Chapter 6
Disclaimer: I don't own Sherlock, John or anyone you recognise...I wish I did, but I don't.
Authors note: Hello...I know the cliffhanger was very mean, but I hope this chapter makes up for it. Sherlock is definitely out of character, but he has a good reason for it. Thanks for reading and reviewing, your kind words bring a smile to my face every time I turn on my laptop :) Hope you like this chapter.
Sherlock stood surrounded by tipsy students. He had one eye on the punch bowl, the other on Aaron, and his mind focused on Molly.
She had been gone for ten minutes. All she needed was some fresh air, Sherlock thought. He spotted John walking towards him, Naomi following.
"Where's Molly?"
"She went outside," The detective answered, "But she's been gone for ages."
"I'll go and find her," Naomi suggested, and left the two men alone.
"So, how are things going?" John questioned.
Sherlock didn't answer, but his cheeks tinted red. John grinned at him, but didn't say anymore on the subject.
"Has this Aaron boy made any move then?"
"Not yet. It's strange; he doesn't appear to have any arsenic on him, unless he's holding it somewhere else. It seems his only goal tonight is to get that ginger girl in his bed."
John smirked, and then stood in comfortable silence for a few minutes. Soon enough, Naomi returned…Molly-less.
"She's not outside, I looked all around the front of the university, but she wasn't there."
"So no one has any idea where she is?" Sherlock asked.
"I asked the smokers if they'd seen a brunette woman in a black dress. They said they had seen her exit the building, but she didn't appear again."
"I have to go and find her," Sherlock stated, "Keep watch on the suspect."
"I wouldn't do that if I were you, Sherlock," A new voice sang through a speaker behind them. They looked towards the stage, to see Moriarty at the microphone.
He was dressed in a suit, probably Westwood. Hands in his pockets, he grinned at the three of them, white teeth gleaming.
"You see, I warned you, Locky. I said that if you didn't back off, I would burn you. I would burn the heart out of you. I wasn't bluffing."
The hall suddenly went dark, making students gasp. The whole room was either gazing at Moriarty or Sherlock. Two spotlights sprang to life. One on the stage; the other on the panicked detective.
"Of course, I don't want to literally burn your heart. No, that would be disgusting. So I did a lot of thinking, and I thought 'Why not burn the person inside Locky's heart?' But of course, you don't love people, do you? At least, you say you don't."
Moriarty pulled the microphone out of the stand and paced up and down the stage whilst he continued.
"Then one very special lady came along. She stole your heart like no other woman could. I was quite surprised actually. Sherlock Holmes falling for a simple, boring pathologist? Well I'll be damned!"
Sherlock started to run to the stage in fury, but John restrained him.
"Johnny boy! It's been a while, how are you?" Moriarty exclaimed with a sly smile.
"Where is she?" Sherlock muttered.
"Do speak up, Locky."
"Where is she?!"
"Well let's take a look, shall we?"
A projector screen was released slowly behind him, and the sight of Molly faded onto it. She was huddled in a corner of a dark storage room. A man stood, towering over her, a lit match in his hand. The image was being taken by a webcam, and the man thumbed up at the camera. Lowering the match down to her bare arm, the flame licked at her pale skin. Molly screamed. Then she screamed again, but Sherlock's name came from her lips. Students in the hall were speechless, and couldn't take their eyes away from the screen. Moriarty looked over at Sherlock, a smile playing around his lips. Tears ran down the detective's cheeks, his eyes locked on the girl on the screen. The image faded, and Moriarty lifted the microphone to his face.
"See, I'm very clever Locky. I set this whole case up just to get you here. A perfect place really. You would obviously bring Molly, and then all I had to do was get her alone. It was so easy! Oh, and congratulations, Aaron, you're off the hook."
Aaron, now completely confused, looked between the enemies. Kathy, on the other side of the hall, spoke up in rage.
"YOU HAD MY BOYFRIEND KILLED FOR THIS?! YOU MONSTER!"
Moriarty rolled his eyes and turned back to Sherlock.
"So, all you have to do now is find your little Molly. But find her quick Locky, because if you take too long, there might not be much left," He said, shrugging his shoulders.
The screen turned on again, this time to show the man slapping Molly's terrified face and getting a box of matches out of his pocket. He showed them to the camera and lit one. The image cut off just as he leant over the girl. Sherlock screamed in his baritone voice, which was cracked and hoarse.
"I'll give you until midnight to find her, Locky. Better hurry...before this all blows up in your face,"
Moriarty left the stage and with a wave he exited the hall. Sherlock fell to his knees with emotional exhaustion. The hall was completely silent. No one spoke. No one moved. No one even dared to breath. After a moment John knelt down next to his friend and put a hand on his shoulder. Startling everyone, the detective jumped up and into action.
He paced up and down, ignoring everyone around him.
"She could be anywhere. Wait…no, this is Moriarty. The place isn't random. It will be a place which one of us has an attachment to. I'll have to contact Mycroft, see if he can track her down," He got his phone out of his pocket and starting texting at the speed of sound.
John had an expression of concern and panic on his face.
"Sherlock…"
"He hasn't answered yet. Why hasn't he answered yet?"
"Sherlock…"
"I should have been more careful, oh you stupid, stupid man!"
"SHERLOCK!"
He finally stopped pacing and looked up from his phone.
"Don't worry. We'll find her. You need to calm down. You know you can't think rationally when you're in such a state," John said in a soft and reassuring tone.
Sherlock's eyes, though fixed onto his friend's, were unfocused and glazed with depression and dread.
"I think I love her, John."
"I know."