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BBC Sherlock - The Burning Question P5 Then Sherlock shook his head. Katrya’s long, lean frame leaned back to stare up at him. She crossed her arms and distinctly didn’t look the silhouette of a woman admitting defeat.BBC Sherlock - The Burning Question P52 years ago in Profiles More Like This
John drew back behind the dust covered furnishings between their areas and sat on his bed. He couldn’t keep from uttering a few chuckles as he strapped on the shoulder rig and pulled on his coat. He had hold of himself by the time he stepped into his boots. Sherlock settled on the bed across from him with a huff, and rubbed both his eyes as if they were itchy. “The Russians…”
“A fiery people,” John said. And then burst into giggles. He covered his mouth with one hand.
BBC Sherlock - The Burning Question P1 John Watson woke up to Sherlock Holmes’ tall silhouette moving around his room.BBC Sherlock - The Burning Question P12 years ago in Profiles More Like This
It was 3 AM.
John wriggled out of the knot of sheets that often formed around him when he dreamt of the war, and managed to complain, “What the devil are you doing, Sherlock?” His reward was getting to see Sherlock’s lithe form lift about a half a foot off the ground, turn in midair, and come down with a crack against the dresser. Then, like a cat, he scampered out of the room at full tilt.
So funny! So damn funny! And John was too tired to even laugh. Life was unfair. “No,” John heaved himself out of bed and stumbled after his flatmate.
BBC Sherlock - The Burning Question P2BBC Sherlock - The Burning Question P22 years ago in Profiles More Like This
Sherlock hurried down the escape and flipped over the steel rails to the ground when he was close enough. His brows drew down. He tucked his hands in his pockets and walked up to John. “Afraid of heights, John?”
“No.”
“Lots of helicopter rides in Afghanistan.” Sherlock tugged his jacket gently and paced past.
“Yes.” John turned to follow the man’s motions.
“News helicopters are rolling on every inch of the downtown right now. If I had done this, I’d
UntitledBBC Sherlock - The Burning Question P9 Sarah reached up and touched the bruises on his face. Her fingers were gentle, but the touch stung enough that Sherlock’s eye watered in reaction. She watched this with fascination and drew her fingertips across his bottom lid. A tear from those eyes was probably rarer than diamonds. “Be careful, Sherlock. Take care of John. Let John take care of you.”UntitledBBC Sherlock - The Burning Question P92 years ago in Profiles More Like This
“Nothing I can do to stop him.” Sherlock took her hands in his, gave them a squeeze and set them firmly away from him. “Sarah, we’ll loop feed here in a minute. For the first three or four minutes, just lean in the corner and try to look vulnerable and afraid, but hold the position.”
Sherlock’s words encouraged her. Saying that she had t
BBC Sherlock - The Burning Question P4 John didn’t even bother to answer that. He turned and made his way through the offices behind Sherlock. His stomach twisted with worry for Katrya downstairs. How would she know to leave? Where would she go?BBC Sherlock - The Burning Question P42 years ago in Profiles More Like This
In the elevator he looked up at Holmes. “I hope you know what you’re doing. She’s got nothing without us, and we can’t be seen with her now.”
Sherlock turned to look down on him. “Oh look at you. Look at the worry. That’s endearing, John. You should try that look out on Sarah. It’s got all the appeal of a puppy.”
“This isn’t funny, Sherlock. Katrya’s putting her fai
BBC Sherlock - The Burning Question P7 “That him? You texted him earlier, right?”BBC Sherlock - The Burning Question P72 years ago in Profiles More Like This
“No… I didn’t. Yes… it is him.” They were almost to the Yard now. In fact, the car pulled up as Sherlock stared at his phone screen. “Hm. I wonder what he’s up to?”
“What’s it say?” John glanced at the black phone’s surface.
“Says, ‘You’ve been summoned to the Yard’. Since when does Lestrade say ‘summoned’ in general conversation, let alone in a text.” His brows bounced up in sudden curiosity, and he got out of the cab with hints of that old Sherlock excitement about him.
