Eliot, Hardison, and Kaira walked into the bar, with Hardison bumping into Eliot in the doorway. "Damn it, Hardison." Eliot growled.
"What are you doing here?" Hardison asked the couple.
"What do you mean, what am we doing here? Nate asked us to come to the client meeting cause somebody tried to kill her. What are you doing here?" Eliot asked, sitting down at the table with Kaira and Hardison.
"I though take your daughter to work day was last week." Eliot said, causing a chuckle from Kaira as she looked at Nate.
"I'm here to check out what Nate does for when I run my own crew one day." Hardison said, causing Kaira to nod her head in impressment.
"Wait, wait, wait. Hey, whoa. Hardison, that's why you wanted to come? No." Nate said.
"What do you mean, no? I am the super-skrull. Okay, I have all y'all's skills. I hack, I grift, I thieve." Hardison said.
"So do I, Hardison. And I fight." Kaira pointed out, teasing Hardison.
"Do you fight?" Eliot asked.
"I have a dog for that. Name's Megabite." Hardison said.
Kaira chuckled again, trying not to laugh at the nerdy name.
"Hey, Hardison. You can't do what I do." Nate said.
"Why, you think I'm not smart enough?" Hardison asked, wondering what he needed to do.
"Nah, No, you're smart enough. That's the easy part." Nate said. "What's the hard part?" Hardison asked.
That's when the client, an African American reporter named Jane Akinyemi who was almost run over earlier, walked in and approached the table the gang was at. The team stood up to greet her.
"Hello." Jane said, shaking Nate's hand. "Nice to see you again." Nate said to Jane.
"Yes." Jane said. "I'd like you to meet my associates here, Eliot Spencer, his wife and my daughter Kaira Spencer, and Alec Hardison." Nate introduced each member, causing a smile from Kaira when he introduced her as his daughter.
They shook hands and sat down, with Kaira pulling a chair over for herself from the empty table nearby. Jane cleared her throat.
"Those men have been following me." Jane said, nodding discretely to the two African men at the door in suits.
Nate nodded to Eliot, signaling him to take care of it.
"Want me to help?" Kaira whispered to Eliot.
He shook his head no and stood up. He walked over to the two men, acting slightly drunk as the group watched, Kaira taking a sip of her drink. "Say, man, I think - I think that's my jacket you got on." Eliot said, slurring slightly, tapping the guy. "Back off." The guy said, having an African accent. "Look, I left it too long at the dry cleaners. You can't just give away somebody's jacket. This is my jacket. If I could just get it back from you. Yeah, I like it. My mom gave it to me." Eliot said. The guy finished taking a sip of his drink and turned and punched Eliot in the stomach. The crowd murmured as Kaira wasn't worried. Eliot was groaning. "I said, back off." The guy repeated, holding his position. just then the guy was heard groaning as Eliot broke his fingers, coming back up, bringing the guy to his knees. Kaira stood up with her drink and watched as Eliot punched the other goon. The goon looked at Eliot. "What's up?" Eliot said. The guy swung at Eliot's shoulder, but Eliot took the blow, and hit the goon in the face, sending him to the wall as the crowd murmured. The goon went after Eliot, but he kicked him, sending him back, then punched the goon he had down in the stomach, then lifted him up, and hit his back as Eliot looked at Kaira, sending the goon to the wall. Eliot grabbed Kaira's drink and took a swig. "Thanks sweetheart." Eliot winked at Kaira, having a shit-eating grin on his face.
Kaira grinned back at Eliot. "You're welcome baby." Kaira said, flirting as Eliot handed the glass back to Kaira.
Eliot looked back at the goons. He cracked his neck and banged his chest, ready to keep fighting. The goons left in a huff as Eliot walked back and Kaira planted her ass on his lap, proud. The patrons of the bar ignored the commotion.
"Can your dog do that?" Eliot asked Hardison.
Hardison looked at Eliot, unimpressed. Jane started explaining why she contacted Nate. It was about her country of Wadata, in Africa and it's leader's brother, Alexander Moto.
"The conditions there are deplorable. When the children who work in Mr. Moto's diamond mine meet their quota, they earn a dollar and fifty cents a day. When they don't, they go hungry." Jane explained.
Kaira felt really bad for the kids.
"Yeah, or worse." Eliot said, causing the group to look at him. "I've fought in these countries. I've seen these kids. You make it out of the mine, well, then you get an M-16 in the rebel army." Eliot said.
Kaira put her hand on his shoulder in comfort.
"And Mr. Moto, he smuggles his diamonds into the U.S, and then he launders then through his real-estate holdings here in Boston." Nate continued explaining.
"I guess it pays to have a brother who's president." Hardison said.
"The President is a good man who has worked hard to raise the standard of living for our people. But his brother is very smart. He covers his tracks. That is why he'll win." Jane said.
"This money that Alexander's saving - this - this is for a coup?" Eliot asked Jane.
"No. An election. Terms limits will force his brother out in less than a year. Nothing will stop Alexander then. Rumor has it he's already sold the country to corporations." Jane continued explaining.
"Yeah, for that giant oil field they discovered, right?" Nate realized.
