By the time John got back to Baker Street, Lily was anxious to leave. The case was odd, to say the least — and it's connected to Robert. Another con of his, another game. He's baiting Sherlock, taking him on the wild goose chase. At the end, he wants to be found. But where's the end? And what happens when Sherlock finds him?

Sherlock merely knocked on her door and said, "The game is afoot," and off they went. Despite everything, he almost looked excited — worried, but excited.

The cab ride to the office was short, as it's located in the city. And now here they are, standing outside of a tall, tan building in the middle of London, with multiple signs tacked onto it. One of them says, "For Lease."

"We might have to call that number," John comments.

"Is it for the right office space?" Lily asks.

Sherlock turns in a slow circle, stops at the office building again. "Interesting."

"What?"

"The location."

"There are tons of offices around here," John says, but Sherlock doesn't reply, instead walking inside.

The lobby is nicely decorated, with chairs, fake plants, a few paintings. A directory is pinned on the wall with arrows or floor numbers. The number William Jacobs gave them is 105. First floor, down the right hallway. Next to the number, it says "For Lease."

"That answers that question," Sherlock says.

"Other offices have for lease next to them," John points out.

Lily shrugs. "But there's only one sign outside, with one phone number. They're all probably owned by the same person. Or company."

"No other office here says red headed anything either, so he didn't just mistake the number."

"Let's visit 105, then, shall we?" Sherlock follows the arrow down the right hallway, and they pass a few occupied offices and a few unoccupied ones. 105 is at the very end of the hall. The door is blank, no sign or anything. But the wall bears a few marks.

"Does it look like something was hung up here to you?" Lily asks, pointing. The paint, in four places next to the door, seems different. "The paint looks newer here."

Sherlock squints at the wall, but he finally nods. "I see it."

"There was a sign here. I bet he filled in the nail holes and covered it up."

"Archie Samuel?" John says.

"Robert, Ray, whatever you want to call him," Sherlock replies. He tries the door handle, pushes, and it doesn't budge. He frowns. "It's locked."

Lily reaches around him, brushing his hand as she grabs the handle, trying to ignore the butterflies she feels. She pulls, and it opens. "It's a pull door, Sherlock." His cheeks color at his blunder, but he doesn't comment on it. He gets right back to the case.

"This is too easy. He's waiting for us."

"You mean... he's inside?" Lily whispers.

"He could be. But he knows we're coming. There's no point in trying to surprise him."

John pulls out a gun Lily didn't know he had, but she's glad of it now. He walks ahead, gun out in front of him, sweeping the room. The door opens to a sort of hallway, with blank walls. The hallway turns to the right, into a big, open room. It would make for a nice reception area if it had furniture. There's a window on the far wall, the blinds shut in front of it.

The room has another hall going to the right, so they creep down it. The doors here have windows on them, spots where letters were on the glass and then removed. They go down the hall, opening each door as John practically shoves the gun into the room as soon as the door is open. Every one of them is empty, except the last one. There's saw dust on the floor.

They all relax, if only slightly. At the very least, they're alone in here. Sherlock turns to Lily. "Are you busy tonight?"

Despite herself, her heart rate rises — and not because she's afraid of meeting some guy in here. "I-I think so."

"John?"

Lily deflates a little.

"What for?" John asks.

Sherlock exits the room, heading for the front door. Lily and John follow him with no other choice. "Call the landlord. I'm going to go see Mr. Holder."

"Mr. Holder?"

"Do you remember the bank he worked at?"

"Do you?"

Sherlock stops on the sidewalk, pointing to the bank next door to the office building. "It's that one."

Lily frowns. "That's not a coincidence."

"No, it's not. And I have feeling that bank is what he's after — or what he wants me to think he's after. It's too simple."

"So what are we doing tonight?"

Sherlock locks eyes with her. "A stake-out."

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Mr. Holder was very shocked to see Sherlock walk into his place of business, but he was nearly hysterical when Sherlock very quietly told him he was expecting a robbery that night.

