Smaragdus

Genevieve was almost done with breakfast when her brother joined her in the dining room. She had hoped to avoid him, but now that Ray was pouring himself coffee, she knew she couldn’t just get up and leave.

“Can’t you get a housekeeper or a cook to fix us decent grub?” Ray complained, buttering a half-burned piece of toast. “With all the money you’ve made it shouldn’t be difficult to find good help.” Frustrated, he abandoned the bread after one bite and concentrated on his coffee.

“What do you want, Ray?” Genevieve asked, unwilling to prolong the morning any more than necessary. The man she most despised in the world was sitting way too close to her.

“Is that a way to talk to your loving brother?” Ray chided her, pretending to be hurt. “All I’ve ever wanted is for us to be a one big happy family…”

The word us paralyzed Genevieve. “You have a seriously deranged idea of happiness,” she scoffed back.

Ray’s left hand landed  on Genevieve’s thigh like a vulture. “A family that plays together stays together…” he grinned, taking turns to stroke and squeeze the skin under the hem of her mini skirt. After a while he stopped, confident he had made his point. “Where is she?” he demanded to know. “Where have you hidden her?” Ray’s former playfulness was gone.

“I haven’t hidden her anywhere!” Genevieve replied with equal ardor. She had expected him to ask the question, yet she had hoped she could keep Therese out of harm’s way.

Ray wasn’t amused by her defiance. “You will tell me - one way or another.” His threats were never empty.  

“She needs to concentrate…” Genevieve explained, desperate to buy more time to decide the best course of action for both her and Therese. “If you show up now, who knows what she’ll do.” There was truth to what she was saying.

Ray leaned back in his chair, contemplating Genevieve’s ready excuse. Gradually his stern features creased into a cryptic smile. “Fine. I can wait till she’s done - although I’m sure she’s dying to find out…” He left the sentence unfinished on purpose.

“Find out what?” Genevieve asked, although she knew the answer couldn’t be anything but upsetting.

Ray’s wide, nasty grin confirmed her worst fears.  “That Daddy’s home.”

It was the day when the Empress’ jewels were to arrive. Tying up all the loose ends she could think of, Carol was giving last minute orders to everyone. To Richard’s great dismay, she was micromanaging his security crew, too.

“I want someone from your staff to ride with the QVICK team,” she told Richard. “You may disagree with me, but it’s better to be safe than sorry.” The mere thought of Ray Vickers was enough to make Carol exceedingly nervous about the transportation, and she wasn’t going to take unnecessary chances. Finally Richard gave in to her wish, albeit reluctantly.                    

Carol hadn’t seen Therese all morning, which she found worrying. However, a  quick chat with Bob the security guard revealed to her that her assistant had come in hours before Carol. “Therese is a terrific gal,” Bob exulted. “Look what she gave to me…” A big, tan teddy bear with a lopsided smile was sitting on top of the main desk in the lobby. “To keep me company, she said,” he laughed.

And I thought she might be a nervous wreck… Carol mused. “He even looks a bit like you!” she smiled, relieved by Bob’s news.

On her way to her office, Carol was surprised to see other cuddly toys in equally unexpected places. “Let me guess… a gift from Therese?” she asked Leona who minded the gift shop.

“How did you know?” Leona asked, surprised. “A few weeks ago I showed Therese a video of my cat, and I guess she remembered because this lil’ fella looks exactly like my widdle schnookums pookums…” She gave the huge-eyed plush toy a tight hug. “Mommy vows yooo…” Leona cooed, not minding Carol’s presence.      

Widdle schnookums pookums?  Carol decided to hurry along and refrain from asking other toy owners further questions. Therese had been busy, handing furry friends to her colleagues in almost every floor and department. For a moment Carol wondered if there was a stuffed animal waiting for her as well. Luckily, no.   

