Royalty

Chapter 29: Don't Try To Fight It, Lie Back ...

(A/N: So ... Hi?

I owe y'all another apology, and I also apologize if the apologies are stacking up. 

I'm sorry about the almost double gap of time. It has been homecoming week in my hometown, and it's also just been a busy week for my family in general, but I really do feel bad about not updating. 

I did try to make it a little longer, I guess as a weak sort of compensation for not updating for a while ...

I hope you enjoy this chapter all the more for the longer wait, and sorry again!)

Sherlock's POV:

My mind raced as fast as it could.

panic room help ar

'AR'. Initials, obviously, Alice Rucastle. Her kidnappers had gotten clumsy and left her with a phone, for however long. But it was enough for a text. A clue, that she hoped we'd figure it out.

help

Simple, unimportant, just meant to convey the purpose of the message in case it was misunderstood.

panic room

And there was the clue, the hint. But I couldn't quite understand. Was it an attempt to give her location? Perhaps there was some location known as the 'panic room'? Or was it a synonym for her location? Panic room ...

"What the bloody hell is that?" Lestrade asked. I sighed softly, explaining as quickly as I could.

"It's from the girl, signed with her initials, she managed to get a phone, she's trying to text her location by saying panic room."

"So where is she?" I rolled my eyes. I was smart, but it wasn't as if everything became clear to me after two point two seconds. Not most of the time, anyway. "I don't know yet, I'm trying to figure it out --" I started through gritted teeth. He interrupted.

"Well, text her back --" he said, reaching for the phone. I moved it out of his grasp quickly.

"No! She won't have the phone anymore. The text was all lowercase, no punctuation, and she didn't capitalize her initials. She would have made it clearer if she had the time. She knew she only had a few seconds. This is all we get."

"But that could mean anything!"

"Yes, it could, but if I have time to think about it, I can narrow it down."

"Then think about it! We've been looking for her for a month and a half! This is the first lead we've gotten in ages --"

"I can't think properly if you're watching me like I'm on the West End!" I sighed, taking a breath. I'd gotten worked up at the enraging fact of yet another hard-to-decipher hint.

I handed Lestrade the phone, turning it off and forcing myself to calm down. "Do your job and I'll do mine, Inspector."

"Well, I can't exactly do my job when I work with a self-important arse, can I?" He sounded less mad and more exasperated. I did do this a lot.

"You can do plenty. Look into the Rucastles, into their friends and colleagues, specifically."

"The Ruca --? It's their daughter missing, you can't possibly think they're involved somehow."

"That is exactly what I think, and as I tend to be right, I think you should take my word for it. Do what you can, and I will do what I can."

"As long as you remember that you don't run Scotland Yard."

"I think I could fool most people into believing that I, in fact, do."

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