Disclaimer: I do not own Sly Cooper or any of its characters, except for my OC: Jack Howlett.
A/N: Hello everyone, here is the first chapter to the new Sly Cooper fanfic: The Cooper Vault Job: where six months had passed since the aftermath of the Klaww Gang and Clockwerk/Clock-Lita affair...Sly and his team assist Jack in bringing down an international criminal who sells stolen artwork/artifacts on the black market.
Reviews and comments will be appreciated. Please sit back and review!
Prologue
~Manhattan, New York City, 9:35 pm~
It was a beautiful starry night, as the moon shined brightly over the Big Apple as the city streets were flooded with traffic and the sidewalks/crosswalks were overcrowded with people going about their daily business. Meanwhile, a rather special and exclusive event was being held at a penthouse in the City, which was being hosted by the owner: billionaire art dealer Maxwell Chesterfield. Inside the penthouse, a large crowd of wealthy and high profile guests were enjoying themselves, drinking champagne glasses of Andre Brut Rose and Strawberry Moscato while listening/dancing to the classic song: Just in Time performed by Tony Bennett.
"So how are you enjoying the party dear?" One of the guests, an American pelican asked while turning to his wife to see if she was enjoying the party Mr. Chesterfield was hosting.
"This party is truly magnificent dear. It was very wonderful of Maxwell to invite us." The pelican's wife answered with a soft grin, showing she was indeed enjoying herself while sipping down her glass of champagne.
"Well, I'm glad to hear that Mrs. Van Der Beak." A mysterious male voice replied, which earned the married couple's attention as an American mouse dressed in a standard tuxedo had approached them, along with an Eastern Wolf wearing black trimmed sunglasses; no doubtingly his personal bodyguard or head of security standing a few inches behind him.
"Ahh, Maxwell. How nice to see you this evening." The male pelican, Mr. Van Der Beak greeted with a warm smile while offering the host a wing to shake, which he gladly and professionally accepted.
"It's also a pleasure to see you as well, Jeremy. I was a little worried you and Vivian wouldn't attend." The mouse, Maxwell Chesterfield replied with a soft grin as he shook the pelican's wing in his hand while stating he was a bit concerned that he and his wife wouldn't arrive to his party.
"Well, to be honest Max...we weren't going to come, but once Vivian and I heard about the latest...item you were planning to auction off, we immediately changed our minds." Mr. Van Der Beak replied in a professional matter, stating that he and his wife weren't going to attend his party...but once they learned about the 'object' the mouse had in his possession and planned to sell, that was more than enough to persuade them to change their minds.
"Well, believe me my friend...it will be worth the wait." Maxwell stated with a wide grin on his face, promising the married couple, whom were one of the buyers that the true event to his party would begin at 10 pm before glancing to his Rolex watch to see that it was currently 9:40.
"Boss..." The Eastern Wolf stated softly in a gruff tone which earned his boss's attention.
"What is it?" The mouse asked while turning to the wolf standing directly behind him.
"That lady sitting at the bar...have you ever seen her before?" The canine answered, gesturing towards a woman with silky black hair reaching down behind her shoulders and wearing a aquamarine cocktail dress sitting by herself at the bar while having a glass of Strawberry Moscato.
"No, I've never seen her before." Chesterfield answered, stating that he had never seen the woman before in his life and decided to introduce himself with the wolf accompanying him whilst the Van Der Beaks went back to enjoying themselves and chatted up a conversation with another married couple.
"Excuse me, miss?" The mouse called out while approaching the woman, whom had her back towards him...and was rather taken back by her astonishing appearance.
"Yes? Is something the matter?" The woman, a violet Bengal tigress asked while speaking in a clear French accent as she turned around to face the billionaire.
"Oh, I...I apologize for the intrusion. It's just I've never seen you here before at my previous events, so I thought I'd say hello." Maxwell replied while clearing his throat a bit, as he was amazed by how beautiful the tigress looked and explained due to never seeing her before, he thought he'd simply introduce himself.
"Well, that was rather thoughtful of you Monsieur Chesterfield." The tigress replied with a soft grin, while placing her wine glass on the counter and offered the mouse a hand to hand to shake, which he accepted as a gentleman...while his bodyguard simply glanced at her with his eyes sneering behind his shades.
"Pardon me Miss. But do you mind me asking for your name?" The wolf stated in a gruff tone while asking the mysterious feline for her name...and was met with a sly grin.
"Mercier. Sophia Mercier." The tigress answered, introducing herself as Sophia to Chesterfield and his bodyguard/head of security...even though that was not truly her name.
"Well's it a pleasure to make your acquaintance Ms. Mercier." Maxwell stated after learning the tigress's 'name' while placing a gentle kiss on the back of her left hand.
"Thank you, Monsieur Chesterfield. I'm looking forward to seeing the items you'll be selling this evening." Sophia replied with a gentle smile, stating that she was looking forward to when the auction would start.
"Well, it won't be too long my dear lady. You and the other guests here will be taken back once you've seen the exquisite pieces of art in my possession...including the latest one I recently purchased from Mexico City." The American rodent stated, assuring the feline that she and the other guests would be deeply impressed by the exotic paintings and ancient artifacts from his personal collection...along with the latest item he 'bought' from Mexico.
"I have no doubt about it." The tigress replied with a soft smile, confirming that she would indeed be surprised by the sight of the magnificent paintings/artifacts she and the other guests would be outbidding each other to purchase.
"Well...I hope you enjoy the rest of the evening, Miss Mercier. If you'll pardon me...I must see that the items for tonight's auction are in order." Maxwell stated professionally, wishing for Sophia to continue having a wonderful time before heading out of the room with his bodyguard right behind...even though the wolf continued to sneer at the tigress, as he didn't trust her one bit.
As soon as the American billionaire and his head of security were out of sight...'Sophia' had turned back towards the bar and once she saw that the bartended, a Rottweiler was preoccupied serving drinks to the other guests...she softly raised her left hand up and pressed it into the radio wedged into her left ear.
"This is Eagle One to Eagle Eye. Do you read me?" The tigress asked while whispering softly into her team ear radio, so none of the other guests or security guards would notice.
