The museum was dark. Really dark. Alexis felt her way along the walls, carefully avoiding the cameras. When she reached her destination, she crouched down next to the glass cases and silently lifted the cover from one of her rings, revealing a sharpened diamond. She stood, sliced a circle in the first case, and lifted out the beautiful Fabergé egg. She tucked the surprise into it, then dropped to the ground and crawled to the second case. It was as easy to open as the first. She started moving to the third case, but froze in her tracks.

There was someone else in the room.

Alexis hid behind the last case and pressed her back to the wooden base. Her blood roared in her ears, and she tried to regulate her breathing. Whoever was in the room was trying to be as quiet as she. So she wasn't the only intruder here, then. Between breaths, Alexis could hear two sets of footsteps coming from the far end of the gallery. They approached the Fabergé cases, and she heard a sharp intake of breath.

For a long moment, nothing happened. Then she felt a presence near her left shoulder, and a voice whispered in her ear.

"Hello, angel."

Her eyes widened in surprise, and she looked over her shoulder. In the darkness of the room, she could barely make out his lanky form. But that deep, smoke-scarred voice was unmistakable.

"Jigen?" Alexis stood slowly. Jigen rose to his feet and touched the brim of his hat. "And Lupin?" She blinked in surprised as Lupin grinned crookedly and waved his fingers at her. "How did you know it was me?"

Lupin shrugged and jerked his thumb at Jigen, who stuffed his hands in his pockets and turned away. Alexis could barely hear his reply:

"I recognised the sound of your breathing."

Alexis stared at him, glad that the room was dark enough to hide her blushing cheeks. "Gordon Bennett," she whispered. "What the bloody hell are you doing here?"

Lupin looked uncomfortable. "Uh, same as you?" he said. He pointed to the far end of the gallery. "There were a few things here that looked nice during the tour, and we thought..."

Alexis looked down at the last Fabergé egg. Then she looked up at Lupin and narrowed her eyes.

"Not this," she said, laying her hand on the case. "This one's mine." She brought her ring forward and sliced into the glass. Reaching in, she pulled out the last egg. Wrapping it in velvet, she stuffed it into her satchel with its brothers.

"I think we can work with that," Lupin said, grinning at her. "We've got enough to get rid of as it is." He started up one of the side halls before Alexis could warn him.

"Stop!" she hissed. "Don't step th--"

It was too late. There was a loud wailing, and all three of them dropped to the floor. Lupin looked up guiltily. Alexis tilted her head to one side and glared at him. "Did you not know about the nightingale floor?" she said, trying to be heard over the sound of the alarm.

"Uh..."

Alexis rolled her eyes. "Who did the research for this job?"

Lupin and Jigen looked at each other. Lupin sighed deeply.

"Fujiko," they said in unison, and Alexis hit her forehead with the palm of her hand.

"I am going to kill that woman," she muttered, as the three of them stood up. Lupin rushed to one of the windows and looked out over the courtyard. "That is," Alexis added, "if I get out of this in one piece."

Sirens joined the irritating howl of the museum alarm, creating a cacophony that would have made the Devil proud. "Here they come," Lupin said. There was a stomping, tromping sound, and the three thieves squeezed into an alcove as two security guards rushed past, pistols drawn.

"Damn," Jigen said, his voice low. "Who invited them?"

Alexis, squashed between the men, turned to Lupin. "You did have an escape plan, right?" she said.

Lupin grinned weakly. "Besides 'don't get caught'?" he replied.

"Great plan."

Jigen peeked out of the alcove. "All clear, boss," he said. "Let's bounce." The three of them hurried down the gallery towards a flight of steps.

"How did you two get in?" Alexis said as they approached the stairs. She adjusted her satchel, slinging it over her head and positioning the strap between her breasts.

"Through a passage in the basement," Lupin said, gesturing down the stairs. "Shall we?" He started down the steps, but stopped abruptly at the sound of a gratingly familiar voice.

"Here's where they got in, men! Block it off; surround the area!"

Lupin shook his head and backed up the stairs. "Good old Zenigata. He has a nose for this sort of thing."

Jigen growled softly. "How about we don't go through the basement," he said drily.

"Care to try my way?" Alexis asked. She pointed up. "I came in through the roof."

Lupin beamed. "Why, how kind of you to share!" he said, following her to the upper floor.

The upper hallway was mostly offices and storerooms. Alexis led them to the end of the hall into a large closet. It was dusty, quiet, and mostly undisturbed. It also had a rope hanging down from a shattered skylight. Alexis wrapped the rope around her arm to stabilise it, and motioned for Lupin to start climbing. "Be careful going through the window," she said as he pulled himself up. "Those edges are sharp."

As Lupin crawled through the window, there was a shout from the end of the hall. Jigen pushed Alexis towards the rope.

"Go," he said gruffly. He held the rope as Alexis shimmied up it and out onto the snow-covered roof. She looked down into the room, stretching a hand through the window.

"Hurry, Jigen," she called. She felt his hand in hers, and Lupin reached out to help. Alexis pulled her arm back through the broken skylight, and cried out as she scratched herself against one sharp edge. She fell back on her heels, looked down at her arm, and heard the bullet whistle past her cheek. Turning her head sharply, she caught sight of the gunman on the other side of the roof.

Everything seemed to slow down. The guard levelled his gun at her again. Alexis reached for her Walther, but her draw was too slow. There was a flash from the guard's gun, and then the roar of a Magnum filled her ears. Two bullets collided in mid-air and dropped to the roof, the snow melting around them.

The guard was too stunned to react as Jigen stepped in front of Alexis and fired again, knocking the other man's gun from his hand. Then there was a high-pitched scream as Jigen fired a third time. The guard crashed to the ground, clutching his thigh as his blood tinted the snow.

Alexis tucked away her Walther and took a long, shaky breath. "Thank you, Daisuke," she whispered. Jigen holstered his own gun before turning to her and reaching out to help her stand. He held her steady while she looked up at him and smiled. "I see you haven't lost your touch," she said.

Jigen smirked. "I see you're still a complete berk when it comes to drawing a gun," he said, winking at her. She laughed weakly as Lupin beckoned to them from the far end of the roof.

"Over here!" he called, his voice nearly muffled by the snow that had begun to fall. Jigen and Alexis ran over to him, and the three of them made their way down to the comparative safety of the ground. A spotlight hit them; Jigen drew, fired, and holstered his gun, all in one smooth movement. The light died, and the three of them sprinted across the sculpture garden.