National Treasure: A Legends Beginning

"Go home for the day, Alina." I turned to find my boss, Agent Sedusky, in the doorway to my office.

"I will after I finish this report, sir," I told him. He chuckled and let me be. As soon as he left my phone started ringing.

"Hello," I asked.

"It's me." I closed the case file on my desk.

"Hey big brother," I said. I hadn't heard from Ben in a long while.

"I need you Lina," he said.

"Where are you," I sighed. I stood up and grabbed my jacket, putting it on.

"Meet me in the National Archives Building," he said.

"I'll be there soon," I said walking out the door. Hanging up, I knocked on Sedusky's door.

"I have a family issue I need to take care of," I told him before walking away.

"Take a vacation," I heard him yell. Laughing I walked out to my car and drove to Ben's destination. I found my brother and another guy standing in front of the Declaration of Independence.

"180 years of searching and I am 3 feet away. Of all the ideas that became the United States, there is a line here that is at the heart of all the others. But when a long train of abuses and years of patience perusing invariably the same object, evinces a design to reduce them under absolute despotism, it is their right it is their duty to throw off such government and provide new guards for their future security. People don’t talk that way anymore," Ben said.

"Beautiful," the other guy said. "I have no idea what that means."

"It means if something is wrong, those that have the ability to take action have the responsibility to take action. I’m going to steal it," Ben clarified.

"Steal what," I asked making myself known. Both men turned quickly.

"Lina," Ben said pulling me in for a hug.

"Who's this," the other guy asked. He has beautiful blue eyes and brown hair.

"Alina, this is Riley," Ben said. "Riley, this is my sister, Alina."

"Hi," Riley said.

"Hi," I said. I was still mesmerized by his eyes.

"Lina," Ben said snapping his fingers. My thoughts were cut off as I remembered the conversation I walked in on.

"Wait a minute," I said crossing my arms. I glared at my brother. "What are you going to steal?"

"It's a long story," Riley said.

"Would you mind explaining then," I asked. Riley and Ben took turns explaining their situation with Ian. I never did like him. He tried getting me to date him once.

"So you're saying that in order to protect the Declaration of Independence before Ian can get to it is stealing it yourself," I clarified.

"That pretty much covers it," Riley said.

"I need your help Lina," Ben pleaded. "Remember the promise we made to grandpa?"

"You just had to bring grandad into this," I sighed. "Fine. But if I get fired its your fault. The last thing I need is Sedusky finding out."

"Sedusky," Riley asked. "Isn't that the mean FBI man?"

"I'm one of his agents," I said.

"Useful," he said.

"Ian’s going to try and steal it and if he succeeds, he will destroy the declaration. The fact is the only way to protect the declaration is to steal it. It’s upside-down. I don’t think there’s a choice," Ben said.

"Ben, for god-sakes it’s like stealing a national monument. It’s like stealing him," Riley said pointing to the huge statue of Abraham Lincoln.

"It can’t be done. It’s not that it shouldn’t be done, it can’t be done. Let me prove it to you," Riley finished before guiding us to the Library of Congress.

"Okay Ben pay attention," Riley said. It sounded like he was talking to a little kid. "I brought you to the Library of Congress. Why? Because it’s the biggest library in the world. Over 20 million books. And they are all saying the same exact thing. Listen to Riley. What we have here my friend is an entire layout of the Archives. We’ve got builder’s blue prints, we have construction orders, phone lines, water and sewage. It’s all here. Now, when the declaration is on display, it is surrounded by guards and video monitors, and little families from Iowa, and little kids on their 8th grade field trip. And beneath and inch of bullet proof glass is an army of sensors and heat monitors that will go off if someone gets too close with a high fever. Now when it’s not on display, it is lowered into a 4 feet thick concrete steal plated vault that happens to be equipped with an electronic combination lock and biometric access and denial systems."

"You know Thomas Edison tried and failed nearly 2000 times to develop the carbonized cotton filament for the incandescent light bulb," Ben said.

"What does Edison have to do with anything," I asked.

"And when asked about it he said “I didn’t fail, I found out 2000 ways how not to make a light bulb”, but he only needed to find one way to make it work. The preservation room. Enjoy. Go ahead. Do you know what the preservation room is for," Ben asked us.

"Delicious jams and jellies," Riley asked. I smacked his arm with the back of my hand.

"That’s where they clean, repair, and maintain all the documents and storage housings when they aren’t on display or in the vault," I explained. "Now when the case needs work, they take it out of the vault and directly across the hall into the preservation room. The best time for us or Ian to steal it would be during the Gala this weekend, when the guards are distracted by the V.I.P.s upstairs. But we’ll make our way to the preservation room where there is much less security."

"That might actually work," Riley said.

"Surprised," I asked.

"A little," he smirked.

"You wound me," I said feigning hurt.