"Guinevere. We're a half an hour late." John said knocking on the door to her room.
"Come on in I'm in the bathroom doing my makeup." Guinevere chimed back. John entered the room and marveled at the size. Frank Sinatras Luck Be A Lady was playing from the speakers in the bathroom.
"Are you about done?" John asked looking at the Rolex that Guinevere had bought him on a whim last minute.
"Don't rush me darling. It's better to arrive late than arrive ugly." Guinevere replied from inside the bathroom. "Be a dear and fetch me my heels."
John went into her closet and searched for the light switch. Turning it on he realized it was a chandelier in the middle of an expansive walk in closet. Every article of clothing inside it was black.
"Which shoes do you want?" John said tearing his eyes away from her wall of designer purses.
"My heels."
He turned to the shoe portion of her closet. All of her shoes were heels.
"Which heels?" He called again.
"The black ones."
Looking the rack over he realized that they were all black.
"They're all black."
"Nevermind I'll find them myself." She called opening the door. She stepped out in a strapless silk mermaid dress black naturally. Her neck was drizzled in priceless diamonds with matching earrings. The open window that blew one strand of her updo to the side combined with her sultry dark eye makeup, bold red lips, and Frank Sinatra made quite the entrance. It's like Guinevere always said. "An entrance is sometimes a girls most powerful weapon."
"Wow." John Watson said eloquently. "You look beautiful. I wish your father was here to see you. Do you ever wear anything but black?" He remarked.
"I'll stop wearing black when they make a darker color." Guinevere said sliding past him into her closet selecting a black heels with an open toe and small ankle strap.
"I didn't know which ones you wanted considering that they're all black heels. Why do you own so many pairs of black shoes?" He remarked as she grabbed her bedazzled clutch.
"Give a girl the right pair of shoes and she can conquer the world. I plan on conquering tonight." She said as they got in the car. They made small talk the ride over and John learned a little more about the party they were attending tonight. The hosts was named Peter Peterson. "Quite an unfortunate name if you ask me." Guinevere remarked. He made millions in the American stock market. "But not legally." Guinevere started tapping her nose. He was a friend of her ex husband the duke whose wedding John had attended when he first met Guinevere.
"I still don't really understand why you asked me to come tonight?" John said looking over at her as she put on her lip stick.
"You are my fathers best friend? Why shouldn't I get to know you more?" She stated simply.
The party was actually quite enjoyable. People noticed that John didn't fit in but having Guinevere by his side helped. Every person in the room was staring at her. Wherever she went eyes followed. She just rolled her eyes as if she was used to it.
"People stare at me as if they've never seen a walking goddess."
She was a very charming girl. She oozed charisma and charmed every person with her stories. Her eyes and necklace dazzled and she truly was the star of the room.
"You are nothing like your father. Sure you have his hair and cheek bones but you are nothing like him." John remarked taking a sip of his champagne glass.
"I'm actually more like him than you think. Despite my profession I can actually come off as normal. I inherited his brains." She remarked.
"Really. You're as smart as Sherlock?" John said looking at her.
"Well I don't know if I'm as smart as him but I am very confident in my abilities. Sherlock solves murders, and I sniff out scandals. Sherlock reads crime scenes I read people. Observe." She said gesturing to a man across the room.
A young man probably twenty five years of age was standing across from then chatting with other older men. One of the older men attempted to walk towards the food table to get a refill when he gave a slight trip the young man Guinevere gestured towards instinctively caught him before he fell.
"That man reacted quickly to the older man tripping meaning that he could have possibly had younger siblings whom he had to look after. Look at his wrist that became exposed when helping the other man. It has a tan line. This suggests that he recently just came back from some place warm. Now what distinguished families from London have been on holiday in the past month? There's the Prescotts, Harrimans, Cholmondleys, Van Dykes, Walpoles, and Tillingtons. How do I know that? They all share the same investment accounts and took a vacation together to celebrate their latest financial success. Now the Cholmondleys don't have any children, the Walpoles only have daughters, and the Prescotts children are all very small. This leaves the Tillingtons and the Van Dykes. How do I know that it's a child of a distinguished family of London? Couldn't he just be new money wearing a suit and tie trying to fit in with the crowd or perhaps he's a cousin? No. Look at the ring on his pinky finger. It has a ruby on it. That specific design of ring was only given out to families who helped with the Beringer investments back in the early 1800's. It gets handed down to the male in charge of the families estate. Now he's pretty young to be in charge of the family business why is that? Well it's simple. Walter Tillington just recently died of a heart attack leaving the estate to his son to Benjamin Tillington who is the oldest of four children. Which means that young Benjaman just inherited over 17 million pounds." Guinevere said finishing her deduction of the young man.
