Chapter 2 - Day 2
By the time his alarm went off at 8:00, d'Artagnan was already up and dressed. Worrying about the assignment led to him waking several times during the night, and after waking up at 7:15 and realising he wasn't going to get back to sleep, he decided to get up.
He had spent his morning going over his timetable and identity a few more times, despite the fact that he knew it word for word, having spent hours the previous night memorising it.
Then when the sudden shrieking buzz of the alarm started, d'Artagnan jumped so high he almost fell right off his bed.
"Stupid thing…thought I'd turned you off." He grumbled to himself, annoyed that the machine had made him reveal to himself just how on edge he was. Putting down his notes, he continued to get ready.
It wasn't long before he had eaten a quick bowl of cereal and was out the door ready to walk to work.
The walk was relatively uninteresting, but he made the most of the crisp morning air, unsure of how long he was going to have to be cooped up with Vadim.
Reaching the station, d'Artagnan was unsurprised to see the cars of his friends already in their parking spaces, despite being early himself. Walking through the building, he nodded good morning to Treville before opening the door to the office where Athos, Aramis and Porthos were at their desks.
"Woah, who are you and what have you done with d'Artagnan? It's only 9:00!" Porthos joked when their youngest friend walked through the door.
"Yeah, yeah, very funny." D'Artagnan commented back, instantly feeling more relaxed after seeing his friends.
"So, are you ready for your big day?" Aramis asked.
D'Artagnan shrugged, not really sure how to answer the question, "I guess, I mean I've memorised everything and I know what I have to do when I get in."
"Good," Porthos smiled, "Now remember, be careful when you're in there. You're not going to have anything on you that you'd normally have. No guns, no tech equipment."
"Yeah, not even us babbling in your ear." Aramis quipped.
"Oh, so there is one good thing to come out of all this then," d'Artagnan grinned cheekily while Aramis mocked being hurt by his comment.
Getting up from his desk, Athos picked up some old, worn clothes that they'd managed to acquire for the assignment.
"You'll need to get changed into these before you go," he said as he handed the clothes to d'Artagnan.
"Aah he speaks!" Porthos gasped.
Athos made an unamused face to his friend, before directing d'Artagnan to get changed.
. . . . . .
Vadim and his men were based in an old abandoned library on the outskirts of town. Treville and the Musketeers had known where he was hiding out for some time but Vadim was careful, he'd ensured that the Musketeers never got a scrap of evidence of his crimes, so they could very well arrest him but they'd end up having nothing to charge him with. That's where d'Artagnan came in. If the boy could find out Vadim's latest plan and bring back something that could prove Vadim's connection to the crime, then the assignment would be a success. Whilst most likely saving lives in the process.
So it was at 10:00 that Porthos and Aramis watched as d'Artagnan and Athos got into the police car that was waiting for them outside the station.
The boy was dressed for the part, he knew what he had to do and was ready to begin the assignment.
"Do you think he's gonna be okay?" Porthos asked his friend, not taking his eyes off the car as it began to pull away.
"Course he will. D'Artagnan's always okay, and he's managed to get himself out of more scrapes then I care to remember."
"Yeah, but Athos has got a point. The kid's never done something like this before."
"He'll be fine, Porthos." Aramis reassured his friend before leading them both back inside the building, trying to push down the feeling of doubt that had continued to grow inside him.
. . . . . .
In the car, Athos was in the driver's seat whilst d'Artagnan was sitting calmly in the back.
"Now remember," Athos started, "as soon as you step out of the car, we do exactly what we've planned."
"Stay in character and pretend I hate you. Got it." D'Artagnan smirked.
Athos smiled to himself, rolling his eyes at the boy's cockiness, before speaking again.
"You sure you're up to this?" He asked once more.
"Athos, stop fussing! I'm ready and fully capable of completing this assignment," d'Artagnan attempted to reassure his friend, "you don't have to worry about me."
"Oh d'Artagnan, I always have to worry about you." Athos scoffed, before throwing a quick smile to the man through the rear view mirror.
D'Artagnan smirked back then turned his head to look out the window.
After a few moments in a comfortable silence, d'Artagnan spoke again.
"What if he does catch me out?" He asked in a quiet voice.
"He won't." Athos replied confidently.
"Athos I'm serious."
"He won't." Athos reaffirmed, "Think like that and you're more likely to slip up. Be your normal confident self and you'll get through this easily. You'll fool Vadim so bad, he'll be left doubting people he thinks he knows for the rest of his life."
Thankful for his friend's encouragement, he continued to watch the world go by before they reached the drop off point.
It wasn't long before the police car pulled up to the pavement a few yards from the outside of the library and the driver's door flew open. Taking a careful observation of the area, Athos moved to the back door and yanked it open before pulling d'Artagnan out with a grip on his shirt, pushing him down onto the path.
