section7mfu | "To Catch a Thief Affair" Chapter 3- the conclusion

Chapter one, Chapter two

Estelle walked out to the sitting room, closing the lights there; she sat down in the dark and lit a cigarette for herself. It was a habit she’d picked up during the war. With bombs dropping all around she and the other nurses and doctors who were tending the wounded in the hospital bomb shelter, something was needed to sooth their nerves. One of the other nurses offered her a fag to calm her one day and that was the start of it.

Over the years she smoked less and less, mostly during times of stress. Tonight was definitely stressful but in an exciting sort of way. She’d been in U.N.C.L.E. headquarters before but it had always been for a social visit, usually on a holiday.

This evening being a part of an actual operation was quite thrilling. Though there was no real danger for her, it reminded her of her days during the war when one faced death and destruction. There was fear, yet there was determination and courage that saw you through those terrible times.

It was because of World War I that she met her husband, and Estelle liked to think that was the Lord’s reward to her for a job well done. *

As she puffed away on her cigarette she mused, Alexander had his pipe and she had her fags. What a pair they were, she a former nurse and he a former spy...well technically he still was one, but not active in the field as an agent. For that she was thankful.

His job had a terrible burden though, sending his people into harm’s way like a general with his troops. He spent too many hours at his office, suffering in silence over the life and death situations, and decisions that sent some of his agents to their deaths.

Estelle knew that’s why he didn’t come home early. He was keeping those terrible feelings there at headquarters, working through them, and hiding them away until he was ready to come home so he wouldn’t have to burden her or the children with them.

Though his people at headquarters thought he never slept, Alexander very easily could, once he put aside the stress of his job. When he finally came home they would chat over tea, usually about her day, not his. It was only when something bad happened that she could see it in his eyes. He rarely would share ill tidings, but sometimes he did share his burdens with her.

Mrs. Waverly had left on five dazzling bracelets as she wanted to admire them just a little longer. Even though they weren’t real, they were pretty in spite of being a bit garish by comparison to the jewelry she usually wore.

Most of what she owned were Victorian pieces of gold and enamel that Alexander had given her over the years. She tended to favor brooches, but he did give her exquisite filigree platinum and diamond earrings with a matching lavalier pendant, for their recent wedding anniversary.

As the smoke from her cigarette swirled around her she heard a noise coming from behind her.

“Alexander?”

Dinner arrived as had Kuryakin. He’d only allowed himself one vodka, but was happy Napoleon had ordered a bottle of red wine to go with dinner. As the two men happily ate their dinner in silence they both heard Mrs. Waverly’s voice call out her husband’s name.

The listening device sitting on nearby desk had been left on just a precaution in protecting the Waverly’s. No one knew the CCO and his wife were there except for Napoleon, Illya, Slate and Dancer, and those two were both in their respective apartments snug in bed. Solo and Kuryakin were the security detail and planned to take turns sleeping during the night.

A shot rang out and the agents dropped everything; charging next door, their hearts in their throats with fear that one or both of the Waverly’s had been harmed.

The door to the suite was ajar and bursting in they found Mr. Waverly hovering over his wife with a gun in his hand.

Mrs. Waverly was sitting atop a prone figure who was dressed entirely in black and she had him pinned down. There was a small smoking gun in her hand.

“Apparently our cat burglar couldn’t resist a second try at the Duchess’ baubles,” she said rather calmly.

Illya pulled the balaclava from the thief’s head and to his and Napoleon’s surprise it was the freckle faced bellboy, except now his eyes were brown. He had long brown hair and apparently he was a she.

They picked her up and sat her down on a nearby burgundy settee.

“I think it’s time for you to start talking young lady,” Waverly huffed.

“Wait a moment Alexander, her arm is wounded and needs to be tended to,” Estelle insisted. She fetched water and towels from the bath, and proceeded to clean and dress the injury.

“It was merely a flesh wound.”

“Hmm, and I was concerned about you using the gun, though I would surmise your aim wasn't as good as you thought it was my dear,”Waverly said.

“On the contrary my darling, I hit precisely where I aimed. I had no wish to kill our cat burglar as I was sure you’d want to question him, and now that we know he’s a she, I’m even more glad I didn’t kill her, which I could have easily done.”

Napoleon leaned close to his partner’s ear, whispering to him.

“Remind me to never piss off Mrs. Waverly tovarisch.”

Illya nodded his agreement.

“What is your name?” Kuryakin finally asked the girl.

“Adele, Adele Montenegro.”

“Wait,” Napoleon interrupted.”Isn’t that the night manager’s surname?”

“Indeed it is,”Waverly said.”My dear are you related to Richard Montenegro?”

“Yes sir, he’s my uncle.”

“There is no other Montenegro working here,” Illya recalled the list of employees.

“Was he aware of what you were doing?”Solo asked.

“Yes sir, it was me and my cousins. Uncle Richard said he would help out the family. He promised that my mother, who’s terribly ill would be taken care of. She’s in the hospital, and the bills are getting very big.”

“Did he now?” Waverly looked to his agents.

“I know what I was doing was wrong but I didn't know what else to do,”Adele began to cry and Estelle wrapped her arms around her, offering her a comforting shoulder on which to sob.

It turned out that Richard Montenegro was once known under a different name, and that was the “The Cat”...a burglar who, many years ago, prowled the Riviera, robbing the rich and famous until one day he just disappeared. He’d never been caught, and the authorities were unaware of his true identity.

Since the robberies stopped, it was assumed ‘the Cat’ had simply died, or retired to enjoy his ill gotten goods.

Since Montenegro was too old to continue in his former line of work, he became a concierge. Employed for years at a number of high end hotels; he established a flawless reputation.

As the money from his thievery over the years began to run low, he came up with a plan to train his needy niece and nephews to carry on the family traditions, though they didn't know that. Apparently Montenegro’s father was a cat burglar as well.

He would have his young apprentices escape to the roofs of the elevators, and hide there after each robbery had taken place. Montenegro would leave clues of discarded ropes and such, like the balaclava, on the hotel roofs and stairwells to throw off the scent and confuse any investigations as to how the burglar could have come and gone.

Once the coast was clear Adele or whichever family member he used would be let down into the elevator, surrender the goods and he’d have clothing in which they could change into, like the bellboy uniform.

If they had to remain atop the elevator for a prolonged period of time, he’d sneak food and water to them until they could leave.

In the end, the Montenegro family was rounded up; there would be punishment and rehabilitation involved for the children but nothing too severe. Out of the goodness of his heart Waverly made sure Adele’s mother was taken care of by the best doctors and her hospital bill was also seen to.

Most of the missing jewelry was recovered, found in a safety deposit box under Montenegro’s name at the Israel Discount Bank that had recently opened on Fifth Avenue.

As to Richard Montenegro, the former 'Cat', he was going to a prison that was virtually escape proof.

The man had used children to do his dirty work, making promises to them he never intended to keep. He was teaching them that stealing was acceptable, and tried to corrupt their young minds. That and orchestrating the theft of millions of dollars in jewelry sealed his fate, permanently.

As per Alexander Waverly, his confinement would be in a little place in Antarctica known as Tartarus...

* ref “Home is where the heart is”

Note: Tartarus is an UNCLE maximum security prison located in Antarctica. The concept originated with Gina Martin, aka GM in MFU fanfiction.

"To Catch a Thief Affair" Chapter 3- the conclusion

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