Stephen took his time as he walked, half wondering if Sherlock was going to suddenly appear around the next corner but alas no such luck.
It seemed he would be alone for this one, oh well perhaps he'd be able to investigate the hose without breaking in or ending up injured in one fashion or another.
When he arrived at Mr. grays residence he marveled for a moment, it was large nearly three times the size of 221 baker street, it was set back from the road and was surrounded by a large metal fence, the kind that looked difficult to climb but if one knew what they were doing, or grew up on the street like him, they knew it would take just a second to scale.
In the front of the house there was a fountain with what was supposed to be a mermaid holding up a shell, he wasn't very impressed by it.
Shaking his head to push away the awe at the large residence he walked to the front doors and rose his hand to knock but stopped when he found the door only slightly ajar, a light push caused it to swing open on well-oiled hinges.
Glancing around before stepping inside he once again closed the door "lord it took you long enough to arrive" he jumped at the sudden voice and sun around, Sherlock was sitting on the steps pipe in one hand watch in the other.
Placing a hand to his chest Steve took a deep breath and closed his eyes to calm his pounding heart beat "we have talked about that Holmes!"
"well if one were to pay more attention-" Sherlock stopped with Steve's raised hand "not in the recently departed gentleman's home" the man sniffed slightly lips curling down at the side then he spun on his heel "from what I've discovered so far Mr. gray was no gentleman"
Standing straight again Steve tilted his head and looked at his companion in confusion "darling I told you, Mr. gray was only ever a gentleman when he wanted something"
While he would like to say the new voice surprised him Steve didn't like lying without cause, that and he knew someone else had been there, the only person to ever sneak up on him had been Sherlock.
Turning to look at the owner of the voice he found a very familure woman "why am I not surprised you're here miss Adler?" the woman smiled charmingly at him "of all the places I thought we would meet again, here was not one of them"
It was then he noticed one of her hands was chained to a rail and he turned back to Sherlock "so this is why you snuck away? Of which we shall discuss later" Sherlock's lips twisted slighting into an expression he recognized.
He had a distinct impression there would be no discussing and most likely no later if Sherlock had his way.
"I followed her here" he said completely changing the subject Steve sighed but allowed it "I knew that if Irene was interested in this case she had a deeper involvement, unfortunately she discovered I was following her before I could witness her removing evidence that would surely lead us to the mad man behind the note"
Steve hummed and silence fell for a moment Sherlock's hands were behind his back as he watched miss Adler and Steve's eyes were glancing between them.
Suddenly Sherlock stood straight up and looked at him "Stephen if you would be so kind as to search for the evidence we require I shall stay and watch our thief" Steve rose a single brow and then crossed his arms "honestly Sherlock I believe you would be better suited for searching for that"
Sherlock looked at him and rose a brow copying his position "and why is that?"
Steve smirked a little "you are the detective, and seeing as how I do not have any infatuation with miss Adler I believe I will be better suited to guard her and thus prevent her escape" Sherlock frowned and blinked a few times before speaking.
"you spoke with doctor Watson haven't you?" he nodded "only once, he informed me under no circumstances should I allow you to be alone together when miss Adler shows interest or involvement in a case as she has a rather unfavorable effect on your deductive capability's"
His lips pursed slightly but he turned away "no matter, it will take me but a few minutes to find what we are here for, something that given the size of this estate would require several hours from you"
Most would be insulted by those words but Steve could only smile slightly knowing it was a way of submitting to Steve's suggestion without making it look like that was what he was doing "the sickness would have left him bedridden, check there first" he called after the man who just waved a hand as he ascended the stairs two at a time.
"so are you going to tell him?" Steve looked at Irene before lowering himself into the chair Sherlock had vacated "and what are you referring to miss Adler"
A throaty chuckle made him return his eyes to the woman from where he'd been watching the way Sherlock had gone "come now darling I've noticed how your eyes linger on him, that little quirk of the lips when he is being especially deductive or self-confident, I've seen the little twitches he seems to be so blind toured"
Lips pressing into a thin line he sat back in his seat "if it's all the same to you miss Adler I would prefer we not talk" the woman's plump red lips pressed into a pout that probably would have had Sherlock bending over backwards.
He ignored the burning feeling in his gut at that thought.
"alright, personnel matters aside, when are you going to tell him how close this case is for you? How much it matters and effects your judgment" Steve felt popping in his hands and removed them from the arms of the chair raising to his feet.
He faced the woman and forced himself to stay steady, reaching into the endless well of calm inside himself but he had to reach deep to find it, and he held onto it by only a fraying thread "how exactly do you know so much about me miss addle" he asked slowly his voice had become tight.
