Here's another chapter! Thanks for sticking with me! I really appeciate you all so much! Thanks so much for reading!
The two black cars pulled slowly up the drive. Mycroft stood outside with Martin and Michael. The first car came to a stop in front of the house as did the car behind it. The back door to the passenger side opened in the first and Sherlock stepped out. He held his hand out and Molly took as he pulled her to her feet. After Molly, Soo Lin, and Brianna followed.
Sherlock and the trio of women walked up onto the porch, followed by John and Irene who had come from the second car.
"Brother," Mycroft said in greeting. "Dr. Hooper."
Molly gave him a small smile, clutching tightly to Sherlock's arm. Sherlock glanced down at her and frowned. "There is nothing for you to be concerned about Molly, the Grange is perfectly safe. You will see no violence within its walls," he assured her softly.
"Michael and Martin will see to your luggage, please come inside," Mycroft said turning and opening the door to his home. He stepped in and Sherlock followed him, taking hold of Molly's hand. The small group followed Mycroft down the hallways to the Family room.
The room was enormous with a vaulted ceiling. The décor was very masculine, its walls painted a deep cranberry color. The furniture was cherry oak and iron. "Please, do make yourselves comfortable," Mycroft said.
Sherlock looked around the room and frowned. "Why is father's furniture from his study in this room? This was mother's second favorite room in the house. She always kept it…soft and warm…" he said, his voice trailing off.
Mycroft shrugged. "I no longer have a family to share this room with Sherlock, why should I keep it the way mother had it?"
Sherlock cleared his throat and looked at the window. "Where are your house guests from the other dimension?" he asked with a quirked lip.
"They are both here," Mycroft said. "They have kindly offered their services for the upcoming war with James…." His voice trialed when Molly gasped audibly.
Sherlock looked at her, but said nothing. Mycroft could see the muscle in Sherlock's jaw twitch. Thinking it prudent to change the subject, Mycroft spoke again. "I had Martin prepare dinner for us all, if you would care to join me in the dining hall. Or perhaps the ladies would like to be shown to their rooms first and freshen up a bit."
Sherlock's brow rose. "Yes, that is an excellent idea," he agreed.
As if Martin had telepathic abilities, he appeared inside of the room. "I beg pardon sir, but I thought perhaps the ladies would like to be shown to their rooms."
Mycroft and Sherlock both favored him with an amused grin. "Yes Martin, I was just about to ring for you," Mycroft said.
"As you say sir," Martin said smiling. "Come along now dears," he said, motioning to the women to follow him. Soo Lin and Brianna walked towards him.
Irene looked at John. "You won't leave without telling me?" she asked, her eyes wide with her anxiety.
"Of course not," John said gently.
"You promise?" she asked. "Promise me John…Sherlock, make him promise."
"I swear," John said, taking her arm gently and leading her to Martin. "Now go with Martin, Irene. Then we will all have dinner together."
Sherlock looked down at Molly. "Go with Irene, Molly," he said firmly.
"Sherlock, I want…"
He put his finger to her lips. "You can tell me later," he told her firmly. "Just go now with Irene."
Molly chewed her lip nervously. "Sherlock, please, I just want to…"
"Do as I say Molly," he said, his voice hard.
"Alright," she said, in a whisper and he watched her go.
The men waited until the door had been closed behind Martin before they began to speak. "Have you spoken with James?" Mycroft asked.
Sherlock's eyes narrowed. "I have and he knows that I am coming for him," he said. "I have spoken to several other men with power about this impending war. We have many allies Mycroft, but so does James. This is going to be bloody and costly."
"And who is to make the first move," Mycroft asked.
"I have already made my move and you should be hearing about it soon enough," Sherlock said.
Molly stared out the window in the bedroom that she had been provided. She shivered, wrapping her arms around her in a protective manner. She felt as if she should feel some joy at being placed in the Grange, after all, it could only mean that she was even closer to being able to go home.
But instead she found herself feeling almost empty inside. A cold shill move through her body and settled in the pit of her stomach. She knew that this war was necessary, but she was afraid of the loss that would incur.
She was afraid for the Sherlock of this awful place. He had been nearly destroyed when he found out the truth about James and now he was gunning for blood. She was terrified that he would get killed himself in the process. And then Mycroft had told her that the John and Sherlock of her world had agreed to help in this. What if something happened to them? What if she lost her Sherlock to this place?
She could feel the tears stinging her eyes as the cold hand of despair pressed down on her chest. She turned when she heard a soft knock at the door and the door opened. She drew in a sharp breath when she saw him…saw the soft curls that fell over his forehead as if he were a child, his warm green eyes twinkling with delight and joy at seeing her, the skin on his face smooth and shaved, and his welcoming smile.
"Sherlock…"she whispered. "My Sherlock…" she said, a sob tearing from her throat.
"Molly," he said holding his arms out to her. "Come to me…"
And she did. She ran to him, throwing her arms around him as he lifted her off her feet, holding her tightly against him. She cried against his chest, her small body wracked with her sobs. He carried her to the bed and sat down, maneuvering her into his lap. He held her tightly in his arms, stroking her hair, and speaking softly to her words of comfort and his love.
After several minutes when she did not calm down, he became concerned that she would make herself ill. "Molly, please, try to calm yourself," he said gently, rubbing her back. "You're going to make yourself sick."
