Sergeant Sally Donovan slumped in a chair in Greg Lestrade's office. The two were not yet back on good terms after the suicide of Sherlock Holmes one week earlier, and Donovan was not sure how the Detective Inspector would react to the report in his hands. She would soon find out as he slammed the folder on his desk.
"So, do you actually expect me to bring John Watson in for questioning?" He glared at Donovan across his desk.
"No, sir."
Lestrade was curious. "Really? So, what do you think that this evidence means if you don't suspect John?"
Donovan sighed. "I think this proves that Holmes was set up." At Lestrade's surprised look, she continued. "The little girl screamed when Holmes came in to talk to her, but when presented with photos individually, she couldn't identify him. The only time she picked anyone as being her kidnapper was when the photo contained two people - one tall with dark hair, and the other fair and shorter." Donovan gnawed on her bottom lip. "Turns out she screamed at the combination of Holmes and Watson, and I just can't believe that Watson would have been involved in the kidnapping of two small children."
Lestrade looked at the tired woman in the chair across from him. "So, you're saying…"
"I think this was all part of the plan."
"You believe in Sherlock Holmes?"
"No, but I trust John Watson."
An uncomfortable quiet settled over the office, then Donovan whispered, "I never thought the freak would kill himself."
Lestrade responded, "I'm not sure he did."
"What?"
"I don't think Sherlock Holmes would kill himself."
"He jumped off a building."
Lestrade rubbed his eyes. "I know, I know, but that doesn't mean he wasn't pushed."
"Watson saw Holmes jump off of Bart's. He didn't see anybody push him."
"You don't have to touch someone to give them a push."
"You think Holmes was coerced?"
"I certainly don't think that Sherlock would have allowed his work to be tarnished without fighting back." Lestrade sighed. "Not that he really cared what people thought about him, but the work is a different matter."
Sally spoke slowly. "So, if Moriarty existed, what could he have used against Holmes to make him kill himself in front of his best friend?"
Lestrade met Sally's gaze with sad eyes and did not say anything.
Sally's breath caught in her throat. "Oh. That poor man. Do you have proof?"
"Nothing but gut instinct, but that seems to be what I feel most comfortable believing right now."
"Yeah. I feel like I can't trust my own eyes anymore." Sally leaned back in the chair and closed her eyes, but the truth still did not appear to her.
A few weeks later, John Watson sat across from Greg Lestrade in his office, where Sally Donovan stood next to the paper-strewn desk.
"So, is this about punching the Chief Superintendent?" John asked.
Greg smiled. "No. That charge has been dropped."
John's mouth opened in shock, no sound emerging.
Greg tilted his head towards Sergeant Donovan. "Care to explain, Sally?"
"When it came time to file the report, I noted that you had been provoked by the Chief Superintendent."
"What? Why?"
Sally looked down at her feet. "The man came into your home and boasted about the arrest of your flatmate and best friend in front of you. It was obnoxious and inappropriate. And after…" Sally stopped speaking.
John stiffened in his chair, then cleared his throat. "Sergeant Donovan, Sally, I just want you to know that Sher… he didn't blame you. I'm having difficulty with forgiveness, because I'm still angry about what happened, but he didn't blame you. You followed the evidence, and he understood that. He always saw different clues than the rest of us did, but he respected your tenacity in following up the ones you saw." John's mouth thinned in an effort to keep control. "This game was so well played, the evidence so clear. It would have been negligent not to follow up."
Greg snorted. "Hence, my suspension."
John laughed abruptly. "Yeah."
Sally's voice quavered as she replied. "Thanks, John. That means a lot to me."
A brief silence was broken by Greg. "We're working on clearing your name, John. Nobody thinks that you were part of any fraud, but…"
"He wasn't a fraud."
Greg exchanged a glance with Sally. "We know."
John looked Greg, then Sally, in the eye. "Really?"
"Yes," replied Sally.
John slumped in relief.
Greg continued. "But we still have to prove it. We need to come up with a plan."
After a few quiet moments, John said, "I still keep thinking that he's fooled us all, you know. That he's alive. That's why I had to leave Baker Street. I felt like I could legitimately expect him to be in the flat at any time, gloating over how he'd pulled it off."
Sally asked, "I hate to be blunt, but, other than wishful thinking, do you have any reasons to believe that Holmes faked his death?"
Greg looked at John hopefully. "John?"
"There were things he said the night before… we were sitting in the dark, handcuffed together. To pass the time, he told me stories. Some seemed like riddles. Even talked about what we'd do when we retired." Any hint of a pleasant memory ended with his next words. "And then in the phone call…" John's voice broke, and he stopped speaking.
"Was there something that you didn't share with us?" asked Sally, gently.
John raised an eyebrow and looked at the two officers. "Of course."
Greg heaved a loud sigh. "You can't just hide stuff from us."
