Timeline: Post JD Polloc's murder.

As she was filling out paperwork, Lily Lebowski heard a knock on the doorframe of the conference room where she was sitting. Looking up, she saw a striking brunette carrying a briefcase.

'Excuse me,' the woman started politely, 'but I'm looking for Dr Garret Macy?'

'Oh, sure, I'll go grab him, Miss…?' Lily said, standing up.

'Edwards. Alexis Edwards.'

'Alright, Miss Edwards. Please wait here, I'll bring him out.'

'Thanks.' She sat quietly, and turned her attention to a black leather briefcase she held in her hand.

Lily strode up to her boss' open door and knocked. 'Garret? There's a Miss Alexis Edwards waiting for you in Conference.'

'Thanks, Lily,' Dr Macy said, standing up and grabbing an autopsy folder. 'Could you tell Nigel I need him for a special assignment, and to meet us there, too?'

'What am I, a messenger?' was her only reply to Dr Macy's retreating back, and she went in search for Nigel Townsend, the resident criminalist. She found him in trace, prepping DNA samples for testing. 'Hey Nigel, Dr Macy's looking for you. Something about a special assignment. He says to meet him in Conference.'

Putting down the phials, he removed his gloves and replied, 'Thanks, luv. Did he say what it's about?'

Turning and waiting for Nigel to follow her, she replied, 'No, but it's got something to do with the woman that's in there with him. A Miss Alexis Edwards?'

Ringing no bells, Nigel shook his head and headed into the Conference room where Dr Macy and Miss Edwards were talking.

'Welcome to Boston, Miss Edwards. I hope you had a nice flight.' Dr Macy asked.

'Thank you, Doctor, and yes, the flight was lovely. But let's not pussyfoot, doctor, I trust you know why I'm here?'

'Yes, of course, and I'm sorry for your loss.'

Figuring this was as good a time as any, Nigel made his presence known, and strode in. 'You rang, Dr M?'

Turning in his seat, Dr Macy nodded to Nigel, 'Ah, Nigel, good. Miss Edwards, this is Doctor Nigel Townsend, our criminalist. Nigel, this is Alexis Edwards, you'll be helping her with a missing persons case.

'It's a pleasure to meet you, Dr Townsend,' Alexis said, standing and holding out her arm.

Subtly noting the lack of wedding ring, Nigel replied, 'The pleasure's all mine, luv, and please, call me Nigel.'

'And me Alexis.'

The two held eye contact longer than necessary, and finally Dr Macy broke the silence. 'Well, Miss Edwards, please know that the Boston morgue and police department is here to help. But I'll leave you two to discuss the case.'

'Thank you for everything, Dr Macy.' Smiling, she shook his hand.

'My pleasure.' He replied, and, after giving Nigel a warning look, left the two alone.

Turning back to Nigel, Alexis started, 'so, Nigel, do you know what you're doing here?'

Smiling cheekily, Nigel replied, 'helping with a missing person's case?'

Returning the smile, she continued, 'Fast learner. I like that. Yes, you will be helping me locate the sister of one of your former John Does.'

'Former, as in you're here to identify him?' Nigel motioned for Alexis to follow.

'Yes,' she replied, collecting her things. 'His name is – was – Johnathan Whithall.' She handed him a clipping from a Canadian newspaper and a missing persons report, as well as the autopsy form Dr Macy had brought her. 'His sister, Jessica Katherine, was a good friend of mine. Almost eight years ago, they disappeared, never to be seen again.'

'Until now?' Nigel finished for her, and opening the Crypt door for her.

'Precisely. Johnathan was found in a crime-infested area here in Boston. We – that is, her family and I – are hoping she's still alive somewhere, maybe near where her brother was found. They were very close.'

Standing in front of drawer 2, Nigel turned to her and said, 'you sure you wouldn't rather do this by photograph?'

'Just open it.' She snipped, concentrating on the door.

The stainless steel drawer slid out silently, and Nigel pulled back a bleach-white sheet to reveal a tall, blond twenty-something.

