Molly tried to hide her fear while Benjamin took her picture, but she was trembling with it as he approached her afterwards.
He took the gag out of her mouth. "Sorry about the bondage theme, but I want to make a strong impression on Sherlock."
"Why are you doing this?" Molly asked.
"It's an experiment," he explained. "To determine which one of you Sherlock will choose. Who do you think it will be?"
Molly glanced toward Irene, who was in the same predicament. They were both locked in restraints, but Irene was still gagged.
"I hoped that you'd have a little more confidence than that," Benjamin said. "He did say that he'd been thinking about you while he was away, but maybe you know that's a lie. They lie to get what they want from us. Irene even told me that she loves me. That's why I'm leaving her gag on. I don't want to hear anymore of her lies."
"So you're holding us for ransom," Molly guessed. "What if he pays the money for both of us? Or do you think he wouldn't be able to raise enough ransom money for both of us after the ten million pounds you already asked for?"
"I doubt he even delivered that money to the location I specified, because he probably thought that Mycroft's men would capture me before I could get my hands on it. I wonder if he deduced it wasn't Moriarty," he mused thoughtfully. "Not that it matters. The whole thing was just a ruse to keep the police busy, even the power outage. I would have loved to see their reactions when that happened, but I had more important matters to attend to."
Since he didn't seem to have any intention to assault them the way Molly had feared, she mustered some bravado. "Yes, like kidnapping women."
"Not just any women," he said. "The two who are in love with him. Isn't he a lucky man? He can choose between the femme fatale and the girl next door." Benjamin rubbed his hands together. "I can't wait to see which one of you he picks."
"How much money are you asking for this time?" Molly was genuinely curious about the ransom for each of them.
"I thought you were different from other women," he chided her. "I'm talking about love, and all you can think about is money."
"This has nothing to do with love," she shouted, forgetting to tread carefully in her anger. "You couldn't treat Irene this way if you really loved her. All you care about is yourself. You're possessive and controlling, and that's why she left you. Trying to blame Sherlock for it is pathetic."
"Always sticking up for your man. I like that," he said in admiration. "I hope Sherlock appreciates what he has. We'll soon find out when he makes his choice. I'm sure you're dying to find out." He laughed at that. "Dying. Get it?"
"Oh, that's right," he continued when he saw her wary expression. "I haven't told you the best part yet. The one he chooses gets to live, and the other one…" He trailed off and looked at Irene coldly. "We'll see if the great Sherlock Holmes returns your affections."
"He won't choose," Molly insisted. "You don't know him. He'll do whatever he has to do to raise enough money to pay both ransoms."
Benjamin's gaze warmed when he looked at her. "I hope it's you, Molly. I really do. You're sweet enough to want Irene to live too, but she would throw you under the bus to save herself if she could. That's why I'm leveling the playing field. She won't be able to use any of her tricks to win when Sherlock gets here."
"Yes," he confirmed. "Sherlock is coming here to make his choice. There is no ransom. He's on his way to save the woman he loves. Isn't that romantic?"
Molly stayed silent as she processed this information. Benjamin apparently hadn't thought this through very well, because telling Sherlock where they were would make it easier for him to save them. The police probably already had the place surrounded.
"Your thoughts are so easy to read on your face," Benjamin told her. "The cavalry's not coming, Molly. I made it very clear to Sherlock that I would kill you both if he didn't come alone."
No matter what Benjamin said, Molly had faith that Sherlock would outwit him. She just hoped that he wouldn't resort to murder like he had with Magnusson. During the terrifying moments when Benjamin and his men had held her down and shackled her to this bed, she would have been thankful for someone to gun them down in the process of freeing her from them and the terrible things they intended to do to her. Since nothing bad had happened, she now only wanted them to go to prison for kidnapping. Irene was restrained on another bed beside her. As far as Molly knew, they hadn't molested her either. She had already been there when Molly arrived, but she was fully clothed just like Molly. Perhaps Benjamin was just bluffing about resorting to physical violence.
"Maybe he didn't even get your message," she said. "If the power's still out—"
"It's not," he informed her. "That was just a temporary distraction. I don't care about keeping London in the dark. The lights work now, but the candlelight has a more romantic ambiance. Don't you agree?"
Molly had stopped being afraid for herself and was now more concerned about Sherlock. Benjamin was obviously jealous of him. She doubted that bringing Sherlock to this house had anything to do with making a choice between her and Irene. He was probably planning to kill him. She became increasingly frustrated with her inability to do anything to help him. Why hadn't she ran the rental car off the road and fought back when she had the chance? Now she was stuck here helplessly waiting to see how the situation would end.
