A/N: This is the end! For those of you following this story thank you so much for all your comments both here and privately. I am so grateful to you for reading. I hope you find this finale enjoyable.

Massive massive thanks to lickitysplit for beta reading this story and making it at least thirty times better. You are amazing to work with and I love you.

Please let me know what you think!

At Zurich station, Escanor bought tickets to the first destination listed on the departure board, a place called Meiringen. He had never heard of it, but liked the sound of the name. Since leaving France, Merlin had relaxed considerably and Escanor took his cue from her, humming to himself as he bought black coffee and pastries from a small vendor before visiting a book shop to procure a newspaper in English, a guidebook and map of Switzerland. It was a country he had not visited previously, and he was keen to learn more about its history and culture before he and Merlin returned to the UK.

As they sat on the train, paper cups in hand, Escanor buried himself in the guidebook, enjoying the shiny photographs of picturesque villages, delicate wildflowers and majestic snow-covered mountains. "We're going to the place where the meringue was invented!" he declared as he munched happily on a pastry.

"I like meringue," Merlin remarked as she, rather listlessly, also ate her confection. She glanced down at her phone, and, biting his lip, Escanor resumed his perusal of the guidebook.

"Please excuse me," Merlin said gently as she leaned forward in her seat. "I am hoping that Gilthunder will have some good news for us soon. He has promised to tell me when the operation is over, whatever happens," she explained. "I will breathe far more easily when it is confirmed that Arthur Pendragon is safely behind bars."

"Um… Merlin. I wanted to ask you… why is he doing this, do you think?" Escanor placed the book in his lap as Merlin's eyes narrowed. "I mean, he's a high profile person. I looked him up," he went on as Merlin gave a curt nod of encouragement. "He has money and influence. Vivian needed security, and Zeldris strikes me as the sort who never feels like they have enough cash, but Arthur isn't like that, or at least he didn't come across that way. He's a successful businessman, so why…"

"Why has he chosen to devote his life to crime?" Escanor nodded and Merlin smiled. "I agree with your assessment. The proceeds of crime are not his main motivation. He enjoys it." Escanor swallowed as Merlin continued, "As you said, Arthur has all he requires from life, but the allure of well organised crime is extremely strong. I have felt its pull myself on several occasions. I am able to obtain satisfaction from solving crimes, but I would be lying if I did not admit to myself at least that there would be equal satisfaction in working for the other side."

Escanor stared and Merlin gave a small chuckle. "I would not expect you to understand it," she said. "You are one of the most upright individuals of my acquaintance. But the thrill, the rush of organised crime is incredible, especially for an operation like Arthur's where he sells intricate plans on demand and controls almost unlimited resources. The possibilities are endless."

"If you say so."

Merlin laughed as Escanor felt his cheeks flush with heat. "You are indeed very upright," she said with a smile. "It is no bad thing, Escanor. No matter how attractive organised crime may be, it is unequivocally wrong. The way they manipulated you, for example…" Merlin ground her teeth. "It is better to be on the side of the angels."

Escanor nodded, returning Merlin's smile. "Let us hope this ordeal ends soon," she remarked as she once more glanced down at her phone, her brows drawing as she looked back up to scowl at the window.

The next two days he spent exploring the area. Meiringen was set up for walking and Escanor enjoyed the fire of the cold, clean air in his lungs, the dramatic scenery and the peace of the countryside. There were few tourists around, the skiing season having not quite started while hikers generally preferred the summer months. He explored alone while Merlin ensconced herself in their hotel, dividing her time between her research and frantically texting Gilthunder. Escanor did his best to lift her spirits, but she became more and more taciturn with the ongoing absence of news.

It was over breakfast the next morning that Merlin finally snapped. Her phone buzzed like an angry bee from its place next to the coffee pot. The detective snatched it up immediately, her face clouding as she read the message.

"He actually told me to leave him alone," she muttered crossly, causing the waitress who was conveying the eggs benedict they had ordered to blanch slightly as she set down the pristine white plates. The waitress shot them a terrified look, then scurried away like a rabbit as Merlin hissed, "I taught Gilthunder everything he knows and now…"

"Um… Merlin, perhaps he's right?" Escanor took his napkin and laid it in his lap. "I mean, that's why we're here? You said yourself Gilthunder would be in a better place without having us to deal with. Should we, perhaps…"

"Yes, yes." Merlin sighed, the side of her lip curving a little as she looked at him. "You are right, Escanor," she added in a softer tone. "I did indeed say that."

