Chapter 23
Carmelita tried to relax, but to no avail. Now, true…she did feel pretty safe, what with being with her Sly and all. But, just how safe could she and Sly be trapped in some utility closet just outside the office of one of the cruelest and unfeeling crime boss in the world, after all? She began to bounce her leg nervously…until she felt Sly reach over and gently squeeze her knee to make her stop.
"Relax," he whispered to her, his deep brown eyes reassuring. "Everything's under control, querera."
"Yeah, sure," she answered him softly in reply. She then frowned. "I'm gonna kill Bentley...we've been in this closet for over five minutes now. What's keeping him anyway?"
"Keep your shirt on, Inspector," came Bentley's voice over her binocucom, chiding her. "I'm just about ready to go…"
"Dios," Carmelita swore, forgetting---again!---that Bentley could hear them both. She frowned, thinking a moment. She then took her and Sly's binocucoms and tucked them into box of mop heads to be able to talk without being overhead for once. "I can't say anything without him hearing me! Isn't there some way to turn off the transmitter without the receiver?"
Sly grinned at her irritation…as he usually did. "Carmelita," he replied patiently, "we always keep our radios two-way during a heist. Won't do, after all, to be out of contact with Bentley if we run into unexpected trouble, would it?"
Carmelita gruffly nodded, understanding, but not liking it. "Okay," she agreed reluctantly, "but I can't help but feel like I've got a kid brother tagging along with me on a date…"
Sly retrieved their binocucoms, handing Carmelita her own. He laughed at her analogy. "Yeah, I know what you mean, my love," he told her, shrugging. "It's part of the responsibility of being a Master Thief." He then leaned closer to his binocucom. "Ain't that right, pal?"
"Most definitely," Bentley returned, relieved that the binocucoms began working again. "I think she's earned that title for her work so far, Sly…don't you think?"
Carmelita grinned at that news. "Really?" she asked. "You think so?"
"Congrats, Carmelita," came the sound of Murray's voice.
"Way to go, Inspector," Bentley soon chimed in.
Sly outdid them all, and kissed the Master Thief before him in congratulations. "Welcome to the team, Carmelita Fox…Master Thief."
Carmelita's eyes shone, and she grinned a brilliant smile, reaching over to hug him in her happiness. She sobered a moment later though. "Anytime you can manage it, Bentley," she radioed. "I---for one---am sick and tired of sitting all cooped up in some closet, pal."
Bentley double- then triple-checked his computer. Then, he snapped in a lead to a cellular phone and connected the other end to his laptop. "Ready when you two are," he called.
"Let 'er rip, Bent," Sly whispered, grinning.
Soon enough, the two heard what sounded to be the thick, Russian-accented voice of Raikon Polarsky thunder over the building's public address system, "Intruder Alert, First Floor, Section Twenty-Three," Raikon's voice boomed. And, boy…did it ever have an effect! "Respond immediately!"
Sly and Carmelita pressed their sensitive pointed ears to the door, and heard the clomp and clatter of numbers of booted feet rush by their door, the buzz of many voices adding to the din. Sly grinned, and gave Carmelita a thumbs-up. She grinned in reply. "It's working, guys," Carmelita whispered to Bentley and Murray.
"Sure is," Bentley replied, watching the electronic tags on his laptop screen scrambling along like some huge amoeba. But, as great as all that was…one---make that two---very important dots did not yet move: Polarsky and his admin!
"Hold cover, you two," he told them. "Polarsky and his aide haven't cleared the office yet.
Just as the din faded, the two Master Thieves head a heavy door slam thunderously. Then, from just outside their door, the real Raikon Polarsky's voice trumpeted. "Who has issued an alert?" he demanded in Russian, then in heavily accented English. "Get back to your stations, you idiots!" He waited, and when not one of his underlings appeared, he growled, then hurled something heavy at the wall, which shattered explosively. "Heads are going to roll! Mark my words!" he bellowed. "Oh, must I do everything myself?"
Sly and Carmelita heard his heavy footfalls trudge by, then fade into nothingness. Sly looked to Carmelita inquiringly. She nodded, and radioed. "What's happening, Bentley?" she asked.
"Well, all the troops have converged on where I tasked them to," he reported, tapping keys and clicking his mouse. "Ooh, and there's the Big Bad Russky on his way down."
"What about the admin, Bentley?" Carmelita called, worried.
