John arrived very quickly. I heard him come in the house and shout for Mycroft. He wasn't limping he was storming about the front parlor, looking antsy and worried. I came in with Mycroft and went to console him. He brushed me off.

"You know what this means?" He asked Mycroft.

"Yes, that neither is dead."

"WHAT?" I screamed, snapping them both back into reality.

"I'm sorry, that perhaps neither of them is dead." Mycroft corrected.

"WHAT?" He laughed a little, which seemed to ease John.

"I think we should have some tea and a little sit down." We all went into the dinning room and waited for tea. "Now, Irene had done this before. Feigned her death to get out of something. We know that Sherlock went and saved her. But then when Sherlock… passed. I got a letter I assume was for him from her. With her usual flare and knack for being annoying, it was completely encrypted. I think only Sherlock could have figured it out. Heavens knows I tried, and I had everyone I thought even semi qualified to look at it. It was given to me with a note, to leave one copy of the note on Sherlock's bed and the other to be kept with me."

"Let me see it." Both of them looked at me. "I'm sure I don't have to tell you that I was a child prodigy with a knack for encryptions. It's why I was kicked out of so many schools. I hacked in and changed my grades." They both stared at me. "Really? I would have expected better research from the two of you. Anyway, let me see it." Mycroft rose and scampered off, I'm sure he had it locked away somewhere special. Once he got back I opened the letter. My mother's swirly handwriting across the top.

Dearest-

Doormen will faint when they hear of this tale. For fear I am off once again but not together all too sure I will ever return. But fear not my little Snake, for you know where I lay, and where I have laid. Come find me my darlings. The Iceman, The Virgin, The Adler, and the Companion. I am where you least expect me and yet where you cannot miss me.

"Well obviously it was written to me. And she isn't dead."

"But we've seen the body."

"But Mycroft, there was another time."

"Measurements are easy to find Mycroft. She isn't dead. She's with Sherlock."

"How do you know." Mycroft was a bit put off. "The best in the country couldn't figure this out and you think you have?"

"Honestly. I think you need smarter men. She has obviously left a trail of clues at all of the houses we've lived in for the past few years. We just have to retrace our steps. That's what she means by 'laid' it's a play on words. Improper use, but she was an infuriating woman. She wants us all to come get her."

"Then why add The Virgin?"

"Because anyone who has intercepted this would have known who The Iceman was, and would have been able to figure out the rest. By adding him people would think that she is without him, he is presumed to be dead after all."

"Then how do you know she's with him?" John asked me.

"Well because where is the last place you would think two dead people that both needed to hide before they died? Together. It's impossible, so it must be true."

"She's right. Ok, write down everywhere you've ever lived. Pack you things. John, a bag will be packed for you and we'll set off in the morning." Mycroft retired to his room and John and I ate dinner while I compiled a lit.

"This is all I can remember." John's eyes widened at the list. "She didn't stay put often."

"Doesn't surprise me." I went up and packed my bags, wondering how this was going to pan out. She feigned her death, probably helped Sherlock, and now they need my help to be found? Something didn't add up, something didn't feel right.

"Moriarity is dead right?"

"Oh absolutely. His second in command however, is not. And he's rather cross with the idea that Sherlock did him in."

"Name?"

"Moran. Sebastian Moran." John's fist clenched at the name as we ate. He took a deep breath and continued eating. Certainly an odd reaction.

"Sebastian and Sherlock have known each other for a very long time. They were roommates in Uni." Mycroft said, glancing at John before continuing. "He was also Sherlock's first boyfriend. First most of things, but it soon spiraled into something unhealthy. I stepped in and I think it had a bit to do with Sebastian turning to the dark side so to speak." So John wasn't happy that anyone had Sherlock before him.

"Are you still jealous of what they had?" John sputtered a little. "It doesn't take much to see how you cared for him John. I'm not an idiot."

"Oh, well, yes. I suppose it still bothers me."

"We'll get them back."

"When your mother is back, what are you going to do?" Mycroft asked.

"I may as well finish my schooling somewhere stable. The Uni I assume. Unless something else opens up. Either way I will be out of your hair."

"I might need new help. Seems my men need some schooling on decoding encrypted messages."

