Perplexed, Francis stared at the screens showing him the inside of the Manor just the way the cameras recorded it. This was bad. Actually, it was worst. And his sister was in the thick of it.

His gaze wandered the screens, unsure of which catastrophe he had to process first. Ara stood rooted to the spot and waited for him to explain.

And she always asserted, that he had the easier part of the game, just because he had a comfortable chair and an air-conditioned room to sit in. At the end of the day, he was the one responsible for keeping an eye on everything and -

He heard her taking a breath, probably to ask him aloud what the heck was going on.

"Shhh," he hissed and she flinched. "Stay quiet, Ara. We - okay, stay put and don't budge, yeah? Butler is right around the corner and by the look of it, something went really south with Juliet and Micah. Hang on and stay silent, I'll work something out."

Kiara did stay put, paralysed with horror, and stared at the whitewashed wall. Who was where? What was that supposed to mean? She felt cold panic rise in her chest but managed to overpower it, fighting the deep urge to gasp for air or - which was rather what she felt like - take a runner in blind panic.

Stay cool, she comforted herself, it'll be fine. At least she had one advantage on her side: since the cameras filmed again, Francis was able to see everything they saw. Which was basically the whole Manor. So as soon as something went wrong - more wrong, to be precise - he'd see it and alarm her. Francis was surely already making a plan for her to escape safely and return to Fitch. All she had to do was wait, stay put. At some point Butler had actually to leave this part of the Manor, and take care about his sister or whatever else demanded his attention. As long as it was not her, she'd be fine with it.

Not even Fitch and his inscrutable network of contacts and specialists of all kind had been able to find out more about this man. The only advise he had given her according to this? Thou shalt not get caught. Haha, thanks a lot.

She bit her lip until the taste of blood filled her mouth. Bad habit but she couldn't help it. Even less in a moment like this.

At least her heartbeat had calmed down a bit, making her feel like she had something like control over herself. That feeling changed radically, as her brother took a breath so sharp that she felt like feeling the stream of air in her ear.

"Shit, Ara, run! He's coming right towards your direction! Move, I'll search you a way out!"

Kiara took off unhesitatingly, trusting her brother blind, and sprinted down the corridor, her heart beating violently against her ribcage, praying silently to anybody who would listen.

She heard Butler shout something behind her and take up the chase.

On the monitor, he saw Ara dash through the hallway. Francis recognized his sight blurring. Why on earth did she insist on staying in there? Micah wasn't worth getting killed.

"Francis!" Ara gasped and randomly pushed a door open, heading through it. Right. This was what he had to take care of. The problem at hand. Figuring out a way for her, before Butler had the possibility to catch up with her. He needed to find a -

"Francis!"

"Okay, okay, all right, I'm here."

If she had been less busy with running like a mad rabbit, she might have laughed. All right. She had learned the layout of the building as far as possible but she was damn sure that the blueprints Fitch had given them, were neither complete nor reliable callable in her half-panicked brain. As soon as she ran into a deadend, it was pssibly her being dead or at least at the end.

Haha. Might be the beginning of hysteria.

Get hold of yourself, she scolded herself, thoroughly overhearing another warning Butler shouted, making the akward paintings shake on the wall.

I'm a professional, she thought. What do I need to take care of?

Another corner flew past, her feet making dull sounds on the omnipresent rug. He was probably faster than she was, thinking of his general physical condition. And he was armed, which meant that she must not run straight for too long unless she wanted to be an easy target.

However Fortuna wouldn't be able to help her for long if her damn brother did not come up with a plan. Masterplan, if she had had it her way.

"Okay." Francis gulped a lot of saliva, wondering how his mouth was able to feel as dry as it did at the same time. "Next door left. Right. No not right, I meant, like in 'alright'."

Oops. Better stick to simple directions.

He still didn't know where to lead her. Butler was still behind her, though he wasn't able to catch up before she disappeared around the next corner. For now.

Worried Francis watched Ara stumble almost over the unconscious Micah, lying on the floor in the middle of the corridor. Just in time she mad a huge step, loosing the rythm of her steps for a short period but recovered herself. Butler followed, his trained perception helping him see the obstacle early enough to just jump over it without losing speed.

That was bad.

"Francis -"

"Next left." What a damn maze! He had learnt all the plans by heart, hadn't he? So why the hell wasn't he able to remember them now?!

"Right!" The memory came back as suddenly as a lightning striking. He was about to lead her inside of he building but she needed to move outwards. Without crossing the big halls of course, since she had no possibility of taking cover there. For a split second, Francis closed his eyes and cought grip of his usual self, remembering the smallest detail of the whole Manor, every camera in every room and every hallway. He knew how to get her out. All she had to do, was run. And trust him.