John straightened in his seat and seemed to close himself off from the others. "Some things are personal. And, quite frankly, I'm not convinced that you don't have a mole here at the Yard."
Sally looked at Greg, who nodded almost imperceptibly. "Guess we'll have to make the Moriarty part of this investigation off-the-record," she said. Looking back at John, "For now, let's get you sorted."
Sally was in the frozen food aisle at Tesco, when she heard a familiar voice.
"Hello, Sally."
She turned and saw John Watson, with a fine selection of healthy foods in his basket. She looked sheepishly at her frozen meals and crisps and replied, "Hello, Doctor. Please, don't judge me."
John laughed. "I haven't seen you in a few months. So I haven't had the chance to thank you in person for your part in clearing my name."
"Just glad to help keep you out of debtors prison," Sally responded, uncomfortably. The guilt she felt over the death of Sherlock Holmes tempered any acceptance of gratitude.
"I still had my share of what we'd earned from our private cases. Believe it or not, those who he had helped did not sue me for fraud. Our clients knew the truth." Sadness appeared in his eyes, so Sally tried to tease it away.
"Well, the freak always said that people were idiots."
He smiled. Sally knew he hated being treated like fragile glass. He reassured her, "It has really helped me, to practice medicine again. I was so worried about that. I won't forget what you've done."
Sally grinned at John. "I was just happy to help you. And your own case notes were invaluable. Even your blog!"
"He'd never forgive you for saying my blog was useful, you know."
Sally was pleased to see John in a teasing mood, the sadness still present, but diminished in his eyes. "Oh, I know, but he'd be so secretly proud at the same time." She stepped closer and softly said, "I'd see that in his eyes some times, the way he'd look at you."
John cleared his throat and did not quite meet her eyes. "Thank you, Sally. For everything."
As she watched him walk away, she allowed some pride in herself, for helping make things right.
John Watson sat across the table from Sally Donovan at a pub that was far enough away from New Scotland Yard that they were not concerned about being watched. As they waited for Greg Lestrade to join them, John looked at Sally thoughtfully. "May I ask you something?"
"Sure."
"Why did you hate him so much?"
"It wasn't hate, it was just…" Sally paused, searching for the right words. "Crime scenes make me sad, they made Sherlock happy. It's as simple as that."
John countered, softly. "What does that say about me?"
"You're different, John. Crime scenes made you sad, he made you happy."
Greg arrived at the table, three pints wobbling in his hands. John looked glad for the interruption. "Alright," said Greg, "let's get to work. Sally, tell John what you've discovered."
John looked expectantly at Sally as she took a long drink from her glass before beginning. "It was something you said, John, about how Sherlock always saw different clues than the rest of us."
John quoted, "There is nothing so deceptive as an obvious fact."
Sally, "Yeah, did he say that?"
John nodded.
"So I went back through the cases and separated out the clues. You know, the ones Sherlock saw as opposed to the ones the police investigation found. We were able to determine that Sherlock did not perpetrate most of the crimes that led to the cases he worked on. We'll be able to clear his name on those."
"Most of the crimes?" John repeated.
Sally looked at Greg, then back at John. "We found a pattern for a few of the cases."
"What do you mean, a pattern?" John asked.
Greg said, "A parallel set of clues found by Sherlock that, in retrospect, were clearly placed there for him to find."
John ventured, "So you think you've found evidence that Sherlock was a fraud?" His tone was edged with bitterness.
Sally shook her head. "No, John. Actually, your case notes and blog, and even Sherlock's blog, helped us to show that he could not have placed the vast majority of this evidence. The timeline just doesn't work."
Greg jumped in. "There are instances when it seems like evidence was placed after our initial sweep, but before you and Sherlock arrived."
Sally added, "Some of the cases I worked myself, and I'm no Holmes, but I wouldn't have missed some of this evidence."
"So what are you saying?"
Greg's voice cracked as he said, "We think we've found evidence that Moriarty was real, that he set up a few cases for Sherlock to solve. Ones we weren't aware that Moriarty was playing a role in at the time."
John smiled weakly, disbelievingly. "So that's it, then. We can go to the public and completely clear him. We can indict Moriarty, at least his name. We can fix this whole mess."
"No, John, I'm sorry." Lestrade looked deep into his pint.
John looked at Sally. "But why not?"
"We can go to the press and say that we've been able to clear Sherlock's involvement in most cases. But…" Sally looked at Greg, who nodded. "But we've been asked by, um, government officials to not claim that Moriarty was real."
"Mycroft," John muttered, hands over his eyes, "I can't believe him. What the hell is he playing at?" Then John looked back at Greg and Sally where they sat across the table from him. "What cases, specifically?"
"Well, obviously, the kidnapping of the Ambassador's children. The banker kidnapping. That most-wanted guy." Sally took a deep breath. "But also the Turner painting. Reich bach, Rich Brook in German."
