Don't Stray From The Light

It's A Legitimate Investigation

John POV: John was rather relieved to leave that strange man on the sidewalk as he took the hansom away, and it wasn't necessary because he was threatened. Sherlock Holmes seemed to be friendly enough, and yet John hadn't quite gotten used to people when they were friendly, he hadn't gotten used to people who seemed so keen on being neighborly. This may be a city, yet it was nothing near what London was, for everyone there stuck their noses up and ignored those who went by. People who sat alone at a café were destined to sit alone; there were no invasions of personal space just for introductions and welcome wagons. What Sherlock had done was very kind, going out of his way to introduce himself to John and to have a little chat with him while he sat alone, however there was always a part of him that felt uneasy when approached by strangers. He knew that Sherlock meant no harm, and he was almost ashamed to be relieved to be on his way to the police station and far away from that café. When John arrived to the station he was told that Greg had stepped out for some coffee, and so John was left waiting in that packed office and waiting for his partner's return. He took this time to look over the case files once more, taking out the file of the first to go missing (Tobias Gregson) and finally the last of the victims (John Clay) and put their files side by side. There similarities in the cases, similarities that might be related and also might just be coincidences. The last place they had been seen was their homes when they left in the evening, four and six o'clock according to their files. It was never said where they were headed, however John was able to assume that it was nowhere good. They were reported missing by their wives around noon the next day, which of course made John believe that their wives were used to them not returning home, that suggests some marital issues, possibly an affair that the wives had learned to deal with over the years. Not only that, but they almost looked alike, almost as this kidnapper (if she even did exist) had some sort of type. The similarities weren't striking of course, when seen together no one in their right mind would say that they looked related, however there was an almost ever present glow of attractiveness in the faces. John Clay had a photograph while Tobias Gregson was merely sketched, however they both had defined cheekbones and wide eyes, their hair was up kept and they both looked to be at least moderately wealthy. To think that these men might have walked out on their wives wasn't entirely out of the question, for it was men like this who would draw in the other women, those women who might try to tempt them out of their relationships and into their own web of disloyalty. It also wasn't entirely out of the question for these men to have been kidnapped, however John found that just a bit more out of the question. Most likely they had been tempted somewhere else, to the continent perhaps, by different women who had no clue to the mess they were making of the police station as they were trying to connect the pieces.
"What are you up to?" Greg's voice wondered not ten minutes in, as John was making notes of the connections between the victims on a little notepad. John jumped just a little bit, for he hadn't heard Greg make his entrance and therefore hadn't been expected to be interrupted so loudly.
"God Greg, you scared me!" John exclaimed, seeing that Greg was smirking as he went over to his desk and sat down.
"What, did you think I was the kidnapper?" he wondered with a little chuckle.
"No I just...well I didn't expect you, that's all." John clarified, shaking his head in exasperation and throwing his notebook back onto the desk where he had found it.
"Understandable, I suppose." Greg assured. "So what are we going to get up to today do you think? Got any more ideas of how to catch this woman?"
"We don't know if it's a single woman, if it's multiple, if it's even a woman at all...honestly Greg I've got nothing." John admitted with a sigh.
"Well we agree that there is probably some disloyalty going on, don't we?" Greg presumed.
"Yes I suppose we do agree on that." John agreed with a sigh.
"Well that's a start, and it gives us a place to search, as well." Greg decided with a little bit of a smile, as if he really liked where this was going.
"It gives us a place to search? Where on earth would..."
"A brothel, John!" Greg said excitedly, speaking loudly as if he thought that his excitement were kick start the same sort of enthusiasm in John. However with a nervous little chuckle john shook his head, for he knew that if he came anywhere near a woman such as the ones that crawled the floors of a brothel Mary would have his head.
"Greg I can't just go to a brothel, I'm married and that's...distasteful." John defended apprehensively, to which Greg just shrugged.
"Well ya I guess it's a bit distasteful, but not only does no one know you're married, but your wife doesn't have to know either. It can be like a double blind, where no one really knows what's happening except you." Greg suggested, to which John just shook his head.
"You really are mad." He decided.
"Oh come on John, it's for the investigation, is it not? We don't have to do anything but investigate, observe, it's strictly police business of course." Greg assured with a confident little nod. John shuffled for a little bit, shaking his head as if he knew he would end up regretting the decision he made. Greg was the definition of a bad influence, and yet John knew that he was right about one thing...it was police business.
"Fine, I'll go, but Greg all we'll be doing is interviewing. There will be no observation, no need for that now." John insisted with a sneer, to which Greg sighed heavily but evidently couldn't complain.
"Come on John, interviews are so boring, especially..."
"I am not letting you drag me to a brothel for 'police matters' and get left alone three minutes in because you can't control yourself!" John growled, to which Greg just smiled a bit guiltily.
"Ya that's probably what would happen." He admitted with a shrug, as if he wasn't too proud of such a thing but he wasn't going to deny it either.
"Precisely, so we'll do interviews tonight, maybe keeping it a bit early? Six o'clock maybe? So that my wife doesn't get suspicious." John decided with a nod.
"Alright then, six o'clock. Until then we've got some paperwork to do, I'm afraid. Janine wants it for the records, your being here and everything has complicated matters, and she needs official records of your interviewing with the wives and all of that. Tedious, I know, but it's work for the both of us I suppose." Greg sighed, whistling over the secretary who brought them each a folder filled with miscellaneous paperwork. John sighed heavily, shaking his head as if he couldn't believe what he had gotten himself into.
"Wonderful." He muttered, and with that he sat back in his chair and accepted the folder with a groan.