John stares blankly off into the alley. He doesn't know what to think about the letter. This should be good news, shouldn't it? Sherlock is alive! But even though he is alive, Sherlock is still a captive of some bloodthirsty criminal. John doesn't see how he can be at ease. And there are going to be more victims! He wishes that this nightmare would just end. But even if the authorities met the demands given in the letter, it's likely that Holmes would still not be released. The person who wrote the letter said that he "might consider" releasing Holmes.

Might.

And John doesn't exactly trust this person to be honest and actually release Holmes. He doesn't really seem like the kind of person to honor any promises he has made. After all, he went to such extreme lengths to trick John.

However, a little glimmer of hope still remains in John. He still wants to think that he might see Sherlock again.

Wilson interrupts John's thoughts.

"Hey, Doctor, you're being awfully silent… you know, for a man who's just had his life threatened."

John doesn't answer.

"Well, Doctor, I really know what the boss has against you, but if I was you, I would give him what he wants. He's not the kind to show mercy to anyone. But I suppose he does seem to be interested by you. Maybe he'll go easy on you..." Wilson chuckles. "Yeah, I probably shouldn't say that. I don't want to get your hopes up. The boss is not going to go easy on you. He never does."

John tries not to let Wilson's threats get to his head. He thinks that he should probably try to get some more information from Wilson. He is completely terrified, but he thinks that getting as much information as he possible could be helpful in trying to find Sherlock.

"I'm… I'm sorry, but if you don't mind me asking, how did you stage the scene in the apartment without leaving any clues except an unlocked window?"

Wilson rolls his eyes. "How did we stage the scene? Well, it's not like this is the first time we've had to stage a crime scene. And we're pretty familiar with the methods of the police. My boss isn't just going to ask a bunch of amateurs to stage the scene of a high-profile "suicide.""

John sighs. He had been hoping to get more clues out of that question. He's actually somewhat surprised by Wilson's answer, though. He didn't know that there were people that specialized in staging faked crime scenes, and it seems scary to him that Sherlock's captor would be so high in the criminal hierarchy that he would be able to hire specialized crime scene "stagers."

"Okay then, how did you trick Sherlock into coming with you?"

Wilson shakes his head impatiently. "What do you mean? I already told you. I just told him I found a body…"

John interrupts, "No, but I know Sherlock. He wouldn't have just gone with you. I would have expected him to notice something about you that would have made him realize that you were lying. He's really good at that, so I just don't understand why he would have been tricked."

Wilson shakes his head. "You assume that I don't know this. I actually know quite a lot about Mr. Sherlock Holmes. I haven't just been watching you, you know. Mr. Holmes was actually my first target. I suppose that that's the answer to your question. I took extra precautions because I was aware of how observant Mr. Holmes is. My boss actually insisted that he himself inspect my attire and me before I went to Mr. Holmes. In spite of all of that, though, I think that Sherlock did sense that something was going on. I'm not really sure how, to be honest. He is so incredibly smart. I think that one of the reasons that he went with me was because he sensed that something was wrong and he wanted to know what it was. He did come with a gun, which presented a bit of a problem to me. Normally, with other targets, I would exchange their weapon with a fake or unloaded gun while they were not looking. It was clear to me that this would not work with Mr. Holmes. He is far too observant for that. It wasn't easy, but the other guys and I all had weapons too, so we managed to subdue him."

Surprised, John doesn't speak. It didn't occur to him that Wilson must have a lot of experience in order to trick both Sherlock and John so flawlessly but Wilson made it clear that this wasn't the first time he had needed to disarm somebody.

This could actually be helpful to police. If they find any other crimes in which Wilson was involved, whether as a suspect or a witness, the police might be able to find some person or place in common. This could be a crucial clue in helping locate Sherlock.

"I…I was just wondering something. Have you seen him… Sherlock, I mean… since when you captured him? I mean, do you know how he is doing…" John's voice trails off.

Wilson laughs cruelly. "Ah, there it is. I knew you were going to ask me that question at some point. Yes, I have seen him."

"And? What are they doing to him?"

"I don't think…" A loud voice suddenly interrupts Wilson.

"John? John are you here?"

John's eyes widen. A slight bit of hope reenters his mind.

"John? This is Lestrade. Are you here?"

Wilson grabs John's wrist. "Do not respond, Doctor," he whispers.

"John?" Lestrade calls again. He is obviously getting closer.

John can sense Wilson's anxiety. It appears that he was not prepared to deal with any interruptions.

"He said he'd make sure the inspector wouldn't suspect anything," Wilson whispers angrily to himself.

John can now hear footsteps getting progressively closer. Based on the footsteps, it sounds like Lestrade isn't alone.

"John?" A different voice suddenly calls.

"No, no, no, no…" John whispers. He is completely terrified by the voice that he hears.

The voice is clearly Mary's.

"No! Why did she have to come? Why couldn't she have just stayed at home? This is all my fault… I should have been more careful…" John's anguished whispers slowly grow louder.

"No!" Wilson warns. "Don't speak! Stop it right now!"

John shakes his head. If anything happened to Mary, he would never be able to forgive himself. He can't let her get hurt.

"I'm warning you, Doctor Watson. Do not say a word."

John doesn't care what happens; he just knows he needs to warn Mary.

"Mary! Don't come! Please, leave!" he yells loudly.

"John? Is that you? What's going on?" Lestrade calls.

John realizes that his warning to Mary has backfired. Now she and Lestrade are certain that he is here, so of course they are going to come help him.

"You idiot! I'm going to…" growls Wilson. Wilson's livid glare terrifies John. What is going to happen to him now?

Before he can respond, John feels the blade of the knife on his wrist.

"No! Please, I didn't mean to… I just didn't want Mary to…" pleads John weakly.

"No!" interrupts Wilson. "You've messed things up enough for me already!" John closes his eyes, trying to calm himself down. He cringes.

John cries out as Wilson slits his wrists.

"John! No!" He opens his eyes as he hears Mary's voice. He sees Mary, who is frozen in shock. Lestrade runs toward John.

"No. Stop. Don't come any closer." Wilson cautions. Lestrade quickly halts as Wilson raises John's gun. John winces as he feels the gun pressed to his head.

"Throw your weapon to me. Do it. Now. Or I shoot Doctor Watson." Lestrade obeys. The gun slides out of Lestrade's reach and John's hope completely dissolves.

His fate is inevitable.

And all John can do now is wait.

Thanks so much for reading Encore! I hope you have enjoyed it so far! I'm soooooooo sorry I haven't updated in a while. I would really appreciate any reviews, comments, or suggestions.