Chapter 275
As her fingers danced across the buttons next to her wristwatch, the camera overhead seemed to fritz out, and the monitor room’s feed remained frozen on the scene where Curtis had just approached the two people. It was as if the image was stuck in time.
Now was her moment. Mirabella made her move.
In the security hub.
“Uh, the second floor’s feed’s got the jitters.” Wyatt, who was vigilantly watching every corner, quickly noticed that the entire feed from the second–floor gallery had become static.
“Signal interference.” James spat out coldly, as a familiar scenario unfolded before him.
He rose from his chair. His gaze swept over the second–floor gallery screen before locking onto a figure in the crowd. It was a person wearing a baseball cap, never once lifting his head. He pointed a commanding finger. “Check out that guy’s ID.”
There was something about the cap–wearer that set off his instincts, despite the person’s. seemingly normal appearance.
After giving the order, James strode out with an air of deadly seriousness. Wyatt glanced in the direction his boss had left, then quickly instructed his team to spring into action. He too
stepped out of the security room.
Meanwhile, Mirabella silently counted the seconds. At the precise moment the glass case. housing the emerald was cut open, she closed in on the two people, reaching in first and effortlessly lifting the artifact out. Her speed was so swift that those two barely registered what had happened.
Mirabella glanced down at the artifact, admiring its beauty, but as her fingers touched its base, she frowned. Had she really spent a good fifty bucks on cab fare for this fake trinket?
Mirabella’s expression darkened in an instant, and she stuffed the object back into the case. Whoever wanted it could take it.
When the people came to their senses and saw the emerald back in its place, fear flashed across their eyes.
Suddenly, Mirabella felt the air thicken with a new, potent sense of danger. She lifted her gaze but couldn’t spot the source of this malice. Taking a step back, she sidestepped Curtis‘ advance and quickly headed towards the restroom corridor.
Under her watchful eye, the corridor entrance was laced with a dense network of infrared beams. Anyone approaching would be immediately detected, especially with two guards stationed there.
Glancing back, Mirabella noticed the escalators to both the first and second floors had been
Chapter 275
shut down.
Her signal jammer would be cracked in a minute, tops. By her calculations, she had about ten seconds before the security feeds were back online, which meant she had to get out in less
than that.
Mirabella sifted through the building’s escape routes in her mind and then set her sights on the nearby fire alarm. With the security personnel distracted, she stealthily approached and smashed her hand down on the alarm.
Instantly, the shrill sound of the building’s alarm system filled the air, amplifying the fear already lurking in the hearts of the visitors shrouded in darkness.
In the gloom, the lone, illuminated emergency exit sign seemed like a beacon to everyone there. In an instant, the basic human instinct for survival kicked in. Without a moment to ponder what had transpired, everyone rushed towards the exit indicated by the sign.
Even the most sophisticated of technologies could not contain the primal survival instinct of a crowd in panic. Thus, the sealed passages were forced open.