Bentley frowned, and then grimaced. "Sorry, but she hasn't moved," he reported. "Just our luck…one dedicated secretary. Most of them would be off having a smoke or a coffee break or something…"
Sly nodded. "I don't think we'll get a better opportunity than this," he told Carmelita, who nodded bleakly. "We'll take care of her, and plant the bug, Bentley. Back in ten minutes, pal…"
"Better make it five, Sly," Bentley radioed back. "Polarsky must be being really persuasive. The gaggle is starting to turn around right about now."
Sly nodded to Carmelita, who nodded back. "We're on the move," he radioed, opening the door a crack. He moved his binocucom to the thin opening and peered out. Still seated at her desk sat a cruelly beautiful black-furred mink, her hair done up tightly on her head, her odd sky-blue eyes watching the commotion. "Okay, querera," he asked. "You want to be the messenger? Or the bait?"
"Um," Carmelita replied, hesitating.
"Canes at the ready," Sly decided for her, and dashed out into the hall, barreling toward the dark-furred woman. "Eee-ahh!" Sly screamed at the top of his lungs, waving his arms about like some tribal witchdoctor or something.
Carmelita gasped, but then dashed out right after him, hugging the left wall. She watched as the cruel-faced woman stood up, calmly drew a pistol from her purse, then her arms began to move up in Sly's direction. Carmelita felt her heart race, and almost without thinking about it, drew one of her short-handled canes from behind her back. In one swift, graceful movement, she drew her arm back and then flung the cane---missile-like---directly at the pistol-armed mink.
Ludmilla Tetrakova smiled a cruel smile as she raised her Tokarev 7mm pocket pistol and drew aim on the crazed raccoon that charged toward her. However, before she could draw bead, she frowned…as something flicked in her peripheral vision. She only had time to blink before Carmelita's expertly hurled cane nailed her in head, dropping the mink like an unstrung puppet. The Tokarev clattered uselessly to the ground.
"Hey," Sly observed, moving up to the now unconscious mink woman. "Nice throw, Carmelita. That was spot on, girl." He then looked up at her as she moved to pick up her cane from the ground. "Oh, and thanks."
Carmelita reached over her shoulder and re-sheathed her cane, then grinned at the grinning Sly. "No problem, and you're welcome," she replied. She then looked seriously at him as they both moved toward the door to Polarsky's office. "Next time…warn me you're going to do something insane like that, would you?"
Sly laughed. "Aw, now where would the fun be in that?" he quipped, handing her three of the keycards---the red, orange, and purple, for her side---to use.
"Shut up, Ringtail," Carmelita replied, frowning. "You ready?"
"On my mark," Sly countered, easing all three of his cards part way into their corresponding locks, as did Carmelita on her side. "One. Two," Sly counted, then shoved his uppermost card securely into its slot. "Three!"
In a moment, all six locks snicked home, each beeping once, and then they were rewarded by the sound of the lock opening and retracting. "We're in, Bentley!" Carmelita reported, as they dashed inside.
"Good, cuz I estimate you've got three minutes before you can say 'howdy' to the man himself!" Bentley replied shrilly, his pulse racing as he fretted.
Sly moved over to the big multi-lined telephone console on Polarsky's desk, and lifted the receiver. "Grab the Ring, querera, while I bug this dirtbag's phone," he ordered.
Carmelita nodded, and began to search. Meanwhile, Sly quickly unscrewed the mouthpiece of the phone, lifted the microphone, and slipped the wafer-thin, solid-state transmitter in. Bentley assured them that this chip-size recorder/transmitter was virtually undetectable. "Done!" Sly crowed after he replaced the microphone in it's socket, and replaced the mouthpiece once more. He then used a handkerchief to wipe the phone down. "Let's move it, Carmelita! Company's on its way!"
"I can't…I can't find the Ring, Sly," Carmelita groaned, carefully trying to toss Polarsky's desk. "He must of taken it with him then!"
"Time's up, Team!" Bentley shrieked. "GET OUT…NOW!"
Sly and Carmelita bolted…neither of them having to be told twice! They moved out of the office, removed the keycards from the locks, and carefully stacked them on the tyrant's desk. They heaved the heavy door closed then, dragged the already awakening aide back to her desk and into her chair. Then, on ghost-like feet, the two darted quickly back into their closet hide.
