Chapter Fifteen: Safely Lead Me Through
Evie cannot take her eyes off of Charles. He is standing in the center of the flames with his hands outspread and his head thrown back. He is laughing. She flinches when he leans down again and she can barely make out the sound of the cap of the lighter flicking open. More flames leap into life. Charles laughs again and moves towards her. She cannot understand how the flames keep getting closer and closer without actually touching her. Sweat drips from her forehead into her eyes and a small whimper escapes from her lips at the salty burn.
Then he is there by her side, then, running his hands over her face, over her body and down her arms. "You and me, babe, together forever!" He whispers conspiratorially into her ear. She shudders and he is gone again and this time she cannot hear the lighter but she makes out the crackling sound of another line of fuel igniting. She closes her eyes and waits for it all to end.
~o~o~o~
"This way, John." Sherlock leads the way around the shop to the side door. He notes Mycroft's motorcycle standing beside the brick wall; in his mind he can see every step Evie took from the time she dismounted until the time she crossed the threshold into the shop. John stops him from moving forward by grasping the back of Sherlock's coat. Sherlock spins around but John holds up one hand. He points behind his back with the other. Right. John's got the gun.
John smoothly takes his place in front of Sherlock and pushes open the door. Sherlock lays one broad palm across it and keeps it open so that John can hold his gun in front of him with both hands. John immediately lowers his body under the black smoke that is rolling towards the now-open door. When Sherlock attempts to follow him walking uprights, John reaches up and yanks on Sherlock's coat.
"Get down, you idiot. Under the smoke. Don't you know about basic fire safety?" John snorts.
"Must have…" Sherlock starts.
"Deleted it." John finishes.
Even though it is late afternoon, the interior of the shop itself is dim save for the flicker of orange and scarlet. John moves towards it, crouched down with Sherlock close enough to breathe on John's neck. John can almost feel Sherlock's heart pounding out a staccato rhythm to match his own. John stops in the entry way and Sherlock crouches down beside him to take in the situation.
What they see is horrifying.
~o~o~o~
Mycroft turns away from the body in the office and enters the hallway that opens up to the opposite side of the shop from where his brother and John are crouched. He places one hand under his nose and tries desperately to forget the smell of charred flesh as he crouches towards the floor. With each step closer to the shop he the angry sound of crackling fire and the smell of petrol get stronger. Mycroft stops in the entry way of the shop and notes Sherlock's and John's relative positions to his own. They both seem to be on guard and so Mycroft allows his eyes to follow the direction of his line of sight.
Indeed, what is in front of them is a horrific sight to behold.
Wickersham has constructed a platform of sorts out of wooden skids. There are at least five of them in a sort-of pyramid shape. Evie is strapped down to the topmost one and Mycroft can see that her eyes are tightly shut. He steps forward and notes that Sherlock and John do the same.
Mycroft trains his gun on the man in the center of the flames.
Sherlock hangs back for a moment, letting John and Mycroft lead the way. He sees everything in crisp detail and slow motion.
Wickersham has doused himself with petrol and his clothing is on fire. He is moving closer to Evie as if wading through deep water, loud, insane laughter belting from his open mouth with every step. Evie is flat on her back on the top of the wooden mountain and Sherlock notes the sweat on her forehead.
Charles has crafted six concentric circles of flame and they wave about him like subjects paying homage to a god. As Sherlock watches, Wickersham's hair catches fire and now he is fully ablaze, still laughing and moving towards Evie. Evie's eyes have opened and she is screaming, the sound going through Sherlock's head like a hot knife through butter.
John feels more than sees Mycroft move up alongside him. He makes a quick double-take upon seeing Mycroft not only armed, but holding the weapon steady. Mycroft's gaze is only for Evie. They are unison and for a moment, John is back on the battlefield even more so than he has been for years. They watch as Wickersham's hair begins to smoke and then he is a moving pillar of fire. When Evie begins to scream, Mycroft begins to run and John freezes.
John waits until Mycroft has reached Evie. Wickersham turns towards Mycroft and John keeps the insane arsonist in his sight. Wickersham reaches out for Mycroft as if to allow the dancing flames to jump to another human being. John Watson is not going to allow that to happen. He pulls the trigger and Wickersham goes down. At the same time that the bullet leaves John's gun, there is a loud BOOM and the floor shakes.
Like every other machine shop in the world, this one was equipped with tanks of petrol and motor oil. Wickersham had cleaned the majority of them from the open floor plan, though he missed a few of the smaller containers, such as hydraulic oil and the kerosene used for cleaning tools. It's the kerosene tank that has gone up this time, with enough force that it blasted through the roof. Flames are now licking hungrily at the old shingles.
The entire building is an inferno, completely oblivious to the four human beings that will soon be trapped inside of it.
Sherlock and John wind their way through the long lines of flames. Mycroft was lucky that when he ran straight through he followed Wickersham's own path and he is only covered in the oily residue of burning petrol.
"We need to get out." John says over Evie's screams as he draws up alongside Mycroft. Her eyes are open though she does not seem to recognize any of them nor her surroundings. He takes in the situation and thrusts his gun back into the back of his jeans. "If we are careful, the three of us should be able to lift her up." For once, Mycroft and Sherlock do not argue with him or each other. They move towards the center of the skid and shoulder it like pall bearers. John, being just below the level to lift the skid, puts both hands flat underneath and steadies it so as not too jar Evie any harder than necessary.
They start out the way that Mycroft came in. "No." He shouts. "That's the office, too much paper." They turn towards the side door but are blocked by flames. For a moment they are unsure. John searches the shop with his eyes until he notes the wrench that is lying against one of the metal toolboxes. He rushes towards it and grabs it, never even considering that the temperature in the room is close to broiling. He rushes to the keypad for the big door and smashes it with the wrench. Though an alarm goes off, the door does begin to open.
Sherlock knows exactly what is going to happen as soon as a nice big breath of fresh air reaches the flames that are only a few meters behind them. It is going to be a big gust of fuel. He and Mycroft exchange looks and they get as close to John as possible. The door begins to raise and the flames behind them are like orange and gold and scarlet monsters reaching towards the air, greedily searching for more fuel to keep them alive. The door is open almost a meter when Sherlock uses his free hand to shove John underneath it.
As one, he and Mycroft drop to their knees and scoot under the door, keeping their torsos upright and Evie safe. They do not speak nor do they look at each other as they stand and step off, moving as quickly as possible as far away from the burning building as they can get with their burden.
By the time emergency services arrive to the scene, Evie is no longer strapped to the skid but folded into Mycroft's arms, her face resting against his shoulder, sobbing. The switchblade that Sherlock had hidden deep in his mysterious coat made quick work of the duct tape. He is sitting on the ground on the other side of the street from the shop, his ash-covered legs out in front of him. Sherlock and John stand behind him and John thinks how appropriate it is when the first rain drops hit his shoulders.
Almost to the end, loyal wonderful readers. I believe there shall be one more chapter after this...I can't leave you all hanging and wondering what happens, can I?