Welcome to Baker Street

81. Gold fever

As Sherlock, John, and Giulia enter the building of the real estate development firm, John looks around the place with confusion in his eyes.

"Sherlock, what are we doing here?"

"That sentence from the Gospel of Matthew that Moriarty left us in the convent's ledger was a clue. As Giulia helpfully suggested, it belonged to the Sermon of the Mount. As you can see, the logo of the real estate firm that has its headquarters in this very building represents a mountain. It is all connected. Jim basically told us to come here," the detective explains.

Watson stops abruptly, and his hand grasps Sherlock's arm, forcing him to turn around and meet his stern gaze.

"No, he didn't. He simply wrote two letters and three numbers on the page of an old journal. This is a bit far-fetched. I want a better explanation," he protests, putting his foot down.

Sherlock frees himself from his grip and places his hands on his shoulders.

"Fine, then try to reason with me. What do we know about Moriarty's involvement with the nun?"

The doctor squirms uncomfortably under his friend's hold. "He probably played the part of a journalist to meet her at the convent for an article on monastic life."

Sherlock nods. "Exactly. Here's the first element: Jim went there personally. Why? If he wanted to abduct her, he could have lured her out and asked to meet anywhere in this city. Those nuns aren't cloistered ones; nothing prevents them from going around. Possible conclusion: he didn't need to take her far."

"That's just one of the possible explanations, but you can't be certain. Maybe he forced her to get into a car and drove away."

Sherlock ponders that idea for a second.

"That's a possibility, but it wouldn't be consistent with his modus operandi. Sister Laura described a man that almost certainly was him; few murderers would meet their victim in a suit and tie. It means that Jim Moriarty himself showed up at the convent's gate. However, he doesn't get his hands dirty, remember? He never sticks his neck out. If he simply wanted to kidnap her, why didn't he send one of his henchmen and a car? It's not like he runs low on resources," he presents his argument.

John rolls up his eyes, losing his temper. "Fine. Why did he bother to come then?"

"My working theory is: to seal the deal with the killer. We know he walked with the Mother Superior down the corridors of the convent up to the garden since Sister Laura told us she bumped into them heading in that direction. We can easily retrace their steps and imagine he led the nun out of the gate. He must have convinced her to walk out for a few more steps, crossing the road and coming here. Maybe he used his charming manners, maybe he threatened her. In any case, they came to this building," Sherlock affirms.

"Why here?" Giulia intervenes before John fails to control his anger and punch him in his smug, arrogant face.

"Because this is where the killer was waiting for the victim. The clue of the mountain, again: it must point to the killer's hideout. The murderer has to be here." Sherlock doesn't doubt his reconstruction of the events.

Giulia spins around, shifting her eyes to the many faces in the crowded building.

"How do we find him? It could be anyone."

"No, not anyone. We already know that the killer is a man; I deduced it at the crime scene, given his considerable strength used to drag the body. That rules out half all the female employees, which is pretty much half of the people in this building—thank goodness for gender equality. Besides, Moriarty gave us a specific sentence about the choice between two masters: God and money. We should look for a man that made that choice, and by the looks of this fancy firm, it wouldn't be too difficult to infer which one he picked."