"So, from diamond smuggler to Opec member. That's a nice bounce." Hardison said.
"In four days, our President will visit his brother here in Boston. That will solidify Alexander as his heir apparent back home." Jane explained.
"Jane, don't you think that when - when that article you wrote comes out, that the justice department -" Nate tried explaining when Jane cut him off.
"Will do nothing! I brought them proof of Moto's crimes months ago. They started an investigation, then stopped. Why?" Jane revealed.
Kaira exhaled, getting an idea no one would like.
"I don't know. But I know how to find out." Nate said before Kaira could speak up.
Later that night, Nate met with the Italian, waiting in the car until she came out, wearing a nice dress. "Well, thank you for seeing me on, uh, short notice." Nate said.
"You are helping me to catch Damien Moreau. It's just good manners." The Italian told Nate.
"Did I drag you away from a-a party or something?" Nate asked, noticing the attire.
"A date... with a fugitive... who is no longer a fugitive." The Italian said.
"Oh. Oh." Nate realized what she meant.
"Mr. Ford, I don't have time for this. You come here about Alexander Moto, right?" The Italian said, wanting to get to business.
"Yes, yes, yes. Diamond smuggler, aspiring Kleptocrat - seemed like, uh, your kind of guy." Nate said.
"You wanted to know why the U.S leaves him alone?" The Italian asked.
"That's right." Nate said.
"Here it is. He identifies Jihadists in Africa." The Italian revealed.
"You mean terrorists. He's a paid informant." Nate realized.
"Yes. Once a month, he gives CIA a name, and they give him back money. Its." She sighed. "Come di dice? A side job?" The Italian said.
Nate thought about the information.
"Have you had dinner?" The Italian asked, causing Nate to perk up. "Cause I don't like eating alone." The Italian said.
Nate thought about it, and after an awkward thought, he declined.
"Y-yeah, I got plans." Nate said.
"Well... It will be for the next time." The Italian said, leaving the car.
"Yeah, cause..." Nate said, rubbing his throat.
The next morning, Nate took his findings to the team as Eliot, Sophie, and Kaira gathered around Nate as he sent Parker and Hardison to scout Moto's properties.
"Wait a minute. This guy makes money off the backs of children, and nobody goes after him because he feeds the CIA a bunch of names?" Eliot questioned, a bit angry.
"What's the bet that the names he gives of these Jihadists are actually his political rivals?" Kaira said, pissed.
"I'll take that bet." Nate said, turning around. "And if the government won't go after Moto, we will. Now, he bought his real estate at the top of the market, so he's leveraged up to his eyeballs. And the only thing keeping him afloat from not going bankrupt is the steady flow of diamonds. And what's the best thing about smuggled diamonds?" Nate said.
"Oh, I now this one. It's the way that they shimmer on the deck of a billionaire's yacht in the moonlight." Sophie said.
"Because they're uninsured." Eliot answered, ignoring Sophie's daydreaming.
"Right. So, we go after Moto's diamonds, and we end a political career before it starts. We just have to find out where the vault is. Parker." Nate said.
Parker was in the streets, taking pictures and Hardison was in the van. "Okay, we are at stop four on our tour of Alexander Moto's Boston properties." Parker said, continuing to take pictures
"Records show he just renovated the place with state-of-the-art security tech, but he wouldn't put a vault in here." Hardison said.
"Why is that?" Nate asked Hardison.
"It's Raines Concert Hall, where the Massachusetts Chamber Orchestra plays. Why-" Hardison said when Parker interrupted, scanning the outside of the building.
"They have concerts here? Look at that foundation. I thought this was a bank." Parker said, liking the building.
"Like - like I said -it's the perfect place for a vault." Hardison said, realizing Parker is right.
Parker chuckled as she approached the panel to what looked like an electrical box. "Aww. Junior High. And they thought Jackie Thomas' report card was safe." Parker said, easily picking the lock and opening the panel. "Guys, they have a dedicated airline that goes straight to the basement. Used for storing extremely delicate items. That's where your vault is." Parker said, closing the panel.
"Hey, guys, I think I may have found his fragile item. Moto just purchased a Stradivarius violin for 4.5 million dollars." Hardison said, looking at his screen.
Sophie pulled up the information on the screen back at HQ as the boys and Kaira sat down, with Sophie at the screen.
"This all fits. Moto's made himself a patron of the arts in Boston to, you know, up his profile with the old money crowd." Sophie explained, pulling up a magazine.
"And what's his vulnerability?" Nate asked.
"His ties to America. His father sent him out of the country at an early age. He was educated in Europe, got his MBA at Harvard. His brother's a national hero. But Moto doesn't even speak his native language." Sophie revealed.
"He's gonna have to kiss a lot of babies...or stuff a lot of ballot boxes." Eliot said.
"So Moto's problem is, is that he's an outsider to his own people." Nate said.
"Yeah, well, what about my problem? I can't break into a vault without seeing the inside first." Parker said, walking away from the panel to get to the van.
