.
'Sherrinford insists he's a victim. He was somewhat dehydrated, had a bad cut on his left arm, bruises and other persuasion evidence, and overall looks like a man who's been held captive for two weeks, as he declared. They are keeping him at the hospital overnight, the doctors believe he'll do a full recovery in time.'
Sherlock narrowed his green eyes, attentive. 'I bet he claims he has no idea why he's been held captive.'
'None whatsoever', Mycroft confirms.
'Too bad the captors weren't smart enough to send a ransom note for Sherrinford', Sherlock sneered, still on the verge of some sort of accidental meltdown. 'It's obvious he's no victim, he orchestrated this whole thing to reappear in our lives, to gain our trust. A victim, in need of healing. Well, John fell for that one immediately!'
'Sherlock', Mycroft warned. 'We still can't tell for sure if he was implicated.'
'Mycroft, we know him. We know what he's capable off.'
'Just because he can, doesn't mean he did, Sherlock. We need to approach this carefully. We need to prove he's hiding something before accusing him. Unfortunately...' he gestured in mid air.
'We need to play his game.'
'It's hardly done yet, Sherlock. Luckily, John is no longer held captive, but he's still a pawn. He believes Sherrinford to be a companion prisoner. They shared a tough spot and created a bond. That bond may be the best way in to Sherrinford right now.'
Sherlock's first reaction was to refuse, to protect the broken soldier, he had enough. Mycroft read it easily in his expression. 'Sherlock, he's going to continue playing John. He'll reach out to John after what they shared. John is kind-hearted, he won't turn away. This way, Sherlock, we can hold some control.'
'I have to warn John.'
'Go ahead, Sherlock. He'll never truly believe it. You've told him you haven't seen our brother since you were four years old?' Sherlock nodded, pursing his lips. 'Have you told him why?' He shook his head. 'Maybe you should.' Sherlock just looked away. 'We need to keep focus. Sherrinford, if it is indeed him responsible, has an agenda. We need to play our cards quietly till we can figure out why he's doing this.'
'Is there any chance John is right? That he's a victim?'
'I'm afraid John is not the best character reader. Strangely the man that went to fight a war still believes in the good nature of humanity.'
That's John's best trait, Sherlock knows it. The acceptance, the admiration, the forgiveness, all those good traits stem from this incredible innocence, that fuels his ability to rebuild time and time again. It's in that strength of his that John needs to find a way of healing after what he's been through at the warehouse.
And if Sherrinford is in any way involved, either to call the attention of Mycroft and Sherlock, or to hurt Sherlock by hurting the man he works with, or to claim his power and his brother's defencelessness over his plans... Sherlock will not stop at the fact that this man is his brother. To him, he's just a stranger, and now an enemy.
