Chapter 6
"So, tell me Sherlock, have you got any family?" The interviewer asked Sherlock.
"Yes, I have my parents, and my brother Mycroft." I balled my hands into fists. No mention of me or Sherrinford whatsoever. I knew he was embarassed about the both of us. After all, we both 'turned'. After Sebastian died, we were swamped with wannabe snipers, eager to join us in our game. Jim rejected each and everyone of them. They were a liability, he said. And they could be annoying.
I was in my room, my earphones plugged into my ears, listening to music while I read. I had a feeling someone was calling for me. I was right. David told me to invite Jim down too. I called for Jim and we went down together. We both were surprised to see someone sitting on the couch, with David standing awkwardly at the side. "He pushed past me and called out for the both of ya." David said in his Scottish accent.
The visitor turned to look and Jim and I. He had sandy blonde hair and blue eyes. He sported a suit, which looked good on him. Even with the growing beard. He's quite hot actually. Maybe he's 33. "Ah. A reunion of sorts then." He grinned. I was confused. Who exactly is he? Jim, however, was surprised. He obviously knows this man, then.
"You...why?" Jim asked.
"You see, we have a common enemy. One by the name of Sherlock Holmes." He said with a grimace. He stared at me. "We've never met, dear sister. I'm Sherrinford Holmes."
"What?" I squeaked. "You're Sherrinford?"
"Surprised? Guess our family kept me a secret."
"No kidding. I found out from Jim." I said. "And you're not the only one our family kept a secret of."
"Yeah, I heard. Tough. A year ago, you existed. And then, bam. There was no Holmes sister." Sherrinford grinned. "The Lost Holmes Siblings. What a nice name for the two of us." He walked over to me and enveloped me in a hug. I hugged him back. My brother.
"You're hired." Jim said. Sherrinford pulled away, and held me at an arm's length, as if he was taking all of me in.
"You're 16! I was there when Mum gave birth to you. I got to hold you once, and then I just...went bad." He grinned. He seemed to do that a lot. "Never thought that we'd be on the side where we're gonna target our dear brother Sherlock."
"Yeah, well I never expected to be kidnapped by Jim, so..."
"He kidnapped you?" Sherrinford's grin widened. "Oh, this will be so much fun!" I thought of how Sherrinford was different from Sherlock. Sherrinford was so expressive, and Sherlock couldn't care less about the world. Sherrinford is the opposite of Sherlock, yet they're both the same.
"Well, Jim, is there a room for me in this beautiful mansion?" Sherrinford asked Jim.
"It's a mansion. There's a room for everything." Jim laughed. He went back upstairs to his study, where I assumed he was planning other people's deaths. Sherrinford went to find his room. I was left alone.
Today is the eve of our Great Game. Soon, Sherlock will fall.
"Alright, Sherry, you're the eyes and ears of this whole game. One slip, and bam! Everything is lost. Understood?" Jim said. He handed me an iPad.
"Eyes and ears." I repeated. "Got it."
"Sherrinford, you'll be my head sniper. You and the sniping team will shoot if I say so." Jim gave the orders to Sherrinford.
"Yes, sir." He grinned. Jim handed him an earpiece.
"Let the great game begin." Jim smirked.
Bang! Explosion in 221B Baker Street. I grinned. Sherlock and his 'friend'. I didn't know he was gay. But then again I didn't know anything about Sherlock other than the fact that he wanted to be a pirate. And his affection towards Redbeard, our dog. Well, until he died anyway.
I saw Sherlock's little friend, John hurried into the flat. My job was to see and also to give the game pieces, as Jim calls it. I was casually sitting in Jim's black limousine, surveying everything that's going on in the great game. I sent the phone to Scotland Yard. A few minutes later, Sherlock and John hurried out and hailed a cab, obviously to Scotland Yard. Funny how that DI Lestrade always calls for Sherlock. Policemen, what would they know?
I switched to the camera hidden in Lestrade's office. Sherlock and John entered the office. That Sally Donovan is surely annoying. Her voice makes me want to puke. Ah. The pink phone. Sherlock is intrigued. Silly little John. It's obviously not the same phone! Gosh they're so ordinary. And, send.
First minigame, a photo of a pair of trainers. Death of a drowned boy. Calling the phone...and yes. Frightened little lady. She read out the message that I typed out to her. 12 hours, or she'll go boom! Sherlock went to St. Bartholomew's Hospital. His lab. Ah. The fun part. This is where Jim comes in. I turned the volume up a little, excited for Jim to play the extra gay guy.
Molly Hooper entered the lab with Jim, him wearing a grey shirt and jeans with yellow underwear sticking out a little. I laughed by myself. Jim Moriarty, a gay guy, pretending to be straight, pretending to be gay. Oh, Jim. "Hi. Molly's told me all about you. I'm Jim, from IT." I laughed again. I could tell Sherlock was deducing Jim. Sherlock said "Gay." but managed to make it sound like 'Hey'. It rhymes, duh. Jim slipped a piece of paper with his number written on it on the table as he knocked a beaker. Such a fake klutz. Soon, Jim left them. Molly got a little angry at Sherlock and she, too, left them.
