Almost only paperwork this afternoon. Going to a floor to another all the time to give the right file to the right person. She had to stay longer than planned to finish her examination on a blood analysis. She turned off the light of the inventory reserve and sighed. She was exhausted. She walked through the lab, supporting her heavy shoulder bag full of unfinished files. She put a hand on the door of the lab to push it, but she just jumped of fear, when she heard a voice from behind.
« - You're wrong, you know ? »
She turned and saw Sherlock, showing his back to her. His voice was low, deeper than the usual. Molly just froze on the door, not knowing what was happening. Why was he here ? Why was he telling this ?
« - You do count. You've always counted and I've always trusted you. But you were right. »
Molly just stopped breathing. Something was going wrong. If he was telling her that kind of things, with this broken deep voice, so sincere, it was for a way more important thing than Molly's feelings. He turned to her and she saw the urge in his stare, the fear as well.
« - I'm not okay… » he said in a sorry voice, as if he was feared to tell her how he truly felt.
Molly knew the urge of the situation, if there was a reason to all of this, it was something really serious.
« - Tell me what's wrong ! » she said, staring and standing still.
She wanted to help him so badly, and the day had come. She knew this sad look of his, she had already saw it when her father was dying, and at the time she couldn't help his death so she didn't want to miss it if Sherlock had problems.
« - Molly ? he asked unsure of himself. I think I'm going to die. »
The fear in the icy eyes of Sherlock came to the dark brown stare of Molly. « Going to die ? » she thought with fright. Sherlock took some steps to her, slowly, as if the floor was going to break under his feet.
« - What do you need ? » spit out Molly in a discret tone, look him for under, sharing the deep stare of fear he was giving her. Sherlock Holmes was afraid to die. « Human after all » she thought bitterly.
« - If I wasn't everything you think I am… If I wasn't everything I think I am…Would you still want to help me ? »
Sherlock's baritone's voice was shaking. He stepped closer to her. Molly understood the gravity of the situation. Sherlock had serious problems and it was her he was turning to. Molly felt the responsibility on her shoulders and repeated in a more sure voice :
« - What do you need ? »
Sherlock turned completely to her, took some steps closer to her, and said in a deep broken voice full of hope :
« - You. »
Molly swallowed hard. The way he told her this made her shivers, but she knew it wasn't the moment to loose her concentration. She nodded, holding his stare, not really knowing what to see in it anymore. She turned the light back on and put her heavy bag on the floor.
« - You…The lab can be used, there's no one left in here, don't worry ! »
Sherlock followed her and grabbed slightly her shoulder. Molly stopped, but didn't turn. She knew physical contact with Sherlock wasn't meaning what she thought was normal. It was wether for experimentation, wether to use her. But this time was different, something desperate was in his move.
« - No, I meant it, I need you. » he repeated with a deep voice.
Molly turned to him and saw he was nervous.
« - You can speak, Molly said, we're alone here. »
Sherlock turned his eyes back to Molly's and frowned seriously.
« - Jim Moriarty, he said, is trying to push me to kill myself.
- What ?! Molly said with a shocked face.
- In order to stay alive and making him think he had succeeded his plan, I need to fake my death. If I don't, people will die. My…friends….will die. »
Molly's stare gone down. Sherlock was counting on her to save his own life and his friends. « - How can I help you fake your death ? she asked, trying to look strong.
- First of all, you have to keep it secret, the detective answered. Even to John. Molly, that's the most important. You shall act as if you did not know anything, right ? »
Molly nodded. John Watson was certainly in great danger, that's what the begging look in Sherlock's eyes was telling her.
« - Don't worry about that, she said with a light smile. He won't even have the idea to ask me anything. »
Sherlock frowned and looked at her smile. « Timid fake smile. Melancholia. » he deduced. She wasn't thinking John considered her as a friend, but she was wrong. But he didn't have the time to give her a friendship lesson, and he though he might not be the one for this kind of things.
« - Good, he said finally. To fake my death I need everybody knows I'm dead. And by a way that would be too long to explain, I know there is here, at St Barth's, a body looking like me. I need you to find it and to hide it until my brother tells you what to do.
- Okay ! » nodded Molly with a concentrated look.
She turned her heels and headed out of the lab.
« - Molly ! Sherlock called suddenly.
- Yes ? she answered from behind the opened door.
- Thank you. »
Molly smiled shyly and hesitated a bit, before beginning her researches.