"Who? When? How?" His hands were practically shaking. "Mr. Holmes-"

"No need to get excited, Mr. Holder. How many vaults are in this bank?"

"W-Well, four, but-"

"One in the basement?"

"The old one."

Sherlock nodded. "Good. I have a plan. Are you busy tonight?"

"Why- I- No, I don't believe so. I was just going to go home and have dinner with my family."

"You may have give them a rain check tonight. I'm going to need you to meet me here."

"When?"

"Sundown. We don't want to miss them."

"Who?"

"The robbers." Sherlock starts to go, but then stops. "If you have a gun, you might want to bring it."

His eyes widened, and he shook his head. "Oh, why don't we call the police, Mr. Holmes."

"I will. He'll bring a gun, too."

He left, then did as he said he would, mostly; he texted Lestrade. When he arrived back outside, John was hanging up with the landlord.

"What'd he say?" Lily asked.

Sherlock pocketed his phone. "He'll be here at sundown. The landlord?"

"He said never sold that office to any Red-Headed League or Archie Samuels. He wasn't aware anybody was in there. He said he was going to change the locks," John replied.

Sherlock waved that off. "They won't need that office anymore. The basement connects to the old vault."

"But surely they've updated-"

"They have multiple. These are old buildings. Why do you think Mr. Holder's bank is so trusted? It's been here for ages, and they've had only — what? — three successful robberies in the last two hundred years?" Sherlock sighed. "They've been renovated, of course, but they haven't been rebuilt. I bet our Archie Samuels knows that, too, and more."

"Then we should get ahead of him, right?" Lily said.

"The only thing we need to know is that he's going to be here."

"You told Lestrade?" John asked.

"Of course. The only thing left to do now is wait for sundown." He hailed a cab to take them back to Baker Street. He got in first, then Lily, then John. She looked to be thinking, although he didn't think she looked nervous.

"How long do you think we'll be there?" she asked.

"It's hard to tell."

"I'll make something to bring with us, to eat. And I think I have a cooler somewhere so we have something to drink."

Sherlock normally wouldn't eat on a case, of course, but... "Is that something cookies?"

"Yes, probably. A double batch, I think. If I have time I might make brownies, too. I wonder when Speedy's closes and if I can order some sandwiches ahead of time — there's five of us, right?"

"You don't have to do that," John said. "I mean, I won't object if you do. I'll split the cost with you, just keep the receipt."

"Alright. Only because I don't have a job at the moment."

"Oh, that'll be starting soon, won't it?"

She sighed. "Yes."

"I thought you love teaching," Sherlock said, frowning.

"Oh, I do. I just have so much I want to do right now, and so much I need to get done. And I can't open a bakery while I'm working. I won't have the time."

"I didn't realize you were still seriously looking into that," John said.

"Well... I kind of wasn't. Now, I... I don't really know. I am, sort of. I need to replenish my fund, anyway."

"With your book money?" Sherlock asked.

"Once I finish it, yes."

They arrived at Baker Street, and Lily went into Speedy's. Sherlock went to see Mrs. Hudson. She answered the door with a tired look. "Sherlock, I don't know why you insisted on sending Rosie away. It's awful lonely and quiet around here without her."

"Then you should join her."

"Sherlock-"

"Or visit your friends in Florida. Whichever you prefer. But you shouldn't stay here."

"And leave you all here alone? How could I?" She shook her head. "What if something were to happen to you while I was gone?"

"What if something were to happen to you while you're here?" Sherlock countered. "I would much prefer it if you went away for a while. Take another holiday."

She sighed. "When?"

"Before tonight."

"Before tonight? Sherlock Holmes, you're kidding. No, I can't. I'll stay right here."

"Mrs. Hudson-"

She disappeared into her flat, then came back with a gun. "I'm not so old yet that I can't take care of things, remember?"

