Chapter 16
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Thank you all for noticing Molly's badassness in the last chapter. I think Molly deserved a few licks on Jim and Sebastian for everything they've done to her or let Simon do to her.
This chapter is mostly dialogue and is setting up what's going to be happening in the next couple chapters. It's not very exciting and might be a bit boring, but hopefully not too bad.
Molly sat on the hospital bed waiting for the nurse to return with her release papers. The door to her room was pushed open and Sherlock and John walked in. Molly groaned inwardly, she didn't feel like dealing with Sherlock. She was also angry with him for not telling her about Simon or Jim.
John sat down on the bed beside her. "How are you feeling Molly?"
"Better now." She said softly.
John was looking at her with a rather odd expression, when he eyes widened. "Good God, I didn't notice it before what with everything so insane at the hotel. Why didn't you tell me that he tried to strangle you?"
Molly blinked and looked at John. "What?" She asked.
"Your neck, the bruises are…" Upon closer inspection of her neck, the words died on the tip of John's tongue. "Oh…I…never mind."
Molly stared at John in confusion until she remembered the state of her neck thanks to Sherlock Holmes. She flushed and looked away.
John cleared his throat. "Yes well, I think you'll be able to leave here tonight Molly."
Molly dared to glance at Sherlock who was staring at her intently. She was thankful that he wasn't wearing one of his signature smirks. For once it seemed he understood that tact was needed and most certainly appreciated.
"Yes, the nurse will be back shortly with my release papers. What are you two doing here?" She asked, directing her question to John.
"We are here to take you back to the hotel, to our hotel. It's obvious that you won't be able to stay alone now that Moriarty has made his intentions clear." Sherlock answered.
John glared at him. "Look Molly, we feel, that is, Sherlock, Lestrade, and I feel that you need to be under protection, until Moriarty is caught of course."
Molly frowned. "I'm sure I could stay with Gavin. I'll call him and he…"
"Absolutely not!" Sherlock interrupted.
John groaned. "Sherlock, we discussed this on the way over and you agreed to let me do the talking, you know, since you are an insensitive, know it all, git."
Sherlock scowled at John. "As I remember it, you told me to keep my mouth shut and you would do the talking. I don't recall ever agreeing. Now, as I was saying. There will be no need to call Sergeant Troy Molly. You would be safer with John and I as we are accustomed to Moriarty and how his mind works."
"Sherlock I don't think this is a good idea." Molly said.
"Molly I mean no disrespect to Sergeant Troy…"
"Could I have that in writing?" John mumbled.
Sherlock narrowed his eyes at John before continuing. "Moriarty is a brilliant and extremely dangerous man. Although I am certain that Sergeant Troy is a very capable officer, he doesn't have the experience to deal with someone as cruel and devious as Moriarty. You would be safer with us."
Molly opened her mouth to argue, but stopped when she felt John's hand over hers. "Look Molls, I hate to admit this, but Sherlock is right. Moriarty is simply too dangerous. I'd feel much better if you were to be with us. I'm not letting Sarah return to London until he's caught, so you wouldn't be alone."
Before Molly could answer the nurse came back into the room with her release papers. "Alright Dr. Hooper, please sign here and you'll be free to leave. Do you have someone to come and pick you up?"
"Yes that's why we are here. We will see to Dr. Hooper's needs." Sherlock answered.
The nurse smiled at him and handed Molly the papers. "Sign here dear."
Molly signed the papers and took the prescription from the doctor for anti anxiety medication.
John had called for a cab to take them back to the hotel. Molly sat beside the window with John on the other side of her. "How is Greg?" She asked tiredly.
"He's fine. The bullet grazed his shoulder. He had to get a few stitches and he was as good as new. He went back to his hotel room to rest after Chief Inspector Barnaby insisted. Greg took it rather badly that Moran slipped passed him."
"Did Greg see Jim?" Molly asked.
"No, he was already gone before Greg and Sergeant Troy got to the room." John answered.
