Thank you for all the follows, favs and supportive reviews, I appreciate them very much.

(lulu) Thank you. That's great to hear, I hope it will be worth waiting for. And there definitely will be scenes where all four are together in this story, don't worry :)

(Sailor Celaeno) Thank you. I sent you PM, I would be glad to talk about those topics anytime :)

(DumDumDum) That's your opinion which I can understand, what I cannot however is the rude manner you used to convey your point.

(goanago) I am glad you think so :)

(apassingstranger) Yay, I was afraid it was too much, I am glad that's not the case. And thank you for thinking so high about the story :)

(Sarah) Thanks :D

(wolfawaken) I am glad too :) Hope you will like the new chapters too.

CHAPTER 20

"Well," started Ron as the black car disappeared in traffic, "do we have any idea who Eva Blackwell is?"

"A rather ordinary woman who got herself a very wealthy fiancé, but who has a dark spot on her otherwise pristine reputation that made it very easy for Milverton to threaten her," replied Sherlock.

"Come on," said John, "don't tell me you deduced that from looking at the house."

Sherlock just waved the file he brought over from Milverton's house at John. "I read this. And you can hardly figure that from the outside of a house. Though I doubt I will need to employ any observing of my own later on – the documents were very detailed. And I have no reason to suspect Milverton would store lies – they would be of no use for him."

"Okay, so who is the fiancé?" asked John

"Dr Earl D. Court," replied Sherlock. "I think you've heard of him, John."

John just gaped at the detective. "Heard of him?! Of course I heard of him! Not even a week ago I read the new article he wrote for BJS. Terribly bold ideas, but I must admit..."

"Umm... who is he?" asked the wizard hesitantly, bringing John back to earth.

Sherlock just glanced his way. "And of course you wouldn't have a clue," he commented, but refrained from saying more, because John gave him a stern look and started to explain it himself.

"His family is pretty well off." He pointed towards the handsome villa that was behind him. "But that's not all he has to his name. He is a very renowned surgeon. Very talented – considered one of the best in his field. Had a few cases that were considered lost causes by other doctors and he pulled it off. But I didn't know he is engaged."

"Oh, I see," said Ron.

"No, you don't," commented Sherlock, daring the redhead to prove him wrong. "You have no idea what it is that surgeons do."

"They are doctors," replied the wizard rather sulkily, but that was all he added to the subject, not wanting to say something that might not be entirely correct.

John just rolled his eyes at Sherlock and decided to move on. "We should check if she is home."

"She is," said the detective with conviction.

"How can you be so sure?" asked the doctor.

"Because she was looking from behind the curtain and noticed us," replied Sherlock. Until now he was the only one facing the house and his companions turned from him to confirm his words. "She is no longer there, though I do not doubt she is waiting by the door. She saw John pointing towards the house, undoubtedly she understands we'll be going in."

"Who is she waiting for?" asked the Auror.

"Isn't it rather obvious?" asked the detective. "She is anxious that Milverton will show up."

"Really?" Ron's voice was coloured with disbelief. "That is a rather big assumption."

"It certainly is no assumption," replied Sherlock. John recognised the voice he used – the detective was sure he was right, and the implication that he was just guessing didn't sit well with him.

"Why would she be waiting for him?" questioned the doctor.

"Simply because she has no idea he is dead yet," said Sherlock. "How could she know? It's not like the murder has been made public, and besides Milverton was murdered by someone magical. She is not a witch, nor is she connected to your world, otherwise he would have noted something about it in her file. It is very detailed. I doubt something like that would have escaped him, as his knowledge about his victims is practically limitless."

"Still why would he show up?" asked Ron still adamant that it was simply a guess. "She could be waiting for anyone."

"Yes, let's assume she is just waiting for a friend and they are going out for lunch, why won't we?" asked Sherlock sarcastically. "People often do that as inconspicuously as possible the day after a man who blackmails them does not turn on the meeting that was arranged around this time because they could get out of the house without their fiancé or anyone else noticing. We also need to take into consideration that the man in question was known for ruining his victims. Whyever would she think he simply wanted to make her life more difficult by changing his approach?"