John stood with his mouth open staring at the girl. Looking at her now he could see much of Sherlock in her. She had the same lifeless rambling voice of her father.
"Let's go see if I'm right." She said putting down her empty glass and picking up two more from a waiter with a spin making her way across the room to the man who was now standing alone.
"Benjamin Tillington?" Guinevere said approaching him from behind. John who was able to observe and hear everything was astonished when the man turned around at the sound of his name.
"Christ she actually did it." John said astonished that she was able to find out just who he was all from a trip, tanline and a ring.
"Yes. I don't believe we've met." The young man said looking her up and down.
"No we haven't but I have heard all about you tonight. I noticed that your glass was getting low. Here have a drink." She said giving him one of her glasses. Johns furrowed his eyebrows. They hadn't heard anything about him at all.
"You must be the impressive Guinevere Sokolov. Every man in the room is talking about you." He said taking a sip gesturing towards her. She pretended to act modest looking down with a blush.
"Would you care to dance?" He asked taking her drink and setting it down.
"I would love to." She said smiling up at him. He was like putty in her hands the way he was staring at her. It was almost too easy. In less than two weeks she could have him professing his undying love for her.
They took a few spins around the dance floor but after two songs she bid him goodbye.
"I'm afraid that's all for tonight. I really must be getting back." She said batting long eyelashes at him.
"No please you must stay. I don't know anything about you. What's the rush to get back?" He said trying to draw her closer to him.
"Well a girl has to have her secrets. I will be seeing you around Mr. Tillington." She said with a small ruby red smile.
With a gesture to John they were out the door before midnight.
"He seemed like a very nice man." John noted in the car.
"He killed his father." Guinevere noted smoothing out her dress. "No respectful son would be at a party the same month his father had died. He didn't respect the proper mourning time."
"How do you know that?" John asked suspiciously.
She threw him a look as if it was obvious.
"Oh right of course I forgot the Holmes always know everything." John said rolling his eyes. "So is he your next victim. Is he the next one you're going to kill? Or marry?" John said referencing her past patterns.
"Perhaps. He did seem nice so he might be marriage material. But I have other places to be, other men to fall in love with, other men to kill. He might just be a get in get bank records and get out type of man." She said adjusting her hair putting everything back into place.
"You are a very difficult woman to figure out." John said looking at her. "How could you live like this. Seducing men making them fall in love with you and taking their money. Do you even feel anything for them?" John asked seriously.
She stopped adjusting her hair and looked at him.
"I fall in love with almost every man I see. That is my life goal. To find a true love. That person who will love me not matter what. I meet and seduce all these men hoping that one of them will be the one. So far out of thirty five none of them have been right."
"So you're just trying to find love like everyone else?" John said.
"Yes there was one person out of the thirty five who I thought was the one. I thought he was different. He wasn't. I suppose I am what you might call a woman betrayed." Guinevere said reapplying her lipstick.
John didn't know how to reply to her confession. "Why are you putting on more lipstick. Aren't you just going to bed?" The car pulled out and John put on his coat.
Guinevere smirked. "Actually I am expecting company tonight." They said goodnight and went their separate ways.
Getting out of the car Guinevere looked up preparing herself for the encounter. Her butler Manson met her at the door.
"Miss Holmes your twelve thirty has just broke in. I put him in the sitting room with a bottle of Château Pétrus." The butler said taking her wrap.
"Is Schastlivyi den playing?" Guinevere asked checking herself in the mirror pointlessly already knowing she looks beautiful.
"Of course Miss."
"Excellent. That will be all."
