Dear Normund,
Thanks for your reply! I am very sorry to hear that you have been hurt. I hope you're ok and I'm glad you got back your passport. Wouldn't want to loose that! I hope things are easier for you from now on. Corsica sounds lovely, I'd love to do some travelling myself some day. See the sights. Maybe I will, with Mary. No fun on your own, least it wouldn't be for me.
Yeah having Mary in my life has been wonderful. She's beautiful, smart, happy, very stubborn and sometimes just a little bossy. But she has been exactly what I needed. Someone adventuress, not easily afraid. Someone not afraid to tell me how it is, not afraid to poke me in the back and say 'chin up John Watson! You can get through this!'. She's so supportive. She must really love me. I hope so any way. I truly love her.
I'm sad to hear you don't have anyone in your life like that. You'll find someone. Whether they be a lover or a very close friend. Though, that might be who you are missing? Stupid me. You;ll find them. I'm sure. Is that partly why you are travelling? If its ok for me to ask. It's what I would have done if Sherlock had just gone missing instead of just..going.
Yes the movements been great. Really chuffed about it. Even thinking of doing my own small part. Nothing illegal mind you. Then again... I wouldn't mind defacing one of the newspaper buildings, see how they like it. But keep that under your hat. Not really sure if I'll join in or not. Perhaps I should just keep out of it. Though I am cheering them on from the sidelines. Fighting my war indeed.
Hope to hear from you again soon.
Your friend,
John.
Something happened today. Something big. I..i can't really tell you just now. Soon though, I promise. I'm just.. still pretty choked up about it. But it's good news in a way and terrible news in another. I have mixed feelings. I just want to let you know. I promise in my next post to explain everything.
"Darling? Phone call for you!"
John lifted himself from his chair, placing his book to the side and taking the phone from Mary. "Hello?" For a moment there was silence of the other end. "John?" The voice sounded unsure. "Yeah?..Is that you Greg?"
"John, listen. We need you to come down to the station..right now."
"Why whats happened?"
"Look.. we found something, you need to come here. Please, right away and you can't ask why."
"Why not? Look tell me whats going on, please"
"Im sorry, I can;t, just come now"
He hung up, leaving John very confused. "What is it John?" He shook his head, grabbing his jacket. "I don't know. I have to go down to Scotland Yard, he said they found something." Mary grabbed her own long periwinkle coat. "Then I'm coming with you" She smiled an linked arms with John. "Maybe they found something to prove his innocence"
"I certainly hope so"
Lestrade wasn't sure what to say when he saw John and Mary stride into the conference room, and neither did John or Mary. The room didn't have many occupants. Lestrade, Sally and Anderson of course. Their chief glared over at John, constantly, however, glancing back at the tall figure behind him. Mycroft. Anthea was by his side. A few other officers, Dimmock included stood watching, one closing and locking the door behind John. They all stood crowded around a small table on which a computer technician sat, holding a damaged phone.
Sherlock's phone.
"Whats going on?" John inquired as he and Mary made their way towards the table. "They've found something John" Replied Mycroft, the first words he spoken to the doctor in a long time. "What do you mean? On his phone?" Lestrade nodded and stared at the technician. "Looks like a recorded message. Not tampered with, it's timestamped too. Not long before he um.. took the plunge." The chief looked doubtful. "You can tell if it was tampered with?" The tech nodded. "Considering it was taken off the roof after he jumped and it's been sitting in an evidence locker, where there are cameras, then yes Im sure".
John shook his head in confusion. "What do you mean recorded message? Are you saying.. he left a message on his phone? But why?.. I mean I spoke to him...why didn't he mention it?" The others all shrugged their shoulders. "I guess will find out in a moment"
"You mean you haven't listened to it already?" The inspector shook his head. "Not yet, it was locked, took us a little while to get in and we thought you and Mycroft should be here to hear it first." John raised his eyebrows. "Damn decent of you"
"Yes.." Lestrade looked back to the technician. "Are you ready?" The man nodded. "Just say when." Everyone seemed to take a deep breath.
