Author's note: Thank you for your patience in waiting for the second half. Opera and migraines have caused a longer delay than I wanted.
Thank you to all the amazing readers who continue to follow my work and who graciously leave their encouraging reviews. I am truly humbled to have readers still out there!
I'd like to also thank guest Fiona. I'm so glad you gave me a name, so I can thank you for the kind reviews and encouraging words you have given me.
And thanks also to myBritish guest reviewer. It's great to know someone "across the pond" has an interest in my unusual interpretation of Sherlock and Molly! You, dear reader, are the inspiration behind a little comment that is made by Martha during this chapter!
And now for the conclusion...
By the end of the week, Molly and Sherlock had decided to invite Martha to stay overnight on Sunday, so that he could drive to Baker Street to pick her up and there wouldn't be the worry of traffic for the day of the funeral.
This turned out to be an excellent idea. The girls were excited to see Nanny Hudders and to play games with her.
And for Martha's part, Molly knew she was delighted also to see the twins, whom she declared to be the spitting images of Sherlock. They were, however, not identical. Noah had the blue eyes shared by his father and Victoria, while Scott's brown eyes matched those of Molly and Christina.
Noah was significantly more placid than Scott. He would suck on a dummy contentedly while Scott would spit his out and wail loudly if he was hungry.
On Sunday evening, Martha insisted on helping Molly with the dinner preparations.
"I've missed this," she confessed to Molly. "I enjoyed the time I stayed here, watching the girls grow. Baker Street can be a little lonely."
Molly heard the wistful note in her voice. "When Sherlock goes to Baker Street for consultations, he could take Christina along with him more often, if you like. With Victoria at school now, she gets a little lonely without her sister to play with." She looked over at the elderly woman. "I warn you though, Christina can be a handful. She will run you ragged, and she will be constantly begging you for food."
Martha waved an airy hand. "It's a small price to pay for that delightful child's company. I Would love to entertain her as long as you're sure you don't mind."
Molly laughed. "Honestly, with Victoria at school, Christina can be a handful when I'm trying to deal with the boys."
It was the truth. Victoria had only started reception recently, but Molly noticed her absence, because she was usually so good when it came to entertaining her little sister. Molly tried to involve Christina in helping with her brothers, but Christina grew quickly bored with requests to get a fresh nappy for Noah or Scott. Also, the recently potty trained Christina always seemed to want to use the toilet when Molly was breastfeeding one of the twins.
They continued talking about the Queen and Royal Family as they worked amiably together.
"Did you hear that the Queen made a pact with Prince Philip that they would be buried together, so Prince Philip's coffin is waiting in the royal vault for that?" asked Molly as she opened the oven door to baste the potatoes and vegetables.
Martha was setting the table. "I did hear about that. It doesn't surprise me. Those two were a good example of how a marriage should be."
"I didn't realise that they were married for seventy-three years until I heard it on the news. Sherlock and I will be lucky if we get to our golden wedding anniversary seeing as we took so long to get together."
Martha turned to smile at her. "Better late than never. I'm sure you have many years of happiness ahead."
"I pray for that too, but only God knows how many years we are to be given," Molly replied. She still prayed that one day Martha would come to know Jesus as her Saviour, to place her trust in him for eternal salvation. But that was up to the Holy Spirit to convict Martha of the truth, not her. All she could do was sprinkle seeds of her own belief.
As often happened during mealtimes, Molly had to pause in her own eating to feed a demanding Scott.
Following dinner and cleanup Sherlock brought out games for the girls to play with Martha and either himself or Molly. It was a nice, relaxing evening.
The following morning brought the Watsons and happy exclamations of delight from the older children in seeing one another outside of church again.
Molly was impressed with how quickly Sherlock managed to get himself, John and the older children out the door so that the women could watch the Queen's funeral in peace.
The women were settled in place fifteen minutes before the funeral was set to begin. Kayla, seated on the sofa, held Scott, who was looking drowsy after being fed, while Molly, also on the sofa, was breastfeeding Noah. Martha was sitting comfortably in what had become "her" armchair while she had been temporarily living with the Holmeses.
The woman talked of various things that had happened over the week.
"Can you believe the length of the line of people waiting to pay their respects to the Queen during the Lying in State at Westminster Hall?" said Kayla by way of conversation.
Martha nodded. "I heard that some people were waiting fifteen hours or more in line."
"That just goes to show how much she was loved," agreed Molly, noting that Noah had fallen asleep at her breast, and gently moving him to refasten her bra.
"Can I hold the lamb?" asked Martha, as soon as the task was complete.
Molly was only too glad to hand her son over. She seemed to rarely have her hands free to do anything.
She turned up the volume slightly on the television as a bell tolled while the Queen's coffin was slowly carried into Westminster Abbey, one step at a time as members of the Royal Family watched from the side, then fell into line behind the pallbearers.