"Booooring." I said to myself. "When will our little Sherly finally know the answer?"
I forgot that Jim had an earpiece given to me, so I was startled to hear him. "Don't be bored, darling. Our little Sherlock will figure it out soon."
Soon enough, he did. Botulinum. Given to the boy via his eczema treatment. Poor kid. Jim told me to send the next picture, along with our bomb victim. A photo of a blood-stained sports car. This time, he's given eight hours to solve it, or the victim goes BOOM. The case is a missing man.
He was deducing, using his little mind palace. A fancy word for brain. He interviewed the wife. Hm, not bad. Managed to get a bit out of her. Ah. The car rental owner. Sherlock found out that the missing man had been to Colombia. In the agency owner's office, he managed to get the truth out of him. The agency owner was paid to make the missing man 'disappear'. "Oh, Sherlock, you are good."
Next puzzle, the TV personality, who apparently died of a tetanus cut. Sherlock easily found out that the wound was post-mortem. He pinned the murder on the housekeeper and the brother's lover. She had died to an increased botox dose. Death by beautifier. But then the bomb victim started talking about Jim. "DO SOMETHING, SHERRY!" Jim yelled through the earpiece. Easy. I blew her up. BOOM. Dead. Voila! "Thank you, Sherry. Damn that woman. Almost blew our plan!" I could tell Jim was running his fingers through his hair.
Finale little bombing game, I sent a picture of the River Thames to the pink phone. No threatened bomb victims. Just a photo. Scotland Yard found the body alright. That Greg Lestrade guy really likes his consulting detective. The dead body is of a security guard, who works in the National Muzeum. The killer was this assassin called the Golem. Sebastian had hired him before...before he died. Sherlock and John went to the muzeum, looking for clues. A fake painting by Vermeer. I heard that he doesn't know a hint about the solar system. Well that flaw would be useful to us. A supernovae. Reminds me of that supernovae the Doctor burned to say goodbye to Rose Tyler. Now that's what I call a romantic. Unfortunately, dear little Sherlock found out about the supernovae. The curator confessed that she works for Jim.
"Kill her!" Jim bellowed. Gosh, he has to tone it down a little.
"It's too late, Jim. But that's okay, everything will go to plan. Trust me." I assured him. He huffed, unconvinced.
Sherlock secretly took the case Mycroft gave him, about the MI6 agent. The drive. The brother-in-law stole it, accidentally killing the agent in the process. Such an idiot. If only people aren't so clumsy and careless. Ooh. Now we're talking fun. Sherlock's used the drive to lure Jim to the pool. We expected that.
But we're sure he didn't expect this. John showed up in a big coat, with a bomb strapped to it. I myself strapped the bomb to him. Sherlock was shocked. Good. "I gave you my number. I thought you might call." Jim said in an odd voice. Then Jim revealed himself. Sherlock was shocked, but he didn't show it. And it broke my heart to hear Jim say this.
"People have died!" Sherlock protested.
"Because that's what people DO!" Jim burst. I knew he meant Sebastian. He was in love with Sebastian, and it was taken away from him. I marvelled at how both of them, Jim and Sherlock, didn't crack under pressure.
"I will burn you." Jim said. "I will burn, the HEART, out of you."
Then I called him, like I was supposed to. Jim had a little acting to do. It was funny how Jim is so polite, even in the middle of a confrontation with his arch-nemesis. Then Jim turned to leave. "Catch. You. Later." Sherlock said, still training his gun at Jim.
"No you won't!" Jim answered in a sing song voice. I saw Sherlock rip the coat of John. "Thank god no one saw that. It would be weird, you ripping off my clothes at a swimming pool at night." Oh, I'm watching you. I grinned. Suddenly, the door opened and someone pulled me out of the car.
"Hey! Watch- Oh, Jim." I said, seeing his face.
"Leave the iPad."
"What? Why? This wasn't part of the-" He hit my head hard, causing it to bleed a little. "Jim! What is going on?!" I asked him, annoyed. He kept me in the dark, again!
"Just pretend to be scared. Pretend you have no idea why you're here."
"Well that wouldn't be so hard." I muttered as we went back to the pool.
"Sorry, boys!" Jim said as more snipers aimed at Sherlock and John. He pulled me along. I put on my best scared face and tried to struggle, to act like I was truly kidnapped. "But I'm soooo changeable!" Jim laughed. Sherlock however, was gaping at me. "A reunion!" Jim said.
"Sherrelyn." Sherlock whispered my name. Right.
"That wasn't so nice, was it? Lying about her, and your brother Sherrinford too. A shame. The Lost Holmes Siblings." Jim quoted Sherrinford. Sherrinford knew it was something that would make Sherlock get anxious, so Jim added it.
What I didn't know is that Sherrinford himself had his sniper rifle trained on me. I swallowed nervously. He isn't really going to kill me, right? With one look, Sherlock and John had a mutual bomb situation protocol. Sherlock trained his gun at the bomb vest that was strapped on to John earlier. If we don't survive, neither will Jim. So that's how it'll be. And I watched with bated breath as Sherlock was about to shoot.