Therese kept strictly to herself, observing everything that went on in the building from the safety of her office. Even though she was sitting behind a locked door, the view she had created for herself was first-rate. All twelve teddy bears with their webcam eyes were transmitting vivid images to Therese’s computer. Only the one in the bookstore wasn’t working properly, the picture shaking and getting hazy all too often. She didn’t let it bother her, for at the moment she focused on the teddy number 8 that had fortuitously been placed on top of a storage shelf in the maintenance area.       

At 3.15 pm, right on schedule, Therese noticed a sturdy van pull in. Three men, one of them Richard, stepped out of the back of an armoured car carrying a portable safe. Another man had apparently been waiting for them, his back turned to the camera. Therese couldn’t hear what they were saying, but when they approached the camera on their way in, the stranger turned around to follow the others. It all happened quickly, but it was enough to verify what Therese knew already. Ray Vickers was escorting the Empress’ jewels.   

Although she had been frightened after the anonymous note, a strange calm took over Therese. A dangerous game was set, but at least she knew all the players. Now she only needed to take the most vulnerable of them out of the equation to have the peace of mind to accomplish what had to be done.

After a brief visit to her safe deposit box, Therese called Dannie to make sure he would be in when she got to the hotel. Her heart was heavy but her thinking was clear.  

Dannie was watching television, and it took Therese some time to convince him to turn it off. “Why don’t we go out to eat? I’d really like that,” she suggested to him. “How about some steak and eggs? For old times’ sake…” It was an offer she knew Dannie couldn’t resist.

Therese enjoyed watching Dannie devour his favorite dish while she barely touched hers. The booth they shared reminded Therese of two very different meals - the very first one with ‘Karen’ and the second, much nicer, with Dannie right after he had gotten out of prison. The lump in her throat grew bigger with each passing second. The hands of the clock on the wall moved too fast, she thought. They were ticking away time she had left with Dannie.   

“You do know that I love you, don’t you?” Therese asked Dannie suddenly.  There had never been a moment when she had felt it more vigorously than right now.

“Sure…” Dannie said, swiping his plate clean with a piece of bread. It wasn’t until he looked at Therese that he understood the weight of her words. “You and me against the world, T,” he spoke, trying to lighten up the mood. “Through thick and thin.”  

Distraught, Therese swallowed. “It’s time for you to live your life, Dannie,” she said. “To find happiness…” She had rehearsed this so many times in her mind over the years, seeking comfort in the noble sentiment of releasing him from the nightmare they had shared. Yet now that it was happening she wasn’t at all prepared for the pain of letting go, of never seeing her friend, her chosen brother, again.

Only now she realized how much she had depended on Dannie, on his always being there for her when life dealt a blow too cruel to fathom. Therese had kept Dannie afloat all these years, looked after his interests, but somehow he had become her oxygen supply, too. To cut the line that had hitched them together felt like abandoning the only safe haven in a vast, hostile space that expanded beyond her understanding.

Dannie was understandably confused. “What are you saying..?” he asked. “The exhibition opens tomorrow and we have so much to do… this is not the time or the place to…” he started, only to be interrupted by the touch of Therese’s hand on his.

“This is the time. The only right time.” She wasn’t going to change her mind now. “After tomorrow all bets are off and I need to know that you are safe when that happens.”

Dannie raised his hands in front of him as if he could prevent Therese from talking by actually fighting the words off. “I’m not going anywhere. I’m staying right here with you like I’ve always done…”

“No, you won’t!” Therese exclaimed not caring if anyone heard them or not. “You will do exactly as I tell you to do!” She hated losing her temper but she had no choice but to be strict with him. Chances were that Ray Vickers had not yet learned about Dannie’s existence, and she wanted it to stay that way.

As much as Therese despised Genevieve and all she had put her through, there had been a certain method to her madness. Lady Cantrell was never foolish or rash with what she considered her property, and she never exacted her revenge on anyone in a spur of the moment. Ray Vickers, however, tortured for torture’s sake. He could squash  someone like Dannie without giving it another thought.

