I awoke, sitting on cold tile, fully dressed. Whoever had done this had taken the time to dress me in a tight dress and heels. My hands were tied behind my back. As I looked up there was a man in an expensive suit staring at me with a sinister smile. My mouth formed an 'O' shape as I recognized him. Two large men grabbed me and raised me to my feet. They continued to hold onto my arms so I didn't try to run, even though I was too weak from the drugs.
"You're James..." I said, remembering the day I ran into him on the street. He had been following me, I had spotted him at the restaurant Sherlock had taken me to during the taxi driver case.
"Jim Moriarty. Pleased to meet you. That dress fits you well, although I regret not being the one who put you in it." He smirked. I tried to wiggle out of their arms but they were too strong. He laughed when he saw me struggling.
"Where are we?" I asked.
"We're at the pool where poor Carl Powers died. And you're going to help me." He said, nodding to one of his men. He let go of me and grabbed something off of a table. I noticed it as soon as he held it up to strap it to me. Explosives. Enough to take down the building. He wrapped it around your waist and you dared not move, afraid to set it off. After it had been strapped to me he moved to cut the ties around my hands. He knew I wouldn't try to run while he held the detonator. After my hands were freed he placed a large coat on me, similar to the ones Sherlock is always wearing. I looked out the window and all I saw was darkness, it must have been around midnight.
The second man let go of me and placed a headphone in my ear, wrapping it down the back of my neck.
"Let's make sure you've got this clear love." Moriarty said, stepping closer to me. He placed his finger under my chin, raising it until our eyes met. I was the same height in the heels they had put me in.
"You say what I tell you exactly, or these go off." He spoke, running his finger down my body near the explosives. I nodded weakly. He looked at his watch.
"Show time." He said with a devious smile. His men took me out to the pool where I was to repeat Moriarty's exact words as they were spoken in my ear. I stood behind a pillar. One of his men stayed behind with me, he was going to signal when I had to walk out.
I heard the door to the pool open and footsteps on the tile. They walked around for a bit before speaking.
"Brought you a little getting-to-know-you present. That's what it's all been for, isn't it? All your little puzzles, making me dance. All to distract me from this." The voice said, my eyes grew wide as I realized who it was. I looked to Moriarty's men, he gave me the signal to step out. My heels clicked on the tile. My hands were in the deep pockets of the coat.
I stepped out next to the pool, turning and facing him. Sherlock Holmes. I kept a straight face, as I was instructed to do. Sherlock lowered his hand which was holding the Bruce-Partington Plans. He turned and looked to me, the level of shock on his face was enormous.
Evening. Moriarty spoke into my ear.
"Evening." I repeated to Sherlock. "This is a turn-up, isn't it, Sherlock?"
"Adelaide. What the hell?" He asked, confused.
"Bet you never saw this coming." I spoke his words. Sherlock stepped towards me slowly. What I saw on his face scared me more than the bombs. Doubt. He doubted me, he thought I was behind all of this.
Why don't you open up that little coat of yours, love. Let Sherlock see that pretty body wrapped up in explosives. Moriarty instructed me. I took my hands out of my pockets and opened the coat slightly so Sherlock could see. Moriarty had seemed to pick out the most scandalous and revealing dress he could find. Sherlock's eyes scanned every part of my body. The doubt on his face was replaced with fear.
"What would you like me to make her say next?" I spoke his words again.
"Gottle o' geer, gottle o' geer, gottle o' geer." I spoke.
"Stop it." Sherlock insisted.
"Nice touch, this. The pool, where little Carl died." I began, Sherlock continued stepping closer to me. "I stopped him. I could stop Adelaide Gregson, too. Stop her heart." I said. I looked down and saw a red dot on my chest. Moriarty's snipers.
"Who are you?" Sherlock said, looking around. The opposite pool door opened and Moriarty's true voice rang out.
"I gave you my number. Thought you might call." Moriarty said, approaching us from behind. "Is that a British Army Browning L9A1 in your pocket, or do you like the dress I picked out for our little girl here."
"Both." Sherlock said, pulling the gun out of his pocket and pointing it to Moriarty.
"Jim Moriarty. Hi. Jim? Jim from the hospital? Oh, did I really make such a fleeting impression? But then, I suppose, that was rather the point."
I noticed Sherlock looking at the sniper line on me.
"Don't be silly. Someone else is holding the rifle." Moriarty said, noticing too. "I don't like getting my hands dirty. I've given you a glimpse, Sherlock, just a teensy glimpse of what I've got going on out there in the big bad world. I'm a specialist, you see. Like you."
"Dear Jim, please will you fix it for me to get rid of my lover's nasty sister? Dear Jim, please will you fix it for me to disappear to South America?" Sherlock spoke.
"Just so." Moriarty replied, I could hear his voice getting closer.
"Consulting criminal. Brilliant." Sherlock said, keeping his gun steady on him.
"Isn't it? No one ever gets to me, and no one ever will." He said.
