24 Hours

3:00 a.m.

It was so calm, so peaceful. I had melted into a realm of nothingness. I was at ease, giving my body the rest it needed, until whispers floated into the void.

"Is this dude really asleep right now?"

"I can't believe he used to be that famous hacker."

"Do you really think he can do the job?"

"Of course he can, you heard him. He programs tech now. Besides, you don't just lose decades worth of skills overnight. And you remember what the boss said. Jordan is brilliant. He's likely putting on a show of weakness because he doesn't want to be associated with any crime stuff, no matter what it is."

"Look, I even see some drool on the corner of his mouth!"

Drool? I drool in my sleep? I felt my cheeks growing hot. This was worse than when I went to camp, and the boys in my cabin decided to pour ice over my head. I woke up screaming for my mom, and they all laughed at me. Needless to say, I did not return to camp again.

But at least that was with kids. Right now, grown adults were making fun of me. And I didn't like it.

"I'll wake him up. It's already 3:15 a.m." A hand planted itself firmly on my shoulder and began to shake me. I felt like my arm was about to fly off. My eyes popped open.

"Ah!" I yelped. I hadn't been expecting him to be so vigorous. I turned to see Cougar beside me. Of course they would have the muscleman wake me up.

"We got to go now," he said. "Remember, we only have forty-five minutes allocated to get in there, grab the goods, and get out."

I nodded. My jaw stretched into a yawn. I still wished I could have slept more. At least you got some shut eye on the plane. That was a good three hours of sleep. I would have passed out by now if it weren't for that.

Cougar stepped onto the sidewalk, in front of the fence on the side of the Mayhad's Mansion. Calico was still in the front seat of the car, but Parrot was already waiting outside, studying the fence. I slid across the seat and into the cold night air. I shivered, regretting the fact that I was only in a blue suit jacket and pants.

My jaw nearly dropped when I noticed that the others were only in black, leather, long-sleeved tops and pants. Their clothes looked even thinner than mine. And I had heard that leather is very cold. How come they aren't shivering? I supposed that if they were used to doing crime by night, they would get used to the temperature.

I glanced around. A line of mansions towered over me, casting shadows on the dim road, lit only by a streetlamp. Though most of the windows were dark, I still felt like everyone was staring at me. The whole situation set me on edge. I nearly jumped when Falcon started the motor of the car. The black BMW pulled away from the curb, the car lights fading into the night.

"Falcon's going to location C," someone whispered. I turned to see Calico standing right next to me. Now I really did jump. The last time I had seen her, she had been in the front seat of the car. She hadn't made the slightest noise. Her brow knit together at my startlement, but she didn't say anything.

Really, you oughtn't sneak up on people.

"Good," Cougar said.

"I'm going to my hiding spot," Parrot said. Without further explanation, he pulled a stick out of his pocket. He pressed a button on the end, and it lengthened by several feet. Parrot planted the end of the stick firmly on the ground, took a running start, and vaulted himself over the side of the Mayhad's fence.

"What did he do that for?" I asked.

"He's watching for any signs of activity in the back of the home. He needs to watch the alleyway."