"Here's as good a place as any to drop you off." Athos said loudly, looking at the boy on the floor by his feet.
"Oh wow, thanks, you're so kind." D'Artagnan replied sarcastically, trying to act as pissed off as possible. He watched as Athos got back in the car and waited for him to drive off before giving some choice gestures to the back of the car, making an effort to get into character.
D'Artagnan jumped up off the floor as soon as he realised that someone was watching him from the shadows of the nearby alley way and quickly brushed down his front in an attempt to rid his clothes of any dirt.
D'Artagnan nodded to the man, acknowledging his presence.
"Y'alright?" he asked nonchalantly.
"What d'ya get caught for?" the man questioned, moving round the corner from where he was lurking.
Seeing him fully in the light confirmed d'Artagnan's theory that the man was one of Vadim's men. His clothes were dirty and tattered, and looked as if he could do with a good wash.
Sticking to his story, d'Artagnan replied casually to the man, "Stealing, not that they could prove anything."
"So why'd they dump you here then?"
"Ain't exactly got anywhere else to go."
D'Artagnan watched as the man studied him guardedly for a moment before speaking.
"I know a place. You might be of use to a few of us there."
Well that was easy, d'Artagnan thought to himself, before giving a slight nod to the man again and following him as he walked towards the library.
. . . . . .
Driving off was one of the hardest things Athos had ever had to do in his job. He had seen the man lurking in the alley way and knew that he would most likely be d'Artagnan's way in. That also meant that the plan was definitely going ahead. Part of him had secretly hoped that the boy wouldn't be able to find a way to be accepted into Vadim's little gang, and that way he wouldn't have to go through with the assignment.
It would make d'Artagnan feel like he'd failed, but at least he would be safe, and that's what Athos wanted more than anything. But now, d'Artagnan was on his own, in a place where Athos couldn't protect him.
He got back to the station to find Aramis and Porthos in the office. Both were leaning against opposite walls of the room, mindlessly throwing a scrunched up ball of paper to each other.
Evidence of why they should have actually been working had slowly been building on their desks for the past few days in the form of paper work, but Athos couldn't blame them. If he had been the one to wait behind, he wouldn't have been able to concentrate either.
"I hope that wasn't something important." Athos nodded towards the paper ball, shutting the door behind him.
"So, how did it go?" Aramis asked eagerly, instantly dropping the paper and moving round the desk in front of him to talk to Athos better, Porthos following suit.
Athos sat down on his chair before answering the question.
"As well as it could have. There was someone there when I dropped him off so I'm guessing it won't be hard for him to get in."
. . . . . .
D'Artagnan had always loved libraries. When he was younger his grandma would take him to the library after school every Thursday when she had to pick him up. He could spend hours in there, finding an empty corner all for himself, immersing himself in every new book he picked up. The older he got the less he went to the library, choosing instead to read at home, but he still treasured the homely feeling he felt whenever he went back.
Entering through the doors of the library now, d'Artagnan did not feel any of this. There were no children running around his feet, no inviting rows of brightly coloured paperbacks, not even the gentle clicking coming from the old ladies' knitting club. No homely feel at all.
Now there was dust covering all the shelves, furniture overturned and ripped up books strewn across the floor. There was a dreadful stench that accompanied the many bodies lounging about the room who obviously hadn't washed in weeks.
This was a very old library. D'Artagnan knew that instantly from the old wooden furniture and the rolling ladder that was once used to reach the books on the top shelves. To see it in such disrepair and being used as a gang hideout saddened him greatly.
"Oi Vadim, got a new one for you," the man next to him startled him out of his thoughts.
A slightly older looking man looked up from what he had been reading to take a look at d'Artagnan.
"Where d'ya find this one?" he nodded his head towards d'Artagnan.
"Police dropped him off just up the road. So what do you think? He looks in good shape, could be useful?"
D'Artagnan wanted to interrupt their conversation to remind them that he was actually standing right there, but he was beaten to it when Vadim directed the next question to him.
"What's your name kid?"
"Christophe," d'Artagnan held out his hand, instantly regretting the decision, you're supposed to be a criminal dude start acting like one, "Christophe Deniau."
Vadim, however, didn't seem fazed and shook d'Artagnan's hand.
"So, Christophe, you want to join us?"
"That alright with you?" d'Artagnan asked casually.
Vadim studied him for a second, "hmm, well I suppose we could always use someone like you."
"Well, then I would be honoured Vadim," d'Artagnan smirked slightly.
"Well, it appears you've joined us at a very crucial point in our preparation." Vadim stated, looking around the others in the room.
"Preparation for what?" d'Artagnan questioned.
"Ahh, all in good time, Christophe, all in good time. But for now, why not let Felix here show you where you can sleep for the night." Vadim gestured to the man next to d'Artagnan before turning to return to his work.