"Affirmative, Eagle One. I read you loud and clear. What is your status?" A nasal male voice answered, confirming that he had heard the feline perfectly before asking for a mission update.
"I've just made contact with the target. Jack called it right: this party is filled with high profile people. The auction is proceeding as scheduled." She stated while acting casual, reporting that she just had a face to face conversation with the rodent and how the auction would be beginning shortly...and claiming that her old friend/former training partner was correct about the guests attending the party, as she spotted numerous high-profile individuals: private art collectors, socialites native to New York and other guests from various countries.
"Well the dossier that Detective Howlett provided us was thoroughly documented, since Chesterfield has been dealing in stolen paintings and antiquities for six years: having his goons break into museums across the United States to the United Kingdom, Istanbul and ancestral sites from India, Thailand, Japan, China, South and Central America." The male voice replied while complimenting the notes and case files that their secret friend/ally inside Interpol had kindly sent them two weeks ago while they were still laying low in Paris were truly detailed and had all the information they needed to know about their mark: how Chesterfield was secretly a thief who dealt in stolen paintings/artifacts across the US, London, Turkey, Asia, South America and Mexico and selling them on the black market.
"Have you heard from Eagle Two yet?" The tigress asked, wondering if her friend and tech support had heard from her...partner.
"You called my beautiful tigress?" A familiar male voice asked in a flirting manner over their radio channels...which earned a soft chuckle/purr from the feline.
"Indeed Ringtail. What's your current status?" She answered with the same tone of voice while asking her raccoon lover for his current location, so they could get their heist started.
"I'm working my way to the 19th floor babe. Bentley...do you have the schematics and security codes to Chesterfield's penthouse?" The different male voice replied, informing his tigress lover that he was scaling/climbing his way up the 19th floor of the apartment building and asking 'Eagle Eye' if he had the blueprints, codes to the security system...while calling him by his real name!
"Oh, c'mon Sly. We agreed that we'd only use our codenames for this mission!" His turtle friend cried out over the team radios, a bit annoyed at his friend and leader for calling him by his actual name instead of his codename!
"Yes, I have the schematics for the apartment building on my computer, along with the security codes...and the combination to Chesterfield's private safe.' Bentley stated after giving off a sigh, informing his raccoon friend and foster brother that he indeed had the blueprints and codes to the security system setup inside Chesterfield's penthouse and more importantly...the combination to the rodent's safe which contained the item they had come to steal: a rare and ancient Aztec artifact that the black market art dealer had stolen from the Museo Nacional de Arte in Mexico City two weeks ago.
"That's great. Say Bent...do you think Jack would mind if we helped ourselves to a few 'keepsakes' from this heist." Sly replied in his casual tone, showing he was glad to hear that his friend/tech support had everything he needed to disable the security system to avoid alerting the hired thugs that Chesterfield hired...while asking if they could help themselves to some 'souvenirs' after they obtained the artifact they were after.
"Oh...I'm pretty sure Detective Howlett won't mind: since it's Chesterfield he wants." The turtle replied while mirroring his friend's calm and relaxed tone, stating that the wolf detective wouldn't mind if they helped themselves to a few 'keepsakes' from the heist, while pointing out how Jack was more focused on bringing in the billionaire/black market art dealer to justice than the paintings/antiques he stole from across the globe.
As she silently listened to her lover and turtle friend chatting over their radio channels...Neyla had swiftly glanced towards the center of the dining room, as Maxwell had called out to the guests to earn their attention.
"Attention, ladies and gentleman? I'm happy to inform you all that the moment you've been invited to and been waiting for is officially ready!" The American rodent stated loudly, informing the guests that the moment they had been waiting for finally arrived: the auction was officially ready, which earned a loud cheer/clap of applause from the attendees!
"Now if you all could kindly follow me...we can get tonight's auction started." Maxwell added softly, asking his guests to accompany him to the room where he had the auction set up, which they kindly complied as they followed their host out of the dining room.
"Sly. Bentley. The auction is about to start." Neyla stated through the team radio, informing her raccoon and turtle teammates that the auction was now beginning!
"Neyla, I need you to be our eyes and ears throughout the auction. While Chesterfield has his hands full with the bidders, Sly will sneak into the penthouse and infiltrate his home office. Break into the safe and steal the artifact." Bentley replied while giving his friends their assignments: having the tigress act as their eyes and ears as the auction progressed while Sly sneaked into the penthouse and once he inside Chesterfield's personal office, the raccoon was to locate the safe and obtain the Aztec artifact.
"Once you guys get what we came for, head straight to the roof and we're home free!" The turtle added while concluding the plan, instructing his friends that after they've obtained the item, they were to head to the roof so they could make a clean getaway!
"Consider it done Bentley." Neyla stated, showing she understood and was perfectly with her role in the heist, as she could inform her raccoon lover of what item Chesterfield was selling once the bidding got started.
"You've got it Bent. I can already imagine the shocked look on Chesterfield's face once he finds the Aztec artifact is missing." Sly replied after his tigress, assuring his turtle friend that he and his feline lover would obtain the artifact that the billionaire had stolen from the national art museum in Mexico...and stated he could already picture the bewildered/shocked look Chesterfield would have on his face once he discovered the ancient relic was missing, which earned a soft chuckle from his friends/teammates.
Once they had broke contact with each other, Neyla had got up from her seat at the bar and followed the guests to the room where the auction was being held: which was the banquet room, as the attendees had sat across from each other while Maxwell stood behind podium bible stand in the front of the room he had emptied for the auction with the head of his security standing right behind him.
"Have your fellow security guards keep an eye out for any uninvited guests. But tell them to do it quietly: I do not want any interruptions once the auction begins." The American mouse stated to the wolf guard, ordering him to have his fellow hired thugs to keep their eyes peeled for any intruders breaking into the penthouse, but to be subtle: as he didn't want his customers to feel uncomfortable or threatened once the bidding got underway.
"You've got it boss." The Eastern wolf replied while nodding his head, showing he understood how his boss didn't want any problems during tonight's auction while pressing the earphone wedged into his right ear: ordering his fellow security guards to be on the lookout for any intruders and to deal with anyone they caught breaking in quietly.