"Right!" She did so, her breath filling the microphone. He hoped that she made it out. Because otherwise, she might get cornered and had to explain what had happened to Juliet.

"Right!"

Which they both did not have any idea of.

She was running in circles. Why for God's sake did he lead her in a circle? She was a good runner, quick and persistent, but she already felt like her condition had taken a day off today and her lung burnt like hell.

Still, Ara kept on running. She wasn't an expert on this but she was quiet sure that her lung wouldn't feel any better as soon as a bullet found its way in.

Had this been Micah, she almost fell over? No time for musing about that, she decided, flying around the next corner.

She had not expected the standard lamp, somebody had planted right around it. Her hip bumped against it and the lamp fell over with infernal rattling. Ara tripped and faltered, tearing a tapestry from the wall.

Somehow she made it in time for the next corner, doubling her prayers.

Butler heard the rattling lamp, two steps before he made it into the corridor. Looked like that gilr was taking the Manor apart in her getaway. And that tapestry had been damn expensive, if he remembered correctly.

He jumped over the loose tapestry and saw the intruder hustle around the next corner.

Won't take long until he had her.

"Left!" Francis commanded and Kiara really hoped that this wouldn't take on for too long.

"Right! Ignore the doors, take the corridor to the end and follow the turn!"

She skidded around the wall and felt instantly like crying. Ignoring the door? She'd never made it until the end of this corridor! Butler didn't seem like he was joking and having said that she might have pissed him off enough by intruding the Manor and allegedly had attacked his sister somehow, he was for sure even more pissed off after she ignored his warnings and decided to take the chance of running away. In addition, her hips felt like they'd fall apart soon.

The first door passed by. Hoping that it would help her miraculously by making her predator stumble, she pushed a small showcase containing a figurine as expensive - and as ugly - as sin down the sideboard it was standing on. Of course, it didn't help at all.

That was ridiculos.

The second door, and Ara stumbled a bit. Suddenly she remembered that wolves were hunting this way: chasing their prey until it dropped dead. Handy. Saves ammo.

As she reached the third door, Butler had made his way around the corner behind her, firing two shots without hesitating.

Ara hadn't the chance of shouting anymore but Francis had. And he did so, very loud and very effeminate.

Butler cursed under his breath. Absolutely incrompehensible to him, how she had made it that far. Well, she had been running like the devil. That definetily wasn't her first time on the run. And she wasn't alone, otherwise she wouldn't have made it so far without getting lost or trapping herself in deadend.

But this time, she had made a mistake. Well, two if she had really believed that ths little figurine would stop him in his tracks. Not counting whatever she might have stolen, that girl had caused immense financial damage ony by running through the Manor tearing it apart. But that wasn't the mistake he was currently thinking of.

Instead of rushing through one of the doors, she had tried to cross the hallway in its full length, giving him the chance to catch up. Without taking aim and hardly lacking speed, he fired off two warning shots into the wall. By doing so, he hit, without meaning to do so, a painting of Lord Giles Fowl.

Shit, this painting was about . . . very old.

And expensive. If the Major was still here, he had been speechless. Not for long, of course, the period of silence would soon be followed by some bloodcurdling curses in about eleven different languages. Alas, his uncle wasn't here, so he took this part of the work, too.

He swore again as the girl hustled around the next corner.

He sould've hit er.

Francis felt unable to gather his mind but he pulled up his socks and kept showing Kiara the way. She had went through a lot and this wasn't the first time she was shot at but something about this old house and this creepy paintings frigthened her. If she had known that the painting of Giles Fowl now lacked a nose, she would've laughed. Alas, she didn't.

Her heart sank as she entered a short hallway that ended in one single door.

"What -" she coughed but Francis interrupted her. "Trust me, Ara, get inside the room!"

Where else, she thought, inside the wall? Idiot.

She threw her body against the door, braking it out of its hinges and rather fell inside the room than she stepped into it. Instinctively, her eyes flicked through the room, the eyes of a hunted.

A music room. A great piano and a contrabass. A window. And -

"The window!" Francis shouted at her. "And then the cabinet!"

The sound of a crashing window, clearly audible through the no-more-existing door, made its way to Butler a few moments before he entered this short corridor, aiming into the music room. It seemed to be empty but still, seeming was far away from actually being. After Artemis Fowl I got lost in Russia, nobody had entered this room, except for staff (still they obiously hadn't been of the opinion that anybody should repair the old, porous door that now was lying on the floor like some sort of ugly carpet). At least nobody was able to hide behind that door, Butler thought matter-of-factly.