They ate in silence. Merlin's eyes darted from her phone to the window then back again until, with a huff, she picked up her handset and stowed it away in her bag. "I will follow your excellent example," she declared as she set down her cutlery with a clatter. "Did you plan to go for a walk today?"

Escanor nodded quickly. "There are waterfalls not far from here. They're worth seeing apparently."

"Then I shall accompany you." Merlin grinned. Pleased, but very much surprised, Escanor jolted before returning her smile. He had not thought that Merlin would ever leave the hotel, and he had been plotting several schemes to try and get her outside. She had been looking washed out.

Merlin snorted. "I know what you are thinking. But it does not look as if it will rain, and the exercise will keep my mind away from what is happening in London. Lead on," she commanded as she stood up from the table. Escanor gave a slight nod as he too rose from his seat, grabbing his backpack, which he had already prepared for the day. While Merlin fetched her coat, he looked around at the other guests; they looked so peaceful and unperturbed, such a contrast to the frenzy of his last few weeks on earth. It was thankfully not long before Merlin returned and followed him from the hotel. Together they trudged along the wide, main street and so into the snowy quiet of the countryside.

"You're supposed to do this in summer," Escanor said a little apologetically. The walk had been invigorating, but the going had been tough in places. The route to the falls twisted and turned up the side of a mountain, and the winter weather had made some of the passes tricky to climb.

Merlin shrugged her shoulders. "It matters not," she declared. "This is as good a way as any to pass the time."

His attempts to draw the detective into conversation stalled at first; Merlin responded to each of his remarks but the train of chatter did not progress for more than a few brief sentences before Escanor had to throw another starter into the mix. But as they made their way up the steep incline Merlin began gradually to stop placing her hand against the side of her bag, checking to see if her phone was vibrating, and started to talk in earnest. Escanor too felt himself relax as they climbed up the mountain, nothing but clean air and the soft sound of their own feet treading on the dirt path to keep them company.

He snapped back to his senses when Merlin asked, "Is this what you thought you would be doing when you left Iraq?"

"Of course not," he replied with a laugh. "I thought I'd find some sort of boring job where I'd sit at a boring desk staring at boring spreadsheets. I certainly didn't expect to be in more danger now than when I was working in the middle of a former war zone."

Merlin stopped sharply, turning to face him. "Oh, don't worry," he rushed on quickly, kicking himself inwardly to see her looking at him with concern. "I wouldn't have it any other way. These have been the best months of my life. I can't wait to get back to London and start again."

"Alright then."

They continued on. At first, the rush of water sounded faint in the distance, like a continual smash of waves against the shore, but the noise strengthened and grew as they kept up the pace. Before too long, the rasp of the falls drowned out everything else. There was no wind, no birdsong, only the white noise of the water crashing down on its journey to the sea. As they gained the summit, bright eyed and faces shining with the exertion, Escanor looked over the edge to see cascades of white foam bursting over grey rock, the deafening roar ringing in his ears.

"The Reichenbach falls," Escanor yelled in triumph, breath catching in his lungs as he took in the sheer vastness of their splendour.

"You were right, this definitely qualifies as worth seeing," Merlin exclaimed. "I have never…" She stopped and their eyes met the elation freezing on her face in an instant. Both of them had felt the buzz in Merlin's bag.

Quickly, the detective pulled at the clasp and retrieved her phone, swiping at the screen to unlock it. Escanor watched her carefully as she read what was evidently a long message, his heart sinking slowly as her jaw worked and her mouth pressed together.

"Arthur got away," she spat, and Escanor's eyelids fluttered closed. "Gilthunder caught almost everyone connected to the gang, but missed their leader. Zeldris and Gelda escaped as well."

Escanor sighed as he ran a hand through his hair. "A-all three of them?" he stuttered. "But that's impossible! How…"

"Dreyfus must somehow have managed to send them information. I knew I should have killed him." Merlin thrust her phone back into her bag, her hands curling into fists. "I spared him and this is the consequence. They could be anywhere now. Anywhere in the world. Everything we have done to eliminate them has evaporated. Finding them again will be akin to retrieving a needle from a haystack."

