Unlocked.

Chapter Eighteen - The Piper.

 We arrived at the scene, as Scotland yard was finishing up cataloging the bodies. Sherlock held the cab door open for me and paid. Then he took my hand and lead me toward the scene. We were by the Thames. In the industrial area of town. It was just factory for miles. Excepting a nearby bridge, covered by graffiti. But the thing that caught my attention immediately was the Children...

Children.

Lying on the ground dead, were thirteen children of various ages.

I had to turn away from the gore. My stomach turning.

"Drowned. Obviously." Sherlock remarked to Lestrade as we approached the scene.

"Well yeah I'd gathered that." Greg replied shortly. I broke away from Sherlock as he was headed to the bodies and stood over to the side, watching the river.

A brunette woman approached me from behind.

"So you're the freak's new pet?" The woman asked popping up beside me.

"I beg your pardon." I jumped.

"You are with the freak. Right?" The woman asked as I observed her.

I deduced a few things about her that are too... personal to mention.

"Sherlock?! You are calling Him a freak?" I clarified.

"Yeah. Are you thick? Maybe you aren't with him." She said rudely and walked over to the crime scene.

My blood boiled.

I tried to be the adult. I walked away from the awful woman and toward the bridge that the scene was near. And as I did I noticed some graffiti, fresh graffiti.

"Hmm." I said wiping some of the wet paint off with my glove.

The graffiti read... ' To die was an art.' and underneath it was something i had noticed something from one of my favorite ABBA songs The piper... 'Sub luna saltamus'

Sherlock approached me as my brain worked overtime.

"This graffiti does it mean anything to you?" I asked Sherlock.

"No I haven't been able to puzzle it out. And this was the only thing 'linking' the crimes." Sherlock huffed frustratedly.

"Do you think they are connected?" I ask.

"Honestly i think this is the work of a copy cat..."

"Sub luna saltamus" I said quietly.

"Latin."

"Yeah I know its from a song I like... WAIT! Latin." I exclaim pointing to the words on the brick bridge.

"To die" I said looking at Sherlock to translate.

"Mori." He replied a look of horror spreading over his face.

"Is an art" I whispered.

"Erat artis." Sherlock replied.

"MORIARTY!" We exclaimed in unison.

"It could still be a copy cat." Sherlock argued.

"Sherlock I've seen him." I reply vehemently. 

"Have you or was it the drugs?" Sherlock says crossing his arms.

"Drugs?" I ask impatiently.

"When you first saw me, and you collapsed I took a vial of your blood and gave it to my brother. You were on hallucinogens." Sherlock says evenly.

"What?!" I exclaim.

"I'm sorry Keyland." He replies.

"No no no... Moriarty is alive! John can tell you!" I blurt. Sherlock's eyes go wide.

"John? Keyland what did you do?" He grimaces.

"I may have met with him." I admit.

"You what?!" He exclaims.

"Can we talk about this later?" I reply looking at the look Greg is giving us.

"No we can't." Sherlock sasses.

"Lestrade! Look what I found!" Exclaims the woman from earlier.

"Nice Donovan! Where did you get it?" He asks.

"In this little girl's backpack... It's addressed to Sherlock and Keyland."

"Give that here." Sherlock growls. She tosses it at him.

Sherlock pulled the phone out of its protective covering. He pressed the start button and the phone rebooted. It was a seemingly ordinary phone... until a text message popped up into the inbox. Sherlock clicked on the app and the screen lit up with a video message. With a familiar face...

.... 'Did you miss me???'  

'Did you miss me?'

'Did you miss me?'