Disclaimer I DO NOT OWN Sherlock, just my OC(S)!
Brian Lukis was a messy man. That was what I first thought as we walked into the dead man's flat. There was clothes all over the place. Some was hanging from the staircase banister.
"Defiantly can tell he was single and lived alone" I said looking around the room and spotted a black folded piece of paper in the shape of a flower.
It was the same thing that Sherlock had pulled from Van Coon's mouth. So the killers were the same, but why would they kill Van Coon and Lukis? It was strange and it didn't make sense. Especially that symbol. I did a quick glance around the flat to see if the killer had left a symbol, but there was nothing, so why did the killer leave a symbol for Van Coon, but no Lukis? Unless the symbol was somewhere else! Somewhere that Lukis would be able to find it.
"Four floors up" Sherlock said as he looked out the window, "That's why they think they're safe. Put a chain across the door, bolt it shut, think they're impregnable. They don't reckon for one second that there's another way in"
"I don't understand" Dimmock said as Sherlock walked into a different room.
"We're dealing with a killer who can climb" Sherlock said.
"Something like parkour?" I asked as I followed them.
"What are you doing?" Dimmock asked as Sherlock looked out a skylight.
"He clings to the walls like an insect. That's how he got in" Sherlock said opening it.
"What?" Dimmock asked.
"He climbed up the side of the walls, ran along the roof, dropped in through this skylight" Sherlock told him.
"You're not serious. Like Spider-Man?" Dimmock asked.
"That's crazy Inspector, Spider-Man is in Manhattan, what would he be doing in England?" I told him.
"He scaled six floors of a Docklands apartment building, and jumped the balcony to kill Van Coon" Sherlock told him.
"Hold on!" Dimmock said.
"And of course that's how he got into the bank. He ran along the window ledge and onto the terrace. We have to find out what connects these two men" Sherlock said and walked down the stairs to a stack of books.
He picked one up and looked at he for a second before leaving. We rode the taxi in silence as it drove to the library. Once at the library we walked up the escalators quickly and over to the help desk. The kind old librarian scanned the book for us and told us which isle it came from.
"The date stamped on the book is the same day that he died" Sherlock said as we walked down the isle.
Sherlock then began to take books of the shelves and looked at them. I did the same and turned when John called mine and Sherlock's name. Sherlock turned to John and moved the books away handed them to me to hold. I looked at the shelf and then at Sherlock who was staring at the symbol.
Sherlock got his phone out and took a few pictures of it, before setting the books back. We soon left the library and was standing in front of the fireplace staring at the pictures.
"So the killer goes to the bank, leaves a threatening cipher for Van Coon. Van Coon panics, returns to his apartment, locks himself in. Hours later, he dies" Sherlock said.
"The killer finds Lukis at the library. He writes the cipher on the shelf where he knows it'll be seen. Lukis goes home" John said.
"Later that night he dies, too" Sherlock said.
"Why did they die, Sherlock?" I asked him.
"Only the cipher can tell us" Sherlock said touching a picture, "I think I know someone who might know something about this. Come on"
We left the flat took a cab and got out of it by a fountain. John and I walked next to him.
"The world runs on codes and ciphers, John, Maria. From the million pound security system at the bank to the pin machine you took exception to, cryptography inhabits our every waking moment" Sherlock told us.
"Yes, okay, but..." John said.
"But it's all computer generated electronic codes, electronic ciphering methods. This is different" He told us as we walked towards a museum, "It's an ancient device. Modern code-breaking methods won't unravel it"
"Where are we headed?" John asked him.
"I need to ask some advice" Sherlock told him and I looked at him shocked by his words.
He needed advice? He? Sherlock Holmes? The man who knows everything? It was shocking!
"What? Sorry?" John asked him.
"You heard me perfectly; I'm not saying it again" Sherlock told him.
"You need advice" I said.
"On painting, yes. I need to talk to an expert" He said walking towards the side of the museum.
"Wouldn't it be better if we went to the museum for help? They deal with old stuff and the symbol seemed old" I told him.
"Not now, Maria" Sherlock said as we walked behind a building.
There was a young man, or maybe it was a teenager spraying paint on the side of the building.
"Part of my new exhibition" The man said spraying the door.
The man was painting a police officer. It was actually good.
"Interesting" Sherlock said digging into his trench coat.
"I call it "urbanbloodlustfrenzy." The man said.
"Good name for this, um, piece of art" I said.
"Catchy" John said.
"I've got two minutes before a Community Support Officer comes around that corner" He said and looked at Sherlock, "Could we do this while I'm working?"
Sherlock held his phone out the guy. He tossed the spray can to John, who caught it. The man took the phone from Sherlock and looked at it.
"Know the author?" Sherlock asked him as the guy scrolled through the pictures.
"Recognize the paint" He said, "Looks like Michigan hardcore propellant. I'd say zinc"
"What about the symbols, do you recognize them?" Sherlock asked him.
"Not even sure it's a proper language" He said.
