begun swaying as well, due to her excess drinking.
"How about a dance? What kind of hosts would we be if we didn't offer our entertainment?"
Thomas, with a glance towards Molly, stepped forwards and bowed low. He straightened and took Sarah's hand, leading her to the middle of the room. Mr. Hooper frowned and took a deep breath as Sarah practically screamed with laughter; a frightened look was beginning to settle on Thomas' face now. He turned to Mycroft and smiled.
"Right, to business, then. Is there a place we could talk? I'd rather not discuss government affairs in the company of an officer of the law if you don't mind…"
Sherlock frowned as Mycroft began leading him away. He called after them that he was not a policeman but in fact a consulting detective. He turned around and realised he was alone…with Molly Hooper, of all people. Sherlock sighed as they shot each other fake smiles. It's going to be a long night. They were still staring at each other. …with any luck.
The woman continued down the street, desperately searching for someone…anyone, to earn money from. No such luck. She stopped at the end of Whitechapel and breathed deeply. She watched from across the street as her old 'group' called to some young men. The men turned out to be policemen and turned the women away before returning to their duties. The woman sighed, determined not to spend another night sleeping rough. She decided to move down the road she came down, hoping the men had finished in the pub now.
Sherlock frowned; an unusual feeling had settled in the pit of his stomach. Molly was fiddling with her gloved hands, trying to focus properly until Sherlock grabbed her and pulled her roughly into the middle of the room, earning him curious glances from Thomas and Sarah. Sherlock and Molly began twirling and spinning around the room like the other couples, trying not to draw to much attention to themselves. After stopping them in a dark corner of the room, Sherlock lowered his voice; as far as he was aware, no one had seen them.
"That gown is very…lovely, my lady. Beautiful, in fact."
Molly smiled up at him, moving closer. Sherlock held his breath as her hand rested on his arm.
"Thank you, sir. Thomas acquired it for me…an engagement present, you might say."
Sherlock scowled before brushing it aside quickly. He smiled widely, leaning in also, moving towards her ear.
"I must say, the two of you looked very comfortable…"
Molly twitched nervously before moving away, smirking slightly. Sherlock blinked at her shocking movement.
"He is my fiancé, Holmes and if you remember, we hate each other, don't we?"
Sherlock smiled to himself as Molly moved towards the hallway and upstairs. Sherlock bit back his growing smile and paused. One…two…three…nine…ten…ready or not…
"Damn it."
The woman watched as the men were thrown out of the pub, moving away and shouting boisterously. The barman shivered as he saw them off, slamming the big door behind him and bolting it from the inside. The woman began to slowly walk down the district of Whitechapel, looking for a suitable doorway or alleyway. A sound behind her made her whip around and hurry down the street quicker, unaware she was now being followed.
Sherlock saw the door to his old bedroom ajar and straightened his tie. He peered around the corner and sure enough, Molly was waiting for him…perched on the edge of his bed. Sherlock shut the door behind him and twisted the lock. No interruptions, my dear.
"We may be in rival families…but I'd be lying if I said it didn't desire you, my lady."
Molly released a frustrated sound before standing up and approaching him. She grasped his tie and moved backwards until her legs collided with the four poster, causing her to tumble backwards, Sherlock landing on top of her.
"Stop calling me that…you don't know what it does to me…"
He face was flushed and she was breathing rapidly. This is forbidden, this is wrong in so many ways…it's…it's very naughty indeed. Sherlock bit his lip and leaned in closer as Molly's lips parted for him.
The woman stopped, certain she heard something. She, however, didn't get a chance to turn around as she was grabbed and her mouth was muffled. She struggled as the perpetrator pulled her into an alleyway. She managed to elbow him in the stomach, but he held her firm and smacked her across the face. The woman saw in his hand a long blade, twirling between his gloved fingers. The woman sobbed desperately as she silently begged for someone to come along. The man dragged the blade twice across her throat and allowed her to slump to the ground, choking out her last breaths. Once they had ceased, the moved to her lower body, pulling her skirt up and raising the blade once more.
"Thomas is a good man, sir."
"Yes, but you don't want a good man, my lady. You crave excitement and…passion…all of which I can give."
Molly gently pushed at his chest and he carefully stood, pulling her with him. She had been teasing him, of course. This was the custom…neither had given the other anything as of yet. Molly straightened her gown and smiled deviously.
"Your move, sir."
Sherlock raised his eyebrow as Molly reached the door. Quick as flash and the smallest of movements later, Sherlock had Molly pinned against the door, gasping in delight.
"Oh, I am sorry, I thought you meant now…"
He stood away and smiled, pleased at how she whimpered as he did so. Sarah's unmistakeable laugh sounded from down the hall. Sherlock sighed and Molly scowled. He shook her hand, and kissed it carefully, putting as much care in it as he could.
"Until next time, my lady."
"I look forward to it, sir."
Sherlock pulled the door open and approached Sarah, leading her back downstairs therefore allowing Molly to slip out undetected. He caught her eye and winked cheekily, disappearing downstairs. Molly shook her head but couldn't keep the smile away.
Ok, there we go. My knowledge is a little rusty and I hope it wasn't hideously embarrassing, lol :) Thank you so much for reading. I hope you enjoyed it. xx Please let me know what you thought and if you'd like me to continue, lol. Stay tuned, back soon? xx