Sleight of hand [Jules Marino]

[Felix (DELETED 10362)]

WEARING

The man almost belonged, but not quite. He dressed in scrubby jeans like all the others and wore a t-shirt from some band that had been in fashion before he was born. His hair is spiked like some boy-band pre-madonna, but something about his eyes is just book-ish. Like inside that persona is a little nerd. Then there's this device on his wrist, which he didn't mean for it to be seen. Some guy bumped into him with a glass of red wine and he had whipped off his jacket to wipe the stain before it set. He was at it pouring on some white wine and rubbing it when he suddenly froze mid-stroke and put it back on before he'd finished the job. Then he smiles and resumes his conversation about indie music with some punk chick. But the red haired thief with two big aquamarine stones for eyes has seen it and clocked it and thinks about how he can make it his own.

The device on his wrist is like nothing you can buy in the shops, and heaven only knows what it does. But it looks expensive like something Felix can sell on. He just needs to get his hands on it. He starts working on his plan as he sips ginger ale from the bar. The good news is that there's lots of distractions. Laughter overpowers the jukebox. Conversations swirl in a dirty cloud of smoke, the stagnant stench of cigarettes hides within the collaboration of mephitic odours. A sharp smell of drink and spilt wine wafts towards him like black plumes bellowing from the windows of a burning house. There’s even a hint of sick tainting the fragrance of the room.

The bar is hundreds of conversations told in loud voices, all of them competing with the rock music that dominates the atmosphere. The crowd is young, students from the university for the most part. They're easy marks made easier when they pick up the pool cues and start a fresh game. Felix remains patient and keeps his focus stern but loose so it doesn't look like he's a wolf picking out the fawn from the herd.

No man who wants to be mysterious can ever truly be mysterious. There's something about wanting the attention that gives him away. Truly mysterious men have no such desire, their motives remain hidden and hence the allure. They have a stand-offish quality that dares contact without inviting it. They are independent and casual, nonchalant and slow to temper, analyzing situations with ease. Felix thinks himself pretty mysterious and a practical magician. But the magician is little more than a highly effective pickpocket.

He is good at what he does though. He can entertain the crowd, inviting the highest value players to the stage, then relieve them of their valuables. He takes great delight in doing this in front of the audience and there still not being any witnesses to the crime. He would haul enough in one visit to a wealthy neighbourhood to live handsomely for a month or so under another name, in another town, using a different disguise. Then he would invent a new persona and stage name and move on to the next wealthy district. This time he had his feet planted in Harper Rock and is about to test the waters with a quick show of sleight of hand.