Incident 9 All You Need is a Bedsheet #4
“Hadn’t looked. My hacker usually guides me through the cameras for buildings I don’t know.”
“Oh.”
“But this handy, I appreciate it.” Eidolon smiled, revealing a hint of a gold tooth, and he looked mischievous for a moment.
A hint of the man’s real personality coming out.
“You give good support for me on this job. You have right skillset for this. You ever think about working with a group of criminals instead?”
Ross blinked at this sudden offer. Had his support been that unusual? But what was the man supposed to do with missing information, fail to grab the right things? “Uh, I can’t say that I have.”
“I can see,” Glenn drawled from the doorway, “that a few lines need to be drawn.”
Ross turned his head to greet him, only to startle when his lover caught his head with one hand and then leaned over him, licking him right across the mouth. What the hell! Not that Ross had a problem with being licked, but right in front of Eidolon?
Eidolon, not at all put off by this display, openly chortled. “Oh, it’s like that.”
Lifting his head, Glenn gave him a speaking look. “Exactly like that. Mine. I will not share him, Ivan.”
So, the man’s real name was Ivan? Wait, people had code names, like in spy movies?
“Da, da, was just passing thought. Do not get panties in twist.” Ivan’s eyes were still snickering a little.
“You’ll discover with him that he claims things by licking them,” Glenn explained, still watching Ivan as if not sure to trust him.
“Is Golden Rule,” Ivan agreed.
That wasn’t the Golden—you know what? Ross was going to prove how smart he was and not fall down that proverbial rabbit hole. No siree. “Eidolon, what else do you need to do the job tonight?”
“Hmm, we should have large vehicle to put everything into. And someone on hand to go through it, make sure I grab all you want, da? Other than that, not much.” Ivan gave a shrug. “I have my solnishko, my gloves, and my bedsheet. Don’t need much else.”
Bedsheet?
“Bedsheet?” Glenn didn’t sound confused, more confirming something he already knew.
Ross, on the other hand, had all of the confusion. All. Why the hell would you use a bedsheet to steal something?
Ivan lit up, hands waving in animation. “Da, my husband give me new one for Christmas. It’s so soft, Egyptian cotton, you know. And pure white. Perfect for jobs.”
“You’re married? Congrats, Ivan.”
“Thanks. I just got married. My husband good man, not like me. But puts up with me anyway.” Ivan had that honeymoon glow all over him. “I tell you more about him later. Come, let’s get this job done. My solnishko has a bed time.”
And that was the other question he really wanted to ask. And wasn’t sure if he should. Just who was this person?
Glenn didn’t seem to have any problem asking it. “Solnishko?”
Ivan gathered up the folder and stood, answering amiably as he did so.
“I make family after seeing you last, and we have young hacker-in-training. My solnishko. She play hacker for me tonight. Is small job, after all, easy for her to cut teeth on. But we need to get it done before ten o’clock, she’ll be in bed by then. ”
They followed Ivan out the door—Ross was actually quite sure that wasn’t how the man got in—like it was normal. Ross felt like he was in the middle of an out-of-body experience. A thief that uses a bedsheet and licks things to claim them? What in gay hell was going on here?
Glenn was taking it all in stride, though, so maybe this was normal? Ross hadn’t been around many thieves, so really, how would he know?
Shaking his head, he texted Jarek that their thief had arrived and they’d meet them on site. Ivan had an older Mercury Mountaineer that he slid into, waving a hand and saying he’d meet them on site.
Ross slid into his new SUV and waited for Glenn to hop in before putting it into reverse and backing out. “So, uh…Eidolon seems interesting.”
“Ivan is perfectly insane.” Glenn chuckled and shook his head.
“We met right after he escaped a Siberian prison. Both of us wanted out of Russia, and between the two of us, we managed. Then he went straight to a casino and basically robbed them blind at the tables. I watched him do it for a few days before my nerves couldn’t take it anymore.
That, and I had my own people to get back to.
But as crazy as he is, I’ve never met a more talented thief.
And I’m very glad to hear he’s got family now. He was too alone, before.”
“He doesn’t seem to know about the clan?”
“No, I never told him. He might have guessed a few things, and it’s alright if he does. Ivan’s not the sort to bring trouble to us.” Glenn shot him a look. “You’re dying to ask about the bedsheet, aren’t you?”
“I have so many questions.”
“Short answer is, while Ivan is a very good thief, he’s also a very unconventional one. He does not use the standard tools for the trade, shall we say. But I’m confident that we’ll have everything back in an hour or so. He moves quick.”
