Max was tired.

By the time they had returned from the train tracks it was so late that she had decided to spend the night at Baker St. Of course, that had proven to be a big mistake; Sherlock had them working throughout the night to translate the Hangzhou characters that John found, so none of them had slept at all. They had finally finished right before the sun came up the next morning, and Sherlock had pinned the picture of the characters and their translations to the wall above the fireplace, where they joined the pictures from the bank and the library that Van Coon had been in.

Promptly, Sherlock had shoved large reference books at them.

Now, at least three hours later- Max had long since lost track of time- she was curled up on the couch with one of the books open on her lap, skimming through it to find any clue as to what the numbers might mean. John was doing the same at the dining table.

Neither of them had turned a page in the last half hour.

"Always in pairs," Sherlock declared.

John looked up drowsily from his book. "Hmm?" he asked, clearly two seconds from falling asleep.

Sherlock didn't seem fazed by John's unenthusiastic response. "Numbers come with partners," he stated.

Max held back a yawn. "Sure," she agreed, even though she was too tired to pay attention.

As expected, Sherlock was the only one who had any energy left after staying up all night. He was currently standing in front of the collage of Hangzhou characters, frowning at them as if they had offended him on a personal level. Maybe they had- by this point Max was too tired to tell.

"God, I need to sleep," John declared.

Max sighed. "Me too, Johnny boy," she muttered.

Sherlock scowled at the symbols. "Why did he paint it so near the tracks?" he asked.

John groaned. "No idea," he answered.

Max nodded. "Sure," she said again.

But Sherlock acted like they hadn't even said anything. "Thousands of people pass by there every day," he continued.

"Just twenty minutes," John pleaded to the air.

Max scoffed. "I'd settle for ten," she amended.

"Of course!" Sherlock exclaimed suddenly. Max and John turned to see that he was grinning at the pictures on the wall. "Of course!" He turned to look at them, eyes bright. "He wants information. He's trying to communicate with his people in the underworld. Whatever was stolen, he wants it back."

Max shook herself, trying to focus on Sherlock's words. "He kills Lukis and Van Coon for stealing it, then tries to trace down the item itself," she summed up. "Makes sense. But what does Soo Lin have to do with this?"

Sherlock was quiet for a moment. "I don't know," he finally said. Without warning, he pulled some of the pictures off of the wall. "But we can't crack this without her." He turned towards the door.

"Oh, good!" John grumbled sarcastically.

Max plopped her book down and pulled herself off of the couch. "As long we get to sleep afterwards!" she called to Sherlock, walking out after him.

John stayed seated for another moment, then sighed and forced himself out the door.

000

A few minutes later, the three of them had been admitted into the National Antiquities Museum, and it hadn't taken long to track Andy down to the same display room that they had met him in earlier. The fresh air had done Max good, and she barely felt her lack of sleep anymore as they walked towards Andy, who was standing in the middle of the room.

Or maybe she was just too far gone to notice that she was tired. That was a possibility, too.

Andy seemed surprised to see them again so soon. "Did you find anything?" he asked anxiously when they reached him.

Sherlock glanced around the room to make sure that nobody else was in the room. When he was satisfied that they were alone, he turned his attention back to Andy. "Two men who traveled back from China were murdered, and their killer left them messages in the Hangzhou numerals," he answered.

Max grimaced. "That's... that's not what he was asking, Sherlock," she said.

Sherlock gave her a look. "He asked if we found anything," he reminded her.

She sighed. "Yeah, but-" she started, but then she thought better of it. Instead, she turned back to Andy. "No, Andy, we don't know where Soo Lin went. That's why we came to you, actually."

John nodded. "She's in danger," he added. "Now, that cipher- it was just the same pattern as the others. He means to kill her as well."

Andy blinked, suddenly seeming overwhelmed. "Look, I've tried everywhere," he said. Sherlock grimaced and started pacing. "Friends, colleagues... I don't know where she's gone. I mean, she could be a thousand miles away."