"Yeah, okay, so, you need a tour of the vault, and Moto, our mark, needs to look back home." Nate said, thinking of a plan. "Let's go steal the man on the street." Nate said, about to leave. "In Africa." Nate finished.
Hardison and Parker return soon after and Eliot called Jane as Hardison was on his laptop, as Kaira was next to them.
"Jane, has Moto ever given you an interview?" Eliot asked Jane. "Never." Jane answered. "Does he drink?" Eliot asked. "On occasion. Why?" Jane asked. "No reason. Listen, stay away from your apartment, and call me or Kaira at the first sign of any trouble." Eliot said. "Okay." Jane said. Eliot hung up the phone and watched Hardison as he was faking a photo.
He changed the ribbon-cutting scissors to a champagne bottle.
"That's nice. Make him - Make him look drunker." Eliot said, as Hardison added bloodshot eyes to Moto's photo.
"And then richer." Eliot said.
"What do you want me to do, give the man a pet tiger?" Hardison asked Eliot, annoyed.
"Can you do that?" Eliot asked.
"Just leave it how it is, Hardison." Kaira said as he put the picture on the page and typed in a quote that made Moto look bad.
Soon, Eliot got changed into a vest and khaki shirt and jeans and put his hair up and was holding a mic, acting like he was walking in front of the green screen as Hardison recorded and Kaira got ready to edit the footage. "The protests were sparked by an interview with the President's brother in which he referred to the Wadata national Soccer Team as... "Little school girls." In any-" Eliot ducked as Hardison shook the camera. "That was a close one. Uh, in any case, Alexander Moto's status as his heir apparent is clearly in jeopardy. I'm Guy Hamilton, reporting from Wadata." Eliot finished the report as Hardison put his thumb up, telling Eliot to stop as Kaira took the footage and edited it and put it on the newsreel.
Sophie got as call as Kristy Connelly. And went to talk to Motto, selling him the idea she could help him
The next day, Hardison as Temi and Sophie as Kristy met with Motto and got him to take them to the vault.
"Good work, guys. He's taking you to the vault. Let's find those diamonds." Nate said.
"Down these stairs, I think you'll find something very inspiring." Motto said as they went down the steps.
Nate, Parker, and Kaira were looking at the feed from the button cam Hardison had on.
"Okay, guys, look inspired." Nate said.
"Electromagnetic lock with retinal scanner - can withstand 2,000 pounds of pressure." Parker pointed out.
"You want to know what you can achieve in America?" Moto asked Hardison, who smiled and nodded as Moto put his eye to the retinal scanner. "Come." Motto said as he walked into the vault.
Just ahead of them was the Stradivarius. "Antonio Stradivari made it himself in 1705. It's magnificent, isn't it." Motto said as Hardison smiled, amazed at the sight.
"With all the technology in the world today, you..." Hardison started speaking in his normal voice. Sophie cleared her throat, warning Hardison. "...You couldn't make a violin that sounds as good as that one. No one understands why." Hardison said, dazed.
"S-Sophie? I need you to zero in on the lockers." Nate said as Sophie made her way over.
"Security logs show a delivery from Wadata a week ago that was placed in locker number allegro." Parker said.
"Allegro is a music term. Indicates that the tempo is fast. That's our diamonds." Kaira said.
"Okay, Sophie, what I need you to do right now is so stand next to locker Allegro so Hardison can get us a shot." Nate said.
"I can tell from your reaction that we are a good match." Motto told Hardison.
"I think you'd agree with that, wouldn't you, Temi?" Sophie said.
Hardison didn't budge.
"Temi? Temi!" Sophie exclaimed, getting his attention as Hardison turned.
Sophie looked at Hardison and he turned, giving the trio at HQ the locker.
"All right. How do we break in?" Nate asked the girls.
"We can't." Parker said.
"What? Excuse me?" Nate questioned.
"Nathan, did you see any video cameras anywhere?" Kaira asked Nate.
"No, but-" Nate said when Parker cut him off.
"Want to know why?" Parker asked.
"Why?" Nate asked.
"Because video cameras require people to watch them, people who fall asleep." Parker said.
"This vault, Nathan, is a Glen-Reader. It works off of motion sensors and is unhackable, even for a guy of Hardison's talent." Kaira said.
"Okay, well, I mean, if we can't turn it off, we got to get them to do it for us. So check the logs and see of there was ever a time where they shut it down... and - and why." Nate ordered.
Parker looked at the large screen, pulling up the log. "Uh, it looks like they shut it down once when the orchestra played the 1812 Overture. Because they were afraid the vibrations would set it off. Guess that's what happens when you build a vault under a concert hall." Parker said
Nate was thinking, making a plan. "Uh, Sophie, listen up. I'm gonna change the play." Nate said before telling Sophie the play.
Sophie laughed. "I've just had a thought. The story of you helping Temi - I-It's gonna raise your profile in the cities, but what about the rural areas? They don't have televisions or newspapers." Sophie said.
"No. Only radios." Motto said.
Sophie exhaled, excited. "Which is why this is perfect. Your brother's visiting in two days. You're gonna host a concert in his honor in your concert hall, and Temi... Temi will be the star." Sophie said.
