Disadvantageous

Chapter 30

She ended up agreeing to Sevda's proposal, despite knowing that she needed to to talk to the other girls so Sherlock would have a better chance determining who the killer was. Yet Lydia found playing around on the sex swing was actually quite fun. It would probably be a little to much to ask Sherlock to get one for the flat, but Lydia certainly wouldn't have said no if he offered.

They took a break for lunch, but then returned to their lessons, only stopping when it came time for dinner. Lydia became increasingly aware of how often Sevda's hands lingered on her body, but all Lydia found herself thinking of was the way that Sherlock touched her, how different her small hands felt compared to Sherlock's long and nimble fingers. Afterwards, Irene whisked Lydia away to her bedroom so that she could prepare her for the party. Lydia grew a little nervous when Irene locked the door behind her, but she tried to mask that fear behind a well-crafted facade.

"I hope you don't mind me doing your make up, darling. But I can't risk you showing off to Sherlock quite yet, not when you've yet to find the killer," Irene spoke as she had Lydia take a seat as she began to pull out various makeup tools out of a bag.

"Of course I don't mind, besides I'm not quite sure what is expected at this party so doing my own makeup would have been a bit daunting."

"Have either of you picked up on any leads so far?"

Lydia shook her head, "none of the girls have been acting suspicious, at least none who I've spoken to at length."

"Though that hasn't really been many of them, since you got a little caught up with Sevda," Sherlock interjected through the ear piece.

"Oh, shut it, I was having fun," Lydia snapped back, causing Irene to raise a perfectly sculpted brow. Lydia quickly rushed to explain, some colour having risen to her cheeks, "Sherlock was just remarking that I haven't gotten around to speaking with all of the girls yet."

"Well I can certainly try to help remedy that, I'll make sure that you mingle with everyone at the party. Though I must admit that we don't usually do much talking at these things."

It didn't take long for Irene to finish doing Lydia's makeup, grabbing a small mirror so that she could show Lydia her handiwork once she was done. Irene was careful to make it so that the mirror could only reflect her face, keeping any glimpse of the garments Lydia was wearing from Sherlock's eye.

But Lydia was not focused on the angles of the mirror, but rather on the makeup that Irene had styled. It was bold and dramatic, more than Lydia typically wore, but it, much like the clothes, made her feel so much more powerful.

"Irene, I think Sherlock may very well have to fight you to make me go home," Lydia teased, admiring her reflection.

"That's not funny, Lydia. I think I may need to get you out of there," Sherlock growled and Lydia could hear a hint of possessiveness in his voice.

"Relax, darling, I was only joking."

Before Irene could respond, the two women quickly fell silent at the sounds of someone trying to get into the room. When they realised that the door was locked, Lydia made out the unmistakable sounds of someone trying to pick a lock.

As quietly as she could, Lydia rose from her seat and whispered in Irene's ear, "don't let them know I'm here, just focus on doing your own makeup."

Irene nodded and took a seat at the vanity, her back to the door while Lydia slipped behind the large curtains that blocked out light from the windows. It wasn't the best hideout, but it was what Lydia could achieve in the time frame given.

"What's going on in there?" Sherlock asked in Lydia's ear, about ready to leap out of the car he was still hiding out in.

Not willing to speak and potentially tip off whoever it was trying to break in, Lydia tried her best to sign in front of the camera, "probably nothing, stay put."

A moment later the door slammed open and Lydia immediately tensed, preparing to jump out of her hiding place and attack. She peered around the edge of the curtain, to find Irene with a hand on her chest.

"Rori, you frightened me," she spoke, brushing off Rori's barging in as nothing. "You could've asked me to unlock the door, you know. I was just trying to get ready for the party tonight."

Rori silently approached Irene and Lydia caught a glimpse of the knife that she had in her hand. Sherlock must've seen it as well because he immediately ordered Lydia to get out of there.

"You don't even remember me, do you? You took her away from me and then you left her discarded on the side of the road. But even that wasn't enough to make her stop loving you. Parliament was just starting to talk about making it legal for us to get married, yet you stole her away before the verdict was even made," Rori growled, pointing the knife at Irene. "And yet you've convinced all of these women that you are some sort of saint, that you're Artemis, carving out a little slice of paradise for them to escape to."

"So it was you that killed Ellie."

"No one but you was supposed to get hurt. It would have been perfect, we would have kept the life you made here and you would have finally died, just like you were supposed to have done years ago."

As Rori went to strike, Lydia had already leapt from her hiding spot and grabbed Rori's arm, pinning it behind her and forcing her to drop the knife. Rori struggled in Lydia's grasp, trying to break free, stomping hard on her foot. Lydia swore, but kept her hold on Rori, hoping that Sherlock would hurry up, she wasn't sure how much longer she could hold back the assailant and Sherlock would be furious if she got herself hurt.

Suddenly Rori went limp in Lydia's arms and she glanced up to find Irene holding a syringe in her hand, the contents now missing. Lydia let Rori's body slump to the ground and asked, "should I even wonder why you have chemicals to knock people out in here?"

"Oh this? I use it on loads of my friends, I actually used it on Sherlock once."

"Sure he loved that," Lydia muttered, imagining Sherlock's reaction to realising that she had managed to drug him.

Irene shrugged, "made him intrigued, so it was definitely worth it. He lost interest after that, though. But now he's turned his sights to you so we better cover you up before he gets here. Unless, of course, you've reconsidered that threesome."

"Probably should get Rori out of here before anything like that happens."

Irene smirked as she handed Lydia a coat, quite similar to the Belstaff that Sherlock wore, "that wasn't a no, darling. Perhaps you are actually considering it, then? Just imagine what I could do to you, my dear Lydia."

"I'm afraid she won't get the opportunity to find out," a masculine voice spoke as Sherlock entered the room, just as Lydia finished fastening the coat. "But I see you've got this situation handled."

"Turns out I didn't need you a super detective after all, I just needed my wonderful bodyguard to catch the killer. But I suppose I'll have to be relinquishing her back to you now, though it was fun to play with her today. I'll tie up Rori until the proper authorities arrive. I really must thank you for what you've done today, Lydia, and if you ever need an escape from reality, you know where to find me."

Lydia smiled warmly at her, "I'll certainly keep that in mind. Now come, Sherlock, let's go home."

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(A/N): Ok so Sherlock's deductions weren't necessary here, but I promise you'll get more cases before the book is up! I hope you enjoyed this chapter!