A/N: If you haven't read this story yet, welcome and where have you been? If you aren't crazy about it by the end of chapter 3, you may leave and no one will think any less of you. But please give it at least a read through that, as it's a slow burner, but I believe you won't regret it.

My main goal in this fic (besides writing the best fic I can) is to keep Sherlock in character through out, and frankly, I think it's going really well. Also, please note there are clues to the mystery hidden mostly in plain sight throughout the story. ;)

Chapter One - The Abduction of Lady Lillian Fairfax

In which a driver is subdued, the lady is taken and an abductor is pleased.

Shopping was never something that Lilly liked to do. It was a chore that sometimes required doing, but one she avoided whenever possible. The idea of doing it for fun was completely alien to her. But Victoria had asked her to come, so Lilly didn't feel she could say no. In all the years that Lilly and Victoria had been step sisters, they have never really been close. They were so very different, much like their mothers had been. The thought of her mother brought a sad smile to her lips. It had been 10 years since she had died, but you never really get over losing your mum.

"Lady Lilly, why is your lovely face looking so sad?"

Lilly looked up to see that Ron, her usual driver, had pulled the car around and was standing at the rear door, ready to help her in. So lost in her thoughts, she hadn't even heard the car drive up. She shook her head ruefully and smiled widely at him. She had known Ron all her life, he was like an uncle to her, a fact that her stepmother, Lady Constance, deplored. It just wasn't done, she was always telling Lilly, being so familiar with the staff. Oh well, Lilly thought, one more thing about me that was just not correct enough.

"Hi, Ron, sorry, I was just thinking about my mum." Lilly said as she slipped into the back seat. Ron leaned in before he closed the door and gave her a little peck on the cheek.

"Your mother was a lovely woman, Lilly. She would have been so very proud of you."

He said this often to her, and Lilly hoped it was true. She knew that Ron had been very devoted to her mother, but then most of the staff had loved her. Lady Adele had been generous, kind and thoughtful to all. To be half the woman her mum had been would be a difficult goal, but it was one that Lilly wanted to achieve some day.

"So what is this I hear? I am to take you into London town…to go shopping? When Maggie told me to bring the car around and where we were going, I thought perhaps I misheard. Lady Lilly, shopping? Unheard of." Ron looked over his shoulder with a chuckle as they pulled out of the gates.

"I am afraid it is true." Lilly looked out the window at the passing landscape. "Victoria."

"Ah. Trying to make amends, is she? Bit late to do the whole sisterly thing, is it not?"

"Now, Ron, don't start. I know that she is not your favorite person, but the past is the past, and if she wants to try to be friends, I will not be the one to say no. She is my sister after all."

"Step sister ", he grumbled.

Lilly thought about her relationship with Victoria, and how completely opposite they were. In appearance, Victoria was tall, willowy, blond hair, ice blue eyes…basically a goddess; Lilly was petite, a bit too curvy, auburn hair, green eyes. Victoria loved to be the life of the party, enjoying the attention she received from everyone. Lilly was a homebody, preferring quiet evenings with a book. Victoria was a bit wild and wicked. Lilly was a bit shy and proper. Ron's voice brought her mind back from her musings.

"Where are you meeting her?"

"Harrods's, naturally, it is her home away from home."

Ron looked into the rearview mirror at Lilly, shaking his head, thinking, "That girl is too kind by far. The way that both the Lady Constance and that Victoria treat Lilly, it was just shameful. But it is not my place to say, I know, but it can't stop me from worrying about her."

Lilly knew what Ron was thinking even if he didn't say it. He had never really approved of her father marrying so soon after her mother died, and to such a strong-willed person as Lady Constance had turned out to be. But Lilly loved her father, Lord Henry, very much and she wanted him to be happy. If Constance made him happy, then Lilly was happy, for him anyway. Life with Constance as her step mother could be difficult some of the time, and Lilly did wish occasionally that Constance could just accept her as she was and not continually try to make her more like them.

