Henry James Moriarty was the youngest of the Moriarty brothers, yet his intellect matched that of his older siblings. The eldest, Oliver, had long set his sight on the Holmes household, while George, the second-born, was tasked with the more "dirty work" that Oliver preferred to avoid.
While Oliver and George were known for their scholarly pursuits, Henry was the more athletic of the trio. If his brothers were buried in books, Henry could be found outdoors, playing sports or honing his physical skills. Oliver and George excelled in academia, while Henry's strength lay in his instincts. He had an uncanny ability to navigate dangerous situations, to move swiftly, and to neutralize threats without harm. This unique skill set made him the one most often tasked with confronting Holmes directly.
After much planning and scheming, the Moriarty brothers believed they had devised the perfect strategy to bring down the Holmes household. So confident were they in their success that they even invited their parents to witness the defeat of the hated Holmes family. Among them, Oliver was the most jubilant.
"This is the day, dear brothers!" he proclaimed, his voice filled with triumph. "At last, we will defeat those damned Holmes — after all these years!"
However, Henry, who had faced the Holmes heir more times than his brothers, couldn't shake a lingering feeling of unease.
"Something's not right," he thought, his instincts nagging at him. "They're planning something." The thought buzzed relentlessly in his mind, but he pushed it aside every time he heard Oliver's excited chatter.
Henry pushed against the heavy silo door, the sound of creaking metal echoing in the stillness. As he stepped inside, he noticed the small windows were sealed shut, plunging the space into near-total darkness. Oliver, whose poor eyesight often caused him trouble, fumbled for the light switch and turned it on. A thick, musty odor hung in the air, mingling with the faint scent of grain. In one corner, their parents sat on a pile of wheat, while Oliver and George spoke in low tones, finalizing the last details of their plan. Henry was instructed to stand by the exit, positioned to prevent the Holmes from slipping away unnoticed. But even with the careful setup, it wouldn't have been enough to secure their victory.
Once again, the Moriartys were outsmarted by the Holmes, who had predicted the outcome of their plan. But this time, something had changed. The Moriartys were long known for their violent, ruthless methods, while the Holmes were known for their calm, pacifist approach to resolving conflict. Yet, in this final confrontation, the Holmes did not follow their usual path. Instead, they set fire to the Moriartys, burning them alive.
What made this particularly clever, however, was the method they used.
As his family writhed in agony, Henry sprang into action, his instincts and intellect driving him forward. His mind raced as he searched for the cause of their destruction. Then, he saw it — the grains of wheat drifting through the air. A sudden realization hit him like a cold shower: the Holmes had struck at the precise moment Oliver switched on the silo's lights.
Spontaneous combustion, a phenomenon known to occur in grain silos and factories, is a chemical reaction that happens when certain materials heat up without any external ignition source, ultimately leading to a fire. Many organic substances — such as grains, hay, or oil-soaked rags — contain fats, oils, or other compounds prone to oxidation. In this process, a substance reacts with oxygen, releasing heat. Typically, this heat dissipates into the surrounding environment. But in certain conditions, the heat becomes trapped and can't escape. As the temperature of the material rises, the oxidation process accelerates, generating even more heat. This sets off a dangerous feedback loop called "thermal runaway," where the heat continues to build until the material reaches a critical temperature, igniting into flame.
"The ignition could take hours, maybe even days", Henry thought, his mind racing. "But the Holmes had accelerated everything — forcing us to turn on the lights was the key."
That day, Henry lost his entire family. He had tried to escape, but the smoke was too thick, and his strength had drained. The heavy door was too much for him to open, and by the time help arrived, it was already too late for his brothers, Oliver and George, and for his parents, the Moriartys. Henry collapsed inside the silo, battered by smoke and flames. The fire was eventually noticed, and help came, but the damage had already been done. Henry was left with severe third-degree burns covering much of his body. The doctors didn't believe he would survive.