BBC Sherlock - The Burning Question P3 There was a long pause.BBC Sherlock - The Burning Question P32 years ago in Profiles More Like This
“You might question it more if you were worried about the well-being of the city of London.” Sherlock added. But beyond that he had no further opinion on the matter. He paced in tight circles inside the break room, and finally came to a stop to look at Katrya's face. His eyes narrowed in consideration, before he said, “You realize that if I bring you to the police they will expect you to turn evidence against Zyza? You will have no peace. He will know exactly where to target his search for you. You’ve certainly painted yourself into a corner in London.”
She looked at the floor, broodingly. “For weeks we have had no plans. We have been running aimlessly, and I don't expect your help now.
BBC Sherlock - The Burning Question P6 The monitors all went to black, and then, to normal. It was as if every soul in the room had been thrown down by a god. They stood blinking at their documents and forms, their mundane humdrum, at the loop of newsfeed overhead, and a sudden wave of hubbub erupted. Their eyes had been opened. The room was now as loud as a concert hall. Everything Lestrade could hear was about what Sherlock had just shown to them. And, dear God, Holmes’ had hacked the Yard. Less than 10 minutes and he’d electrified every soul in Homicide and Serious Crime. Cops locked machines and grabbed their coats around him. The raw, thoughtless power of that child… it made Lestrade’s hair stand on end.BBC Sherlock - The Burning Question P62 years ago in Profiles More Like This
And then IT people ran out of the stairwell and into the room, gasping and staring around wildly.
BBC Sherlock - The Burning Question P10 Sherlock ate ice cream wordlessly, but the fun seemed to have drained out of it.BBC Sherlock - The Burning Question P102 years ago in Profiles More Like This
“Does the family believe in corporal punishment?” John asked calmly.
There was a long pause. It went so long that John thought Sherlock wasn’t going to respond. He really hated that. It had taken John a while to realize the only thing Sherlock felt safe talking about was cases. Everything else was hidden, heavily firewalled, and encrypted, or something Sherlock-techy, like that. So he was surprised when Sherlock cleared his throat and told him: “Yes, well, I’m rather unruly, I’m told, and a handful. You might relate.”
Oh, he
Sherlock - The Ninth Muse P2 John brought the ladder. Together, they cleared down the boxes until they could open the one stacked lowest. It, Sherlock said, had a duplicated case number. Inside it, they found padding – bent and folded cardboard – and a smaller box. Inside that was a stout, clear plastic bag, like the kind one found around furniture, and, inside, a black garbage bag. They’d found the missing janitor (who had yet to be called in as missing.) He was small in size, and Asian. He sat with his knees against his chest, his head down, and his arms tucked inside.Sherlock - The Ninth Muse P22 years ago in Profiles More Like This
Sherlock’s head tipped to one side.
Fetal position.
Once John and Lestrade lifted
Sherlock - The Ninth Muse P5 Lestrade parked the car in the garage, shut the engine, and looked at the blank slab concrete wall before him. He set his hands back on the wheel, his knuckles nicked and traced with old scars. No one moved. Sherlock probably didn’t know they’d stopped yet.Sherlock - The Ninth Muse P52 years ago in Profiles More Like This
“Commander Snow,” Lestrade sounded irritated. His eyes glanced off the mirror to the back seat, and missing Sherlock’s attention entirely, fixed on John. “There’s a decent possibility that he won’t allow you into the building, and you can be certain he’s been told we’re on the way. That’s likely to mean he has people waiting for us.”
“He’s a big fan of Sherlock’s,” John rubbed his cheek an
Sherlock - The Ninth Muse P9 Every day is my birthday when I’m in the Yard, John thought. He looked at Holmes, bleeding and pale, and knew this had to end soon, or they risked his death.Sherlock - The Ninth Muse P92 years ago in Profiles More Like This
Sherlock realized this too. He made a gun shape with his right hand and flicked his wrist upward. John read that to mean, ‘Shoot him’. Holmes was all about expediency now that his mind was clouding with fever and blood loss. He’d solved the thing. He wanted it done.
“Come out, Holmes. It’s you I want. No one else is going to get hurt if you come out. Not that pretty girl of yours, I saw you with. No one.”
