How They Met Alice (BBC Sherlock Fanfiction)

Chapter 66

(NIGHT TIME, THE MOORS, HENRY’S POV: )

                The hound howled and I raced across the grass, terrified as the hound snarled behind me. I was praying it wouldn’t get me, over and over again. I kept running, glancing back again and again as I heard the hound gaining on me. Two red glowing eyes loomed out of the darkness each time I looked around. I realized that I was holding my pistol, and so I turned and fired towards the eyes in desperation.

                Suddenly I heard glass shattering and Doctor Mortimer screamed as she threw herself out of her chair in the sitting room and cowered on the floor. The mirror on the wall had shattered under the impact of the bullet, which apparently I had just fired into it. Sobbing and cowering, she looked up at me as I continued to aim at the mirror, my face and mind blank. I came back to myself and looked at the pistol in horror.

                “Oh my g*d.”  Doctor Mortimer continued to sob. “Oh my g*d. Oh my g*d. I am so... I am so sorry. I am so sorry.” I stammered, horrified with what I had just done. I turned and ran from the room, knowing what I had to do. I was a danger to myself and others.

                BASKERVILLE

                (Alice’s POV: )

                Stapleton led Sherlock, John and I along a corridor and used her card to swipe us into the area leading to Major Barrymore’s office. As we went into the room, Sherlock pointed back to the door we just came through.

                “John.” Sherlock said.

                “Yeah, I’m on it.” John replied obediently. He turned back to keep an eye on the door as Stapleton went over to sit down at a computer.

                “Project HOUND. Must have read about it and stored it away. An experiment in a CIA facility in Liberty, Indiana.” Sherlock explained. He stood behind Stapleton, me standing next to him but looking at John, as she typed her User ID onto the computer, then added her password. A request to ‘Enter Search String’ came up and she looked up at Sherlock, who dictated the letters.

                “H, O, U, N, D.” He listed. I looked at the screen as he finished. She typed in the letters and hit Enter. A message came up saying ‘NO ACCESS. CIA Classified’ and requesting an authorization code.

                “That’s as far as my access goes, I’m afraid.” Stapleton apologized.

                “Well, there must be an override and password.” John suggested.

                “I imagine so, but that’d be Major Barrymore’s.” Stapleton replied. Sherlock spun around and walked into Barrymore’s office, me tiredly following.

                “Password, password, password.” He repeated to himself, switching on the lights in the room then sitting down at the desk. “He sat here when he thought it up.” Folding his hands in front of his mouth, he slowly spun a full circle on the chair, looking around the office as he went. Stapleton came to the doorway as I was looking over his desk. “Describe him to me.” Sherlock commanded.