Capítulo 54: Chapter 54: Stalker - Pat

I've done this lock before, or something similar enough to make no odds. Choosing from the torsion tools the one I think most likely to do the job, inserted one-handedly into the lock, a small amount of applied tension on the cylinder pressures it to turn. Which of course, it can't do just yet, until the pins are lifted.

It's a bit awkward, but I've had plenty of practice, and with the other hand I insert my chosen pick, easing in. The first couple of pins are free. There's always one or two like that in cheap locks. But the third one resists, still seized with its own friction.

Angling to exert a little bit of pressure, keeping constant pressure on the barrel, slowly, carefully, I force pin three upward until, with a Click! the split in the pin aligns with the barrel, the barrel rotates a fraction and I move to the next pin. Thirty seconds later, all the pins have shifted and aligned, the pressure against my torsion tool drops away and the lock snaps open.