"Two men have been murdered, Raz. Deciphering this is the key to finding out who killed them" Sherlock told the guy.
"What, and this is all you've got to go on?" He asked, "It's hardly much now, is it?"
"Are you going to help us or not? Sherlock asked him.
"I'll ask around" He said nodding his head.
"Somebody must know something about it" Sherlock said.
"Oy!" A voice shouted causing me to jump.
We looked towards the sound and saw two officers running towards us. Before I could even think, Sherlock grabbed my wrist and dragged me away leaving John alone who stood there with a can of paint, while Raz ran away.
"We shouldn't have left him back there" I told Sherlock once we got away from the building.
"He'll be fine" Sherlock said and I shook my head laughing a bit.
"Oh I can't believe that just happened. Man this job is fun, except the part where people are dying" I told him and the corner of his lips twitched upwards a bit.
"Yes, I suppose it is fun" Sherlock said and called a taxi.
We rode back to the flat. Sherlock went to the mantel looking at the notes, while I went into the kitchen to fix me some lunch. I had asked Sherlock if he wanted any, but he told me that he doesn't eat while on a case it messes with his digestion.
"Weird" I muttered walking into the kitchen.
I was making a cup of tea when the door slam shut. I jumped spilling some of the tea onto the counter. I let out a sigh, set the kettle down and wiped the tea up as Sherlock spoke to John.
"-you know how it is. Custody sergeants don't really like to be hurried, do they? Just formalities, fingerprints, charge sheet and I've got to be in magistrates court on Tuesday" John said.
"What?" Sherlock said looking up at a note.
"Me, Sherlock, in court on Tuesday. They're giving me an ASBO" John told him angrily.
"Good, fine" Sherlock told him.
"You want to tell your little pal he's welcome to go and own up any time" John told him.
"I could probably ask my Uncle to get you out of it" I told him walking into the room with my sandwich and cup of tea.
"This symbol, I still can't place it" Sherlock said setting the pieces of paper down and walking over to John, "No, I need you to go to the police station and ask about the journalist. His personal effects will have been impounded. Get a hold of his diary or something that will tell us his movements"
I let out a sigh taking a few big bites of my sandwich and drinking the tea quickly. I followed after Sherlock regretting on drinking the hot tea so quickly.
"Maria and I will go and see Van Coon's PA. If we retrace their steps, somewhere they'll coincide" Sherlock told John as we walked out of the flat.
Sherlock then began to walk down the sidewalk. I walked quickly behind him so I wouldn't lose him in the crowd.
"You shouldn't treat John like that. One day he won't be here" I told Sherlock as we walked.
He kept quiet as we walked. I let out a sigh.
"He's your friend and you should treat him as such" I continued, "The same goes for me too, but you do treat me differently than you do John. Why is that?"
"You talk a lot" He told me and I glared at him.
"And you talk to little" I told him.
Sherlock remained silent and I rolled my eyes. He just didn't want to answer my question. Which would had been most likely, because I'm female and was weak according to every male in the world, especially to my Uncle. He thinks I'm made out of glass and could break any moment!
"He flew back from Dalian Friday" Van Coon's PA told us once we made it to the bank, "Looks like he had back-to-back meetings with the state team"
"Can you print me off a copy?" Sherlock asked her.
"Please" I pipped in.
"Sure" She said looking at Sherlock, then me and back to the computer.
"What about the day he died? Can you tell me where he was?" Sherlock asked pointing at the screen.
"Sorry, bit of a gap" She said, "I have all his receipts"
"Show me" Sherlock said and the woman nodded her head and got out his receipts.
"Here they are" She said placing them onto her desk.
"What kind of a boss was he, Amanda? Appreciative?" Sherlock asked the woman.
"No. That's not a word I'd use" She told us as Sherlock bent down to look at the receipts, "The only things Eddie appreciated had a big price tag"
"Like that hand cream?" Sherlock asked her and I glanced at the hand cream on her desk,"He bought that for you, didn't he?"
What was Sherlock going on about hand cream for? He was suppose to be going on about those receipts, but knowing Sherlock that hand cream had to be important some how.
"Look at this one" Sherlock said holding up a card.
I took it and looked at the thing with Amanda looking over my shoulder at it. The card was a licensed taxi receipt with the date that Van Coon had died, the time of 10:35 and the amount of money he spent with it signed.
"Got a taxi from home on the day he died, 18.50" Sherlock told us.
"That would get him to the office" Amanda told us.
"Not rush hour, check the time mid-morning. Eighteen would him as far as..." Sherlock said.
"The West End" Amanda said, "I remember him saying"
"Underground, printed at 1:00 in Piccadilly" Sherlock said holding out a card.
Amanda took it this time and looked at it.
"So he got a tube back to the office?" She questioned.
"Why would he get a taxi into town and then tube back?" I asked.
"Because he was delivering something heavy. You don't want to lug a package up the escalator" Sherlock answered.
"Delivering?" Amanda asked him.
