lights, not ours. We are outta here!”

Baloo and Rebecca were outside before the inspector made it to the door. Just as he reached for the doorknob, he heard a faint ‘click’. He turned to see a man behind the counter where there hadn’t been anyone a second previously. His eyes narrowed and a hand crept up to his moustache as he meditatively studied the man, who was rifling through papers on the counter.

When Hans discovered that he was being watched, he hastily shoved the papers under the counter. In his overly suave voice, the former butler asked, “May I help you find something, sir?”

“Non. Not today.”

When Deuseau walked outside, Baloo was saying, “It’s too dangerous, Becky.”

“But it’s our chance to clear your name!”

“You don’t understand. There’s chances an’ there’s chances. An’ some of ‘em just shouldn’t be took.”

Arms crossed, Rebecca snapped, “I understand perfectly. I understand that you don’t believe me. You believe me, don’t you, inspector?”

“Maybe, madame,” the canine policeman replied absently as he took a notebook out of his jacket pocket and jotted something down.

“Ha!” Rebecca retorted, smirking triumphantly.

“Or maybe not.”

“Ha!” It was Baloo’s turn to smirk.

Deuseau slipped the notebook into his pocket. “Mais, I do believe that we have a mission to complete at St. Lark’s Square. Come, we must go.”

St. Lark’s Square
3:00 PM

A little while later, Inspector Deuseau, Baloo, and Rebecca disembarked the vaporetto and stepped into piazza at St. Lark’s Square.

“It’s so big,” Rebecca commented. While keeping an lookout for the Baloo look-alike, her eyes panned around the buildings bordering the L-shaped ‘square’: the elaborate Doge’s Palace, the towering stone Campanile, the golden-domed St. Lark’s Basilica, and two of Veniece’s museums. The piazza was swarming with tourists, pigeons, vendors, and outdoor cafes. Her head fairly swam with all the activity.

“How are we supposed to know where this Dr. Quark is?” Baloo asked.

Rebecca caught Baloo’s arm before he could wander over to a nearby gelato stand. “He’s not over there.”

“How do you know?”

Before Rebecca could retort, a tour guide walked by with approximately twenty tourists in tow. In a thick Italeean accent, she said, “The Campanile was built in 912 A.D., then rebuilt stone by stone a thousand years later after it toppled to the ground. In the 10th century, the bells were rung, not only on the hour, but to signify...”

“Bells!” Baloo and Rebecca exclaimed, sharing a look.

The inspector discreetly pulled the clue that the thief had dropped at Le Laboratorie D’Atomique out of his pocket to consult it.

The tour guide continued, “There are hundreds of steps to reach the top of the 325 foot building, but not to worry, there is also an elevator.”

A few of the tourists chuckled in relief as they followed the tour guide to their next destination.

“If the clue is correct, Dr. Quark will be at the top of the tower,” the Inspector remarked. He stowed the scrap of paper in his pocket.

“Then I guess that’s where I’m headed.” Baloo tipped his head back to see the Campanile. Even though the bell tower was a mere midget compared to Khan Towers, the pointed peak still appeared to brush the clouds.

“You have the envelope?” Deuseau asked peremptorily.

“Roger that.” Baloo opened his jacket to reveal the manila envelope stowed in his vest pocket.

“Bon. Deliver it to Dr. Quark.”

“That’s it?” Baloo nervously tugged at the starched collar of his new shirt. “That’s all I gotta do?”

“Oui. That’s it,” Inspector replied with a nod. “I don’t think I need remind you that the fate of the world depends on this.”

Baloo gulped. “Then, please don’t.”

“After you’ve completed your mission, return here.” His eyes narrowed as he added, “One thing. If you are the thief and attempt a double-cross, remember that when you are caught, years will be added to both of your jail sentences.” His serious gaze fell on Baloo and Rebecca alike.

“Why am I going to jail? What did I do?” Rebecca cried.

“You are his accomplice.”

Fuming, Rebecca sputtered, “But...but...I...you...we...that man...in that store, the one with all the cooking stuff! He’s the real thief!”

“Let it go, Becky. Let it go,” Baloo sighed in resignation. He turned to the inspector. “Can I talk to my wife for a sec?”

Deuseau glanced at his watch before nodding. “Be quick about it.”

Baloo took Rebecca by the arm and led her a few paces away.