And, just in time too, as they heard the deep, menacing grumbling of none other than Raikon Mikailovich Polarsky in the hall outside their door. "Fools," the polar bear growled, then swore vociferiously under his breath. "All I have is fools working for me." There was a pause then the enraged Polarsky growled, "Ludmilla! What are you doing?" he growled, and Sly heard a slap, then the woman yelp in distress. "Don't just sit there, woman! Summon my lieutenants here…NOW!"
Sly and Carmelita heard the six same distinctive beeps of the door locks, then the sound of the massive door swinging open then slamming ponderously closed. Well, that is before the two of them cringed at the sound of what must have been one very outraged roar of one very large, very angry polar bear!
"I'm guessing," Sly mused softly into Carmelita's ear. "That he found the keycards."
"You think?" Carmelita returned, even though her heart was still racing. She then turned a concerned eye on her beau. "That was too close! We'd be goners if that guy would of caught us in his office."
"True," Sly replied. "But, that wouldn't of happened, sweetheart…"
"Oh?" Carmelita replied, disbelieving…well, when she could over the still reverberating sound of Polarsky's continued roaring. "You can guarantee that, can you?"
"As a matter of fact, I can," Sly returned, smirking.
Carmelita growled. "You know," she whispered, grabbing his ear and pinching it hard. "I love you…and still I want to punch you in the nose. You know that, Ringtail?"
"Hey, easy on the ear, sweetheart," Sly chided her, wincing. "They're a matched set." He waited until she released his ear, then continued. "Look, Carmelita, you have to understand something, okay?"
"Go on," she replied, still irked at his cavalier attitude. She was still downright scared!
"Think it through, woman," Sly urged her. "Let's say our buddy, Polarsky, did show up while we were still in his office? What would you of done?" He looked into her eyes. "Hold out your hands and say, 'Sorry'?"
"No," Carmelita replied with a snort. "I'd go down fighting. But, against that guy…what kind of chance would I stand? I mean, with my shock pistol, I'd have a shot." She grinned a moment later. "No pun intended."
Sly grinned, he appreciated inadvertent puns very much. "See, that's just it, Carmelita," he began…then shut up as he heard a procession of footsteps headed their way. "Shh…"
Carmelita nodded, and snuggled close to him, her eyes huge with her anxiety. Sly saw this, and took her hand in his own, softly kissing the back of it in reassurance. She smiled in appreciation, but canted her head to listen.
"Sounds like a patrol, maybe," Sly whispered into her twitching ear. She nodded, listening.
That was when two pair of footsteps halted outside their closet. Sly tried to be nonchalant about the whole thing, smiling…but Carmelita saw him grip and regip his cane's handle nervously. Then the two spoke with one another very softly…and from the venom that dripped past their oh-so-polite exchange, it was pretty evident---even to Sly and Carmelita---that these two ladies hated one another…with a passion!
"Nyet," the first woman, one with just a bit huskier voice, stated, "I am just saying, Maria dear, that had you just stayed inside of your office---like you should have!---we all would not be here right now."
"Ah, I see," the second woman, Maria it seemed, spoke in her own defense. "So, it is all my fault, Svetlana my love? Is that it? How was I to know just whom it was pounding upon my door, da?"
Four more pairs of heavy-soled shoes approached. "Umanova? Foloreva? What have you done to us now?" a male voice demanded.
"Arkady Ivanovitch," answered the higher voiced Maria Foloreva. "It is not only Svetlana and I that do not have our keycards. So, do not presume to cast blame upon we two."
"Da," Svetlana Umanova replied to this Arkady as well, and Carmelita could tell that this woman felt somewhat betrayed by this fellow. "Now, I see…you seek to blame we two, Reyznekov? And, specifically me? How charming…you two-face raccoon!" There came the sound of a snarl, followed a moment later by a rather meaty sounding smack!
"Ow!" Arkady recoiled, moving back away from the now infuriated Svetlana.
"Enough of this!" came the distinctive voice of Ludmilla, Polarsky's aide. "He is waiting for you all," she said, gloating. From the silence they heard, no one seemed especially happy with that particular news. "Comrade Polarsky?" Ludmilla used her intercom.
"Da? What is it, Ludmilla?" came the gravelly voice of Polarsky.
"Your lieutenants are here as you ordered," Ludmilla reported, and even Sly could read the smarminess in her voice from the closet. "Shall I send them all in?"
