Author's note: Dear readers, I am so excited to begin this new story at last. I know it may be confusing for some, because it begins almost a year before my most recent story, which has been part of a series following the pandemic, set in real-time. I initially planned to publish this story, which I began writing last June (and is still not complete, so I will have to make sure I keep working on it to keep ahead), last year, but with the untimely passing of my father-in-law in August, I ended up writing A Journey through Loss and publishing that instead. Finally, however, here is the first chapter to this story, which will give context to a lot of hints I have put in my most recent series to events which occurred during Molly's second pregnancy. You'll be taken on a journey that brings our beloved couple to their new home, involves buying a car, putting on a special play at their church, and performing a duet together at a hospital talent show, and much more! I hope you are excited to begin this next journey with me, and that you will be moved to respond to it with your follows/favourites and reviews as usual.

The story begins shortly after the events in The Cost of Condemnation, in case you want to take a look back at that story to refresh your memory.

Tuesday, June 4, 2019

It was Tuesday evening, and Sherlock was about to wake Molly, who was on night shift and had been sleeping all afternoon, when she emerged from the bedroom.

He closed his laptop and rose from where he had been sitting at his desk. "How did you sleep, love? I was about to wake you."

Molly yawned and wiggled her shoulders a little, stretching. "I feel like I finally caught up on the sleep I missed when I didn't get a lot on Sunday before I started night shift. All the stuff that went on with Alice just had me too wound up to get much sleep."

"Well, that's all over and done with, and we worked our way through it," commented Sherlock. "Are you ready to eat? I went down the street and got some KFC a little while ago. Victoria and I have already eaten. It's still on the kitchen table."

"Where is Victoria, anyway?" questioned Molly, looking over at the empty playpen.

"Mrs. Hudson came upstairs a few minutes ago and asked if she could spend a little time with her. I'm sure she'll bring her back upstairs soon."

Molly yawned again. "Okay then. I guess I'll go eat. There's something I want to give you afterwards, though." She gave him a mysterious smile.

He quirked an eyebrow. "Does it entail communication of the non-verbal kind?" He slid his hands around her waist to pull her close.

Molly giggled and put her hands on his shoulders, kissing him lightly on the lips. "Not this time, honey."

Sherlock pouted. He really disliked sleeping alone when Molly was on night shift. A little pre-night shift cuddling always made it easier.

Molly smirked up at him. "You are so ridiculous. There's something I want to give you, but I'm sure we can fit in some non-verbal communication before I go to work, satisfied?"

"Glad to know you can try to 'fit' a little alone time with your husband into your busy schedule, Mrs. Holmes," he retorted dryly.

This time, Molly lifted her lips for a lingering kiss instead, which was much more satisfying. "Don't even act like you don't get what you want almost every night, Sherlock."

He offered her a lazy smile. "I'd prefer to remove the 'almost' from that sentence."

Molly pulled back slightly and gave him a mock glare. "Then you would have to get rid of our daughter. I can't help it if there are times she demands my attention. Not to mention that in a few months there will be another baby to demand my time."

Sherlock groaned. "I can't believe I ever thought having seven children would be a good thing. Even one cramps my style." A hand dipped down to squeeze Molly's bum.

She swatted his arm. "Behave yourself. I need to go eat."

He released her reluctantly. "Go ahead."

While Molly ate, Sherlock returned to his laptop and sent off an email in response to a consultation request.

Then he brought up his to-do list for the upcoming move from Baker Street to their new home. He and Molly had decided that they would purchase furniture for the most part to furnish their new home. Baker Street would still be his base of operations for clients and needed to stay furnished. His chair, of course, would have to remain. It held too many memories associated with Baker street, and he wanted to be comfortable during client consultations. The yellow armchair Molly favoured would go to their new home.

Sherlock had compiled a list of 'go' items and 'stay' items to keep things straight as he and Molly had discussed what to take to the new house and what to leave behind. It would be strange to no longer consider Baker Street home after so many years. It held many good memories and a few bad ones. The past two years though had been nothing but good memories he had been making with Molly and, over the past year, their daughter.

He was still thinking of items to add to the list and typing them into the document he had created, when Molly appeared beside him, and he looked up. He noticed immediately that she was holding something in her hand.

His wife looked a little nervous, which was rather odd. What would she have to be nervous about? He slid out of his desk chair and stood. "Why are you looking nervous, sweetheart?" he questioned, looking down at her.

She bit her lip. "I got something for you, but I'm not sure if it's something you will like or not."

He looked at her curiously. "You got me something? What's the occasion?"

She walked over to the sofa and sat, then patted the seat beside her and he sat next to her.