Suddenly Sherlock stopped his pacing, and the other three turned their attention to him. "What are you looking at?" John asked.

Sherlock pointed to a nearby display case. "Tell me more about those teapots," he ordered.

Andy cleared his throat. "Th- the pots were her obsession," he told them. "Um, they need urgent work. If-if they dry out, then the clay can start to crumble. Apparently you have to just keep making tea in them."

You have to just keep making tea in them...

"Oh my God," Max muttered.

John looked at her sharply. "What?" he asked.

Max pointed to one of the teapots. "Yesterday..." she trailed off.

Sherlock nodded and bent down to study the teapots more closely. "Yesterday only one of those pots was shining," he finished. "Now there are two."

"Soo Lin's still coming here," Max declared.

000

"We're going to have a long night," Sherlock told Max and John as they walked into the flat at Baker St. "Get some rest while you can."

Max looked at him as she took her jacket off. "Why?" she asked. "What are we doing?"

Sherlock sat down in his armchair and rested his hands together, fingertip to fingertip. "Soo Lin ran when she saw the cipher, and she hasn't been back to her flat, meaning that she's hiding from our killer," he said. "If she's hiding, but she still returns to the museum to care for the teapots, she would come at night. So, if we mean to find her-"

"-we'll have to be at the museum at night," John finished.

Sherlock nodded. "Right," he agreed. "Possibly all night."

Max groaned at the thought of another all-nighter, but she wasn't going to back out now, not that they were this close to solving the case. "Can I stay here?" she asked. "I don't really feel like going back to my flat and then coming back later."

John blinked. "Oh, right," he said, obviously started at the question. But then he shook himself. "Yeah, of course! Uh... you can take my bed and I'll sleep on the couch-"

"She can have my bed," Sherlock interrupted.

Both Max and John stared at him in disbelief, not sure if their sleep-deprived minds had heard him right. "... Come again?" Max asked.

Sherlock's expression made it clear that he didn't understand why they were so shocked. "I'm staying up," he said, as if that were obvious. "It makes the most sense for Max to sleep in my bed, since I won't be using it."

Max and John shared a look. "... Alright," Max agreed. "Thanks."

Sherlock nodded.

000

Max and John slept through the day, and eventually it was nighttime, far past the closing hours for most businesses. At first glance, the National Antiquities Museum seemed to be completely deserted; the lights were off, and if one were to glance into the window there would be no sign of people inside the building. But the truth was, even though the museum was closed for the night, it was far from empty.

"You'd think that being in a museum at night would be a bit more interesting," Max grumbled.

Sherlock had instructed Max and John to wait for him while he investigated, so they were currently sitting on one of the benches in the middle of a display room. Only a few lights were on, just enough for them to see by. At first they had amused themselves by looking through the displays, but it didn't take long for that to lose its novelty.

John glanced at the time on Max's phone. "We've been here for two hours," he said. "Still nothing from Sherlock?"

Max checked her phone, then shook her head. "No," she answered.

Neither of them spoke for a second, but then Max sighed. "How've you been, John?" she wanted to know.

John blinked. "Sorry?" he asked.

She shrugged. "It's been a while since we just sat and talked," she said. "So how've you been?"

He was silent for a few seconds as he considered the question. "Err... good," he finally answered. "Very good. I'm starting a new job tomorrow, actually."

Max grinned. "Good for you!" she exclaimed. "What is it?"

John shrugged. "Doctor," he told her. "Locum work for now." He paused. "There's... err... there's a girl there. Her name's Sarah. She... she's nice."

Max rolled her eyes. "You fancy her," she stated.

Instantly, John started coughing, and Max had to pat him on the back a few times to clear it up. "No, no, I don't- I don't fancy her," John said quickly. Max raised an eyebrow. "Alright... possibly."

"You're not fooling me," Max told him.

