I Can't Stand You Sherlock

Chapter 9: Freeze For A Minute (or two)

"Oh, hi," Molly said and smiled widely to Sherlock as he walked into the lab with John and I on his heals.

"Molly," he replied with a nod of his head.

"Hiya Molly," John said politely, whereas I just nodded. She was a nice, but that's what bothered me, she was just too nice, it was like she never had a bad day. No one could be that happy. Or could they?

"You guys are here about Ian Strasser," Molly said and took us to the back of the room where Ian Strasser lay on a cold metal table. He looked the same as he did when I saw him: the last, white, cold and dead.

"You were right, Sherlock, he didn't die in that freezer. He had a couple broken rips, look at this bruise." Molly then pulled down the sheet a little lower so we could see his lower chest, reveiling a huge bruise that wasn't fully colored. He died not long after that blow was given. Maybe this was what killed him.

"He died from this, I think. Somehow punctured both of his lungs."

I looked at Ian with a frown. I couldn't imagine dying like this. Trying to take a breath and not being able to. What a terrible way to die.

"He fought back before the clasped, he has some light bruising on his knuckles," Molly continued, and held up Ian's hand to show us. I thought about the bruise that Hershberger had on his arm. I was sure that Ian did that to him, but I needed more proof.

"Isn't this man on TV? Like a cooking show or something?" John asked.

Can Sherlock please remind me why we took John? If he was just going to ask stupid questions, he was a waste of space.

"Shhh, John... stop it, stop everyone, " Sherlock said as he closed his eyes.

I frowned as I looked at John for an answer, but he just rolled his eyes like he knew what Sherlock was doing.

"Stop thinking," Sherlock mused.

"I can't...." I started, but John cut me off.

"Humor him," John whispered to me.

There was a minute of silence. All eyes were on Sherlock's, except mine. I didn't care to know what he was doing. I needed to write everything I knew before I forgot. My eyes stopped at a blank paper on a desk and a group of pens in a cup next to the paper, which I walked over to.

· Ian Strasser was a good worker and married but was hiring hookers under a different account.

· The restaurant was in a chief race.

· Jamarcus Hershberger was his boss, didn't care what Ian did, as long as they won the race. (Don't think he did it.)

· Died in a freezer (but wasn't killed there) of the restaurant at around 3 in the morning. (Why was he there so early?)

· Had a fight with someone beforehand. (Jamarcus Hershberger?)

"Got what you need?" Sherlock said from over my shoulder.

Good, he was done with his drama moment. I looked up at him quickly as I folded the paper and stuck it in my coat pocket. "Yup. You?" We needed to see Hershberger and I was sure Sherlock was on the same page.

"Yes," he said and turned to John who had a look of confusion.

"We need to talk to Hershberger."

"Correction, we just need to talk to one of the other restaurants. Water Flower is a sweet restaurant, is it not John?" Sherlock asked him.

"What?" he replied, shocked.

"You have that same sweet sent on your clothes like Strasser did in the freezer and that same smell was combined with a floral smell on your clothes. Doesn't Water Flower have fresh roses on every table? You have a speck of brown on your white shirt. I'm guessing from the chocolate that the Water Flower leaves out on the tables. I've heard it's not a cheap restaurant, you must have gotten a promotion. You normally don't do that unless you also have the Misses happy and a paycheck would do that. I didn't think that Water Flower was in the chief race, but your smell has brought to my attention that we should go there."