They stood in silence for a moment, until Alexis murmured, 'yes, that's him. Hopefully his sister isn't in here somewhere.' She tore her eyes away from the body, and continued, 'can you look up all Jane Does, Caucasian, between twenty two and thirty, natural dirty blonde hair, with AB blood type in the past eight years?'

He motioned towards the laboratory, and brought her over to his computer, and gesturing at the screen, he entered the qualifications. 'Do you have a picture? I could search the DMV database to see if she's registered with the state.'

Reaching into her purse, she pulled out a curling photograph. 'Will this work?'

'Yeah this'll work.' As he scanned and typed, he snuck looks at Alexis. Petite body, curvaceous, with clear olive skin and waves of deep brown hair. Gorgeous.

'I expect you'd work better if you weren't checking me out, doctor.' Leaning over his shoulder, her eyes had never left the computer screen.

'You're not full Northumbrian,' Nigel commented.

'Well, I would be positively miniscule if I was.'

' I told you where I was from.'

'And where that ridiculous accent came from, I'm sure.'

Laughing, he replied, 'Ridiculous? Not at all. You, however. You're not from around here yourself.'

'No, not exactly.' Nigel raised his eyebrows quizzically and she continued. 'Alright, if it makes you concentrate more on your search. My mother is off-the-boat Italian, my grandmother, Northumbrian, and my grandfather, Turkish.'

'Turkish? Well, that's something you don't see every day.'

'Indeed. My school didn't even have a Turkish flag in the caf. There was every other country, but never Turkish. Slightly insulting.'

'Where'd you go to school?' Nigel prompted, glancing at her.

'Only if you focus.' He turned back to the screen and dramatically typed something on the keyboard. 'Alright. I was born in Toronto, Ontario, in Canada, and I was raised in this random little town you've never heard of. Went to school there, too. Went to University of Toronto, and did an exchange to Oxford. Law school, part abroad, part Toronto. Got a job with a big firm in London, and now I'm here to find my friend.'

'Oxford, eh? Nice. Our bug specialist went there. What about boyfriends?' Again, he glanced over, and, before she could complain, turned back to the computer screen.

'None to speak of, really. I've been pretty much single since high school, grade eleven. Oh, um, I was sixteen. I don't know what that is in the British system.'

'Sixteen? You've been single for fourteen years?' This time, he didn't turn back.

'Yes, pretty much… sad, isn't it? And you should be facing the screen.'

'Nope, I've just been wasting time to question you. It's just searching now.'

'Ah.'

'And no, it's not sad at all. I know lots of people who stay single 'til they're older.' Nigel stood and leaned beside Alexis.

'Oh yeah? Most of my friends are married, or enjoying single hood… not that there's many of them. I actually planned to have children by now. Silly me.'

'But… what happened?' Nigel asked, leaning in.

'Well, all the guys I met were all stuck up, chauvinistic pigs-of-coworkers, or just sex-driven losers in clubs. None of them were options. And I learned long ago not to date friends… it just ended up in loss of a good friend.' Looking up, she saw her face was barely inches from his.

'Well, let me just say, all those other guys were idiots.' They kept eye contact, and Nigel had just began to move in closer, when-

'Alexis? Alexis Edwards? It can't be!'

The forensic entomologist, Dr Mahesh Vijayaraghavensatyanaryanamurthy hereafter known as 'Bug' had entered the room.

'Hey, Buggles,' Nigel quipped, jumping a foot in the air and sitting back down to tend to the whirring computer.

'No! It can't be!' Alexis replied, smiling in recognition. 'Mahesh! What are you doing here!' she strode across the room and embraced the blushing Bug.

'I'm the forensic entomologist… the bug specialist here. What are you doing here? I thought you were going to stay in London?' he hugged her back warmly, and laughed at the coincidence.

'I did! And then I got called home on an emergency, and then I came here.'

'This is great! I've missed you. We haven't kept in touch very well, have we?'

'Apparently not!' Alexis laughed, 'I can't believe I didn't realize you would be here!'

'You should have called…'

Nigel, feeling dejected as the two reminissed, watched the computer as it scanned for Jessica's whereabouts.

And then the computer ding'd.