"I'm not sure if you are aware of this, but today marks the second anniversary of when you turned your life over to the Lord," she told him.

His brows lifted slightly. It was true he hadn't been thinking about it at all. That night, when Molly had been kidnapped, had been a turning point for him. He near-rape at the hands of Sebastian Moran, and his success in finding and saving her in the nick of time, had led to his decision to place his trust in Jesus as his Saviour. It was a night night he didn't care to dwell on, because things could have gone much differently. He gave an involuntary shudder. Thank God, there had been no more incidents like that over the past two years. He felt God's hand of protection was upon them and trusted that nothing like that would ever happen again.

Molly obviously noticed his movement and placed her free hand over his. "I'm sorry, Sherlock. I know it was a difficult night for you, and of course it was for me too, but it yielded the most wonderful result, and I just can't forget or regret that." Her eyes were filled with love, and she added, "Anyway, I wanted to give you something to mark that turning point for you. If you don't like it, that's okay." She released his hand and offered him the small box which was, in typical Molly style, exquisitely wrapped, small though it was. There was even a tiny bow on the top.

He took his time removing the wrapping, wanting Molly to know he appreciated the gesture. When it was done, there was a small jewellery box exposed. He saw Molly clasp her hands together expectantly as he lifted the lid.

Inside the box was a plain silver cross with a chain attached. It was a man's necklace. Sherlock understood why Molly had been hesitant to give it to him. He had never worn jewellery other than his watch and his wedding band.

He withdrew the necklace from the box, noting that Molly was biting her lip. He laid his thumb along the simple design, liking the way it had no special ornamentation. It was a plain cross, one that declared who he was as a person and a believer.

Molly's voice was anxious as she asked, "Do you like it? I know you don't wear necklaces, but I really wanted to get you something. Victoria and I went out the other day while you were busy with that case. You know, the one John called on his blog 'The Red-Headed League'? You don't have to wear it if you don't want to."

Sherlock placed his hand over hers. "Molly, I couldn't have chosen anything better myself. I'd be honoured to wear this cross. It is a symbol of what we as Christians believe, and I like the idea of being open about my faith. Would you help me put it on?"

"Of course," responded Molly in relief. He thought again how much he loved this woman, how much she gave him of herself.

As Molly took the box and necklace from his hands, Sherlock opened another button of his green shirt, then reached his hands behind his back to lift his hair away from his neck.

Molly reached behind him and clasped the chain around his neck. It was strange, feeling the cool metal of the cross's surface on his skin, but it was not unpleasant. He dropped his hands away from his neck and, as Molly was still on her knees in front of him, he took the opportunity to pull her towards him and kiss her. Their lips clung together for a few moments before he released her.

"Thank you, sweetheart," he told her sincerely, enjoying the dimple that appeared in her cheek as she smiled at him.

She shifted position to lay her head on his lap. "Now tell me what you did today while I was sleeping. Was Victoria good for you?"

Sherlock rested his hand lightly at her waist. He loved it when she rested her head on his lap, even as he sometimes did that as well, and she would thread her fingers through his curls soothingly. They would often talk about their day in this manner.

"Victoria and I looked at a couple picture books. I've been telling her about colours. I feel certain she will be a quick learner because she was listening intently to me as I did so." Then he frowned a little. "The one part of this afternoon I did not enjoy was having to change a dirty nappy. She could at least have afforded me the consideration of waiting until you woke."

Molly giggled. "You are so silly, Sherlock. In a few months we are going to have to contend with two children who need regular happy changes."

Sherlock raised his right arm to grasp the sofa behind him in defeat. "Why do I get the feeling you are trying to give me reasons to stop at two children?" he complained.

Molly turned her head to smirk up at him. "Not at all. I'm just giving you fair warning. It's going to be a big adjustment for all three of us. Now tell me more about your day."

He was about to tell her about the lists he had continued to make of things that would either go to their new home or remain at Baker Street, when a knock sounded on the door. It was obviously Mrs. Hudson, bringing back Victoria from her little visit.

"Come in," he called, not bothering to move from his position.

Mrs. Hudson came in and stood before them, holding Victoria against her hip. "Well, don't you two look cosy then?" she commented with a smile. "Perhaps I should just take Victoria back downstairs with me and let you have some more alone time."

Molly sat up hastily and extended her arms towards her daughter. "No, of course not. I haven't seen Victoria much today."

Sherlock couldn't help smirking a little when Victoria, instead of reaching for her mother, looked at him and said "Dada."

That's my girl, he thought a little smugly, extending his own arms. It was so nice to have passed the stage where Victoria only wanted Molly.

