Instantly Marik and Rishid both sprang up and dashed to the balcony. Before their Peeping Tom could get away, the two Ishtars had grabbed him . . . only to make a startling discovery.

"This Peeping Tom is a girl!" Marik cried, staring at the large brown eyes blinking up at him.

Now Ishizu came over as well. "What is your business here?" she asked sternly.

The intruder ignored her and looked up at Rishid. "Hey, handsome," she purred, pulling her veil down. She was wearing a snug, dark blue jumpsuit with high boots, and her ebony hair cascaded down her back, shimmering in the moonlight.

"Who are you?" Rishid demanded.

"Don't worry, I'm not a thief," she assured them all. "I just came with some information I thought you might find interesting."

"And what might that be?" Marik queried suspiciously, raising an eyebrow at her.

"And how do you know who we are?" Ishizu wanted to know.

The other woman smiled. "Oh . . . mutual friends," she replied.

Marik still didn't look convinced. "I do hope you're planning to give a detailed explanation," he growled.

"I will," she said, giving Rishid's arm a squeeze. "Hmm . . . nice muscles."

Rishid grunted, pulling his arm away from her. "Just tell us what is going on."

"Of course," the mysterious eavesdropper answered in her smoky voice.

"First, why not tell us your name?" Ishizu spoke up.

"Well," the other woman said slowly, "most people just call me Viper."

****

Back in the dining room, Joey had finally finished eating his tower of food and watched as Yami Yugi interrogated Alyson for everything she could tell him about her family and her grandmother.

"Man, what's he hope to find out?" the blonde boy wondered.

"I'm not sure," Yugi replied, blinking at the Pharaoh. "But it has something to do with this feeling he has that something's followed us."

"Say what?!" Joey exclaimed. "Oh man, as if we don't have enough to worry about!"

"What does he think has followed us?" Mako asked, immensely concerned.

Yugi paused. "Well . . . whatever it is, he doesn't think it's anything good," he said at last.

"Why do I get the feeling we've plunged into something disastrous again?" Duke sighed.

"Maybe because that's almost a sure guarantee," Mai replied, staring down at her plate.

Oreo leaped gracefully onto the table and stood on her hind legs, begging and meowing adorably for Yami Bakura to share his ham.

The thief looked down at her. "Cat. You've already eaten half of it," he growled.

Oreo just kept looking back at him. "Merow?" she said plaintively.

Yami Bakura made a face of disgust. "Don't *do* that!" he yelled, tearing off some of his ham and throwing it at her.

Oreo purred happily and began to munch on her new meal.

Tristan was staring at Yami Bakura in disbelief. "Man, who've thought he'd actually like that cat?" he said loudly.

Yami Bakura grunted. "I don't," he said flatly.

"Oh suuuure you don't," Joey grinned, getting into the act.

"If you dolts wish to stay in this dimension, you will choose to cease bothering me," Yami Bakura threatened.

"Hey, anything you say, Yami B," Joey shrugged, trying not to laugh.

Yugi glanced over at the scene and managed a small smile at the antics before turning his attention back to Yami Yugi and Alyson. The girl kept turning the Ankh around in her hands and looking anywhere but at Yami Yugi. It's almost as if she's nervous about something and is afraid that Yami will realize what it is! Yugi thought to himself. Wait—maybe that's exactly it! Alyson knows something she's not telling!

Yami Yugi seemed to realize this as well. "Alyson, what is it you're not telling me?" he demanded now.

Alyson immediately jumped and stared at him. "Nothing," she said quickly. "I've told you everything I know, Mr. Pharaoh, sir, so can I please go?"

Yugi had to chuckle at how Alyson had addressed his Yami.

Yami Yugi looked at her thoughtfully. "Perhaps you have told me everything you know about your grandmother and her visions, but I believe you are hiding other secrets."

Alyson looked away, an almost terrified expression on her face. "No! No, I'm not!" she cried.

