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This gallery was always difficult to get into, which is part of why Bela so thoroughly enjoyed getting contracts to get something from it. She’d done her research, knew what to expect… but that didn’t mean it would be easy, bypassing the security systems and traps.
The first few steps, she could handle from outside. Really, people relied way too much on computers to handle their security. Thanks to a hacker friend, all Bela had to do was connect her laptop to the public wifi, and then Charlie could get into whatever systems she needed to take down to handle the cameras, automated systems, and even the alarms on the doors.
Then Bela could walk right through whichever door was closest. She tried to pick one in the back, and always checked her map to find one close to her target and to where she left her car. This gallery still hadn’t installed a physical backup system for their locks despite them being controlled by computer now, which meant that Bela could just push the door right open. Carefully, of course, just in case they had finally gotten smart enough to at least set up some kind of laser trap running independently.
Honestly, what was the point of being a great thief if the targets weren’t bringing their best to stop her?
At least in the display room, there were security systems running independently. Bela carefully navigated the laser maze with the help of hairspray, making sure the bag she was carrying with a crude and vaguely pornographic statue of Elon Musk didn’t set anything off either. That was to replace her target on the pressure plate.
The target was an abstract sculpture meant to represent Greed, one of a set of seven. The artist had intentionally spread them through museums around the world, but Bela’s client wanted to have them all for himself. Bela was just one of the seven thieves he had hired for a near-simultaneous hit – yes, the thieves in most of the world had already done their work, but there hadn’t been time for the galleries to react to protect Greed, here, or Sloth in Brazil.
Making the switch was the trickiest part of the whole endeavor, but Bela managed easily enough. The statue went into the bag, she worked her way back out through the lasers to her car, got Charlie to put all the security systems back up, and drove off to the storage facility indicated. Then it was home to wait for payment to come through or any signs that she’d slipped up somewhere.
Once the payment came through, Bela headed for the TV. Sarah was already there, so Bela curled up next to her. “Anything fascinating today, love?”
“There’s about to be,” Sarah said. She turned and kissed Bela on the temple. “Someone organized a worldwide art theft, and they’re just about to make the arrest.”
“Oh, really? What happened?” Bela turned her attention away from the TV. “They actually got the organizer?”
“They did. It seems one of the couriers he hired to bring the stolen art in after the thieves took it was a mole for INTERPOL, and they’ll be returning the statues to the museums they were taken from after a photoshoot of them all in one place.” Sarah looked away from the TV, staring at an empty table. “Bela? What happened to that statue of the rich dude you made last week?”
“Oh, I knocked it off the table and it broke,” Bela said with a wave of her hand. “You hated it anyway, so I didn’t feel the need to tell you or replace it.”
“Hmm. I was glad to hear that they’ve caught the guy. One of the statues was stolen from my friend’s gallery, you know.” She turned to smile at Bela. “You should have seen this hideously ugly thing they left! The gallery owner said that quite aside from the artistic merit, she’d much rather deal with the abstraction of Greed than the personification of it.”
“Fair enough, really. Are they looking for the thief?”
Sarah shook her head. “The way my friend explains it, they think the thief did them a favor. Nothing was damaged, nothing was taken that they’re not getting back, and they’re already fielding requests for groups to come visit once they get Greed back in place.”
“Shame the thief will probably never know their work was appreciated, but I suppose they’d prefer that to jail,” Bela mused. “I can’t say I’m surprised this scheme failed. How are you going to keep that many people quiet? One thief slips up and gets caught, the whole thing goes down in flames, most likely.”
“Exactly! The fact that one of the couriers was INTERPOL is the only real surprise here,” Sarah agreed. “So, I haven’t had a chance to ask, that cousin you had to go see the other night, how is he?”
“Oh, he’s doing great. They’re expecting a full recovery, but as I never could stand him, I don’t plan on going back to see him any time soon.” Bela smiled. “All yours for the foreseeable future, love.”