Benjamin's cell phone rang, and he listened for a moment. "Okay, I'll be right there."
He picked up the discarded gag from the pillow beside Molly's head. "Sorry I have to do this again, but I can't have you giving away the game." He forced the gag back into her mouth.
Molly went back to struggling uselessly against her restraints after he left the room. She could hear Irene grunting in her own desperate attempt to free herself. Neither one of them succeeded in escaping before Benjamin and his men escorted Sherlock into the room. His sharply indrawn breath proceeded the clenching of his jaw and the murderous look in his eyes.
"A reunion with your women just as I promised," Benjamin said amiably. "I'll let you catch up first. We can negotiate the terms of their release later."
As soon as he and his men left the room and shut the door, Sherlock hurried to Molly's side. He removed the gag from her mouth. "Are you okay, Molly? Did he hurt you?"
"No," she gasped. "But he hates you, Sherlock. You have to get away."
"Don't worry. I'll get you out of here," he assured her.
"You already have," Benjamin said as he entered the room.
He told one of his men to free Molly from her restraints. The other two kept their guns pointed at Sherlock. When she was loose, Benjamin instructed the one named Liam to drive her back to her car and let her go.
"Well done Sherlock," Benjamin congratulated him. "You are smarter than me, since I chose Irene. You get to live, Molly, just like I promised."
"What about Sherlock?" Molly asked anxiously. "Please just let us all go."
"That wasn't the deal. Now run along before I change my mind."
"Molly, go!" Sherlock snapped impatiently.
She saw Benjamin look at Irene in triumph as she moved past him. "Now you know who Sherlock loves. What I want to know now is if you truly love him. Are you willing to die for him, Irene?"
Molly hoped fervently that Sherlock hadn't come here alone. Why weren't Mycroft's men storming the house? She perked up when they saw the men sprawled on the floor near the front door. Liam swore and swung his gun away from Molly as he cautiously scanned the entryway. Molly took the opportunity to elbow him in the ribs. She was about to hit him again when he dropped to the floor like a dead weight. Molly stared at a very pregnant Mary who was standing there pointing a cell phone at him.
"It's a stun gun," Mary explained. "Clever design, don't you think?"
The front door swung open, and two guns appeared on either side of it before the men who were holding them peered inside. "Mary," John demanded in a loud whisper. "What the bloody hell are you doing here?"
"The house is clear except for the room where Sherlock is. Did you get the ones outside?"
"Yes," Lestrade answered. He looked down at the men on the floor. "How did you—"
"Very powerful stun gun. They'll need to go to the hospital. How many with Sherlock, Molly?"
"Three, including Benjamin. Please, we have to hurry before he kills Sherlock."
Sally Donovan approached them from the back of the house. "Someone already…" She trailed off and narrowed her eyes at Lestrade. "You brought civilians into this? A pregnant civilian?"
"We don't have time to argue. Sherlock is in danger." Molly started toward the stairs.
"Take her to your car," John ordered Mary furiously. "If you don't hear from me in ten minutes, call the police." He walked off with Lestrade and Donovan.
"They are the police," Molly said. "Where are the rest of them?"
Mary opened the door and motioned for Molly to follow her outside. "Sherlock asked John and Greg to help him alone. He couldn't take the chance of bringing a large group with him."
"Then what are you doing here? How'd you take down those guys by yourself?"
"I took a shortcut to beat John here," Mary explained. "Taking down those guys was easy. Nobody looks more harmless than a pregnant woman." She placed a hand on her lower back and grimaced. "I didn't even have to act much. Most guys become helpless if they think a woman is going into labor. Even in their confusion about where I came from, they still didn't know how to react."
"I still think I should have gone with John," Molly worried.
"It's four against three in our favor," Mary said.
"No," Molly corrected her. "It's three of us and three of them. We're evenly matched."
"Sherlock makes it four," Mary reminded her.
Molly didn't speak her fear aloud that Sherlock might already be dead. "He's unarmed."
"Not as unarmed as you think," Mary smiled. "I gave him one from my stash when John was in the bathroom." She opened her purse to show Molly several cell phones inside. "I promised John I wouldn't carry a gun anymore, but these don't count."
It made Molly feel a little better to know that Sherlock had a weapon. They had arrived at Mary's car, but they were both too anxious to sit down. She looked at Mary again and saw how very near the end of her pregnancy she was. "You shouldn't have put yourself at risk like that. Sherlock would never ask you to do that."