He wanted to comfort her. That was his overriding instinct as he walked towards Merlin, tentatively reaching out a hand. "We'll find them," he called over the cacophony of the falls. "I promise. It's going to be okay." Merlin smiled at him, her hand drifting towards his, the skin of their fingers brushing together.

"It is best not to make promises you cannot keep."

The pair whipped round towards the voice. Escanor's mouth fell open as Arthur stepped towards them, a man he recognised from the many photographs as Zeldris following close behind. "You have made things very awkward for me, very awkward indeed," Arthur purred, his voice somehow carrying over the din of the water. "Did you really think I would let you live after all you have done? This is the end."

As if on cue, Zeldris pulled a knife from his belt, his dark eyes blazing as he made ready to lunge.

Merlin moved faster than Escanor would have thought possible. Out of the corner of his eye, he registered that the detective and Arthur were fighting hard, their bodies a blur as they aimed and dodged. His attention was locked squarely on Zeldris and the knife that gleamed like ice in his hand. He stepped backwards as his opponent advanced, and he shot a quick glance over his shoulder, his heart pounding like a drum to see the edge of the ground so close to his feet.

"Escanor, duck!" He did as he was told and fell to the floor. A quick wind rushed past him as Merlin soared through the air to land a blow with her foot directly into Zeldris's side. Arthur yelled, running after the detective as the knife flicked in her direction. Both men descended on her, pushing her back towards the precipitous drop which just a few yards away. Any minute and she would fall with the river.

How he managed his next feat he later could not recall. All Escanor knew was that he had to save Merlin, whatever the risk and whatever the cost. As legs danced around him, Escanor watched intently as the fighters got closer and closer to the mountain's edge. At the last moment, he grabbed for Merlin, pulling her to him even as she was tugged away from his hold. He held on to her desperately, refusing to let go even when he felt a crack beneath his palms and Merlin screamed, her agony echoing through his brain. He closed his eyes tight, breathing hard as the howls of the others began, their furious yells getting further and further from him to mingle with the grate of the water as it splintered over jagged rocks on its way to the river below. Still he held on to Merlin's leg, even as the cries stopped. They were gone. Zeldris and Arthur had gone over the edge and there was nothing left; nothing but water and sweat and tears and fear.

"Escanor," Merlin grunted and he opened his eyes to see her lying next to him in the dirt. At once he released his grip, wincing as the detective gasped, her face ashen grey as she pushed herself into a sitting position. "Do not dare to apologise," she managed to rasp out, a smile curving her lips as she shuffled towards him, cutting off the 'sorry' he had indeed been about to mutter. "You saved my life. I would far rather deal with a broken leg than have followed our opponents over the falls."

"They… they're gone." Escanor managed to sit up. "I didn't want… not like this."

"I know." Merlin shuffled a little closer towards him, flinching as her leg caught on the stony ground but managing to manoeuvre herself into a position where she could lay a hand on his shoulder. "But perhaps this is for the best. It is over and you are safe. London is safe. No one could have survived a fall like that, not even me," she said with a chuckle.

Escanor looked at her, biting his lip. He knew he should feel elation or at least relief, or even the panic that threatened him so often, but everything was dead, numb, as if it was happening to someone else. All he knew was that Merlin's hand was in his and he never wanted to let her go.

"Merlin… I… I've wanted to tell you something for a long time." Escanor drew breath, sucking in the cool air then forcing it out in an attempt to quell his emotion. "I…" He shook his head in frustration as his larynx shut down and he found he could not give voice to his thoughts. "I don't even know how to begin," he muttered, his gaze falling to gaze at the dirt beneath his legs.

"I know," Merlin whispered. She moved even closer to him so her breath ghosted over the shell of his ear. "I do know how you feel. And yes, I love you too," she murmured.

