Entry 22

"Do you hear that...?"

Shirleigh glanced around when I pointed out the faint noise seemingly coming from above our heads.

We were able to make our way to Moriarty's hometown of Hastings in East Sussex. The time was just after midnight, a new day already upon us. When we arrived, there was someone waiting for us on the front porch, the person being Morairty's mother. It appeared that she may have already had an idea as to the reason for our visit for she let us in without hesitation and seated herself at the dining room table, tears streaming down her face.

We stayed with her for about an hour talking about her daughter and her family when I suddenly brought attention to the strange sound.

"Is it...buzzing?" I pondered aloud. Listening closer, I was surprised I hadn't noticed it before but perhaps it was my exhaustion that tuned it out. "It almost sounds like...bees, no?"

I looked over at Moriarty's mother who wore a bittersweet smile. She brushed past my partner and me, ushering us to follow along. She guided us up a staircase, the buzzing growing louder the higher we ascended. She opened a door that led to the roof and in the centre was a large wooden box.

"How are you both around bees?" Mrs Moriarty made her way to the box and removed the lid. The buzzing sound overwhelmed my hearing. She pulled out a tray that was covered with hundreds of bees. "This was Jade's pride and joy."

"Moriarty was a beekeeper?" I asked, slowly approaching the hive to get a closer look.

"Jade loved bees. She admired how hard they worked even though people may find them insignificant. She adored that they never let anything stop them from achieving their ultimate purposes in their short lives. You may remember several years ago that the honeybees were endangered. Recently, their population has been on the incline and I'd like to think it's because of Jade's hard work. I know it sounds a bit silly to think she was solely responsible for the bees' rebounding population, but it is surprising how much of a difference one person can make."

Mrs Moriarty gazed lovingly at the swarm of bees, allowing a few of them to cling to her hand. The buzz they created started to sound more like the purrs of a kitten cuddling close to its owner. So this is what Moriarty meant when she said "children"...

"Perhaps that is why she liked you so much, Shirleigh. To her, you may have resembled a honeybee. A hard worker who doesn't see how much they contribute to the world around them."

When I turned my attention to my companion, who I realised was silent all this time, her gaze was fixed on the beehive. Her eyes were glossy but it was difficult to tell if it was the lights on the roof reflecting off of them or newly formed tears.

"Whenever she visited, she would spend all of her free time with them. She may have even named every single one," Moriarty's mother chuckled to herself. "We would watch over them when she would leave for work in other parts of the country..."

"I will take care of them."

Slightly startled at the sudden sound of Shirleigh's voice, Mrs Moriarty and I turned to face her. Shirleigh stared at the bees in the hive, never making eye contact with either of us as she continued.

"I shall take care of them if you would allow me to do so. As a matter of fact, I insist upon it. After what happened, I feel—" Shirleigh's voice hitched and something tugged at my heart. "I feel it is the least I can do for her."

She composed herself, taking a deep breath and straightening her posture.

"Of course," Mrs Moriarty said, sweeping her gaze over the hive once more. "I think Jade would have liked that very much. I don't suppose you brought a car with you? A large truck?"

"Oh, uh..." I started, glancing over at Shirleigh who scratched the back of her head. "No ma'am. We take the train."

"Well, you can't take a large beehive on public transit," Mrs Moriarty stated in a lighthearted tone. "I'll drive them up to you."

"Are you sure?" I asked. "It is quite a drive from here to London. I am quite positive Shirleigh would not mind the side glances on the train."

"This I insist," she answered, her eyes landing on Shirleigh. "It is the least I can do for you."

Shirleigh's shoulders slumped making her stature look more relaxed and welcoming than usual. Her eyebrows lifted and her lips were drawn into a tight line. If I hadn't known better, I'd say that she appeared on the verge of tears.

"Alright, then it's settled," Mrs Moriarty placed the tray of bees back into the hive and replaced the cover. "As much as I would love to keep them, I simply do not have the energy Jade did to care for them properly. I will head for London first thing in the morning. You girls ought to head back before the sun rises. You both need some much-needed rest."

Mrs Moriarty escorted us back inside and saw us out the front door.

"Oh, and Shirleigh."

My companion turned to face Mrs Moriarty who held a bone white skull in her hands. It resembled the one that could be found on the back cover of "Reichenbach Falls".

"Jade named it Reichenbach, of course. A part of me feels like she would have wanted you to have it."

Shirleigh received the skull with both hands and stared into the cavities where the eyes would have been and a faint smile appeared across her lips. She stood there, unmoving, not realising that Mrs Morairty had disappeared from the screen door.

"Shirleigh..." I whispered.

She turned to me and looked into my eyes. This time, it was clear to see that hers were wet with tears.