The moment he broke contact with his men...the chief of security had glanced up to see the tigress calling herself 'Sophia' leaning against wall with her left leg propped her right in the back of the room...which he found rather suspicious: as she wasn't sitting alongside the other guests waiting for the auction to begin. Before he could inform his boss about his suspicions about the tigress...that was when Chesterfield began giving a short speech.
"Ladies and gentlemen, I would personally thank you for coming to this truly special event, especially to the Van Der Beak's, who are my oldest clients and top customers. Along with Mr. Adams, the Allamans' and Duartes'." Maxwell stated shortly after clearing his throat before beginning his speech, thanking the guests who arrived to the auction while gesturing towards Mr. and Mrs. Van Der Beak, whom simply smiled in modesty after their host referred to them as his top clients/customers, along with an American marten, a Chamois couple from Switzerland and a Red Howler monkey couple from Paraguay, who also smiled while waving 'hello' to the other guests.
"Now without further delays, let's get the auction started! The first item for tonight: a 17th century crystal chalice from Paris, France." He stated with a bright grin on his face before beginning the auction with one his housekeepers, a female beagle had displayed a true beautiful French treasure: a wine cup crafted from solid crystal with two small emeralds on the back/front end and four rubies...which earned a small gasp of surprise from the crowd.
"Let's start the bidding at $100, American! Do I hear $100?" Chesterfield added while claiming the only currency accepted was American and started the bidding price at $100...and smiled as he Mr. Van Der Beak automatically raised his paddle: showing he and his wife were interested in the chalice!
As the guests began outbidding each other to purchase the 17th century crystal crafted wine cup...Neyla had secretly activated the radio in her ear to contact her raccoon.
"Sly, are you almost at the 19th floor?" The tigress whispered softly, asking her lover if he had reached the penthouse by climbing up the building...due to them spotting five security guards armed with automatic handguns protecting the front, rear and side entrances while taking recon photographs on a scouting mission three days ago in order to prepare for the heist.
"I'm already outside on the balcony, babe. I'm just waiting for Bentley to bypass the security system so I can get in." The raccoon answered, informing Neyla that he had finally reached the 19th floor and was simply waiting for their teammate/tech to deactivate the security system so he could sneak inside the penthouse without alerting the thugs working for Chesterfield...as he caught a glimpse of a wolf security guard wielding a MAC-10 machine pistol with a silencer attached at the end of the barrel patrolling the living room!
As he hid behind the wall outside the balcony, Sly had glanced down to his left and spotted the green blinking light on the security pad switching to red: meaning the alarm was deactivated!
"Alright Sly...the alarm to the balcony door is deactivated. It'll only take me a minute to deactivate the security cameras and alarms throughout the rest of the penthouse." Bentley stated through the team ear radio, informing his raccoon friend that it was safe for him to enter the penthouse and how it would take him only a short moment to deactivating the rest of the security that Maxwell had set up inside his penthouse.
"Roger that Bentley. I'm heading inside." The raccoon replied casually, showing he understood that it would only take a minute for his friend to deactivate the rest of the security system Chesterfield had set up in his home...and smiled softly, as Bentley hadn't lost his touch when it came to hacking into top of the art security systems during the six months they had laid low.
Once he and the turtle had broke contact, Sly had silently opened the door and entered the penthouse and swiftly ducked for cover behind the couch, as the wolf security had reentered the living area from the kitchen. Noticing how the door to the balcony was now open when it was locked a second ago, the canine had armed his silenced machine pistol and cautiously approached to investigate...and was swiftly knocked unconscious: as the raccoon had landed a powerful downward blow from his cane to the thug's head!
"Okay Sly, the security to the rest of the 19th floor is offline. But be careful while dealing with those security guards: as they're packing serious hardware." Bentley stated through the team radio, informing his friend and team leader that the security alarms and cameras set up throughout the penthouse were now offline: which meant Chesterfield would have no idea that his home was being robbed...but asked him to be extra cautious around the security thugs working for their mark, as he and Neyla both fairly guessed they must've been either ex-military or ex-cops by the way they handled their guns and were always in radio contact with each other.
"Don't worry Bentley. This isn't the first time we've ripped off a high profile criminal, we'll be fine. Which way is Chesterfield's office?" The raccoon replied, reassuring his friend that he would be alright while dealing with the hired thugs the American billionaire had hired to protect his home and asked his teammate/tech support the location of Chesterfield's main office.
"According to the blueprints...his office is on the second floor, three doors down to the left from the central staircase. You can't miss it. Once you've located the safe, I'll send you the combination." The turtle answered while going over the schematics to the 19th floor/penthouse and informed Sly that Chesterfield's home office was on the 2nd floor and stated that once his friend found the safe, he would provide him the numbers he needed to get at the Aztec artifact they were after.
"Sounds good. I'll contact you once I've found the safe." Sly stated casually with a small grin on his face, thanking his friend and tech support for the information before switching channels to contact Neyla.
"Neyla, how's it going with the auction?" He asked his tigress, wondering how the black market auction was going...and was answered with a soft sigh from his feline lover.
"Oh, its going Ringtail. Chesterfield just sold a 13th century crystal chalice to an American couple for $8,500, a Jackson Pollock painting: the She-Wolf to a private collector from Cape Town for $17,000, another painting: The Hunt in the Forest to a married couple from Switzerland for $24,500 and a Balinese statue to another private art collector from Sydney for $18,000." The tigress answered softly through the ear radio, informing her raccoon that the auction was going rather well...for Chesterfield anyway: as he had made just made 68 grand from selling the crystal chalice, two paintings and a Hindu idol that he no doubting stole to the Van Der Beaks and three different customers!
"He's currently selling a set of six ceramic jade vases that he 'bought' from China." She added, stating that the American rodent was now selling six ceramic vases that he 'imported' from China as the next item for the auction...and Sly could just tell from the tone of her voice, that his tigress was bored out of her mind having to watch Chesterfield sell extraordinary pieces of art and extremely rare artifacts to his customers.