“You can’t order me around!” Dannie objected stubbornly. “I’m just as much a part of this as you are…” His rant ran out of steam  when he saw the look on Therese’s face. It didn’t bode well.

Her heart pounding like a captive demanding to be released, Therese was reluctant to accept what she would have to say next. “Truth be told, I don’t want you around anymore. You’re nothing but an impediment, dead weight…” Hardly breathing, she stared at the table.        

For a small eternity neither of them said anything, and the silence choked Therese harder than any pair of punishing hands ever could. Just when it was getting too much for her, Dannie cleared his throat.

“You really want me to go.” His simple statement wasn’t  an accusation despite the hurt in his voice. “Okay then.” He straightened his back and took a long breath. At some point he had withdrawn his hands from Therese’s hold, and now that he examined them, they seemed useless and empty.

Therese pulled an envelope out of her bag, and put it between them on the table. “Inside you’ll find a passport and some money,” she explained quietly. “More will be deposited on your bank account every month. Everything you need to know is there…” Only now she dared to look at Dannie who slid the envelope in his breast pocket without caring to check its contents.

When it looked like Dannie was about to get up and leave, Therese pressed her palms on top of his hands once more. “Don’t…” she whispered. “You’re not going to be alone,” she said, overcome by emotion. “Did you think I’d let you go and not make sure you’re being looked after?” Her voice breaking, Therese forced Dannie to look at her.

Soon tears were streaming down Dannie’s face faster than he could wipe them away. “I can look after myself,” he sobbed. His sorrow mingled with his pride, which didn’t come as a surprise to Therese.  

“Of course you can, but you don’t have to,” Therese said softly. “There’s someone here who will take you home…” Home. The mere word was enough to rip her apart, but she couldn’t let it show.  

Even more confused, Dannie took a quick look around without understanding what Therese meant. “Here? Now?” he whispered back, furrowing his brow.

This is the end and the beginning, occurred to Therese. These are my last words for you.  “I think you should go and say hi to your brother Phil,” she said. A solitary figure was sitting in a booth on the other side of the diner. “Soon you’ll also get to see that nephew of yours that you’ve told me so much about...” She imagined Dannie meeting a boy who looked very much like him - someone who’d grow up to be a lovable man-child, too.   

Speechless, Dannie stared at Therese. “Just go,” Therese said, nodding in the stranger’s direction. “It’s alright. He knows what to do.” She squeezed Dannie’s hand, aware of the gesture’s significance. The simple act was all the encouragement Dannie needed to get up and close the gap between the tables and the years that had separated him from his brother.

Seeing the two men first awkwardly shake hands and then hug each other was a bittersweet moment for Therese. I’m a stranger in paradise, she mused, remembering the song Dannie had sometimes sung to her. She took her coat and bag and snuck out of the restaurant as discreetly as she only could.

Outside the air was crisp, cooler than usually that time of the year. Therese thought about tomorrow, about Carol, and the memory of Dannie’s sweet baritone flooded her mind:   

Take my hand I'm a stranger in paradise

All lost in a wonderland

A stranger in paradise

If I stand starry-eyed

That's a danger in paradise

For mortals who stand beside an angel like you

I saw your face and I ascended

Out of the commonplace into the rare

Somewhere in space I hang suspended

Until I know there's a chance that you care

Won't you answer this fervent prayer

Of a stranger in paradise?

Don't send me in dark despair

From all that I hunger for

But open your angel's arms

To the stranger in paradise

And tell him that we need be

A stranger no more

The Opening Day

“You are driving us nuts!” Abby laughed at Carol who had been darting back and forth upstairs and downstairs for the past two hours. “Look at poor Harge - even he’s stressed out because of you…” ‘Poor Harge’ really did appear rattled, the panicky Edward Munch glimmer in his eyes.

“Oh darling...” Carol smiled at her husband. “Abby’s going to take extra good care of you tonight, and won’t it be fun to get out of the house for a change?” she continued, winking at him.

“I don’t think he’s all that keen to party after what happened last time…” Abby quipped, referring to Harge’s ‘pit stop’ at the hospital after the restaurant date.   

