Ch. 6
 

When everything is going according to plan, expect an ambush.—Street proverb

Mask sat curled in her chair, eyes sparking in appreciation.  She held the necklace up to the light. "This is exquisite. Quite one of the most beautiful pieces I have ever seen. I can understand why Hawk would take this."  She was interrupted by gales of laughter coming from the other room.
"Huh, wonder what got into her?" Turner said.  She exchanged a puzzled glance with Mask and Karina.
When the laughter showed no signs of abating,  the three women went to check it out. Vixen was laying on the floor next to her deck, arms clasped around her middle and tears rolling down her face.
Karina looked concerned. "Do you think we should jack her out?"
"No! Not unless she starts T&Fing or something equally nasty. For now we just wait," Turner said.
Karina looked puzzled. "T&Fing?"
"Twitching and foaming," Turner explained.
A few anxious minutes later, Vixen reached up and pulled the plug. She sat up and stared at her concerned friends.
"What was that all about?" Turner demanded.
"I don’t know, but it was definitely weird," Vixen stated. She shook her head in confusion.  "It felt like I was being… tickled."
Mask checked her over. "No signs of damage. But I must admit I have never seen a decker react that way before."
Vixen shrugged. "Me either. I’ll check the Shadowland BBS later and see if anyone has ever heard of something like this happening before."   She took a deep breath, wiped the tears from her face, and straightened her clothing, trying to regain her composure.  "Getting back to the subject at hand, I have the information we need."
"Good. Shall we retire to the living room?" Mask said with a grin. She led the way and curled back up in her chair, the others settling themselves down as well.  She gestured to Vixen to continue.
Vixen waited until everyone had made themselves comfortable before continuing.  "I’ll just cut to the chase. Mist, ya have quite a find there. That necklace once belonged to Marie Antoinette, it was part of her crown jewels and after the French Revolution it was thought to be lost. Apparently it has been in a private collection for years.  There is a painting by Vigée Le Brun of her, wearing the necklace, at the Louvre in Paris."
"So what you're saying is, that if we sell it, it’s worth so much that only a private collector, a museum, or a corp could give us anything near it’s value," Turner stated.
"That about sums it up," Vixen agreed. She turned to Karina. "So what’d  ya want to do with it?"
"Remember, people have already been killed for this. I really don’t think it is safe for you to keep it, Mist," Mask said regretfully.
Karina sighed. "I know, and you’re right. But who should we sell it to? It’s not like Joe’s Pawn Shop could handle a sale like this."
"If I may," Mask said, "I suggest that you contact a museum. They usually won’t ask too many questions and they pay well. I think that is your safest bet for selling this off."
"Sounds fine to me," Karina said. "Which one though?"
"Leave that ta me," Vixen spoke up. "I’ll check around and see if there is one that is interested in an acquisition."
 

"She has the necklace. She is meeting a man named Tomas  Carti at the Seattle Art Museum.
This is your last chance to deal with this situation. Do not fail me again!" *Click*
Lank raked his hands through his hair. This was going to be a long night.

Karina opened her eyes. "All quiet," she reported.
"Too quiet," Turner replied. "Something’s wrong."
Vixen laughed. "Ya worry too much, mate."
"Just cause I’m paranoid doesn’t mean they aren’t out to get me!" Turner said. "Besides, I’m still alive ain’t I?"
"There is that. You stand watch then, and Mist and I will go talk to Mr. Carti," Vixen said.
"Will do. Be careful. I have a bad feeling about this," Turner replied.
Vixen and Karina stepped out of the car and headed for the museum. The contact was to meet them in the main offices around the side of the building.  Vixen stopped at the door and pressed a button on the intercom.
" Yes"
" Guillotine"
*Buzz, Click*  Vixen opened the door and headed down the hall.  She stopped at the last office and knocked on the open door.  A blonde man seated at the desk looked up at her knock. "Come in and have a seat," he said. "I’m Tomas Carti."
"Vixen. This is Mist."
"I understand that you have some merchandise you think the museum might be interested in.  May I see it?"
"We did not bring the item with us at this time. Here, however, is a holopic," Vixen replied. She leaned forward and passed him a holo of the necklace. He looked it over carefully.
"Interesting.  It certainly looks authentic, but you understand that until it is verified we will be unable to purchase it," Tomas stated.
"Of course," Vixen said smoothly.
"If I may offer a suggestion,  we can proceed as though the necklace is genuine.  When we have come to a mutually acceptable price, we can then have the necklace verified through a third party.  We will give  the funds agreed upon to them and you will give them the necklace. They will verify the authenticity. If it is indeed authentic, they will then turn over the funds to you and the necklace to us. If not, they will return the necklace to you and the deal will be off. Is this acceptable?" Tomas asked.
"That sounds reasonable. Who do you wish to use as a third party?" Vixen replied.
"We have used Lloyd’s  of London in the past with great success. If they are acceptable to you we can continue."
Vixen glanced at Karina. She nodded slightly. Vixen smiled. " That is acceptable."
 

