It's An Experiment

Buckingham Palace

The next morning, John and Sherlock went right to work. They rode in the car Mycroft sent for them, and they were driven to Buckingham Palace. The fire was finally put out, and the crew worked all night to salvage what they could. The search was still on going, but Sherlock and John were allowed in early.

As they rolled in, John's face paled a little. Sherlock noticed this, and gently squeezed his hand to reassurance. The two got out, and were escorted into the main hall, and then briefed.

"We found where the bomb detonated. But we can't find it's remains. We were able to save some footage a couple hours before the explosion, but a bit of it was missing." A young man told them. He guided them into a room full of screen, and placed a disk into one of the tvs.

"This is footage of everyone, in and out of the area." He said. The film started, and the man put it in sped mode. John and Sherlock watched intently as each person walked two and from the corridor. Some of the maids stopping at each podium to clean a vase, fill it with water, or replace the flowers.

Sherlock was watching the staff's movements, while John watched to see if anyone looked nervous. They saw one butler pass by a vase, and they accidentally nocked it down. You could see his panic a little, then retrieve a dust pan to clean it up. An hour later he came back with an escort and another vase. The superior scolded him for a moment, and the vase was replaced. The footage ran some more, and it stopped

"That's all we have. Just at this moment, the bomb went off, and the cameras went off line." The man told them. Both Sherlock and John knew it had to have been a staff member. The halls are swept everyday for bombs, and the only people in the corridor that day were staff.

"I think it's the man that broke the vase. He could've planted it inside or on the bottom of the vase." John said.

"I agree. But then again, many other maids went around to clean the vases. It could've been them just as well." Sherlock pointed out.

"I would like to speak to all of your remaining staff that went through that area that day." Sherlock requested. The man obeyed, and guided them to the staff rooms.

They walked around, and talked to the staff. They were surprised that many of the staff members didn't know who they were. Most of the time, they were so busy that they couldn't keep up with the news. But some of the maids were part timers, so they actually had a day life for half the week.

"Well do you know of a man who broke a vase on the day? He ended up replacing the vase with another man, most likely a superior." Sherlock asked one maid. She nodded.

"The rumor spread around fast. He was docked pay and demoted. But that kind of thing happens occasionally. Sometimes a maid will drop a plate or two, or a butler's tailcoat will get caught around table, and knock something down. It's somewhat common." She told them. Sherlock thanked her, and joined John who was also speaking to some of the other maids.

"Well thank you, but please, answer my question. I'm on a tight schedule." John said as Sherlock entered. He saw a maid sitting on her bed, and John was standing up.

"Anything new?" Sherlock asked. John shook his head.

"She's the last one." John informed him. Sherlock quickly deduced her. It was prominent that she felt lust towards John. Made Sherlock a bit sick actually.

"Alright, back to the subject. Was anyone acting suspicious? Were there any rumors we should know about?" John asked. She nodded her head.

"I heard from one of my mates that Glenda was acting a bit skittish. I mean normally she is a bit nervous, but she was acting out a lot more. She jumped when you called out to her, and her eyes were always shooting back and forth. A bit weird if you ask me." She said.