For months after that fateful spring in 1891, the London constables on the beat kept a close watch on the practice in Kensington. It was well known around the Yard that not all Professor Moriarty's men had been captured in the deceased detective's trap and the entire force considered it likely that these men would seek vengeance for the loss of their master.
Inspectors Lestrade and Gregson, however, kept an eye on the doctor's house for a different reason. Worried about his health, both physical and emotional, they watched from a distance, dogging the doctor's steps as he made his rounds and went about his daily business.
They noted his bowed back and increased limp in those first weeks, and took it upon themselves to visit frequently, their company seeming to assuage some of his silent grief. Finally, after enlisting his aid in a few minor cases, and then encouraging his work as a police surgeon, they felt that the doctor was beginning to recover. It was with some relief that they noted his countenance brighten and his apparent exhaustion lessen as the months went on, until nearly two years later when tragedy unaccountably struck the poor man yet again. It was with heavy hearts that they learned that Mary Watson had died unexpectedly, along with the unborn child she bore.