Irene Adler lowered her hood, revealing her stunning face.
Sherlock stared at her in shock, not knowing whether to feel afraid or relieved. Irene Adler noticed how unsure he looked, and gave him a comforting smile.
"I won't hurt you Sherlock." She whispered gently, putting her hand on top of his. He managed to sit up slowly, grunting at the stinging pains.
"You shouldn't be here." He warned, glancing quickly at the heavy door. Irene shook her head softly.
"I couldn't let you suffer here." She replied, slipping a satchel off of her shoulder and starting to unpack. She handed Sherlock a 2-litre bottle of water and some pain medication, which he gladly took. The water felt cool and soothing against his irritated throat.
"Why not? Why did you risk your security to come here?" Sherlock asked, taking another gulp of the cold water.
"You know why Sherlock, you took my pulse." Irene admitted, her gaze meeting his. Sherlock quickly changed the subject.
"How is John holding up?" He inquired, worried about his best friend. Irene's sad expression told him all he needed to know.
"He's awful. Memories of war keep him up at night, and guilt gnaws at him. My girls watch him pace back and forth in front of your chair." Irene took the empty bottle from Sherlock, and gave him another.
"Guilt? Why does he feel guilty?" Sherlock asked, sipping from the new bottle.
"Because he can't save you. John wants to march in here, kill Moriarty and free you, but Mycroft has been keeping him from doing that." Sherlock nodded understandingly.
"Mycroft can't risk going after Moriarty, he's too powerful." Sherlock stated. Irene reached for his arm, making Sherlock flinch.
"Let me look." She insisted, grabbing his arm once more. She slowly unraveled the tight bandages, revealing fresh cuts and slashes. Irene stared at them in horror.
"Jesus Sherlock, who did this to you? I mean, I am a Dominatrix, and this is excessive to me." She asked, careful not to touch the wounds. Sherlock's jaw tightened.
"Molly Hooper." He admitted, pulling his arm away from her. She looked at him in confusion.
"Molly... isn't she your friend?" Sherlock began wrapping his arm with the bandages again, tying it tightly.
"I guess not." He replied, anger rising in his body. Irene placed her hands on his, and looked deeply into his eyes. Sherlock swallowed hard, unsure of what to do.
"I will get you out of here Sherlock. I'll get you back to 221B Baker Street with John and all of your friends." She promised, gripping his hands tightly. She leaned close to his face and kissed his cheek, sending shivers all through his body.
"I-" He started to say, but stopped himself as Irene pulled away. Sherlock immediately missed her warmth and sense of comfort that filled him when she was close.
"Its okay, I know you can't feel things like that." She smiled at him, a strange emotion plastered on her face. Sherlock couldn't understand it, it was happy yet sad at the same time. She seemed distant but close.
"Anyways, we should make a plan of how to get you out of he-" The sound of the door opening stopped Irene. She threw the hood back on, hiding her face.
Irene slapped Sherlock hard as she heard Moriarty's footsteps approaching the glass.
"That's what you get for putting my husband in jail!" She yelled, putting on a fake accent. Sherlock stared at her with wide eyes.
"Nice disguise, but not good enough, Irene Adler. Professionally known as 'The Woman'." Moriarty chuckled at her shocked expression. She stood up slowly, lowering her hood once more.
"Jim Moriarty, haven't seen you in a while." Irene greeted, smiling mischievously at him. Moriarty paced the front of the cell.
"Last I heard you got beheaded in Iraq. Guess you've got your own little Prince Charming, don't you?" He teased, glancing at the young detective. Sherlock's eyes sparked with annoyance.
"Well Irene, it's been a nice visit. Im glad you came around, we've still got a debt to settle." Moriarty approached the glass. Irene backed away slightly.
"Luckily for you, I've got many cells for you to choose from." Moriarty mocked, snapping his fingers. Soldiers marched in and stood by him, ready to follow orders.
"Moriarty, you don't have t-" Irene pleaded, being cut off by a crazed cackle.