"Now"
There was silence.. and then Sherlock's voice.
If you are hearing this, then I am dead. This is really for the polices benefit anyway, should they be intelligent enough to look at my phone. No doubt my brother will have come up with the idea if the Yard does not.
I suppose this is goodbye really. How dull, saying goodbye to a phone. I would have maybe said goodbye in person but I do not know whats going to happen. I could survive, I could not. Clearly if you are listening to this then I haven't. Which in that case is unfortunate.
Timeline wise, I am at St Barts, making my way to the roof. I have just arranged for John to leave, I need to keep him out of Moriarty's clutches. He should be safe at Baker Street as we speak.
John sat down on one of the chairs. Sherlock had arrange for him to leave, he'd been right. And he'd done it to keep John safe because Moriarty was on his way. He regretted his words to Sherlock about being a machine even more so now then he did before. He wasn't a machine, friends protect people and Sherlock had been trying to protect John.
He's on the roof, we've arranged to meet to discuss our.."Final Problem" as he calls it. So as I stand in front of the door, I say goodbye to who ever is listening. If it's Lestrade then I ought to say you are, in my opinion the finest officer at the Yard. I can say this because I'm dead and don't have any qualms about admitting it. If it wasn't for you I never might have become a consulting detective. You helped me from the gutters and cleaned me up. For that I thank you. Goodbye..Greg.
Shocked to hear his name, Lestrade had looked up to stare at the phone, his eyes glistening over with tears at the kind and heartfelt words. But Sherlock.. this was my fault. This was all my fault. I didn't have to listen to Sally and Anderson, but that doubt, that small seed of doubt wouldn't leave me head. If I had just stopped for a minute I would have remembered what you were like all those years ago...
The messaged continued.
If it's Mycroft then you are a complete git and I don't forgive you. But I don;t hate you either. You are mother, father and brother to me. There is little I can say that you don;t already know. If I die, then I am sorry to leave you all alone. Look after everyone for me, if Moriarty survives, take him down, not that I need to tell you that. Goodbye My Brother.
Even though Mycroft knew his brother was alive, he was incredibly touched by his words. Sherlock in this message clearly didn't know if he would live or die but had chosen to say such things regardless. It was true, all they had was each other and now, at least to everyone else, Mycroft was all alone. Sherlock had mentioned leaving a message but it was Mycroft who decided to plant that seed of thought into Lestrade's head. Better now than later. Just in case.
And if it is John who discovers this message, I should apologise to you the most. I changed your life. But you changed mine. I don;t think I can imagine not having you by my side, encouraging me, being there for me, joining in my adventures as you like to call them and being my only friend. You are my brother, my closest brother. I really am not sure what I can say to make what may be about to happen any easier on you. Please forgive me. Please don't hate me. And please, don;t ever, ever forget me. You will forever remain my closest friend. And believe me to be, very sincerely yours , Sherlock Holmes. Goodbye John.
John wiped his eyes, his head in his hands. Mary's arm wrapped around his shoulder. Oh Sherlock. Why. Why did you do this? Why didn't you let me help...wait a minute. Moriarty was on the roof..had he killed Sherlock? In the message Sherlock didn't sound like he had gone to the roof to kill himself. Perhaps there was more to the message.
And if anyone else finds this..please deliver these and the next message for me...I suppose its possible Anderson or Sally could find this too. I suppose some of you will blame yourself. Don't be ridiculous. It's no ones fault but Moriarty's. And mine perhaps... Sally and Anderson I address this message to you. You started this, you got me arrested, in a way it is your fault. But...from a moral standpoint you were probably doing your job. I don't forgive you but I don't..hate you I suppose.
You were a pawn in Jim's great game. Anderson, you aren;t really all that bad a forensic scientist, you are however an idiot. And Sally...I guess if I think about it...I do respect you. I always have even if it took living with John to realise it. I never appreciated being called a Freak. I want you to know that I do have feelings and I have been called a freak since I was a little boy and had you perhaps refrained from that we might have even become.. almost friends. But that;s unimportant now...