Yami Yugi sighed, realizing that Alyson wasn't going to tell him anything more. "Very well. You may go," he said in resignation.

Instantly Alyson brightened. "Thank you, Mr. Pharaoh!" she exclaimed, hurrying off.

Yami Yugi stared after her, shaking his head. "She knows something, Yugi," he said firmly. "And somehow, we must find out what it is!"

****

Marik looked at Viper harshly. They were back in Ishizu's suite and sitting in the living room part. "Well? Talk!" he said in a dangerous, low tone, prepared to grab her if it became necessary.

Viper sighed. "I guess you've got a right to be angry," she said, leaning back on the couch. "Especially after everything you guys have all been through."

"What do you mean?" Rishid asked, gazing at her strangely.

The woman had to laugh. "Jade told me about Frisco," she told them finally.

Marik raised an eyebrow. "You know Jade Chan?"

"Oh yeah. We go way back," Viper smiled. "But anyway . . . I know this Martin Collsworth guy you're looking for."

"But it was not you who left that note," Ishizu said slowly. It was a statement, not a question.

Viper shook her head. "No. That, I'm sure, is a trap—just as you deduced yourself." She looked over at Rishid. "See, there's some other people who are looking for someone else who's trying to find Collsworth. They sent you this note hoping that you are the one they're after. They don't really know where Collsworth is. They just want to capture this girl." Now her gaze shifted back to Ishizu, who narrowed her eyes suspiciously.

"And why exactly do they think I am she?" the Egyptian woman wanted to know.

Slowly Viper pulled a photo out of the sleeve of her jumpsuit and showed it to Ishizu. "This is why," she replied flatly.

Ishizu stared at the picture and Marik and Rishid both crowded around to see as well. The female being photographed was looking at the camera in wide-eyed surprise, as if she hadn't expected or wanted to have her likeness captured on film. She was dressed in an abundance of white materials and had many scarves and veils draped over her. All that was visible of her face were her striking blue eyes.

"I think you can see why you were mistaken for her," Viper remarked, looking at several of Ishizu's own scarves laid out on a nearby chair and the other woman's own blue eyes.

Ishizu handed the photograph back to her. "Yes, I suppose so," she said calmly. "But who is this girl and why do you know of her?"

Viper replaced the picture in her tight sleeve and crossed her arms. "Well . . . this girl came to me and told me her story. She's from Egypt, as you are, and she's on the run from these guys because she knows too much about their crooked dealings. But then . . . why don't you let her tell you everything herself?"

Rishid tensed, half-expecting a half dozen thugs with guns to appear and try to abduct them all. "And how will she do that?" he asked, a hand protectively straying to Marik's shoulder.

Viper glanced over at the bedroom door. "Alright, honey, you can come out now," she called.

Cautiously the young woman from the picture emerged from behind the glass doors of the balcony and stood in the doorway of the bedroom, apparently not sure where to go from here.

Ishizu looked at her kindly, seeing how frightened she appeared. "Come here," she said gently.

The girl advanced gratefully and now stood in front of Ishizu, who raised up to greet her, as did the others.

"What is your name?" Ishizu asked.

"Kamara," was the soft response as the veil came away from the girl's face, revealing that she was barely as old as Marik.

The boy blinked at her in surprise and then looked at Viper for an explanation.

"I'm trying to convince her to come with me to San Francisco," Viper said. "But she wants to stay here and figure out how to put those guys away before they wreck any more lives."

"I must," Kamara said in her thickly-accented voice. "It is my duty."

Viper smirked. "She's as stubborn as Jade."

Rishid looked at Kamara, sensing that there was more to this tale than was being told.

Kamara gave a sad sigh. "They destroy anyone in their way," she said softly. "I witnessed them setting up a horrible car crash on a highway in Egypt. Since then they have been after me to take my life. I felt you needed to know about this because they have gotten it in their minds that you are actually me. And I do not wish for anyone else to suffer needlessly."

Ishizu smiled at her gently. "You are a very kind-hearted person. This was quite a risk for you to come here this way. Those people could have seen you."