"No, of course I don't! Im still going to though." Moriarty signeled to the guards to go into the cell and grab her. They opened the door and filed in.
Sherlock struggled to his feet quickly and brought Irene behind himself, protecting her. His legs shook with the effort of standing, but he stood his ground bravely nonetheless.
"No, stop this Moriarty." He ordered, clenching his fists as the soldiers approached him. He felt Irene's hand caress his shoulder.
"It's okay Sherlock, I have to g-" Sherlock pushed her behind him once more.
"No you don't. This is my fault, I won't let him hurt you." He ordered, holding his arm out to keep her behind himself. Moriarty waltzed into the cell chuckling and stood in front of the soldiers.
"How cute and heroic of you Sherlock. That's quite a god-complex you've got." Moriarty mocked, stepping closer to him.
"I won't let you take her." Sherlock spat, readying himself to fight. Moriarty rolled his eyes, and fake-gagged.
"Get Irene Adler." He ordered his men, walking out of the cell.
The world slowed as they all came at him at once from every direction. One reached for him, and Sherlock grabbed him by the wrist, twisted it and kicked him in the stomach. Two soldiers grabbed Irene, who was kicking and screaming. Sherlock whipped around and thrust his elbow into one of their faces, dodging a punch from the other. The other man grabbed him by the collar and held him up against the wall, choking the air out of him. Sherlock managed to head butt him, causing the man to drop him. Irene was fighting off a guard, when another came up behind her with a needle and injected it into her neck. Sherlock was kicked in the side, rendering him immobile. Someone crawled on top of him and placed their hands over his mouth and nose, suffocating him. He clawed at the attackers hands, and saw Irene Adler being carried away in the corner of his eyes. Sherlock's throat burned with a need for air and his eyes watered. As his vision began to fade, the man released him. Sherlock coughed and heaved, sucking in breath violently. His chest felt heavy, as if someone was standing on him.
"No..-No-" Sherlock choked, watching them drag her unconscious body out of the room and down the hall. Moriarty began applauding from the other side of the glass.
"Very heroic of you Sherlock." He teased, kneeling ahead of the glass and tracing a heart on it with his fingers. Sherlock lunged at the glass and pounded his fist on it. Moriarty jerked back and started laughing.
"Poor Sherlock, all those emotions you hold so close are starting to spill." Moriarty wiped a fake tear from his face. Sherlock grimaced as a pulse of pain shot through his fist.
"Get some rest Romeo, you're going to need it for tomorrow." Moriarty chimed as he walked out of the room.
I need to get both of us out of here.
Sherlock delved into his mind palace, starting to piece together an escape plan to get him and Irene Adler out.
Step one, drug guard with needles kept in drawer. I'll have to do this when only one is in the room, so after a severe beating, but not severe enough to get me sent to the infirmary. He thought, pulling up a mental map of the prison.
The needle has to be the one they used on me, so most likely propofol. Must have a blue cap on it then. Sherlock imagined a list of anesthesia needles, inspecting each injection closely.
I'll have to quickly swipe the needle from the table, so pretend to fall onto it briefly. When locked in my cell, I'll stop moving and hold my breath until the guard walks in to check my pulse. Inject him with propofol, rendering him unconscious. He played the situation in his head.
Step two, pickpocket for keys, strip for uniform, change into clothes and sneak out of cell. Open heavy door slowly, as to not make as much noise. There might be more guards, so I'll have to grab more needles. Along the way, get another uniform for Irene.
Step three, get Irene. She will most likely be kept in the 'failure' cells. I'll tell the guards that Moriarty wants to see her, and we will both walk out.
Step four, get to main exit. The directions to the main exit should be left, right, right, straight, and up the stairs. There's at least 4 guards there, but we can slip through them in the uniforms. Keep our heads down until we are away from every guard.
Sherlock finished his plan, securing it safely in his mind palace. He stood up and faced the glass, his body still stinging from the whip marks.
"The game is on Moriarty."