"He didn't, but I owed him one. Actually more than one, because I did also shoot him. I didn't know at the time how loyal he was. I mean I did where John is concerned, but I didn't know that he would also extend that loyalty to me."
The emotion that had been missing during their last meeting was there in Mary's voice now. She was stopping short of apologizing, but her tone held regret. How would she even apologize for something like that, Molly wondered. How do you say sorry for shooting someone? "Are you trying to tell me that your loyalty extends to me too?" Molly asked.
"I miss our friendship, but I did this for Sherlock," Mary answered honestly. "I've never seen him like the way he was when he received that picture of you. He was frantic that time we were rushing to save John from the fire, but this was…" She shivered with the memory. "It was like he was one step away from going mad. He was wild, unfocused. It scared John so bad that his hands were shaking. That's when he went into the bathroom to pull it together for Sherlock. Then he talked him into calling Greg."
Mary's cell phone rang, and she pulled the car door all the way open and asked Molly to grab it for her out of the cup holder. She answered it but didn't get to say anything else before John gave her his news and hung up. "He's still pissed at me," she told Molly. Then she grinned. "Sherlock and Irene are okay."
Molly sagged against the car in relief. A moment later, they heard the sound of approaching sirens as police cars came flying up the street. They were followed by an ambulance. John came running up to the car. "Give me the bloody taser."
"I used three." Mary pulled them out of her purse and handed them to him.
"Go home," he growled.
"Nice to see you again, Molly. Glad you're okay." Mary carefully maneuvered herself into the car.
"You too," Molly said. She stood with John and watched Mary drive away.
They started walking back toward the house, and Sherlock approached them before Molly got a chance to ask any questions. "Are you okay?" The measured tone of his voice didn't match the intensity of his gaze.
"Yeah, now that I know you're alive." She wanted to throw her arms around him, but his reserved demeanor held her back. "He was going to kill you."
"I wanted to kill him, but Lestrade brought Donovan along. She'd never let me get away with it." He scowled in irritation.
"Nobody is going rogue anymore," John ranted. "We don't take unnecessary risks, none of us. Is that understood?"
Sherlock gave him an appraising look. "What's gotten into you? And why do you have three cell phones?"
"They're stun guns," Molly explained. "Mary was here."
Sherlock's neutral expression revealed no reaction to this news. "Really?"
"Oh stop pretending you didn't know about these. You got yours from her, didn't you?" John asked, already knowing the answer.
"I didn't know she had so many of them, but I was grateful to have a weapon Reynolds was likely to overlook."
"Did you have to use it?" Molly asked.
"He didn't have to," John told her. "But he did anyway. He would have kept going too, if Donovan hadn't threatened to shoot him. Two hits with one of these would probably be lethal."
"Probably," Sherlock agreed.
The two men who had been in the room with Benjamin when Molly left were now being escorted in handcuffs to the police cars. Lestrade and Donovan followed behind the other officers. More sirens were heard, and two ambulances pulled up. As Lestrade explained the situation to the paramedics and directed them into the house, Donovan approached John.
"Ignoring my advice when it pertains to your safety is one thing, but how could you bring your pregnant wife into this situation? Are you really that blind in your devotion to him?" She threw a withering glance at Sherlock.
"She was supposed to stay in the car and drive away at the first sign of trouble," John said. He obviously didn't want to admit that he'd had no idea that Mary was here. "I don't know why she followed us in."
"She didn't follow you in," Donovan said tersely. "She was inside before you, taking on the bad guys by herself. The ones at the back door were all knocked out already when I entered the house." She glared at Sherlock. "Where did you find these people? This kind of loyalty borders on insanity, and the craziest part is that they risked their lives for you. Why would they do that for a freak like you?"
"Why are you here?" Sherlock asked.
"It's my job," she huffed. "Two women were kidnapped, and it's my job to rescue them. This wasn't about you. It was about them."
"You came here alone in your own car. That's not protocol, is it? You came here against your better judgment and risked your life. If it had gone wrong, Scotland Yard wouldn't have even known where you were," Sherlock announced to the shock of John and Molly.
"We couldn't chance them spotting police vehicles," Sally said defensively. "That would have put everyone in danger." She turned her keen eye on John. "Was your wife a soldier too?"
"No, but I offered to teach her some self defense techniques shortly after we met. She's been practicing them ever since."
Molly marveled at the smooth way he lied about Mary. He must have been expecting questions about her ability to subdue thugs. Of course, he couldn't tell the police that his wife used to be an assassin. Molly wasn't sure if Donovan believed his explanation.
"She must have incredible reflexes and absolutely no fear," Sally commented as she continued to study his reactions.