John sighed. "Yes, fine, I fancy her," he admitted. He gave her a look. "But don't tell Sherlock."

She grinned. "Got it," she agreed. "Not a word to Sherlock."

A short silence fell over the room, and then John cleared his throat awkwardly. "So... Sherlock gave you his bed," he said.

Max shot him a look. "If you're about to say what I think you're going to-" she started.

"He respects you," John told her.

She blinked. "What?" she asked.

John glanced at her. "He respects you," he repeated, as if that were obvious.

Max was silent as she digested that. "I... I suppose I respect him, too," she finally said. She glanced at him. "What are you trying to say?"

He shrugged. "Nothing," he answered. "But... just remember that coming from Sherlock, it means a lot."

Suddenly, before they could continue the conversation, Max's phone beeped, and she glanced at it to see that she had gotten a text from Sherlock.

I found Soo Lin. Meet me in the restoration room.

SH

"What is it?" John asked.

Max sighed and stood up. "C'mon, Johnny boy," she said. "Sherlock's waiting."

000

A few minutes later, Max and John were sitting at one of the many desks in the restoration room. Sherlock was standing next to them, and Soo Lin sat across the table. A small lamp on the desk illuminated Soo Lin's elegantly-shaped face, and her black hair seemed to shine in the light. After spending the last two days searching for her, it was strange to see Soo Lin like this, sitting at her desk like everything was normal.

I suppose we shouldn't tell her that we broke into her flat, Max thought to herself.

"You saw the cipher," Soo Lin told them shakily. "Then you know he is coming for me."

Sherlock nodded. "You've been clever to avoid him so far," he said.

Soo Lin glanced down at the table, where an old Chinese teapot was resting. Max recognized it as one of the teapots on display in the museum- one of the teapots that Soo Lin had been working on. "I had to finish... to finish this work," she explained. "It's only a matter of time. I know he will find me."

That caused Sherlock to look at her sharply. "Who is he?" he asked. "Have you met him before?"

A hesitant expression flickered over Soo Lin's face, and Max shot Sherlock an irritated look before reaching out and putting a hand on Soo Lin's arm. "Take your time," she said.

Soo Lin nodded gratefully, but she glanced up at Sherlock all the same. "When I was a girl, living back in China," she answered. "I recognize his signature."

"The cipher," Sherlock stated.

Soo Lin grimaced and shook her head. "Only he would do this," she said, even though it sounded more like she was talking to herself now. "Zhi Zhu."

John blinked. "Zhi Zhu?" he repeated.

"The spider," Sherlock translated.

Soo Lin put her right foot up on her opposite knee and slipped off her shoe. In the dim light from the lamp, Max could see a small tattoo: a lotus flower inside a circle. "You know this mark?" Soo Lin asked them.

Sherlock nodded. "It's the mark of a Tong," he answered.

Max frowned. "What's the Tong?" she asked.

He sighed. "Ancient crime syndicate based in China," he explained.

Soo Lin grimaced. "Every foot soldier bears the mark," she added. "Everyone who hauls for them."

John blinked. "Hauls?" he repeated. But then his eyes widened when he realized what she meant. "Y- you mean you were a smuggler?"

Soo Lin looked away and put her shoe back on. "I was fifteen," she told them. "My parents were dead. I had no livelihood, no way of surviving day to day except to work for the bosses."

Sherlock raised an eyebrow. "Who are they?" he asked.

Soo Lin turned her gaze to Sherlock, meeting his eyes. "They are called the Black Lotus," she answered. "By the time I was sixteen, I was taking thousands of pounds worth of drugs across the border into Hong Kong." She shook her head. "But I managed to leave that life behind me. I came to England. They gave me a job here. Everything was good, a new life."

"Then he came looking for you," Sherlock finished.