“Why do you have to be so negative?” Carol grumbled. “Everything will go perfectly smoothly as long as you do what I expect you to do…” She gave Abby a marked look. “Or do we need to run everything through once more?” Her tone of voice expected it to be wholly unnecessary.

“I’m well aware of everything, thank you very much...” Abby muttered back. To put it mildly, the past few days had been veryinteresting, thanks to Carol’s strong-arming her to play by a whole new set of rules.  

“Abigail will make sure you will have the time of your life tonight, dear,” Carol sweet-talked to Harge. “I promise you an opening night gala you will never forget!” Saying it, she looked absolutely radiant, which couldn’t help but catch both Abby’s and Harge’s attention.

The black gala dress Carol was presently trying on clung to her body in all the right places, her beautiful, chiselled back open all the way down to her waist. When she leaned in to check her earrings in the wall mirror, her husband’s expression was reflected on it as well. “Abby, close Harge’s mouth. He’s drooling.”

Aren’t we all… Abby thought, giving her helpless patient a sympathetic look.

When Therese heard a knock on her office door, she hoped to see Carol. She shut her laptop, concealing her unusual surveillance system. To her disappointment, the woman behind the door turned out to be Genevieve.

“Hello, darling,” Lady Cantrell greeted her, giving her a kiss on both cheeks. “I’m very happy to see you.” Genevieve did look happy, which surprised Therese. “May I sit with you for a moment?” she asked although she was hardly the type to ask for anyone’s permission to do anything. “Today’s the big day, yet I’m feeling somewhat tired,” she confided in Therese. “Is it just me or is this getting harder every time?” Genevieve asked somewhat rhetorically.

Her kindness puzzled Therese. Every muscle in her body had tightened the second she had seen Genevieve’s face, yet this hardly sounded like the start of the face-off she had dreaded. Now that Genevieve knew what she had been up to these past couple of years, surely she would have to deal with the ruthless repercussions her boss was infamous for. Therese decided to remain quiet, for now.

“Therese, I think we could both retire after this one - together, I mean…” Lady Cantrell started apprehensively. “I have money stashed away… we could just disappear and live comfortably forever after.” Genevieve looked at Therese, and for the first time Therese saw something resembling fear in her eyes. “You could choose the place. Any place you like. Anywhere… would you like that?” She drew in a short, intermittent breath and waited.

Therese was stunned and she wondered if it was written on her face, too. “Well… wow…” she stammered, not knowing if she should look at Genevieve or not. “I don’t know what to say…” Yet it was all she needed to say, for Genevieve was no fool. Lady Cantrell cast her eyes on the floor, a sad smile flickering on the corners of her mouth. She hid it well.

“Think about it,” Genevieve said, getting up slowly to let her wobbly feet get used to the idea of walking away. “Oh, one more thing - are you going to wear that dark green gown tonight?” she asked Therese.

“Yes,” Therese replied, thankful for the change of subject.

“You might consider wearing this with it,” Genevieve said, handing her a black velvet jewelry case. “Believe it or not, I actually bought it… from Sotheby’s.”

The case hid a simple yet stylish pendant showcasing an impressive 35 carat emerald, topped by four .35 carat diamonds. Therese couldn’t believe her eyes let alone utter a single word for she had immediately recognized it as the Flagler pendant that had sold for nearly three million dollars in 2015.

“I want you to have it. It’ll compliment your gorgeous eyes.” Lady Cantrell took her leave, not expecting anything in return.

Nothing could have prepared Therese for this. What was going on? Why was Genevieve acting so strangely? If she knew what Therese had done, what made her say all those things and gift a traitor a piece of jewelry that in itself amounted to a fortune?

Unless she didn’t know.

All this time Therese had been so certain of the intruder’s identity, she hadn’t really given thought to other possible suspects. Had her stepfather broken into her hotel room? Had he read the women’s letters and studied her plans for the heist? The prospect was nerve-shattering, because it meant he was yet one step ahead of her and not the other way around. Anything could happen tonight and everything could go terribly wrong.