Molly was having none of that however, "You come to Mama right now, young lady," she told her daughter, taking her from Mrs. Hudson and tickling her which made Victoria giggle. Then she rubbed noses with her daughter. Sherlock loved the way Molly interacted with Victoria. She was exactly the kind of mother he had always known she had the potential to be. He wondered what would happen when the new baby arrived. Would it be a big adjustment to go from one child to two? Would Victoria find it difficult to no longer be the centre of attention? At least he would be able to help on that front. He would continue to lavish Victoria with affection when Molly was busy with the new baby.

He was startled out of his thoughts and apparently intent expression on his wife and daughter by Mrs. Hudson's voice.

"Well, I suppose I'll be going now, seeing as nobody is saying anything to me," she said pertly. Sherlock blinked.

"Sorry, Mrs. Hu..I mean, Martha." When will I get used to calling her that? he wondered silently. "My mind was elsewhere. Did you have fun with Victoria?"

"Actually, we had a lovely time," responded his landlady, as Molly settled herself on the sofa with Victoria. "I was teaching her how to say Nanny." She bent down to look at Victoria. "Can you say Nanny? Na- nee?"

Victoria stared at Mrs. Hudson. "Mama."

Mrs. Hudson pursed her lips. "I swear I got her to say 'Na' at least."

Sherlock chuckled. "Are you sure she wasn't just saying 'nana' as in banana? She has been doing that lately when we feed her pieces of banana."

Mrs. Hudson straightened. "She said Na for Nanny. That's my story, and I'm sticking to it." Then she reached over to ruffle Victoria's hair. "Goodbye, lovey. Nanny loves you."

This time Victoria opened and closed her fist and responded with "Bye."

Sherlock and Molly exchanged surprised glances. That was a new one. He supposed their daughter's word count would be expanding exponentially over the next few months, even as Rosie's had after she passed the one year mark.

Mrs. Hudson turned to go, then, as if noticing something for the first time, turned back to Sherlock. "Is that a necklace I see around your neck, Sherlock?"

Sherlock rolled his eyes. "Well, I'd hardly call it a bracelet. Molly just gave this to me. Today happens to be two years since I became a Christian."

Mrs. Hudson's eyebrows rose. "Well, in all my born days I would never have expected to see you wearing a necklace, of all things. In fact, I admit I was rather surprised that you even agreed to wear a wedding ring."

Sherlock slid his arm around Molly's shoulders and leaned back casually. She was holding Victoria against her and he knew she was curious to see what his response would be. "Well, I guess you'll be seeing a lot more of me wearing this necklace. I shall wear my faith with pride and not be ashamed of it," he declared and added, "just as I wear my wedding ring with pride to signify my married status." He was pleased when Molly turned her head to smile at him.

"Oh, I'm not criticising you, dear," Mrs. Hudson hastened to say, "just surprised. I think it is lovely that you can be so open with your beliefs. The past two years have served you well. I hardly recognise the brash young man who moved into Baker Street ten years ago." Her face fell. "Of course, you won't be here much longer."

Sherlock nodded solemnly. "Indeed, it is the end of an era, but as we have said before, you will not lose us. I will be here frequently doing client consultations and of course, if you are agreeable, I shall be requiring your assistance in looking after Victoria when Molly is at work."

"I know, and I will be only too happy to do that," responded Mrs. Hudson with a sigh. "It won't be the same, though. I still remember you boys running up and down those stairs at all hours of the night on one case or another."

Victoria suddenly wriggled in Molly's lap and said, "Down."

Molly set her on the floor and Sherlock watched in amazement as she toddled the couple steps to Mrs. Hudson and lifted her arms. "Up."

Sherlock could see the elderly woman's eyes fill with tears, and she picked Victoria up and held her close. She looked over the little girl's brown hair to say, "You have no idea what a joy it has been for me to see this little one grow from an infant to this point. I never had the opportunity to be a mother, and I've had the chance to experience it vicariously through your precious daughter. Thank you for that."

"Oh, Martha," responded Molly gently, "You've done so much for us too. I promise you will still see us regularly." She placed a hand on her abdomen. "Besides, this little one is going to want to get to know you as well."

The elderly landlady blinked her eyes rapidly. "I know I'm just being a silly old woman. My Baker Street boys are now happily married men with families of their own."

Molly rose to her feet, as did Sherlock, and together they embraced Mrs. Hudson, creating a little circle in which Victoria was the centre.

When they disengaged, Sherlock said, "You'll always be a part of our family, no matter where we are."

Mrs. Hudson gave him a lovely smile, then departed after handing Victoria back over to her mother.

Victoria once again struggled to get down, so Molly placed her in her playpen.

Sherlock winced a little as his daughter began to bang the building blocks together to make a noise. Oh well, perhaps it's a sign she will be musical, he thought.

