Cloister of Secrets

Chapter 4: Coming Out

Jones looked up from his laptop. "I've sent the recording and the message. The ball's in Bokmal's court."

Would Stanton act as Neal believed? Peter wished he could be as certain. The team had reconvened at White Collar the next morning and spread out in the upstairs conference room. On a Sunday, the bullpen was deserted. By the time Peter arrived, Travis had already made a pot of coffee for what could be a long wait.

They didn't know how many people worked for Stanton. Bokmal could be the designation for an entire team. It was one of the case's many unknowns. The initial instructions were that an exchange would be arranged after the recording was verified, but Neal argued that Steinar Wolff could now set the terms. They'd soon find out if he was right.

Diana glanced at her watch. "It's past ten o'clock. The museum's open. One of Bokmal's fellow worms is likely on-site."

"And he'll find the gallery closed," Neal said as he doodled on a sheet of paper. "Bokmal should already know the heist was a success."

"After the show we put on last night, he better," Travis agreed. Once all the attendees of the play had left, museum security put on a second performance. As agreed earlier, officials were on hand to greet team members who acted out a forensic examination of the scene of the crime. Peter had arranged for NYPD to send a couple of squad cars. To any onlooker, the investigation would appear authentic. Meanwhile, the Hildegard was safely stowed in a holding area at the Cloisters. They hoped it could be back on display the next day.

In his confirmation message to Bokmal, Peter demanded that the exchange be made in the afternoon. He claimed that he had another buyer who was interested and that Bokmal would have to meet with him personally if he wanted the book. They already knew Stanton had sufficient funds. He could initiate a wire transfer from his account in Switzerland on the spot.

After Jones sent the message through the dark web, everyone except Neal kept themselves busy by working on their laptops. The artistic member of the team had evidently decided to try his hand at being a medieval scribe. He'd taken a Bureau bulletin and was drawing caricatures of team members along the margins. His first one was of Diana riding a sea monster. He'd just finished a drawing of Travis shaking hands with a space alien when the response came through.

"He took the bait!" Jones said jubilantly. "Bokmal's agreed to meet us in the parking lot of Van Cortland Manor."

Diana tapped rapidly on her keyboard. "That's a historic museum about thirty minutes south of his castle."

"Did he provide a telephone number?" Peter demanded.

Jones grinned. "Yep, Neal was right. I gotta admit, I didn't think Bokmal would agree to it."

"Greed has consumed caution," Neal said. "It's a reasonable request to insist you call him with the exact time of the meeting. You'll be on the road. The internet won't be available."

That phone call would provide the evidence they needed for the search warrant. They'd been able to secure provisional approval from a reluctant judge based on the accumulated internet evidence and dependent on phone confirmation. John Hobhouse, their London contact with the Interpol art crimes task force, had provided additional evidence about the Copernicus manuscript.

Peter was taking a page from Rolf's playbook. The criminal had turned a limo into his office when he met Peter. Now Steinar Wolff would do the same. Jones would be the chauffeur. Whoever met them in the parking lot would be immediately arrested. At the time of the appointment, Travis would have the power to Stanton's house shut off. The rest of the team would then storm the castle.

* * * * *

A successful con, expertly designed and executed, was a beautiful thing. Neal was a member of the search team. Stanton and his driver were arrested without a struggle. The Copernicus manuscript was still in its cubbyhole, undamaged, and would shortly be on its way back to England.