"How easy for you to say all this, when you read all the things from those papers. Which you didn't even bother to hand over to us."

"I doubt even these would help you," replied Sherlock with ease. "Not that you particularly cared about them until now. Want to cover up your stupidity?"

Ron just mumbled something incomprehensible but otherwise ignored the detective.

"Fine, Sherlock," sighed John, "we get it. But why exactly are we here? You already figured she has nothing to do with this."

"When did I say that?" asked Sherlock surprised, turning to his friend.

"Didn't you – just now?" wondered his friend.

"Not even remotely," disagreed the detective. "Now if you'll excuse me, I heard it's considered rude to keep people waiting, so we shall go and deliver the good news immediately." With those words he ran up the few stairs that led to the door and rang the bell.

The response was immediate. The door was opened by a young woman wearing rather expensive looking suit. Her appearance was spotless from the beautifully done hair to the perfect manicure. At the first glance she was the picture perfect of rich confident woman. However it was her eyes that betrayed her. They were dancing from one man to another anxiously as if she was worried that they might be in some way connected to her secret plight. She was right of course, though probably not in the way she imagined.

"Who are you?" she asked defiantly.

"Miss Blackwell?" asked John. When she nodded silently he continued, "My name is John Watson. This is Sherlock Holmes and Ronald Weasley. We've come to ask you about Charles Milverton."

She glanced at Sherlock curiously, apparently she did recognise his name, but that didn't change her suspicious attitude. "I don't know who are you talking about. Now kindly leave, I cannot help you. I am sorry." She truly looked apologetic, probably denying any knowledge out of fear.

She was about to close the door when Sherlock grabbed it, effectively stopping her.

"Do you mind?" she asked, yanking the door.

"Yes I do," replied Sherlock. "Milverton is dead. Will you talk to us now?"

"What?" she stumbled from surprise, letting the door go.

Ron just frowned at the blunt manner the detective used to deliver the news and John shook his head in resigned manner.

"Really Sherlock. It's called tact. Use it sometimes," he tsked quietly as he looked at the woman with concern. "Are you feeling well, Miss Blackwell?"

"Yes. Yes, I am fine," she replied still dazed from what she heard.

"It was the best news she could have received, I doubt she has any objections against Milverton's fate," said Sherlock as if it closed the matter. "Isn't it so, Miss Blackwell?"

"Oh no," the woman was quickly regaining her composure as she shook her head. "It's rather..." but the words failed her as she obviously wanted to agree with Sherlock that this was indeed marvellous news, but didn't think it would be very proper. "Please, come inside, we shall not discuss such matters in the doorway," she said instead, ushering them all in.

"Can I offer you something?" asked their hostess when they were all comfortably seated in the living room. "Tea? Coffee? Something small to eat?" The short walk helped to clear all the remains of her surprise. One wouldn't be able to tell that mere moments ago she was ready to collapse.

Sherlock refused everything, not even considering letting other two men to speak for themselves. Ron looked devastated but kept silent. John decided to take the conversation into his hands, knowing well Sherlock's impatience with distressed people.

"Miss Blackwell," he started, "I am not sure how much you do know about what happened, but we would appreciate your cooperation. We will try not to bother you for too long."

"No, no," she said, "you do not bother me at all. But I must admit I never expected such news would be brought to me. Mr Holmes was right. It was a relief to hear it, though it's an awful thing to say… but he was not a good person. Not at all. May I…" she hesitated, "may I know what happened to him?"

"He was murdered. In his house," replied Sherlock bluntly.

"Of that I had no doubt," she said. "As I said he was a bad person with many enemies. I was merely curious how it happened."

"That we cannot reveal, Miss Blackwell," said the redhead quickly. "I am sure you understand."

"Oh, I do," said the woman slightly disappointed. "I must say it is rather curious though."

"What is?" asked John.

"An interesting coincidence," replied Miss Blackwell thinking it over. "I know of you, Mr Holmes and Dr Watson. As a matter of fact what I heard about you almost convinced me to seek your help the day before the meeting, but I abandoned this idea at the end. And yet… here you are, though it's really not what I initially had in mind."

"What do you mean you wanted my help?" asked Sherlock.

