His Last Vow (Sherlock x Female!Reader)

Chapter 4: The Mind Palace of a Dying Detective

EARLIER 

*Sherlock's POV*

Sherlock walks softly along the carpeted hall towards where he can hear Magnussen talking quietly, sounding anxious and tearful. "What-what-what would your husband think, eh? He....your lovely husband, upright, honorable....so English. What-what would he say to you now?" Magnussen asked as Sherlock approaches the room and see Magnussen cowering down on his knees.

In front of him is a figure dressed in all black pointing a gun at him. The figure cocks the gun and points it at him again and Magnussen whimpers and starts to beg in Danish. "You're-you're doing this to protect him from the truth....but is this protection he would want?" Magnussen asked the figure.

Sherlock slowly walks to stand a few feet behind the person holding the gun and said. "Additionally, if you're going to commit murder, you might consider changing your perfume, Lady Smallwood."

Magnussen straightens up a bit and lets out a shaky breath before speaking to Sherlock. "Sorry. Who? That's not....Lady Smallwood, Mr Holmes." He said and Sherlock frowns.

The figure turns around and Sherlock comes face to face with Mary Watson, who points the gun at him. "Is John with you?" She asked him.

"He's, um...." Sherlock said, shakily.

"Is John here?" Mary asked, firmly.

"He's-he's downstairs."

She nods then looks back at him. "And (y/n)? Is she here too?" She asked and Sherlock nods.

"So, what do you do now? Kill us both?" Magnussen asked her, softly. She smiles humorlessly at him as Sherlock speaks up. "Mary, whatever he's got on you, let me help." He said as he prepares to step towards her.

"Oh, Sherlock, if you take one more step I swear I will kill you." She said, somewhat exasperated. Sherlock shakes his head and gives her a small smile and said. "No, Mrs Watson. You won't."  

He starts to lift his foot off the floor and, immediately, Mary pulls the trigger and the bullet impacts him in his lower chest. Sherlock's eyes become unfocused and he has a slight shocked look on his face as Mary sighs, regretfully.

He looks down at the bullet hole and sees blood beginning to pour out from the hole. "I'm sorry, Sherlock. Truly am." She said tearfully.

"Mary?" Sherlock asked as he raises his head towards her. She turns and points her gun at Magnussen and then.....

MIND PALACE

​​​​​​​The room darkens around Sherlock and a spotlight shines onto his face as he stares ahead of himself in shock, a loud siren blaring in his ear repeatedly. Then Molly appears, wearing her lab coat, and walks around Sherlock. "It's not like it is in the movies. There's not a great spurt of blood and you go flying backwards." She said smiling but then her face becomes more serious. "The impact isn't spread over a wide area. It's tightly focused, so there's little or no energy transfer." She said while she's in a white walked mortuary room and she walks over to the body lying on the table, which is covered in a white sheet.

She reaches down and pulls back the sheet and reveals Sherlock lying under the sheet, naked and his eyes are closed. "You stay still and the bullet pushes through." She said as she pulls back the sheet from his waist, revealing the bullet hole in his lower chest. "You're almost certainly going to die, so we need to focus." She said and she slaps Sherlock hard across the face and he hauls a huge breath, his eyes snapped open as he jerked his head to the side of her blow.

Back in Magnussen's room, Sherlock's eyelids lift a little. "I said focus." Molly says, as she appears in front of him, again and slaps him again and his head snaps around under her blow and before he can turn back he's standing in a bright white room, he straightens up and looks around, bewildered, then looks at Molly.