Following Felix, d'Artagnan quickly learned from the mess on the floor that his bed wasn't going to be the comfiest – or cleanest – of places.
Stopping in one corner of the room, Felix pointed to a few blankets that had been dumped in a pile.
"Here you go then, should keep you warm enough, and I'm sure Lucie here will share her body heat if you ask nicely," Felix smirked at him whilst the young lady sitting on the floor looked up at hearing her name and winked at the pair jokingly.
. . . . . .
It turned out that Vadim didn't take much convincing to reveal everything about his plans, much to d'Artagnan's surprise. After introducing him to more of the inhabitants of the rather filthy hideaway, Vadim was happy to tell d'Artagnan what he wanted to know.
"So what's this preparation for that you mentioned earlier?" d'Artagnan asked, sitting opposite Vadim at the table. He noticed that Felix had remained standing behind him as if in an attempt to stop him from leaving.
"Don't know if you've heard of me kid, but I'm pretty notorious amongst us thieves for pulling off the biggest robberies and this one I've planned is gonna be the biggest." Vadim answered confidently.
"How comes?"
"Ever heard of the La Rose et Les Nymphéas?"
"Isn't that the painting being held at the Louvre?" d'Artagnan did always love a bit of history culture.
"It's worth €172 million."
"And you're going to steal it?" d'Artagnan was actually surprised that Vadim would attempt to steal a painting worth so much. Thinking back to the notes from Athos, it really was the biggest robbery he had attempted by far.
"Need to leave a legacy for when I'm gone…"
"Well I'm impressed" d'Artagnan said truthfully, "when are you planning on doing it?"
"Soon," Vadim replied unhelpfully, "but that's enough questions for tonight, it's getting late and I have plans to make."
D'Artagnan looked up suddenly, "why what's the time?"
"6:10." Came the reply.
Shit. Check in by 6:00pm. That's what they had said. Shit, shit, shit.
D'Artagnan made to stand up, aware that he had to sneak out without Vadim suspecting anything, but bumping into Felix and almost falling over made him realise that that wasn't going to happen.
Change of plan. He needed to think of a good enough excuse to leave.
"Umm…I have to go."
"Go?" Yep, Vadim was definitely suspicious.
"I need to go see my missus," d'Artagnan asked coolly.
"Your missus?" Vadim questioned.
"Yeah well I'm pretty sure she's actually someone else's missus, but what does that matter," he replied cheekily
Vadim surveyed him for a moment before letting him go. "Very well. But Christophe…" Vadim grabbed his arm and looked him straight in the eye. "Tell no-one."
. . . . . .
It was 6:30 and Athos was pacing again. The laptop was turned on and ready, all that was needed now was the caller that should have been on the other end of the video chat by now.
"Athos will you please sit down, the lad's not exactly been the best at time keeping has he?" Aramis was used to his friend's worrisome nature, but the monotonous action was making him dizzy.
"You know what Aramis, I'm actually quite insulted," Porthos stated, "I don't remember Athos ever being this worried about us, even in the middle of a bloomin' war zone."
"You're right Porthos," Aramis continued his friend's mock, "I mean the number of times we've almost died and nothing, but as soon as this kid comes along he's worried about him writing up notes in case he gets a paper cut!"
Aramis turned to his older friend, the smirk on his face returned only with an exasperated expression.
"You think I baby him?" Athos questioned.
"We think you care," Porthos said fondly, "but you need to let the boy make his own mistakes without constantly worrying that he's going to make them."
Athos didn't have a chance to reply as the laptop starting ringing with an incoming video call.
"D'Artagnan? Are you okay?" Athos questioned as soon as the boy's face appeared on the screen.
"Yeah, yeah I'm fine Athos, sorry I'm late. I lost track of the time," d'Artagnan smiled at his friends.
Aramis and Porthos shared a knowing look from either side of Athos.
"You've changed I see." Porthos was glad the lad had remembered their instructions.
"Yeah, not that they could've actually bugged me, they haven't got enough tech equipment to sink a dinghy."
"But it all went okay yeah?" Aramis asked, "Did you manage to find out much?"
"Yeah actually, I mean he didn't tell me much, he's careful about what he shares, but I don't think he suspects anything," d'Artagnan replied confidently, "he plans to steal the La Rose et Les Nymphéas, the painting in the Louvre. It's worth millions, said something about wanting to be remembered, to leave a good legacy behind."
Aramis was surprised at this information. "He must be mad if he thinks he's going to pull that off, does he know how heavily guarded it is! It's only on loan for a couple of months before it's passed on to some other country."
Athos on the other hand had no doubt that Vadim would succeed if he wanted to. "It's all well and good getting an admission out of him, but we still need to catch him in the act. Has he said when he's going to steal it?"
"Not yet," d'Artagnan shook his head, "but he trusts me, I'll find out soon."