The Other One
Previously: Molly meets Mycroft in a museum in Scotland and it ends in disaster ..[x]
Chapter 2 - Apology Unaccepted
Molly waited at the mouth of the alley a few blocks down the road from the museum. She knew he didn’t want her to be incriminated, although it was just an accident and she was ready to .. Ready to what? she thought. Pay for the destruction of monumental artefacts? Could she even afford to?
Hugging herself in the cold Scottish dusk she watched the exit of the museum, trying to keep a low profile, blending into the shadows.
Mycroft appeared on top of the steps talking to an aged man who looked of some importance and haughty. The man was definitely in a rage, gesticulating with his hands. Mycroft seemed to placate him with a few strong words, who huffed and turned around, to go back inside.
Immediately the Ice Man took out his phone and making a call, glided down the steps, coming to a halt next to a lamp post. Molly watched transfixed by the fading sunlight and the lamp’s brilliance giving the older Holmes a glow.
Suddenly realising that he was determinedly walking towards her while pocketing the phone, Molly slipped into the shadows of the alley and held her breath.
“Miss Hooper. Would you be kind enough to walk with me?” Mycroft asked politely.
The sarcasm in the gentle tone was not lost on her. Nodding her head in reply, she whispered, “Yes, of course,” and walked out onto the street.
“I have taken care of the matter. It will be prudent of you to stay away from the Museum in the near future. The guards seem to have noticed you hovering around the displays. They even identified your clothes.”
“My clothes?” Molly asked, perplexed, looking down at her green jumper and red dress under it, then down to her black stockings and boots.
Mycroft followed her eyes and shrugged his shoulders, his mouth pouting scornfully. Molly never felt so humiliated in her life till then. Her silence was welcomed by the government official.
The pair had walked almost half a mile and now stood next to a deserted park.
Mycroft glanced at the girl next to him who looked tiny, not from her short stature, but from the guilt that was eating into her.
“Well, these things happen to the best of us. I suppose both of us are equally at fault in this fiasco. You should go back to your room and try and get some rest. Good night Miss Hooper,” Mycroft stated in one breath and turned around to walk back.
“I am sorry,” Molly whispered.
Mycroft had moved a step and stood still not withdrawing his leg, then replied, “Apology unaccepted,” and walked away.
Molly stood looking at the tall figure retreating down the street and couldn’t recognise the man; something was different, she thought.
“Umbrella!” she exclaimed.