Thank you for the wonderful reviews and support! I was facing some major writer's block after the last chapter. I didn't necessarily want to go in a direction of Amelia giving in to Moriarty, nor did I want her to continue to rely of Sherlock and Mycroft. It seemed too predictable and a little chauvinistic.

This chapter is mostly to get Amelia away from where we left off. She went to see Molly for a reason, but is going to get a little extra advice, in addition.

Enjoy and keep letting me know what you think! I always welcome new ideas!

"Well, here I thought that you might need some assistance. Guess I was wrong." Amelia glanced up to see Lestrade leaning against the wall.

He walked closer. "Just what the hell are you thinking, going against Moriarty like that? Do you honestly think that you will win? He has managed to evade all of the British government, not to mention your own brother."

Amelia shook out her right hand, the knuckles were already starting to bruise. "Lot of questions you have, Detective Inspector. Let's see, get him away from my loved ones, yes, and he won't evade me."

"And how do you propose beating him? In a game of Scrabble?"

"Let me worry about Moriarty now, Lestrade. Can we go inside now? It's freezing." Amelia and Lestrade made their way back into Molly's flat.

Molly was already prepared. She handed Amelia a bag of ice, some painkillers, and a glass of water. Amelia thanked her and sat down. Lestrade was nonplussed. "Why aren't you more shocked by this? We just witnessed Amelia beating the shit out of one of the most dangerous criminals in England and you are just calmly helping her out?"

"Calm down, Greg. What good is panicking? I may not have known Amelia for that long, but if she is anything like Sherlock, she is not going to back down, no matter what we say." Molly settled back onto the couch, next to Amelia.

Lestrade shook his head in disbelief. "And now we, what, wait for a response from him?"

"It wasn't that simple. For years, Moriarty stalked Amelia, who thought she could outrun him. She's had others fighting her battle for her. When she finally came back to stop him, her attacks were passive and behind-the-scenes. Amelia just threw down the proverbial gauntlet and gave Moriarty a small taste of how strong she is. Not only that, she just handed him a deal that if he accepts and wins, he gets exactly what he has been wanting for over a decade, Amelia. All he has to do is leave the rest of us out of that. It's been a very eventful 20 minutes. So yes, we wait,"

Amelia and Lestrade gaped at Molly. Goddamn. I couldn't have put it better myself. "Wait, how did you know what happened? You were inside."

Molly gestured towards the front door. Next to the knob was a screen with buttons underneath. "I just listened from that, what was the screaming and vomiting about?"

Before Amelia could respond, her mobile rang. When she pulled it out, she noticed a text from Mycroft. "Well done, little sister. But you are crazy to think we won't be involved. Also, have Lestrade contact Sherlock, he has a lead on a case.-MH"

Amelia showed Lestrade the text. "Why do I need to pass this along? Don't you have your own phone?"

Lestrade's face turned a light shade of pink. "The, um, battery died. I wasn't near my charger."

"Seriously? I thought that you, of all people, would be on top of that." Amelia saw the quick look between Lestrade and Molly. "Oh, right. You two banged. Well, Lestrade, you should really upgrade your phone to one with a similar charger as Molly's. I'd hate for you to miss an important phone call."

With a practically purple face, Lestrade stood up. "Good idea." He said quickly. "Well, I best be off."

He stood awkwardly for another couple of seconds before Amelia gestured towards the door. "Exits typically work best when you actually leave."

"Right!" Lestrade almost ran out of the room and nearly tripped on the threshold.

Molly sighed as soon as the door shut. "You really do like keeping people on their toes, don't you?"

"It's one of my better qualities. Some say it is even my finest." Amelia grinned. "How is the Detective Inspector once he hangs up his badge? I bet he likes to let out that rebellious streak of his."

Molly's giggle was the only answer Amelia needed. She felt happy for her new friend. Lestrade was the kind and stable man that Molly deserved. He also was able to let loose and show her a good time. "Love looks good on you, Molly."

"Oh, I don't think I am there yet."

"Yes you are. Trust me."

"What about you?"

Amelia's eyebrows furrowed. "What about me?"

"You basically offer yourself to Moriarty, the man responsible for the death of Alex, within 24 hours of you finding out that John and Mary got married. You met Mary and decided you liked her, don't ask me how I know, you see the good in everyone. But you are here instead of Sherlock's. What happened between you and John now?"

"Fuck, Molly. Talking to you is like talking to a sweeter version of my brother sometimes."

"Swearing doesn't answer the question."

"He would leave her for me." Amelia rubbed her hands over her face. "I meet his wife, who loves him with all of his flaws and makes Sherlock part of her family, and he has to go try to be with me. Who does that?"

"Someone who thinks you are worth it,"

"I'm not."

"When will you be? When you beat Moriarty? When you forgive yourself for the deaths of your friends? You didn't kill them, Amelia"

"I killed one and the others died because I was too afraid of Moriarty to face him. I thought if I kept running, he would grow tired of the chase. But he just kept on. Their blood is on my hands, even if it wasn't always me who killed them."

"It was never in cold blood though." Molly paused. "Do you think that he would get tired of you if you surrendered? Is that why you proposed that deal?"

Amelia thought for a moment. "At first, I did. Now, I am not so sure."

"But you think you can beat him at his own game?"

"No. I will beat him at mine."

"What is he going to do next?"

"He is going to try to isolate me from Sherlock one last time before agreeing to keep it between us."

"How?"

"Irene Adler."

"You are involved with that?"

"Let's just say I made a brief appearance in the end."

"Amelia, maybe this is your shot to get ahead of Moriarty. If you know he will use that information against you, perhaps you should tell Sherlock first."

"I don't know how he is going to take it. No one will tell me what happened between the two of them, but I can tell that he feels something for her."

"He will react in his typical Sherlock way. Unemotional until he gets all of the facts. Just get it over with before it is too late."

Amelia tilted her head back and buried her face in a pillow. "Can't I just stay here a little longer? I don't want to face John."

"Oh sweetie, of course not. Bite the bullet and deal with those two."

"And where is this spine of yours when you are being swindled by my brother?"

Molly's only response was a pointed finger to the door. Amelia smiled at her. "I suppose one of these days I will thank you for this." She gathered the ice pack and her jacket before leaving.

45 minutes later

Amelia made her way up to Sherlock's flat. She had been trying to figure out how to bring up the subject of Irene Adler to Sherlock. Her intuition told her that Sherlock would try to freeze her out until she changed the topic. Gathering her courage, she opened the door. Sherlock was at the kitchen table, an experiment was strewn about. His attention, though, was on his phone. "Amelia" he greeted quietly. "Can you please explain what this picture is supposed to mean?" He held out his mobile.

It was a picture of Amelia. She was standing on the bridge in New Orleans. That bridge. Under the picture was a message: "Ask her about why The Woman stopped texting."

Well, now I don't have to work this into conversation somehow.