After careful consideration, Therese relied on one thing - Ray’s greed. He would most likely let her go ahead with her plan and only interfere with the endgame. She sat down behind her desk and buried her face in her hands. One thought consoled Therese in her distress: by now Dannie was already far away, safely surrounded by his family. Knowing it would comfort her even if all else failed.      

An hour before the festivities began, there was no end in sight to the steady flow of distinguished guests. Although low-key compared to the annual Met Gala, the glamorous nature of the exhibition had drawn in an exceptionally large number of celebrities. Models and actors in their straight-from-the-runway dresses surrendered to the blinding flashes of the paparazzi cameras. Knowing their turmoil would end once safely inside, they happily strutted their stuff on the red carpet.

Exchanging pleasantries with the VIPs in the receiving line, Carol kept an eye on the main entrance to see Abby and Harge arrive. When Carol finally noticed Abby pushing Harge’s wheelchair up the ramp, she made sure the guards helped them in as smoothly as possible.

“If I haven’t said it already, you do look stunning tonight,” Abby smiled at Carol. “More stunning than those royal gems, I must say!” Harge’s puppy eyes seemed to agree.     

“I think this is the fourth time you’ve told me, but so far it hasn’t gotten old,” Carol laughed. She was feeling beautiful but more than that she was feeling confident. “Thank you!” Her eyes scanned the crowd, picking up familiar faces but not the one she wanted to see. Her disappointment didn’t last long.

“Good evening,” said a quiet voice behind Carol’s back. She turned around to see Therese smiling at the three of them.

“Well, hel-loo…” Carol gasped, seeing her assistant dressed to the nines. Therese was nothing short of an embodiment of a dream Carol hadn’t even known she possessed. The young woman clad in green struck a responsive chord somewhere between her understanding of female aesthetics and pure animalistic lust. The sight of Therese made the blood in Carol’s body circulate faster until she was dizzy with the sweet, sanguine merry-go-round.

“Quite a rock you’re wearing…” Abby commented, noticing  Therese’s pendant. She recognised it immediately, having accompanied Genevieve to the auction three years prior. Lady Cantrell had never worn it herself, and Abby had forgotten all about it until now. She wasn’t delighted or happy to see it grace Therese’s décolletage. It only confirmed what she had suspected for a long time.

“Indeed!” Carol agreed, reclaiming her temporarily lost faculties. “Maybe we should put you in one of those glass cabinets?” she laughed, picking up flutes of champagne from a waiter’s tray.

Therese looked at Carol, procuring her glass. “Sounds like something out of a fairytale,” she smiled. “Maybe there’s a piece of poisoned apple lodged between my teeth?”

Abby let out a sad little laugh. “You sure look the part: “lips red as the rose, hair black as ebony, skin white as snow…” Suddenly remembering what brought Snow White out of her stupor, she stopped and said no more. It would’ve been unnecessary, too, for both Carol and Therese found it impossible not to think about the kiss that had already awakened them from death.

The exhibition was opened with a speech given by a stuttering, half-blind member of the board who kept confusing the Empress’ jewels with the Hope Diamond. Carol was gracious enough to escort him to his seat afterwards, which however didn’t go all that well. The elderly man slipped from Carol’s hold just as they were passing the necklace and the earrings vitrine, resulting in his inadvertently grazing the glass. Given the gentleman’s advanced age, the incident was received good-humouredly. Even Richard who would’ve otherwise looked remarkably sour showed remarkable restraint. He smiled apologetically to everyone around, basking in their appreciation five minutes later when he restored the transparency of the glass box with the emergency code.        

Carol worked the room with a full cocktail glass in hand, raising her drink in reply to all salutes but not really tasting it at any time. The band hired for the night’s entertainment was sticking to the agreed playlist, she noted happily. An eclectic mix of romantic, daring and surprisingly sexual tunes did raise eyebrows whenever someone happened to pay attention to it, but in the midst of all busy bonhomie and cozying up it went generally unnoticed.