"Don't worry babe. The operation is almost over: I just need to find Chesterfield's secret safe and swipe the artifact. I meet you at the balcony in the living room and get out before anyone knows we were even there." The raccoon stated, assuring his girlfriend/lover that she wouldn't have to maintain her boring assignment much longer and once he obtained the Aztec artifact, they would regroup at the balcony in the living room and rendezvous with Bentley to make a clean get away.
"Sounds good handsome. I'll meet there once you get what we came for." Neyla stated softly with a soft smile...but quickly turned away, as Chesterfield's head of security had leered at her behind his sunglasses as she continued to speak and flirt with her raccoon lover.
"By the way Sly...does Bentley seem okay to you?" She asked softly, showing concern for their turtle friend and teammate...as he seemed a bit uptight and more serious than ever, especially when Sly called him by his actual name instead of his code name earlier.
"...He's alright Neyla. I think he just wants to make sure that we both make it back to the safe house in one piece." Sly answered softly, showing he also shared his tigress's concerns about his childhood best friend and foster brother but reassured Neyla that Bentley was alright and how he simply wanted them to extra careful as this was the first heist pulled off after laying low for six months.
After the two lovers broke contact, the raccoon had swiftly ducked into the shadows as he spotted another Wolf security guard, patrolling the 2nd floor for any intruders with a sawed off shotgun outfitted with a flashlight and silencer. As the hired thug glanced around with the flashlight illuminating the darkened hallway...he cried out in shock as Sly had swiftly dove out of the shadows: performing a somersault and landing a powerful spinning blow from his cane! As the security guard laid dazed on the floor, the raccoon had finished the job by lifting the Wolf into the air and latching his cane onto his back pocket: slamming him down hard!
As the hired goon groaned in pain while gazing at the stars, Sly simply smirked while shaking his head before walking past the unconscious lackey...but paused as he heard a voice coming from his radio.
"Jim...how's it going on the 2nd floor?" The head of Chesterfield's security staff asked, contacting the thug the raccoon had just knocked unconscious for an update on how his rounds up on the 2nd floor were going.
"Jim, why aren't you answering? Respond!" The security chief asked again, demanding to know why his fellow security guard wasn't answering him!
As the head of security continued to shout into the unconscious guard's earpiece, Sly had walked down the hallway on the left from the staircase and found the room he was looking for: Maxwell's main office! Once he entered the room and closed the door the door behind him, the raccoon had searched Chesterfield's entire office for the safe...while admiring the pieces of art lined up in the two glass display cases: ranging from ceramic vases originating from India, beautiful crafted Phurba daggers from Tibet and hand crafted stone figurines resembling Chinese/Japanese dragons.
"Damn...I'll give this to Chesterfield: he sure knows good art when he see's it." He stated while whistling at the extraordinary items Maxwell either purchased legitimately or had his thugs steal from India, Tibet, China and Japan which would no doubtingly be worth a fortune on the black market...and began choosing which artifacts he would take as his team's keepsakes!
Once Sly had finished picking out which items he would steal afterwards, he returned to searching the office: looking underneath the desk, through the drawers and cabinets. As the raccoon was about to search the closet, due to it being the one part of the office he hadn't looked in yet...he stopped himself, as he quickly noticed something off about the four paintings hanging on the walls. The painting on the right wall was of the The Monarch of Glen: painted by Edwin Landseer, the painting on the back wall near the door was of The Hunt by Leslie Cope and the painting on the left wall was the Mona Lisa painted by Leonardo da Vinci. But the painting on the wall near the desk was what baffled Sly, as it was of the 1903 classic: A Friend in Need.
'That's odd. Why would Chesterfield even have this painting? It's not worth much, so it doesn't make sense he'd own one...unless.' The raccoon mentally stated as he glanced at the 1903 classic painting, wondering why Maxwell would even own it as he and his friends knew A Friend in Need wasn't worth much on the black market which would make it worthless to the American billionaire...until it quickly clicked in his head and walked up towards the painting to confirm his theory.
As the wily raccoon had gently removed the painting from the wall, a huge grin had grew on his face...as his hunch was correct: behind the painting was a wall mounted safe and contacted Bentley, to give him the good news.
"Bentley...I found the safe. What's the combination?" Sly stated into the team radio, informing his friend and tech support that he found Chesterfield's hidden safe and asked for the combination.
"That's great news Sly! Okay, Okay...I've got the information to the safe right in front of me and if this data is accurate, the code should be 5-6-5." The turtle cried out happily, showing he was glad to hear that his raccoon friend had found the safe and immediately provided him the combination...but sounded a bit unsure, as the information he currently had wasn't 100% accurate and silently prayed it would pan out.
After Sly had inputted the numbers that Bentley suggested, he opened the vault door and the grin on his face grew...as he spotted the artifact he and his friends were after: a small handheld statue of a feathered-serpent/dragon like creature made of solid gold, covered in red, blue and green paint before removing it from the safe and placing his family calling card in its place.
"I've got the statue Bentley. The combination you gave me was correct." The raccoon stated, informing his friend and teammate that the combination he suggested was on the money and more importantly...he had the Aztec idol!
"That's great Sly! Meet up with Neyla and get out of there. I'll contact Jack, so he and the cops can arrest Chesterfield and his guests." The turtle replied in an excited tone, showing he was pleased to hear that his friend and team leader had obtained the artifact and stated he would inform the wolf detective so he and the NYPD could arrest the billionaire rodent and his clients: especially as they secretly provided Howlett all the evidence he'd need to ensure that Maxwell would be incarcerated for life.
"Roger that. I'm on my..." Sly stated while nodding in agreement, but was cut off as his tigress had contacted him through their ear radios!
"Sly! Sly, do you have what we came for?" Neyla asked with a worried tone in her voice as she asked her lover if he had found and obtained the Aztec artifact!
"Yeah. I've got the statue right here. What's the matter?" The raccoon answered, informing his tigress that he was holding the artifact in his hands before asking what the problem was...and would be deeply surprised by the answer.
"Chesterfield just sent his head of security and a couple of guards to his office to bring the statute. The bloody statute is the final item for the auction!" She answered into the ear radio, informing Sly that Maxwell had saved the Aztec artifact as the final item to be sold on his auction and just sent the head of his security thugs to fetch the idol from his office...which caused the raccoon to widen his eyes in shock, especially as they would find the goons he knocked unconscious!