"You mean absolutely no sense," John exploded. "I swear she's going to be the death of me with her impulsive behavior."
"Maybe she's just following your example," Sally said. "You allow Sherlock to lead you into all sorts of dangerous situations."
"This wasn't his fault," John defended him.
"It was," Sherlock declared. "I shouldn't have left Molly alone. I suspected that Moriarty would come after her."
"But it wasn't Moriarty," Molly protested. "Benjamin was using that to fool you. Moriarty's still dead, right?"
"Wait," Sally told Sherlock. "Are you actually admitting that something is your fault?"
"The ones who are at fault are going to prison—after they go to the hospital," Lestrade said as he joined their little group. "Now, John here used the stun guns on them to help Sherlock fight Reynolds. Are we all clear on that? It's already going to be a media circus with the scorned lover competing against the great detective. We don't need to add a pregnant woman with tasers into the mix."
"Yes," Sherlock agreed. "It will be bad enough when they find out about Irene being a dominatrix."
"What?" Lestrade laughed. "You're having me on."
"It's true. She called herself The Woman," John informed him.
"Why can't you ever have a normal case?" Lestrade lamented. "Why do you always find the freaks?"
"Because he is a freak," Sally said with relish.
"Don't start, Donovan," Lestrade warned her. "You tried to convince me that he kidnapped those kids, and you were wrong."
"You can't blame her for that," Sherlock argued. "All the evidence pointed toward me. She only did what she was trained to do."
"Are you sticking up for me?" Sally asked, eyeing him suspiciously. "Did Reynolds hit you over the head with something? Do you have a concussion?"
"Thank you for helping Molly," he said sincerely.
"And Sherlock and Irene," Molly added.
Sally looked at Molly with new eyes. "Just doing my job."
Molly spotted Irene exiting the house and rushed over to her. "Are you okay?"
"The same as you, I suppose." She sighed wearily. "I'm sorry he dragged you into this too."
"It's not your fault." Molly's gaze hardened as she looked at an unconscious Benjamin being wheeled toward the ambulance. "He's going to pay for what he did."
"I didn't think there was anything similar about you and Sherlock, but I can see that I was wrong," Irene said.
The rest of the group had now joined them, and John pulled out his phone to call a cab. "I need to get home and check on Mary."
"I'll drive you," Lestrade offered. "We'll need you all to come to the station and make statements, but that can wait until tomorrow."
"I'll drive the rest of them home," Sally announced to the surprise of Sherlock and Lestrade.
"Why are you being nice?" Sherlock asked suspiciously.
"Am I?" Sally answered mysteriously. "I'll leave that deduction to you."
They parted ways with John and Lestrade. Irene and Molly got into the backseat of Donovan's car, leaving Sherlock to sit in front with her. "So thoughtful," she commented. "They know you need the room for your long legs. So," she continued brightly. "Where to first?"
"Could you drop me off at my hotel?" Irene enquired.
"No," Molly decided. "You can stay at my flat tonight. I have a spare bedroom."
"She's not staying with you," Sherlock said in annoyance.
"Yes, she is," Molly insisted. "Why would you have a problem with that?"
"Yeah, Sherlock. Why would you have a problem with that?" Sally questioned with barely contained glee.
"She shouldn't be alone tonight," Molly said.
Sally instantly sobered. "You're right not to want to be alone, Molly. I've worked with many victims of rape, and it's crucial to—"
"She did not get raped!" Sherlock thundered loudly as he glowered at Sally.
"We," Molly clarified. "We did not get raped." She paused and turned to look at Irene. "I mean, I don't know what happened before I got there."
"I thought he was going to let his men violate me." Irene's eyes reflected the horror she had experienced. "But he didn't," she finished in a stronger voice.
"Fortunately, he gets his jollies from mental rather than physical torture."
They all heard the menace in Sherlock's voice. Sally ignored it in favor of reaching out to Molly and Irene. "In any case, you've been through a traumatic experience. You might not feel the symptoms of post traumatic stress until the shock wears off, but don't hesitate to seek treatment for them. It's a normal response to—"
Sherlock interrupted her again. "Molly will be fine."
"Not everyone can compartmentalize their feelings the way you do," she snapped at him.
"You've always said that I don't have feelings," he reminded her.
"I've made some new deductions," she informed him without explaining further.
"Turn left at the next light," he told her.
Sherlock continued to give her directions until they arrived at Molly's building. "I'll see them in." He escorted the women up to Molly's flat.