Therese did notice, though. Had she not been compelled to stay sober, the bold segues from Smooth Operator to Little Lies and Hit Me With Your Best Shot would have driven her to drink. Each time when she was about to ask the vocalist to sing something different, the velvety-voiced lady launched into Nobody Does It Better or Can’t Take My Eyes Off You.

“She’s an easy lover… she’ll take your heart but you won’t feel it…” croaked Abby along the song of the moment. She had managed to sneak beside Therese. “I bet her royal highness Marie Louise is rolling in her grave over this soundtrack,” she chuckled.

“Shut up…” Therese muttered under her breath. “I think they’ve mistaken tonight for some other shindig.”

Abby’s amusement knew no bounds. “God, you’re funny!” she giggled, wiping her eyes. “Or at least I hope you’re joking because this is no mistake.” Having said that, she turned serious. “Do I really have to spell it out for you? Don’t You Want Me, Baby? Or, better yet: I just want your extra time and your… dun, dun, dun, dun, dun… kiss!”      

Therese helped herself to Abby’s cocktail and downed it with one gulp. She closed her eyes briefly and let out a long sigh when the band started the easily recognizable intro to Under Pressure. She had to keep it together, and she had to stay on Abby’s good side, too. She would need her help very soon.

“Do you remember your instructions?” Therese asked Abby as kindly as possible. “I think now is as good time as any…” Now that the moment of truth was at hand, she regained her focus.

Abby nodded, clutching her evening bag. Everything she needed for her part was hidden there. “I’ll do it randomly as you requested.” This wasn’t the first time when she was pitching in during an actual operation. “Ready whenever you are.”

Therese left Abby’s side and moved to the other side of the main exhibition room to stand next to two security guards. When she had put enough distance between herself and Abby, she raised her right hand to her temple as a sign for Abby to go ahead as planned.  

Almost immediately the in-room surveillance monitors as well as the lights started to flicker. Abby was jamming the control and electric frequencies with a remote Therese had given her for the purpose. It affected the band’s sound system, too, and for a quick second everything stood still out of sheer confusion. Therese heard Richard’s angry voice through the walkie-talkies the guards had with them. Soon the men were scurrying around the hall, clueless of how to solve the unexpected problem. Then it was all over as soon as it had started. The crowd sighed a collective sigh of relief.

“Nothing to worry about,” Therese overheard Carol say to a group of guests who looked shaken by the odd happenstance. “Just a minor glitch… See - everything’s back to normal...”

Individual conversations picked up once more, and the vocalist started drawling Chris Isaak’s Wicked Game. Before the second chorus, the trouble started again. The images on the screens distorted or disappeared altogether, but it wasn’t until the lights went out that the situation started to seem more serious. A few screams were heard along with a new, startling sound Therese couldn’t recognize. It resembled something an engine would produce, but as such it didn’t make any sense to her.

When the lights returned twenty seconds later, the source of the odd sound was in plain sight: Harge’s wheelchair was zigzagging the room, seemingly out of control. The poor man sat strapped in his four-wheeler, a frenzied look on his face.

The remote is not only jamming the security system, it’s wreaking havoc with Harge’s wheelchair as well! Therese realized to her horror. Harge, the Human Bullet, targeted one VIP group after another, the quick-footed guests luckily jumping out of his way at the last minute.

Therese tried to signal Abby to quit, but no matter what Abby attempted, it didn’t stop Harge riding amok with his bolting steel stallion. The enormous ruckus had caught the attention of most of the guests in other halls, too. The maximum capacity of the main exhibition space was nearing its limit when Harge’s chair started having dangerously close shaves with the Empress’ jewels. Carol was bravely running after him, not really knowing what she could do if she were to catch the crazed vehicle.

