lilith. {series four}

the six treasures. {part one}

"It's everywhere."

In a flash, the screen flicked off. Momentary silence fell upon them, a blanket of truth and horror covering their souls. She turned her attention to the woman in the chair before her, and the man standing behind her. The man's face was stern and stiff, though the woman was everything otherwise. That was the thing about the siblings. It was like they've been contrasting one another since birth.

"I can see that," she mumbled grimly. "Clearly."

"It's currently one of the highest viewed videos in all of the country," the lady dragged on, fishing for something other than the inescapable glares she was receiving. Her back was straight. Her voice was clean, as though it had been filtered through with politeness.  "We're unable to track who's responsible."

"As expected," the younger shrugged. Carelessness was an easy thing to accomplish, and a brutal one to endure.

"It was played on every possible screen in the country," a second professional man snapped, looking irritated. He held a similar gaze to the older woman, and the other people in the room. Two other men, and another woman. "This has become a matter of national security, the Prime Minister is demanding answers."

"Well too bad." A chuckle fled through her throat. "Because it's none of his concern."

"Watch your tone, Miss Holmes," the older woman scolded, a mother swatting her child with words. She was shooting looks at the man behind her. He read them perfectly clear, he just chose not to engage in a secret talk with her with only their eyes. "I thought the tests showed that you would be sober for this meeting."

"A lot can happen between a morning and an afternoon. One could kill a man. One could disprove the tests prior to now." 

Foolish banter didn't amuse her. "You had a connection with Jamie Moriarty before she died. You were the last person to see her alive." 

"If you're suggesting I have some information on this, then I don't." Lilith was on her phone now, which she had pulled out of who knows where who knows when, furiously typing something down as though she wasn't in an important meeting with government representatives. "If I had the slightest idea that she was alive then I would have been on this trail instantly." 

Boredom crawled through her skin and veins. She could have held this conversation a million times with a million different people and the outcome wouldn't have been different. She knew what and who she was, and she knew what others wanted with her. They wanted answers. Lilith was a walking, talking supplier of information. 

"Are you certain that none of Moriarty's criminal organisations have been active in the last year?" It was one of the men who spoke now, a deep accent hiding any emotion to his tone. Lilith was what one could call a newcomer to the concept of basic emotion. But even she could tell he wanted nothing more than to claw her own eyes out.

"Certain."

"And no one who she was close with, someone capable of uploading that video?"

"Nope."

"Were there any additional threats she made before death?"

"No. Question, Lady Smallwood, you have young children, correct?" Lilith looked up with curiosity at the woman, who blinked in return. "Judging by your attitude, impatience, your obvious working time, and your general attire, I'm going to say so."

"Ah, see these are the deductions I warned you about." August spoke to the lady and the men with a knowing, thoughtful look in his eyes. His finger was pointed down to his sister, despite there being no one else he could've been referring to.

Lilith was a small child in his eyes. She wanted to be rid of that thought more than anything. But there was little she could do in her state, she supposed. So much for proving a point. 

Lilith eyed Smallwood carefully, a slight innocent look on her face, clearly not matching the circumstances of their meeting. "What would you say is a fitting gift for a young baby boy?"

"Miss Holmes, we're not here to chat about babies," Smallwood snapped harshly, but Lilith was still unfazed. "We're here to discuss the matters of Jamie Moriarty's return, something that I suggest you take seriously. Need I remind you of the danger Moriarty carries with her?"

Lilith looked away from her phone for a moment to glare at the woman before her. Blue light shone on her face, showcasing the dark bags she carried under her eyes and the paleness of her skin. She took a few seconds of pure staring, a competition of deduction, before spewing out words at the speed of light. "Jamie Moriarty hired a man named Jeff Hope to poison innocent people, and then nearly poisoned me. Moriarty devised an elaborate themed scheme that involved bombing a building and resulted in numerous kidnappings. She made allies with a young ex-actress who was responsible for several murders and planned to ship them out to sea where nobody would find them. She broke into a prison, a bank, and the Tower of Trolldon just to make herself seen and she gave me the choice to either die and let someone I care about live, or kill them if I didn't kill myself. I was forced to fake my death for almost exactly two years, so really Lady Smallwood, do you think I don't know Moriarty and what she's capable of?"