028.1

1

'Okay, according to the information I got, this should be the last one,' Wallace said, keeping a tight grip on the chimney in order to prevent tumbling down the little cottage's steep rooftop. The sun was high in the sky and he had to squint to make out the rest of his team. 'Remember, we gotta make this quick, because-'
'Because we don't know when the owner of the house comes back,' Jed finished his sentence. 'We got this, Wally.'
'It's not like it's our first time doing this,' Jean added, adjusting her glasses.
Wallace nodded. 'Alright, then. Let's hustle.' He swung one foot over the edge of the chimney, then the other, and dropped down. Just like he'd estimated, the "fall" was barely a fall; within seconds he landed safely on a pile of ashes. Swiftly, he stepped out of the fireplace and waited for the rest of his team.
'I hate this,' Jean complained as she crawled out of the fireplace, her yellow hoodie covered in ash. She took off her glasses, picked a small microfibre cloth out of her pocket and rubbed the soot off them.
She put them back on and, before Wallace could ask her to, took the scanner out of her rucksack and started to calibrate it to the frequency they needed.
There was a shriek, a thud, and then Jed tumbled out of the fireplace.
'Would you keep it down? We don't want any attention,' Wallace hissed at him, then he turned to Jean. 'Find anything yet?'
'Uh, guys?' Jed mumbled slowly.
'Not yet,' Jean answered, focused entirely on the device in her hands, 'Scanner's running a bit low on battery after all the action today. Remind me to fix the accumulator later on.'
'Guys,' Jed repeated more urgently and tugged at Wallace's shirt, leaving an ashy fingerprint.
'Not now,' Wallace replied busily, swatting the cinders out of his freshly washed polo shirt. 'Jean, hurry. The owner could be back any second.'
Jed winced. 'Yeah, about that-'
'What the hell are you doing in my house?' said a fourth voice.