Chapter Text
Mycroft woke abruptly at 4:47 AM to his mobile pinging nearly an hour before he was normally up in the mornings. He reached out and grasped the device in his hand, unlocking it and seeing why he was being screamed at at this ungodly hour. What he saw had him throwing on his dressing gown and hurrying as quietly as he could to the basement. He unlocked the door and knocked on the bedroom door.
“It’s just me, little one,” he called quietly. “I’m coming in now,” he warned before entering.
He glanced around the room, not seeing the child. Knowing there wasn’t many places for her to have gone, he knelt down and lifted the duvet from the floor, where the girl had shoved herself underneath the bed and all the way back against the wall.
“What are you doing all the way back there, little one?” He asked with a kind smile. “You must be cold under there. Would you please come out from under the bed? I am not angry with you. I just want to make sure you are unharmed and warm,”
He slowly reached his hand under the bed and held it out, keeping it there for her to take if she chose to do so. Mycroft was surprised when, with a tiny whimper, she placed her hand in his. He gently helped her out from under the bed, scooping her up in to his arms before sitting down on the bed. She made no noise, but Mycroft felt the tears soaking through his dressing gown and in to his night shirt.
“Oh, my love,” Mycroft murmured, smoothing her hair back and rocking her slightly. “It’s alright, little one. You’re alright. You are safe here,”
Mycroft continued his ministrations for several more minutes before the child stilled in his arms. He held her for a while longer. Not willing to give up the child’s sense of comfort, even if she had drifted off to sleep some time ago. 5:00 AM came and went. As did 6:00 AM. As 7:30 AM rolled around, Mycroft knew he could no longer tempt fate. He knew very well that Cathal and Mallory would likely sleep until 9:00 AM, despite the fact that 9:00 AM was the time that Lady Smallwood was to pick the pair up, but he would not risk it. Not with so much at stake. Very slowly and very gently, he placed the girl back in to bed, being careful to cover her properly before taking his leave.
Mycroft made quick work of his morning routine before returning to the kitchen, fully dressed, where his staff had breakfast waiting, along with tea and coffee. Before the Finnegans had arrived, Mycroft had held a meeting with his staff, particularly the female staff, stating that they were to make themselves scarce around his guests that weekend and, in the unlikely event that they could not avoid them, they were to report to him immediately if anything had happened. He was fiercely protective of his staff, and he had no desire whatsoever to have an incident like the one that Lady Smallwood had incurred. Far too much paperwork involved. Not to mention all the legwork that would be required hiding the bodies he would have on his hands when he was finished with them. Then again, he could always just farm them off to Sherlock for his experiments. Knowing John Watson, the good doctor would likely turn a blind eye to it once he figured out why the offending couple were being disposed of. As Mycroft entertained that very tempting thought, his head of staff appeared in the doorway. He smiled up at her.
“Good morning, Maddie,” she smiled back.
Maddie was a polite young thing. She was in training for MI6 and had the makings of a bloody good agent when she was diagnosed with Leukemia- in which Mycroft had been the one who noticed the symptoms and urged her to seek testing- taking her out of the running. Mycroft had taken a special liking to the young woman in the years he had known her. He knew that she had no family or friends, no support system, so he funded her treatment- Mycroft had actually been a perfect bone marrow match for her and had donated for her twice- and she had made a full recovery after a grueling two-year battle. Since she could no longer attend the program, Mycroft had offered her a place in his home staff once she had fully recovered. She would be head of his staff, yes, but he also ensured that she was in charge of home security as well. She had done a remarkable job and he made sure to compensate her for it.
“Good morning, Mr. Holmes. Lady Smallwood has just arrived. Would you like for me to see her through, sir?” Mycroft nodded once.
“If you would, please, dear, thank you,” Maddie nodded once with a smile, began to turn, but then turned back to Mycroft, hesitating. “What’s wrong, Maddie? Cathal hasn’t done anything to you, has he?” Mycroft said as he stood and quickly crossed over to her, placing a protective hand on her arm.
“No, no sir. I’ve avoided them, as told,” she said. Her eyes darted to the basement door.
“I see,” Mycroft said.
“I’m so sorry, sir. It was me who spooked her this morning. I wasn’t aware that anyone would be down there. I went down to prepare fresh linens so that I could change the bed sheets in the guest en suite whilst they were gone and I had heard a noise-” Mycroft held up a hand to silence her.
“Maddie, it was completely my fault. I had not thought to warn you, and I should have informed you immediately of the situation when it changed, and I neglected to do so. The situation is rather difficult at the moment,” he told her.
“They beat that little girl,” she did not question. Mycroft nodded.
“As I said, the situation is difficult, but I am working to resolve the situation,” she cocked an eyebrow.