She hesitated, and Max saw her eyes start to water. Wordlessly, Max passed her a tissue, and Soo Lin took it gratefully. "Yes," she told Sherlock. She wiped her eyes and continued on. "I had hoped after five years maybe they would have forgotten me, but they never really let you leave. A small community like ours... they are never very far away." She grimaced. "He came to my flat. He asked me to help him track down something that was stolen."

Max gave her a look. "This is Zhi Zhu we're talking about, right?" she asked. Soo Lin nodded.

John frowned. "And you've no idea what it was?" he added.

Soo Lin shook her head. "I refused to help," she told them.

John nodded. "So you knew him well when you were living back in China?" he inquired.

Despite the sadness in her eyes, Soo Lin managed a ghost of a smile. "Oh, yes," she answered. "He's my brother."

There was a moment of silence, and then...

"Oh, God," Max muttered.

Soo Lin nodded. "Two orphans," she told them. "We had no choice. We could work for the Black Lotus, or stave on the streets like beggars." She shook her head. "My brother has become their puppet, in the power of the one they call Shan- the Black Lotus general. I turned my brother away. He said I had betrayed him. The next day I came to work and the cipher was waiting."

Sherlock put a few pieces of paper on the table; Max leaned forward and saw that they were the pictures that he had taken from the wall in Baker St. "Can you decipher these?" he asked.

Soo Lin pulled a picture from the bank closer to her. "These are numbers," she answered. She pointed to the line across the painting. "Here, the line across the man's eyes- it's the Chinese number one."

Impatiently, Sherlock pointed to the character next to the painting. "Yes, and this one is fifteen," he finished. "But what's the code?"

Soo Lin grimaced. "All the smugglers know it," she told them. "It's based upon a book-"

Without warning, the lamp next to them went out, as well as the other lights; there was only a dim glow coming from the emergency lights, just bright enough for Max to make out the dim figures of her friends. There was an ominous thud that echoed throughout the museum.

Max froze. "What was that?" she asked.

"He's here," Soo Lin said softly. "Zhi Zhu. He found me."

That was all that it took to send Sherlock running across the room, towards the doors without any warning. "Sh- Sherlock!" John hissed. "Sherlock, wait!"

"I'll go after him, I'm faster than you," Max told John. With that, she hurried off after Sherlock.

John groaned. "Max!" he started, but she was already gone. Quickly, he turned to Soo Lin and grabbed her hand. "Come here." The two of them hurried off to find a hiding place.

000

Meanwhile, Max caught up to Sherlock in the large foyer in the entrance of the museum; there two staircases, one on each end of the foyer, and a large balcony surrounding the floor above. A statue resting on a low plinth was in the middle of the room. The detective was standing in the entranceway of the foyer, looking around wildly. "Sherlock, don't just run off-" Max started.

Suddenly, there was movement from up on the balcony, and Max barely had time to glance up before there was a loud gunshot. Instantly, Sherlock grabbed Max's wrist and pulled her with him as he ran towards the statue in the middle of the room. A figure on the balcony- it had to be Zhi Zhu- fired a few more shots, but none of them hit its mark. Sherlock and Max were able to reach the statue, where they ducked down for cover.

"He has a gun!" Max exclaimed in a panic.

"I know!" Sherlock snapped.

Without warning, Zhi Zhu ran across the balcony and disappeared from view. Sherlock took off towards one of the staircases to follow the figure, and Max hurried to keep up. "I take back everything I said about being bored!" Max shouted to nothing in particular. "I'd rather be bored than shot at!"

They reached the top of the stairs, and Sherlock tore around the corner. Max followed him and saw that they were in another display room, this one filled with human skulls that seemed to be mocking them. There was no sign of their attacker.

Something out of the corner of her eye caught Max's attention, and even though she didn't know what it was, she yelled, "Get down!" Sherlock whirled around in confusion, but Max tackled him to the ground, behind a solid display case. A bullet flew past them, right through the space that they had just been in.