"I was desperate," admitted the woman. "You see yesterday was the last chance Milverton offered me. He was becoming impatient."

"Was that why you had more than one meeting?" asked Ron. "Because you refused to pay him?"

"Not exactly," she clarified. "I paid him before – fractions of what he asked. But he said he wanted everything at once now and all that I already gave him doesn't count. It was supposed to happen yesterday. But I simply don't have that much money."

"But your fiancé…" started the doctor. He couldn't imagine Milverton asking for such a price that Dr Court wouldn't be able to cover.

"I would never take the money from Earl!" she said resolutely stopping John short. "Not only is it not mine, but he would ask why I need so much and then I would be forced to lie as this is the only thing I do not wish him to know about me. I do not wish to cover lies with another lies. This was enough. I wanted to pay for this with the money I earned in an honest way."

"But surely if you told your fiancé, Milverton would have lost a leverage and left you alone," said the Auror.

"I would have," replied Miss Blackwell, "if I only was not afraid he would hate me for it. He and his family both. At the very least he would be terribly disappointed and wouldn't look at me in the same way. I know he would. He thinks I am a good person, it's selfish, but I don't want that to change."

"So what did you want from me?" asked Sherlock, though he had a pretty good idea where this was heading.

"Help and guidance," she admitted honestly. "I was warned about going to police. Telling Earl was not possible. If anyone could have helped me, it would be you. But in the end I was afraid you would simply dismiss me. You wish only for interesting cases. You even said so on your blog. And though you didn't update it for a while, I had no reason to suspect that you changed your mind. How could I have gone to you with my pitiful plea? I would only make a fool out of myself. How could you have promised me to help conceal the evidence that I cheated people in the past? And what is so adventurous about negotiating a smaller price to pay for this mistake of mine?" she finished bitterly.

"What?" asked John and Ron simultaneously. They couldn't help it, never expecting such a turn. So Milverton was blackmailing an ex-criminal? Suddenly her decision to conceal her past from her fiancé made a lot of sense.

She looked at them surprised, "You didn't know? I assumed you are here because you came across my name after searching Milverton's things. If you found that there was no reason for me not to think you didn't find everything else."

"We did," agreed Ron, "though we were not aware of the details you just revealed." He glanced at the detective who was sporting barely noticeable smirk on his face. "I mean, most of us were not aware of the details," he corrected himself dryly.

"So you found his safe. And read everything," summed up Miss Blackwell piercing the detective with her gaze. "And forgot to tell about it to your companions."

"Naturally," said Sherlock. "Though I didn't forget to tell them, I just didn't find it necessary," he admitted which earned him a glare from both men.

She shook her head slightly amused. "Dr Watson simply doesn't do you justice on his blog."

John's lips twitched at her words, but he refused to smile fully. He would not take a liking to a criminal... a very charming and beautiful one, but criminal nonetheless.

"I happen to agree with you," replied Sherlock seriously. "I always tell him that his writing is too flowery and he leaves out the science, but he never listens. Now can we discuss how Milverton acquired all that information about you? I want names and places."

The woman sighed. "There is just one who could have told him all those details. Wait here. I'll be right back," she said as she left them alone.

"Sherlock, what exactly did the woman do that Milverton started to blackmail her?" hissed John some time after she left.

"She hinted at it already. Cheated a bit, lied, cajoled people to hand her money," listed his friend. "Well... tried to. She got mixed with a small group of people gathering money this way. It didn't last long, but enough to give Milverton something to work with."

"So what do you want from her?" asked the wizard.

"An address," replied the detective as they heard steps approaching the room.

"I am sorry for letting you wait," said Miss Blackwell as she entered the room. She handed Sherlock an envelope. "I wrote down the places I know he," she spat hatefully, "might frequent, as well as the address he used back then. Though I doubt it will be very helpful to you. He might not even be in London anymore for all I know now."

"It is enough," said Sherlock as he put the file he was holding on the table and opened the envelope glancing at it briefly. "Are you sure that he was the main source of Milverton's information?"

"Absolutely," she nodded. "He even admitted it – Milverton, I mean. Bragged how easy it was to convince him to hand over the evidence he kept."

