Chapter 4: Starry, Starry Night
The Louvre gallery was bustling with energy as its many patrons mingled amongst each other,
"Your reputation proceeds you, Mr Holmes" One gentleman greeted earning a polite bow from the detective's head,
"Thank you" he replied,
"What brings you to France?" the man asked curiously and Sherlock gave a half smile,
"Let's just say that I am a great lover of art" he said earning a chuckle from the gentleman as his wife gave a giggle,
"Is it true that you are a master of the violin?" she asked timidly and Sherlock gave a bashful smile,
"It has been said but I would not call myself a master" he responded and the couple chuckled,
"Timid and a true gentleman" he praised, raising his champagne flute in tribute,
"I didn't know you played the violin" a voice said causing Sherlock to turn and was stunned to find Molly standing their in a stunning black dress that fell right to the floor and the old man whom Sherlock had been talking too chuckled once more,
"A great lover of art indeed" he teased before taking Molly's hand gently and kissed it in greeting,
"Mrs Holmes, Pleasure to meet you" he said and both Sherlock and Molly looked flustered,
"Oh we're not..." they both said but the gentleman turned as he heard the museum curator tap her glass to earn attention,
"Ooo it's starting. Do excuse us" he said politely before moving away with his wife and Molly and Sherlock stood awkwardly for a moment before the detective coughed as if to clear the air,
"You look nice" he commented and Molly smiled with a gentle blush,
"Thank you... You look very handsome too" she returned and Sherlock gave a bashful half smile before giving her a bow of his head,
"Thank you" he returned before the two fell silent again but Molly found herself glance at his bow tie twice,
"Errrrrr... Your tie is crooked" she told him gently and Sherlock moved his arms from behind his back as if to fix it,
"Here, let me" she told him gently before placing her fingers to the silken accessory and Sherlock held his head high allowing her to fix it and watched her smile softly,
"There. Good as new" she said and looked up at him causing their eyes to meet and they both realised how close they were together,
"Thank you" Sherlock murmured and felt him raise his hand to brush the back of it against her cheek but the moment was broken when the museum curator called his name which was followed by the patrons' applauding him,
"Would you join me up here, Mr Holmes?" she asked and Sherlock reluctantly moved towards the stage platform when Molly gave him an encouraging smile and nod.
The curator smiled as Sherlock joined her on stage,
"I am a great fan of Mr Holmes' detective works and I am very grateful that he took the time to travel here to assist us in the painting's recovery" she said earning another round of applause and the curator looked at Sherlock as the applause died down once more,
"What made you travel here, Mr Holmes?" she asked and gestured to the podium on which the microphone stood and Sherlock was hesitant but took a step forward,
"Well... In truth. I was bored" he said earning humoured chuckles from the audience,
"However, When I came to France I came to discover what this painting meant to its' people... This painting represents a beauty that only one can enjoy if they respect and choose to understand it" he said earning numerous nods of agreement and Sherlock felt himself look towards Molly,
"The artist is truly someone to admire... The effort and passion that went into the work shows the artist's level of intelligence and it is quite obvious to me as a very high level" he praised and Molly was stunned,
"To me... This painting represents the things that people most yearn for in life. Beauty, Peace, Tranquillity... and most of all love" he said gently,
"Thank you" he said earning another round of applause as he turned and walked towards the curtain that covered the starry night replica that Molly had been painting when Sherlock first arrived in Paris and the detective pulled the cord causing the red curtain to disperse and the guests gasped in horror to see the paint had been disfigured with red spray paint reading the word 'FAKE!' and Sherlock turned quickly to see that Molly had vanished and he quickly ran, jumping off the stage, running through the crowd of guests who looked stunned as he did so and Sherlock knelt down feeling the floor frantically,
"Not her. Not today" he said frantically" he growled before finding a crease allowing him to open the trapdoor and he jumped in despite the frantic gasps and protests of the guests.
Sherlock retrieved his IPhone and turned on the torch so it illuminated the catacombs as far as the light beam allowed,
"MOLLY?!" he called and his voice echoed in reply and he listened for a moment and he listened before hearing a whimper of struggle,
"Sherlock! Sherlock help me!" he heard Molly's voice yelled and he instantly ran down the tunnel the voice came from.
Will Sherlock save Molly? You'll have to review if you want to find out!
Kind Regards,
TheAuthor1996