The Death Game

Chapter 2

-Friday September 3rd 2010-

Juliet hadn't spent any time in London since March 1988. She had left London at the age of two to live in Paris. She spent two years in the United Kingdom, she was too young to make friends but  she always had close friends growing up. Well actually, she only had one, maybe two. Abygaëlle Martch. And she had just heard she moved to London to continue her studies in science.

Where did she work now? St. Bart's Hospital.

St. Bart's Hospital, originally named St. Bartholomew's Hospital, is a centre of research and learning, primarily into cardiac care and cancer research and treatment. Its faded grey colour mixes in with the rest of the buildings, the rest of the street. But it was its enormous and incredibly large size that made it stand out, without counting the smell of corpses and chemical smells that flew lightly everywhere on property. But she believed that living day by day, week by week, next to dead bodies, she would have had time to adapt to this sickly sweet smell.

There really was no way to describe the smell of rotting, decomposing black flesh. It wasn't just the smell of bowels releasing, but it was a sweeter smell of decomposition. Like a full dumpster at a butcher shop, having been unattended for weeks.

She was definitely ready for the smell of rotting flesh and chemicals.

This afternoon's windy breeze wasn't as strong, Juliet was for once able to make it through the wind, her short dark trench coat covering her small waste and knees from the breezy wind. On her arm was hooked a dark blue and black old fashioned umbrella.

Her black ankle boots tapped rather quickly on the pavement, in a perfect rhythm of four. She quickly turned down the street and headed straight towards the washed out golden gates of the hospital. She smiled at the tarnished lions who slumped over on their left side, both resting on small pillars placed directly to both sides of the entrance. Juliet managed to get passed the guards and directly hurried up the stairs, trying to find the one in a hundred rooms where her old friend Abygaëlle would actually be in.

While making her way to another floor, she overheard two voices chatting in the corridor. She opened the door and rapidly made her way passed the two men. She glanced at them, they had stopped talking and were now stared at the woman. The first man was short and chubby. He looked to be around his late thirties with a grey and light brown receding hairline was a pack a grey and light brown hair all pushed nicely to the back of his head.

Compared to the first man, the second one was nothing but a sack of walking bones. He clenched a walking cane in with his right hand, probably due to a recent injury. His hair was  of a blond grey mixture cut short like a soldier. His square face and tired eyes look like they had seen enough nightmares. Perhaps enough for a life time.

Juliet was quicker than the two men and had manage to pass them by a mile. Miss Waters was going levels to levels and doors to doors, only the end up on another group of people working or cleaning. Non of them were Abygaëlle Martch. Finally she ended up opening a door to a science lab, the room was dark, few of the white neon lights were broken or some were being plain annoying and flickering. The room was filled with little jars and containers who were themselves filled with liquid or small solids. Graduated cylinders were filled with blue liquid, one had an eye cut in half floating. A burner was on, revealing only a phantom of crouched man. Too busy observing his microscope, the man never lifted his head up towards our intruder. 

Doubt he even heard her come in.

The mysterious man sat on a small stood, yet she could see that he appeared to at least be six feet tall, so excessively lean and lanky. His eyes were a sharp and piercing green and blue. His hair, if we could even call it that, was just a black messy mop placed on the top of his head, his ends were finished by perfect round curls. His hands were invariably blotted with ink and stained with different colours of chemicals, yet he possessed an extraordinary delicate touch as he manipulated his fragile instruments. And those cheekbones, anyone would cut their hand slapping that face.

As Juliet tried getting closer to him, she gently dragged my fingers across the table but her index caught on one of the small beakers filled with a transparent liquid. Hearing the sound of glass slipping off of the table, the man's head jerked up and in an instant his eyes were on her. Before he could quickly get up and grab the falling glass, she had already managed to instantaneously catch it. Almost out of breath, she looked up to put the instrument on the table but something stopped her in mid-action;  the tall man was standing rather close to her. Slowly lifting her head up she looked at him, his two perfect turquoise eyes were piercing through her. Piercing through her soul. It was calming. Too calm and awkward. Luckily, someone finally opened the door wide open. A small woman came walking in with an bag of crisps in her hands.

''Get a room you two.'' The lady replied with a puff.

The small lady was wearing a simple grey over-sized sweater hidden underneath a long white lab coat stained with tiny little droplets of different colours all mixed together. A large coffee stained the collar of her lab coat. Her angular face and small cheekbones made her look more than beautiful and her cat like eyes were the most beautiful chestnut-brown ever seen. She had uneven splitting thick hair alight close together which made large chunks that laid on top of each other in layers. Her thick wavy hair hung loose behind her back and ended mid-waist. She was a rather petite lady but she was beautiful. 

And that was her. 

Abygaëlle Martch.

She had finally found her.

''Abygaëlle Martch? Abygaëlle, is that you?'' Juliet asked excitedly.

''Uhm...?'' was all the woman replied before turning around and laying her brown eyes on the woman standing before her, ''Juliet Waters? No, it couldn't be! How long was the last time I saw you, for real!''

Both girls ran to each other and couldn't contain their excitement. They jumped in each other arms and tried to stay mature for once but all they wanted to do was scream, squeal and jump. The handsome stranger stayed still in the same spot as where the beaker had almost fallen. He looked at the two women, intrigued.

''I see you've already met Mr.Holmes'' Abygaëlle said letting go of her friend and turning to face the man.

''Sherlock Holmes. Consulting detective.'' he replied with a monotone voice.

''Pleasure to meet you Mr.Holmes...'' Miss Waters replied a smirk played on her lips. She extended her hand, waiting for a handshake.

Sherlock Holmes took the rather small hand in his own and shook it lightly not wanting to break her fragile finger. He couldn't get the chill this woman made him feel. She was cold. Cold as a snake. Cold like Death.

''We have some catching up to do Sherlock. You...you go play with your texting and murders.'' the petite woman let out before grabbing Juliet by the arm to drag her away.

''Goodbye Mr.Holmes. I'll see you soon.'' Juliet purred at the detective with a small grin.

As soon as Abygaëlle opened the large door, the two men from earlier came walking in, giving another confused look at the lady they had seen in the corridors. Miss Martch gave them a quick glance and dragged her tall friend out the door before closing it behind her.

Sherlock Holmes was then left alone with these two strange men but also with the thought of the suspicious looking woman he had met earlier. Who was she? Why was she so...cold?