Boy, is Charlie gonna be pissed!
Benjamin “Charlie” Porter was the clean-up crew’s supervisor. And no, Zahra had no idea why he preferred to go by Charlie and not Benjamin — or even Ben. She never asked, and based on what her co-workers had told her, he wouldn’t tell, not even with half a bottle of Jameson in his system. And honestly, Zahra didn’t really care, so she left the matter alone. There were plenty of other things to focus on in her day-to-day life.
Like not dying, she thought, smiling as the two intruders split up.
One of them continued forward. The other stopped and headed back in the direction they had come. She quietly watched them move about. When one of them entered through the archway leading to the east wing, Zahra knew who her first target would be.
Thing One swung right, passing between Zahra’s position inside the information desk and the Reading Room. She duck-walked to the opposite side of the oval workstation and decided on a course of action. She could try to bullrush him but doubted she could get close enough without being heard. She didn’t possess a long-distance weapon of any kind. This was where her Glock would have come in handy. If she was going to successfully subdue the gunman, she’d have to do it up close and personal.
Unless…
Zahra looked over her right shoulder and identified something that might just close the gap between her and her target. Back toward the front doors was a stand-alone diorama dedicated to the tribes of Africa, specifically the Maasai of Kenya. At its center was the wax figure of a native man holding an authentic spear that had actually been used to hunt and kill lions. Zahra knew from personal experience that the spade-shaped tip was still plenty sharp. If used properly, the spear could do some serious damage.
Slipping from cover, Zahra stayed low and moved heel to toe. She reached the display in seconds and carefully mounted it to retrieve the weapon. Pulling it free of the native’s grasp wasn’t as easy as she figured it would be. Zahra applied some force, and it finally came free — and with a price. The mannequin’s wrist snapped in half, alerting Thing One to her presence. Zahra gripped the Maasai spear and froze out of fear of being gunned down.
But oddly, nothing happened.
The intruder’s weapon light swung her way but didn’t linger.
Uh… Then, it hit her. He thinks I’m part of the exhibit!
So, Zahra played the part and stood as still as a statue. She was facing the wrong direction and couldn’t see him. So, she used her other senses, and waited to hear him step away. When he did, she made her move. Zahra turned and leaped from the knee-high podium. As soon as she landed, Zahra launched the spear into the air like an Olympic javelin thrower. She’d done a bit of it back in college, but never competitively. It was mostly her wanting to see how far she could throw the ‘long, pointy thing.’
The flexible shaft exited her hand in what she hoped was the perfect toss.
But Zahra didn’t stop there. She sprinted toward the guy with the rifle, watching the spear reach its peak. Saying a quick prayer to the Maasai god, she witnessed the projectile drop like a bomb, and head straight for her quarry. Thing One turned just as the spear struck home, impaling him in the meat of his left shoulder. The impact sent him sprawling to the floor, but unfortunately, he didn’t drop his weapon. Zahra was still too far away to do much else. So, she did the only other thing she could think of.
It took him a minute, but Thing One sat up, crying out in pain. The delay gave Zahra time to unbuckle her grappling hook. She kept its head closed and gave the line enough slack to get in a few overhead twirls, mentally gauging the distance to her target. Not wasting any more time, she released the hook and cringed when the infant-sized metal object smashed into the bridge of Thing One’s nose.
He was out cold — possibly even dead. Zahra didn’t care what his current state was, alive or not. She hauled in her line and slid to a stop at his feet. Zahra immediately began to drag the much heavier gunman back toward the information desk. Her plan was to relieve him of his rifle once they arrived, but she didn’t get the chance. Thing Two came running back into the Great Court, chasing Zahra away from his compatriot. Apparently, her attack hadn’t gone unnoticed.
She released Thing One’s ankles and bolted in the opposite direction, heading around to the western side of the room. Bullets whizzed through the air all around her. A few of the stray rounds impacted several of the museum’s priceless artifacts, including the backside of the Lion of Knidos. One of the bullets smacked the marble bust of Julius Caesar right in the forehead. The loud crack of the impact caused her to flinch and stumble, but she kept moving. She instinctively covered her head with her hands and practically dove through the entrance to the first room she came across.
Chapter 22
Zahra
The wing to the west of the Great Court held her favorite collection, that of Ancient Egypt. She knew its contents better than anyone, even rivaling the knowledge of the museum’s curator. Zahra loved engaging in exhaustive debates with the man, and not because she wanted to prove him wrong. It was rare that anyone employed by the museum could hold a proper conversation with Zahra when it pertained to the specific subject matter.
Room 4 held one of the single greatest archaeological discoveries on record, the Rosetta Stone. The granodiorite stele contained three versions of the Decree of Memphis. The trilingual stone slab was the first of its kind ever discovered to include Ancient Egyptian and Demotic script alongside a third, widely known language, Ancient Greek. Because of the slight similarities between the three languages, the stone had been the key to unlocking the Ancient Egyptian language.
It was a priceless piece of history, and Zahra often found herself consumed by its significance, staring at it whenever she happened by the exhibit.
She veered around the left side of the display and ducked behind it just as a volley of automatic gunfire struck it half-a-dozen times. Luckily, the eleven-millimeter-thick reinforced glass ate the rounds without a problem.
But the shooter wasn’t finished.
Additional gunfire completely decimated the protective case as well as the priceless artifact within.
The intruder hesitated as his gun jammed, which provided Zahra the opportunity to move. Bolting right, Zahra peered over her shoulder in time to spot several chunks of the Rosetta Stone fall free and crash to the floor.
The senseless destruction angered her.
Bernie’s murder enraged her.
The northern hall was split in two with a bevy of beautiful pieces running down the middle of it. Additional displays sat against each wall as well. A visitor could spend hours inside the British Museum and never leave Room 4 — and she had seen many who did just that.
Zahra spun around abruptly to see what her attacker was doing.
Her ankle rolled as payment. Zahra went down awkwardly, sliding for five feet on her side before scampering on all fours behind one of the largest pieces of the entire Egyptian collection. She flattened her back against the base of the colossal statue of King Rameses II. The upper half of the carving was remarkable. Zahra wished its lower half had survived the ravages of time. It would have been a majestic sight to behold considering it had been carved from a single block of two-colored granite.
Zahra held her breath and listened.
There, buried beneath her heavy breaths, was a single set of footfalls. The gunman, Thing Two, was still on the prowl. Zahra stood and tested her ankle. It didn’t hurt as much as it just felt weak. In time, it would be fine and be back to normal. The problem with that was that she didn’t have that kind of time.