Escanor's heart skipped a beat as their lips finally met, her mouth slanting against his, drawing him closer. He kissed her again and again, each time more bold than the last, on the point of losing himself until Merlin shifted a little in his hold. "I… I am loathe to stop you but my leg is…" She looked at him apologetically and he pulled back at once, hastily rubbing the back of his neck. "And do not say you are sorry!" Merlin interjected, planting a kiss on his cheek. "But I do need a doctor."

Escanor pulled his own phone from his bag to call the hotel, relaying his rather garbled message to the surprised receptionist. "Help's on the way," he finally confirmed as he placed his phone back into his bag.

"And I have explained the situation to Gilthunder," Merlin added. "He is startled to say the least, but I think rather pleased. He is eagerly awaiting our return. I hope the doctors here are efficient. I want to get back to London as quickly as possible."

There was a pause, the water rushing in his ears until Merlin's hand found his. "I… do love you, Escanor," she said softly as she leaned in towards him and at once his arms were around her as he carefully positioned himself so he was at her side.

"I love you too," he said in reply, his eyes closing as Merlin's lips met his own.

The sun beat down like a fierce fire, bouncing off the golden sand of the beach, flickering over the waves and threatening to scorch her skin. She shifted into the shade of the large umbrella positioned over her head, taking the sunglasses from the table beside her and quickly placing them over her eyes. She could not show the other tourists who were laughing and playing and generally enjoying themselves that she was a mess of tears amidst all the smiles.

She let the newspaper she had been reading drop to the floor. The headlines said it all. Arthur's reputation was in tatters. Many of her former colleagues had been charged and were fighting each other to be the first to spill the beans and so take a miserable few years off their sentences. Imbeciles , she raged in her head. Traitorous imbeciles. I'll settle every single one of them. I'll…

She swiped a tear from her cheek as she recalled the rest of the headlines. Zeldris was dead. The paper carried an interview with Escanor of all people. He was being lauded as some sort of hero, the saviour of Britain. He and that detective who had ruined it all. She snorted. This was a man she knew first hand to be no more than a miserable shell of a human who struggled on occasion to leave his bed in the morning. To see him looking so well, smiling beside Merlin for the press photographers, set her teeth on edge.

It was this nobody who had described the scene that played out at the top of the Reichenbach falls. Zeldris, her Zeldris, had gone over the edge. She closed her eyes tight as a wave of nausea rippled through her stomach. She would not think of what had befallen the man she loved, the man she had cherished with everything that she had. She would not dwell. She would not grieve. All that was left to her was to seek her revenge.

Gelda was just about to pick up the paper to find out more details about her former patient, when a loud cough sounded behind her. Furiously she glared in the direction of whoever was reckless enough to disturb her train of thought. She stared hard. It was not one person but two, their stances so familiar the tears fell once more, this time unchecked. Gelda somehow found herself on her feet, pulling her sunglasses from her face, her heart singing with joy as she pelted towards the man who she had thought she would never see again.

"Zeldris," she cried, sobbing into his shoulder as he wrapped two strong arms around her, pulling her close. "I thought I lost you," she whispered as she pulled back to look into his face, searching his features. It was definitely him: his dark eyes and dark hair, the determined set to his jaw, everything she adored of him was perfect and in place. "How did you survive? The paper said you went over the falls."

"It's a long story," Zeldris said with a low rumble of a chuckle, "but in short, I owe my life to Arthur. I'll explain it all later. But know this. I will never leave you," he murmured into her ear. "I love you, Gelda. Whatever happens I will always come back to you."

"Ahem." The pair pulled apart as their boss cleared his throat. "I hate to break up the party," Arthur said cheerfully, "but we have work to do. We have an empire to rebuild. And I will not rest until that witch of a detective and her pathetic accomplice have paid for their insolence. I've got nothing to pay you, not yet anyway, but I ask will you join me? Will you help me remove all traces of Merlin and Escanor from this earth? Because you are the best and I cannot do it without you."

"Gladly," Gelda replied, Zeldris nodding in agreement, her eyes narrowing as his fingers laced together with hers.

"Excellent, then come on. Let's get started." Arthur grinned at them, then turned and paced along the beach, Zeldris and Gelda following the footsteps he left behind in the sand.

A/N: And there will be a sequel. Next up, The Hound Of The Baskervilles... coming in 2020. Until then, have a very merry Christmas if you celebrate it and have a happy new year!