This time, I was smarter about how I went about getting the drives to Kamal. Immediately after entering the museum, I headed for the bathroom where I stripped off my clothes to reveal a different outfit, pulled a wig and some makeup out of my boots and put them on to change my look completely. I was Gabrielle again. I picked the lock on a small cabinet where I stuffed my other clothes so I could get them when I needed them. I tracked down two of Kamal’s pickpockets who were in the Louvre with me and anticipated where they were headed after watching them for a few minutes.
I slipped the first drive into the side pocket of the jacket of a young man who was in the direct path of the first pickpocket. Sure enough, the pickpocket brushed against the man at the same time someone else bumped into him on his other side. I watched the pickpocket’s hand flash through the young man’s pocket and palm the drive, setting it casually into his side pack with two small stars and a crescent moon on it. I watched him, wanting to see him take the drive to Kamal so I could be sure it got into the right hands.
I felt someone watching me. It bugged me, but I was glad I was at least able to feel Summer. I guessed I’d rather feel her than not.
To my surprise, the tall kid that I’d seen at l’Orangerie showed up in the romantic collection of paintings near the Raft of Medusa. He signaled the pickpocket, who moved in front of one of Eugene Delacroix’s paintings and the tall kid took the drive and a few other items from the pickpocket’s side pack and put them into his own. Afterward, Tall Kid moved in the direction of the other pickpocket in the Louvre. His area was all the way in another wing called the Richelieu wing, where the most ancient pieces of art are kept, and I knew another way to get there. I hoped to beat Tall Kid there and find the pickpocket, plant the second drive, and get it picked before Tall Kid arrived.
I walked as fast as I could without some guard kicking me out for running. When I found the second pickpocket, I watched him for about thirty seconds before planting the drive on a woman dressed in professional clothing. Two minutes later, the drive had passed through the pickpocket’s hands, into his side bag, into the hand of Tall Kid, and finally into Tall Kid’s side pack. I stuck with him like a bear to honey. I had to see the drives pass to Kamal.
It was a big risk for me to exit the museum and get anywhere near Kamal. He could make me, and that would end my career as a pickpocket. With extreme care, I stepped out of the Louvre into the sticky hot air of the courtyard only moments after Tall Kid, but I hung back, letting him show me the way. I moved to some steps that led to doors that had long been sealed to the public and watched Tall Kid sit next to Kamal near some flowers in the same courtyard. The exchange was smooth, with Kamal taking the full side pack and leaving Tall Kid with an empty one.
After giving myself a second to celebrate, I headed back inside the Louvre, using the entrance inside the mall this time. After changing back into the clothes I’d left in the bathroom cupboard, I went to work.
Tall Kid visited my area twice during the morning, but he didn’t approach me. Had Kamal sent him to check up on me?
I shook it off and headed out of the museum to get some lunch. I knew the only thing that would make me feel settled was a crepe from Mad Dogs, so despite it being a bit out of my way, I headed to Halle. I couldn’t feel Summer anymore which made me feel even better.
Today I branched out with a butter and cinnamon sugar crepe. The fountain area was packed, and I was lucky to get a seat. After lunch I’d have to hustle just a bit in order to get Kamal enough stuff that it would look like I’d worked hard all day.
My phone rang, which was unusual. I typically got texts from everyone. My heart flooded with glee as I heard the voice on the other end. I thought I might spontaneously combust.
“Hey.” It was Jeremy, speaking to me in French. So sexy. “Get your body to HQ if you aren’t already there.”
Chapter 11
That’s when it really hit me that I was talking to Jeremy. I had to concentrate not to sob. Jeremy was safe. He was back from his covert mission and I would be able to see him soon. Then I remembered where I was and a hard lump formed in my throat. I needed to get back to the Louvre as soon as I got done with my crepe. I’d been gone too long already. “I can’t.” The words felt like sandpaper in my mouth. I had a lot of picking to do. Division had used a lot of my time this morning.
“Seriously? I’ve been gone for four months and you can’t make it work?”
“I’ve taken too long of a lunch already. I’ve got to get back to the Louvre.” I cleared my throat. The moment of our first kiss in New York filled the screen of my mind and I relished every second. “If I had known you were coming…”
“I heard you got yourself in trouble. I’m supposed to come and slap your wrist or something.”
I paused. “So, you haven’t been briefed yet?” A new surge of relief washed over me.
“Well, I got a four page email from Director Siron, but I chose not to read it until