"Well..." Sherlock knew that, he just worried. And really, with what he thought was going to happen... "I have reason to believe he'll meet us at the bank. But I don't know what his plans are. If he sends people here-"

"I will be ready."

"I'll have Lestrade send an officer to stay with you."

"If you want. What about Lily?"

"She's going with me."

Mrs. Hudson smiled. "Right into the heart of it?"

"If I keep her close, then I know where she is. And I know she's okay."

"The safest hands are your own, aren't they?"

"I don't know."

She patted him on the shoulder. "I do. Just be careful."

He didn't reply. He didn't know if he could afford to be.

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When Lily went in to the order the sandwiches, the restaurant was a bit busy, but Speedy had everything under control. He smiled when he saw Lily.

"What time do you close?" Lily asked.

He checked his watch. "In about an hour and a half."

"Are you this busy then?"

"Not usually, no. You got a big order?"

"Yes, actually. But we aren't eating until sundown."

"What do you need?"

"Five sandwiches."

He chuckled. "Just come back in about an hour. We'll take care of it."

"Thanks, Speedy."

"It's the least I can do for a neighbor."

After she left, she went straight to work on the cookies, preparing a double batch. She knew the recipe by heart at that point, so the cookies were in the oven soon. She had about thirty minutes before sundown, so she thought she had time to make the brownie batter. The oven was already preheated, and the cookies would be done in about ten minutes. She hurried through the brownie recipe and got them in the oven when the cookies came out. While the brownies were in the oven, she ran upstairs to Speedy's and ordered five sandwiches, then ran back downstairs to get the brownies out of the oven. They were still warm when she cut them, and the cookies barely had time to cool, but she didn't have a choice. It was almost sundown.

Just as she got the cookies and brownies in containers, there was a knock on the door. She carried the desserts upstairs and shoved them in Sherlock's hands so she could run down and get the sandwiches and the cooler of water.

"How are we gonna eat all these?" John asked.

"Speak for yourself," Sherlock replied, already walking out the door. "If this man is connected to Moriarty, he isn't getting any of these."

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Mr. Holder scrunches up his sandwich paper and reaches for a cookie. "Mr. Holmes, I hope this works out the way you planned it."

"I'm sure it will," Sherlock replies, on his third cookie.

Lestrade is on his second brownie. "Even if it doesn't, we're set for a good few hours with all this food."

John shakes his head. "No, we're not. Sherlock is here."

"We probably have an hour or so before they get here, so we better eat fast," Sherlock says.

"I think you have that covered," Lily replies, also eating a brownie. She shivers a bit. For some reason, the old is vault is freezing, and she didn't plan on that. It's about the only thing she didn't plan on.

Sherlock shrugs off his coat and drapes it over her shoulders.

"Sherlock-" she protests, but he sits back down and gets another cookie. Even as she pulls the coat tighter around her, breathing in the scent of his detergent — or shampoo? Or... he doesn't wear cologne, does he? — she says, "You'll get cold."

"I'm alright," he insists.

"Do we really have to wait in here, anyway?" Mr. Holder asks. "The vault-"

"Has to be broken into," Lestrade reminds him. "Then we can charge them with breaking and entering."

"For all the money you people still store in here, from some reason," John comments. They moved it out before beginning the stake-out.

"No one would think we'd keep anything in here. This vault hasn't been broken into since the Victorian age," Mr. Holder says.

"That streak ends tonight," Sherlock reminds them. "Does everyone have their firearm handy?"

The men all nod. Sherlock offered Lily a gun, but she doesn't know how to use one of those even if she wanted to. By the end of this, though, she may have to. That thought scares her almost more than anything. She eats another brownie to try to distract herself.

"Pass the brownies," John says, so Lestrade hands the container over. They're almost gone now. Lily leans back against the wall, trying to breathe. But a small tapping sound is coming from the wall.

"Do you hear that?" Lily asks.

"Hear what?"

"Everyone stop chewing."

The vault goes deathly silent, while outside of it, the tapping continues — and gets louder.