Nothing But Flowers (Johnlock)

Chapter 10

Shutting his office door with a sigh of relief, John sat down behind his desk and sipped his tea. It had been busy with patients earlier, but he had a last minute cancellation and was enjoying the break.

After such a busy weekend with Sherlock, it was nice to have some normalcy and quiet.

Opening up his offices files on the computer, he searched for Paolo. All his records for both surgeries were there. John read them over carefully, watching for medical abnormalities. Any small thing that could have contributed to his eventual death. John knew it was a long shot, but he wanted to help however possible.

The first surgery on his Achilles' tendon had been when he was younger and in practically perfect health. He had recovered quickly. John frowned slightly, looking at the blood tests prior to the surgery. He showed signs of anemia, but that wasn't that unusual anymore, since people ate meat so rarely. John now recalled treating him for the anemia at that time.

A few years later, Paolo hadn't been doing as well for his knee surgery. Years of professional sports had taken their toll. The performance enhancing drugs had left their side effects as well. During the examination, John had palpitated his chest and noticed some organs were enlarged. His skin wasn't clear. Many joints showed signs of over-use damage, although his knee was the worst. His former anemia was not apparent, one of the few improvements he showed.

It was disappointing that the records didn't give any new insights. John really wanted to help Sherlock resolve this as soon as possible.

The story was really getting discussed in the news more and more, fans speculating. He had heard snippets of conversation around the office building; Paola's and Sherlock's name being mentioned.

He got home as soon as possible after work. Sherlock was lying on a chair, tablet clenched in his hands. He looked up, his expression miserable, and passed the tablet to John.

Sitting down in the other chair, John played the video that was queued up from a news website. It was a press conference from Scotland Yard, from an hour earlier.

DI Lestrade faced the cameras, seated at a table alone. "The autopsy report for Paolo Baresi was released Friday, with his cause of death showing as a heart attack. Preliminary investigations suggest it may not have been due to natural causes. The investigation is ongoing but I will take questions now."

A dozen hands flew up, and the D.I. nodded to a reporter in the front row.

"Why is homicide investigating this? Was he murdered?"

Lestrade sighed slightly. "He was a young, fit professional athlete. Heart attacks can occur, but we need to be sure of the cause."

The next reporter was less restrained. "It is common knowledge that he was getting treatments from Sherlock Holmes. Why isn't he in custody?" There were murmurs of agreement from the other reporters.

Running a hand through his salt and pepper hair, the detective seemed exhausted. "He is a person of interest we are seeking for questioning."

The room erupted at that, jumping up and shouting questions at him. A pack of hounds catching scent of a juicy story.
"He is missing?"
"Has he left the country?"
"Isn't that a sure sign of his guilt?"

Making a settle down gesture, Lestrade eventually had the crowd back in their seats. "As I said, he is only ONE of the people we are questioning for this investigation. If anyone in the public has information, our website has a place you can leave tips." The video ended soon after that.

John set down the tablet, feeling stunned. "He basically put a bounty on your head."

Rolling over on to his side, Sherlock nodded slowly. His expression reminded John of when he had arrived a couple days ago. Anxious, scared. Pale and wretched.