Jim Harper waited silently in the museum's archives; having hidden in a shipping crate since before closing. He had been with Project Tic-Toc for a comparatively short time, recruited 18 months earlier when they were eager for history experts to use as field agents who were still young enough to run and fight if necessary. The Egyptian collection was boxed up, waiting to be shipped on to Boston the following day for the next part of its U.S. tour.
Through a crack, he kept an eye on the crate containing the bracelet in question. He looked at his watch, still too early, he'd give it another hour or two when there were less people to see him leave out the back.
A small man in a dark suit entered, crowbar in hand and started to pry open the case in the darkness.
Not a museum employee, Jim thought, who is this guy?
Jim was about to confront the man when three more joined him. The first man finished opening the crate and retrieved the bracelet from its case. The last thing Jim wanted to do was cause a scene, but the bracelet was about to disappear into the night with the thieves.
"Hands up!" He ordered, drawing his .32 pocket revolver as he climbed out of hiding. "Put down the trinket, everyone against the wall."
Faster than he could react, one of them threw a knife in his direction and the men bolted out the receiving doors with the bracelet. Fortunately, the handle end had hit him.
Momentarily stunned, he pursued them out onto the street where they were entering a waiting truck. Seeing Jim, one raised his gun and fired, the bullet whizzed past his head and he returned fire striking the man in the shoulder, sending him to the ground as the others left him behind. Onlookers scattered, screaming.
Jim ran after the relatively slow-moving truck, but a hand grabbed him by the ankle and he tumbled to the ground, giving them an opportunity to turn a corner and disappear from sight. The man he wounded was crawling over to where his gun had fallen. Jim scrambled to his feet as he was reaching for it and plucked the gun off the ground, pocketing it.
"Who are you and where are they taking the bracelet?"
The man didn't answer.
"WHERE!?"
The swarthy man just laughed, speaking with a mixed accent, "Kill me if you will, I will not divulge anything!"
"I'm not going to kill you," he punched him, knocking him out cold.