"Perhaps..." she said aloud. "When I retire from all of this, I shall come back here and start a bee farm of my own..."

She blinked hard a few times and slightly shook her head before strolling past me and leading the way back to the train station.

»»————-　♔　————-««

"Do you think it was a good idea?" I wondered, turning Moriarty's phone over in my hands. "To keep this, I mean?"

"Of course," Shirleigh answered as she backed away from the fireplace, both fists planted firmly on either hip. She tilted her head as she pondered the new placement of the Reichenbach skull. "Why do you ask?"

"Well, nobody knows that it is in our possession, right? I am not entirely familiar with the law, but I am pretty sure that this is a punishable offence."

"It'll be fine," Shirleigh approached me and extended her hand. I reluctantly turned over the phone. "I will discuss the matter with Lestrade later."

My companion fell into her chair before bringing her knees up to her chest. She wrapped her arms around her legs, holding the phone just inches away from her face, the screen light reflecting off her pale skin.

"What are you going to do with it?"

"I'm going to read the messages."

"Okay, now that definitely has to be illegal. Doesn't it also have a password?"

"I already figured it out."

"You're a criminal."

She chuckled and tapped away on the phone screen.

"I'm going to go wash up," I said, peeling myself from the leather chair. I paused, my eyes fixated on the makeshift bandage I had made for my companion. "Please tell me you'll get some rest soon."

Shirleigh nodded quietly, her eyes squinting as she stared at the screen. I sighed wanting to make a remark about eye health but decided it wasn't the best time. She had already become completely absorbed in her mission. What that mission was, I was unsure.

»»————-　♔　————-««

I started the shower water before retrieving my nightgown from my bedroom. Before returning to the bathroom, I peeked out into the living room and unsurprisingly saw Shirleigh in the exact same position that I had left her. I frowned and closed the bathroom door behind me.

As I undressed, scenes from the cathedral flashed before me. The full moon beaming in the jet-black sky like the Sun on a clear day. Moriarty's fangs and blood-covered hands. The sound when she... The sound of the running water seemed to crescendo and my breath grew shallow. I placed a hand on the bathroom door to upright myself and the other on the counter when it felt as though my knees were about to buckle beneath me.

"Watson?"

The sound of my companion's voice was enough to bring me back to reality. When I opened my eyes, I caught my reflection in the mirror and noticed the pallor of my skin. I assume I had made some sort of concerning noise, whether it was my hand coming into contact with the door or the sound of my heart racing. It couldn't have been the latter, but I could certainly hear the blood rushing in my ears. How long had I been standing here?

"I'm alright." I finally said after a moment had passed.

Placing a hand on my chest, I focused on my breathing. Perhaps I should visit one of the nurses Morstan had mentioned during our visit. 

When I decided that it was about time for me to hop into the shower before I used up all of the hot water, I heard what sounded like someone leaning against the door and I could see the silhouettes of Shirleigh's feet underneath the door. A wave of tranquillity washed over me and I felt centred enough to finally step into the shower.

»»————-　♔　————-««

I emerged from the bathroom to see Shirleigh standing across from the door, having moved from where she was standing before. Her nose was still in Moriarty's phone and the screen created squares of light in her eyes.

"Hey, have you found anything?" I asked inhaling the cooler air in the hallway. "You have been staring at that for a while now."

"There are a few messages from an unknown contact and they are written using some sort of cypher..." Shirleigh turned the phone to me when I approached. "I possess knowledge of multiple and yet this one is unfamiliar to me. Who sent these messages and why are they encrypted this way? ...At first glance, it appears to be a Caeser cypher..."

"Hmm..." I stared at the strings of letters as I dried my hair. "It almost looks like multiple Caeser cyphers."

Shirleigh glanced at me and back at the phone in her hand.

"I remember during one of my high school history classes, our professor briefly touched on cyphers and we spent a wee bit of time studying some of them. I enjoyed decrypting the practice ones. In fact, I believe we learned about one that consisted of multiple Caesar cyphers... May I take a look?"

Shirleigh handed me the phone and I ran a quick search in the browser.

"Yes! This is it! The Vigenère cypher. It uses a series of interwoven Caeser cyphers."

I handed the phone back to Shirleigh and I noticed that her gaze lingered on me for a while, an awestruck expression on her face.

"I know things," I said pointing my nose in the air.

"I never doubted it," Shirleigh told me. "I enjoy listening to how intelligent you are."

My face heated and I averted my attention elsewhere. Not only did her sudden compliment catch me off guard, but her voice was warm and comforting.

"Looks like I have my work cut out for me," she continued. "It may take me a while to decode these messages..."

