Months went by and Molly gradually settled into her new home.
She had a good start in Ireland. Her new job was great. The colleagues were all very accommodating and appreciated her work very much. The students she was to train were also very nice and eager to learn. She enjoyed her new job very much and got out of bed every morning with a smile and good humour.
There were also some changes in her appearance. From the very first days she thought that the best way to make a new start is to change her type. However, as Molly was never the type for extreme changes and wanted to stay true to her style of dress, she only decided to make a small change.
Now Molly had not only parted from London and her old life, but also from her long mane. Well, at least something. But she still found, when she looked in the mirror, that she looked like a different person and the new length obviously flattered her face.
Her new home also had endless charm. Dunmore East is a picturesque little fishing village. It is situated in the middle of a bay between two hills on the Atlantic Ocean and invites you to a leisurely stroll along the beach. Her little cottage was also enchanting. It was small but she had enough space for all her things and both in front and in the back there was a small garden.
During her first visit here she also had the opportunity to meet some of her neighbours. There was an older couple (mid 60s), the O'Reillys, who regularly invited her for tea and told her again and again about the history of their little village.
On the other hand, there was an older gentleman, Mr. Murphy, who lived next door with his grandson Kilian. Mr. Murphy was for his age, probably around 70 years, still a very fit man and a member of the most famous fishing family in the village. He had run his family's business for many years, but some time ago he retired and now devoted himself to his other hobby, beekeeping. His grandson Kilian has lived with his grandfather in Dunmore since the death of his parents 4 years ago and later wanted to take over and continue the family business.
She also quickly made friends with the other residents. The first opportunity arose at the weekly Sunday mass. A new member in their congregation, obviously attracts a lot of attention and so she quickly got into conversation with all the others.
Molly was sure that she would feel comfortable here and that Sherlock would soon be forgotten. Only her friends missed her a lot.
In the first few weeks she spoke regularly on the phone with John and Mrs Hudson. They were very pleased to hear that she was doing well and told her what news there was.
Rosie, her goddaughter, was gradually becoming more and more mobile and John and Sherlock had difficulty keeping up with her. Mrs Hudson said that it would always look very funny and if you saw the two of them with the little child, you'd think they were a couple. It was pathetic.
She learned from John that he had decided to move back to Baker Street. Sherlock, of course, was delighted and promised to do his experiments somewhere else. In the end he simply rented 221c and turned this small flat into his new laboratory.
Molly was happy to hear the news from her friends and that her life had somehow taken a turn for the better after all these events.
The conversations were usually always relatively simple, with her fighting against the urge to ask about Sherlock. As time went by, she managed to do better and better and at some point he disappeared from her thoughts.
She had not heard anything from Sherlock himself since that night, since their kiss together. At first she wondered again and again what the kiss meant and often made her doubt her plans. Later that night she lay in her bed, staring at the ceiling and truly considering canceling everything. But Molly was not the type to abandon someone. So the next day she packed the rest of her things and started her new life - without Sherlock.
The first days were hard and she kept thinking about the detective and that kiss. She also found herself searching for his number in the address book or typing a message to him. But just before she could send it, she came to her senses and remembered why she was doing all this.
As time went by, things got better and she slowly managed to erase him from her mind.
There was only one time when he crept back into her head.
Molly had just been invited to tea with her neighbours, the O'Reillys. She had only lived here for a few weeks.
It was Sunday and the couple regularly invited their friends for tea after mass and they thought it would be a good opportunity for Molly to meet everyone. Guests included Mrs Ida Kelly, Pastor Brian O'Sullivan and the Claire family, Thomas Fitzgerald with their children Bridget and Patrick. Bridget and Patrick were twins and were both in their late twenties. Patrick was a devout young man who loved his family very much and seemed to be the family's favourite child. Bridget had been involved with Kilian, the grandson of Mr. Murphy, for several months. Claire was a lady of noble nature. She seemed a little distant and almost intimidating in her appearance. Thomas Fitzgerald had lived in Dunmore since childhood and was a candidate for mayor. Mrs Kelly, was a middle-aged lady and very pretty. She was described by the residents as the blabbermouth of the community. She just knew about everyone.
"Terrible what happened to poor ," Mrs.O'Reilly then realised at one point.
And as if she noticed Molly's questioning look, she explained to her who that person was.
"Mrs. Daly had also lived in Dunmore East for many years. She was Mr Murphy's girlfriend and was found dead in her bathtub a week ago. The rescue workers said that she had suffered a heart attack and then drowned."
Molly just nodded sympathetically.
"And you, Ms. Hooper. Why does she go to Dunmore East?" Claire Fitzgerald asked curiously.
"Molly, please. I moved here for work. I've been working at Waterford Hospital for a few weeks now," she then explained.
"Ah yes, the Waterford Hospital. It's a very good institution. Tell me, exactly what is it that you do?"
"I'm a pathologist, training to be a pathologist. This is the reason why I came to Ireland in the first place.
"Ah, such a pathologist" she said, somewhat grumpy, and then took a quick look at her children.
"And where did they live before, if I may ask?"
"I'm originally from London."
Now Mrs. Kelly, excitedly, interfered.
"London? Wait a minute. Do you know this famous detective? What was his name again? "shh- shhe-"
"You mean Sherlock Holmes?" Molly then asked, twisting her eyes inside.
'Of course I can't even rest here,' she thought to herself.
"Yes, that's exactly who I mean. He solves every case in which Scotland Yard can't get any further. There's a blog like that too, isn't there?" she then asked, staring thoughtfully into the air.
Molly took a quick look around and noticed that the other guests were all just rolling their eyes in annoyance.
"You must know, our dear Ida here loves crime stories," said Claire Fitzgerald and gave Mrs Kelly a disapproving look.
Molly quickly realised that this Mrs. Fitzgerald must have had a problem with Ida. She did not go into it further and then turned back to the woman next to her.
"Yes, that's right. The blog was written by Dr Watson. He assists Sherlock Holmes with his cases," she explained. However, she did not mention that she was friends with both of them.
"Exactly. Sherlock Holmes and Dr Watson. Oh, how I just love this blog and the cases, they are always so exciting," she raved now.
Oh man, if she didn't change the subject right away, this conversation would go on forever and she didn't want to think about Sherlock anymore.
"That's true. Very exciting," she replied succinctly.
"But tell me, I heard that you work here in the local library. I've thought about signing up. When would be the best time for me to come by," she then asked, hoping that that would be the end of the matter.
And Molly was lucky, Ida went into it and then explained everything else to her. After that, most people only talked about today's mass or other trivial things.
As the evening sun slowly set, most of the guests left the O'Reilly house. Only Molly stayed to clean up.
"Sorry again about Mrs Kelly. She can be quite a handful sometimes" Mrs. O' Reilly then explained to her and put the dishes together.
"Oh, that's no problem. She seemed to be quite enthusiastic. But say, Mrs. Fitzgerald doesn't like her too much, does she?" Molly then asked curiously.
"Well, I think that's the reason..." the elderly lady began to talk and glanced around the room for a moment, just to make sure they were alone.
"...that Mrs. Kelly is having a secret affair with Kilian" she whispered now.
Molly could not believe what she had heard. Mrs. Kelly and Kilian having an affair with Mrs. Fitzgerald's daughter? Oh man, this is just like one of those romance novels. A small village and lots of secrets. Molly was eager to see what else she would learn here. And who would have thought that she wouldn't have to wait much longer for that either.