"To somewhere near Piccadilly Station. Dropped the package, delivered it, and then" Sherlock told her standing up looking at another receipt, "He stopped on his way"
"At the Piazza Espresso Bar Italiano?" I asked looking at the receipt in his hand.
"He got peckish" Sherlock said and grabbed my wrist, before dragging me out of the office.
Sherlock got a taxi and pulled me inside. Sherlock was muttering something under his breath, until we got to our destination. We got out of the cab and I followed Sherlock as he thought out loud.
"So you bought your lunch from here en route to the station, but where were you headed from? Where did the taxi drop you" Sherlock said spinning around.
"Sherlock, watch out for..." I said quickly, but it was to late Sherlock had bumped into John.
"Eddie Van Coon brought a package here the day he died, whatever was hidden inside that case" Sherlock told him as I walked over to the two, "I've managed to piece together a picture using scraps of information, credit card bills, receipts. He flew back from China, then he came here"
"Sherlock" John said, but Sherlock didn't hear him because he was still speaking and looking around.
"Somewhere in this street, somewhere near. I don't know where, but" Sherlock continued.
"That shop over there" John said pointing to a shop across the street.
Sherlock and I looked across the street to see a Chinese shop.
"How could you tell?" Sherlock asked him.
"Lukis's diary. He was here, too. He wrote down the address" John told us.
"So we found out what they had in common. That shop" I said and followed John over to the shop.
"Oh" Sherlock said followed after us.
We walked into the building.
"Hello" John said to the old woman working the cashier as we began to look around.
I began to walk around the shop looking at the small dolls, tea cups, paintings and vases that was around the shop. I stopped walking when I saw the stone figurines that
"You want lucky cat?" The old woman asked holding up a golden cat who was moving it's arm up and down.
"No. Thanks, no" John told the woman.
"Ten pound, ten pound" She told us, "I think your wife, she will like"
"W-We're not married" John said pointing at himself and then me.
"I was not speaking to you. I was speaking to him" The woman told John nodding her head at Sherlock.
"No thank you" Sherlock said looking at the small figurine in the window.
I walked around looking at the mini statues. I touched one and let out a gasp when it began to fall. Before I could try to catch it Sherlock had already done so.
"Better be careful, that would had cost you half the rent" He said pointing at the price tag.
My eyes went wide and I took a step back from the statues.
"Thank you" I told him looking up at him.
Sherlock nodded and placed the statue back on the shelf.
"Sherlock? Maria?" John said and we walked over to him, "The label there"
"Yes, I see it" Sherlock said looking at the label.
"Exactly the same as the cipher" I said quietly so we wouldn't be over heard.
We left the shop a few seconds later.
"It's an ancient number system, Hang Zhou. These days only street traders use it. Those were numbers written on the wall at the bank and at the library. Numbers written in an ancient Chinese dialect" Sherlock said as we walked away from the shop.
"It's a 15" John said as Sherlock began to search through lotus roots, "What we thought was the artist's tag, it's a number 15" John said.
"And the blindfold, the horizontal line, that was a number as well" Sherlock said holding up a piece of paper.
"It's a one" I said.
"Yes, the Chinese number one" Sherlock said.
"We've found it" John said.
"Of course we did" I told him before following Sherlock.
"Can we get some lunch and talk over what we just found out?" I told him.
Sherlock nodded his head and we went to the cafe across the Lucky Cat shop, where we had just been.
"Two men travel back from China. Both head straight for the Lucky Cat Emporium. What did they see?" John asked.
"It's not what they saw. It's what they both brought back in those suitcases" Sherlock said.
"You don't think duty free?" John asked as a waitress with our food came over placing two plates onto the table.
John and I thanked her and began to eat.
"Think about what Sebastian told us about Van Coon, about how he stayed afloat in the market" Sherlock said.
"He lost five million" John told him.
"Made it back in a week" Sherlock said and I nearly chocked on my food.
Sherlock began to pat my back, until I stopped him to get a drink of water. How could someone make five million in one week? He must have been trafficking drugs or something.
"That's how he made such easy money" Sherlock said.
"He was a smuggler" I said and John nodded taking a bite out of his food.
"A guy like him, it would have been perfect. A businessman, making frequent trips to Asia. Lukis was the same, a journalist writing about China. Both of them smuggled stuff out. The Lucky Cat was their drop off" Sherlock told us as he looked out the window at the Lucky Cat.
"Why did they die? It doesn't make sense. If they both turned up at the shop and delivered the goods, why would someone threaten them and kill them after the event, after they finished the job?" John asked him.
"What if one of them was light-fingered?" Sherlock asked.
"How do you mean?" John asked.
"Stole something, something from the hoard" Sherlock said.
"And the killer doesn't know which of them took it" John said.
"So they threatens them both and kills them" I said.
"Remind me, when was the last time that it rained?" Sherlock asked getting up.
I let out a sigh and shoved some of the food in my mouth chewing quickly. When can I ever finish a nice meal when we're on a case? I followed Sherlock sipping on my glass of water. When I was close to the door I set my glass on someone's table apologizing quickly and followed Sherlock out the door with John close behind.