Silence followed for a few moments when Sherlock spoke. "Molly, how did you manage to escape Moriarty and Moran?"
"I was able to incapacity Jim and when Moran heard Jim cry out, he came to see what the matter was. I hid behind the door and surprised him."
"Incapacitated Moriarty and surprised Moran how?" Sherlock asked with amusement in his voice.
Molly cleared her throat. "I slammed my knee into Jim's groin and broke Moran's nose."
"Good girl Molly!" John said impressed.
"Yes and how did you manage to break Moran's nose exactly Molly?" Sherlock pressed.
"Oh bother you Sherlock! I used the moves you taught me, alright?" She snapped.
Sherlock grinned in satisfaction. "Naturally."
John rolled his eyes. "Do you have to make everything about you Sherlock?"
"This is a terrible idea." Molly began. "I think I should stay with Greg or Gavin."
Sherlock groaned. "Molly will it comfort if I promise to behave?"
"It would if I believed that you meant that. "Molly said softly.
Sherlock leaned up and looked over John. "Molly I swear to you that I will not make this hard on you. I will be on my best behavior. If I do anything that lacks tact or is inappropriate, John will inform me immediately."
Molly swallowed hard, feeling the dread begin to overshadow her. Sherlock reached over John and placed his hand on Molly's. "Molly, look at me."
Slowly she did as he asked, meeting his eyes. "Molly, I promise you that I will be as considerate of your feelings as I can be. You know that this is not my forte, so I may need some guidance from you, but I will do the best that I can."
Molly stared into his eyes and could not deny the sincerity she saw there. She smiled and nodded. "Okay Sherlock. I'll give you the benefit of the doubt."
"She broke my fucking nose Jim!" Seb snapped.
Jim laughed. "As any girl who was being kidnapped would be prone to do. I'm rather proud of our girl Seb. She's grown stronger through all of this. Perhaps my brother was useful after all."
"When are we going to try and take her again?" Seb asked, holding a bag of frozen corn to his face.
"Unfortunately it won't be so simple to get to her next time. I'm sure Sherlock will not be letting her out of his sight anytime soon. This is going to require careful planning on my part, but I'll succeed. I always do."
"Why can't we just take her from her hotel room like we were going to this time?" Seb asked.
Jim looked at him and rolled his eyes. "Seb, sometimes you can be as thick as my brother was. Because my dear fellow, Molly will no longer be in her very own hotel room. She will be sharing one with our favorite consulting detective. I should have thought that would have been obvious, really Seb, how dull you are."
"Well pardon me for not having your genius Jim. I just assumed she'd refuse. It's not like she's falling into his arms or fawning over him anymore."
Jim whirled around to look at him. "And what makes you say that?"
"The night I took her cat, I was outside of the hotel room when the bloke from Causton CID brought her home. She was in a rather intimate embrace with him, if you know what I mean. Then when Sherlock came to see her, she wasn't exactly too happy to see him and from what I could tell, was rather pissed off about the little love bites he put on her neck."
Jim frowned. "I see. A romantic entanglement with that young Sergeant, that is unexpected. And why didn't you tell me about her reaction to Sherlock? That would have been very useful information to have sooner."
Seb shrugged. "You didn't ask. You just told me to grab the cat and I did. Where is the little bastard?"
Jim smiled. "Keeping Mrs. Cumberbatch company."
Seb watched Jim walk across the room to look out the window. He could tell Jim was having one his "mind" moments. After several minutes had passed, Jim turned back to Seb and smiled. "It looks like I'll have to call in a favor from Scotland Yard."
Seb looks incredulous. "Scotland Yard?"
"Yes Seb. I have people strategically placed all over the world, surely it wouldn't be too farfetched that I would have someone at the Yard, would it?
Seb shook his head. "Nothing surprises me about you Jim."
It was just a little after 2 am when the cab pulled into the parking lot of the hotel Molly was going to be staying at with Sherlock and John. John and Molly exited the cab while Sherlock paid him.