The woman let her lips lift into a smirk that seemed to taunt him "you would be surprised what can be discovered if you ask the right people, and I'm good at finding out everyone dirty little secrets, your world might be from the streets but I my dear live in the world under the streets"
With a puffing sound Irene blew a curl of hair out of her face "unlike Sherlock I am not blinded by your presence, you may have a favorable effect on the man but at least he knows who I am, he knows what is on my drawing papers"
Steve's throat grew tight but he approached the woman with the stride of a predator "do tell Irene" he started slowly dropping the formality's "why is it every time you appear in Sherlock's life he is harmed, or threatened, why is it when you appear one of the few people he cares about are threatened harmed or worst killed?"
The woman's calculating eyes all but slowed to a halt as he spoke low and openly threatening "I watched my parents wither from disease and was throws into the cold, I raised myself fighting for every piece of comfort I could on the streets stealing and bargaining with those in the sewers like yourself just to survive"
He approached another step his eyes growing dark "I fought and bled and nearly died for everything I have ever owned, I had nothing, I had no one and I am not about to let a spoiled little thief ruin the existence I have carved out in 221 baker street as a game, this is no game Irene Adler"
Staring into her eyes he waited a moment before standing back and rose his chin a few inches "My name is Stephen Rowen and you don't know anything about me and you are never going to know anything more about me than rumor and envious treacheries crafted in the minds of those who did not have will to survive that I still retain, you will not play with me and the way you have been playing with Sherlock's head and heart stops now"
And just like that a new gleam glittered in the woman's eyes "you've begun to care for him haven't you?"
"oh course I care about him he is my friend"
Irene smirked "it's more than that, a deeper feeling like a cold fire burning in your chest, a feeling that causes your knees to tremble and your palms to sweat every time you look at him, that causes you concern over whether or not he has eaten, it is a deeper feeling isn't it?"
that question was... It tossed him into the wind of doubt and unease and confusion.
It was a minute before he could open his mouth to speak "he is my friend" he restated more firmly this time and Irene had the gall to actually laugh "oh no he is more than that, whether you realize it or not you've begun to care about him"
She was laughing and it made Steve's fists clench at his sides "you don't know what you're talking about" he muttered turning away "I know more than enough to tell when someone is falling in love, tell me is that it, have you fallen in love with Sherlock Holmes, mister Rowland, stef-"
Irene was silenced by a sudden crashing noise above them and Steve spun toured the stairs "Sherlock?!" he called and raced up when there was no reply leaving miss Adler in her own capable hands.
He followed the noise to a large sitting room and the second floor and found Sherlock laying on the floor a large figure standing over him a secondary smaller one standing to the left emptying a can over bedding and papers.
The acidic smell of accelerant making his nose wrinkle.
They intended to burn the home and Sherlock along with it.
Not if he had anything to say about it and he had plenty to say.
He lunged not thinking about strategy at first only that he needed to get the big guy away from Sherlock's prone form.
He didn't let the thought that he could already be to late linger for more than a moment but even that was enough to make his heart beat unusually fast and his throat become dry.
His lunge did its job and made him collide with the large man's back making him stumble forward, when Steve planted his food hard into his lower back it made him move forward further still surprised by the attack and hit the wall.
It took a mere moment to drop down and check to make sure Sherlock was still among the living but it was a moment to long, no sooner than he felt the strong but sluggish beat of the man's pulse under his hand was he being graved around the throat and yanked backward.
The strong smell of accelerant on the hands pointed him to the man that had been preparing the room to catch fire.
The man's hold was weak and obviously he was counting on surprise to do most of the work for him, Steve wasn't so stupid as to let his guard down that far.
With a sharp jab of his free arm he rammed his elbow into the man's lower stomach making him heave slightly but thankfully not vomit, also distracting him enough Steve slipped out of his grasp and stood facing his two opponents.
He herd steps and glanced back just as a third slipped into the room.
Taking a step back the heel of his left foot touching Sherlock's hip he glanced at all three of his opponents looking for an opening then he took a deep breath and time seemed to slow down until it felt like an eternity passed between the seconds.
He looked at the three men not seeing their basic features as m0ore than an impression, one was a red head the second a bald man with a beard the third a grimy brunet, the kind of people you hire to burn down a house and the evidence it may contain.
With artist eyes he looked at them the brunet was limping faintly, either from a former injury or something Sherlock had caused before being taken down was unknown, but he hoped it was from Sherlock.
The red heads face was more red than it should be and he saw the blood on his face from a broken nose his shoulder was also being cradled like it was sore from being relocated, the third and final man was uninjured seeing as how he had just entered the room it was unsurprising but his belly was rounded.
Obviously he was an avid drinker or really liked his meals.
Either way Steve knew they had very obvious weak points in those areas and if he wanted to get out of this fight alive with Sherlock he would need to take down his opponents fast.
