Blitzed(130)

Felix laughed. "Probably a lot less stressful for insurance companies, that’s for sure. Francois, I know that you want to continue, to stand out on your own. I'm willing to support that, you know."

"I know," I replied, touched while at the same time knowing what was going to happen to him, and I had to make it a point to keep my nerve. There was no turning back now. "Felix, regardless of what happens, I know you will be the man who helps me find success."

Felix came over and knelt down next to me, clapping me on the shoulder. "Thank you, Francois. Now, let's go reassure Jordan that she doesn't have to hide from us in order for us to be ready."



That night, long after the sun went down and the bells in the local churches struck eleven, Felix and I changed for the job. We were to approach the building from the river side, taking advantage of the typical Paris evening mist to mask our approach on the building. Still, it was beneficial for us to wear dark colors, so we put on midnight blue pants and tops, with light masks that could be rolled up to look like caps if we needed them to.

We'd considered many options for entry, from using the sewers to literally parachuting onto the roof. We discarded them one by one for various reasons, with most of them being gotten rid of because they were just impractical considering the time constraints we had to deal with. In the end, we decided to go by a more traditional route, going through a hole we cut in the glass side of the building.

"You in?" Felix asked as I shimmied through the hole on the second floor, hoping that our computer worm was working. It was supposed to loop the security feed so that the guards inside the building wouldn't know what we were up to. It was also supposed to have corrupted the alarm systems as well, telling the system that everything was fine regardless of what the individual sensors reported. If Alex's worm had worked according to his promises, the guards at the front desk would think everything was just fine and dandy.

"Yeah," I whispered back. "Come in."

Felix followed me, barely squeezing his wider shoulders through the hole in the glass. Sliding through, he rolled his right arm before getting to his knees. "Time check?"

"Eight minutes to the next patrol," I said, referencing the timer on my arm. I’d strapped a custom programmed smartphone to my forearm, which not only held a timer but also maps and other information we might need. Felix used to have one, but in tackling Jordan in Los Angeles, he cracked the screen and destroyed it. We hadn't had time to get a new one yet. "Let's go."

We made our way through the museum, heading for the display room. We moved quickly, turning a disadvantage into an advantage. Felix was worried about the interior structure of the museum, as it didn't allow for a lot of walls and separate rooms. The half walls and beams made the hiding places for cameras and sensors more numerous than ever, and the guards could see us easily if they came near. At the same time, though, we could see them, and we could move fast, not having to worry about a guard coming around a blind corner that we couldn't see.

We made our way to the display area, where the Quran was sealed within its case. Reaching into the small toolkit at my waist, I withdrew the small aerosol canister inside. The seams of the display side melted under the catalyst, Felix quickly catching the pane of Lexan before it could fall to the floor and make a noise.

"There it is," Felix whispered, taking the Quran into his hands and closing it carefully. He slipped the book into the carrying case on my back, a hard style slim case that was just big enough for the book and no more. Made of aircraft aluminum, it would protect the book from all sorts of rough handling, short of actually getting shot. That would have been a bit much, honestly. Latching it closed, he looked at me. "Ready. Time?"

"Two minutes," I said, turning and hurrying away without another word. We hit the hole in the side of the building with thirty seconds to spare. We descended quickly, hanging from the cut hole before dropping, letting the grass absorb the shock of landing and took off running into the mist, heading for the Seine.

Next to the river, moored on the muddy bank was our getaway, a black rubber boat that we climbed into quickly. Stroking with the current, we disappeared into the darkness. "Five kilometers," I said to Felix. "You okay?"

"It went smooth, I don't think we've had a heist go that smooth since our training days," Felix replied. We pulled out large bladed oars and pulled, adding to our speed. "That catalyst worked perfectly."

"I told you it would," I replied with a touch of pride. It was my strength in our partnership. Yes, Felix was overall more studious, and certainly knew more about computers and general tactics than I did, but I knew chemistry. Even though I'd never gone to university level classes, I'd pushed myself to learn a lot about the subject, especially where it applied to that night's heist. Acids, bases, catalysts . . . that was my specialty. "Once I was able to find out what they chemically welded the seams with, the proper reactant was a matter of child's play."

"Then let's get this over with," Felix said as he lowered his oar and pulled hard, the wide blade cutting through the water. "Get to the meet-up, come back, get Jordan, and get the hell out of Paris for a very long time."

"I'm going to miss the lights," I said as we rowed, looking around as Paris passed us. The city never really goes to sleep, but we were traveling through it at its nadir, and it was deceptively peaceful, especially with the late night fog obscuring some of the harsher corners. "At least for the next year or so."