Chapter 41 Section 40

In the museum's rotunda, D'Agosta watched with amusement as two burly workmen unrolled the red carpet between two rows of palm trees, pulled open the bronze door, and rolled it down the front steps. Will get wet in the rain, he thought.It was getting dark, and D'Agosta could see in the western and northern sky a mass of thunderclouds gathering, towering like towering mountains above the windswept trees beside the river road.The rumble of thunder in the distance rattled the preview objects in the rotunda display case, and a few raindrops hit the frosted glass of the bronze door.It's going to be an earth-shattering torrential downpour, as evidenced by the morning news satellite images.The beautiful red carpet is going to get drenched – and so are a lot of the hipsters.

At five, the museum closes its doors to the public.The pretty guests don't start entering until seven o'clock.The media was ready: TV station vans carrying satellite transmitters, cameramen chatting at the top of their voices, equipment everywhere. D'Agosta gave orders over the police radio.He placed more than two dozen people at key locations around the Sky Hall and in other areas inside and outside the museum.Luckily for me, he thought: I finally figured out the terrain around this place basically.Two of his men had already lost their way and had to call him on the walkie-talkie.

D'Agosta was not happy.At the four o'clock briefing, he requested a final thorough search of the exhibit hall, but Coffey vetoed the proposal and refused to allow plainclothes and patrol officers with heavy weapons to appear at the reception.It would scare the guests, Coffey said.D'Agosta glanced at the four pass-through metal detection doors and accompanying X-ray conveyor belt.Thank goodness the devices weren't removed, he thought. D'Agosta turned around and looked for Pendergast again.Pendergast did not attend the briefing.In fact, D'Agosta hadn't seen Pendergast since his meeting with Ippolito this morning.

The intercom crackled. "Hello, vice-captain? I'm Henry. I'm at the stuffed elephant, but I can't seem to find the Ocean Hall. Remember you said—" D'Agosta interrupted him to watch a group test the most impressive array of lights ever seen. "Henry? See that door with the fangs? Okay, go in, turn right twice. Call me when you get there. Your partner is Wilson." "Wilson? Sir, you know I don't like working with women." "Henry? Just a little more." "what?" "Wilson has a twelve-gauge shotgun." "Wait a minute, deputy captain, you—"

D'Agosta cut off the call with a snap. There was a loud metal rubbing sound from behind, and the thick iron door slowly descended from the ceiling on the north side of the rotunda.They've started cordoning off the perimeter of the field.Two FBI agents stood outside the door in the shadows, their suit jackets baggy enough to barely conceal the short-barreled shotguns inside.D'Agosta snorted. The steel plate fell to the ground with a loud bang.The sound echoed heavily in the hall.The echo hadn't disappeared yet, and the iron gate on the south side came to the ground one after another.Only the east gate remains, which is where the red carpet ends.My God, thought D'Agosta, this place mustn't catch fire.Someone was yelling and cursing at the end of the hall. He turned around and saw Coffey directing his men to run around.

Coffey saw him. "Hi, D'Agosta!" he called, gesturing for D'Agosta to come over.D'Agosta fell on deaf ears.Kofi strutted over, his face covered in sweat and oil, and his belt was covered with all kinds of weapons and advanced gadgets that D'Agosta had heard of but had never seen with his own eyes. "D'Agosta, are you deaf? Send your two men to guard this door for me. No one is allowed in or out." My God, thought D'Agosta.There were five FBI guys in the rotunda, all wandering around with nothing to do. "Coffey, my people are very busy. Send your Rambo. You put most of your men on the security circle. I have to deploy my forces inside the venue to protect the guests, not to mention commanding the outside The rest of the museum will be empty, and there will be a noticeable lack of police at the reception. I don't like that."

Coffey lifted his belt, glared at D'Agosta and said, "You know? I don't care if you like it or not. Just do your job. Leave me a channel on the walkie-talkie." step away. D'Agosta cursed secretly.He looks at his watch.There are sixty minutes left, and the time is ticking by.