A case in point was just this very morning when she came down after spending nearly an hour debating what to wear for the dreaded shopping. Constance had been rearranging a vase of flowers in the morning room, when Lilly walked by on her way to the front entry.

"Oh, darling, is that what you are planning to wear to town?" She stepped out of the room to get a good look at Lilly. "It's so last year, Lilly dear. Whatever will Victoria say? Well, it appears that this little shopping trip will be helpful. Victoria is sure to take you in hand and get you sorted."

Lilly pasted a smile on her face as she kissed the air by her step mother's cheek and said aloud, "Yes, I'm sure she will." Silently, she repeated an all too familiar thought, sort of like her own personal mantra, "Sorted? I don't want to be sorted. There is nothing wrong with me."

Forcing her mind back to the present, she let a small sigh escape. It was going to be a long day. The thought of Victoria, her energy, her willfulness, just tired her out and left her feeling exhausted.

Ron was quiet the rest of the way to Knightsbridge, for which Lilly was appreciative. She was struggling not to tell him to stop the car and turn around. If he had said anything in the slightest negative about this whole adventure, Lilly wouldn't have been able to go through with it. Best not to think about it and just get it over with.

"I'll let myself out, Ron. If you could just meet me here about 2:00 or so, we should be done by then. If not, I'll text you to let you know." She shut the door and headed toward the entrance. As Ron put the car in gear and drove to the usual parking spot he used when he was waiting in this part of town, he had no idea that he would not see her again for some time.

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Donny was waiting; hidden from sight in the alleyway where he had been told the driver of the girl would come to park until he went to pick her up. His skin was getting irritated by the collar of the uniform he had been sent to wear. Seemed like a lot of trouble to go to just for a snatch job, left on his own, he certainly wouldn't have gone to all this trouble, but the boss knew best, he supposed. Right on time, the car and driver that fit the description he was given pulled up and parked in the alley across from his hiding place. He watched the bloke get comfy in his seat with the newspaper. Donny hoped he wouldn't have long to wait.

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When Lilly arrived at the cafe where they planned to have a bite to eat before shopping, she could hear Victoria's laugh ringing through the restaurant, so she followed it.

"Lilly!" Victoria jumped up out of her seat and leaned over to air kiss Lilly's cheek, smiling widely like she was so pleased to see her. She laughed gaily and looked down at Lilly through the hair hanging across her eyes. "I am pleased that you agreed to come shopping with me today. We will have ever so much fun!"

With that Victoria was off. Talking, laughing, and telling stories on her circle of friends. Lilly found that she was actually having a good time. Victoria was being so agreeable and pleasant. It came to an end all too soon when Victoria's mobile received a text from someone telling her that one of her friends had been in an accident and they were asking her to come to the hospital. Lilly offered to go with her, but she insisted that she would be okay on her own. With plans to speak later in the day, they parted ways at the store entrance, Victoria into a taxi and Lilly waiting for Ron to pick her up.

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Once the text came giving him the go-ahead, he stood and quickly walked over to the car and opened the door. The driver was startled, but before he could do anything, Donny injected him with the sedative and it was sleepy time for him. Making sure that the bloke was completely out, he slid him out of the seat, unlocked the boot and dumped him in. Cool and smooth. Placing the driver's hat on his head, he slid into the driver's seat, placed the second syringe on the seat beside him and calmly drove away to pick up the girl.

She was right where she was supposed to be and once she was in the car, she seemed lost in thought and didn't notice anything amiss. It wasn't until the car pulled up in an alleyway did she even look up and by the time she realised that something was wrong, Donny had opened the door and injected her with the sedative. She didn't have a chance to call out or anything. He waited to make sure that she was completely under, and then he picked her up and brought her to the stolen getaway car and stashed her in the rear seat. Donny smiled. All that was left was to take her to the drop site and he was free and clear. He entered the GPS coordinates into his phone and put the car in gear. As he drove away, he didn't notice the homeless woman who had been sitting in the shadows watching him.