The Fall of Miss Holmes (BBC Sherlock FanFic)

Chapter Eleven

About an hour later, Sherlock was pretty much back to his normal self apart from him fiddling with stuff a lot more than usual and he seemed very on edge. He watched fretfully as the ambulance crew wheeled away the man's body.

"It was him. Sulejmani or something. Mycroft showed me his file. He's a big Albanian gangster." John said as the ambulance drove away.

"Why did Mycroft show you his file?" I asked frowning. Why had he shown only John and not Sherlock as well?

"He'd moved in two doors down from us." John said.

"He died because I shook his hand." Sherlock said, seriously.

"What do you mean?" John said, glancing at me worriedly.

"He saved my life but he couldn't touch me? Why?" Sherlock said, to himself rather than us, before storming off down the street.

"Wait, Sherlock!" John shouted, following quickly.

Sherlock marched us all the way to Baker Street where he rapidly entered the flat and pulled off his scarf and coat. He grabbed the laptop and began tapping away.

"Four assassins living right on our doorstep. They didn't come here to kill me; they have to keep me alive." He sat down at the table with the laptop in front of him and John walked over to the window, standing close to Sherlock.

Four assassins? This was the first I'd heard of it, something I found a tad concerning.

"I've got something all of them want, but if one of them approaches me..."

"...The others kill them before they can get it." John finished.

Sherlock grunted in agreement, tapping rapidly at the keyboard. I sat down in John's chair, pulling my legs up so my knees were beneath my chin, watching them both carefully.

"All the attention is focused on me. There's a surveillance web closing in on us right now." Sherlock said.

"So what have you got that's so important?" I asked. Sherlock gazed into space for a while, thinking before he concentrated on running his finger down the table and staring at his fingertip.

"We need to ask about the dusting."

Not long after, Sherlock was banging on Mrs Hudson's door.

"For god's sake Sherlock, can't it wait?" I said, watching him from the stairs with my arms folded.

"No." He said as he continued to pound at the door.

"Ooh, Sherlock what is it? At this time of night? I was in bed! Sherlock? Sherlock, what're you doing?!" Mrs Hudson complained. Sherlock had grabbed her arm and was half guiding, half dragging her up the stairs. I sighed and moved out of the way before I was stampeded by a mad Sherlock.

"Precise details: in the last week what's been cleaned?" He said running round the room checking furniture and shelves for god knows what. I was watching sceptically from the sofa and John was leaning against his chair also watching.

"Well, Tuesday I did your lino..." She began.

"No in here. This room. This is where we'll find it. Any break in the dust line. You can put back anything but dust. "Sherlock muttered. He ran his finger down a shelf and lifted it dramatically. "Dust is eloquent."

"What's he on about?" Mrs Hudson murmured to me. I shrugged back, frowning at Sherlock.

"Cameras, we're being watched." Sherlock said as he climbed a bookcase.

"What? Cameras? Here?" Mrs Hudson said looking around worriedly. "I'm in my nightie!"

The doorbell rang and she ran to go answer it, shaking her head in despair. I watched Sherlock as he climbed down from the bookcase and moved over to the other one by his chair. He checked the books on the top shelf and curiosity got the better of me. I walked over so I was stood next to him as he fiddled with a book that was pushed further forward that the others. He pushed it further into the bookcase and revealed a camera placed at the side of the shelf.