"Nyet," came Polarsky's brief reply. Then, Sly and Carmelita heard the heavy door beep and rumble open. "INSIDE! NOW!" he boomed in a murderous voice.
Sly saw Carmelita cringe from the deadly tone in the Russian's voice, and briefly stroked her hair to settle her. This was her first mission, after all…she's just a little keyed up is all. "Bentley," he radioed. "Any chance you could patch the bug's transmission to my binocucom?"
"Consider it done, Sly," Bentley replied, making it so.
The two listened in, then the huskier voiced woman decided to speak. "I know that one," Carmelita whispered to Sly. "She's that tigress I swiped my first keycard from."
Sly nodded then put a finger to his lips, gesturing for them to both listen.
"Comrade Polarsky," Svetlana began, but faltered, her voice trembling. "We are all here…as ordered."
"Da, I see this," Polarsky grumbled. He then said nothing…for a long moment.
"Sir?" the raccoon Arkady tried to fill the space.
"Quiet!" Polarsky barked sharply. "You all disgust me," he observed, then Sly heard his chair scrape back. "Even more than you usually do." Sly heard Polarsky begin to pace back and forth. "And…do you know why? Hmm? Would any of you care to answer that?"
"Well, sir…I---" the pathetic pig fellow, Yevgeny tried to reason out, but again he was shouted down.
"SILENCE!" Polarsky bellowed. And, followed his orders, they did!
"You, Antonin!" Polarsky then barked imperiously. "What is this…this what I hold in my hand? Hmm?"
"M-My keycard, sir?" the weasel fellow squeaked in a small voice.
"Indeed it is," Polarsky replied, his voice easygoing. Sly wasn't buying it for a minute! "And these other five then? Do any of them look familiar to you all?"
They came several timid, very hestitant answers in muted buzzing of conversation.
"Would any of you care to tell me," Polarsky began, his voice bringing back it's murderous undertone with every word, "just why it is THAT I FIND THEM HERE! UPON MY DESK! Is this someone's idea of a joke?"
Silence again…oh, maybe a nervous cough or two…but nothing else.
"Now, whom am I to blame for this? Hmm?" Polarsky growled in his outrage.
"It was Yevgeny, sir," the weasel announced, which was followed by some enthusiastic support from the other fellows…with the exception of poor Yevgeny, of course.
"Da, somehow…it is always poor Yevgeny who is to blame," Yevgeny moaned, shaking his head. "Even if---"
"Silence!" Polarsky began again. Sly shuddered, hearing the low menacing growl that echoed in the office. "Now, my Ludmilla tells me that we had an intrusion in our switching room," he observed, still pacing. "Do correct me if I am wrong, Comrades…but isn't that your responsibilities as well?" Silence filled the air. "Well…ISN'T IT?"
"Da, Comrade," Yuri simpered, deathly afraid.
"Da, Comrade Polarsky," Arkady replied too, shivering. The others couldn't seem to find their voices, but nodded their heads.
"This situation is unacceptable," Polarsky grumbled, then pounded his desktop with his huge ham-sized fist. "Unacceptable, I tell you!"
Silence reigned again. Sly could only shake his head at the power of this one man.
"Evidently, it is my fault," Polarsky then announced, surprising them all…including Sly and Carmelita! "I have not adequately trained you, my lieutenants. I have been remiss, it seems. Well, that ends tonight, for all of you."
"Da, Comrade!" they replied in unison…clearly relieved that they would only receiving training as punishment.
"Da, that is good," Polarsky replied, heartened. "As for you four," he replied, evidently referring to the four men. "If you can allow some intruder into my very home…then you need a refresher in unarmed combat, it seems. And, you are all in luck…as I am free to instruct you this very evening at eight o'clock. Please report to Training Room Five then. You are dismissed."
Sly and Carmelita could hear four sets of shoes shuffle out of the room.
"Now, as for you two," Polarsky commented, eyeing the two nearly trembling women objectively. "Evidently, you two are getting too soft as well," he observed. "Someone has trespassed inside of my office," he declared. "That can not stand. Therefore…you, Foloreva…and you, Umanova…you will both personally scrub down everything in my office…until it shines. And…the State help you should you both not be finished by sunrise tomorrow!"
"Da!" both women replied, sounding oddly relieved somehow.