Molly seemed to remember something and turned to look at John. "All my things are at the other hotel."
"No, Sherlock and I brought most of it over already. There were a few things that Chief Inspector Barnaby had collected into evidence." John said. "And there were no signs at all that Toby came to any harm."
Molly nodded. "I'm sure Jim took him. I just hope he's…okay…" Her voice trembled.
John put his arm around her and hugged her to him. "There was no blood Molly, no sign of violence. I think if Moriarty or Moran were going to hurt him, they would've done it and left him there."
Molly wiped her eyes and nodded. "Yes, I'm sure you're right."
"Molly?" A male voice called out behind her and John. Molly turned towards the voice and a smile lit her face.
"Gavin!" She said with relief evident in her voice. "I didn't know if you had gotten my text or if you we're still working."
"I just left the office and wanted to check on you." Gavin said approaching her. "Are you alright?"
"She's fine." Came the deep, annoyed, cold baritone of Sherlock Holmes.
"Sherlock…" John warned, grabbing his arm. "We'll just be inside Molly, won't we Sherlock."
Sherlock jerked his arm away from John and started to speak, but he remembered his promise to Molly. She looked at him pleadingly with her eyes for him to not start anything.
Sherlock cleared his throat. "Right, yes, we'll just be inside Molly." He nodded his head to Troy. "Sergeant."
Troy gave him a curt nod and watched him and John walk into the hotel lobby.
"Grotty wanker…" Gavin said under his breath.
"Hey, that was him trying to be nice." Molly said smiling.
"Was it really?" Gavin said smirking. "Needs more practice doesn't he?"
"It wouldn't matter if he did, he thinks he knows everything already." Molly said matter of factly.
"And this is the bloke you were in love with?"
"Small wonders of the heart and all that I suppose. Can't really help who we love, can we?" She asked.
Gavin frowned. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said that. I'm sure he has some good points."
Molly smiled. "Yes he does. You just have to look really hard or you might miss them."
Gavin chuckled softly. "How are you really Molly?"
"I'm exhausted and frightened and…I feel like sometimes I'm teetering on the edge of losing my mind. It was such a blow, seeing Jim." Molly trembled when she said his name. "I thought he was gone forever. I should have known better. He's almost as brilliant as Sherlock. If Sherlock could fake his death, Jim certainly could."
Gavin put his arms around her and pulled her to him.
"He said he's going to take me Gavin. He said Simon was only supposed to keep an eye on me for him. Jim said he's going to take me away."
"We won't let him Molly." Gavin said, holding her tighter.
"You don't understand. Jim has unlimited resources. He's vindictive, clever, and devious. In some ways, he almost has the upper hand on Sherlock. Sherlock might be clever and brilliant, but he's not devious. His mind is clinical and calculating, sometimes coldly calculating, but he's not wicked and Jim Moriarty is. I think Jim is willing to go farther than Sherlock ever would."
Molly pulled back slightly and looked up at Gavin. "And that might be what allows Jim to win this. I wonder how many more people will be hurt or killed in this. It almost makes it seem like just giving myself to him would be the right thing to do. How many people have to be caught in the crossfire just for one person Gavin? It isn't right."
"Don't say that Molly! We'll figure this out. Besides if what everyone tells me is true about Sherlock, do you think he would just allow that to happen? I know I wouldn't?"
Molly laid her head back against his chest. "I just don't know how much more of this I can take Gavin. If anyone else gets hurts because of me…I don't know what I'll do…"
Sherlock watched from inside the hotel lobby. Everything inside of him was screaming for him to march out there and grab her away from him, but he resisted. He made a promise to her to give her space and to behave appropriately. If he wanted to win her away from Gavin he would have to change his game. He would have to behave in a way that was foreign and new to him and run the risk of vulnerability on his part, something he wasn't sure that he was ready to do, even for Molly.
Review please...and a little teaser into the next chapter...Molly gets some lovin, let's find out from whom, shall we?