Chapter one: First impressions
"How can you not know that?" I said as I looked at the young woman beside me. She merely rolled her eyes and made the next coffee that I had rang up.
"Not all of us can remember the whole plot of a story we read 4 years ago." Jess shook her head, her short red hair falling into her eyes for a moment before she flipped her head to correct that problem.
"Yes, but you just finished it last week. How could you have already forgotten a fact such as that? Especially since you're going to the movie tonight." I shook my head and smiled as more customers walked in. I looked them over quickly, trying to guess their orders.
No doubt the young girl in the skirt two sizes too short would want something with a long complicated order. Like a iced, fat free, soy, two shot, caramel, no whip, extra caramel frapiccino. The two men who walked in behind her would be easy. One black coffee and a tea probably. The taller of the two caught my eye and seemed to stare at me for the longest time whenever I glanced up from the register.
Sure enough, miss "Flaunt what shouldn't be seen in this cold of weather" had an order longer than my arm, which did in fact include caramel. As Jess rushed to make the order for "Angel" I turned my attention back to the two men, who now seemed to be arguing… over me!
"You can't possibly know all that just from watching her for a couple minutes and hearing her utter three sentences!" the shorter one sighed as he scratched his short blonde hair. From the way he stood and dressed, combined with his hairstyle I couldn't help but assume he was military.
His companion looked either bored or slightly offended by this remark. "Come no, John, I would think that you would know me better by now. Of course I know."
"May I inquire as to what it is you know exactly?" I asked as I wiped my hands on my apron.
"Aside from the fact that you're an American that has been here in London for at least a year and are currently in school for art. I can also tell that you have a daughter who is at least 3 years old but you're unmarried…"
I had to cut him off there. "Okay smart guy, prove to me that what you've said so far is true and I'll start proving you wrong."
He looked somewhat amused by my challenge and ran a hand through his dark curls. "Your accent betrays your nationality. It's distinctly American, west coast if I'm not mistaken, although you have acquired some of our speech patterns to blend in, purposefully or not. Given that it's not true English, I'd say at least a year abroad here.
"You're working in the afternoon and judging by how much coffee and syrup your clothes have, I'd say you haven't been here today for long so you just started your shift. That means that you've been going to class in the morning's and working later in the day to stay up and do your schoolwork. You have rings under your eyes proving you've been up late and charcoal under your nails along with paint in your hair. Hence: art student."
"And as for my 'daughter'…?" I said it rather coldly, causing John to look at me with a perplexed expression.
"You're wearing a bracelet, home-made, judging by the gaudy large plastic beads. On the lettered beads reads the name 'Zoey'. A childish name I can only assume that it belongs to a small child you know. And the fact that you're wearing it in public despite how tacky it is, means that it belongs to someone close to you. Now, seeing as you're in your twenty's its safe to assume that it's your own child and having no ring or even a mark from one: single mother."
I set down their drinks which they never ordered and glared at the cocky man in front of me. "You're right in the fact that I am from America, west coast. Oregon to be exact. And I've been here for two years as a matter of fact. I'm just slow on picking up accents. I am an art student. So far you're right. Where you went wrong is your main view of me. I am NOT a single mother and I don't plan on being one anytime soon. Zoey actually happens to be MY name, thank you very much. I just forgot my nametag at home today."
I saw his companion smirk slightly as the lanky man's smug face changed to a slightly surprised one. "The bracelet is home-made but if you didn't notice, the beads are old and scratched while the string is new. Now, if you're so observant you would have realized that this bracelet is several years old. And it wasn't made by a girl. It was made by my little brother three years ago. He made it look girly for me."
"Your brother?" He looked confused.
"Yes, I can see the age gap caught you off guard. You never assumed that I was a sibling did you?"
"Just not one with such distance between you."
"Never considered a cousin? Or niece or nephew? Doesn't have to be my kid. Never considered that my parents separated and one remarried? Also, it's not just the two of us. There are several more kids between us. I'm the oldest."
John turned and grinned. "See, Sherlock? You can't know everything about everyone."
Sherlock frowned and looked down at his foam cup. "I see. But with the rate of teen pregnancies these days one never can truly tell unless you have both adult and child in view. One can properly assess the relationship then."
I reached into my pocket and held up my cell phone; my wallpaper of me and my two youngest brothers glowing before him. They were both blonde like me, Ian's blue eyes putting mine to shame. Kayden's green eyes smiling as he reached for my phone with his pudgy hand. He had been two then. Ian had been five.
