Harlequin's Shadow

Chapter 26: Following the Clues

Neal was handcuffed once more for the drive to the chalet despite his protests that he wasn't about to escape. While he had the thrill of riding in the van with Boris the Bloodhound and the other guards, Kate and Adler rode in the sedan. Adler was undoubtedly grilling her on what she'd learned from Neal.

Did she think Neal was still in love with her? He'd given her a few subtle hints, hoping to stoke any lingering embers. He'd take all the allies he could get, even the treacherous ones.

He wished he could have seen the road during the drive but he was instead forced to imagine the mountainous terrain. When they arrived at the chalet, his pal Boris finally condescended to remove his manacles. Neal was still shaky. When he didn't immediately bounce up, Boris grabbed him by the collar and gave him a boost. He ramped up his weakness, holding onto the side of the truck as he slowly walked to the back. He jumped awkwardly off the tailgate and faked a trip. Boris had to grab onto him to keep him from falling.

They were parked in the front on a circular drive. The chalet was in a small clearing surrounded by tall firs. There were no vehicles that he could see but the curve in the road limited visibility. He took a moment to imagine Mozzie, Peter, and Travis hiding in the woods. Were they wearing their disguises? How grouchy was Peter about his mustache? It was reassuring to think they were monitoring him, recording his every move.

Boris was on his right-hand side. Other guards were behind him. Neal used his left hand on his pants leg to tap a Morse code message, hoping his friends would see it. "B-R-I-D-G-E." His safe word. Don't be fooled by my act. No need for the cavalry.

Travis had prepared tracking devices to place under Adler's car. He was a firm believer in redundancy. He would have brought along extras in case one failed. He'd have ample for two vehicles. The team was doing their job. It was up to Neal to do his—find those directions.

Adler had an arsenal of tools for him to use to disable the alarm. Some of them he wouldn't mind having for his personal collection. He hoped to confiscate them after the con.

The security alarm was identical to the one in place when he and Klaus entered the house four years ago. Klaus had demonstrated a neat trick to disarm it by slipping paper between the top of the door and the doorframe.

"You have any paper with you?" Neal asked.

Adler's brow furrowed. "What do you need paper for?"

"I assume you don't want me to set off the alarm. Didn't you have a pad of paper in the truck?"

Adler grunted and ordered a guard a fetch it. Neal waited patiently. The pad of white ruled paper would work well for what he had in mind.

He might not have remembered the directions to the chalet but now that he was standing before the door, the details from their previous break-in returned in sharp focus. He could picture Klaus beside him, expounding on various techniques to prevent an alarm from sounding. Back then, Klaus had made him use six sheets of paper to cover the entire width of the door. That wasn't necessary this time since Neal already knew the location of the sensor.

With an easy smile at Kate, he demonstrated the trick. Adler appeared to enjoy their banter. He was probably already daydreaming about future scams he'd pull with him and Henry on board.

Once the paper was in place, Neal picked the lock. Holding the paper in place, he swung the door open. Instructing Kate to keep the paper in contact with the sensor, Neal set to work on opening the security console inside.

"A neat trick," Adler said. "You always were adept with paper. Do you still make origami?"

Neal nodded as he detached the final wire. "If you'd given me the use of my hands, I would have made a pirate's cutlass for this job." He stood back. "You can remove the paper now." He turned around to inspect the interior of the chalet.