Hardison tried to hide his fear.
They went back to HQ and went to plan the next part.
Hardison came down the stairs. "The violin - play the violin like it's a kazoo!" Hardison yelled, not happy.
"What were you doing up there? Napping? I told you - we got lots of work to do." Nate said, sitting at his desk.
"Don't. Don't talk to me. Don't talk to me right now. Y-you know what you've done? You asked me the violin in front of people." Hardison said.
"Yes, well, you said you were good." Nate said.
"As a child. That was 10 years ago." Hardison argued.
"Oh, come on, come on, Hardison. Listen, you know, you told me you could do anything. You told me you were super-skull!" Nate said, kinda mocking Hardison.
"Skrull. Skrull. Get it right. Super - Sup - Super-Skrull - Who has the combined powers of the Fantastic Four, one of whom is not Itzhak Perlman." Hardison said.
Sophie then walked in, holding a folder with sheet music. "Hey. I just helped Moto pick out the music for the convert. Look what it is." Sophie said, handing the music to Nate.
"Ah! Yes, yes. No, this is- this is perfect." Nate said, smiling. "I mean, you know, because it's -it's big, and it's - it's loud, and they're gonna have to turn off the motion sensors for this. Perfect." Nate said, pleased with the selection.
Hardison grabbed the folder. "Seeing as how I'm the one who's got to play it. What is it?" Hardison asked
"It's Scheherazade by Korsakov. It's based on a story from the Arabian Nights about a sultan who marries a new bride every night and has her killed by morning - until Scheherazade. You see, every night, she tells him a story with such a suspenseful cliffhanger that he daren't execute her for fear that he may never know the ending." She told her stories for 1,001 nights, until the sultan fell deeply, deeply in love with her. Ah. Scheherazade. She's one of literature's all time great grifters." Sophie said.
"Mm. Let me tell you what I know about some Scheherazade. Okay? It ends with one of the most difficult violin solos - my solo." Hardison said, not pleased.
"That's- that's right. You'll be the star of the piece." Nate said, looking at the paper in front of him.
"Excuse me... while I go to my storage locker and pull out a very dusty violin." Hardison said, going to leave.
"Oh, no, Moto wants you to play his violin." Sophie revealed.
"The Strad?" Hardison questioned, shocked.
"He said, um, it's the first time he's met someone worthy. You made quite an impression." Sophie said.
"Oh, Lord, tell me this isn't happening." Hardison said.
"And the conductor needs you there in two hours." Sophie said.
"Aw, come on, man!" Hardison exclaimed.
"Yeah, see, I told you you shouldn't be napping. You gotta go. Gotta go." Nate said.
Hardison quickly left to make it on time as Sophie leaned on the desk. "Nate." Sophie said.
"Yes?" Nate asked.
"You know when - when criminals go to jail, they inevitably pick up a few skills, like a pickpocket might learn, um... I don't know - safecracking. Well... is there anything you want to tell me?" Sophie asked.
"You know me, I always like to pick up an extra wrench here and there for the old toolbox. You said it yourself - he's, uh... he's the best candidate." Nate said. He started the metronome again.
Hardison went to the rehearsal and got a call to leave./
Parker and Kaira were making a plan. Parker was eating cereal as Nate walked in to HQ. "How's the plan?" Nate asked.
"We'll walk you through it." Parker said, putting the bowl down.
"We have three main obstacles - two doors and a guard." Parker said.
"At the first door, there's a six-digit keypad." Kaira informed the team.
"You got the code yet?" Nate asked.
"Let's find out. Sophie?" Parker said, getting Sophie's attention.
Sophie was at the concert hall. "Minutes away." Sophie whispered. She got stopped by security, who checked her bags. Sophie warned the guard about the sensitive lense in her case, and talked about how she was going to check the acoustics.
Eliot was also at the concert hall, acting as a maintenance man.
"Babe, you in position?" Kaira asked Eliot
"All right, I'm at the door." Eliot said. He sprayed something sticky on the keypad and got stopped by security. He went to leave, saying he was supposed to be there and had to call his supervisor. Eliot went to check out the code, but the guard blocked most of it. The guard left and Eliot walked back over. "All right, it's a six-digit code. The first two numbers are 6 and 4, in that sequence." Eliot said.
Kaira grabbed a notepad and wrote that down.
Eliot pulled a UV light out of his bag and held it to the keypad. "Next four numbers are 2, 3..., 8, 9... not in sequence." Eliot reported.
"Okay, that means I'm gonna have to punch in all the combinations. That's gonna take time, and there's a guard." Parker pointed out, looking at the notepad.
Well, Eliot and Kaira can take care of the guard. Right guys?" Nate said.
Kaira nodded her head yes.
"Yeah. Sure." Eliot said, ready to leave.
Nate looked at the map in front of him. "That puts us through the first door, and it's a straight shot down through the stairs, which leads us right into the vault." Nate said.
"Where we have the retina scanner, which we do not have time to hack, so I would skip the stairs and blow a hole in the floor right here." Parker pointed to the spot.
"Wait, Parker, won't the explosion be heard?" Kaira asked, wondering if the plan was gonna work.
