Valiant {Book Two of the Incandescent Trilogy}

Chapter Thirteen: Alice Down the Rabbit Hole

CHAPTER THIRTEEN: ALICE DOWN THE RABBIT HOLE

The paper thin hospital gown did little to keep out the chill, and Amelia shivered, pulling her knees up into her chest. She wasn't even supposed to walk to the loo by herself, let alone leave the hospital but there she sat, on the edge of the pavement, hair rustling in the wind. Across the road, a group of students stumbled back to their flat after a long night out, tripping over their own feet and laughing wildly as one fell. It would be so easy to revert to that state herself. There was a store just down the street, and she probably had a tenner lying around—

"Are you thinking about it?"

"Oh, go away, Seb."

Sebastian Moran shrugged half-heartedly, and sat down beside her. "You could, you know."

She growled, "Don't tempt me."

"I'm not saying you should." said Sebastian, running his hand through his short blonde hair. "You're an addict, Amelia. It's in your nature to be drawn to things that are toxic for you. God knows what you were into before Jim but I'm willing to bet that it wasn't pretty. Sherlock was addicted to his dance, and now he's addicted to cocaine, and morphine, was it?"

Amelia's eyes followed the drunken students, and turned back to Sebastian as they turned a corner. "I'm not overly pleased with you at the moment, and understandably, this subject is still a little touchy for me right now." She ground her teeth. Hard. It was bad for her teeth, John had told her as much, but Amelia couldn't break the habit. "What, exactly, do you want in all of this?"

"Your boyfriend killed mine."

"He's not my boyfriend." she said. Then, quieter, "Not anymore."

"You want him to be."

"I was going to marry him." she snapped, eyes flashing with a dangerous amount of irritation. "And I'm not certain if I want him to be right now. I'm figuring things out, and that's none of your business, okay?" A moment of long silence. Sebastian's fingers drummed on his knee. Smallest finger led the rest, and they fell down one by one. "Why reveal yourself, anyway?" Amelia continued, breaking the quietude. "Should have remained to the shadows. Picked us off one at a time."

"It became personal." Sebastian said. "My vendetta means little to the world, but you've forgotten what's actually important. My fault, really. Doesn't do wonders for the attention when you have a building fall down on you." His shoulder seemed to sag with exhaustion, and in the dim light of the streetlight, she could see the large purple contusions under his eyes, a result of weeks' worth of lack of sleep. His hair had more grey in it that what was common for his age. "Ask John, Amelia. Ask him what he's learned. I'm surprised he's kept it secret that long."

"Why should I?" she demanded. "What would I gain from it?"

"We have a common enemy."

"Not Sherlock, I hope?" It shouldn't have been a question but it was, and as she met his eyes, her stomach churned as she came to a realisation. "Sherrinford. Seb, what's he up to?"

"If I knew, I would not be so worried." replied the sniper with a snarl. "He was supposed to help me with my cause but it seems that he has other plans. I respect you, Amelia. We were friends once, and I would still like to honour that."

She laughed, shaking her head. "So, what? You've had a change of heart?"

"I merely wished to discredit your darling detective. Perhaps continue what Jim started but I am not as fixated on the...permanent end of Sherlock as Jim was...as Sherrinford is. If I can make his life miserable for a short while, I will gladly." he said. "But Sherrinford has grander plans—dangerous plans. I suspect that he was the one behind the incident at the Strand. All I know is that he has spoken with your brother, and that's he's denied it ever happening. I cannot help much more than this but take caution. Please."