"Oh, but before you begin tonight," Polarsky then added, his voice low and evil-sounding now. "I will need a massage…from my efforts in 'training' your male comrades, you understand…"
"Da, Comrade Polarsky," Svetlana and Maria replied timidly…Carmelita could almost hear the unshed tears in their eyes.
"Now, get out!" Polarsky commanded, and the two girls scrambled clear as if their respective tails were on fire.
"Those two poor gals," Sly said, shaking her head.
Carmelita glared at Sly…the only representative of his gender about. "What is with you men? You all treat us like we're your slaves!"
"Whoa," Sly replied, frowning. "Since when do I treat you that way, Carmelita? Hmm?"
Carmelita sighed, then shook her head. "Sorry," she apologized. "It just pisses me off to see woman abused like that."
"You and me both, querera," Sly assured her.
"I agree as well," Bentley opined…grimacing at the thought of someone treating his Yuri that way! "But, as nasty as that all is…perhaps we can make it work to our advantage…"
"Oh? And, how do you plan to do that, Bentley?" Carmelita asked.
"Well, way I figure it," Bentley replied. "If those two ladies hate Polarsky as much as I think they do---based on how he appears to treat them---then, we might be able to persuade them to help us. Don't you think?"
Carmelita thought it over, and nodded her head. "Hey, not a bad idea there, Bentley," Carmelita said.
"Thanks," Bentley´s voice replied. "If you hurry, you two…you should be able to catch our lovely, sulky twosome before they rejoin their buddies."
"So, what are we talking about here, Bentley?" Carmelita wanted to know. "We just going to all have a 'friendly little chat'?"
Bentley grimaced. "That most likely wouldn't work all too well, I'm afraid. They're more afraid of our big Russian friend more than they are of you two." He paused to let that sink in…but, not too long, they didn't have all that much time to act. "I'm afraid you're going to have to render them unconscious somehow…then carry them back to the command post. Tie 'em up, and blindfold 'em…you know, like we did to you, Carmelita."
"Cute, Bentley," Carmelita replied, sticking her tongue out at her binocucom. She then turned to Sly. "Look, let me take the Artic Fox gal, okay? I mean, after Neyla, er…let's say I've got issues with tigresses."
Sly chuckled, shaking his head. "Oh, yeah…I hear that," Sly replied, grinning at her. "All right, beautiful…bring out those canes of yours, and get ready."
It wasn't too much longer before Sly and Carmelita heard the softer footfalls of the two female lieutenants coming their way. They waited patiently for the two oddly silent girls to pass by their closet, then Sly cracked open the door, and peeked out. He grinned as he got an eyeful…seeing the most attractive back and behinds of the two lovely Russian girls. "Okay, Carmelita…you've got the Fox on the left; I've got my Russian Neyla on the right." The two stepped from their hide, and stealthily crept up on the unsuspecting pair.
"It is not fair, Maria," Svetlana complained to her erstwhile competitor. "Comrade Polarsky…aiee, he disgusts me." The beautiful tigress shuddered, wrapping her arms about herself. "It is the way he looks at me…his eyes."
"Da," Maria answered. "I understand. I---"
"Hello Ladies!" came the sound of an amused, yet thrillingly masculine voice from behind the two. Svetlana looked to Maria, who shrugged, and grinned. They both turned and---
"Nighty night, sweetheart," Sly soothed, just before he used his cane's c-shaped head to rap poor Svetlana smartly in the side of the head. The poor tigress slumped to the floor before the startled Marias's deep blue eyes!
However, Maria didn't have even a moment to scream or protest or anything…
"Say goodnight, Gracie," Carmelita growled, swinging her cane about in a tight arc…so that the head of her cane tagged Maria right in the temple. Her eyes rolled back in her head, and she began to slump. Carmelita quickly caught the unconscious girl, and then grunted as she was forced to hold up her weight. "She's heavier than she looks, buddy boy," she told Sly.
"Need any help, Carmelita?" Sly queried, the unconscious Svetlana draped like a sack over his shoulder.
"No, I'm good," Carmelita replied, crouching down to finally heave Maria over her shoulders in a fireman's carry. "Let's beat feet, Ringtail."
"Righty-oh," Sly replied. "Two parcels recovered, and we're heading back, Bent!"
"Roger that," Bentley replied, grinning. "See you in five…"