Before they could speak further, the raccoon had swiftly glanced back to the door...as he heard a security thug shout out from the hallway outside the office!
"Tom...I just found Jim! He's knocked unconscious!" One of Chesterfield's hired thugs cried out, alerting the head of security that he found the thug that Sly had rendered unconscious with the head wolf shouting back!
"Freddy's out cold as well in the living room...and the door to the balcony is open." The chief of security, Tom replied, informing the guard upstairs that he and two of their fellow thugs found the other wolf guard unconscious in the living room as well...and how the balcony door was unlocked, which he instinctively knew was a sure sign that an intruder/thief had snuck into the penthouse!
"Sam, you and Pete search the rooms down here...Kenny and I will search upstairs. You know what to do once you spot the intruder." He stated while turning to his two fellow men, ordering them to search the rooms on the ground floor while he and the guard upstairs searched the 2nd floor...while giving them permission to shoot the thief or thieves on sight!
"Understood Tom/With pleasure boss." The two wolf thugs answered with soft grins on their faces as they both drew out customized TEC-9's outfitted with silencers and 32 round ammo clips, showing they had no problem with shooting the intruder to death with their machine pistols!
As the two hired guns turned around to begin searching the other rooms, the chief of security had walked up the stairs with his personal gun: an H&K MP5A2 submachine gun outfitted with a silencer and tactical light. Once the head wolf reached the 2nd floor, he was greeted by his fellow thug, whom was armed with a sawed off pump action shotgun outfitted with a silencer.
"Kenny, you search the rooms on the left hallway. I'll search the rooms on the right. If you find anything or spot anybody, contact me or the others right away." Tom stated, ordering his fellow hired thug to search the rooms on the left hallway while he searched the rooms on the opposite side of the 2nd floor and to contact either him, Sam or Pete if he spotted the intruder.
"You got it boss." His fellow lackey replied, showing he was perfectly fine his orders and understood that he was contact either Tom or his fellow security guards if he found anything or anyone while searching the rooms on his side of the upper floor.
Shortly after the two wolf security guards had gone their separate ways to search their assigned sections, Kenny had walked down the left corridor while keeping his silenced shotgun armed and ready once he found the intruder and began searching the first room that caught his eye: Chesterfield's office! Once he reached for the door handle and began to turn the knob, the canine thug had glanced around while cautiously scanning the room...and his eyes widened in shock, as his boss's secret safe open!
"Tom, you need to get over to Mr. Chesterfield's office! The..." The security guard cried out into his radio, informing the head of security that he needed to come to Maxwell's personal office...but never got the chance to tell him what for: as Sly had sprinted rushed out of a dark corner in the room that he was hiding in and landed swift powerful downward blow from his cane to the thug's head!
The second the wolf security guard had cried out while stumbling in surprise, the crafty raccoon had finished the dazed lackey off by landing a swift 'uppercut' to his jaw, latching his cane onto the back of his belt buckle and slamming him down hard onto the floor! But unfortunately for Sly...the office door was still open: which meant Chesterfield's head of security no doubtingly heard all the commotion...and heard him shouting out to the other two security goons on the ground floor!
"Sam, Pete! Get your asses up here! Kenny found something in Chesterfield's office!" Tom shouted into their radios, calling out to his remaining hired thugs and ordering them to join him in their millionaire boss's main office...but was deeply surprised that they didn't answer him back!
"Sam! Pete! Answer me! Where the hell are you?!" He shouted out again, demanding to know why they weren't answering him back...while being completely unaware that the two wolves were moaning softly in pain sprawled out on the floor in the kitchen/pantry with their guns beside them!
After his men hadn't replied, Chesterfield's chief thug simply growled in annoyance before running towards his boss's office with his MP5 ready to fire and the second he stepped through the threshold...Tom had stared deeply stunned: as he found his fellow security guard laying unconscious with his shotgun still in his hands...and widened his eyes in shock as he saw that his rodent boss's secret safe was empty!
"Son of a bitch! Mr. Chesterfield! You need to come upstairs to your office quickly!" The wolf guard cried out into his radio, informing his boss that he needed to come to the 2nd floor right away with the look of shock still on his face!
"What's the matter Tom?" The American mouse asked while answering his head of security, wondering why he was needed in his personal office...and would be left greatly stunned/surprised by the answer.
"The statue of Quetzalcoatl is missing! Somebody had found and removed it from your personal safe! Along with a few Phurba daggers and Chinese/Japanese dragon statues!" Tom answered back while kneeling down and smacking Kenny across his face, reporting that the Aztec idol was missing, along with a small number of Phurba daggers and dragon statues...which infuriated his boss deeply!
"What?! I'm heading upstairs right now!" The American millionaire screamed out at the top of his lungs in deep ire as someone had stolen his most prized possession, which deeply surprised his guests before he stormed out of the banquet room towards the living area and began sprinting up the stairs to the upper floor!
The second the security chief had turned off his ear radio after hearing his millionaire boss screaming in his eardrum...he swiftly glanced behind him and instinctively rolled to the left, as Sly had somersaulted forward while performing the Knockout Dive technique...but unfortunately missed: due to the head thug sensing his presence in the room! Once he evaded the raccoon's last second sneak attack, the wolf took quick aim with his submachine gun and fired a burst of silenced rounds...which Sly naturally evaded by swiftly diving for cover underneath the desk as the bullets embedded themselves in the floor! The moment he witnessed the raccoon ducking for cover underneath his bosses desk...the wolf security simply smiled before firing the remaining rounds into the desk, which sent wooden splinters and shredded paper flying as Sly gasped in shock after realizing the goon had him pinned down!
But fortunately for the raccoon, while Chesterfield's chief of security was focused on him...Tom failed to notice a certain tigress entering the room, with a braided whip in her hand and whirling it silently in the air. As the hired thug approached the bullet ridden desk while discarding the currently empty mag...he gasped in surprise, as Neyla had lassoed her whip around his waist and with a sharp twist of her wrist, sent Chesterfield's head of security spinning like the top! After the head of security had stopped spinning, he attempted to maintain his balance due to his vision being all blurry from being spun around at an insanely fast rate ...which left him wide open: as Sly had swiftly sprinted out from underneath the desk and struck the disoriented guard across the face with a powerful swing from his cane! As the the wolf guard cried out in surprise from the swift blow to his head, the raccoon had performed and landed a direct blow with the Knockout Dive: striking the thug directly in his chest and knocking him onto the floor, dazed with his silenced MP5 right beside him!