Molly showed Irene where the spare bedroom was and directed her to the bathroom. "You can take a shower if you'd like. I'll leave a nightgown for you on the bed."
"Thank you, Molly." She took a moment to apologize to Sherlock. "I'm sorry I gave you up so easily to Benjamin. I knew he'd kill me too, but I couldn't help trying to buy myself a little more time."
"It would have made no difference if you had chosen to die," Sherlock assured her. "He would have killed me anyway. It was all just part of his sick game."
"He wanted to prove to me that I didn't love you, at least not enough to die for you."
"That's terrible," Molly exclaimed. "He thought that he loved you, but he couldn't have treated you that way if he did. He doesn't know the first thing about love."
"He knows a few things." Irene was looking at Sherlock as she spoke. "Well, it's been a long day. Goodnight."
"Goodnight," Sherlock said.
Molly waited until Irene went to take a shower before saying anything else to Sherlock. "Promise me that you won't kill Benjamin."
"Why would you think—"
"Promise me," she demanded.
"He deserves to die." His jaw clenched with the anger simmering beneath the surface.
"That's not for you to decide. He'll have his day in court, and he'll go to prison. Now promise me, Sherlock. I want your word that you won't kill him."
"Fine," he said.
"Promise me!"
"Alright," he conceded. "I promise I won't kill Benjamin."
Molly felt immense relief and much of her stress evaporated. "I'm sorry I didn't ask you to stay, but it's just…" She trailed off, trying to find a way to put it into words. "It's just that Irene understands. She went through it with me, and…"
"It's okay," he soothed. "I'm glad Irene's here if she makes you feel better."
"She does in an odd way," Molly told him. "It's strange to think that I only just met her this morning. So much has happened. I don't think I've really had a chance to take it all in yet." She was talking about more than the crazy drama with Benjamin, but she was too tired to get into the rest of it at the moment.
"Yes, a lot happened in the past twenty-four hours."
She wondered if he was also referring to what had happened between them. They stood looking at each other for another minute. "Are you okay?" Molly asked. Everyone had been concerned with her and Irene, but Sherlock had also been in the thick of it.
"I couldn't think when it happened. My mind went completely blank, and I panicked."
Molly was startled by the haunted look in his eyes.
"I almost failed you, Molly."
"You didn't," she assured him. "It's okay to be scared, Sherlock. Your life was in danger, for goodness sake! Why wouldn't you be scared?"
"That's not why I was…" He trailed off and seemed to retreat from whatever he was going to say. "You're tired. I'll let you—"
His phone rang, and he answered it. Molly had also forgotten that Lestrade was waiting for him. Sherlock told him that they were fine, and that he would be right down.
"Goodnight, Molly. Call me if you need anything."
"Yes, you too. Goodnight," she replied.
She locked the door behind him and hoped that she would get a chance to ruminate on everything tomorrow. There was too much to contemplate, and she was too exhausted from her ordeal to think about it tonight. The only thing that mattered right now was that everyone had come through it okay. Morning would be soon enough to begin sorting through the actions of all those who had stood up and been counted today.
In the next instant, she was throwing open the door and running into the hallway as she shouted his name. She saw him slouching against a wall near the elevator. He quickly straightened and pushed away from it.
"What happened?" Sherlock asked in alarm.
"I needed to…I need…" She skidded to a stop in front of him, standing close and drinking in the sight of him. "You're okay? You're really okay? He was going to kill you. He was—"
Sherlock hugged her so fiercely that she could hardly breathe. She held onto him just as tightly, needing tangible proof that he was really alive.
"Molly," he mumbled into her hair. "I thought that I was going to be too late."
"It's okay now," she said. "We're okay."
He reluctantly let her go. "Rest now. I'll see you tomorrow?"
"Yes," she confirmed with the smile he had grown so fond of. "See you tomorrow."
Notes:
What I claimed was a short story has now become my longest fanfic ever. I also don't usually write such long chapters. Sorry about any mistakes, since I've yet again failed to edit a chapter. Just getting it written has been a feat considering the constant interruptions from my family. I've literally been writing it in tiny bits, sometimes only a few sentences between interruptions. I also had to work overtime this week. Only a one day weekend this time. I also apologize in being so slow in answering reviews, but I truly appreciate them so much!
Just7364—Your wish is my command! Lol, perfect timing with me finally finishing the chapter. Thank you for all your great reviews. I would never have guessed that English isn't your native language.
Domitheus—Thank you for another wonderful review! I'm glad you were satisfied with the previous chapter.
I was going to write more in depth replies, but I'm being interrupted again! I'll be back after everyone goes to sleep.