"A rat!" Kate straightened abruptly, her head slamming into the bottom of his chin.
Lucern jerked back. Wincing, he rubbed the spot even as Kate grabbed her head and issued a howl of pain. She cut the noise off almost at once, of course, but still, Lucern couldn't help but think that perhaps stealth was no longer possible in this endeavor. Kate wasn't very good at this crime business.
"Shh," she said sternly, as if Luc had been the one who'd just let out the caterwaul. Lucern let her get away with it, instead watching with interest as she pulled two woollen hats from her pocket. She donned one, tugging it onto her head and pulling it down over her face. It was a ski mask. When she had the holes adjusted so that only her eyes and lips showed, Kate handed him the other.
"Put it on," she ordered. Taking the backpack he held, she set it on the ground with a clank.
"I am not putting this on," he said with disdain.
Kate heaved an impatient sigh. "Put it on, Lucern. I don't want to open the papers tomorrow and find your wan face glaring back at me."
"How could—"
"Security cameras," she interrupted grimly.
Lucern snorted. "They would hardly have security cameras in a—"
"They have security cameras everywhere nowadays," she interrupted again. "It lowers the insurance or something."
Muttering under his breath, Lucern gave in. Donning the stupid thing, he felt like an idiot, and was grateful none of his family members were there to witness it. Etienne in particular would have enjoyed taunting him for decades. Knowing Kate could not see his scowl did not prevent his aiming a particularly ferocious one at her. Not that she noticed; she was quite busy sifting through whatever was in her bag. There was an awful lot of banging and clanking going on.
What the hell had she brought? he wondered irritably.
"In your years of living," she began in a strained tone, "I don't suppose you learned anything about burglary, did you?"
"A thing or two," Lucern admitted.
"Good." She sounded relieved. "Because all I know about it is what I've seen on TV."
Lucern raised an eyebrow, but since again he knew she couldn't see it, he said in a solemn tone, "One would never credit it."
"It's true," she told him earnestly. "I like cop shows, and I just went by those. I hope I got what we need. I wasn't sure—I just went through the hardware store and grabbed anything that looked useful."
Ah. This explained why she hadn't attended the cover model reunion. Lucern knelt at her side and peered curiously into her bag. The first thing he saw were several long, pointed tools. They looked like screwdrivers but with sharpened ends. There were several of them, in a variety of sizes. "Scratch awls? What are those for?"
"They always use sharp, pointy things to break into places on TV," Kate explained. "To pick locks." She paused, her expression thoughtful. "Or credit cards." She frowned briefly, then cursed. "I knew I should have brought my purse."
Lucern wasn't really paying attention; he was sorting through the bag. "A pipe wrench?" he asked, lifting the large, heavy plumber's tool.
Kate bit her lip and shifted uncomfortably. "I thought maybe if you couldn't pick the locks, you could break a window."
Lucern arched an eyebrow, then pulled out a coil of… "Rope? Rope, Kate? What the heck did you bring rope for?"
"In case you had to climb into or out of a second-story window," she explained defensively.
"It's a one-story building," he pointed out.
"Oh, yes." She peered at the building with displeasure, as if suspecting it may have shrunk a floor while she wasn't looking.
"I thought you cased the place."
"I did. I just…" She waved her hands wildly. "Okay, so you won't need to climb out a window. You might have to tie someone up, though."
"Hmm." Lucern reached for the next item. "Duct tape?" He drew out a roll of the silver tape. Even through the darkness, he could see her blush.
"Dad always said there wasn't a job where duct tape didn't come in handy," she said lamely. Then she straightened her shoulders and added, "You can tape the glass before you break it, if you have to break it. That would reduce the noise and mess. Or if we have to tie someone up, duct tape is impossible to tear."
"I thought the rope was for tying them up."
"Fine," she said irritably. "Use the rope to tie them up. You can duct tape their mouths shut to gag them."
Lucern nearly laughed aloud but managed to hold it back. She had obviously considered every eventuality. Except one. He didn't need any of this nonsense. Packing all the tools back into her bag, Lucern closed it, and stood up.
"Wait here," he ordered. Then he walked up the alley to the side door.
As usual, the woman didn't listen, but chased after him. Her voice was panicky as she asked, "What are you going to do?"
"What we came here to do," he answered. "Rob the blood bank."