Ross trusted Glenn’s judgement. He just really wanted to see the thief in action because trying to imagine this right now was making his brain cramp.
They pulled into the parking lot behind the museum. Ross felt leery about doing so, but there was no other place to park that wouldn’t put them in line of sight of some other business’s security cameras. At least back here, they weren’t easily visible from the street.
Ivan of course had beaten them there, and he leaned against his car with his phone in hand. His voice was lively as he spoke. “—just those? Then da, no problem. Do not worry, my solnishko, some things are out of your control.”
There was an aggravated sigh from a lighter, more feminine voice. “Why did they have to tie the motion sensors into the lights? And not connected to the security cameras like normal people? Makes me mad.”
Ross slowly closed the car door, doubting his ears. Was that a little girl’s voice? Seriously? Eidolon had said a hacker-in-training, but a child was his support on this job? His feeling of surrealness doubled and then slowly expanded.
“Is fine,” Ivan assured her soothingly. “I have my bedsheet. No problem.”
How the hell was a bedsheet supposed to defeat motion sensors? This logic literally hurt Ross’s brain.
Another male voice abruptly joined the call. “Eidolon, why the hell is Widow hacking something for you? And why are you in Salem?”
“It is after five o’clock, you are supposed to be stalking your boy right now,” Ivan retorted.
“My earlier question still stands. What the hell are you up to now?”
“I do small favor for a friend.”
“In Salem.”
“Right.”
“At night.”
“Da.”
“Which somehow involves hacking a local museum.”
“Was there question somewhere?”
“What are you stealing?”
“Mm, something that belongs to him got accidentally donated. He wants it back.”
“It’s fine, Uncle K, I got this,” the little girl assured him. “The security is simple, it’s just the motion detectors not connected in. They’re on a separate system and linked to the lights.”
“The two of you are determined to give me ulcers. Alright, fine, I’ll monitor from here. But Eidolon, if you screw this up somehow and land in jail, I’m telling Lollipop. I will not help get you out.”
“Why you so mean to me,” Ivan whined. “First you insult, then you threaten me with my husband!”
“Just don’t get cocky and do something stupid, that’s all I’m asking. I know what you’re like when you’re bored on a job.”
“Nah, is fine. I have vodka riding on this.”
There was a gusty sigh. “At least you’re focused. If for the wrong reasons. Okay, fine. Go.”
Ivan chortled and put the phone in his pocket.
Ross’s evil thought from earlier popped back up and he came in closer to ask in a low tone, “Eidolon. There’s a little favor I want to ask.”
“Sure.” Ivan’s head canted in question.
“This whole debacle started because a certain man wrote a love letter that he really doesn’t want his crush to find out about. And he almost broke into the building in broad daylight to get it back.”
Ivan reeled as if being slapped across the face. “That hurts my soul. So stupid!”
“I know. And the backlash would have hit us. I’d really love to have a picture of that letter to maybe use for a little comeuppance. When you find the letter written by Séverin, take a quick pic and text it to me?”
Ivan put a warm hand on his shoulder. “My friend, you are evil. I appreciate this quality in you. I’ll do it.”
Ross grinned back at him, his expression rather reminiscent of Maleficent. “Thanks ever so much.”
Ivan chortled before reaching back into the car for both bedsheet and folder. He gave Glenn and Ross a wave. “Be back out shortly. Glenn, stay near door, da? That way I can hand things over to you.”
“Of course,” Glenn assured him. He did cast Ross a look. “You’re not really going to do that, are you?”
“I really, really am.”
Glenn just shook his head and went for the door.
Ross stayed planted near the car. He’d have to intercept the other vampires when they got here and fill them in on what was happening.
As he waited, he tried to mentally unpack what he’d just overheard.
And somewhat failed. But the upside to it all was, apparently there was another man who had noticed what was going on here and was overseeing it.
And he sounded more responsible than the two currently on the job. Which was a relief to Ross, really.
Ivan opened the back door and then ghosted in.
There was no other word for it. The man went from being a bouncing Tigger on a sugar high, to this quiet man who didn’t make a whisper of sound as he walked.
He slid right in, bedsheet held at the ready like a stage magician ready to throw it over the table for his next trick.
Wait. Wait, he really was using the bedsheet to defeat the motion sensors? No way. Ross kept expecting the alarm to trigger, but dead silence reigned. Ross waited, heartbeat pounding, but the man was back out again in minutes with a box of things he handed over to Glenn.