"Are you giving me a job father dearest?" He stiffened and got up.

"It was merely a suggestion, though take it as you may. Grab your things, we are off." We were charted via helicopter to a private jet, where we went to the last place I ever lived.

"Now, there has to be something in this house." I stalked about the foyer thinking.

"Now Addison. I'm going to show you a special safe, where we like to keep things that are for emergencies only." My mother led me to her closet and pushed some clothing aside. There was a door, and then another door with a keypad. She pushed some buttons and then spoke into it. "Vatican Cameos." She was let in. there were guns and assorted other weapons. "Never tell anyone that password. Precious and embaressing all at once." I nodded. She showed me how to lock and load in case I had too.

"I know." I ran upstairs, the boys in tow. We went in and I got to the door. "I'm Sherlocked." I said. John stifled a laugh and I glared at him as it opened. So far there wasn't anything obvious. I went to the few weapons she showed to me.

"Perhaps this?" John picked up a rolled piece of paper.

Irene- you are awful at hiding things. I have taken the liberty of moving you're easily deciphered note to a more useful hiding spot. 01110100 01101000 01110010 01100101 01100101 00100000 01110101 01110000 00100000 01100001 01101110 01100100 00100000 01110100 01110111 01101111 00100000 01101111 01110110 01100101 01110010 00100000 01100110 01110010 01101111 01101101 00100000 01110100 01101000 01100101 00100000 01101111 01101110 01100101 00100000 01110011 01101000 01100101 00100000 01101100 01101111 01110110 01100101 01110011 00100000 01110100 01101000 01100101 00100000 01101101 01101111 01110011 01110100 00101110 00100000 01110100 01101000 01100101 01101110 00100000 01101111 01101110 01100101 00100000 01100100 01101111 01110111 01101110 00100000 01100001 01101110 01100100 00100000 01100110 01101001 01110110 01100101 00100000 01100100 01101001 01100001 01100111 01101111 01101110 01100001 01101100 01101100 01111001 00101110 00100000 01101000 01100101 01110010 01100101 00100000 01101001 01110011 00100000 01111001 01101111 01110101 01110010 00100000 01100001 01101110 01110011 01110111 01100101 01110010 001011.

You're welcome.

I smiled broadly.

"When we find Sherlock, I really must tell him what a fantastic uncle he is." I put the note in John's hands who seemed baffled completely by it. "Binary code. Fantastically easy to figure out, if you know what you're looking for." I went to the little revolver and started. Three up, two over. One down, five diagonally. The gun we should have stopped on wasn't pointing the right way. "Of course Sherlock!" I flipped the message and went five diagonally, one up then two over and three down. Then I ended on a pistol that hadn't been cleaned correctly after the last time it was used. "Sherlock used this."

"How do you know?"

"He didn't clean it and put it back how she liked them." I looked at the rounds left. "Two rounds gone. He shot someone." I saw a sliver of white and pulled it out.

01101010 01100101 01110111 01101100 01100101 01110010 01111001 00100000 01101001 01110011 00100000 01100001 00100000 01110111 01101111 01101101 01100001 01101110 01110011 00100000 01100010 01100101 01110011 01110100 00100000 01100110 01110010 01101001 01100101 01101110 01100100 00101110 00100000 01100010 01110101 01110100 00100000 01101001 00100000 01100001 01101101 00100000 01100001 00100000 01110011 01100101 01100011 01101111 01101110 01100100 00101110 00100000 01100010 01110101 01110100 00100000 01101110 01101111 01110100 00100000 01110100 01101111 00100000 01111001 01101111 01110101 01110010 00100000 01101101 01101111 01110100 01101000 01100101 01110010

"He has such neat handwriting." I bounded downstairs, gun still in hand to the kitchen. I reached the cookie jar, where I used to keep chocolate bars. There was another piece of paper in there.

"Vatican Cameos?" Suddenly John pulled me and Mycroft to the floor as a stream of bullets went in through the window, shattering the cookie jar.

"WHAT THE HELL?" I screamed, getting up and blasting a few rounds through the window.

"You got him." Mycroft texted someone as we got out of the house.

"So what now? There wasn't a note." John sighed. We pulled away from the house and headed back to the hotel to figure out what to do next.