"I had to risk that," Kamara replied. "I couldn't not let you be warned of this."

Marik looked at her, cocking his head to the side. "Tell me, where are your parents?" he asked, thinking that she was quite young to be getting into such predicaments.

"Both dead," Kamara said quietly, looking away.

Marik blinked in surprise and felt guilty for asking. "I'm sorry," he apologized.

Kamara nodded and turned slightly. "If I can find Martin Collsworth, he may be able to help," she said. "He knows about this gang and has been trying to stop them for years."

"The last I knew of him, he was here in Boston, but I'm afraid I don't know more than that," Marik admitted. "He's not listed in the telephone book."

"That sounds like him," Kamara commented. "He always did like his privacy."

Abruptly there was a knock on the door and the girl grew upset. "I must leave!" she declared. "If I am found here, it will be drastic for you. If my enemies see only you here, they will realize that you are not the one they seek. But if I am here as well, they will harm you and your brothers mercilessly!" With that she turned to flee.

"I'll get her out of here," Viper promised. "We'll be in touch." She winked at Rishid. "Later, handsome." And with that, they were both gone.

The knock came again.

"Marik!! Are you in there?" Mokuba's hopeful voice wafted in to them.

Marik smiled and went over to the door, opening it. "Yes, I am here," he said.

Mokuba grinned up at him. "Are you and Ishizu and Rishid all okay?" he asked. "I thought you were gonna come downstairs!"

The Egyptian teen chuckled. "We were. But we got a bit . . . delayed."

Mokuba knew that tone of voice meant "we'll talk about this later." So he just continued to smile brightly at his friend and grabbed at his hand. "Well? Are you gonna come now?" he wanted to know. "They have so many good things to eat!"

Marik glanced back at Ishizu and Rishid as Mokuba tugged on his hand impatiently. "Shall we go?" he asked with a smile.

Ishizu smiled. "Let's," she said. "Food sounds very delicious right now."

****

Downstairs, Oreo was suddenly going a bit crazy. She perked up, yowling loudly, and then started running toward the fire escape door, pawing at it.

"Foolish feline!" Yami Bakura cried. "Do you want the alarm to sound? Leave the door alone!"

Oreo refused to do so, however, and threw her entire weight against it, managing to get it open slightly—just enough so that she could run out.

A horrible siren rang out through the building, startling everyone present.

"Oh my!" Bakura exclaimed, going pink as all eyes turned to look at him and Yami Bakura, the latter of whom was chasing his cat through the door, causing the alarm to go off again.

"What's going on down here?!" Mokuba gasped as he and the Ishtars made their way into the room.

"The tomb robber's cat set off the fire alarm," Seto explained from the table where he still was.

Mokuba laughed, clearly able to picture that in his mind. He sighed then, watching Bakura run after his Yami. "I guess we'll all need to go help out," the little boy said.

"It can't take that many people to catch a cat, can it?" Joey blinked at Mokuba from where he was sitting.

"That depends on the cat," Mokuba replied. "And when it's Oreo, well . . ."

Several loud crashes came from outside.

"Man, it might take the whole cavalry to catch her!" Joey exclaimed, leaping up.

****

Oreo led them all down to the docks, bounding along purposefully with an obvious goal in sight. Continually she looked back to make certain that Yami Bakura was still chasing her and then she would give a loud meow and tear off again, causing the thief to begin cursing thunderously in Egyptian.

"What the heck could she want us to see?!" Joey cried.

"It must be something pretty major," Tristan shot back.

Mokuba was running after the cat as well when he suddenly stopped to look at some odd crates. "Huh? What're these for?" he wondered.

Before he could wonder further, an arm came around behind him and lifted his small body into the air.

"Well, what have we here?" a faceless man sneered. "You little gnat."

Mokuba struggled wildly. "Let me go!!" he screamed.

"Oh, why of course," was the man's disturbing answer, and then he threw Mokuba over the edge of the pier into the water!