And it hadn't even been an expensive door!

His eyes - the ones of a hunter - flicked through the room, processing everything out of place, every possible hideout. And, sure, the broken window, with a little red trace on one of the shards. So that was where she had went out.

Or at least, that was what she wanted him to believe.

It's not a wild Hollywood-invention that people hide in cabinets. Butler had learnt that in the academy, with his sensei hiding in outrageous places to ambush the students. Suck it and see, they say, and that's true. Most of the students learnt quickly not to open the doors of their cabinets without making sure they were prepared for combat - and after one boy claimed that this way of training reminded him utmost of the Pink Panther movies and the servant Cato attacking his partner out of nowhere, he had been waylaid seven times on one day, one of these occasions in the shower. That was the last time anybody had ever made fun of the training methods they were up to, though Butler was still fighting not to grin every time somebody named Pink Panther in whatever context.

Not that this was the thing he remembered now. Still, the message had stuck and he wasn't willing to believe that this room was really empty.

One last chance I'll give you, he thought and pointed his pistol at the cabinet.

Ara heard Butler's warning clear and loud in her hideout and for one single moment, she felt like surrendering.

"I know you're in there," the man said aloud. "So you better come out before I decide to test how bulletproof that old wood is."

She had a really hard time fighting her fear back. Francis decided to help her.

"Ah, that sounds like macho-talk to me, huh, Ara? If he wants to know, he can ask me. I could tell, this old piece of bulk rubbish is not bulletproof at -"

A single shot boomed through the room and Francis shut up immediatley. Kiara wasn't hit but the way she gritted her teeth caused her enough pain anyway. She closed her eyes - which was pointless, since it was absolutely dark in here - tried to breath as quiet as possible and to not cough at the old, dusty air. She was beyond the point of praying now, realising that hoping was all she was able to do.

"Ara -" her brother muttered, trying to comfort her. He was again interrupted by three more shots that sent splinters of wood flying through the room. Francis had been right. This wood was as far away from bulletproof as you could possibly get.

Butler fired three times at the old cabinet, which was surely anything but bulletproof. With deadly precision, he had placed the bullets in a way that no matter how one was trying to hide inside the cabinet, at least one of the shots had hit.

Prepared for an injured enemy falling out, he ripped the door open. And indeed, something did fall out.

After a moment of confusion, he realised that he had shot a stradivari cello that now looked like its sound quality had suffered radical damage.

Again, a small part of his brain realised, that this was really, really expensive.

Butler didn't know when he felt that close to snapping the last time, and he honestly didn't care about that. He spun on his heel, headed for the window, opened it so violently that he ripped one of the hinges - oh, so expensive - and hurled himself out of the window.

Ara really felt like thrwoing up now but that was something she had to postpone. After Francis gave her an all-clear, she opened the contrabass-case she had climbed in a split-second before Butler had entered the corridor, and fell on the plank floor. Francis' plan had worked out, the man had assumed that she had been hiding in the cabinet. And according to the bullet holes in the open cabinet-doors and the poor cello, that would not have been the best idea.

Her stomach seized and Ara fought the urge of staying put and closing her eyes. Her legs seemed to crumble underneath her as she stood and stumbled the two steps towards the empty doorframe.

By the sound of his breath, Francis hadn't been absolutely sure that his masterplan would end up like this. Again she found her gaze drawn to the holes in the wood. Might as well be my head, she realised and shuddered.

Francis cleared his throat. "Okay, sister, now you're practically out. I'll lead your way to the gate and open it, alright?"

Kiara nodded and clasped her shaking hands. She didn't know when her hands had been shaking the last time. "Was that Micah I've been stumbling over?" she asked, knowing the answer already. "Francis, what happened?"

He sighed. "I don't know. Jules seemes to be unconscious, as well as Micah. Looks like we were not the only ones snooping around in the Manor."

"And now Butler thinks that we were -"

"Seems like, yeah. What a mess."

"But who could've - I mean, is there anybody else in here?"

"If there is, he or she is hiding. As far as I can see, you and Butler are the only ones walking around right now."

"I'd like to reduce that to him being the only one. Can you show me how to reach the gate without being shot at again?"

"Sure, princess. Don't worry about Micah, he'll be fine. Butler almost stepped on him while being after you, so he is likely to know it was not Micah attacking his beloved sister."

"Hope so," Kiara replied and pushed herself off the doorframe.

She knew she was right: her brother had the easier part of the game.