Max's stomach churned when she realized what had happened; Zhi Zhu had hidden by the doorway of the exhibit, and when they had ran past him he had been going to shoot them. The strange glint that she had seen was a reflection of him raising his gun to fire at them. If she hadn't reacted, both she and Sherlock would most likely be dead right now.

Zhi Zhu fired a few more shots, each one causing Max to flinch. "Careful!" Sherlock called out. Max stared at him in horror. "Some of those skulls are over two hundred thousand years old- have a bit of respect!"

"Sherlock!" Max hissed in disbelief.

But strangely they were met with silence. Neither Max nor Sherlock dared to breathe for a few seconds, but still there was no response from Zhi Zhu.

"... Thank you!" Sherlock said.

They waited for a few more seconds for a reply- Max half expected another round of shots fired in their direction. But there was no sound in the room other than her and Sherlock's panting, both of them out of breath from running.

"Get off," Sherlock ordered.

It took a second for Max to remember that she was still on top of him from when she had tackled him to the ground. "Right," she agreed. She rolled over as quickly as she could.

Sherlock sat up and glanced suspiciously around the display case. "He's gone," he reported. He got to his feet and brushed himself off.

Max frowned as she stood up. "He just left?" she asked. "Why?"

Sherlock didn't reply, but then his eyes widened. "He's gone back for Soo Lin," he realized.

Instantly, the two of them were running out of the display room, leaving the skulls behind him. They shot down the stairs that they had just hurried up a few minutes ago and tore across the foyer.

They had just passed the statue when they heard the gunshot.

Max stumbled to a stop, filled with cold dread. "Oh no," she said.

"Come on, Max!" Sherlock shouted.

The two of them reached the restoration room just as John did. His face was pale and his eyes were wide with horror; Max had a feeling that she looked the same. Wordlessly, John ran towards a door that led to an adjoining room. "I hid her here, I told her to lock the door-" he started.

But the door was wide open.

Sherlock went in first, followed by John and then Max. Even though they were all expecting it, they were still shocked by the sight that greeted them.

Soo Lin was dead, and in her palm was a black origami lotus flower.

000

A few minutes later, Sherlock, Max, and John were walking away from the museum. It was late at night by this point, but cars were still on the streets, and people walked happily down the sidewalks, none of them aware of what had just happened.

"We need to go to Dimmock," Sherlock said. "I need books."

John blinked. "What?" he asked.

Sherlock glanced at him. "You heard me," he answered. "Books. Soo Lin said that the code was based off a book- she died before she told us which book, and we need to figure it out."

John looked at him in disbelief. "Sherlock, a girl just died!" he exclaimed. "Will you take a minute to-"

Suddenly, Max let out a moan, and Sherlock and John turned around to look at her. "Max?" John asked. "Are you alright?"

Without warning, she ran towards the nearest garbage can and threw up.

Sherlock and John hurried after her. "What's wrong?" John demanded, putting a hand on her shoulder.

Max shook her head, still shaken. "It's just... her eyes... they were just staring out at nothing, and-" she stuttered. "She was nice. Soo Lin, I mean. She- she didn't deserve this." She shuddered.

John instantly pulled her into a hug, and she leaned against him, trying to control herself. "I know, Max, I know," he said. "But we have to keep moving. If we want to catch her murderer-"

"No," Sherlock interrupted.

The two of them turned to Sherlock, who was looking at Max with a concerned expression. He put a hand on her shoulder. "You need to rest," he told her. "I'll call a cab for you. Go back to your flat and sleep. Call if you need us."

Max shook her head quickly. "No, I'm fine-" she started.

"Max," Sherlock stated.

They looked at each other, blue eyes against grey, but then Max sighed. "Alright," she agreed.

Within a few minutes, Max was in a cab, heading back to her flat. Sherlock and John remained standing by the curb, watching the car drive away. "That was nice of you," John commented.

Sherlock didn't tear his gaze from the cab. "She was sick," he stated. "It wouldn't be productive for her to come with us."

With that, he turned and continued on his way to Scotland Yard.