Caught

Finally, Agent Wayne got him.

He had rested a small chip with a microphone into the man’s suit pocket while he ventured into the New York City hotel. The hotel had scheduled an international art’s exhibition, and the man inside had three art pieces with him. He had stolen all three.

The IRS hadn’t heard from him in years, yet, here he was, wearing a fancy suit like he owned a billion-dollar company. An organization of his had helped him with his thefts, and, if he won the exhibition, that would spread the word about his rising ‘’stardom’’.

Until today, the police couldn’t build a strong enough case to arrest him. His organization had done more than the thefts of the three art pieces, but the police couldn’t prove he gave the orders.

Now, it was time to shove this star away from the Milky Way. The chip was so small that even if the man shuffled his pocket, it would feel empty.

Inside, an oblong hall with bright chandeliers lit above the art pieces covered in carpets. The man’s art stood closest by the entrance. He had taken a sculpture, a painting, and a portrait. All three were worth hundreds of thousands on their own.

Wayne turned on his sound device on his right ear and listened. There were lots of small talk in between, but then, the man, known as Gale, spoke.

‘’All in a day’s work, huh?’’ He laughed with several others standing by him. He held a glass of champagne with a little strawberry in it.

A servant offered Wayne one too. On his left ear, he communicated with his team that sat in a squad car outside the hotel.

‘’Hear anything worthy a Golden Globe?’’ Jasmine said from the device. She and Wayne had worked on several cases, and this was their biggest yet.

‘’Only something worth a Razzie.’’ Wayne said. But he kept listening as he should do.

Gale spoke in lengths about things that wouldn’t put him behind bars. The voices around Gale were muffled, like the chip was dipped under water. If only he started talking about his real business, that would end this case swiftly, and Wayne’s team would do the rest.

Wayne sipped his drink, eyeing the other exhibitions that would soon be unveiled. Gale pointed his drink at his competitors, whispering to his associates. ‘’They’re never gonna know what hit them.’’

His sentence halted Wayne. Was Gale prepared for law enforcement to be here? The agent tucked his gaze closer to his device. ‘’Did you hear that?’’

‘’We got it.’’ Jasmine said.

‘’Anyone else parked around the area that could look like men of Gale?’’

‘’None we’ve seen so far. A kid sits with his iPad, and a couple is arguing behind him. Every other vehicle is empty.’’

Gale laughed and sipped his drink at Wayne’s left ear. Perhaps, he simply flexed about his art, or he talked about unknown competitors trying to best him at whatever he headed? Wayne stepped inside a larger crowd, eyeing Gale through every shoulder or face that turned away.

I better keep myself away…

As soon as the carpets would be lifted, Wayne would prepare his handcuffs and greet Gale like he was an old colleague.

Close to fifteen minutes passed by, and the host arrived on a stage at the end. A spotlight pointed to her, and the various crowds clapped, including Gale.

‘’Here goes.’’ he said, smiling.

The host, wearing an autumn-red dress, welcomed everyone to the exhibition. For every sentence, the crowd clapped, including Gale, and he followed it with a smirky comment.

‘’My wife should take notes from her.’’

Despite the muffling, Wayne made out a ‘’Heck yeah’’ from a third party. When he had arrested Gale, he would invite his wife for some coffee at a café to discuss better choices in men.

Three minutes went by, and the host walked up to the first lane, which was on Gale’s side. He would be the fifth exhibition the host would display for the crowd.

The host stepped closer to Gale’s spot, and Wayne seized his handcuffs on his belt. Gale grinned like he held the best cards in the game.

‘’Don’t worry. I got this.’’ he said.

You wish… Wayne thought.

He had this case in the bag. In a few minutes, he was going to make America a tiny bit safer. He slid out of the larger crowds and into a smaller one, close to where Gale stood.

When the host finished the second-last exhibition, her overly-smiley gaze pointed at Gale. The crowds synced in turning to his direction, and Wayne was almost ten meters away from him. The handcuffs opening, he unlocked them from his belt.

‘’Who might you be?’’ the host asked Gale, as if he was the chosen one in a fantasy tale.

‘’Just Gale, madam.’’ he replied.

By this point, Wayne was five meters away, and he told Jasmine to prepare a seat for Gale.

‘’Right on, chief.’’

The handcuffs dangled by his right hand. His fingers felt the thin and smooth surface of his badge. Gale’s people stood beside each art piece, and they took a hold of the carpets.

‘’Do it.’’ Gale said.

Two seconds later, Wayne’s case reached its conclusion. But it wasn’t in the way he expected.

Dropping to his knees, he groaned while digging his right ear. The sound device blasted in buzzes.

‘’What’s goin- ‘’ Jasmine yelled, before the device on Wayne’s left ear buzzed too.

He rummaged through his ears, found the chips, and smashed them to the floor. This was not the time to get technical errors, but those would be the least of Wayne’s problems. The doors to the hotel slammed. His ears beeping, Wayne looked up.

Gale’s people had seized the host, two holding her arms, and one holding his arm over her mouth. She looked at Wayne, her face pleading for a help that was caught.

The crowds faced Wayne, armed with pistols.

‘’You really need to update your tech, Mr. Agent.’’ Gale said, kneeling by Wayne.

Behind his people, the art pieces were boring glass sculptures.

‘’Where are the real ones…?’’ Wayne asked, knowing it might be his last words.

‘’Sold off.’’ Gale said. ‘’Couldn’t bring them anywhere without your little party sticking their noses in our asses. Speaking off…’’

As he said it, the doors flung open. An armed man grasped Jasmine the same way as the host. The doors slammed again.

‘’I would’ve warned you, but that would’ve cost too much in protection. So, instead, I got you here.’’

‘’Listen, - ‘’ Wayne said, as a bang roamed through the hall. A splash, like someone falling, followed after. Jasmine lay sideways on the floor, bleeding from her temples.

‘’No worries, Mr. Agent, I’ve killed plenty of your kind already. And…’’

He gestured with his hand. The crowds pointed their guns straight at Wayne’s eyes.

‘’…you’re nothing special.’’

Wayne crashed backwards, his blood sprawling out of him from the hundreds of bullets.