Sherlock looked down at his phone, heart rate quickening. That had backfired in the worst possible way, and now John had no idea how much trouble he was in.

Get back here, now.

-SH

He waited. No answer.

I know you can read this. This is ridiculous, John, REPLY.

-SH

Suddenly a horrifying thought occurred to him; they had gotten there first. No. It couldn't be. The two men were still at the back of the room, still watching him carefully. He recognized one; a short, fat, Indian thug with a handlebar mustache. There were a lot of those, yes, but he clearly remembered giving that scar on his cheek to him. A little consolation prize.

He looked incredibly awkward in a suit, which, by the way, was about two inches too short at the cuffs. Judging by the bloodstain on his shirt he had been busy very, very recently, and right now he was staring at Sherlock with jaundiced eyes, making his disguise seem pitifully insubstantial. Southeast Asian muscle-for-hire seemed to be becoming something of a fad nowadays. The other one, by contrast, was tall, standing so the shadows enveloped him almost completely. Sherlock couldn't see his face. That bothered him.

John, please. Are you still there?

-SH

His phone vibrated, making his hands shake. You know. Because the phone was vibrating. He wasn't afraid or anything. Not yet.

The reply, characteristically, was short and to the point:

Yeah.

You're in danger. Don't call a cab, don't call attention to yourself, just get back here now.

-SH

I looked at the message, not quite comprehending. I was in danger? From what? I was standing on a street corner, trying to hail a cab. It was ten. Not even that late yet.

Maybe this was another ploy. But something about this was making me uneasy. Maybe he was in trouble, too.

That settled it. I put my phone back in my pocket and headed back towards the International. It was only two blocks away. I hadn't been able to get very far, because…well…some part of me detested the rest for just leaving him like that.

My mobile beeped. Again.

DON'T LOOK BEHIND YOU.

-SH

I hammered out a reply.

Okay. Be there in a minute.

I set off at a perfectly regular pace. Just a guy, I thought to myself as the blood pounded in my ears. The back of my neck prickled uncomfortably. I was being watched. Just a regular bloke, no cause for suspicion.

Nothing to hide.