"The case that made his name," whispered John. "Moriarty built him up so he could take a great… Jesus." John placed both palms flat on the table, breathing deeply for a few moments.
Sally reached out to clasp one of John's hands. He lifted up his head to look at her. "There is more, isn't there?"
Greg put a hand over John's free one. "Yes, and it will not be easy to hear."
Sally continued. "You were right. There was a mole in the Yard. A sergeant in our division. We think he helped plant some of the evidence for Sherlock to find."
Greg added. "We also think he helped forge some legal documents to make Rich Brook appear real. A few parking citations, and the like."
"Where is he now?" John asked.
"Dead. He hung himself while in custody."
John's head fell back against the hard wood of the booth. "Any information before he did it?"
At this question, Greg sighed heavily. John was startled to see tears form in his eyes.
"Tell me." John's tone was calm and even.
"He claimed that he was also charged with assassinating Lestrade if…" Sally paused and took a deep breath. "He was supposed to assassinate Lestrade if Sherlock did not kill himself."
John squeezed their clasped hands tightly. "Who else?"
"There were two other assassins. Mrs. Hudson. You."
John's eyes held unshed tears, but he smiled faintly. "We knew this. Maybe not the specifics, but we knew that he must have been threatened with something… meaningful." He cleared this throat. "How did you get this information?"
Greg tilted his head to the side and said roughly, "I had, um, a little chat with him before he hung himself. The official investigation hadn't started yet." He had the gall to look sheepish.
John laughed, and Sally said, "Let's pretend we never heard that, eh?"
John let go of their hands and straightened his back. "You do realize you still have a mole in the Yard."
"What?" asked Greg.
"Of course, " Sally responded. She turned to Greg. "Somebody wanted to take the sergeant out of the picture before the investigation started." Then she looked back at John. "Somebody good, too. I saw no signs that it wasn't a suicide."
A glimmer of realization showed in John's face. "And I bet the carpenter Mrs. Hudson hired wasn't killed in a random mugging either. Always thought it was strange, him being found dead a few days after…" He tried to make light of the situation. "He was there that whole time and never finished the job."
The three sat quietly, each following the threads of the web that Moriarty left in his wake.
Sally broke the silence. "This means that Moriarty's people are still in action. This game with Sherlock isn't over. That would explain why we can't go public." She touched John's hand again. "Your assassin is still out there. You must still be in danger."
John shook his head. "But why? I'm not the consulting detective. Why would I be in danger if the game is…" He placed his hands over his eyes, anger clearly showing in the set of his shoulders. He slammed his hands against the table. "Excuse me." He stood and walked briskly to the loo.
Greg leaned his head against the wall. "God, I hate seeing John like that. He's been doing so much better recently, with Mary and all."
"I know," replied Sally. "He's right, though. It isn't fair that we can't go public with Moriarty."
"Mycroft must have his reasons."
"Why the three of you?" Sally asked. "Why not just John?"
Greg shook his head. "Sherlock loved Mrs. Hudson like a mother. Liked me in his own way, and he needed me for his work. But John…well, John made him a better man. It's like he reminded Sherlock he had a heart. They made a great team. They just fit, you know?"
"Oh, my god, " breathed Sally. "You and Mrs. Hudson were collateral."
"Explain."
"Sherlock would have wanted to hunt down Moriarty and clear his name. John would have helped. You said it, they made a great team. Hunting down a criminal organization would have been like a tropical holiday for those two." Sally slowed down, choosing her words carefully. "But what if you and Mrs. Hudson would have been in danger only if Sherlock had John by his side. John would have never forgiven himself for your deaths, and his relationship with Sherlock would have been destroyed."
"So you think the Sherlock's choice was to kill himself to save John, or to choose John and still lose him? Cor, Sally, that's an awful thought."
Sally and Greg sipped their pints in silence for a few moments, the carefree atmosphere of the pub at odds with the frustration they both felt.
"Do you agree that John is still in danger?" asked Sally. "That must be it, right? If Moriarty was real, then maybe John would know something from their investigations that was a threat to whatever organizations he left behind?"
Greg nodded. "That's all I can come up with. Somehow John is still a pawn in this game, poor sod."
"Shh…"
John was approaching their table as briskly as he had left with, but this time with a confident determination. He did not sit down, but instead reached for his jacket hooked over the back of the booth. "If something were to happen, say, to a minor member of the British government tonight, would I have an alibi with you?"
Greg didn't hesitate. "You were here all night with us, got you right drunk."
"Then I took you home," said Sally with a wink.
John nodded at the two of them, then left the pub.
Greg Lestrade smiled. "Looks like we're preparing for battle."
"I don't know what he'll be able to get Mycroft Holmes to agree to, but I'm ready to do my part. We'll make sure our case is solid against Moriarty." Sally Donovan stood up and held her hand out to the Detective Inspector. "Let's do out best to clear the rep of that wanker."
