His Great Game (Sherlock x Reader)

Chapter 23: Retrieved

(A/N: Peep @ that great fanart up there ^^ Also if you guys could recommend or share this story somehow on any type of social media that would be gr8. Y'all high-key deserve this update; thanks for all the amazing comments and for being so patient!! Warning: IDEK what I'm writing anymore, it's all a mess. Sorry.)

(Your POV)

"Wakey, wakey." A familiar, lilting voice washed over my ears. I groaned, slowly regaining consciousness. Where am I? The last place I remembered being was the ballroom. The light went out and... Oh, crap.

I tried to assess the situation without opening my eyes. Okay... I'm sitting in a chair. Barefoot. Ankles tied to the legs of the chair... wrists tied behind it. I mentally scoffed. How original. I opened my eyes slowly, adjusting to the dim light.

Despite my situation, I rolled my eyes when I saw who it was. Moriarty stood in front of me, smirking, hands clasped behind his back. I squirmed in my tight bonds- the ropes were digging into my skin. "Comfortable?" He asked, pretending to care.

I ignored the question. "Really, James, tying me to a chair? Bit cliché, don't you think?" I kept my tone light, hoping I would seem unfazed by the whole situation. In reality, I was screaming on the inside and on the verge of panicking. Luckily, my acting skills and incredible poker face allowed me to keep that from Moriarty.

He just shrugged, sticking his hands in his pockets. "Whatever works, right princess?" He began to pace around me. Not touching me or harming me, just pacing. I took a few moments to survey my surroundings. It was an empty, cement room- a warehouse, probably. The lights that weren't burnt out were barely lit, so the entire room seemed to be cast in a huge shadow. The room was completely empty except for my chair, which was placed in the center of the room. Two exits- one in front of me, and one behind me. I remained silent.

After what seemed like hours but was only minutes, Moriarty sighed and came to a halt beside me. "It's taking your little friends much longer to find you than I thought." He started mumbling to himself. "Manchester is only a bit over an hour by helicopter, what's taking them so bloody long...?"

I quirked an eyebrow. "So you want them to find me?"

"Oh, yes, of course." He reassured me. "I'm not trying to kill anyone... yet. You're a part of this game now, (Y/n)." He smiled to himself. "My Great Game. It's not even begun, really. I'm just getting started. This..." He gestured to me. "This is just warmup." He chuckled darkly, and the sound sent shivers up my spine. I wasn't exactly sure what the game was supposed to be, but I knew full well that it couldn't be anything good.

I was ripped from my thoughts when he gently grabbed my chin. He looked me in the eyes and I gulped. I tried to pull away, but with being tied down and all, I wasn't going anywhere fast. Moriarty just tsked and grabbed my face again, a bit more forcefully this time. Slowly, he tilted my head to the side until my neck was exposed. "You can still see it, you know." His finger softly traced the word on my neck. The six letters that had haunted me for over a week. Those six letters that meant nothing and everything at the same time. "They did a good job of covering it up tonight, though. The twins." I didn't even ask how he knew about that. He let his hand drop away, returning it to his pocket. Suddenly, he scrunched up his shoulders and started giggling. I looked on in confusion. What is he on about?

"Too bad it's fading- the writing. I wasn't sure it was going to work, honestly." He added when he saw my still-confused face. "But I'm so glad it did. Sherlock even went pale, I mean, did you see his face?!" He practically sang his words, and I rolled my eyes in disgust. This guy was a total psychopath. Only he could get high off of hurting other people. Not just physically, but emotionally, too.