“Permanently?”
“Permanently,” he confirmed. She nodded once.
“I’ll go and retrieve Lady Smallwood, sir,”
“Thank you, dear,” Maddie turned, calling back to him as she walked.
“Do let me know if I can help you with any legwork that resolution may cause for you,” Mycroft chuckled as he turned and began to make Lady Smallwood a mug of tea.
“Lady Smallwood, sir,” Maddie announced. Mycroft turned to them.
“Thank you, Maddie. Please take the rest of the day, dear,”
“Yes, sir. Thank you, sir,” she turned to Lady Smallwood. “Very nice to see you again, ma’am,” Lady Smallwood smiled warmly at her and cupped her cheek.
“You as well, darling. Very happy to see you still well,” Maddie thanked her before retiring to her quarters. Lady Smallwood waited for her to fully take her leave before turning to Mycroft, her eyes deadly dangerous.
“Mycroft Holmes, I cannot believe you,” she fumed. “The way you treated that little girl yesterday-”
“The situation is precarious,” Mycroft smoothly interrupted, handing her the mug of tea. “I assure you it is being handled-”
“If you think you can placate me with bloody tea after what you displayed yesterday-” Her voice continued to rise. Mycroft knew he had to stop her before she woke the child, or worse, the girl’s parents.
“Alicia!” Mycroft interrupted her with the rare use of her given name. He took a breath. “The girl is sleeping in my basement. I’d like for her to sleep as long as possible but she can’t do that if you wake her, or worse, the bloody people who are supposed to love her,” he hissed.
“The child is sleeping...in your basement?” Lady Smallwood said in a controlled voice. Mycroft sighed, gesturing to the table as he sat down, not speaking until she had sat down as well.
“Yes. It was the safest place for her during the night. It would lock her in, yes, but lock her parents out in case they felt the need to-” he broke off, taking several controlling breaths before continuing. “I apologize, but I did have to play a role. I saw immediately everything once I laid eyes on that child. At once, I devised a plan to get her safely away from them and keep her away. It utterly kills me to have to treat her the way I do in front of them, but I did what I had to in order to gain their trust,”
“You think they’ll just simply leave her with you when they leave come Sunday?” She said skeptically.
“That is precisely what I think,” he replied. “I can be very persuasive when I need to be,” Lady Smallwood scoffed.
“Of course you can be,” she said, sipping her tea. “Otherwise you wouldn’t be in the position you are in and have held for so long,” Mycroft nodded once in acknowledgement before offering her some toast, which she accepted. They were each quiet for several minutes, eating and drinking in a tense silence.
“How bad is it, Mycroft?” She asked in a quiet voice. Mycroft took a deep breath.
“I’ve seen better cared for prisoners in Siberia, Alicia,” he replied honestly in a bitter voice. He watched as she pressed a hand to her mouth and turned away from him. Out of respect for her, he turned his gaze away and focused on the tea in front of him.
“What will be done with her?” She asked when she had recomposed herself. “If you are successful, what will happen to her?”
“She will remain with me,” Mycroft answered immediately and without hesitation. Lady Smallwood raised an eyebrow.
“With you?”
“Yes. With me,” he answered. “She will be well-protected and well-cared for in my custody, I assure you,”
“I didn’t take you for the paternal type,” she answered. Mycroft sighed.
“You are one of a very, very select few people who know that I am not completely the reptilian Iceman that I present myself as,” he said. “You saw how submissive she was yesterday. How she acted, or really a lack thereof. I had to nearly pry that girl from underneath the bed at 5:00 AM this morning because Maddie hadn’t known she was down there and accidentally startled her. I had to hold her in my arms until she fell back asleep. I cannot imagine anyone, let alone a child, living with that much fear in them. I cannot explain it. I really can’t. But I know that she has to be with me,” she nodded.
“I believe you, Mycroft,” she said, reaching out and grasping his hand. “I trust your judgement, you know I do. Just do be careful. I have an odd feeling about this one,”
“I always am,” she smiled at him. He refilled her tea and they eased in to different conversation. At 9:27 AM, Cathal and Mallory finally presented themselves downstairs.
“Smallwood,” Cathal greeted shortly, seating himself at the table before serving himself food. “Hope we haven’t kept you waiting too long,” he said with a knowing smirk. Lady Smallwood plastered a forced smile on her face before replying.
“We are running a bit late, so we do need to be going here soon. Mycroft, will you be joining us?”
“Mycroft is our child minder today. He understands how to keep them in their place,” Cathal said around a mouthful of toast.
“I’m more than happy to help train the beast,” Mycroft said with a sniff. “With any luck, she may one day be a functional member of society,” Mallory scoffed in to her mug of coffee.
