The Spider's Parlour was a small bar on Essex Street near Steward Park in New York. It was a place that Alex had never imagined himself in; on the outside the building looked a smidgeon dilapidated and the inside was anything but. Alex was surprised at the contrast of light from the bright outside to the almost complete initial darkness inside. After Alex's eyes adjusted to the change of light, he was surprised to find that the place was actually quite nicely furnished. The theme of the place seemed to be red, lush royal red carpet for half of the room where all the tables and chairs were and dark red wood flooring for the other half where the bar was and it and all the furniture seemed to be dark red wood. The walls were also a shade of dark red and there were tapestries and curtains by the doors were also red. The whole monochromatic effect actually seemed to work but was somehow ruined by the black grand piano on a small stage at the other end of the room.

Alex looked around as he followed Mr. Blunt and Mrs. Jones. There were a few people littered around the room and while none of them looked very friendly, he remembered that two of them were MI6 agents who had gone in twenty minutes previously with a few minutes gap between them.

As they passed the bar a huge black man with muscles the size of his head spoke from behind the counter.

" What are you doing here?" He growled at Mr. Blunt with a slight touch of a French accent.

Alan Blunt just continued walking towards a table in the far corner of the room, Alex frowned but both he and Mrs. Jones followed. They sat down at the table and heard the man bang a glass onto the counter, and walk to a room beside the bar. He was gone a few minutes and all the while no one spoke anywhere in the room.

Alex wondered what exactly was going on, but didn't say anything; the silence was too heavy to try to lift.

Eventually the man came back out and threw a dark look over in their direction. He continued on with his work.

And a moment later, the woman he had previously known as Lisa strode into the room. Though Alex barely recognised her because everything about her seemed different. Instead of that well meaning smile that had been constantly plastered on Lisa's face, there was a thin line of her mouth and her eyes were no longer alight with good humour but were now as cold as any killer's.

She strode over to the trio, her eyes plastered on Alan Blunt. She looked extremely dangerous as she sat down on a spare chair by the table with a meticulously straight back. She crossed her legs and kept her lips firmly pursed. Alex noticed how she didn't seem to move a single muscle until Mrs. Jones finally stopped the silence.

" It's been a long time since I've seen you last. How are things?" She asked politely with a soft voice as she opened a mint wrapper and put one in her mouth.

Grey Fox's eyes never left Alan Blunt as her lips twitched upwards. " Better than Alan, I would believe." She said with a ghost of a Russian accent and then laughed as she saw the reaction from Mr. Blunt. " Careful, Alan," She warned as her smirk grew, " Old men your age are susceptible to high blood pressure."

" While little girls your age are susceptible to end up being found on a river bank with a plastic bag tied around their necks." He hissed in a way that Alex had never heard before. Alex blinked in disbelief; he had never seen Mr. Blunt react that way to anything or anyone before.

Her smile widened as she leaned in closer; like a predator going in for prey. " You'd have to be a real coward to kill a 'little girl' that way. I don't suppose you were suggesting anything, were you?"

Mr. Blunt was about to say something when Mrs. Jones held up her hand and spoke in a strong voice. " It's about time that both of you stop bickering like children and get to the matter at hand. There is no point in going for each other's throats when it's not going to help us with the matter that's at hand."

Grey Fox tore her eyes off of Mr. Blunt for the first time and nodded at Mrs. Jones. Mr. Blunt sighed quietly as he rubbed his forehead discreetly.

Alex noticed that Grey Fox was looking at him. She nodded in a greeting. " Hey, Kid."

" Hi." Alex said a little uncomfortably.

" Well then, what did you want to see me about?" Grey Fox said as she leaned back in her chair crossing her arms as well.

" You know." Mr. Blunt said accusingly in a harsh voice.

Grey Fox looked at him blankly, " No, I have no idea."

" We want you to help us." Mrs. Jones said quickly, interjecting the fight that was about to break out. " We want to hire you."

Grey Fox eyed them suspiciously for a moment. " Which of my skills would you want to hire?"

Mr. Blunt took out a piece of paper from his coat pocket and put it on the table. He pushed it over to her, intending for her to pick it up but she just looked at him stonily and repeated the question.

Mr. Blunt and Mrs. Jones looked at each other very quickly and then looked back at the young woman.