Sarah, he meant. John glanced at her fright
Sherlock - The Ninth Muse P10 “It’s bad luck to loiter in doorways, Lestrade.” Sherlock said lazily. “And don’t all police have superstitious minds?” He half smiled.Sherlock - The Ninth Muse P102 years ago in Profiles More Like This
“How’d you…” Lestrade gave his head a little shake and stepped inside. “How are you?”
Sherlock’s eyes popped open, his lips tightened, “John? If I’m distracted by one more triviality, I’m pulling this needle out and leaving.”
“Not bloody likely,” John told him sternly. “You won’t like life much if you leave here before you’ve had a chance for that arm to heal. The painkillers-
Sherlock - The Ninth Muse P1 Sherlock’ s notes were as likely to be full of commentary on the inanity of today’s news anchors and his personal preferences regarding soy sauce and grammar than any blasts of genius, most people didn’t get that about him. But John Watson did. This infernal storm of papers all over the room is exactly what happened when you noticed everything. Genius was an untidy affair.Sherlock - The Ninth Muse P12 years ago in Profiles More Like This
Holmes records meandered like a forsaken cow abandoned in the desert, from ‘There were clear signs of formalin in the divots of the bowling ball – faintly detectable to the nose – enough to prove the client was lying; he had been in the University that night’, to ‘We are out of yogurt; who is responsible for this?’, although that last one, John felt a super-sleuth should have known.
Sherlock - The Ninth Muse P3 It was a strange transition for him though, out of a world of salacious murders, forensics, and implacable logical puzzles into a 9 to 5 job. It was throwing the brakes on a Mack truck. The next few hours were wholly devoid of crushed skulls, smugglers, wily serial killers, and high art thieves of any kind. What he did have was:Sherlock - The Ninth Muse P32 years ago in Profiles More Like This
1 case of tonsillitis
1 torn ligament
2 allergic reactions
6 colds or running noses
1 case of tennis elbow
1 migraine
The office was secure and safe. It ran like a well-oiled machine. For example, the personnel were warm and welcoming. They treated incoming patients like coffee shop guests. Possibly because of the handling, the patients seemed like decent people under their aches and pains. He saw a couple of Sarah’s patients when she fell behind on vaccinations. She had four year old twins tearing through her examination room. It was funny to
Sherlock - The Ninth Muse P4 “You didn’t tell him about the letter.” John said quietly. “Isn’t there a chance this is still sitting in the mail room on this floor somewhere, you know, going between offices in the Met, rather than outside the building?”Sherlock - The Ninth Muse P42 years ago in Profiles More Like This
“Yes. And we’ll be looking for it as soon as the bleeding stops,” Sherlock said breathlessly. It had taken a lot of his energy to keep a front up for Lestrade. He pulled up his knees and sagged to the wall now. His face was shock white.
“Drink this.” John opened a sugary orange juice that Sarah had thoughtfully thrown into the bag. She’d dropped in a four-pack and Watson knew they’d need every bottle.
Sherlock cracked an eye open, took the container, and he
Sherlock - The Ninth Muse P8 Within five minutes, Lestrade and a decidedly hand-cuff-free Kelly Carter walked down the hall which ran parallel the glass wall. Carter was in sweats now, rather than in uniform. Sherlock scanned her head to toe as she came through the door and leered at him.Sherlock - The Ninth Muse P82 years ago in Profiles More Like This
“Well if it ain’t Billie-no-mates his-self.”
“Himself.” Sherlock said reflexively. It didn’t seem to bother him he’d been called a friendless outcast. No, it was the grammar that got to him.
“I been offered immunity, nancy, how do you like that?” She sat down in the chair on his right and leaned her elbows on it.
BBC Sherlock - The Double Walker P10 Merriweather turned her computer in Holmes’ direction. “Scarlett Walker. That’s the name of this artist… although she seems to find Mars Red more fitting. If I’m right, then you’ll be able to connect Scarlett Walker to North Yorkshire, correct?”BBC Sherlock - The Double Walker P102 years ago in Profiles More Like This
“Oh my God,” Sherlock said coldly. In fact, he was tapping on the slate on his knee. “Don’t have to.” John realized, immediately, that Scarlett Walker was a name on the list of Top Ten Most Proficient that Sherlock had pulled earlier in the case.