Molly noticed his pained expression. "If you don't like the sound of her banging the blocks together, which, incidentally, is normal for a twelve-month-old, we could get her a xylophone to play. Then at least it will be tuneful."

"Ah, that sounds like a fine idea," said Sherlock, going immediately to his laptop to do a search on Amazon while Molly looked on in amusement. He was a man of action, after all. Might as well do it right away. Five minutes later he had succeeded in finding a baby xylophone appropriate for a twelve-month-old and had ordered it.

"Done," he proclaimed proudly even as he noticed Victoria had stopped banging the blocks together and was pushing the buttons on a toy phone that had been a birthday present from the Watsons. Fortunately, the little beeping sounds were not as annoying as the sound of the blocks.

At last, Sherlock was able to tell Molly what he had been up to while she had been sleeping, and they took a look at the list he had made, then added to it.

Molly headed off to take a shower, and Sherlock poured some milk from the fridge into a bottle and warmed it in the bottle warmer for Victoria to have before he put her to bed. He picked her up from the playpen and changed her nappy, then put her into her sleepsuit. By the time she was halfway through the bottle, her eyelids were drooping, as often happened.

Molly emerged from the bathroom as Sherlock was carrying his daughter to her cot. He stopped in the narrow passage so Molly could kiss her daughter's forehead, then continued on, laying Victoria in her cot. He watched her for a few moments, the steady rise and fall of her breathing as she slept. He never grew tired of watching her sleep.

He left the bedroom, only to find Molly had returned to the bathroom and was being violently sick. It seemed more often than not lately she brought up her dinner. He calculated how many weeks along she was. Eleven and a half weeks. Hopefully that meant she was nearing the end of this period of sickness. She had been one of the women who had seemed miraculously to feel better once she began her second trimester.

He knocked on the door. "Do I need to get you crackers and lemonade, love?" That's what he did if she was suffering one of those incidents where she continued to be sick for hours on end.

There were a few beats of silence as Molly flushed the toilet. Then her voice came through the door. "No, It's okay. It's just the usual nausea right now, not the one where I feel I'll get sick again almost immediately. I already feel better, but I could use a cup of spearmint tea."

"No problem." Molly had switched to drinking spearmint tea from regular tea as soon as she had found out she was pregnant again, as it was thought to help with nausea. It didn't work on the severely sick days, but on days where she only felt sick sometimes, she insisted it was helpful. Molly hadn't tried the tea when pregnant with Victoria. It had actually been Kayla who had told her about it a few months earlier, insisting that the tea had soothed her own occasional nausea when she had been pregnant with Adam.

Sherlock brought Molly her tea and went to the bedroom to fetch Bible and devotional, which they read together as usual. He then headed off to take his shower.

By the time he exited the bathroom, he was surprised yet rather delighted to find his wife back in bed. He was even more delighted to see she had put on the purple babydoll he had bought for their honeymoon.

At his appreciative look when she lifted the duvet to show him what she wore, Molly said, "I thought it was time to celebrate your two-year anniversary with some non-verbal communication. What do you say?"

Sherlock answered without words, hastily removing his boxers and pulling his wife close, plundering her mouth with his own, delighting in her as always. His hands caressed her body through the fabric of the lingerie, which as usual did not remain on her body for long. However, the sight of it had served its purpose, giving rise to the heady desire that still consumed him when they were this close. It was a most satisfying end to Sherlock's evening, and when Molly had to get up later to get ready for work and leave him, he was able to sleep after her departure, having so recently experienced the bliss of shared intimacy.

Author's note: I hope I delivered a satisfying beginning to this story that makes you want to keep reading.

Take a look at the cover photo. It was done by my lovely reader Elizabeth Robello, and I've been dying to share it with you! I sent her the picture of BC, which she converted into a Sherlock picture, added the cross necklace I requested, and added Molly into the picture as well. Thanks, Elizabeth! Did you notice the picture matched the scene of them on the sofa? Do you like the idea of Sherlock proclaiming his faith openly this way?

Did you enjoy seeing the interaction with Victoria and Mrs. Hudson? Sherlock is still having a bit of a hard time remembering to call her Martha after all this time, isn't he?

Please don't be shy. Get involved in the fun of this interactive medium and share your own thoughts instead of keeping them to yourself. It's really not difficult, and hearing from readers is always a highlight of my day, in fact, any author's - I've never heard of one who didn't appreciate feedback. A quick reminder - if you follow/favourite or leave a review, please check your inbox on the site because email notifications have not been sent for pm's since early December. I respond to everyone (except guests and those who have the pm function disabled, and they rarely review). You may well have a bunch of messages there which you have not seen!