As Chesterfield's chief thug laid unconscious, gazing at the stars...Sly had glanced upward and smiled, as the person who came to his aid was none other than his tigress, whom walked up to him and wrapped her arms around his neck.
"You okay handsome?" Neyla asked, concerned for her lover as she witnessed Tom riddling Maxwell's desk with silenced bullets and was worried that one of the 9mm bullets had hit him.
"I'm alright babe, he never hit me. I've got the statue...along with a few keepsakes." The raccoon answered, assuring his feline lover that Chesterfield's chief of security never hit him while reaching into his leg pouch to show her the Aztec artifact they had been sent to steal: the golden statue of Quetzalcoatl...along with a red knapsack carrying the Phurba daggers and Chinese/Japanese dragon statues strapped over his right shoulder.
"Wow. Its...Its magnificent." The tigress stated, staring awe-struck by the extraordinary gold crafted statue of the mythical avian/serpent bird like god from Aztec culture and was about to place a gentle peck on her raccoon's lips, to congratulate him for obtaining the idol...but unfortunately their moment was cut short: as they both heard deep and heavy panting and turned to see none other than their mark: Chesterfield standing out the threshold with a stainless Walther PKK handgun in his right hand.
"Put...Put that...Put that back! The Statute of Quetzalcoatl is mine!" The American mouse angrily shouted with a glare on his face, demanding the raccoon and tigress to put the statue back in his safe while declaring himself the rightful owner of the rare Aztec artifact!
"Now we all know that's a complete lie, don't we my beautiful tigress?" Sly countered casually, rebuffing the rodent's claim to being the 'rightful owner' of the statue, which he and his feline knew was a complete crock.
"The Statue of Quetzalcoatl belongs to the citizens of Mexico City. We also know your hired thugs killed four security guards as they stole it from the Natural Museum of History." Neyla added while nodding in agreement with her lover, claiming the statute belonged to the people of Mexico and how the American millionaire had Tom and his fellow goons murder four security guards while stealing the idol of the bird like serpent.
"So the Mexicans want their idol back? Well, they can kiss my ass because it's mine now!" Maxwell acidly spat, stating that the statue of Quetzalcoatl belonged to him and showing he had no intention of returning the artifact back to the people of New Mexico.
"Now I'm only going to say this: drop the statue and return my Phurba daggers and Japanese/Chinese dragon..." He coldly added while raising his right hand and aiming the .380 handgun right at the two lovers, demanding that they return the gold idol, his Phurba daggers and dragon statues...only to be cut off, as he heard something truly unexpected: the unmistakable sounds of police sirens wailing out from the street level!
"What the hell is that?!" Chesterfield cried out deeply surprised that the cops had arrived outside his residence and was greatly baffled at the same time: as he never called the police!
"We believe that's the NYPD, Chesterfield. Sayonara." Sly answered casually as he and Neyla shared an amused grin while pointing out how the local cops had just arrived before they broke into a fast run, dashing towards the balcony that was directly behind the desk and jumped out the window much to Maxwell's deep surprise!
"Get back here! Tom, wake the hell up!" The black market art dealer cried out, enraged that the raccoon and tigress had just fled with a number of his antiques: along with the statue before turning his attention to his unconscious head of security and delivered a swift kick to his head, which woke him up!
"Ah! I'm up boss!" Tom cried out while glaring and snarling angrily, showing he was not happy at his rodent boss for kicking him in his head to bring him back to consciousness and picked himself up, along with his MP5.
"After them! What am I paying you and your sorry excuse for security thugs for?!" Chesterfield snapped back, showing he really didn't care how annoyed the wolf guard was at him for waking him up the way he did and ordered him to chase after Sly and Neyla while pointing towards the balcony with his head of security glancing towards the window with a heated glare on his face!
"Gladly." He answered plain and simple before removing the silencer from the barrel of his submachine gun, as he longer needed it and gave chase after the two lovers with his millionaire boss right behind him!
Shortly after they had jumped out the window on the balcony, Sly and Neyla had landed safely on the olive green rectangular plates on the roof and naturally slid down the side of the gable designed roof and leaped across safely onto the roof of a neighboring apartment building. However...after they made the jump, a thundering gunshot echoed out and the two lovers had swiftly glanced back to see Maxwell aiming his Walther PPK handgun with Tom right beside him and firing another round: but missed as they swiftly ducked and witnessed the high caliber bullet striking the sturdy cement between them! After he witnessed his boss miss the raccoon and tigress, the wolf guard simply growled/scoffed in disgust and was about to level the iron sight of his MP5 with his eye and fire a burst of rounds, but decided against it: as he knew the retreating the retreating couple were too far for him to get a clean shot!
"They're not getting away that easily!" Tom snarled before taking in a deep breath to focus and performing the exact jump Sly and Neyla made, landing safely on the parallel roof and gave chase with Maxwell right behind him after making the exact daring feat as well!
"Don't you dare lose them Tom!" The American millionaire/black market art dealer shouted out, warning his chief thug that he'd better not lose the raccoon and tigress who just robbed him while firing three more rounds at the fleeing couple!
The chase between Sly, Neyla, Chesterfield and his chief of security was a truly heated one: due to the two lovers evading the .380 ACP and 9mm bullets that the mouse millionaire and his hired gun fired in their direction, but missed due to their swift ninja like reflexes and being way ahead of them, which further increased their frustration! As they came to a corner, the two lovers made a right turn and continued to run...while both Maxwell and Tom nearly lost their own footing and almost fell, but quickly regained their balance and continued to pursue the raccoon and tigress across Manhattan! After they neared the ledge of the roof they were currently on, the raccoon and tigress had jumped across a slightly wide gap and landed safely on the flat top style of an adjacent building which overlooked the Hudson River and slowly turned around to see Chesterfield and his head of security landing on the roof as well...and were both panting heavily from all the non-stop running.
