The Laws of Attraction - A Study in Pink

A Study In Pink

     She stood stiff legged, crossed arms holding her jacket closed against the nippy, night air. At first, she stared at the taxi, and then its driver stepped out. He headed 'round the car and took his time in joining her on the side walk.

     "Where to, miss?" He asked, staring at her coolly, arms crossed similarly to hers.

     "Why don't you tell me?"

     "Oh, so you worked it out. Good girl."

     "You know, for a man who must be a genius, it was stupid for you to come here. The police are right upstairs."

     "By all means, go and get them. I'm not going to stop you. And I'll come quietly. Or..." He dropped his sentence off, leaving Leanna at the cliff's edge. She picked it up.

     "Or..."

     "Or you could get in the cab." He slanted his head back an inch, toward the black car, "We'll go for a nice drive, and then I'm going to have a little talk with you."

     "Talk how?"

     "There's only one way to find out. Turn me in, and you'll never know."

     "I'm not interested in games. I'm here to apprehend a murderer." She said, defiantly.

     "I'm not a murderer, miss. I talk to them, and they kill themselves." He was defiant back to her.

     "Four people, dead, because of you. I'm pretty sure that's the definition of murder."

     "But you'll still come with me."

     "You don't know that." She defended.

     "You want to show off, for him. Impress the great Sherlock Holmes."

     "Never crossed my mind." That was true, and it was only now that she realized that she may have wanted to consult with the consulting detective before going up against a serial murderer.

     Nevertheless, the cabbie held the door for her as she slipped inside on the back seat. She clicked her buckle as he turned the engine on, and Leanna gave a final glance at the second floor window, where stood the shadowy figure of the detective. Then, the car pulled away.

     Thinking as fast as she could, Leanna fumbled through a pocket of her coat, discretely, as not to alert the driver. She slipped from that pocket her mobile phone, silenced it, and then began dialing Mrs. Hudson's number. She hadn't gotten a chance to add John, and she didn't think Sherlock would give her his number if she payed him for it. Now, it was all up to Leanna's timing. She allowed a few seconds for her aunt to pick up.

     Until now, the ride had been silent, but she broke that silence, speaking in very choice words.

     "This is all quite brilliant. I'm sure Sherlock Holmes would like to speak with you." She only hoped Mrs. Hudson picked up on the cue and put Sherlock on. She had to allow another moment to pass, giving Sherlock time to answer.

     "Who would've thought it? The cabbie, all along. We even stopped your cab. Questioned the passenger, but we didn't even think of the driver."  She said, remembering now the incident from earlier.

     "Clever, isn't it?"

     Leanna looked out the window, watching the streets passing. They came up on a red light, giving Leanna a chance to read the name of the street.

     "West on Baxter? Where does that take us? I'm new to the area."  

     "Whereabouts from?"