"I did." Sherlock said, cocking the gun.
"You've come the closest. Now you're in my way." Moriarty said.
"Thank you." Sherlock said.
"Didn't mean it as a compliment." Jim said.
"Yes you did." Sherlock returned.
"Yeah, okay, I did. But the flirtings over, Sherlock. Daddy's had enough now. I've shown you what I can do. I cut loose all those people, all those little problems, even 30 million quid just to get you to come out and play. So take this as a friendly warning... my dear. Back off." Jim spoke. I looked down to the ground, remembering the man we were dealing with was not afraid of racking up a body count. Sherlock stole a quick glance at me and returned his gaze to Moriarty, still holding his gun high.
"Although I have loved this, this little game of ours. Playing Jim from IT, playing gay. Did you like the little touch with the underwear?" He rambled on, coming closer still.
"People have died." Sherlock said.
"That's what people do!" He yelled, his voice causing me to tremble slightly.
"I will stop you." Sherlock growled back.
"No, you won't." He said, I noticed he was right behind you now.
"Are you alright?" Sherlock asked me. I was afraid to answer.
"You can talk, Addie. Go ahead." I clenched my jaw at the sound of his voice in my ear, his breath on my neck. I hated that nickname, and I didn't allow anyone to call me that. My uncle always called me that, and I had more than enough reason to hate him. I looked up to Sherlock and nodded. He immediately held the flash drive out to Moriarty.
"Take it." He instructed.
"Hmm? Oh... That? The missile plans." Jim said, stepping in front of me and taking it. He held it in his hand and kissed it. "Boring! I could have got them anywhere." He said, tossing it into the pool.
My body took over, I lunged at him in front of me and wrapped my arms around his neck.
"Sherlock, run!" I yelled. Moriarty just laughed, even though my grip on his neck was tightening.
"Good!" Jim yelled. "Very good!"
"If your sniper pulls that trigger, Jim, then we both go up." I spoke in his ear.
"She's sweet. I can see why you like having her around." He said calmly to Sherlock. "Then again, people do get so sentimental about their pets. They're so touchingly loyal. But opps! You've rather shown your hand there, Sergeant Gregson."
I looked up to see the sniper had moved their line onto Sherlock.
"Gotcha." Jim said, as I let go of him, stepping back carefully. He brushed his suit off and said, "Westwood."
"Do you know what happens if you don't leave me alone, Sherlock? Do you?" Jim spoke.
"Oh, let me guess. I get killed." Sherlock said as the sniper moved back onto me.
"Kill you. Mmm, no. Don't be obvious. I mean, I'm gonna kill you anyway someday. I don't want to rush it, though. I'm saving it up for something special. No,no,no,no,no. If you don't stop prying, I'll burn you. I'll burn the heart out of you."
"I have been reliably informed that I don't have one." Sherlock spoke. Jim looked back to me with a smirk on his face.
"But we both know that's not quite true." Jim said. "Well, I better be off. So nice to have had a proper chat.
"What if I was to shoot you now? Right now?" Sherlock asked.
"Then you could cherish the look of surprise on my face. 'Cause I'd be surprised, Sherlock. Really, I would. And just a teensy bit... disappointed. And of course, you wouldn't be able to cherish it for very long. Ciao, Sherlock Holmes." Jim said, turning and opening the door.
"Catch you later." sherlock said.
"No, you won't" Jim yelled back, slamming the door. After the door was closed Sherlock placed his gun on the ground and ripped the coat off of me. He then proceeded to unstrap all the explosives from around my waist.
"All right?" Sherlock asked, I was still groggy from being drugged. "Are you alright?"
"Yeah, yeah, I'm fine." He slid the explosives down to the other side of the pool. I grabbed onto the pillar as my head began to spin. Sherlock had picked back up his gun and began inspecting the place.
"Are you okay?" I asked him. He was pacing .
"Me? Yeah, fine. I'm fine. Fine." He kept mumbling. "That, uh... That you did. That um, you offered to do... that was, um.. Good." He said, trying to find the words. That was Sherlock for 'thank you'.
"I'm glad no one saw that." I said.
"Hmm?" He asked.
"You ripping my clothes off in a darkened swimming pool, especially in this dress. People would talk." I smiled, trying to lighten the situation.
"People do little else." He smiled back. I went to look down at the revealing dress I was wearing when I noticed the red dot re-appear. The door opened and Moriarty's voice was back.
"Sorry, you two." He began, I looked up to Sherlock and he was being targeted too.
"I'm so changeable. It is a weakness with me, but to be fair to myself, it is my only weakness. You can't be allowed to continue. You just can't. I would try to convince you, but everything I have to say has already crossed your mind."
I was now standing next to Sherlock, nearly the same height with the heels I had been put in. He looked to me and I nodded.
"Possibly my answer has crossed yours." Sherlock said, pointing the gun at Moriarty, then slowly lowering it to the explosives that he had ripped from my body and slid to where he was standing. I closed my eyes and waited for him to pull the trigger.