The midday sun shone through the bedroom and onto the bed. Lane shifted uncomfortably to get the light out of his eye. Just as he began to drift back to sleep, there came a long, loud knocking on the door. “Ungh...” the lion moaned as he dragged himself out of bed. He walked over to the full-length mirror on the wall to examine himself.

	His tawny fur was sticking up at odd angles and his mane was messier than he would have liked. A green streak ran through his mane and goatee. He stretched his arms up and yawned, sending a ripple through his body. His fur now straightened, he gave a small smile of approval. The visitor knocked again. “Lane!” called a female voice. “Lane, I know you’re in there! Open up!”
	
	Lane’s smile became a scowl and the green streak turned crimson red. He threw on a pair of jeans and a black t-shirt as he stumbled through his apartment. He threw open the door, revealing a trim lioness in shorts and a tank top. “Lydia, what do you wa-”

	“Lane, WHY did it take so long for you to answer?” asked Lydia.

	“I was asleep,” Lane replied. “You know, sleep. That one thing Mom and Dad and I were always better than you with.”

	“Ha ha, so funny. I’ll have you know I get plenty of sleep AND I wake up before noon.”

	“Will you get to the point?” asked Lane. “I need to get ready for work.”

	“Actually,” Lydia started as she slid into the apartment, “that’s what I came to talk to you about. Someone’s going to catch on eventually, bro. You can’t expect to get away with this forever.”

	“Hey, it’s all good sis. No one’s gonna find out. I’m technically hired as the guy’s ‘personal assistant’. I even go out and do boring office stuff half the time. The rest is as off the record as it can get.”

	“And exactly how off the record is that?”

	“Not very.” Lane motioned to the door. “Now if you’ll excuse me, I need to get ready.”

	The siblings glared at each other. Lydia conceded first. “Fine. Have it your way, bro. But this is so going to come back to bite your tail.”

	“Love ya too, sis,” said Lane as Lydia left. He sighed and ran his hand through his mane. As if on cue, his cell phone rang. “Hello?” he answered.

	“Lane, it’s Michael,” came the answer. “I need you to come in immediately.”

	“Oh great...” Lane muttered in response. “I don’t suppose this is an emergency coffee call?”

	“I need you to mark an apartment building on 17th and Forest Pine. And, yes, some coffee would be appreciated as well.”

	“Any details? Anything specific?”

	“No, this is all up to you. Just make sure not to use anything too permanent. My boys will need to be able to remove it after a few days.”

	“Free publicity, freedom of speech, all for your cleanup crew to get the extra work...” Lane pondered this offer a moment. “What’s the catch?”

	“Now now, Mr. Dupree, what makes you think there’s a catch?”

	“Because it’s too easy.”

	After a long pause, Michael answered: “The building is a very high-end housing complex. Very wealthy tenants. Very, willing to, ahem... protect their interests...”

	“Crap... How many guards?”

	“Dozens.”

	“Triple.”

	Another pause. “Pardon me?”

	“My day had a bad start. My sister cut my sleep early, and I’m short on cash. If you want me to pull this off today, it’ll cost triple my usual fee.”

	“Done and done,” said Michael a bit reluctantly. “After all, you are the best in your field.”

	“I’ll have that coffee for you soon, sir.”

	“I’ll see you this afternoon, then?”

	Lane offered a slight chuckle, then hung up. He headed for his balcony, eying the target building through the glass door. It was a tall white-and-gold building that looked more like a Las Vegas hotel than a housing complex. The easiest way to mark it would be on the ground floor. He could just move by real fast and nobody would have any clue what happened.

	Of course, that was the boring way to do it.

	This job was a performance.

	This job needed an audience.

	Lane returned to his bedroom to collect his gear. “This job is going to be fun.”