The plan was simple. John would remain at Mycroft's place. He would keep the baby with him. They would give the illusion that they were separated. That was clearly the plan. He was trying to drive them apart. Maybe it would draw Mycroft out. The strange thing about plans is that they rarely work out.
He walked into the sitting room and it didn't feel right. It didn't feel right to be there without John. Isabell's things were all over the place. The separation felt a little too real.
Sherlock pulled out his mobile and quickly typed up a text to Lestrade.
I'm back at Back Street. Any leads?
SH
Sherlock set the phone down and walked into the kitchen. He reached into the refrigerator and wasn't surprised to see there was no milk. Dammit!
He leaned against the island and gave a sigh.
"Who is there?" came a familiar female voice.
"Who is that?" Sherlock asked.
His mother emerged from his bedroom with a surprised look on his face.
"Mum?" Sherlock asked in a shocked voice.
This was not part of his plan. He didn't need his mother in this. She didn't have anything to do with it.
"I'm sorry," she said nodding to his room. "I've been here since you left yesterday."
"Why?" he demanded. "Why are you here? Why can't you just leave me alone?"
"Sherlock please..." She whispered. "I don't want this to be like this. I want us to be mother and son."
"Why aren't you home?" Sherlock asked throwing his coat on the couch. "Won't Dad be missing you?"
"We're getting a divorce," Aaliyah explained. "He filed a couple of months ago."
"Why?" he said looking at his phone. "I don't really care but part of me is curious."
"Don't you know?" She asked standing over him. "You're starting to lose it."
"Shag another guy?" Sherlock asked.
His mother didn't answer. He looked up at her during her silence.
"What a minute," the detective said standing up. "This is all starting to make sense. Mycroft gives me a kid. He tries to be secretive. You show up. Now news of a divorce. How did I miss this? Isabell is your kid."
"I made a mistake," his mother said already fighting tears. "I'm not sure how it happened. Marcus and I had a fight and the next thing I knew I was with another man."
"And the father?" Sherlock asked almost afraid of the answer.
"I...he told me his name was Mercy Mosh," she said sitting down in Sherlock's chair. "I should have known he was lying."
"Who was he?" the detective asked growling at him.
"I didn't know who he was at first," she said crying heavily. "I didn't! You have to believe me."
What was his mother trying to hide? Why would she hide who the father was? It would have to be someone he didn't like. Lestrade? That was out. He got back with his wife, despite her cheating, and they seemed happy. There was only one other person he could think of.
"Are you saying that you were with Moriarty?" Sherlock said walking over to her.
"Yes! " she cried. "We spent a weekend together in Sussex. I didn't mean to have this happen. I'm so sorry. I truly didn't know it was him. After you died I never saw a picture of him. I couldn't bring myself to. I saw his face in the paper the week after and I knew it was him."
Sherlock couldn't believe what he was hearing. He walked into the kitchen and starting pushing things off the counters.
"Sherlock!" she cried jumping up. "Stop this it won't help anything."
"I hate you!" Sherlock said turning on her. "I hate everything about you!"
"You're just angry," Aaliyah said. "I know you are. You have every right to be."
"Get out," He snarled turning his back on her. "Get out now. Go home to your boyfriend."
"He isn't like that to me," She said. "I swear it. Please listen."
"Get out!" Sherlock screamed again.
"I don't have anywhere to go," she confessed. "After Marcus found out the baby wasn't his he kicked me out."
"I don't blame him," he said snarling at her. "Who wants to be with a whore."
Aaliyah must have known she had pushed him too far because she left. Sherlock walked over to the couch and sat down. He picked up his mobile phone and flipped through his pictures. He stopped on a picture of John holding Isabell.
That was his daughter. That was John's daughter. One day that little girl would call him Daddy.
She had Moriarty's blood in her veins but he would never be her father.
His phone beeped. He flicked through to see a message from Lestrade.
What happened? Is everything alright?
Lestrade
Sherlock closed the phone and tossed it across the room. He didn't want to take to anyone. He just needed to think about the new information he had received. He felt sort of bad for what he had said to her mother but he was so mad. How could she do it? How?
He couldn't wrap his mind around it.
He pressed his head into one of the pillows and tried to sleep. It was the only thing he could think to do.
"Have a nice sleep?" a male voice was in his ears.
Sherlock opened his eyes slowly to see Moriarty in his chair. His eyes narrowed and he had murder in his heart.
"You bastard," Sherlock growled sitting up.
"Sorry my parents were married," he said smiling at him.
"What do you want from me?" the detective asked.
"How is she?" the consulting criminal asked. "How is Isabell? Does she sleep alright? My mother said that I didn't sleep well when I was a baby."
"She sleeps just fine," Sherlock said trying to stay calm.
"Isn't it funny how things work out," Moriarty said. "I got your mother pregnant to get back at your whole family in a general way. I didn't except you to get the baby. Isn't it all perfect?"
"She isn't your child," he said getting to his feet. "She belongs to me and John."
"Oh yes," he said with a chuckle looking at his hands. "John. How did you like those pictures? I'm sure you didn't take them well."
"Don't worry about that," Sherlock said. "The two of us will make up without any problem. You're little plan won't work. I have you now. I could just turn you in."
"I've been tried in this country's wonderful court system before," Moriarty said smirking. "I was found innocent before and I can do it again."
Moriarty stood up and walked over to Sherlock. They stood eye to eye.
"Why don't we do this like men?" he asked. "Take a shot. Hit me. You know you want to."
Sherlock's hands were at their side and they were shaking. He knew what his greatest enemy was doing. He wanted me to hit him first. If it went on long enough Sherlock might go away for murder.
"I won't," Sherlock proclaimed.
"I knew it," he said shaking his head. "You aren't just on the side of the angels. You are an angel. I knew it all along. You don't have it in you."
"I'm not stupid," the detective said. "I put on hand on you and I'll end up in prison."
"Good boy," he said clicking his tongue.
"I promised John that I would do this legally but I don't see a way to do it," Sherlock said. "You have however made a mistake."
"And what would that be?" he asked.
"You take for granted that I will do this in an illegal way," Sherlock said. "You always got mixed up with emotion. You want to see that little girl. I know you do. I can see it in your eyes when you talk about her. You made a mistake by getting in over your head."
"Is that to?" Jim asked. "I'll have you know she doesn't mean anything to me."
"Then why did you ask about her?" Sherlock asked.
The blank look on Moriarty told him he had hit a nerve. Sherlock smirked picking up his phone. He punched in a phone number. He hung up as soon as he made contact.
"John will never know about this," he said putting the phone down. "He won't know how I handled this. He'll just think you disappeared. Mycroft had you once before and he let you go. He let you go because he thought you knew something but we found out that you know nothing. You revealed that to me on the rooftop. You got my mother pregnant because it happened. I don't believe you did it against my family or you would have sent a message to her revealing yourself. You wouldn't have hoped she would have found out by chance. You don't leave things to chance. It was only when the baby was put in my hands that you decided to get involved. The fact you knew that baby was placed in my hands means you were following her whereabouts. You cared and you still do."
"Mycroft?" Jim asked. "Aw...you going to turn me over and have me killed. Is that the plan?"
"Oh no," Sherlock said. "I want you kept alive. I want you remember there is a little girl out there with your blood in her. I want you to remember you're never going to see her and that I'm going to raise her."
Moriarty didn't have much time to respond before two men rushed into the apartment and rushed him. They took him by the arms and held him steady. Sherlock didn't even look back as he was taken out of the room.