Page 10 of Defying the Relic Hunter

The catering staff dived for cover.

Mr. Owen waved his arms frantically. “Get them out. Get them out. They’ll shit on the displays!”

While the guards rushed to do his bidding, I bypassed the security system and opened the display case. When no alarms sounded, I quickly tucked the amulet in a shielded side pocket of my tool kit and placed a holographic disc on the display.

Mr. Owen’s shrieks grew in volume and more guards rushed in to help.

I tapped the disc and a holographic image of the amulet appeared. I closed the case and turned the security system back on. As requested, the newly installed lights cast a mystical glow over the display.

The poor guards kept chasing the non-existent birds around the museum.

I had the phantom pigeons fly out, packed up my gear and walked over to the hyperventilating Mr. Owen. “If the lights meet with your approval, I need your signature on my work order.”

“Yes, very nice.” Mr. Owen signed my fake workorder and I strolled out. Fat girl three. Warlord zero.

Returning the van to Lopez Electrical went off without a hitch. I got into my uncle’s truck and headed back to the workshop. To celebrate my success, I bought myself a chocolate sundae with the cop’s credit chip and ate it gleefully. I couldn’t wait to see the expression on Ethan’s face when he realized the amulet was gone.

I sang my version ofI Am Womanall the way home. “I am woman, hear me roar! I’ve been down, oh yeah! Now I can steal anything. I can defeat a Coletti warrior and kick my cousin’s butt. I am woman. I am invincible. I am a master thief. Oh yeah.”

Chapter Six

Tomorrow, I would head out to the Superstition Mountains and find my treasure. But tonight, I was gonna watch the drama unfold at the big gala event. Would Giuseppe escape the big, bad Coletti or would he end up in jail? The suspense was killing me.

It took me about five minutes to connect the museum’s security feeds to my uncle’s enormous vid screen. I got myself a big bowl of popcorn, poured a glass of wine and settled in to watch.

The Phoenix Art Museum was a mad house. Who knew there were so many limos in Phoenix? The dizzying flashes of the photographer’s old-fashioned cameras mingled with the twinkling fairy lights draped over the trees. Ancient Aztec stone statues stood like sentinels at the entrance.

Munching on the popcorn, I switched to the interior cameras and scanned for Ethan. No sign of him, but there was Giuseppe and his team decked out in rented tuxedos. I wondered if the hired help knew they were going up against a Coletti warrior and his Central Command buddies? Probably not.

The news vids had even hinted that Zarek might make an appearance. I giggled. He would but not in the way the newscaster thought.

Time to get the party started. I tapped my communications bracelet. The museum’s lights dimmed dramatically. The miniature smoke bomb I had planted spewed a theatrical puff of smoke and presto! The holographic image of the Aztec Emperor Montezuma appeared in the center of the gallery. He wore nothing but a gold breech cloth and a headdress with three-foot blue feather plumes.

Montezuma pointed his six-foot bronze sword at the stunned crowd and roared, “Death comes on wings to he who dares to steal my treasure. Whoever enters the treasure tomb disturbs the rest of a God. The Guardians of the dead will protect my gold.”

“Isn’t that Zarek?” a woman gasped.

An anorexic blonde hopped up and down in excitement. “Itishim. Zarek’s so hot!”

“All I want to do is get a peek under his loincloth,” an elderly matron sighed.

Montezuma waved his sword around menacingly. “Who among you dares to take my treasure?”

“Great special effects,” a man called, clapping, too.

Soon everyone in the museum was clapping loudly.

My cousin looked like he had been sucking on a lemon. A smart thief would head for the door, but not Giuseppe. Nope, he was in it to the bitter end. Sure enough, the idiot fired his electromagnetic pulse gun. The lights went out.

Surprise. Surprise. Within seconds, the lights were back on and three Coletti warriors wearing head-to-toe black battle armor had literally caught Giuseppe with his hand in the cookie jar. The stunned look on his face was priceless.

His crew melted into the crowd.

It was time to celebrate my victory and give Giuseppe’s team a chance to escape. I touched another icon on my wrist unit. A holographic dancing pink elephant appeared in the display case. “Na, na, na, na, hey, hey, hey. I’ve got the amulet. Hey, hey, hey. Na, na, na, na, the treasure’s mine.” Confetti rained down from the ceiling.

The holographic image of Montezuma did the Texas Two-Step around the gallery.

The guests started laughing.

---