She pulled away from him and looked at him through her tear streaked cheeks, swollen eyes, and flushed face. "Oh Sherlock…" she said, gulping in air as she tried to breathe through her tears. "I just wasn't sure that I would ever see you again…"
She took his face in her hands, stroking his brow, and running her hand through his dark curls. "I didn't think he'd ever allow me here at this place…and now that I am here…it's like I am so close to being able to finally go home after all of this time…but now there is a war and Jim…he's so wicked Sherlock…worse than you can imagine…and I'm so scared of losing you and John…and if Irene loses her John, I think she would lose her mind…"her words were coming so fast from her that they began to run together.
"Molly, love…" Sherlock tried to talk to her, but she cut him off.
"Why do you have to help Sherlock…" she pleaded. "Please stay here with me…don't do this…it's so violent here…this world is so different from our own. Please…"
Sherlock pulled her against him and began to rock her. "It is because this world is so terrible that John and I want to help. The Mycroft of this world told me what it used to be like here…he showed us photos and history books. My God, Molly…it was so much like our world. Don't you see Molly, what if something like this happened to our world? It could so easily happen…we can't turn our backs on these poor, wretched people. We have to do what we can and if the Sherlock of this world is the catalyst to change, then I will do what I can to help him," he said. "Even though I can never forgive him for what he has done to you…and I don't care what his brother says, there is no redemption for him…none…not after what he did to you."
Molly wiped her eyes and looked at him. "I have forgiven him," she said softly. "He's a very wounded man, Sherlock….very wounded and his wounds run deep. I'm not condoning him for what he did to me and my forgiving him was for me, not him. So you have to forgive him. You can't let anger fester within you…look what happens when you do that…it's what happened to him."
Sherlock's jaw tightened. "I can't and won't forgive him," he said lowly. "What he did to you was the vilest most reprehensible thing that could ever be done to a woman. I understand you needing to forgive him for you…but I can't. I will fight alongside of him for the greater good, but as far as I am concerned, he is the vilest of the vile."
"Sherlock, please stay here with me," she said softly. "Fight with your beautiful mind…please don't put yourself in harm's way. I would die if I lost you…"
"You won't lose me," he assured her. "I will never leave you, not ever again. And I will never let anyone hurt you again. When we get home, you will stay with me at Baker Street. Toby is there waiting for you…"
"Toby…" she whispered as fresh tears filled her eyes.
"He's been with me all this time Molly," he said. "I have kept him safe for you and he is waiting anxiously for you to come home."
"You want us to live with you?" she asked.
"I want you to marry me Molly," Sherlock said. "I was a fool…I should have never let you go even one day without knowing how I feel about you. When you were taken from me…I felt as if my heart had literally been cleaved into. Jim told me that he would burn me…Oh God…he did…he did burn me…I felt like I couldn't breathe that day that he came to the pool and he told me what had happened…" He had to stop as the emotion rose in his throat, threatening to choke him. Tears filled his eyes as he swallowed, trying to rein in his emotions and his fear. "I can't lose you…I would never survive loosing you Molly…and I know that you may never be able to bear my touch and I can live with that….just as long as I know that you are safe and with me always. Even if I have to love you afar, I just need to know that you are safe and happy."
Molly stared at him open mouthed. "You…you want to marry me?" she whispered.
Sherlock smiled, his eyes alight with love for her. He swallowed and nodded his head, his curls bobbing. "Yes Molly…I want you to marry me. I love you and I will give you as much time as you need and if in the end, you can't stand my touch," he said. "Then I will be the very best husband, friend, and confidant that I can be. I will do everything in my power to make you feel safe and happy again."
"Oh Sherlock…" She whispered, fresh tears sliding down her cheeks. "I…I don't know what to say…you love me? You really love me?"
"Yes Molly," he said gently. "I always have."
"Oh Sherlock, I love you…" She said kissing him fiercely, clinging to his shoulders. "I have always loved you. I've never stopped…not once…not even after what he did. I still loved you…I could see your beautiful smile in my mind…I could hear your voice…I knew that if I could just keep you with me then I would survive. I do love you so and I want to marry you…I want to come home with you and be with you for always Sherlock. I want to rebuild my life with you."
She rained kisses all over his face and he laughed, tears of happiness rolling down his cheeks. He pulled her tightly against him, leaning his head down and capturing her lips with his. He kissed her deeply and sweetly. She parted her lips trying to show him that he could deepen the kiss, that he did not have to tread carefully with her.
His tongue swept into her mouth, twirling around hers. She cupped his cheek, deepening the kiss, coaxing his tongue to dance with hers.
They kissed for several minutes, holding onto one another. He broke the kiss, placing another kiss on her nose and forehead. "When this is over, I'm going to take you home with me. We will have the biggest celebration Molly. John, Mrs. Hudson, Lestrade, Mike, and anyone else that you want will be there to welcome you home," he promised, kissing her again softly on the lips.
"And we will marry," she asked breathlessly.
"As soon as you are able Molly," he said kissing her again. "I don't want to waste another single moment of my life without you."
Mycroft had just taken another mouthful of his brandy when the ground underneath him shook with fury. He set his glass down and turned towards the large pane widow, rushing towards it. "Good God, what was that?" he asked as another explosion rocked the foundations of his home and knocked several paintings from his wall. He peered out into the window and saw smoke and fire in the distance dancing across the night sky.
He whirled around and looked at his brother. "What in the devil is this, Sherlock?"
Sherlock smiled a cold smile. "My move, brother mine…"
Okay guys...we have two chapters left...
Thanks for reading!