"E-End of the line." Tom stated while panting heavily from exhaustion and aimed his MP5 directly at the tigress, whom had humiliated him by lassoing her whip around his waist and sending him spinning around like a top, which made it easy for her raccoon lover to defeat him!
"E-Enough of this idiotic game! I-I'm only going to say this one last time: give me back my fucking statue!" Maxwell added while panting heavily, due to being extremely winded from all the running and glared angrily at the raccoon/tigress couple, demanding that they give him back the gold statue of the Aztec avian-dragon like god!
"Never going to happen. We're giving the statue back to the people of Mexico." Sly replied while standing his ground firmly with his tigress nodding in agreement, as they intended to return the idol to the Natural Museum of History in Mexico City.
"Too bad you'll never get the chance!" The American mouse stated darkly, while pulling back on the hammer of his Walther PPK and aimed at the raccoon's chest: right above where his heart was located!
As the wolf guard and American mouse aimed their handgun/submachine gun at the two lovers and were about to pull the trigger...that was when a pair of searchlights from an NYPD helicopter had immediately beamed out from the night sky and illuminated the rooftop! Both Maxwell and Tom had cried out in deep surprise, as the appearance of the chopper caught them both off guard...and the bright light from the searchlights had shined brightly in their eyes!
"Ahh! Where the hell did that chopper come from?!" The wolf security guard cried out while cringing/howling in pain, as the bright light was too much for his eyes which were meant to see perfectly in the dark!
"Ahh! I...I can't see!" His rodent boss screamed out as the light from the searchlight was impairing his eyesight as well, which forced him to drop his .380 handgun while attempting to cover his face!
As the black market arts dealer and his head of security continued to shield themselves, Sly and Neyla simply smiled and crossed their arms in amusement before glancing up towards the helicopter after hearing Bentley contacting them through their ear radios.
"Sly! Neyla, c'mon! Get on the chopper so we can get outta here!" Their turtle friend stated, ordering his teammates to board the helicopter so they could escape with the statue and lowered a ladder for them so they could climb up to the aircraft!
"Ladies first my beautiful tigress." Sly casually stated in a flirting manner, stepping aside so Neyla could climb up the ladder first.
"Why thank you handsome." The feline stated with a soft grin at what a gentleman her raccoon was being and pressed her lips against his in a loving kiss, which he instinctively returned.
After they had pulled away from the short but heated kiss, Neyla had climbed up the ladder with her lover right behind her. Once Bentley saw them climbing their way up to the chopper, he deactivated the searchlight and flew the helicopter away from the apartment building before Chesterfield and his chief thug could recover from the bright light shining in their eyes and start shooting at them! Shortly after the turtle had deactivated the searchlight...Maxwell and Tom had groaned/winced in pain as their eyesight slowly returned to normal and stared shocked and angered as they witnessed the Sly and Neyla riding the helicopter from the ladder as it flew away!
"NOOO! My statue!" The American mouse screamed out at the top of his lungs while dropping to his knees, as he witnessed the raccoon and tigress escape with the statue of Quetzalcoatl and other antiques from his personal collection!
"RAGGHH! Tom! When we get back to the penthouse, I want you to collect as much information you can find on that raccoon and tigress! I want their heads on a silver platter..." Maxwell stated while turning to his head of security, ordering him to gather as much information of the Cooper Gang...but was caught off, as a different male voice had whistled out and they slowly turned around to spot an American grey wolf wearing a navy blue plaid shirt with a coal gray/white square pattern over a black undershirt, dark blue jeans and black/brown hiking boots standing a few feet behind them!
"Who the fuck are you?" The Eastern wolf security guard growled out, as he and his boss never even heard the mysterious wolf arrive and snarled underneath his breath, as he instantly knew from the badge on his belt that he was a cop!
"Det. Jack Howlett...Interpol." The wolf detective answered plain and simple, which surprised the American black market art dealer and his chief thug deeply, especially after hearing that he was an operative from Interpol!
"Maxwell Chesterfield, I have a federal warrant for your arrest! Do not..." Jack added, informing the rodent that he had a warrant for his arrest...and was cut off, as Tom had aimed his MP5 and fired a burst of bullets...which he naturally evaded by rolling to the right!
After he had evaded the 9mm bullets that would've surely killed him, Howlett simply smiled while drawing out only one of his Interpol issued shock pistols and immediately returned fire: firing off two shock blasts which struck the wolf guard dead center in his chest! Maxwell looked on in great surprise, as he witnessed his head of security cry stagger back a few feet and collapsed flat on his back after the wolf detective retaliated. As Tom had laid on the roof paralyzed, the rodent had glanced nervous at his MP5 submachine gun and was considering of making a grab for his lackey's gun...but was stopped, as Howlett had cleared his throat.
"Uh uh..." Jack jokingly warned, which made the American mouse nervously glance up to see the wolf detective aiming his shock pistol directly at him!
"I don't think so." He added while giving the black market art dealer a 'don't even think about it' look...which made Chesterfield bow his head in defeat and drop his own gun onto the roof: showing he had given up.
"Maxwell Chesterfield, you are under arrest for the possession of stolen artifacts originating from Asia, Europe, South and Central America. Anything you say, can and will be used against you in a court of law." The wolf detective professionally stated, pulling out a pair of handcuffs and slapping them around Maxwell's wrists while reading him his Miranda rights.
"Detective Howlett, can you read me?" A different male voice called out through his police issued ear radio, asking Jack if he could hear him from his current location.
"Yes, Sergeant. I read you. I've apprehended Chesterfield and his head of security. How are things over at the penthouse?" Howlett answered, informing a sergeant from the NYPD that he just arrested Maxwell and his wolf security guard and asked for an update on how things were going back at Chesterfield's residence.
"That's great news Detective. My men and I are arresting Chesterfield's guests. We found them holed up in the banquet room...and the rest of Chesterfield's hired muscle knocked unconscious on the ground and 2nd floor. And Detective? There's something else." The NYPD sergeant replied, stating that he and his men had found Maxwell's clients/customers hiding in the banquet room and arrested them before they could escape with the artifacts they bought from the American mouse, along with the wolf security guards that Sly and Neyla had knocked out unconscious.
