Hello again, everyone. Thank you so much for the support, reading and reviewing of this story and I hope you are enjoying it so far :D xx Anyway, let's get straight to it, shall we?... xx

Sherlock held his breath but stayed facing the door, one hand on the handle whilst Molly's hand still gripped his arm.

"Adultery is considered…wrong in the eyes of many…especially my family…"

Molly raised her eyebrows with a smirk, her eyes focused on the back of Sherlock's head. She sighed as she moved closer, her hands moving up his arms to rest on his shoulders. She stood on tiptoe in order to whisper in his ear.

"Mycroft and I are in separate rooms…he treats me more like an assistant than a wife…we are hardly ever intimate…what would be wrong about it? The feeling of being wanted, loved and," Molly leaned up further to nip his earlobe and bit her lip as she breathed, "satisfied."

Sherlock turned around quickly, nearly causing Molly to fall over. He placed his hands on her hips and pulled her closely to him so he could examine every inch of her face. The years may have passed but those are still the same kind eyes I remember.

"Do you remember the willow tree? By the lake?"

Molly blinked rapidly at the question; his voice had been so quiet and his gaze was so intense. Molly nodded and gave a small smile, words escaping her all of a sudden. A small tear fell from her eyes as she swallowed not even wondering why she was crying; he had already guessed what was coming by the look on her face, but it was still devastating to hear. Molly looked at the floor, unable to even glance at Sherlock, small sobs escaping her.

"The tree…our lake…I'm so…so-sorry, I…one night…Mycroft and I had a…massive fight…over you…h-he said I didn't love him a-and I s-said…I would never feel about him…the way I do about you…and-and he…got mad…really mad…he sent his 'people'…and he tore down the tree…he made me watch…I can't…I'm s-so s-sorry…"

Molly was downright crying now and Sherlock pulled her to him, her head resting below his shoulder. Molly cried into his shirt as she relived that horrible day, the cold night and the cold men. They stood for a moment, Sherlock's hushed reassurances and Molly's sobbing the only sounds in the room. Sherlock understood it was not Molly's fault…not in a million years, and that he would punish Mycroft for this…one day. Molly stepped away reluctantly, giving a small laugh and wiping her eyes.

"I'm sorry…it's silly, I know…"

Sherlock shrugged, his anger over Mycroft's outburst still on the surface. Molly sat down on her sofa, contemplating deeply.

"I don't know why I married him…after you left he said…you'd never return and I was so upset…he comforted me and I was vulnerable…he was kind for the first few months…then he became jealous when he knew how much I loved you…"

Molly shook her head and wept again. Sherlock sighed, a lump in his throat as he moved to join her on the sofa. He wrapped his arms around her shoulders and nuzzled her hair softly. Mycroft…what have you done to her?

"You little sod, have I taught you nothing? Why didn't you tell them, you had the perfect opportunity!"

Mycroft lifted his head from his desk as he felt himself being swatted at by a smartly dressed, elderly lady. He blinked in the light of his office and swallowed as the face of his mother came into focus. She was scowling at him and Mycroft attempted to hide the documents on his desk from her view. Unfortunately for Mycroft, Sherlock didn't get his keen eye for observation from nowhere. To make matters worse, their mother was the country's top and most sought after lawyer so she knew what she saw.

"A pre-nuptial agreement?"

Mycroft stared straight ahead and bowed his head, like a child being told off. Cordelia snatched the papers and noticed, with a sigh of relief, it was unsigned. She saw that Mycroft had demanded the surprisingly large amount of Molly's money her father had left her, if she was ever to leave him.

"I presented her with the documents a week before we were 'married'…she refused when she saw my demands…I still don't know why she had agreed to marry me…"

Cordelia gave a short sharp laugh, her hair threatening to break out of their tight curls.

"You gave her no choice…you wanted her money and to stop your brother from being happy."

Mycroft stood up suddenly, advancing on his mother, a devious smile spilling across his face.

"I can still get the divorce. They haven't…ahem, 'consummated their marriage' so it allows things to move quicker…"

Cordelia smiled widely and folded her arms, moving towards the door. Mycroft gave her a confused look.

"Good luck with that, they've been married a year…" she turned the handle before stepping out and smiling back at her son, "you have two days to tell them or I will do it myself…goodnight."

Mycroft snarled at the closed door, before pouring himself a glass of wine and sitting down with the documents. There has to be something…anything. I want Molly…more importantly, I want to give her what Sherlock cannot, love and protection. He stopped short and gave an evil grin. There is one way she'll never leave me…a child…the one thing I hate most in this world…nevertheless, desperate times. He turned to his intercom and pressed the buzzer to Molly's bedroom.

"Darling, I wish to be intimate."

Molly glared horrified at the intercom and Sherlock stared in disbelief. Ah, the romance. Molly moved towards her bedroom door, without even so much as a glance at Sherlock. She couldn't bear to look at him, see his heartbroken face. All she heard as she placed her hand on the doorknob, a single tear rolling down her cheek, was a strangled whisper…

"Don't go…"

She turned the knob and hurried outside, slamming it shut behind her. She ran down the corridor before collapsing against the wall, sobbing the same words over and over.

"I have to…"

Ok, sorry if this one's a little all over the place, I had to make sure I got all the information in, lol. xx Thank you so much for reading and, as always, stay tuned, back soon ;p xx