He could do fast.
The moment that thought passed through his mind things seemed to speed up the red head was the first to lunge at him and he ducked slightly to avoid his punch slapping his hand up to also move It away before slamming his shoulder into the man's middle, when he bend down Steve shifted and rammed his head into the man's face, feeling something sap and something wet his his face.
The man cried out and stepped back once allowing Steve to reach out and grave his injured arm twisting it and slamming him into the wall face first.
He crumbled and wouldn't be moving again anytime soon.
But he didn't have time to think about the possibility of permanent injury because he heard someone else approaching.
Spinning he couldn't dodge a punch to the face but he returned it with twice the strength causing the brunet man to stumble away a swift and dirty kick to his injured leg made him cry out, and bend over to grave his knee Steve jerked up his own knee into his face to knock him out.
And then he was left with the grimy man with a large belly and he watched the man extract a knife, he barely had the time to realize that was what he had drawn before he was lunging.
The man's larger weight made it possible for him to knock Steve to the ground but he wasn't stronger, Steve graved the wrist of the hand holding the knife and fought to keep it away.
"you think you can win this?" the man sneered his breath smelled like he was rotting from the inside "well I already dealt with your buddies" he shifted just a little and shoved his hips up knocking the man of balance and allowing him to get back to his feet.
The man snorted and climbed to his own feet "understandable casualty's necessary for the purge" Steve's brows lowered and he frowned "purge? What purge?" the man grinned showing a mouth full of rotten teeth "oh you have no idea what your chasing, the unworthy shall be purged from this country and then it shall spread, and the world will be clean"
Steve's eyes narrowed "you intend to kill only a specific group of people, why?" he demanded and the man laughed darkly "do you really think I would just tell you that? I with never understand people like you, so firm in their impression of justice but you haven't even figured it out yet!"
His laughter was becoming annoying "figured out what? please do tell" they were circling each other slowly and Steve was trying to not only keep him talk to gather information but also because the man was right beside Sherlock.
"my employer is so much closer than you know and yet you don't even notice, not ever as he slides a dagger between your ribs" with that the man lunged and knocked Steve once more to the ground.
He couldn't stop the sharp blade that sliced into his face blood dripping down his cheek and now he needed both hands to prevent the man from stabbing him where it would be very bad.
And then he saw his opening.
He shifted the man's grip just a little and let the knife fall into his body, at first the pain was blinding and made his cry out but then he opened narrowed eyes and shoved his hand into the man's face, turning his body so he could break the knife from his grip.
With a shove the man stumbled back and started digging for what he thought was another knife so he quickly pulled the first out of his shoulder and lunged.
Of course the bottle the man pulled out was confusing especially when he popped it open with one hand and the lunge caused it to his Steve in the face as he knocked the man to the ground.
The man's beady eyes went wide when the knife had punctured his skin shoving deep and red liquid speckled his lips "oh" he said his voice raspy and wet "one never knows true pain, until their body turns against them"
The man's last words were mysterious and before he could demand a meaning behind them the life fled from the man's face.
Grasping his shoulder with a wince he rolled off the man and looked at Sherlock's still prone figure.
He walked over once gaining his feet and checked again for a pulse smiling when he felt it strong under his fingers, and moved his uninjured arm so he could press back the man's hair from his face "Holmes? Come along now, time to wake up" he shook the man's shoulders gaining a soft sound of discomfort before his eyes opened.
They slipped to the side and Steve could tell he wasn't fully back yet "Stephen?" he mumbled questioningly Steve hummed a confirmation and the man sighed eye closing again "good to see you old boy, though you appear rather less put together than usual"
Steve couldn't help it he sat back and started to laugh at the man's dry humor.
The threat of people being killed by the plague was still imminent and they were in a room filled with flammable liquid and three prone figures one of them dead and he had to laugh, he didn't even know why.
Sherlock rose his brows at the man in confusion as he sat up "did you get a bonk on the head while I was out?" Steve shook his head and tried to stifle his laugh "no, no I just thought of something is all"
Letting out a unimpressed hum Sherlock pressed a hand to his side and made a sound of distaste "I do believe a visit to the dear doctor is in order" Steve nodded and then looked as Sherlock rose to his feet and then, offered a hand.
With a faint smile he accepted the offer of help and let the man pull him to a standing position a strange feeling settling into his chest.
It was with a start that he realized what it was and let out a silent groan, it wasn't the goulash, Irene was right, he did care for Sherlock.
Could well be on his way to loving him.
... fuck his life.
Stephen shoved the thoughts of love violently out of his head and looked at Sherlock and it was about that time something exploded in a rush of heat and pain.
His last thought before darkness surrounded him was that he needed to stop giving life orders.