I had made my way in front of the fireplace and sat at the edge of the hearth. The warmth of the fire chased away the gooseflesh that had covered my skin. I would have made my way to my room to get some sleep if it weren't for the horrifying images of the blood-drained bodies that were determined to haunt me. Not to mention what happened to Moriarty...

"...Shirleigh?"

"Would you care to sleep with me tonight?"

"I-I'm sorry?" I stared at my companion standing in the hallway.

"Forgive me," she quickly added. "I should have phrased it differently. I—"

"No, it's quite alright," I giggled. "It just caught me off guard since I was actually going to ask you the same thing."

Silence fell but it wasn't uncomfortable. In fact, it was soothing.

"After everything that happened..." I continued. "...I fear that I am a bit shaken up. Whenever I am left with my thoughts, unwanted things emerge. But...when I'm around you, everything is as calm as a Spring morning in the countryside."

I felt my companion's presence and turned to face her as she sat beside me and I realised that I had nearly echoed what she had told me after her encounter with the mafia a few cases back. She brought her knees to her chest and lay her arms atop them, her hands reaching toward the fire. She had yet to wash up, so my eyes were naturally drawn to the blood stains that covered her skin and clothes.

"I'm sorry I couldn't be of any more assistance earlier..." I mumbled, thinking back to Moriarty's assault on my friend. The feeling that I should have acted sooner had plagued me since that incident.

"You were of great assistance," she whispered. "You were patient, that in itself should never be scrutinised. I said I would give you a signal and you waited but one never came. Doing so had completely escaped my mind. I am grateful you acted when you did. Things may have ended rather differently if you hadn't."

"Did you want to sleep out here?" I wondered. "It would be nice to get some rest by the fire."

"Are you opposed to the idea of sleeping in the same bedroom?"

"Wha— n-no?" I stammered. "I...I wasn't quite sure how to ask..."

"You can sleep in my room. My mattress is large enough if you want to share," she said flatly. "Only if you are comfortable, of course. If not, I have a bed bench that I can use."

"Oh, um...right..."

"Right then," she got to her feet and stretched her uninjured arm above her head. "I should go clean up if I have hopes of getting any shuteye before sunrise. You may go ahead and get some rest."

»»————-　♔　————-««

"This is incredible..." I said aloud. I slowly turned in a circle taking in the decorations of the room. The furniture was arranged symmetrically and it was admittedly much cleaner than I thought it would be. "If I am completely honest, I thought it would be more...chaotic."

"Yes, well, humans—"

"Are full of surprises," I finished. "I recall you saying that you aren't a human, though."

Shirleigh didn't say anything in return which made me smile for some reason.

"These books..." I started. "They're not in alphabetical order by title or name..."

"They are organised in an order that makes most sense to me," Shirleigh explained. "I cannot find a way to describe it exactly, but everything is in a place where I can find it most efficiently. So, no they are not organised alphabetically."

"Huh. It's like a system. No wonder you do not like people messing with your things," I said. "It is chaotic after all. An organised chaos..."

"I suppose you could call it that, yes."

I watched as she walked over to the bed and reached toward one of the pillows to remove it.

"Oh, um, could you actually..."

As if she knew what I was trying to say, she set the pillow back in its place and turned to one of the lamps that were on either side of the headboard.

"Are you ready for lights out?"

I climbed into the bed and gave a curt nod. The light flickered off and the room became incredibly dark given that there was a lack of any windows. Even though I had been enveloped by complete darkness, which certainly would have brought on anxiety if I were alone, I felt at peace in its presence. In place of the suffocation I would normally feel, it felt as though I were being welcomed by it in some peculiar way.

»»————-　♔　————-««

I sat up in the bed, my body telling me that morning had arrived. As I stretched, I realised that I was alone in the room.

I swung my legs over the side of the bed, regretting the fact that I had slept with my prosthetic on, my stockings doing exactly what Miriam had pointed out and bunching up between the different sections. Stepping into my slippers, I made my way to the bedroom door, opening it to peek into the hallway.

Upon entering the living room, I noticed Shirleigh was seated at the work table wrapped in her house robe, her hair dishevelled. There was an incredibly grim expression plastered on her face as she seemingly stared a hole into the wall across from her. I noticed that in one of her hands, she clutched onto Moriarty's cell phone and in the other, a pen.

I approached her but she never acknowledged my presence. I examined the table and spotted a sheet of paper covered in Shirleigh's scrawls and handwriting. It looked like a code... Or a cypher...

It appeared that she had decoded most or all of the mysterious messages Moriarty had received. Most of them were instructions, some were of a threatening nature. One, however, caught my attention and nearly triggered a sort of fight or flight response. One that could certainly be considered the "last straw".