"Oh yes, well if I had seen this I would have known immediately that you were Zoey and it wasn't a daughter."
"Sure you would." I mumbled as Sherlock and John left for the door. "And by the way, my name isn't childish."
"Not at all." I heard Sherlock reply, a slight smile could be heard in his voice.
The next day when I got off work, Sherlock was standing outside.
"What do you want?" I sighed. I wasn't sure if I should be creeped out by him doing that just yet so I decided to give him the benefit of the doubt and talk to him.
"Answers. You're quite the unique subject for me, Zoey." He walked a step behind me, hands in the pockets of his dark trench coat. A blue scarf was wrapped snugly around his neck. He was dressed for cold weather and I couldn't blame him. I was only in jeans and a sweatshirt so I was obviously unprepared for typical London weather.
"A subject, am i?" I rolled my eyes and pushed up my glasses as I wrapped my arms around myself in the wind.
"In a sense. Never before have I been so wrong about someone. Getting a brother or sister mixed up, I have done that occasionally. There's always something. But with you…"
"You assumed I was easy and irresponsible." I turned to look at him, having to look up quite a bit as my head landed right about at chest level.
"No. I merely assumed that you had engaged in normal horomone controlled teenage escapades." He looked down at me, neither offended or appologetic. His pale eyes were almost expressionless but still had some warmth in them. So he wasn't TOTALLY a bad person.
Without realizing it, the horomone crazed girl he had been talking about in me began to look him over. He was obviously tall and lanky, but not so much so as I first thought. He was also definitely older than me, but not by more than ten years. He had to be in his mid thirties, I guessed.
He had a long face with a somewhat large nose but they balenced each other out nicely. He had very high well defined cheek bones giving him a strong bone structure. His dark curly hair was kept just out of his eyes and was almost calling out for me to ruffle those unruly locks.
Oh, those eyes! His eyes, those beautiful light gray-green irises of his which seemed to notice everything but reveal nothing. All in all, I could find myself describing him as fairly handsome. Although his attitude did leave much to be desired.
"However," he interrupted my thinking and made me jump slightly "The way you explained yourself was almost as if you were observing yourself."
"I try not to be objective of anyone until I know them better. So if someone has an opinion of me I like to be able to justify why or why not." I turned to keep walking but he followed.
"Not many people are so aware of themselves."
"Yeah, well, having so many siblings I have to be aware of what im doing all the time so I can avoid blame." I found myself smiling slightly. "And I know im not perfect so being aware of my faults instead of ignoring them helps me try and fix them. That way I can turn weakness into strength."
"Strange you think that way."
"What way?"
"That something weak can become strong. Or something harmful can be good." He looked up at a building for a moment then back down at me.
"That's basically life. I always believe there's good in something." I stopped and looked up at him again. "Like a vaccine. It was originally some harmful sickness or poison but has been studied and harnessed to be used to help. "
He stared at me for quite some time then held out his hand, a gesture which seemed slightly awkward for him. "Sherlock Holmes. Consulting detective."
"Zoey McCarron. Barista and college student." I took his hand and shook it. It wasn't as rough as I expected but it wasn't soft either. "I don't think I've ever heard of a consulting detective."
"That's because I'm the only one in the world. I invented the job." He said flatly although I caught some smugness in his tone.
"Oh I see. Well how nice for you." I shivered and hugged myself tighter.
"You're cold."
"No duh." I rolled my eyes and turned to leave.
"You should stop by my flat sometime. It would be very interesting to have another conversation with one who thinks in a similar fashion as I do." He turned so we were nearly back to back but still looked down at me over his shoulder. "You could even stop by now. I bet Mrs. Hudson has some tea already brewed."
"Is that an invitation?" I raised a brow as he continued to stare at me, waiting for my answer. "You do realize we've only just met and know practically nothing about each other."
"On the contrary. I already know much about you. " He smirked and started walking, making me follow in order to listen to him. "I know that youre an art student learning abroad, which is a fact we've already covered. You're also the eldest sibling out of… four?"
"Five."
"Of course. I know that you're very devoted to them. Or at least the youngest two of them. You favor them above the others for some reason. Could it be the others dislike you? That or your maternal instincts kicked in when they were born due to the age gap. Making you possessive and protective. Now that being said, you've grown up around children younger than you for most of your life, giving you a sense of responcibility around children and yet making you somewhat immature."
"What makes you say that?" I said, slightly offended that he already thought I was immature.
"Your whole self screams childish no matter how old you are. Your hair, I can tell, is rarely styled and almost always pulled back. You're wearing a graphic tee with a cartoon character on it and have drawn all over your shoes."