"Okay, great, so - so, we get to the vault through the ceiling, we get the diamonds, we wait for the concert to end, and we slip out with the crowd." Nate said.
"Nope." Parker said
"What do you mean, no? That's what you just -" Nate questioned.
"Our only window to break into this vault is during the concert when the motion sensors are turned off. Right?" Parker said.
"Right." Nate said.
"Okay, well, this is a concert for a foreign dignitary with a full secret service detail." Parker said.
"Okay, cliff notes; we have to take out the guard, blow a hole in the floor without anybody hearing it. We need perfect timing. That's gonna be the only way to pull this off." Kaira said, not liking the plan.
"Yeah, I-I can't do it, either, man. I'm out. Mnh-Mnh." Hardison said, drinking his orange soda."You know, I'm sorry for the people of this country - I really am - but this is the most frightening thing I've ever had to do." Hardison was saying as Nate grabbed the sheet music. "No. I'm sorry, I can't. Mnh-mnh. I'm out." Hardison said, psyching himself out.
"How much time do we need for the break-in?" Nate asked.
"Seven minutes...minimum." Parker answered.
"So, here's where Eliot and Kaira take care of the guard, and then here's where we blow a hole through the floor, the last seven minutes of the piece, of course, depending on tempo." Nate started going off, pointing to different places in the sheet music./
"What are you talking about?" Parker asked.
Kaira realized what Nate meant. "You want to time the break-in to the music?" Kaira asked Nate.
"Yes. Yes." Nate said.
"No, no. It can't be done." Hardison tried to explain.
"Why?" Nate asked.
"Look, everything would have to be in sync - perfectly in sync. Nate, we would need our own -" Hardison said.
"Conductor!" Nate realized, liking the plan. Nate got up to leave to work out the timing.
Later, the team arrived, getting set up before the concert. Parker and Kaira were watching Hardison tried to play the violin, albeit off-key, but Kaira had to admire the boy for trying. Parker cleared her throat, getting Hardison's attention.
"Pa - Parker, Kaira, what are you doing here?" Hardison asked.
Establishing my cover. Doing a walk through with Kaira. How's it going?" Parker asked, going up to Hardison.
"How do you think it's going? In 24 hours, right where I'm standing, I'm gonna make a fool of myself." Hardison said, not happy.
"Yeah, it's actually a lot worse than that." Parker said.
What do you mean?" Hardison asked Parker.
"Well, the whole heist depends on you being able to play. If you can't, the mark's gonna know something's up, and then he's gonna kill us all." Parker said.
Hardison wondered what the girl was doing as Kaira growled.
"Is this a pep talk?" Hardison asked
"Then he'll take over the country, rob his people blind! I mean imagine the suffering -" Parker said, giving the stakes, not knowing she wasn't helping.
"Parker!" Kaira exclaimed, getting Parker to stop. "Parker, cool it with the doomsday shit, okay?" Kaira warned Parker./
"I'm just trying to get a little adrenaline flowing here. That's all you need, okay? It works for me." Parker said
"That's actually a good point. Kinda." Kaira said, liking the idea.
"If I get adrenaline flowing, my giant hands are gonna snap this priceless violin in half." Hardison said.
"Oh. You'll be fine." Parker said, patting Hardison's shoulder, then leaving.
Kaira turned to Hardison. "Okay. Don't listen to what Parker said. Here. I want you to look at me." Kaira said.
Hardison faced Kaira. "Now, take a deep breath in through your nose." Kaira said, breathing in.
Hardison copied her.
"And exhale through the mouth." Kaira said, exhaling.
Hardison copied.
"Keep doing that." Kaira explained, repeating the cycle with Hardison, putting her hands on his shoulders. "Okay, keep going. Slow. Right now, what you're experiencing is flight or fight. Which is normal, and okay to experience. I know you're scared. I would be too. Yes, being scared keeps you on your toes, it gives you the boost you need to run. But right now, you don't want to run. You need to calm down to fight. Doing the breaths increases your oxygen levels, decreasing your heart rate and blood pressure. It allows you to think more clearly, and allows you to be ready for the fight. Focus on you, not what the rest of us are doing. You do that, and you're gonna have another anxiety attack. So, before the show, I want you to do the breaths, clear your mind, and focus." Kaira explained to Hardison, his eyes closed like Kaira was hypnotizing him, kinda.
Hardison opened his eyes, surprised at what happened.
"You okay?" Kaira asked Hardison.
"I think so. Damn, woman. How'd you learn to do that?" Hardison asked, realizing the trance state he was in.
"I do know some trick, you know." Kaira smiled at Hardison, removing her hands.
"D-Did you put me in a trance?" Hardison asked, wondering what Kaira did.
"Kind of. I just had you focus on my voice as you did the breathes, and calmed you down. You were conscious through it. It's more like neurolinguistic programming than hypnosis. I basically tricked your mind into calming itself down. Hypnosis is more like if you gave up total control of your body. You were in control, but more susceptible to do what I said. I tricked your body into slowing down the release of adrenaline, just enough to keep you alert, but not flight or fight response levels." Kaira explained, knowing how Hardison didn't like mind games.