"What is it?" Jacked asked, while already knowing what it was the police sergeant was about to tell him.
"Chesterfield's main office was burglarized...and we know by whom: the Cooper Gang!" The police sergeant answered, informing the wolf detective that somebody had broken into Maxwell's office, as they found several artifacts missing...and had found the Cooper Clan calling card in both the safe and display cases!
"Really? The Cooper Gang was there? So...they've finally come out of hiding." Howlett stated in a 'surprised' tone after hearing how it was the Cooper Gang who had robbed Chesterfield with a small grin on his face: as he had secretly witnessed Sly, Neyla and Bentley escaping on the helicopter with the statue of Quetzalcoatl before stepping out of the shadows to arrest Maxwell and his chief thug.
"Sergeant, thank you for the information. This is the break that my chief and I have been waiting for!" He added, thanking the NYPD sergeant for informing him about the Cooper Clan calling card: as he would have pleasant news for his hot tempered badger boss, Chief Barkley.
"You're quite welcome Detective Howlett. I hope you and that bastard, Chesterfield, have a safe trip back to Interpol." The police sergeant stated in a warm tone, wishing the wolf detective a safe flight back to Interpol with Maxwell as his prisoner, due to the rodent being an international criminal: which meant Interpol had jurisdiction and could make their case against him stick.
"Thank you and don't worry, my superiors and I will make sure that he gets what's coming to him once we touchdown in France." Jack stated with a warm smile, thanking the sergeant and the entire NYPD for all their help and reassuring him that Chesterfield would spend the rest of his life in prison...thanks to all the evidence that Bentley had discreetly sent emailed him, which consisted of the recon photographs of the rodent's thugs loading and unloading the stolen artifacts that he sold during tonight's auction, along with the flight manifests that showed either Maxwell himself or his thugs being in the various countries during the time the artifacts were stolen before they broke contact.
'Thank you Sly. You, Neyla and Bentley really came through for me tonight. I'll be looking forward to seeing you guys next time.' He mentally stated with the smile on his face, thanking his secret friends for assisting him in bringing down Chesterfield: as the blood money he made through his auctions helped financed terrorist cells operating in Africa: mainly Sierra Leone, Sudan, Mogadishu and Libya and couldn't help but wonder when the raccoon and his team would show up next before reaching for his walkie to call in an NYPD helicopter to pick up him, Maxwell and Tom.
~Meanwhile with Sly, Neyla and Bentley~
As the helicopter continued to fly through the night sky, Bentley had glanced over his shoulder and smiled softly at the sight his raccoon and tigress friends/teammates sitting in the passenger hold peacefully after climbing their up and entering the chopper.
"That was some pretty crafty of you Bentley: using the searchlight to blind Chesterfield and his idiot thug back there." Sly stated, complimenting his turtle friend's quick thinking by blinding Maxwell and his head of security with the searchlight.
"Ah, it was nothing Sly. I just gotta say though...I've missed pulling off heists, just like this." His friend and teammate stated in all modesty with a gentle smile on his face and was glad that Jack had reached out to them, as he had missed being out in the field and pulling off heists with his friends.
"We feel the same way Bentley. It's just not the same without..." Neyla stated softly as she and Sly felt the same way: how they missed planning and pulling off heists, just like they did in the past...and pointing out how it didn't the same without a certain hippo, whom they missed dearly.
"So Bentley...where to?" The raccoon asked softly, while reaching into his leg pouch and showing his turtle friend the artifact Jack had asked them to steal from Chesterfield: the statue of Quetzalcoatl.
"That was great work back at the penthouse you guys...but the job isn't quite finished yet. We promised Jack we'd return the statue to the Natural Museum in Mexico City and we need to keep it." Bentley answered truthfully after seeing the gold crafted idol of the avian-dragon god like creature with his own eyes, reminding his friend and leader that they promised Howlett they would return the statue to the people of Mexico and how they needed to honor their promise.
"Bentley's right Ringtail. We gave Jack our word." The tigress stated, agreeing with the turtle friend on how they needed to honor/keep the promise they made to her former training partner: how they would give the statue of Quetzalcoatl back to the Natural Museum in Mexico City.
"Sounds like a plan. But does the chopper have enough fuel to get us to Mexico and back here to New York?" Sly stated as he agreed with his turtle friend and feline lover and asked a rather excellent question: if the helicopter had enough fuel to make the trip back and forth between the Mexican-US border!
"Well...right now, we still have a full tank and a flight from New York to Mexico is usually 4 hours and 40 minutes. I'm...100% positive that we'll have enough fuel to reach Mexico City and make the trip back to Manhattan." Bentley answered, stating that the chopper still had a full tank of gas and after doing the math in his head: calculating the flight distance from New York to the Mexican border, assured his friends/teammates that they'd have enough fuel to return to Manhattan after delivering the statue to the Natural Museum in Mexico City.
"Well if its all the same with you and Bentley, handsome...I'm going to try to catch some sleep." Neyla stated, yawning softly before closing her eyes and drifting off to sleep while leaning against her raccoon lover, resting her head on his left shoulder.
"Hey Bent...could you wake me and Neyla up once we arrive in Mexico?" Sly asked softly before kissing his feline lover's head gently and closing his eyes to catch up on some much needed sleep as well.
"Sure thing Sly. You and Neyla go ahead and catch some sleep. I'll wake you up when we get there." The turtle answered with a gentle grin on his face, promising to wake his sleeping friends up the moment they crossed the border into Mexico as he continued to pilot the chopper.
A/N: There it is everyone, the very first chapter to the sequel to The Raccoon and The Tigress. I would like to apologize to my fellow Fanfic authors and loyal followers for the insanely long wait. I know that I promised to have this chapter posted at the beginning of October, I've just been distracted with hectic shifts at work and spending quality time with my family/friends. I would also like to thank my good friend and fellow Fanfic author, Srezno JIG since he gave me the inspiration and plenty of ideas for this chapter. The next chapter will be posted sometime before Thanksgiving. Until then please read and review.