At eleven o'clock, Jigen's car roared out of the city towards the Amalfi Coast. The Lamborghini handled well, and he knew he'd arrive at his destination long before one. If his suspicions were unfounded, he could say that he was in the area, and the timing was convenient. He didn't expect to need an excuse, though.

It wasn't long before he was pulling into the driveway. He stepped out of the car, slamming the door. Taking a cigarette from his pocket, he looked up at the villa and nodded to himself. Nice digs. Whatever she did -- whatever she REALLY did -- must pay well. Jigen lit his smoke and inhaled deeply as he made his way to the front door. Before he could knock, it was opened by a girl in her late teens.

"Oh!" she said, starting in surprise. "Scusi, signore. Potrei aiutarti?"

"Huh?" Jigen frowned. His Italian was passable, but she spoke too quickly for him to follow.

"Oh," she said again, blushing. "Mi dispiace, signore. My English, it is not good. You are here to see signorina Merlino?"

Yeah, that was pretty much what he'd expected.

"I think so," he said in a dark voice. "I only know her first name."

The girl bowed respectfully. "I am so sorry," she murmured. "You look for Alessandra, sì? She is on the terrace, signore." The girl opened the door wider, and pointed up a flight of stairs. "I can take your hat and coat, signore?" the girl asked, as Jigen walked past her.

"No," he said shortly, and climbed the stairs. He passed through an ivy-covered archway and stepped onto the terrace.

The view was certainly spectacular; a panoramic spread of the Sorrento coast and the Gulf of Naples. The water looked inviting. On the terrace, there was a small bar off to one side, fully-stocked -- but Jigen wasn't interested in the sea, or the booze. What caught his eye was the target. And the woman, holding a Walther P99 in both hands, firing into the vaguely person-shaped block of pressed hay. As he watched, she managed a tight grouping in the target's head. The sound was muffled. She was using a silencer.

Jigen drew his revolver and pulled back the hammer, slowly and deliberately. Alexis froze in position for an instant, then continued firing.

"Put it down," Jigen growled.

Alexis paused and glanced at him out of the corner of her eye. "You're early," she said, and pulled the trigger once more. The target rocked slightly, sporting a perfect shot through the heart.

"I said put it down, or I blow your friggin' head off."

Alexis lowered her weapon, locked it, and placed it on a small stone table. She spun the barrel with one finger, neatly stopping the gun so that the grip pointed towards Jigen. "Happy?" she said, her voice tight.

He scowled at her. "You said you didn't know how to use a gun."

She snorted. Reaching for a cloth, she wiped her hands with it. "No, I said I was a complete berk when it came to drawing a gun." She gestured at the target. "Once it's out, I'm perfectly competent." She tossed the cloth onto the table next to her Walther and headed towards the bar.

Jigen growled again. "Don't move," he said. Alexis ignored him and started fixing herself a drink. She looked disdainfully at him.

"Oh, sod off," she said, dropping a handful of ice into a heavy tumbler. "We both know perfectly well that if you'd wanted to kill me, you would have done so already. I seriously doubt you'd have any reservations about shooting a woman, especially if you thought she'd betrayed you." Alexis filled the glass half-full with gin, then turned back to Jigen and toasted him. "Cheers," she said, and downed the clear liquid in one gulp. "Want one?" she asked, turning back to the collection of bottles.

"No." Jigen tensed, watched her warily as she fixed herself another, this time cut with tonic water. He gestured at the target with his Magnum. "Why didn't you tell me?" he asked.

Alexis spoke over her shoulder. "Well, the subject never really came up, did it?" She leaned against the bar, sipping at her drink. "Besides, I didn't realise my life was up for inspection."

Jigen narrowed his eyes and tightened his grip on the gun. "It is now," he said. "What else aren't you telling me?" He studied her face as her expression shifted from defiant, to worried, to apologetic. Finally, she closed her eyes and turned away.

"Well, she's a thief, for one," came a familiar voice. Alexis spun around as Lupin jumped gracefully from the edge of the roof to the brick terrace. He landed in a crouch, then stood and walked over to the Walther where it lay on the table. He picked it up and looked at it admiringly. "Nice piece," he said, ignoring Jigen's surprised look. "Did you steal this from MI6?" He unscrewed the silencer and set it aside.