The camera shifted to a view of a magnificent crown, plus the Sovereign's Orb and Sovereign's Sceptre, which, along with the beautiful wreath of flowers, adorned the Royal Standard flag-draped coffin.
The Royal family continued to walk behind the coffin, then took their places as the coffin was placed on a raised blue dais.
The Archbishop of Canterbury began the service.
After a beautiful prayer came a familiar hymn. Molly hummed to it, wishing she had the words in front of her to join in.
As the camera panned to show more of the assembled mourners, Kayla suddenly glanced at Molly and exclaimed, "Isn't that Mycroft?"
Molly peered at the screen, but the view had already shifted to a different one. "It's possible. Sherlock told me that Mycroft and Elizabeth were invited. I'm sure he would not miss such an important occasion."
"Wow," said Kayla, sounding impressed. "John told me that Mycroft has really important connections, and I know he and Sherlock had that case a few years ago that had some connection to the Royal Family and a potential scandal, but I never really thought about how important your brother-in-law really is."
Martha chuckled, her arms cradling a sleeping Noah tenderly. "Didn't John ever tell you that Mycroft is the British government?"
Kayla looked a little sheepish. "I thought he was exaggerating. After all, it's not like Mycroft Holmes is a household name, unlike Sherlock."
Molly's lips twisted in wry amusement. "Let's just say top secret government stuff stays that way for a reason."
Their attention returned to the television as the choir sang a descant for the final verse of the hymn.
Two lessons, the second of which was read by the new Prime Minister, Elizabeth Truss, were read, with a psalm sung by the choir in between the two readings, and then came one of Molly's favourite hymns, based on Psalm 23, "The Lord's My Shepherd".
As soon as the hymn was finished, with the choir doing the traditional descant in the second and fifth verses, Molly said, "I want that hymn sung at my own funeral service."
"I hope you are not planning on leaving us too soon, dear," said Martha, a little reprovingly.
"Of course not. Just making a comment," responded Molly, with a short sound of amusement.
She turned her attention once more to the television, where the archbishop now stood in the pulpit to deliver the sermon.
"The pattern for many leaders is to be exalted in life and forgotten after death. The pattern for all who serve God, famous or obscure, respected or ignored, is their death is the door to glory. Her late Majesty famously declared, on her twenty-first birthday broadcast, that her whole life would be dedicated to serving the nation and Commonwealth. Rarely has such a promise been so well kept. Few leaders receive the outpouring of love that we have seen. Jesus, who in our reading does not tell his disciples how to follow, but who to follow, said, 'I am the way, the truth, and the life.' Her late Majesty's example was not set through her position, or her ambition, but through whom she followed."
He continued to talk of the Queen's faith and life of Christian service and then said, "People of loving service are rare in any walk of life. Leaders of loving service are still rarer. But in all cases, those who serve will be loved and remembered, when those who cling to power and privileges are long forgotten."
Molly reflected briefly upon the truth of these words. So much of the world's stage had leaders who sought to retain their power and position, at the detriment of the citizens they were supposed to serve. Wars and division within nations, it was truly heartbreaking to hear about. If all politicians and leaders had the hearts of servants like the Queen, who wished to follow God first, to display the principles of faith and integrity, she felt the world would be a much different place than it was currently.
She continued to listen to the excellent sermon by the archbishop as he went on to talk about the Queen's life of service, praying for the grieving family and then continued with, "Christian hope means certain expectation of something not yet seen. Christ rose from the dead and offers life to all, abundant life now, and life with God in eternity."
Molly smiled at those words, wishing everyone could know that same abundance of life she herself felt in sharing it with Sherlock and their children. She was truly blessed.
She looked over at Scott, sleeping soundly in Kayla's arms, and Noah, who was also peacefully sleeping in Martha's elderly but loving arms, distracted a little until she heard the following words.
"We will all face the merciful judgment of God. We can all share the Queen's hope, which in life and death inspired her servant leadership. Service in life, hope in death. All who follow the Queen's example, and inspiration of trust and faith in God, can with her say, 'We will meet again.'"
"What an incredible message," Molly said aloud in the pause that followed.
"Short, but to the point," agreed Kayla.
Martha glanced at them. "Indeed, the Queen was truly a servant in her attitude towards our nation," she noted, and Molly prayed that Martha's heart would be touched by the mentions of Christ and faith that was so predominant throughout the sermon. She prayed that the message would touch many open hearts to receive the joy of knowing Christ as their Saviour, so that each person who also believed would, as the archbishop had said, be able to say, "We will meet again."
The choir sang again, their voices sounding ethereal in the majesty of Westminster Abbey. In particular, Molly loved the purity of sound contributed by the voices of boy sopranos.
A Scottish reverend followed the anthem with a prayer, and several others also read prayers.
