The Flower Seller ( WAYHAUGHT)

Chapter 35

She would have shrieked had it not been for the fact she was loitering inside Blackwood's factory. Plus, she recognised the lingering aroma of the tobacco Sherlock currently was smoking. "Don't do that," she whispered. "Find anything?"

"A workshop similar to the one in Limehouse. Some type of machinery being constructed given the pieces strewn over the work surfaces. The purpose of which was not immediately clear. No trace of said machinery, which presumably has been removed."

"I think I saw it. Could be a bomb," she offered.

"I do not believe so."

"It was large enough to be one. Took six men to carry. One joked he wished he could be there to see their blue faces when it went off."

"Whatever was being constructed contained intricate parts not specifically designed for an explosive device."

"It must be," Nicole insisted. "How else will Blackwood do what he intends to do."

"Be quiet, I'm thinking. A device which requires the inner mechanism of a clock. I'm missing something."

Nicole fell silent, a little put out to be told to be quiet. Her own mind played with the pieces of the puzzle before them. She was sure the thing she witnessed being loaded onto the wagon must be intended for Parliament. Large enough if it was an explosive device to do considerable damage, although not sufficient to destroy the entire building she reasoned, given the size of Parliament. Perhaps they intended to place it somewhere which would do just enough damage. Perhaps it was a device to ignite other explosive material. Hence the smell of phosphorus.

"Where in Parliament?" she whispered out loud.

Sherlock's train of thought was interrupted by her question. "Where what?"

"Where would you place whatever they were carrying?"

The cogs in Sherlock's brain began whirring again. "Good, good. Yes, a better line of inquiry. Much better. Not what, but where?"

She smiled to herself at his comment. "It would have to be concealed somewhere."

"Yes, yes. Of course, the sewers under Parliament. The mud on Lord Coward's boots where he had been standing, the red dust on his left trouser leg where he had been kneeling, and the aroma of excrement where he had been vowing."

"When did you see him?" wondering where Sherlock might last have encountered Coward.

"An invitation to his chambers earlier, where he used me for target practise."

"I don't understand. How did you escape?"

"I chose a watery death over a small lead ball to the chest."

"Still not understanding."

"I jumped from one of the windows in his chamber into the river, where Lestrade rescued me."

"Of course, silly me. I should have known. You did what? That's..."

Sherlock was on the move again, toying with the idea of scouring the workshop one more time for any clues he might have missed. The sound of footsteps had the pair retreating to the safety of the riverbank, deciding their mission now lay beneath the building where Nicole's father would be visiting in only a matter of hours. The Lucy set them down close to Parliament shortly after midnight, Captain Todd handing them two blankets with which to keep warm. They huddled near a small jetty, waiting for the water level to drop sufficiently to be able to access the sewers from the river by foot.

The night air pierced Nicole's blanket, her body shivering in her damp clothing, having waded through water several times that evening. Sherlock removed his, wrapping it around her shoulders, pacing the shoreline while contemplating their next actions. The element of surprise was all they had, although this went both ways given they still did not know precisely what they were about to face. The dawn would be upon them in a few hours, the fate of hundreds of members of Parliament resting on their shoulders.