Alexis shook her head. "It was a gift," she muttered.

"Very nice, indeed." Lupin removed the magazine and dropped it on the table, then grasped the pistol in both hands and looked down the barrel at her. "I finally remembered where I'd heard the name 'Finch'." He lowered the gun and turned it over in his hand. Its striker tip was blue instead of red. He chuckled and looked up at Alexis. "You're the one they call 'Bluebird', aren't you?"

Alexis snarled and spat over the side of the terrace. "Well, not to my face, they bloody don't," she said, her voice laced with poison.

"Bluebird?" echoed Jigen. He lowered his gun, decocked it, and holstered it. The wary look remained.

"Mm-hm." Lupin put down the Walther. "Her thefts are almost exclusively blue: blue gems, blue artwork, blue ornaments..." He ticked them off on his fingers.

"Your point?" Alexis said drily.

Lupin clapped his hands together. "I never thought I'd actually get to meet you!" he said, brimming over with genuine excitement. "Not many people know about you; specialists are rare in this business."

Alexis shrugged and finished her gin and tonic. "It's just a hobby." She turned back to the bar and fixed herself another.

Jigen raised an eyebrow and leaned against the archway.

Lupin pulled out a chair and sat down at the table, crossing one leg over the other. "You're better at your hobby than your job," he said. "I checked."

"Well that's rather the point, isn't it?" Alexis snapped. She took another tumbler from the bar and filled it with ice. "A hobby is something you're very good at, that you do in your spare time." She topped the new glass with Scotch and handed it to Lupin. "A job is something you do in order to pay the bills," she said, returning to the bar, and to her own drink.

Jigen's voice was low and dark. "So you're a chocolatier."

Alexis nodded, her back to him. "It's not very lucrative, however. I had to seriously underbid for this job," she said, sipping her drink and looking out over the Gulf, "but it did get me to Italy. As for that ridiculous moniker..." She turned back to Lupin and curled her lip. "My clients call me something else entirely, and it is neither 'Bluebird', nor 'Miss Finch'."

Lupin took a healthy swallow from his glass. "Is that your real name?" he said, looking curiously at her.

"Does it matter?" Alexis asked. Her voice was drained, colourless.

"It does to me," Jigen rumbled.

Alexis looked pained. She stared into her drink. "Yes," she said quietly. "Alexis Finch is my real name. Though I don't often have occasion to use it."

Lupin raised one eyebrow, and Jigen ran a hand over his eyes. "Well," he said, "I can't say I didn't see this coming."

Alexis had been avoiding his gaze, but now she turned to him, her eyes flashing with anger. "Oh, don't be thick, Jigen," she snapped. "Do you really think I go round telling people I've only just met that I'm a thief?" She slammed her glass onto the bar and stepped towards him. "'Pardon me,'" she mimicked, "'I realise we've only known each other for twenty minutes, but I feel a burning need to tell you that I nick things from snotty rich people, and can hit a rubbish bin from fifty paces with a pistol. Oh, and could you pass the salt?'" She snorted softly. "Or perhaps this is just a convenient excuse," she finished, tossing her head.

Jigen stepped back in the face of her onslaught. "Excuse for what?"

"Well, I've known you almost a week, and I haven't stabbed you in the back yet. That must be seriously throwing off your average." Alexis took a deep breath and rushed him. With the back of her hand, she knocked his fedora from his head before he could react. Even Lupin blinked in surprise. "There," she continued. Her accent had grown stronger, fed by her rage. "Maybe now that your eyes aren't covered by that bloody hat, you'll see that I'm not the heartless bitch you so desperately want me to be." She stood before him, her fists clenched.

Jigen's eyes widened, then narrowed. "I never said..."

"You didn't have to," Alexis shot back. "It's in everything you do. Every move you make. Even our conversation last night was full of it. It drips from your voice." She was trembling, but she didn't know whether it was from fury or anguish. "You expect the very worst from me," she said, "and no matter how many tokens of faith I offer you, there's just no way you'll ever let me in."

"That's not true," Jigen growled.