Merriweather didn’t, and couldn’t, know this. “But why not?” The girl – Pamela – demonstrated the greatest degree of lively curiosity that
BBC Sherlock - The Double Walker P12 John strode in, caught hold of the downed guard’s elbow, and pulled him easily out through the hallway. “Well, while I was in the closet, I found another of those garbage carts.”BBC Sherlock - The Double Walker P122 years ago in Profiles More Like This
“Oh good.”
They walked the cart out through the freight elevator. Once they were outside, Sherlock cuffed the man to a steel bollard, popped the cap off a Sharpie pen, and wrote on the man’s chest:
Ask me about – kidnappings and drownings.
He also drew an arrow across the man’s shoulder pointing back at the building.
BBC Sherlock - The Double Walker P5 Sherlock’s voice had that low, gravelly warmth it took on when he was satisfied with something. He was hunching above his mobile phone, tapping away. “Yes, good. Very good, John! They have multiple University Hire Programmes. One of their College Outreaches is to Askham Bryan, which has a campus in Bedale; they’re looking for nurses... and… according to Ark-Co Online they only College-hire the best and brightest.”BBC Sherlock - The Double Walker P52 years ago in Profiles More Like This
“So we know the year she would have graduated,” John gave up and climbed out swathed in a massive towel – pink with tea roses. The girl liked her towels. And her pink.
“We do,” Sherlock nodded and turned to show John the phone extended on his long, indefa
BBC Sherlock - The Double Walker P1 The clinic felt cold and crowded with the air conditioning roaring away above him. John disliked the heat, but then, several years in Afghanistan had taught him tolerance. Cold was something he’d always hated. It came from early childhood remembrances of his father losing jobs, and the family limping through winters on what could be scrimped, saved, borrowed, or begged. That had been seasonal work. John had decided for the steady course of the military. They’d paid to make him a doctor, and he’d given them a good 5 years of his life in gratitude.BBC Sherlock - The Double Walker P12 years ago in Profiles More Like This
He hated the cold.
He also disliked this meeting.
The senior doctor in the clinic had a smal
BBC Sherlock - The Double Walker P2 Warren made a little moue of disbelief.BBC Sherlock - The Double Walker P22 years ago in Profiles More Like This
There were mutters. Some soft swears. None of the City police looked very pleased to find out it was them he was addressing. Dark looks swept over him and Lestrade, and more than one expression of disgust and antagonism sprang up.
Whoa. Lestrade winced and glanced at the SIO. “We should remove them, quickly.” as in, before Sherlock got a head of steam. He could be a tyrant in a tantrum – a real little soldier’s boots, or however that went.
The SIO gave herself a shake. “You mean…. Remove my investigators? Why’s that?” She glanced around her in
BBC Sherlock - The Double Walker P3 John blinked. The clouds cleared back from his shoulders. Daft flatmate! Who had said it? He’d said it, though not in so many words.BBC Sherlock - The Double Walker P32 years ago in Profiles More Like This
‘You said six pints and she’d still be in critical trouble.’ John fumbled across his phone’s keyboard with an oath that startled a passerby.
Sherlock, in contrast, texted with the fleetness of a rabbit:
‘Absent from sentence = the word dead.’
‘Need assistant. Come now.’
BBC Sherlock - The Double Walker P11 As impossible as he would have deemed it in the cramped, airless, and fume-filled room, John fell asleep. He jerked awake only when Holmes – his coat smelling like fog and wind – slumped onto the chest beside him. “John. Here.”BBC Sherlock - The Double Walker P112 years ago in Profiles More Like This
Sherlock gave him bottled water.
“What did you do?”
“Went to meet, Sarah.” He nodded. “She’s pulling the car around. Give me a pill, John.” His hands were shaking.
His movements stiff and painful, John pulled out the pill baggies and decided the dosages. He gave Sherloc
Sta.sh
