Page 67 of The Lost Empress

“I don’t know, sir. But he said he’d be delayed a bit. We’re off schedule.”

Barry tried to calm himself, knowing that he couldn’t yell right then, although he really wanted to. “Look, you’re also delayed. Call in the backup. Get ready to put in the detonator code. Finish this job and do it fast and right.”

“That’s the other thing, sir…” There was real fear in the captain’s voice.

Barry’s eyes nearly bulged out of his head as he stared at Charlie, worry covering the other man’s face. “What is it?”

“I dropped my code generator for the detonator,” the captain said, almost sheepishly.

“And?” Barry growled.

“I stepped on it,” the captain admitted. “I broke it. Everything happened so fast.”

“You what?” Barry did yell now, his temper uncontrollable. “You are completely incompetent!”

“What is it?” Charlie asked in a hiss.

Barry shook his head, unable to explain right then. There was only one thing left to do. He spoke into the phone. “Call in the second team and be ready. I’ll be there in a few minutes.”

He didn’t wait for a reply on the other end, shutting off the phone and making for the exit at the side of the hotel.

Charlie strode beside him at once, a pointed look on his face. “What’s going on?”

“His detonation code generator is broken,” Barry whispered, moving fast. “I’ve got to step in.”

“But you can’t be there,” Charlie argued.

Barry shook his head. “I have to. We’ve come this far. Everything else is in place. This is our only chance.”

Charlie halted, watching as Barry pushed the exit doors open, the night air rushing in to greet them. “I hope you know what you’re doing.”

Barry nodded. “I’m not losing our money. That’s what I’m doing.”

CHAPTER FIFTY-SEVEN

THE BEST-LAID PLANS OF THIEVES AND MEN

Area Around Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco, Downtown Los Angeles, California, United States

When the corrupt police captain ended the call, Emperor allowed him to pull his hand away from his face. The man stood there mechanically—under the full control of the dragon. Gen and Emperor had learned that for short periods of time, the dragon could use his mind control on people remotely by scrying through Gen’s eyes. It was a risky venture and almost hadn’t worked but in the end, they made the captain call Barry Fer and now he was coming to the scene of the robbery, where he’d hopefully be caught red-handed.

Now what do we do with him? Gen asked her dragon, glaring at the despicable man standing, unmoving before her. Can you make him pass out? Should I take him with me?

I can’t make him pass out and I’m losing my grip on him, Emperor replied. But you definitely have to deal with him and quickly. Then you have to get out of there before the second team and Barry Fer, the Chief of Police shows up.

Gen noticed as the captain started to stir. Emperor couldn’t control him much longer. She had to do something.

Looking around, she considered her options. There wasn’t a place to lock him up. And she didn’t just kill people to get them out of her way. She was also out of gas grenades.

When the captain’s eyes widened and his hand flexed by his side, she knew she was officially out of time. Quickly, as he moved to attack her, she jumped back, slipping her hand into her pocket. She didn’t know what Bellumferrum would become in that moment, but that was always the case. The biggest problem was she didn’t know if the Weapon of War would stay one object long enough to help her or would it be her very undoing because her identity was split.

Kicking back from the man coming for her, Gen granted herself some space. Thankfully, the captain lost his footing, disoriented from being under mind control. He stumbled to the side a few feet before catching himself.

At the same moment, Bellumferrum transformed into a strange object, but it told Gen what it was instantly. The Weapon of War had become a pair of nunchucks. However, Gen had no idea how to really use the two pieces of wood connected by a chain. Thankfully, her instinct guided by Bellumferrum kicked in and she swung the weapon through the air as the captain lunged for her.

The nunchucks spiraled, moving fast. It all happened so quickly: the man diving for her, Gen throwing the weapon forward and the impact.

The wooden end of one of the chucks hit the captain in the head, making him stumble to the side. He wavered and then fell to the ground, his legs giving out from under him instantly. He slumped over in a heap, completely knocked out, the weapon having hit him in exactly the right place and with the perfect intensity to render him unconscious.

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