Chapter 10

On Sunday I was furious with myself for what had happened. I'd had the chance to steal a load of money, even having been saved the bother of having to ask for it since the other robbers already had done the threatening and the bagging up. I suppose looking on the bright side, if I had arrived a bit later I would have found no money, since the robbers would have cleaned the place out. Still, it didn't change the fact that I hadn't managed to steal anything. I was a failure as a super villainess. All the other super villainesses would probably laugh at me.

I was in a grumpy mood all morning as a result, and my parents gave me a wide berth, Mum even suggesting it might be due to my new body and its strange cycles, which made me embarrassed as well as grumpy.

I stomped about complaining to Kittybot about how unfair it was. Other super villains probably had some training at some super villain school or something, or were under the wing of a hero that they eventually betrayed, but who helpfully taught them everything they needed to know before that point. I only had what I had seen on TV or read in books.

Kittybot listened patiently, not interrupting my ranting. Eventually she rolled over onto her back and poked my hand with her paw as if to say "Not to worry Lexi, you'll get it right next time." Or maybe she just wanted her belly stroking. To cover all bases I took the advice and gave her belly a rub while her display purred at me.

Maybe a bank had been too much for my first time out. Maybe I needed something simpler, like an armoured car. I didn't know any of the routes though, so I needed to do some research. I picked up Kittybot and ran upstairs to do some villainous internet searching. I sat Kittybot on my lap to stroke. Villains often stroked their cats while explaining their evil plan to the hero they had caught, so I figured they would probably have done the same while devising the evil plan.

I scanned the local public web cams looking for a potential target. Using some mapping software linked to a satellite feed I spotted all the local banks and looked for any that might be getting a delivery. Soon I found an armoured car out on its rounds as it passed one of the public traffic cameras. It wasn't stopping at banks but was serving various shops in a chain. I looked up the position of other shops in the chain online and figured out the cars probable route. If I hurried I reckoned I could intercept it a few stops along.

"Quick, to the Secret Lair!" I said to Kittybot. Then put her in her bed since she was too young for a life of crime. I wondered if I should train her so that if I was caught or captured she could come and rescue me. Still, no time for that now. I raced out the door with a quick goodbye to my parents and ran all the way to the garage.

I put on my costume and climbed into my armour. This time would be different I would stay focussed and not forget that I was a ruthless and dastardly super villainess. I clambered carefully out of the garage and made my way over to my estimated route for the armoured car. As I turned the corner I was surprised by a man out walking his dog.

"Good Afternoon," he said and kept walking. The dog barked at me a few times and his owner called him, "Come along Jack."

He didn't seem to find it strange that there was a huge suit of metallic armour walking along the path. I was too surprised to say anything and it threw me off my game a little. I shook my head and picked up the pace. I didn't want to miss my target by being distracted by people walking their dogs. I charged up for a jump and leapt high into the air, landing on top of a three story building. It occurred to me after I landed that I couldn't tell from my jump point if it would take my weight or even if the landing area was clear. For now I trusted to luck and my enhanced vision, but I would need to think about that long term. With careful aim I made a series of jumps across the roof tops and through alleyways towards where I thought the armoured car might be.

I perched on top of a four story building looking for my target. Using my vision I swept the streets. I picked out the armoured car as it made its way down one of the main streets. I jumped closer to my target, picking a convenient roof nearby and readied myself for the jump. I had to be ruthless and focussed. I was a villain. I was bad! Again, now that I was on the brink of a crime my doubts nagged and I wondered if I should just go home. I shook my head to get rid of such thoughts. I was a villain now, that was all there was to it. I made a growling noise to get myself in the mood and even tried an evil laugh which I suspected was the sort of thing villains did when warming up for a crime. I got ready to jump down. The car was coming to a junction where it would have to stop. I figured I'd jump down when it stopped, then tear the doors off to go for the money.