Chapter 21 Kane #2
Kane shook his head. “Too many ways for that to go wrong. It could take several strikes, it would require us to smuggle another heavy object inside, and I don’t want to worry about having to climb through broken glass when we’re making our escape.”
He forced his eyes away from Zaria’s face as she chewed on her full lower lip. “I can make an atomizing adhesive, yes, assuming you can get me the supplies. The reaction isn’t instantaneous, though. The glass needs time to weaken.”
“How long?” Fletcher interjected.
“Thirty-six minutes.”
That was, Kane thought, incredibly specific. He did a series of quick calculations in his mind. “Okay, we can make that work. Fletch, you can plant the adhesive on the window when the queen and prince consort arrive.”
They would need fifteen minutes to get into the Exhibition—during which Kane would ensure they crossed paths with Henry Cole—and find their way to the Broadwood it’s the size that will be tricky.
” Her lips twisted to the side. “Just so I’m clear, you want the aleuite explosives to provide a distraction, a magical key to bypass the lock in that time, and an atomizing adhesive to facilitate an escape by the time you’re done? ”
“Correct.”
“You ask so little.” Her tone was wry.
Fletcher leaned back in his chair, holding up a hand. “Can we back up for a second? Purely out of curiosity, are these aleuite explosives… you know… harmful?”
“No,” Kane said at the same time that Zaria shook her head.
“Aleuite can be used to create a number of different compounds. It’s tricky to work with because it’s highly reactive, but it’s not flammable. It’s through alchemology that I can turn it into an explosive, and once it goes off, it emits a dark smoke that fills a space within seconds.”
Fletcher moved his jaw from side to side. “And it’s safe to inhale?”
“I’ve never known anyone to experience lasting effects.”
Kane took a drink, staring at Zaria over the rim of his glass. “So you say. Maybe you’re just trying to find a way to kill me.”
“Killing you would be counterproductive,” she replied smoothly, then glanced down, severing a tension Kane hadn’t realized was between them.
He cleared his throat. “Okay. Let’s say that, for all intents and purposes, it works without a hitch. We release the explosives, and you make me a key that’ll open the lock. Will the aleuite smoke be thick enough to conceal me from view?”
“It should be.”
Fletcher cut in. “Not good enough.”
Guilt stabbed through Kane’s chest. He didn’t deserve Fletcher’s concern.
It made him feel small, unworthy, and he longed to shrink and shrink until he could crawl inside himself and disappear.
Eventually, one way or another, Fletcher would find out what Kane had done.
When he did, he would regret each and every time he’d bothered to care about Kane. How could he not?
Zaria set her jaw. “I might be able to adjust the concentration so the resulting reaction is more intense.”
“Good,” Kane said, trying to steady his voice. “Do that.”
“What I want to know is, how are we going to get the explosives into the Exhibition? They’ll have to be relatively large if the smoke needs to be powerful enough to fill an entire section of the palace.
Certainly far bigger than anything we could reasonably smuggle into the building in our pockets. ”
Fletcher shot Kane a meaningful look, tapping a mischievous finger against the square line of his chin.
Kane turned to Zaria. They’d already accounted for this; it was merely a matter of ensuring all the pieces came together. “Luckily for you, we’ve already orchestrated a plan to ensure everything we need will be at our disposal.”
“Of course you have,” Zaria grunted.
Kane ignored that. “I have one more request: What kind of weapon can you put together to disable anyone who gets in our way?”
Zaria was nonplussed. “You both have guns, don’t you?”
“I said disable, not murder.”
“Since when does it make any difference to you?”
God above, she was exasperating. Maybe he was being overcautious, and it certainly wasn’t a crucial element of the plan, but why not take advantage of Zaria’s skills while he had her on board?
“Royalty is going to be present at the grand opening. Diplomats. Innocent civilians. We’re trying to steal something, not start an international conflict.
And I don’t know about you, but if something does go wrong, I don’t want to go down for homicide. ”
Fletcher nodded in agreement.
“Again,” Zaria intoned, “since when are you opposed to homicide?”
“I didn’t say I was opposed to it.” Kane made the words clipped, short. “I said I don’t want to get caught for it. And you can drop the judgmental act—it’s not like you’re some kind of pacifist.”
“I’ve never murdered anyone, Kane.”
“Maybe not directly. How about this for a hypothetical? Pretend a man asks you for your gun. He says he’s planning to shoot someone in the head with it. Do you give it to him?”
Pink was rising in Zaria’s cheeks. “Of course not.”
“Except that you do. You have. It’s quite literally your job.” Kane drained the rest of his drink, knowing his show of apathy rankled. “So don’t act like you’re opposed to murder. If I wanted to put a magic bullet through someone’s skull, you’re stop number one.”
“I am not responsible for what people do with the weapons they commission.”
Kane shrugged. “Technically true. But you could always say no, Zaria, and you don’t.”
The charged silence that followed was agonizingly uncomfortable. Fletcher shook his head in exasperation.
Zaria appeared to be trying to collect herself.
She released a long, unsteady breath, lifting her chin to look Kane in the eye.
“Fine. You’re right. I never claimed to be a good person, and maintaining a degree of separation doesn’t make what I do any better.
Now, tell me why the aleuite explosives aren’t sufficient for disabling anyone who gets in our way? ”
“That’s not easily controllable,” Kane said, shoving down the surprise he felt at her admission. “I want something like the dark market gun you made for Saville. Small and easily concealable but not lethal. We want this to go as smoothly as possible.”
“What about a dart gun?”
“No. Causes far too much pain and would result in a scene. I want to incapacitate, not harm.”
Zaria’s expression was withering. “Dark market weapons are made to cause harm. So no, I’ve never created a gun that doesn’t hurt people.”
That was unfortunate, but it wasn’t going to make or break Kane’s plan.
“Fine,” he said. “Once I’ve managed to pick the lock and assuming everything goes according to plan, we’ll want to replace the Waterhouse jewels.
It’ll help buy us more time to get as far away as we can.
Leaving behind an empty display case would be more than a little conspicuous. ”
“And just where are you intending to find a display’s worth of jewelry in less than a week?”
As she spoke, Fletcher rose, a grin playing at the edges of his mouth. Kane watched his friend yank open the wardrobe by the window, already knowing what was about to happen. Zaria tracked Fletcher’s progress with grim distrust as he returned to the table with a linen bag.
When he upended it, her jaw dropped.
“Where did you get this?”
Kane surveyed the array of dazzling pieces with satisfaction.
They might not have been as extravagant as the pieces in the Waterhouse display, but they were beautiful nonetheless.
Of course, he had no intention of replacing the Waterhouse jewels—he’d simply been unable to leave these behind when he’d discovered them in the widow’s home.
If they could be used to cement Zaria’s trust, though, all the better for him. “Same place we got the pianoforte.”
She gave a slow shake of her head. “From a dead woman.”
“Dead people don’t care if you steal from them.”
“It still seems a bit callous.”
Kane wasn’t about to argue. He pushed back from the table just as Fletcher, still standing, said in a strained voice, “Kane? There’s someone outside.”