Fight for Me

Chapter 44

Lydia returned to the flat after her shift, surprised to find that the boys had gotten takeaway. Well, she suspected John had gotten takeaway for himself and Lydia since Sherlock was working a case. However, she couldn't ask him since they were both out, having left only a note informing that she could have her fill of the leftovers in the fridge. It was written in John's rushed handwriting, making her wonder if they had come across a lead in the case.

After heating up some of the food, Lydia contently settled down in Sherlock's armchair. The couch was probably a better option, but there was something so comforting about the leather that smelt like him, like Sherlock. It was wrong of her to stoke the flames of her admiration, but the chair had just been so inviting.

That was where the boys found her hours later, when they finally returned from their latest crime scene. It seemed that they had stumbled across an enflamed rivalry between the Black Curs and the Kray Syndicate, which had most recently left a total of nine dead bodies, four of them belonging to the Syndicate and the other five being members of the Black Curs. There wasn't much left to investigate, but Sherlock had a feeling that there was more to rivalry than met the eye.

Sherlock's gaze fell on Lydia's sleeping figure, surprised to find that she seemed rather peaceful in her sleep. It was a rare occurrence for her, so he resolved not to disturb her, knowing she needed the rest more than he needed his chair. So Sherlock grabbed a throw and walked over to his armchair so he could drape it over her.

"Sherlock, I really wouldn't disturb her," John spoke, noticing Sherlock approaching Lydia and assuming that he was going to kick her out of his chair.

Sherlock merely rolled his eyes in response, gently placing the blanket over her curled up form. He felt the desire to brush the loose hairs out of her face, but quickly stopped himself, not wanting John to see the affection that he held for her. So he just straightened himself and walked over to his desk, sending out messages to his network, asking them to alert him if they came across any activity from either of the smuggling rings.

"I think I'm going to head to bed, unless there's anything else you need from me?" John spoke, carefully avoiding the subject of Sherlock's tenderness towards Lydia. He knew Sherlock would just come up with some ridiculous excuse anyway, so there really was no point. Besides, it probably wasn't the wisest to reveal to the Foundation how close she and Sherlock had gotten.

Sherlock didn't look up from his laptop as he gave John a nod, continuing to read the article about flesh-eating bacteria he had come across. Molly, after inquiring after who the woman he had started running around with was, had alerted him to a woman who had died at St. Barts after being infected by the bacteria vibrio vulnificus, causing necrotising fasciitis. There was not much the hospital could do to successfully stop the decay of the woman's flesh and she had ended up in the morgue.

Molly had ruled it an accident, she had probably gone swimming somewhere that was infected. But Sherlock had glanced at the body and it was clear that the victim had been deliberately cut, which Sherlock had assumed was an insurance policy on behalf of the killer to make sure that the bacteria got into the victim's body. But this meant he had to figure out the source of the bacteria, which based on his research and investigation, he narrowed down to her hot tub and sent a text off to Molly to have someone collect samples of the water, which he suspected contained the bacteria, allowed by a lack of chlorine. This would indicate someone close to him, which meant it was probably her husband, considering she was having an affair. He probably found out about it and took his revenge.

Lydia jolted awake Sherlock's armchair, surprised to feel the weight of a blanket covering her. Once adjusted to the darkness, she found Sherlock typing away on his cell phone in front of an open laptop. The glow of the screen illuminated his face in the otherwise dark room, creating shadows that emphasized his impressive bone structure. Lydia caught herself staring at him only when his eyes flickered up from his phone to meet hers, causing her heart to jump erratically.