Lank  put down the microphone. "Dey don’t have it wit dem.  Drek! We’ll have ta change da plan. Is dat oder girl still out der by da car?"
"Yeah, ya want me ta kill her?" Turk asked eagerly.
"No! Jus get her and bring her ta me. We’ll make em trade da necklace for her." Lank grinned nastily. "But first maybe we’ll have a lil fun wit her."

"Nine million is acceptable," Vixen said.
"Done. I will contact Lloyd’s and have them send a representative.  Call me tomorrow and we can arrange the exchange," Tomas said. He handed Vixen a card with his LTG number. "It has been a pleasure doing business with you."
"Likewise Mr. Carti. I will speak with you tomorrow." The two women rose and shook hands with him. They left the office, wide smiles on each face. Vixen signaled Karina not to speak until they were clear of the building.

Turner leaned up against the car and rubbed her shoulder. It still felt stiff. She glanced around again. Still quiet. ‘ Hurry up, it’s cold out here,’ she thought.  She heard a slight sound behind her and whirled around.
Turk was standing there grinning at her. "Hey der chica, come play wit Turk."
She yelled  but couldn’t dodge the punch that sent her into oblivion.

"DREK !!!!"
 Vixen stopped short. "Turner?"
Silence.
Vixen exchanged a worried look with Karina, and broke out in a run. They hit the door and rushed into the parking lot in time to see Turk throw Turner into a van. He jumped in and the van took off.
"Turner!!!!!!" Karina screamed. She headed for the car .
*KA Boom* A muffled explosion lifted the car into the air. It crashed to the ground and exploded as the gas tank ruptured. The shock wave knocked both women off their feet.

Hours later, Vixen sat in a hospital emergency room, waiting  for the doctor to tell him if Karina was ok or not. The Lone Star officers had finally left after going over her statement more times than she wanted to think about.  She looked up expectantly when a man approached her.
"Ms. McDonnell?" At her nod, he sat down in the seat next to her with a weary sigh.
 "Is Misty……?"
"She’s fine," he hastened to reassure her. " She has a mild concussion  and lots of bruises and contusions.  It’s a miracle you both weren’t hurt worse."
"Can I take her home now?" Vixen asked.
"Yes, just go down to out processing and they will get you squared away. One thing though. Don’t leave her alone tonight and if she has any problem with blurred vision, nausea , or dizziness you will need to get her back to a doctor right away." He smiled at her and handed her a stack of instructions. "You and your friend are very lucky you know."
"I know. Thank you for your help," Vixen said.

Vixen helped Karina up the stairs to Mask’s apartment.  She banged on the door, waiting impatiently for Mask to answer.
Mask opened the door, eyes wide with worry. She reached out and helped steer Karina to the couch. Then she knelt down and cast a heal spell on her. "What happened?"
Karina sighed in relief, as the last of the pain faded.  "They took Turner!"
"And blew up my deck and my car!" Vixen added.
Karina and Vixen took turns filling Mask in on the events of the evening.
When they were done Mask sat chewing her lip with worry. "They want the necklace so it looks to me like they are going to demand an exchange. That means they have to keep Turner alive."
"What about trying to find her with magic?" Karina asked. "You said that could be done."
"It can . But I am to exhausted to try tonight and we would need something of hers to work with anyway. Neither of you are in any shape to run over to her place and try and find something to use. If we don’t hear from them sooner we can try it tomorrow. I’ll send out a couple of watchers but there is no guarantee they will be able to find her. It’s a big sprawl." Mask explained regretfully.  "Now, come with me, I have an idea for turning this to your advantage."
Mask lead the way to her lodge. She sent out her watchers, then the two shamans sat down on the floor and Karina listened eagerly as her mentor explained the plan.  When Mask was done Karina was giggling so hard it hurt.
"Oh Lord, that’s priceless. I just wish I could see their faces when they figure it out." Karina gasped.

****************************************************************************

A special Thank you to my beta readers,Norcumi , "Incognito" and Maven.

NEXT CHAPTER

LET'S SEE WHAT ELSE YA GOT. Firecatt's Place a ...Aurora's Shadowrun Page

HEY AISLINN , KNOW WHAT I THINK? AislinnF@juno.com

This story is copyright of the author. Shadowrun is a Registered Trademark of FASA
Corporation. All Rights Reserved. Used without permission. Any use of FASA
Corporation's copyrighted material or trademarks in this file should not be viewed as a
challenge to those copyrights or trademarks.