" We want you to pass on your skills." Mr. Blunt said finally after he cleared his throat.

Grey Fox raised her eye brow into a high arch, " Oh really? And to whom would you wish me to pass my legacy unto."

Alan Blunt indicated to Alex with a nod with his head and Grey Fox threw back her head and laughed with vehemence, it was a cold, chilling noise that sounded unnecessary harsh. Alex stiffened at this new news and looked at the two agents but they didn't give him any acknowledgement. Grey Fox started speaking, her eyes flickered to Alex as she noted the reaction. " I suppose that if you actually use a teenaged boy to do espionage then it's the next logical step to get him properly trained…" Her voice faded as considered something for a moment. " Tell me, Alan, why did you ask me?"

" It's not important. Will you do it?" He pushed the almost forgotten piece of paper nearer to her.

She looked at it as if it were some rare disease before picking it up. She looked at the paper, then at Alan and then at the paper once more. The sum of money on the page was a ridiculous amount that even made even Grey Fox do a double take.

" Will you do it?" Mrs. Jones asked imploringly.

Grey Fox stiffened and bristled with seemingly unreasonable fury. " Nyet!" She said with passion she rarely seemed to show. She stopped herself before she continued and with soft concentration she continued again in English, annoyed that she had slipped out of it. " No." She corrected herself, " There's not a chance."

Anger splayed itself across Mr. Blunt's features, " And why not? There's more than enough money, so why?"

The two stared to stare at each other for a long time again, until Grey Fox suddenly sighed and rolled her eyes. " Because, Alan, unless you're intelligence has gotten it wrong—again, you will know that I am ill, that I have been ill for quite some time and that by this time next year I will quite probably be dead. You ask me why I turn it down?" She snorted in dark amusement and then leaned forward, her voice was low. " I refuse to waste my last days on this world for you, the very man that has had a price on my head for half my life and has tried to get rid of me for the rest of it-- Leave now." She commanded and she rose from her seat. She went to leave, taking two steps before Alan Blunt calling after her stopped her abruptly.

" So you don't care about finding him then?" He called after her, Alex knew by the gleam in his eye that he just played his trump card.

Grey Fox stiffly turned; her eyes were narrowed as she gazed evenly at Alan.

" What?" She asked and her voice held a very dangerous tone.

" You heard me." Mr. Blunt answered he too was on alert as the next round of their little battle continued. Grey Fox strode back to the chair and sat down again with her own natural grace.

Her eyes were darker and more dangerous than Alex could have imagined. " You just have to do it don't you? Every time I think we can part ways without blood spilling, you go ahead and ask for it. Stop with your lies and leave before you get hurt. Every man in here is armed and willing to kill, we know about your two agents in the corner there and they will be killed before they can draw their guns-- Leave, this is your last chance."

Alex started to rise; he couldn't imagine how such a short sentence could have instigated such an aggressive outburst but he didn't care and he wasn't risking his neck for MI6, not again, not because Mr. Blunt was adamant about annoying a professional killer.

" Sit down, Alex." Mr. Blunt said sternly and then addressed Grey Fox again. " I'm not lying, we have evidence. Our information isn't a lot but it may be what you need." Mr. Blunt pulled out a photograph from his suit pocket and gave it to her. Alex couldn't see what was on it but it must have been something very important because Grey Fox's breath hitched. She lay the photograph face down on the table and sighed, closing her eyes as she bit her lip.

" Alex." She said looking at him, " Are you a willing participant in this or has he forced you here?"

Alex was surprised that he was actually given an opinion in this and so he instinctively looked to the only two people he knew as he considered what he should say. Of course he didn't want to be holed up with some crazy killer… but then, there was the threat of sending him into an orphanage. Something he certainly didn't want. Alex suppressed a groan. This really wasn't fair; he hated the way Mr. Blunt forced him into this life. He didn't really have a choice about this, he never did.

" Okay." He said, somewhat reluctantly.

But Grey Fox continued to study him, knowing something wasn't quite right.

" Alright." She said finally, as she took her eyes off of Alex " Give me the Information and half of the original price and we'll have a deal."

Alan Blunt nodded and Mrs. Jones seemed to sag in relief as she held out her right hand.

Mr. Blunt took it and they shook.