"So what? I'm an art student. My hair has to be pulled back to stay out of my way and I hardly have time to style it. Also, lots of teenagers wear graphic tees and to repeat: art student. I draw on everything. Including clothing."
"Yes but notice you said teenager. You're not one anymore." He pointed out without looking back. I was glad he didn't cause I felt my face flush. "However, that immaturity comes in handy when you have to relate to children. You can understand them, communicate with them, and tolerate them better than most of your peers. That aspect also makes you friendly and outgoing to others. Like now. Not many people put up with me for so long."
"John has." I said, remembering the professional, quiet man who he had walked in with.
"Yes, well, he's my flat-mate and accompanies me on my cases." He shrugged it off and kept going.
"You're quite clever, but others don't usually see you that way. Which means you arent necessarily book smart. Possibly its that you know a lot but nothing of great importance at the time. I'm guessing you know much about children and obviously art. Probably very little math or science as you see no importance for them in your field of study."
"And you think yourself superior to others just because you have abnormally sharp eyes and memory." I said as I stuffed my hands in my pockets. "I will admit that you are quite clever and make good deductions but due to you being so blunt most people stay away from you." I continued to walk with him, now beside him. "Yet you chose a job that helps the very people that shun you. Interesting."
He lead me into 221b Baker street. It was a fairly pleasant and cozy place. The shelves were stuffed with assorted books and several odds and ends. A skull sat on the mantel next to a knife which appeared to have been stabbed into the wood. Jars, papers, leaves and other strange objects lay on the tables and counters. I could tell from a quick glance that the whole kitchen had been converted into some sort of lab. John looked up from his arm chair where he had been reading, appearing slightly puzzled.
"It's not like you to bring home company."
"Call it an experiment, John." He shrugged out of his coat, revealing a nice fitting suit. It was simple enough, a white shirt under a black jacket with slacks to match. "Im testing out relations with the opposite gender while attempting civil conversation."
"You're doing what?" John twisted his face slightly as he shook his head slightly trying to understand.
Sherlock sighed and looked at me. "I'm trying to make a female companion."
"Whoa! Wait! Are you trying to make her your girlfriend?" John jumped up, pointing at me. "When you've said you have no interest and are married to your work?" That was the conclusion I had come to as well and was equally surprised. He didn't seem like the relationship type at all.
"Of course not." Sherlock shot back, looking slightly disgusted. "Merely making an ally for future consultation."
"A friend?" I asked. He wanted me to be his friend? Why didn't just come out and say that?
"Exactly. Aside from your girlfriend, Sarah, whom I consider an acquaintance, not necessarily a friend… Zoey has proven herself to be interesting enough to keep around and also shows patience that in me that I desire in a companion."
"I thought I was your companion." John said looking confused again. I bet it was a fairly common expression since he hung around Sherlock for extended periods.
"You are. But youre also my business associate. I work and live with you. She is merely an occasional distraction."
"Youre making it sound like im a girlfriend again." I mumbled. "But something tells me, you aren't interested in anything emotional or physical that comes with that connection."
"Sexual attractions and contact causes distractions that divert my attention from the truly important." He waved it off and I wanted to groan in frustration. "In any case, she could prove to be a useful distraction."
"Useful?" John and I said in unison. Sherlock gave us both a strange look when we did so.
"Yes, she's aware of things that you and I are both out of the loop of. Younger eyes might be just what we need. Also, she would keep me from getting bored." He looked at me. "Well? What do you think, Zoey?"
"About what?"
"About assisting me when John is unavailable or his experience and knowledge adds nothing to mine. There's been a slew of kidnappings recently and with your unique view of children, you could prove useful."
"Well.. I don't know much about them from a psychological standpoint.. I don't have a degree in that type of thing… but I can usually follow a child's thoughts and actions and rationalize them.."
"Perfect. No need for professionals. Why have years of study when you can just use the knowledge you acquire on your own?" He spun around as the door opened and a handsome middle-aged man with gray hair walked in. "What is it this time? Body found or missing?"
"Found. The first victim, Kirsten Carmichael." He gestured to the door with his head and looked at me. "Client?"
"College." He turned to me and motioned for the door as well. "Come along then, both of you."
And So, as I got in the cab between the two men that followed the Detective Inspector, I learned his name was Lestrade, I found myself somehow wrapped in one man's world of genius, danger, and chaos. I also discovered that my emotional and mental capacities would be pushed to their limits with this man.