Alexis lifted her chin defiantly. "Prove it," she said. "Finish what you started, under the stars."

Jigen grabbed her roughly by the shoulders and looked down into her face. Her expression had softened, and she no longer looked angry, only wistful. His gaze travelled from her eyes to her mouth, and back again. He swallowed past the lump in his throat and found to his surprise that he wanted very much to finish what he'd started.

But he couldn't.

Lupin was trying to make himself as inconspicuous as possible. He looked at his watch, and murmured to himself, "Whoa, is that the time already? I'd better get back to town." He headed for the stairs.

"I'll go with you." Jigen dropped his hands from Alexis' shoulders and bent to pick up his hat. He pulled it low it over his eyes, not wanting her to see the burning need that filled them.

"Uh..." Lupin hesitated.

Alexis stared at Jigen's back for a moment, hurt and bewildered. Then her eyes hardened. "You would," she said bitterly, and turned away. She walked slowly to the edge of the terrace and looked out over the water.

"Uh, Jigen," Lupin said, gesturing to Alexis. "You know, there's really nothing happening until tonight. Why don't you stick around for a bit?"

Silence.

Lupin looked thoughtfully at each of them in turn. "Well, gee," he said, forcing a playful note into his voice, "if you're not interested in her anymore, mind if I try?" He strode purposefully towards Alexis, but not before noticing that Jigen's hands were clenched into tight fists. "You know, Alexis," he continued, trying to goad his partner into action, "my boxers have blue stripes... wanna see?" He grinned wickedly.

Her back still towards him, Alexis shook her head. Her voice was sweetly poisonous. "Try it, Lupin, and I'll force-feed you that tie you're wearing."

Jigen smiled faintly to himself as he pulled a cigarette from his pocket and lit it. She had balls; he'd give her that much.

"Oh, c'mon, cutie," Lupin wheedled. He tugged on her arm in an attempt to turn her to face him. "My shirt is blue, too. You could have it for your collection. It would look great lying on the floor beside your bed."

Alexis glanced over her shoulder at him for no more than an instant. Just long enough for him to see the tears that were rolling down her cheeks.

"Go away, Lupin," she said, her voice barely audible. "Please."

Lupin looked at her with concern. "Hey, now," he said gently. Jigen must have heard the change in his tone, because he drew a sharp breath and turned around. "Are you..."

Alexis shook her head vehemently. She didn't want him to ask her if she was all right. She didn't want to hear his expressions of sympathy. But most of all, she didn't want Jigen to know that she was crying.

Lupin sighed heavily. "All right," he said. His voice dropped to a conspiratorial whisper, and he winked. "But only because you're a fellow thief." He paused for a moment, considering. Feeling helpless, he stuffed his hands deep into his pockets. "Take care, lady."

She nodded without looking at either of them. They started down the stairs, but stopped abruptly when they heard her speak:

"Lupin."

Lupin turned, a hopeful smile on his face. "Yes?" Out of sight on the stairs, Jigen tensed for a moment, then continued his descent.

Alexis took a deep breath. "Good luck tonight," she said. Her voice was steady. "Please... be careful."

Lupin smiled knowingly. "We always are, Bluebird," he said, and followed the stairs to the front door.

Jigen was leaning against Lupin's Ferrari, smoking. His expression was dark. He was so focused, playing Alexis' words over in his head, that he missed Lupin's question.

"Huh?"

"I said, let's get back to the hotel, and I'll buy you a drink." Lupin opened the door of his convertible and hopped in. "Race you?" he suggested.

Jigen shook his head. "I'm going for a drive." He stepped over to the Lamborghini and opened the door. "I know, I know," he muttered around his cigarette. "We have a job to do." He settled in behind the wheel and shifted into gear. "I won't forget." The engine roared as he peeled out of the driveway and sped off down the road.

Lupin waved. "Be home by eleven!" he called, his voice trailing off. He sighed, and hoped that Jigen wouldn't do anything stupid. Insurance rates were a bitch.

Setting the car into reverse, Lupin backed down the driveway. He shifted down, threw one last look in the direction Jigen had gone, and sped off in the opposite direction, towards the city.