Therese registered Lady Cantrell’s horrified expression when Harge’s course took an abrupt turn toward the Vogue editor-in-chief Anna Wintour who was standing next to the centerpiece. The wheelchair’s speed accelerated, missing Wintour only by an inch but crashing straight to the magic vitrine instead. As expected, the glass turned opaque and the main alarm went off with its deafening blare.                          

Just when Therese thought the situation couldn’t get any worse, the lights went out again. She heard Carol’s voice boom over cries for help and the ensuing chaos: “Everyone stay calm… the generator will kick in any moment now…  please don’t panic, we are all safe here…” Her words fell on empty ears, people crawling on all fours toward dim-lit exit signs.

What the hell is happening here?  Therese thought, her earlier confidence all but ruined. She kept listening to Harge’s chair engine, trying to figure out if he was still moving. It was unlikely, his encounter with the Empress’ jewels having been total and devastating.

When the back-up generator finally kicked in, Therese saw Carol helping Harge get up. Her attempts seemed futile, though, since it looked like she was trying to raise both him and the heavy chair at the same time. Carol was understandably upset, her cheeks aflush and locks of hair escaping the previously impeccable coif.  

“Thank you…” Carol mumbled as Therese came to her rescue. “What a disaster…” she managed to utter, keeping her eyes glued to the floor.

“It’s not your fault,” Therese whispered. She was heartbroken to see Carol so distraught and embarrassed by what had happened. She glanced at the glass vitrine that had turned impenetrably white again. Other than that there was no visible damage done to the display case.

Richard was running around the room, picking a fight with everyone who cared to stop and listen. “You…” he growled, pointing his finger at Therese. “You… you…” he kept repeating, frustrated to know it hadn’t been Therese but her boss’ husband who had caused the mayhem.

“I should take Harge home,” Carol said to no one in particular. The prospects of getting them out weren’t all that good, the frightened guests efficiently blocking the main entrance.

“Is there a backdoor we could use?” Abby asked Richard who was stupefied by the disheveled scene in front of him.

At first Richard didn’t even seem to understand the question. “You can use the service door. Just… just get him outta here,” he mumbled finally.

Therese saw them off, hoping she could say something meaningful to Carol. With Abby fussing over both her and Harge, a suitable moment never presented itself.   

On her way to her office, Therese ran into Bob in the lobby. The seasoned security guard wasn’t the type to take things too hard, but this time he looked very upset. “What’s wrong, Bob? It wasn’t your team’s fault, you know,” Therese said.

Discouraged, Bob shrugged his shoulders. “It’s that Semco kid…” he sighed. “I’ve taken a lot of shit over the years, but I’ve had it with him.” Bob never complained, which made Therese think Richard had really crossed the line with his team tonight.

Therese’s smile was compassionate. “I’m so sorry to hear that. We should all support one another in times like this.” Bob melted in front of his ‘favorite girl’, which Therese saw as an opportunity to milk some intel from him. “Are you going to be alright for the rest of the night?” she asked.

“Oh yes, Miss Belivet. The floor alarm’s going to be on all through the night, and even if the lights and the surveillance keep acting up, the main vitrine will remain blocked from view for the next eight hours.”

That was all Therese needed to know. “Well, good luck with Mr. Semco and everything. Don’t let him get to you,” she said, patting the nice man on the back. “I’ll just get my things and be on my way.”  

Four hours later the museum was dark, empty and eerily silent, only the footsteps of the guards audible every half an hour. One of Jimmy Three Fingers’ cousins had picked up Therese’s keycard and made it look like that she had exited the building although she was still very much inside.

In view of what had happened that night, most people in Therese’s position would have abandoned their plans to go through with the heist. Therese didn’t. The experienced, random madness could in fact work for her benefit, she thought. Her jamming operation had yielded surprising results, but it had also done what she had intended: tonight the security team couldn’t rely on anything functioning without occasional interruptions nor would they even be surprised were these problems to continue throughout the night.

Dressed in her black cat burglar suit, Therese snuck downstairs and past Bob who was dozing off in his post at the main desk. He was the only one monitoring the lobby cameras, and Therese knew very well how to avoid being seen by them.      