Striding to the double doors leading into the sitting room Guinevere entered and smirked evilly.
"Schastlivyi den? From the Queen of Spades. Our first opera we ever saw together." Moriarty said looking up from the glass of wine he had poured for himself.
Guinevere went over to the record player and turned it off.
"I must admit a very beautiful opera. Of course you had to explain it all to me because it was in Russian but the plot-. A man who hears of an old countess who won a fortune in cards by playing only three cards. He goes to visit her to find out what she played. She refused to tell him so he pulls a gun out and she dies from fright. Later after the funeral the Countess comes to him in a dream and reveals the three cards she played. Three Seven Ace. This is very good wine where did you get it?" He interrupted taking a sip of his wine.
"Bordeaux, France. I spent a weekend there murdering a diplomat with a very good taste for wine. I just had to pick a bottle up." Guinevere said taking a seat on the couch next to him not missing a beat.
"Well it's very tart. Anyway later he bets all of his money in faro a russian card game played by placing a bet on the winning card. He wins with the three then goes back the next night and wins with the seven then the next night he bets on the ace. But when the cards are shown he has found that he actually bet on the queen of spades and loses everything. The man looks at the card and is terrified when he notices it resembles the old countess. The man goes mad and is admitted into an asylum where he refuses to answer any questions but constantly mutters seven, three ace, seven, three, queen."
"You were paying attention." Guinevere said scooting closer to the man on the couch who in turn scooted closer to her.
"Not really but I did get your card." He said pulling out a playing card turning it around to reveal the the queen of spades.
"I must say breaking into your house is quite easy. It's almost as if you expect me. In fact I was met by your butler at the front door who took my coat and let me in." Moriarty recalled with a frown.
"You are always welcome in my house. Except when you try to kill John Watson." Guinevere said with a smile.
"Ahh yes. Straight to the point." Moriarty said rolling his eyes. "Heard you had a fun time at the little dinner party with Benjamin Tillington. Heard he might be your next little play thing." Moriarty said putting his arm around the couch where she was sitting.
"Possibly. I haven't decided if it's worth it to get the seventeen million and commit to marriage or to just take my cut of five million and give him the choice." Guinevere said as if millions of pounds and murder were casual conversation.
"I plan to kill him before you can get close to him." Moriarty said dismissively.
"Why? He's mine. I had him first." Guinevere said defensivly thinking about the money.
"Yes but I heard that you two were dancing rather close tonight. He seemed very taken with you." Jim lightly pressed his hand to her cheek.
"Silly boy. Hasn't he heard hasn't he heard not to play with things that aren't his?"
"You would kill a man just because of a few dances with me." Guinevere said flirtatiously.
"I would kill a man for a cup of tea." Moriarty said with a snort.
Guinevere reached up and cupped his face with her hands.
"And that is why we are perfect for each other."
"If we are so perfect. Why didn't you accept my offer? Why did you hide from me? Why are you working for them?" Moriarty said annoyed.
"You tried to kill John tonight. Don't think I don't know about the hit you had ordered on him. If I wouldn't have taken him to the party tonight you would have killed him. I can't let that happen." Guinevere said pulling away from him.
"You have sided with them. You've gone soft. You're back with Daddy and suddenly you're no fun. Thought you were on the devils side but no you're on the side of the angels." Moriarty said pouting.
Guinevere sat back amused as his statement.
"The main difference between my father and I is that he is a devil on the side of the angels and I am an angel on the side of the devils. My father thinks I am in town to reconnect with him and become a better daughter. But you know me I always have a hidden agenda. And for this agenda both you and I need John alive. You want to get to Sherlock then you need to find a better way. You want to destroy my father but also have a little fun with it. You want to display your feathers and show him just how much fun you can be to have as a villain. You won't do that by ordering a messy drive by shooting of John. The doctor is merely his flat mate. John can't stand Sherlock. If you want to destroy my father you're going to have to destroy him from the inside. Make him question himself. Turn the whole world against him."
"Will you help me do that.?" Jim asked closing all space between them. "You know I came back to London to find you. To be with you again."
"And I came back to London to find you." Guinevere said lacing their fingers together.
"I will help you destroy Sherlock Holmes."