“Just say ‘I told you so’ and get it over with,” Rebecca said contritely. “If I hadn’t been so...so...”

“Pigheaded?” Baloo supplied with a wink.

Rebecca winced. Her scheme to get rich by using a pig to hunt truffles was one memory she’d like to forget. “I was going to say ‘discontented’.” With her eyes fixed on the patterned pavement, she murmured, “None of this would have happened if I hadn’t wanted to come here in the first place. I-I’m sorry, Baloo.”

“I ain’t.”

Rebecca looked up at him in surprise.

Baloo gently took her hands in his. “I got to share the past coupla crazy days with the only gal crazy enough to share ‘em with me.”

“We’ll also get to share prison sentences if this Dr. Quark doesn’t show up.” Her chin trembling, she continued, “You heard the inspector. He still doesn’t believe you’re innocent. We’ll be locked away in separate jail cells and we’ll never see each other again. And who will take care of the kids and Higher for Hire and...?”

“Easy. Easy...” Baloo crooned, squeezing her hands comfortingly. “We’ll get this mess straightened out, sweetheart. Besides, who’ll you nag if I ain’t around?”

Looking deeply into his eyes, Rebecca could see the fear under the bravado. Because she didn’t want to undermine his resolve, she set her jaw and swallowed her tears. “If you screw this up and land us both in jail, I’m going to strangle you!”

Baloo laughed, a little nervously, as he enfolded her in his warm embrace. “Yes, sir, boss lady.”

Just then, the Inspector cleared his throat delicately, yet unmistakably. “It is almost 3:00.”

“I’m just gonna zip in, deliver the package, an’ zip out. What could go wrong?” Baloo tenderly caressed Rebecca’s cheek before he turned on his heel and started towards the Campanile.

“Everything,” Rebecca whispered as she anxiously watching him disappear into the crowd.

The powerful bell, tolling three times, sounded like a death knell to Baloo. He walked faster, doggedly, across the piazza, his stomach in a knot.

Upon reaching the Campanile, Baloo squeezed into the elevator packed with a group of chattering, happy tourists. He wished that he shared their care-free spirits.

“Wait for us!” shouted a hippo woman racing across the piazza. Running beside her was her crane husband, his cameras bouncing against his chest with every step.

Baloo held the door for them.

“Oh, thank you, sir,” Elmira puffed as she and Lester squeezed into the already bulging elevator.

“Is this your first time in Veniece?” Elmira asked Baloo as the door shut and the elevator began its ascent.

“No, I...”

“It is ours, isn’t that right, Lester?”

“Yes, dear.” His camera flashed in Baloo’s face. Baloo blinked the spots out of his eyes.

“Lester and I just love traveling. It’s been our lifelong dream to see the world. Have you traveled much?”

Click!

Baloo blinked furiously. “I, uh...”

“If you haven’t been to Pearee, I highly recommend it. Very romantic, isn’t it, Lester, dear?” Elmira gushed.

“Yes, dear.” Click!

“Oh, here we are at the top,” Elmira remarked after the elevator door opened. “Nice talking to you.”

“Yeah.” Dazed, Baloo stumbled out of the elevator and was swept out onto the observatory room with the tide of tourists eager to see the 360 degree view of Veniece.

He jostled his way through the crowd to an empty space at one of the huge windows. The breeze whistling through the open archways cooled his skin, but didn’t cool his nerves. Gazing down over the piazza, he wondered which of the minuscule figures walking around below were Rebecca and the inspector.

Baloo nearly jumped out of his skin when a low voice beside him said, “Good afternoon, Herr von Bruinwald.”

Baloo turned to see...nobody. Then, he happened to look down. An ugly toad, his stout figure encased in ugly mustard-brown suit which made his sickly green skin look even more sallow, was standing there, staring up at him. Thick spectacles magnified the bulging eyes of Dr. Illian Quark.

It’s an illian wind that blows no good, Baloo thought, repulsed by the toad’s appearance.

“Did you bring the papers?” Dr. Quark asked, concluding his question with an odd, rasping laugh.

Baloo nodded. Silently, he handed the envelope to the toad.

Dr. Quark opened the flap and peeked inside. “Very good.” He closed the envelope’s flap with a nasty, crooked smile. “Very, very good. A pleasure doing business with you, Herr...”

He was interrupted by a deep, gravelly voice saying, “Gutentag, Dr.

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