"Thanks, little sister." Hardison smiled at Kaira, hugging her.
"You're welcome, big brother. Now, kick it in the ass." Kaira smiled back at Hardison as she left.
Hardison smiled back and went back to practicing.
24 hours later, the team was back again, with Sophie in the vip suite, waiting for the Motto brothers. Hardison was in his suite, warming up, Kaira's words in his mind. Nate was in the balcony band storage room, getting his sheet music out and laptop to monitor and time the heist. Kaira, Eliot, and Parker were getting ready to do their part of the heist. Sophie sat down and Nate looked at her through the curtain.
"I spotted secret service guys on the balcony." Sophie reported.
Nate closed the curtain and went to his spot. His phone rang. "I don't have time." Nate said, seeing who the contact was. "Meet me in the prop room now." The Italian said. She hung up the phone as the crowd applauded. The lights went down and the spotlight came up on Hardison, which he did not like. Then the concert started playing Scheherazade.
/pRR-FUKnimM
(Feel free to copy the link above to get the music as you continue reading.)
Nate walked into the prop room and saw the Italian. "Can't I enjoy a concert without you following me?" Nate asked.
"I need something from Moto's safe. And don't play games with me. I know why you're here. And I think it's cute. But this is a matter of national security. Find the envelope in Moto's safe, and leave this behind." The Italian said, getting right to business, handing Nate an envelope.
Nate scoffed. "I'm not your mailman." Nate said, going to walk away.
"This envelope is a link in the chain that leads to Damien Moreau. You will get it for me, or your team goes down. That was our deal." The Italian said, threatening Nate, causing him to turn around.
"I thought we were friends." Nate said in Italian.
The Italian chuckled. "Don't you know? I don't have any friends." The Italian said, shoving the envelope to Nate. The Italian left.
Nate went back to his spot as the orchestra still kept playing.
Eliot, Parker, and Kaira were getting ready. Parker knocked over the debt cord, and Eliot caught it, as he was on the ground.
"Parker. Explosives!" Eliot growled at the thief.
Parker inhaled as Eliot groaned again. Kaira was slightly amused as Nate kept the tempo.
"Okay, guys... buckle up." Nate ordered as the trio got their stuff ready. "You have seven minutes, but it depends on how fast the conductor leads the orchestra. I'll follow his pace and cue you. Here we go. On My mark. Now!" Nate ordered, starting the timer.
Eliot pushed the cart and Parker and Kaira followed.
Sophie Left to do her part.
Eliot and Kaira kept their heads down as they walk by security.
Sophie went up to the projection room and got ready.
Parker started punching in the codes as Eliot and Kaira kept watch, seeing a guard come up. Eliot and the guard stared each other down, as Kaira made sure Parker was good. The guard tacked Eliot, sending him to the wall, knocking the glasses off of him. The guard went after Parker, But Kaira got in between, keeping the guard off of Parker. Kaira stomped on the guard's foot and placed her thumbs on the goon's neck, applying a lot of pressure. The guard got Kaira off and threw her to the wall, causing her to groan. The guard was about to go after Parker when Eliot got up.
"No!" Eliot yelled, distracting the guard, causing Eliot to get punched.
The guard and Eliot exchanged several elbows and fists as Kaira got up. Eliot was getting pounded, so she waited until the guard was distracted and jumped on his back, applying pressure to the carotid again. Eliot tried to take out his legs, and was successful, sending the guard down, causing Kaira to fall too. Between the pressure on the carotid knocking him out and the blow from falling, he was out. Eliot helped Kaira up as Parker got the door opened. Eliot and Kaira composed themselves as they followed Parker into the vault.
"It's a faster temp. I'm moving up the timetable. You guys as 4 and a half minutes." Nate said.
The trio walked into the room above the vault and Eliot handed the cord to Parker who was laying it with the help of Kaira. Eliot went to take watch, but the guard from earlier punched Eliot, knocking him back with a thud. Kaira perked up and ran over before he could go after Eliot and pushed him. He threw Kaira, then Eliot into the stack of chairs. Eliot helped Kaira up and Kaira used herself as an anchor, kicking the goon's legs as Eliot punched his torso, many blows exchanged between the two, Eliot getting most of them in the face. The guard got Eliot down and Kaira moved to just straight up choke the guy, but he was still fighting Eliot, ramming him into a chalkboard. Parker held up the detonator, causing Kaira to get off as Eliot kicked the guy, sending him into the circle as Kaira and Eliot ran to the door, holding each other. The music got quieter, building up as the trio was waiting for the cue.
The music started building up, Nate cueing them to blow the cord.
Parker blew it, sending the guard down as the music died down. Eliot flung the rope down.
Nate left to meet up with the trio.
Eliot and Kaira checked one last time they were clear before jumping down. Parker was looking at the contents of the safe. Eliot dragged the guard away as Nate jumped down.
"Open it up." Nate said, out of breath
Parker picked the lock on the safe and opened it.
Hardison was scared to death as his solo played. He played beautifully, causing the team to stop. They were mesmerized.