Then came time for another hymn Molly knew, "Love Divine, All Love's Excelling". She remembered the hymn being played for the wedding of William and Catherine. It was strange to think of them now as the Prince and Princess of Wales. And the hymn had also been part of Harry and Meghan's wedding service. In addition,this hymn had been one of her wedding hymns with Sherlock, but she had chosen an alternate tune, the Hyfroldol.
The Archbishop of Canterbury gave the commendation, which was followed by another choir anthem. A blessing was proclaimed, trumpets played and then there was complete silence.
Molly calculated that the silence lasted around two minutes.
And it was after this, that Molly, who had managed to keep her tears from falling, finally could contain them no longer. It was the singing of the national anthem that did it. Hearing for the first time the change in the anthem from Queen to King really brought it home to her that this was truly the dawn of a new era.
The women watched the conclusion of the service in silence, and as people began to leave, following the solemn pallbearers carrying the coffin.
The sound of the front door opening caused Molly to turn her head.
"We're back," said Sherlock, appearing in the doorway. The older girls followed, and then John also appeared with the double stroller containing Christina and Adam.
John unbuckled the two of them as Sherlock asked, "Is the funeral over?"
"A few minutes ago," said Molly, even as Scott let out a wail, and then Noah, whimpered, obviously woken by the noise of entering people.
Victoria went up to Scott. "It's alwight, Scott," she bent to blow a raspberry on his tummy, and his wail turned into a delighted giggle. Noah was easily placated by Martha rocking him and whispering, "Shhh."
"What does everyone want from McDonalds?" asked Sherlock.
Various cries of "nuggets" and "fries" came from the children.
Sherlock listened as everyone gave their preference. If it had been her, Molly knew she would have had to write down what people wanted, but she knew Sherlock would have no problem remembering each order.
A few minutes later, he headed back out, taking the car keys with him, accompanied by his "helpers", Rosie and Victoria.
"Wanna play," said Christina, pointing at the playpen. Molly deposited her daughter into the playpen, as well as Adam, who wanted to also play.
"How was the funeral," asked John, taking the middle seat of the couch next to Kayla, while Molly resumed her own seat on his other side.
"It was very moving and beautiful," said Kayla, shifting Scott to a more alert, upright position on her lap.
The women shared with John what they had thought about the service.
"I'll have to watch it later on YouTube," he said finally.
"I won't mind watching it again once the children are asleep," said Kayla, smiling at her husband.
A few minutes later, Sherlock returned with the food, and the next half hour was spent in enjoying the food and the need for mediation when Christina complained that Victoria had one more nugget than she did.
"That child has quite the appetite," said Martha, chuckling, as did the other adults.
The matter was settled by Rosie, Who held out her last nugget towards Christina. "Here, you can have it. I don't want any more."
Christina snatched at the nugget and was about to put the whole thing in her mouth until Molly intervened, by taking it from her. "Thank Rosie, and you have to let Mummy break it up into smaller pieces, sweetheart."
Aside from that little conflict, lunch was a jolly affair.
In between feedings and nappy changes, Molly observed how well the older children interacted. She loved that, in the absence of biological cousins, aside from Mycroft's son Mark, who was already an adult, Victoria and Christina had, what she thought of as, "cousins-of-heart".
And the extra honorary grandmother in Martha Hudson helped to compensate for the occasional sadness Molly felt that her children would never have the chance to meet her own father - this side of heaven, at least.
As the children engaged in various activities, Sherlock asked Molly quietly, "Did you want to watch the committal service at four o'clock?"
"No, I can watch it later on YouTube. You already took care of the kids during the funeral, and it's great to see them having fun now."
He slung an arm around her and squeezed gently. "It is good to all be together again." His voice lowered. "By the way, John told me something while we were out, but he doesn't want us to share it with anyone else right now, because of what happened last time."
Molly turned her head to look at him curiously. "What?"
"Kayla's pregnant again."
Molly's mouth opened in astonishment as she looked over at her friend, who was entertaining Noah and making him giggle by bouncing him on her knees. "She didn't tell me."
"Probably because Martha is here as well."
Molly contemplated that for a moment, then realised it was true she and Kayla had not had any time alone. She nodded. "We'll have to keep them in our prayers."
Sherlock kissed her temple. "That we will."
As the day wore on, Molly reflected on how a day of sorrow and mourning for a grieving family and nation, could yet be a day of joy and laughter.
After a dinner of pizza, John volunteered to drive Martha home, and soon, things were relatively quiet again in the Holmes household.
After baths for the girls and putting them to bed, Molly once again followed the usual bedtime routine of breastfeeding Scott for a few minutes, then passing him to Sherlock to offer part of a bottle, while she fed Noah, who had already received some formula milk at Sherlock's hands. She simply couldn't produce enough milk to satisfy both of the boys, but she liked to make sure they were both receiving breast milk as well as the formula milk.
