Chapter 36
Caspar flinched as soon as he heard the knock on the door.
Ultima whispered her apologies for having the speakers too loud.
She, Caspar, and Malek were cramped inside a white van that William had picked up earlier in the day.
After a quick paint job to make it look like a Fed-Ex car and some incantations to protect them, they had rolled the vehicle close to George Cosner’s suburban home in Montréal.
Natasha knocked again on the large brown door.
The bug she had in her front pocket allowed Ultima and everyone else in the van to hear their conversation with George, so they knew when to get out and head for the back door of the house.
The mission was supposed to be quick: get in, assess the couple, find an invitation and pass code for the locker downstairs, and get back into the van.
William carried a trolley filled with a large cardboard box marked “FRAGILE” as the decoy item.
“What did you end up putting in there?” Malek asked.
Ultima held up her hand as Natasha knocked once more and the door was pulled open.
“Hello,” Katja greeted. “We have a package for you. For the museum display. Precious cargo.”
“It’s a statue of the Illustrated Man,” Natasha said. “You’ve heard of him, right?”
As soon as the words left her mouth, Ultima gave the two of them the signal in the van. Caspar had to laugh when he realized what they’d wrapped for real—one of the brass statues from the hall of the hotel, most likely lifted by William.
Malek opened the back door of the van and brought down the ramp for Ultima.
They all wore dark green uniforms, thinking it would help them blend into bushes or other greenery.
As it turned out, most lawns in Montréal barely had any grass—let alone enough room for bushes.
Sculptures and lights were what people gravitated towards here.
But that was no matter. As soon as they got Ultima on the pavement, they wheeled her to the stone pathway near the back of the house.
Natasha’s bug still picked up bits and pieces of the conversation—Natasha and Katja were invited inside to help William unload the item.
They were supposed to pretend to have forgotten the signature card and a pen so they could stall for as long as possible.
Caspar already knew what George looked like from studying his Google Images results for so long the night before.
A tall man with a square face, with bifocals that he kept on the edge of his nose.
He had grey hair that was slowly turning more and more white.
He was an astute historian who had turned to developing land, and had become a savvy business owner.
In an interview he’d given for a magazine, he said that he’d started to collect items because things held more than just history—they held emotions, too.
Caspar was so, so excited for when George opened his present and realized it was nothing but a plastic shrub. Hopefully, they’d be long gone by then.
Ultima and Malek approached the back door. She withdrew a pack of small tools to pick the lock, and after working it for a moment, she slid the door open easily. Malek surveyed the area as a lookout while Caspar prepared for his inevitable role.
As soon as Ultima began to move into the house, a dog barked.
“Shit,” William said, right on cue. “I’m afraid of dogs.”
“Oh, no worries. It’s still early, so he’s in his crate,” George explained. “But he’s definitely excited to have people here.”
Caspar reached into his pocket and withdrew a dog treat laced with a sedative. Malek grabbed the back of Ultima’s chair and guided her further inside. As they expected, the dog was in his crate near the fridge. Caspar walked right over, cooing as he did, and gave the dog the treat.
“He likes it.” Caspar reached in and scratched the dog’s fur as it chewed.
He could see the dog already getting droopy.
When he looked back at Malek and Ultima, he became aware of how close they were to George and the second half of their crew; Ultima had to turn off her listening device to stop the frequencies from jamming up.
From the kitchen, they all turned into the study. They found several bills stacked on a table, along with some blue envelopes. Malek picked up the envelopes eagerly and signalled that he had the invitations.
“We better just take them,” Ultima said. “If they own the stuff, they’ll be let in automatically.”
As Malek pocketed the invitations and the bill for a security company, Caspar took note of the photographs framed on the walls, along with the many degrees—from both George and his wife, Amara.
A woman with long, curly brown hair posed next to George in many of the images, taken at functions and other galas.
Her dark eyes and smile, especially as she greeted people in another photo at a charity function, struck Caspar with a deep well of familiarity.
He was about to ask Malek if she looked familiar to him when the dog barked again.
Malek shot a look at Caspar, a silent reproach in his eyes. Did you give him the pills?