Kaira held Eliot, who was holding in his chest. Kaira had a hint of a smile as the team realized Hardison had done it. They were entranced by Hardison playing. Hardison ended his solo and the crowd cheered. Hardison bowed and was so happy. The timer had run out. Soon an alarm started blaring. The team realized the motion sensors had been engaged again. The team came to their senses as the group in the vault tried to find a way out.
"What are you doing here?" Parker asked Nate.
"I-I'll explain later. Let's just get out of here." Nate said over the alarm blaring. Nate went to grab the rope, but it was pulled up.
"You got an exit plan?" Eliot asked as Parker cut the contents of the first safe she opened back.
"Hold it right there." The guard ordered, drawing his gun.
"Ah, working on it." Nate said. "Uh, Sophie, any ideas?" Nate asked, looking around.
Stall." Sophie said, not seeing another option
"Uh, guys, Moto and his brother just left. And I don't know about y'all, but it wasn't me, cause, uh, I just rocked it, you know." Hardison said, still in shock from the praise he was getting.
"Okay, listen Hardison, just stay where you are and don't blow your cover." Nate ordered.
"Rodger that." Hardison said, accepting the applause.
Just then both Moto brothers and security arrived at the vault.
"How's it going?" Eliot asked.
"What's going on here?" Simeon Moto, the President, asked.
"A burglary. We turned off the motion sensors for the concert. They're very clever. My men can handle it." Moto said as a goon helped the downed gon up, who had regained consciousness.
The goon went to go after Eliot, who was ready to fight. Kaira got ready to fight again. Moto stopped his guy.
"Call the police." Moto ordered his goon.
"Oh, that's no fun." Kaira pretended to whine.
"You see? I told you it wasn't necessary to follow me." Moto said. "Yes. You did." Simeon said.
Moto put a hand on his brother's shoulder, turning him. "This is why you can never have too much security." Moto said, going to leave.
"Mr. President, wait." Nate said, causing the Moto's to turn around. "Can I tell you a story about your - your brother here and how he lured you here tonight to assassinate you?" Nate said, getting Simeon's interest.
"Oh-ho, the thief speaks. Who knew we would be entertained twice tonight? Please, go on." Moto said.
"Think about it. Last-minute concert in a hall your brother owns, him wailing over your bleeding body live on the radio, instantly bonding himself to the thousands listening back home." Nate said, selling the story.
"Well, that'll be a hell of a way to become a tyrant." Kaira said, mocking Moto.
"And who would foil this plot? You and your... team of burglars?" Moto said.
"Woah. Have some class." Kaira mocked again.
"Burglars? No, no, we're not in it for the money. We wanted this." Nate said, showing the envelope to Motto. "See, Mr. President, this envelope contains the names of terrorists living in Africa that you - your brother supplies us with at his leisure for a price. This is what happens when you play with the CIA, Mr. Moto. We take what we need." Nate said.
"You can't be serious." Moto said, trying to play it off.
"I turned a blind eye to these rumors about you for too long." Simeon said, shocked at what he had heard.
"This is insane! Can't you see? He's telling you a story! Every detail more outlandish than the last." Moto said
"If he is lying, then go ahead. Open the envelope." Simeon ordered his brother.
"Yes. Open the envelope." Nate said, handing it to Moto
"It is not what he says. I can't open it. It doesn't belong to me." Moto whispered to his brother, though Kaira could hear it.
Then someone from the security detail came in. "Mr. President, there's something you should know. We just found a rifle in the projection room. With a clean print on th scope." The guard revealed.
See, the lense that Sophie mentioned, was a rifle scope, which she assembled in the projection room, and placed the print on it.
"It was my brother. He is responsible!" Simeon accused Alexander.
"No, no, i-it's - she's behind this! No, she lied to me!" Moto yelled as Sophie joined them. Moto was being escorted out of the vault. "My brother's being duped by these thieves!" Moto yelled.
"Tiranos sao eleitos e depostos. Leis sao passadas e repelidas. Nacoes surgem e caem. A liberdade do individuo e' eterna'." Kaira spoke out loud as Moto looked at the team.
Simeon turned back to Nate and the team. Simeon then turned to his guys, motioning them for them to leave. Simeon left, leaving the team in the vault.
"How'd you know what was in the envelope?" Parker asked Nate.
"I didn't." Nate revealed, causing a chuckle from Kaira.
"Made for a hell of a story. Just like Scheherazade." Kaira smiled, kinda amused.
"Yeah. Thank you." Nate said.
Eliot turned to Kaira. "Sweetheart, what was it you said to Moto?" Eliot asked Kaira./
""Tyrants are elected and deposed. Laws are passed and repelled. Nations come and go. The individual's freedom is 'eternal'." (If I messed up the translation from Portuguese, let me know.) It's Portuguese." Kaira smiled as the team chuckled
They left and Nate went back up to the prop room, sitting on a barstool as he handed the envelope to the Italian.
"You didn't open it." The Italian realized
"I don't open other people's mail. It's a pretty serious crime." Nate said. He took a breath. "So you owe me now." Nate said.
"We have a deal - to get Moreau." The Italian said, reiterating the deal.