When the boys were asleep, and the couple had done their nightly devotion, Molly told Sherlock about some things she had reflected upon during the day.
"The funeral today really made me think about the reality of life, and that the only thing certain in it is that we will all, at some point, die."
Sherlock cupped his chin with his hand as he lay facing her. "That's true enough. Are you trying to make a point?"
"Actually I am. I was thinking about the Queen, and how she will be remembered for hundreds of years because of the history books. Her name will go down in history as being one of the longest reigning monarchs. But the rest of us, those without fame, nobody will remember who we were a hundred or two hundred years from now, unless we are part of the exalted few, like yourself, who have achieved some kind of success that is written about and documented."
Sherlock chewed on his lower lip for a moment before asking, "Does that bother you? The thought of not being remembered?"
Molly smiled at him. "Actually it doesn't. Because I was thinking that even though we may be forgotten here on earth, as Christians, we have the promise of an eternal future with God after we pass from this life. And God remembers everything we have done in our lives. I feel sure that once we reach heaven, we will have the opportunity to see whether any of our actions have had a positive impact in helping others to know Christ. That is our true legacy, rather than just what we leave behind on earth. If we can teach our children the values that Christ wants us to teach them, and they can then keep doing the same for their own children, we are creating a lasting legacy that God will remember, and that we will see one day ourselves."
She was surprised when Sherlock leaned over to give her a very thorough and romantic kiss, as he placed his right hand behind her neck and caressed her cheek with his left hand.
When he drew away, he said softly, in a voice that was so full of tenderness it brought tears to her eyes, "You are a remarkably wise woman, Molly Holmes. Without you, I might never have had that hope, that assurance of life everlasting. My faith is part of the legacy you created, and which we are now sharing with our children. And I agree. What truly matters in this life is what the Bible says about storing up treasures in heaven. Those treasures are the lives we touch here on earth." He surprised her again by pulling away, saying, "Hang on a second."
Sherlock retrieved the Bible from his bedside table, and she watched as he went to the index at the back. Within a minute he gave a triumphant exclamation. "Here it is."
And he proceeded to read to her. "Matthew six, verses nineteen and twenty say, 'Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal.'"
"It's beautiful to think of heaven that way," Molly said, giving her husband a dazzling smile. She was so blessed!
Sherlock turned to replace the Bible on the bedside table before drawing Molly into his arms. "My love, I want us to keep working on storing those treasures in heaven, but you are my greatest treasure on earth, and I thank God for you every day."
And then he kissed her again, showing his love and devotion to her that continued to grow beyond five years of marriage.
Molly couldn't help the dreamy smile that lit up her face when she basked in her husband's embrace after experiencing the usual joy and fulfillment of their marital union.
Yes, life on earth was fleeting, compared to the vast expanse of eternity, but that didn't mean God did not want to bless His children for their faithfulness. And Molly knew that she was truly blessed to have the love of not only the eternal and sovereign God, but a husband, family and friends. Whether she lived to the ripe old age of ninety-six, as the Queen had, or her time on earth ended earlier, she was confident in her assurance that her life would continue beyond this one. And she would continue to talk about the Word of God to others, so they too could share in that joy of a future that would go into, to use the words of Buzz Lightyear, infinity and beyond.
Author's note: So, dear readers, I spent some time in not only watching the funeral live, but in re-watching it via YouTube so I could document it faithfully. I have to say, I was in awe of the service and how unabashedly Christian it was. The Archbishop of Canterbury's sermon was so moving that I absolutely had to transcribe portions of it for the benefit of those who did not get to see the service. How many of you watched, and what did you think of it?
I wanted to add in a little interaction also between my characters who have become like a family to me. It is fun to once again take a peep into their world and share it with my readers.
I'm not sure when inspiration will strike again. I still have to finish publishing my current WIP's, and I admit, I have only written one chapter for last year's Christmas story, so I am way behind. But this story was important for me to publish in a timely manner, so I apologize at the way my publishing timeline is out-of-whack!
Molly's thoughts towards the end are mine, because in Sunday School we are currently doing a study on Ecclesiastes, using a book called "Living Life Backward". The premise of that book is to encourage us to recognize that death is inevitable, that life on earth will continue without us. But we are only near the beginning, and I feel confident my (Molly's) thoughts will prove to be the message of hope conveyed in the book.
And my philosophy in life is to live as the song by Rand Collective says:
"I am counting every blessing, counting every blessing
Letting go and trusting when I cannot see
I am counting every blessing, counting every blessing
Surely every season You are good to me."
Look it up, I recommend it!
May you all receive the same hope and assurance I have in being a servant of the Most High God. We cannot change this world that is full of darkness. But we can beautify our own little piece of it!