Caspar wanted to yell that of course he did, but another bark sounded, along with the clanging of a metal cage and scattered paws on the tiled floor.
Oh, shit. Caspar froze as the dog ran toward them.
He had unhooked the lock when he pet the dog, and he had forgotten to lock it again.
Surely the pill would take effect any moment, but until then, the dog was barreling toward them in the opposite room.
He ran right over to Malek’s leg and started to hump.
“Oh, Zeus,” George said. His voice seemed closer than before. “Excuse me, but I have to see if he’s all right. Maybe I can find a pen, too, so we can sign and you guys can get on your way.”
Caspar stared at Malek, the dog humping his leg, and then at Ultima, who was struggling to keep back laughter while also turning pink with fear.
She was wedged between two bookshelves, her wheels caught in a rug.
They were in no position to dash out of the way without forsaking their cover.
Caspar could do nothing but hold his breath and pray for a miracle.
“Oh, George?”
A woman’s voice—but not Natasha or Katja. Her accent was thick and her articulation was sweet, as if she adored George. Amara. This was Amara.
“Let me get the dog, okay?” she said. “I’d really like this statue up in my bedroom.”
“But the collection—”
“They don’t know we have this. So let me look at it for a while longer, okay? Also, I have a pen to sign.”
There were some more murmured words between Natasha and Amara about the piece, and then thudding footsteps upstairs as William dragged the trolley up with the package.
Caspar’s heart resumed a normal rhythm as Zeus the dog seemed to grow tired.
Malek grasped his collar and pulled him to the side, while also untangling Ultima’s wheels from the carpet.
“Do we have enough now?” Caspar whispered.
“Oh yeah. I’ve got all the info I need, including the damn dog’s name. Zeus,” she repeated, laughing a little. “I suppose it makes sense, when a dog humps your leg, to name it after a Greek philanderer.”
“Oh, fuck off,” Malek whispered. The three of them stopped their banter as they doubled back through the kitchen.
They deposited Zeus inside the doggie crate and then beelined for the backdoor.
Caspar was the last out, and heard Katja’s lingering questions about the gala.
George answered them professionally and politely, even inviting her to come to the event.
Caspar almost wanted to like him, he seemed so nice, but all he had to think about was Malek’s crown and their mission, and he didn’t even care that he’d tracked dirt inside Geroge’s door.
“We all good?” Ultima asked. When Caspar and Malek nodded, she flicked on the transmission so she could hear Natasha as she said goodbye to George.
“They’re done. Let’s go.” Ultima gestured toward the back door, and they followed—and ran right into Amara.
She stood just outside her backyard, wearing torn jeans that seemed too ordinary for someone who owned an entire collection from Egypt. Her dark hair was pulled back in a ponytail, and she was makeup-free. She tilted her head at the three of them, but soon smiled.
“The gardeners. Right?”
“Right,” Ultima said, flowing into her new con easily. “We were supposed to come later in the week, but we wanted to grab some soil samples. You never know what you’re working with in this province.”
Amara nodded and laughed as she clutched her chest. “Oh, you gave me a bit of a fright. No wonder Zeus was going a bit nuts. He must have seen you. Well, take all the soil samples you need. It’s always so hard to grow in Montréal soil. But maybe this year I’ll get lucky.”
“Yeah,” Ultima said. “Maybe you will.”
When Amara went back into her house, Caspar let out a breath. Natasha pulled the fake Fed-Ex van around so she could open up the back door and put down the ramp. Malek and Caspar ran to the front door and hopped on just as Natasha hit the gas again.
“We’re good?” she asked. “Because William stole a couple things, even if you didn’t find what we needed.”
“Oh yeah. Ten bucks says the password for that damn unit is ‘Zeus.’ And if not,” Ultima said, holding up the security information, “we know who to call to reprogram. And if William has George’s wallet, then yeah, we’re set.”
“Oh, thank God,” Caspar said. “Because I think I’ve had at least seven heart attacks.”
“Stay alive for us a little bit longer,” Ultima said. “I still need you to play my registered nurse. And then we’ll be safe.”
“I think I can do that,” Caspar said.
When Malek held his hand, Caspar didn’t let go.