To be honest, the doctors didn't even try to save him. As mentioned before, the Moriartys were notorious for their violent ways, and Henry, as one of them, wasn't considered worth the effort. But there was one nurse, Elizabeth, whose morals were unshakable. She believed that no human had the right to decide who lived or died — that was a choice only God could make. Despite the skepticism and indifference of her colleagues, Elizabeth couldn't bring herself to abandon him. She refused to let him slip away without a fight.
Months passed, and slowly, Henry James Moriarty healed. Against all odds, he made a full recovery. His body, once ravaged by burns, now seemed as strong as ever — a testament to his resilience and the care of Nurse Elizabeth. It was as if he had emerged from the flames unscathed, as healthy as a fish swimming freely in the sea. But beneath that physical strength, something had shifted — something deeper, darker, and perhaps even more dangerous.
Elizabeth was the only one he could talk with, after the accident.
"I lost everything," Henry murmured, his voice raw with a mix of anger and sorrow. "My pride, my name, my family... all gone."
His eyes burned with an intensity that chilled the air. "The Holmes will never go unpunished. I swear it."
The words hung in the room like a promise — a vow that would haunt him, drive him, and ultimately, define him. His recovery had been more than physical; it had been a transformation. And now, with nothing left to lose, Henry James Moriarty would stop at nothing to exact his revenge.
In time, Henry's obsession with revenge consumed him, and, in an unexpected turn, he asked Elizabeth to marry him. Her response wasn't immediate, but in her heart, she understood. She saw the same fury in his eyes that she had witnessed when he first woke from the flames. She knew he needed her — needed someone to stand beside him as he burned with the desire to make the Holmes pay.
Elizabeth agreed, and together, they moved into the Moriarty family home, a dark, sprawling mansion now filled with shadows of the past. The walls seemed to echo with memories of the family that once lived there, but there was no comfort in those.
Elizabeth, despite her own moral compass, couldn't ignore the cruelty of what had happened. She saw, as Henry did, how the Holmes had been lauded and adored by society, while they, the Moriartys, had been vilified and betrayed. She, too, found it unbearable how the Holmes had wiped out an entire family, destroying them without a second thought.
Her heart, once full of compassion, began to harden alongside his. She wasn't just a nurse anymore — she was becoming an accomplice to a plan that would leave no room for mercy. And deep down, she knew there was no turning back.
But as a woman, Elizabeth understood the limitations of her role. In the world Henry inhabited — where power and legacy meant everything — she knew that her worth, above all else, would be measured by what she could give him: a son, an heir. Her body, once a vessel for healing, had now become the means by which Henry's bloodline would continue.
It was a harsh truth, one she accepted with an unsettling calm. Of course, she would fulfill Henry's desires, as a wife should, but more importantly, she knew that her real purpose, the one that mattered most to him, was to provide the heir that would solidify his revenge, his legacy, and his claim to power.
Unfortunately, the path to their revenge was not as swift or certain as Henry had hoped. Months turned into years, and Elizabeth suffered through one failed pregnancy after another — miscarriages, complications, and endless moments of grief. Each time, it felt like another cruel twist of fate, as if the universe itself was conspiring against Henry's plans.
But Elizabeth, though weary, was determined. She held onto the idea that she could give Henry the one thing he desired most, the one thing that would seal his future: an heir to carry on his legacy and his vengeance. Her body, scarred by loss, became a battleground, but she pressed on, fueled by both her love for him and the bitter drive to see his name rise from the ashes.
Finally, after what felt like an eternity of heartbreak, Elizabeth found herself pregnant once more. This time, something was different. The sickness, the exhaustion, the heaviness in her bones — it all felt… right. The tests, the signs, the heartbeat — everything aligned.
She was finally carrying Henry's revenge.
And as the days passed, Elizabeth realized that this child, though a symbol of everything she had sacrificed, was also becoming the embodiment of all the darkness Henry had sworn to bring to the Holmes. The child she bore would be a part of the future they would build — a future written in blood, fire, and retribution. It was no longer just about vengeance; she would ensure that Henry's name would never be forgotten, even if it meant bending her own fate into something unrecognizable.
In that moment, Elizabeth knew: the child growing inside her would be the catalyst for everything. And with it, the Moriartys would rise again.