Sally sniffed. She took out a handkerchief, wiping her cheeks. Anderson stared at the floor. She didn't deserve that. He'd killed himself because of her. All the evidence so far had proven him innocent. He really had been a brilliant man and with her help he had been driven to his death. But he still respected her. She called him Freak, a name that had haunted him from childhood. That made her feel sick and yet he didn't hate her. Because of John. He had brought out the human side of Sherlock, the side right now, they were all hearing. Because he was going to die.
The message seemed to go silent for a moment and then suddenly there was the sound of music. Stayin' Alive. "Hang on.. that's his ring tone. Thats Moriarty's ring tone!" Lestrade lowered his hand, gesturing for John to be silent. "Sorry... I'll shut up"
"Woah, here we are at last, you and me Sherlock and our problem..the final problem." .
"Staying alive..it's so boring, isn't it? It's just..staying.." He sounded slightly distressed, almost upset.
"All my life I've been searching for distractions. And you were the best distraction and now I don't even have you. Because I've beaten you."
"And you know what? In the end it was easy. It was easy. And now I have to go back to playing with the ordinary people. And it turns out you're ordinary, just like all of them"
"Oh well" His voice went back to the playful nature that John remembered. "Did you almost start to wonder if I was real? Did I nearly get ya?"
"Richard. Brooke" Finally Sherlock's voice had returned.
"Nobody seems to get the joke. But you do."
"Of course. "
"Atta boy"
"Richard Brooke in german is Reichenbach. The case that made my name" There were several gasps around the room, mostly from the members of the Yard.
"Just trying to have some fun."
"Goood you got that too"
"Beats like digits. Every beat is a one, every rest is a zero. Binary code, thats why all those assassins tried to save my life. It was hidden on me, inside my head. A few simple lines of computer code, that could break into any system. "
"Told all my clients. Last one to Sherlock is a sissy"
"Yes but now that its up here, I can use it to alter all the records. I can kill Rich Brooke and bring back Jim Moriarty. "
There was silence and then Jim's upset voice returned. "No no no no no no. It's too easy. This is too easy. There is no key.. DOOFUS!" The shout making several people jump. The return of the psychotic mad man.
"Those digits are meaningless, they're utterly meaningless. You don't really think, a couple of lines of computer code are going to crash the world around our ears? I'm disappointed. I'm disappointed in you, ordinary Sherlock"
"But the rhythm.."
"Partition Number One! Thank you, Johann Sebastian Bach"
"Then how did you-"
"How did I break into the bank, to the tower, to the prison? Daylight robbery! All it takes is some willing participants. I knew you'd fall for it. Thats your weakness. You always want everything to be clever." Lestrade's eyes widened, as did the chief's. Of course, so that was how he did it. It was all so simple. Even though Mycroft already knew this he still couldn't help but marvel at the genius behind Jim's plans.
"Now shall we finish the game? One final act. Glad you chose a tall building. Nice way to do it."
"Do it? Do..do what?" Sherlock sounded confused. "Oh yes of course.. my suicide. " John took a sudden intake of breath. It hadn't been planned. It really hadn't. Sherlock...why?
"Genius detective proved to be a fraud. I read about it in the papers so it must be true. I love newspapers. Fairytales, and pretty Grimm ones too"
They could hear Sherlock gasping over the phone. Distressed, worried, confused and most of all, scared. This was no act. This was a real conversation.
"I can still prove that you created an entirely false identity. "
"Oh just kill yourself. Its a lot less effort. "
Sherlock gasped again for air.
"Go on..for me. Pleeeeeeeease?" It sounded to Lestrade that Sherlock had suddenly grabbed Jim by his clothes.
"You're insane"
"You're just getting that now?"
"Woah ah ah..ok let me give you a little extra incentive..your friends will die if you don't"
"Oh God.." Lestrade exclaimed, turning to look at John. Shit. Oh Sherlock, shit. You didn't...that was why you jumped? Shit!