“Doubtful, but you are more than welcome to try,” she said. Lady Smallwood looked like she might be physically ill.
“Well, then. We’ll leave you to the child minding, Mycroft. Cathal, Mallory, if you would, please?” Lady Smallwood hurried to get them out the door.
Mycroft gave them ten minutes after their departure before retrieving his mobile from his pocket and checking the camera down in the basement. He saw that the child was awake, but had curled in to the far corner of the room, eyes darting around as though bracing for an attack from any angle at any moment. Mycroft pocketed his mobile and made his way downstairs, once more tapping on the door and announcing himself before entering. He slowly approached the girl, kneeling down before her.
“Good morning, little one. Your parents have gone for the day. Would you like to get dressed and come upstairs for some breakfast?” A small nod. Mycroft smiled. “Very well. Shall we?”
He held his hand out to her. She hesitated briefly before reaching out and grasping his hand. He gently helped her to a standing position. She let out the smallest of whimpers and gently leaned on him briefly for support before realizing what she was doing and fearfully trying to back away.
“Easy, child, easy,” Mycroft said, gently pulling her back towards him. “What’s wrong? What hurts?” A solitary tear rolled down her face, but she said and did nothing. Mycroft pursed his lips. “Alright. Let’s get you dressed, then we can get a bit of food in to you and some more medicine,”
Ten minutes later, Mycroft was upstairs making her some fresh toast, scrambled eggs, and a mug of tea as she sat at the table looking utterly knackered. Mycroft plated her some food with a repeated warning not to overeat or eat too quickly before running upstairs for the pain medication. Upon his return, he was alarmed to see that she had not touched her food, and had laid her head down in her arms in the table. Mycroft purposely made his footsteps slightly louder so as not to startle her too badly.
“I have medicine for you, little one,” he said as he began measuring out the medication. “You can have some medicine, but you have to eat at least a piece of toast, love,” he said as he went to brush her hair back. As soon as Mycroft touched the skin on her face, he frowned at the warmth of it. She sat up slowly, wincing the entire way.
“I know you don’t feel well. I know you’re tired and that you’re hurting. I promise you that you can come with me and have a lie down in my office whilst I work, but you have to take some medicine first. Now, I want you to eat six bites of toast and four bites of eggs, then I can give you some medicine and you can lay down, alright?” The child glanced up at him before picking up her piece of toast and taking a bite. Mycroft smiled. “Good girl,”
Mycroft flitted about the kitchen, cleaning up all the dishes and putting everything away while she ate. By the time he was done, he was pleased to find that she had actually eaten most of the toast and a few bites of the eggs. He handed her the medicine cup.
“Well done, little one. Take this and then we’ll go to my office and you can lie down,” he watched as she downed the medicine.
He took her dishes and the medicine cup and gave them a quick wash. He placed the dishes in the drying rack, but hand dried the medicine cup and placing it back with the medicine bottle, pocketing the lot of them in his suit jacket pocket. He looked to the girl, who looked utterly miserable. He reached out and gently lifted her in to his arms, she didn’t fight him. Her head gently fell against his shoulder and her eyes slid shut as he carefully carried her to his office. Once inside, he carried her to the sofa in the corner of the room and gently laid her down, draping the quilt that had been on the back of the sofa over her. He knelt down next to her.
“You can rest in here. I’ll just be over at my desk,” he said, nodding towards his desk. “Please let me know if you need or want anything and I’ll get it for you,” her eyes slid shut and she was still. Mycroft retrieved the rubbish bin from beside his desk and placed it next to her, just in case. He sat down at his desk and began going through his email. His mobile pinged after ten minutes.
Good morning. :) - GL Mycroft smiled.
Good morning, Gregory. Late start today? - MH
Nah. I’m actually taking the day off today. Aside from a random murder or city emergency, I’m free today. - GL
Any chance you would want to come over? - MH
What about those people you’re hosting? Everything alright still? - GL
It’s...complicated. - MH
Mycroft’s mobile began to buzz with a phone call: D.C.I. Gregory Lestrade. Mycroft answered immediately, taking care to keep his voice low so as not to disturb the child on his sofa.
“Hello, Gregory,” he said with a tired sigh.
“Mycroft, are you alright? Are you hurt!?” Mycroft could hear Greg bumbling around on the other end, likely hurrying to get to Mycroft.
“Calm yourself, Gregory, please,” he said. “I am perfectly fine, I assure you,”
“Then what’s going on? You’re acting...odd,” Mycroft smirked.
“I’m a Holmes. We do tend to be an eccentric bunch,”
“Not what I meant and you know it,” Mycroft sighed.
“A car will be at yours in three minutes to collect you,” he said, rubbing his temples in an attempt to stay the migraine building in his temples. “I require your assistance,”