Getting closer to the main exhibition room, she checked her equipment once more. The surveillance system had to be blacked out several times within the next ten minutes. That was all the time she had given herself to pull everything off. Hiding in the darkness, she first jammed the cameras for thirty seconds. Two guards came rushing in soon after.

“There’s nothing here, Bill,” noted a tired male voice. “It’s the bloody system again…” The men returned to the control room, cursing the inconvenience and why it had to happen on their shift.

After two minutes Therese repeated her maneuver. This time only one man came by, practically dragging his feet. “Same damn thing, Joe… everything’s cool here,” he sighed into the walkie-talkie and left the room.

Within the next forty seconds Therese jammed the frequencies for the third time. At first it looked like no one was coming at all, but eventually the most dutiful of them all did - Richard. Ticked off by his men’s slack performance, he stormed right in and searched the exhibition space meticulously with his flashlight. “Found anything, boss?” sounded off from Richard’s walkie-talkie. The irritated chief of security ignored the question.

“I’m going to leave now, but I expect you to make the rounds every single time the lights go out, am I making myself clear?” Richard shouted over the radio waves. As far as Therese could tell, he was both exhausted and annoyed by what was still happening on his turf.

“Yes, boss,” replied two meek voices. Richard lingered in the hall for two more minutes, but when he couldn't detect any movement whatsoever he finally gave up and exited the room.

After his departure Therese repeated her trick three more times just to test the alertness of Richard’s staff. No one moved a muscle, not even during the longest blackout that lasted for a minute and a half. This was all just simple psychology, she mused while preparing for the next phase of her operation. When the unexpected becomes the rule, anything can happen even under the most watchful eyes, she smiled to herself.     

The next time Therese caused the blackout, she had her night vision goggles on. She entered the room and got as close to the alarm zone as possible. Counting the seconds calmly in her head, she took a dart gun out of her backpack and aimed it toward the rafters. She knew she would have only one shot at hitting the exact mark. A custom-made hook darted through the air, pulling along a thin cord from a reel attached to the gun.  When the cord tightened to prove her success, Therese could hardly believe her luck. The hook had clung to the rafters just like she had hoped it would. The cord could now be used to get her silk up where she needed it.

Half a minute later she was ready to grab the fabric that had been carefully measured not to hit the floor. With one remarkable leap she was inside the alarm zone, her feet never once touching the ground. The first contact with the silk proved difficult, as she had suspected. The impact left her spinning around the protected vitrine in wide circles. Climbing upward managed to slow it down, and the higher she got, the more she was able to wrap the fabric around her body.  

Fifty seconds, Therese registered, adjusting her goggles. The white glass case emitted a strange, pale glow as if a cube of milk had been left on a pedestal. She was the cat this ultimate treat was meant for, although curiosity had a bad rap with the feline kind. Gradually dropping herself lower and lower, she reached the level of the box. Securing the silk between her thighs and around her waist, she pulled out the duplicate key she had in a chain under her top.  

As promised, the protective hatch opened to reveal a keyhole in the vitrine. Though her balance was precarious, Therese had to rock herself closer to insert the tiny key in its place. No more than an inch separated her from total failure, from getting caught red-handed.

A minute and a half had passed, yet every attempt to thrust the 3D duplicate into its narrow slit seemed only to loosen the fabric that was keeping her suspended in the air. Therese knew she couldn’t hold on for much longer. The blackout couldn’t go on for much longer.

Just as she was losing hope, the key slid miraculously in its desired place and the side of the box that was closest to her swung open. Rejuvenated by her lucky break, Therese found extra strength to finalise the job.

The biggest blow was still yet to come.

What she saw inside the closely guarded vitrine not only made her jaw drop - it nearly caused her to fall down as well: on the cushion where the Empress’ emerald necklace and earrings had rested lay a rather eclectic assortment of very familiar-looking rhinestones.