"John"
"Not just John, everyone"
"Mrs Hudson"
"Everyone"
"Lestrade." Again, Lestrade was shocked to hear his name. Sherlock had considered him a friend. Not his handler, but his friend. Oh kid, I wish I had known. You trusted me and I let you down. I'm so sorry. You died to save me..oh mate. Oh Sherlock...
"Three bullets, three gunmen, three victims. Theres no stopping them now. Unless my people see you jump."
Sherlock...
"You can have me arrested. you can torture me, you can do anything you like with me. But nothing is going to prevent them from pulling the trigger. Your only three friends in the world will die. Unless..."
"Unless I kill myself, complete your story. "
"You got to admit, thats sexier"
"And I die in disgrace. " Oh mate... Sherlock sounded so sad.. so without hope.
"Well of course, thats the point of this. Oh, you got an audience now. Off you pop. Go on. I told you how this ends. Your death is the only thing thats going to call off the killers. Im certainly not going to do it. "
They could hear Sherlock gasping again, panic setting in.
"Can you give me one moment please, one moment of privacy..please?"
"Of course"
Sherlock started to take deep breaths, considering what he was about to do. But then suddenly he began to laugh.
"What? "
He didn't answer Moriarty, he simply kept laughing.
"What is it? What did I miss?" Just for a second, it seemed as if Sherlock had gotten the upper hand and that Moriarty had missed something vital.
"You're not going to do it? So the killers can be called off then, theres a recall code, or word or a number. I don't have to die if I've got you."
"Oooh " Jim's turn to chuckle.
"You think you can make me stop the order, you think you can make me do that?"
"Yes, so do you"
"Sherlock, your big brother and all the kings horses couldn't make me do a thing I didn't want to. "
"Yes but I'm not my brother, remember? I am you. Prepared to do anything, prepared to burn, prepared to do what ordinary people won't do. You want me to shake hands with you in Hell, I shall not disappoint you. "
"Noo..you talk big..noo, you're ordinary. You're ordinary, you're on the side of the angels. "
"Oh I may be on the side of the angels but don't think for one second that I am one of them"
Silence.
"No..you're not, I see, you're not ordinary, no, you're me." Another laugh.
"You're me!..Thank you, Sherlock Holmes. Thank you. Bless you. As long as Im alive you can save your friends. You've got a way out. Well, good luck with that"
"No!"
There was the sudden sound of a gun shot and a body falling to the floor. Moriarty was dead.. he'd shot himself. Sherlock gasped for air, now really beginning to panic. There was no way out now, if he didn;t jump, his friends would die.
"Noo.."
"I have to..I have to...I'm sorry. Forgive me."
The message ended.
The room remained entirely silent. No one spoke for the longest time, and there was not a dry eye in the entire room. John was in Mary's arms. Sally rested her head against Anderson's shoulders, both looking completely dejected and guilty. Sally was crying. The Chief had taken off his glasses, rubbing his eyes. Mycroft was looking everywhere but at someone's face. Anthea was wiping her eyes with a handkerchief. Lestrade had his head in his hands.
John continued to sob against Mary's chest. His best friend had not committed suicide. He had died to save him and two other people. He had died a hero. All that grief that had begun to disappear came back in full force as the shocking realisation that Sherlock Holmes had not killed himself was revealed. He was happy he hadn't killed himself but the knowledge that it was because of John that he had died didn't make the pain any better. It only made it worse.
Lestrade took a deep breath, wiping his eyes, blinking several times. He had once said that Sherlock Holmes was a great man and now Lestrade knew, he had been a good one too. If only it hadn't been like this. Sherlock had died to save his life. Never was the inspector more proud of the kid but he only wished it didn't have to be this way. The knowledge that he hadn;t died because of that doubt, because of the media, because Lestrade had failed to trust him and believe in him, eased some of his pain but now he would know that the only reason he, John and Mrs Hudson were still alive today was that Sherlock Holmes had leapt off a tall building to save them.
And Mycroft was never more proud of his little brother than in that moment.