"That envelope is not a chain to Moreau, is it? Otherwise, you would just hand it over to me right now, wouldn't you? No, it's a link in the chain to you." Nate revealed, getting up and going behind The Italian, causing her to turn to face him. "That's why you knew it was in Moto's safe... And what it looked like. You saw him put it in there, didn't you." Nate said, taunting the Italian, getting in her space.
"Mr. Ford, in the service of good, sometimes we have to make deal with bad people and do bad things." The Italian said.
"Really? Cause I work with a bunch of bad guys who are more honorable than you will ever be. If we're gonna have this arrangement, never play me again." Nate said. He left the room and the team went back to the bar.
The next day, Nate, Eliot, and Kaira met with Jane to give her the good news
"I still can't believe it. My article is finally published, and the lead is, "Alexander Moto is in an American jail"." Jane said, excited about the news
"Yes, well, it turned out that the secret service did not take kindly to people trying to assassinate foreign leaders on their watch." Nate said.
"But, Mr. Ford, that is just a story, right?" Jane asked Nate.
"Well, right, I mean, yeah, the charges aren't gonna stick. But it was enough to get a warrant to search his vault, which turned up a mess of smuggled diamonds." Nate revealed.
"And the fact is, he's never gonna be president now." Eliot said. (Anybody else sing that or just me?) Jane chuckled softly.
Nate handed Jane a check. "We, uh, we have this for you." Nate said, haniding the check to Jane, who took it hesitantly.
"No, no. The diamonds..." Jane said, going to hand the check back.
"Have nothing to do with that. No, see, what happened is, we... we ended up with this Stradivarius. We thought that the money could be used for the good people of Wadata, maybe a music foundation for the kids?" Nate suggested.
"You could set that up, Jane." Kaira said, smiling as Jane's shock.
"It was his idea." Nate said, turning to Eliot.
Eliot scootched over as Nate left. He smiled at Jane, proud to be able to do this one thing. "Still, I wish we could do more." Eliot said.
"What is it your friend said to Moto? Help a single child, you are a hero? Small acts can have ripple effects." Jane said.
Eliot smiled, thinking about what she said.
She left soon after. Kaira sat across from Eliot, moving her drink and grabbing his hand. "You know, Jane is right. If Blackpoole hadn't refused to pay for Kasey's chemo, then she wouldn't have died, I wouldn't have joined the army, I wouldn't have met you, I wouldn't have met Nate, Hardison, Parker, and Sophie. I wouldn't have gotten the courage to admit I was in love with you, you wouldn't have asked me out, you wouldn't have proposed, Nate wouldn't have walk me down the aisle, and I wouldn't be here, holding the hand of the love of my life, who I plan to go to bed with and fully enjoy it, looking at your blue eyes and riding that built body." Kaira said, a flirtatious smirk on her face. Eliot also had the same smirk on his face.
"Well, what are we waiting for?" Eliot asked, down with the idea.
They left, ignoring Hardison, Parker, and Sophie at the bar.
"Where are you going?" Parker asked, spotting the couple before they left the door.
Kaira and Eliot groaned as they turned Parker. "Having some personal time." Kaira answered with a wink, leaving again as they went up.
Hardison got the message.
"You had a recording of the solo in a gizmo. That made it come out of the violin." Parker said, trying to figure out how Hardison played so well.
"No. No, Parker. You don't just jam a gizmo into a Strad, okay? I just - I let it rip. It was-" Hardison said, still amazed at himself.
"Well, I still can't believe you can play like that." Parker said.
"You? I can't believe it." Hardison said.
"It's because I hypnotized you." Nate revealed, sitting down at the bar.
Parker chuckled.
""You serious?" Hardison asked.
"Yeah, I-I put you in a deep trance state and regressed you back to when you played violin as a teenager. I mean, you knew how to play all along, but I-I cleaned out the cobwebs. I just gave you the confidence to be the best version of you I knew you could be." Nate explained. Nate thought back to when he hypnotized Hardison before he woke up from his nap, and when Nate yelled at Hardison for napping.
"A vegas hypnotist can pick out a candidate in a crowd, and... so can I." Sophie revealed her part.
Hardison stood up some. "Nate... Hypnosis is something you do on a mark, not your own crew." Hardison said, not liking he was hypnotized.
"No, no, no. It's exactly what you do to your own crew. Yeah, you push whatever button you need to to get them to do what needs to be done. You wanted to know what other quality you needed to run your own crew. Well, that's it. And you don't have it." Nate said.
Hardison knocked on the counter and left, Parker not far behind him.
Sophie looked at Nate. "Alone again. If I didn't know you better, I'd think you like it like that." Sophie said, also leaving.
Nate was alone at the bar. And it did seem Nate liked being alone. But, he didn't.
A/N Hello! So it took me now to realize that the chapters were messy, so I took the time to clean them up. I'm sorry I didn't realize it sooner. So, I got it fixed, and I'll keep it in mind for future reference. I hope you're enjoying this series so far! I want to give a quick shout out to BlackDragon42 for all the love you've shown me! I really do appreciate it!