Sherlock hummed. "So in order to blackmail you, he wouldn't need to do anything else than to find him, is that right? And you are sure he didn't try anything else, but to find the man."

"Yes," confirmed Miss Blackwell. "He didn't even need to look for him. They knew each other. That is how Milverton knew I was with him in the past. Then he heard about my engagement and... well... you know the rest. It's entirely possible he knew his place from the start and didn't need to inquire about it anywhere."

The detective suddenly sprang to his feet. "Thank you for your time, Miss Blackwell, you were very helpful." He tucked the list back into the envelope. "We know the way out. Come on John, Mr Weasley."

"You're... welcome?" said the woman confusedly. She probably didn't expect the visit to end up in this manner.

"So who were you talking about?" asked John after the detective whisked them out.

"Previous beau of young Miss Blackwell. She must be still very angry at him if she refuses to even say his name. But at least she wrote it down for me. Though I already knew Milverton had dealings with him. I just needed to confirm a theory and those addresses," said Sherlock. "He was the leader of the gang, if you haven't guessed yet. He and Miss Blackwell knew each other from their hometown – childhood friends, so he easily convinced her to help him. If she was thinking straight she would have never agreed to something so stupid. She looks like a sensible woman. In any case the wake-up call followed quickly..."

Ron suddenly stopped short glaring at the envelope in Sherlock's hands. "Wait a moment," he said. "Where is the file you were waving around before?"

"Inside," retorted the detective. "I am sure Miss Blackwell will know what to do with it."

"Are you mad?! That's evidence!" Ron was really upset by this and wanted to march back inside when Sherlock's words stopped him.

"It is of no consequences for us," he said. "The only purpose it was supposed to serve was to break up the marriage. Miss Blackwell dramatized it a bit, but it is highly possible that it would really happen if the doctor finds about it. It's true that she was a part of the gang – for a few short weeks. She took part of only one smaller scam, which also got her caught – apparently that's really not where her talent lies. She repaid the society, got her record cleaned after the required time and started her second chance. I see no reason why to cut that chance short." Then he shrugged, looking at the wizard. "But if you still want to go back in, I am not holding you. After all you would only be ruining person's life."

"Forget it," glared the redhead. "What I really want is a break from you," he sighed tiredly as he ran a hand through his hair, looking at John apologetically. "I give up. I am sorry, but I cannot get used to working like this. And I still need to go to see my brother. I am sure I can get you someone that would be able to withstand this and can take you to visit those addresses from the office, just give me a minute..."

John panicked. This wasn't good. It seemed like his friend finally broke Ron's resolve. Thankfully the wizard was still very mindful of his behaviour and didn't just curse Sherlock to oblivion. He sent the detective a pointed look as if to say to fix it and fix it right then and there.

It was rather unnecessary as the detective had no intention to let Ron Weasley quit on him. He wanted to best him, not for him to give up entirely and delegate the case to someone even worse. Besides, neither Mycroft nor Harry would be happy about it and he had enough sense to understand that if they would disagree with his behaviour they had just enough power to make adjustments he wouldn't be very happy about. It felt all very childish, but Mycroft was never above that.

"As a matter of fact," he started, "I am done running around. So if you want to visit your brother we can split here." He handed the envelope he was holding to the wizard who took it rather surprised that the man was sharing something willingly. "As you might see, some of these places are quite scattered and there is no guarantee that our search will be successful, even if we spent the next two days visiting them. I hate to waste time on pointless things, so this task might be delegated to Mycroft. If he has resources to check backgrounds of people from Milverton's flash drive, I see no reason why he wouldn't be able to check these. Our work for today is done. We cannot do anything else until he gets us the results. As he is stuck at your Ministry I don't expect them just yet."

I really hope this chapter is not too bad :(
Well, they renamed Sir Henry Baskerville for the series too. so Earl of Dovercourt went to be Dr. Earl D.(avid) Court... sorry :/ I couldn't think of anything better and still close to his original title.
As for Sherlock leaving the file behind - a bit nice for him (without a real reason to boot), I know... it's just. In the original she was his client and he burgled Milverton's house for her (among other reasons like wounded pride, but that's beside the point). I wanted him to help her here too. Sorry if it backfired on me.