The Manor looked out upon a vista of trees, only to be smothered by that of the early morning fog. Lara stared out the window; hands clasped behind her back, her thoughts distant. It had been a long while since she had watched the fog rise in the morning; it always seemed to help clear her thoughts. She hoped the sun would break through the clouds today so that she could train on the assault course. The rain hadn't seemed to let up in the past few weeks. Her eyes swept over the distant valleys, and her thoughts began to drift.

The loss of Lawrence's life had remained as much a mystery to her now as the day that she heard of his passing. She had done her best to remain strong, despite his death. But every link to her father had seemed to fade in the past few years. Most of his close friends had passed away, and all relatives of his had either died or wanted nothing to do with her. For the first time in a long while, Lara admitted she felt very much alone. Years of dealing with death so very often had hardened her in a way, she had learned to accept it and move on. And for that she felt somewhat ashamed. She wondered about the last time she cried; realizing that it was long ago, when she seemed so much weaker then she was now. Even her father's death had not caused her to shed one tear. She recalled on the day of his funeral, her aunt telling her she was dead inside, and then slapped her hard across the face. Lara wondered at that phrase, dead Inside. Perhaps I am, she thought. But she pushed the thought away, thinking it better to ignore it.

She had gone through news article after news article, only to find not a single mention of Lawrence's discovery. Not one word was printed about the half of the key that he was so sure was the real thing. And still nearing a week after his death, there were still no leads as to who might have murdered him. "Lara?" She turned to see Winston peeking through the doorway. "Breakfast is prepared, when you're ready." He offered a weak smile, the only form of comfort he could give. "Thank you Winston." She responded with an equally fake smile before returning to gaze out the window. She decided it was time to do a little research.

****

Sotheby's was crowded today, and Lara preferred it that way. Made it all the easier for her to slip in and out without being noticed. She made her way through the crowds, settling into a seat near the back of the auction house. A young man offered her a catalogue, but she waved him away. Instead she surveyed the inhabitants of the room, must of which were quite wealthy it appeared. Collectors, she supposed, archeologists, bankers, lawyers and so on. Lara almost felt out of place in leather jacket and shades. Almost.

The auctioneer cleared his throat and began to speak. "And now Ladies and Gentleman, The Key of Saints." He said, referring to the small relic that was laid inside a glass case.

"Said to be half of the key to that of the chest of St. Michael, containing his sword, this is a priceless find. The bidding will began at 50,000 pounds."

An elderly man several rows before her, raised his card. The auctioneer gave a ingratiating smile, "50 thousand from the gentleman in the cap. Do I hear 55? Lara remained silent, sensing the disinterest in majority of the room. Another man a few seats down from her, raised his card. "55 thousand from the gentleman in Armani. Do I hear 60?" Lara took the opportunity , and raised her card. "60 thousand, ladies bid."

The bidding continued on, as Lara wondered if this piece was actually worth as much as she was willing to pay. But she had to know, for Lawrence's sake. "Do I hear 500 thousand?" Lara immediately raised her card, hoping her competitors had come to their limit. She noticed that the elderly man in the cap was shaking his head, but the man a few seats down had remained calm and collected. "Do I hear 600 thousand?" Lara was beginning to sweat, silently praying that the bidding would not raise much higher. After all, she wasn't even sure that this piece was worth this amount of money, so why was her competitor throwing away his money? "Do I hear 700,000 thousand pounds?" Lara raised her card, casting a side glance at her opponent. "Do I hear 800?" The man in Armani raised his card once again, and Lara glared at him in frustration. He returned her glare with a cocky grin. "Do I hear 950, thousand pounds?" Lara gritted her teeth at the auctioneer's large elevation in price. But instead, raised her card once again. "Do I hear one million pounds?" The room remained silent, and Lara once again looked at her competitor out of the corner of her eye. He remained still. "950,000 pounds for a unique find. Going once. Going twice. Sold!" Lara let out a breath she hadn't realized she'd been holding, and was thankful that the bid had not gone any higher. "Ma'm, would you care to make arrangements for the delivery?" She took one last glance at her opponent, only to find he was no longer in the room, before turning back towards the auctioneer, "No, I'll take it now, thank you."

***

The grand lobby was packed with buyers and sellers, mingling, talking money, fashion, summer homes, all the meaningless chitchat that Lara found so boring. Still, she found the room beautiful, with its high ceilings, marble floors, bouquets of flowers scattered about-

"Lara Croft?" Lara turned to see the gentleman from the auction, the one whom had been her opponent, standing behind her. He was not much taller then her, perhaps about 6 foot. He had messy light brown hair, and deep green eyes. He stuck out his hand awkwardly, "I'm Daniel Lane." Lara glanced at it, but made no attempt to shake it in return. "Right," he said retracting it, "Can I have a word with you?"

"Really Mr. Lane, I haven't the time right now."

She glanced down at her black bag containing the piece, ready to return home and begin translating the markings. She turned her back on him. "I knew Lawrence Stanford. I knew what he found." He called from behind her. Lara stopped dead in her tracks, but did not turn to face him. Instead he came to her side. "He was a close friend of my grandfather's." He paused for a moment, waiting for an answer from her, she supposed. "I believe we both know something more about that piece then we're pretending."

Lara eyed him warily for a moment, before responding,

"I've really no idea what you're talking about Mr. Lane."

She made an attempt to push past him, but instead he grabbed her by the wrist and pulled her into a side hallway,

"They'll come after you, just like they did for him! You don't know what you've gotten yourself into." He said urgently now, his breath hot on her skin.

With great effort, she restrained herself from decking him right there, but instead replied through gritted teeth, "Don't presume to tell me what I do or do not know. And if you would like to return home with your arm still intact you'll remove your hand from me immediately." She glared at him, and he removed his hand, but failed to remove the look of irritation from his face. "Miss Croft, that piece," he said gesturing towards her bag, "There are things I know about it. I can help you." He pressed a small white card into her palm, and before he could continue on, Lara interrupted. "Well then perhaps next time Mr. Lane, you should make sure you're equipped adequately for such high bidding." With that she pushed past him and made her way through the crowded lobby.

***

The rain padded lightly against Lara's windshield, her windshield wipers going back and forth slowly. The sky had remained the same sullen gray from the morning, and the road ahead was wet. Lara drummed her fingers against the steering wheel, impatient with the London traffic. She glanced down at the white card Daniel Lane had given her. He had scribbled his name and number on it, They'll get you. Just like they did him!

Lara wondered at they comment. Who could he possibly be talking about? And how was he sure that they 'both knew something more then they were pretending'. Lara let out a sigh and dropped the card in the seat beside her.

When she had finally made it out of the city, Lara pressed the accelerator a little harder. Her Aston martin v12 vanquish could easily manage 100 miles per hour in 5 seconds, and when she was on the empty road back to her manor she would always test out the speed. She hadn't been driving long when she noticed that the usually deserted road had another companion. A silver Porsche turbo had been on her tail for quite some time, and Lara was soon becoming frustrated with the other driver's need to be on her hind end. She switched gears and sped ahead. The other driver seemed to be playing some sort of copy cat game, for he sped up right behind her. Lara glared in her rear view mirror, unable to make out the face of her follower. She made a left onto a small dirt road, a bit of a short cut she decided. The opposite driver did the same.

"So you wanna play then?" Lara said aloud with a grin. She clamped her foot down on the accelerator, her car immediately shooting forward, leaving the Porsche behind in her muddy tracks. Lara laughed to herself, but her laughter soon faded as 2 black BMW's sped out behind her. And they definitely were not playing a game.