Double Vision by F. T. Bradley Page A

street and get my money’s worth. Stop Benjamin Green from taking my place.
    â€œHey!”
    I dropped my board onto the pavement and hopped on.
    I heard the horns blaring, the cop yelling, the cold Paris wind buzzing against my eardrums.
    And I rushed across to the arc, ready to charge Benjamin Green.

20
TUESDAY, 3:30 P.M.
    AS COOL AS IT WAS TO ZIP ACROSS THE street to the Arc de Triomphe while a cop was yelling at me, I don’t recommend it as a strategy when you’re visiting Paris. As it turns out, my cranky policeman had lots of friends, and by the time I reached the Arc de Triomphe plaza, three of them were ready to take me down.
    â€œNo, no,” I said, raising one hand, holding my skateboard in the other. “I was just trying to get to a friend, see?” But Françoise and Ben were both gone.
    The cops were actually really nice, even if they did arrest me on the spot and make me call Agent Stark. The policemen joked around about me trying to get to a girl, and I didn’t want to argue, since it seemed to make them happy.
    Agent Stark showed up with Agent Fullerton. Fullerton immediately worked on befriending the cops, giving me a wink, telling me everything would be okay. Stark didn’t even try to hide her annoyance with me. She filled out some papers and made an effort to smile at the cops, which she obviously wasn’t very good at. After about twenty minutes, they went back to their posts, and I was left with Agent Stark. Fullerton joined us after walking around the monument for reasons I didn’t get.
    â€œYou said you were on your way to the hotel,” Agent Stark said.
    â€œI took the scenic route.”
    â€œOf course. You haven’t even been in Paris for a day, and you got arrested already.” She folded the report in half. “That’s a record even for you, isn’t it?”
    â€œHey, I’m not some kind of criminal.”
    â€œGive the kid a break, Stark,” Fullerton mumbled.
    I glanced around, over Agent Stark’s shoulder, and around the arc. But still no Françoise or Benjamin Green. “He was here, you know, and again earlier at the bakery.”
    â€œWho?” Agent Fullerton asked.
    â€œBenjamin Green, who else?”
    Agent Stark started looking around, too. “Right here?”
    â€œThis guy has joined the other side, and he’s not wasting time. He’s after the evil Mona Lisa , and—”
    â€œKeep your voice down,” Agent Fullerton hissed, but the rest of the tourists at the Arc de Triomphe were happily ignoring us. “Are you sure it was him?”
    â€œYes.”
    â€œYou need to go home,” Agent Stark said. “This is too dangerous.”
    â€œBut I’m not done!” I told the agents about the clue we found in the cookbook. “What if we can find the missing painting? Would that rescue the mission and get my family out of lawsuit trouble?”
    Agent Fullerton squinted. “Yes, it would.” Tourists kept passing by, oblivious to what a dangerous weapon was out there, ready to hypnotize them. “I’ll just have to run this by the big man.”
    â€œYour boss.” I assumed he was talking about the guy in the Hawaiian shirt up in the Penthouse.
    â€œYou’re lucky that I couldn’t get us a plane back to the States until tomorrow,” Stark added.
    â€œSo what’s the difference if I roam around Paris a little?” I gave them both my best smile. “I promise I’ll behave.”
    â€œCall me or Agent Fullerton every few hours,” Stark said. “And if you see Drake, or Benjamin Green, call me immediately.”
    â€œOf course.” I didn’t tell her that Benjamin Green had a way of finding me.
    Fullerton nodded toward the other end of the arc. “I think that’s Françoise over there. Maybe you can ask her what’s going on.”
    I grabbed my board.
    â€œNo more run-ins with the police,