The Child of Zeus

Every Ending Has a New Beginning

June 28th. 

They'd found him. Dead. Alone. Locked in. 

The cause of death?

Asphyxiation due to electrocution. 

The time of death? 

Around midnight last night. 

And what of the man himself?

A city man. Works in an office. His girlfriend's already been down to confirm that it's him. 

And who is that?

Phil. Phil Dodson. An American. Working for the London branch of a big company. 

But that's old news. 

     Sherlock Holmes and Molly Hooper had fallen asleep in the lab at St. Bartholomew's Hospital together after spending hours with countless futile attempts at solving the mystery. The mystery of the book. 

     She yawned and he looked over at her. Molly's eyes were red and dry. She could barely keep them open. It was a struggle, like weights pulling down her lids at every possible moment. She was so tired. "Get some sleep." He had told her. And she had responded that she didn't want to leave him here alone. She wanted to help him solve it. And you will, he told her, but you need sleep, you can barely keep your eyes open. She refused again, looking down at the book in front of her for a moment and falling into it. Come here, he said gesturing to the floor beside him. She climbed down from the stool and sat down beside the detective. He put his arm around her and whispered, "Go to sleep now." Her heart beating, she tensed up immediately. Her usual reaction to his touch. "You're tense. Just relax. Go to sleep." He coaxed her into finally relaxing. Leaning into him she closed her eyes and fell asleep. He breathed in the warm smell of her perfume and then allowed himself to drift off into his dreams.

     He was up before her. She was sleeping so peacefully until the alert that a message had been received rang out like an alarm on Sherlock's phone. "How long have you been awake?" She asked groggily. 

"Not long. If you're still tired Molly, go back to sleep. Please, I don't want to be the end of you. I quite like you alive thank you very much."

"Sherlock - "

"There's been another. It already happened we're too late. I'm sorry Molly, I wish I could stay but I really must dash. Lestrade's giving me 5 minutes to see the scene. I've got to get John too."

"Oh. Okay. Well, I'd better get ready for work then, I'm to be expecting a body. Coffee before you go?"

"No, that's quite alright love, I've got to run." He was almost out before Molly had stopped him.

"Love? Did - did you just call me love?"

"Um, slip of the tongue. Sorry about that." 

     And he was off without another word. Love. She had slept in his arms and now he was calling her love. What has happened to him? This was definitely a different side of Sherlock Holmes. 

     Love. Why had he let himself say that. I've got to be more careful. There almost wasn't enough time to finish the thought as Sherlock Holmes had just stepped into 221B Baker Street expecting to fetch John but ended up finding a package. The size of a book in an expensive envelope with a Mr. Sherlock Holmes written in dying ink on the back. There was to be another.