Something from Tiffany’s

by Melissa Hill

  It seemed to Ethan, sitting there in the dim room, that there must be nearly as many security cameras as diamonds on the premises. Luckily this meant that they could watch his and Daisy’s visit to the store and their activity on the Diamond Floor from multiple angles, but, disappointingly, nothing seemed untoward. There was certainly no switch of bags, and from what he could tell absolutely no mix-up either.

  He figured that these guys were probably just as suspicious – if not more so – of him as he was of them, since no doubt it wouldn’t have been the first time that someone had tried to claim a missing item. Yet the bottom line was that nothing at all was revealed in the store tapes. He and Daisy appeared to have definitely left Tiffany’s with the diamond.

  End of story.

  Ethan thanked the manager and the security team for their assistance, and they in turn promised to offer all support possible, and asked that he keep them apprised of any progress. ‘Thanks, and likewise,’ he said, shaking hands all around.

  Back outside on the street, Ethan couldn’t have been more frustrated.

  ‘What now, Dad?’ Daisy asked.

  ‘I really don’t know, poppet,’ he replied, wracking his brains to try to come up with his next move. If there was no mix-up, no oversight in Tiffany’s, then what on earth could have happened? They’d gone straight back to the hotel after being there, hadn’t they? Or had they stopped off somewhere else . . . ?

  ‘Do you think we could maybe get something to eat now? Sorry, but I’m really hungry.’

  Ethan looked at his watch; it was almost lunchtime and they’d been in the store much longer than he’d anticipated. ‘OK, I suppose we could—’ A sudden screeching of tyres in the background cut off the rest of his sentence. ‘Of course,’ he exclaimed, looking in the direction of the noise. The accident! That was it! That had to be it. He turned to Daisy, his eyes wide. ‘Remember that man, the one who got hit by the cab, the one we helped on Christmas Eve? He had all those packages, remember?’

  ‘Yes . . .’ Daisy nodded, unsure what he was getting at.

  ‘Don’t you remember? When I asked you to gather his things up for him and keep an eye on them . . . is there a chance that there was some confusion, that the man’s things and our things might have got mixed up?’

  All of a sudden, she looked scared. ‘No, no, Dad. I really don’t think so . . .’ She bit her lip; the notion that she could have been the cause of all this was obviously troubling her greatly.

  ‘Honey, it’s OK, it’s really OK if it did, and it isn’t your fault,’ he was quick to reassure her. ‘But it makes perfect sense, doesn’t it? Yes, that has to be it. Right,’ Ethan announced, the weight on his shoulders suddenly feeling a hell of a lot lighter, ‘let’s go and find a restaurant somewhere. Might as well make the most of that New York pizza while we’re here, yes? You can eat as much as you like. Me, I’ve got some phone calls to make.’

  Chapter 7

  ‘Look, sir, it’s like I said. I’m sorry, but we just can’t give out that kind of information. It’s against hospital policy. I wish I could help you, though, I really do.’

  ‘You don’t understand,’ Ethan said, stepping closer to the nurses’ station and growing more impatient by the second. He wasn’t usually one to play on his charm (not since his college days at Cambridge, anyway), but it was apparent that this young nurse, Molly, might just be a tiny bit smitten with him and his adorable daughter. And the accent probably didn’t hurt either, Ethan figured.

  After hours of dead-end phone calls and one fruitless hospital mission after another, he finally had a solid lead on the man who had been hit by the cab on Christmas Eve, and he was less and less willing to take no for an answer. Dodging Vanessa on the issue, and trying not to act suspiciously in the meantime hadn’t been easy, but Ethan had come this far and wasn’t giving up now.

  He was a man on a mission, and readily willing to use any tools at his disposal. He moved closer to the desk, cocked his head and gave Molly his most winning smile.

  ‘Sir –’ another nurse, obviously more senior, stepped in and positioned her large frame between him and the desk ‘– I sympathise with you and your “situation”, but you and those big blue eyes can just take it elsewhere. And you, nurse,’ she said, turning to the younger woman, ‘can get back to work.’

  ‘But—’

  She stopped Ethan in his tracks with a disapproving look. ‘Yes, I overheard most of it, and let me tell you that you have no cause for disturbing this patient and no claim to his identity. You don’t even know his name, for goodness’ sake. Now I don’t care where you’re from, what your schedule is or when you have to fly home. And I don’t know what you want from this poor man but I suspect that whoever he is, he’s already been through enough. You simply may not see him. Period.’

  At this, Ethan felt a prickling sensation at the back of his neck. He knew people generally considered him passive, something that actually irked him no end, as he was far from it; he was just very choosy about where he expended his energy. However, when he did commit himself to an idea, a cause or a person, he could not be swayed; and in this case there was a (very expensive) diamond, not to mention an entire relationship, at stake. Ethan was not backing down.

  Taking a deep breath, he rounded on the nurse. ‘Well, seeing as you’re defending this man’s privacy, and seem to know precisely who I’m talking about, then I can only conclude that he must be here at this hospital.’

  ‘I said no such thing,’ she protested darkly. ‘Besides, if he’s not a family member, as you say, why does finding this guy mean so much to you?’

  Following a phone call to the first hospital, during which he’d spilled all of the details, Ethan had quickly realised that his story sounded implausible and he came off as a madman, so in all subsequent searches he’d decided to leave out the part about the missing ring.

  ‘Look,’ he told the nurse now, hoping to appeal to her better nature, ‘I lost something in all of the mayhem, something important. And the thing everybody seems to be overlooking here is that if it weren’t for me and my daughter, the guy might not have made it. We most likely saved his life.’

  ‘Saved his life?’

  ‘Yes, I gave him first aid while we waited for the ambulance to arrive, and my daughter here made sure to protect his belongings.’ He ran a frustrated hand through his hair.

  ‘You’re the one who helped him?’ the younger nurse piped up again. ‘The paramedics were talking about you.’

  ‘Yes.’ Ethan crossed his arms and spread his feet in a solid stance as he continued to stare down the older nurse, who still didn’t look convinced.

  ‘Nice going, Employee of the Month,’ she said, rolling her eyes at her colleague. She turned back to Ethan. ‘OK, perhaps this changes things a little. I mean, no one does that sort of thing in Manhattan,’ she said, shaking her head in bewilderment, and Ethan’s shoulders relaxed a little as she paused, seemingly deep in thought. ‘Well, since you extended yourself to help this man, there’s possibly a grey area here, and I suppose we could allow you to see him – as long as you are supervised, of course.’

  Ethan was thrilled, but contained himself. ‘I’d really appreciate that.’

  ‘And, no, Nurse Starks, I’m not looking for volunteer chaperones,’ she said sharply to her younger colleague, who had risen hopefully from her station. ‘In fact, why don’t you keep an eye on the little lady here, while I get someone to take Mr Greene to the room?’

  ‘Sure,’ the younger nurse replied. ‘Is it OK if I get her a soda and a snack?’ she asked Ethan.

  ‘Yes, whatever she likes,’ he said. ‘Is that all right with you, buttercup?’

  Daisy nodded, and soon afterwards Ethan was led by a male aide to the room of what he hoped was their guy.

  Poking his head around the door, he was instantly relieved to see that the patient in the bed was indeed the man he had helped in the street two days before. Ethan released a breath he didn’t even know he’d been ho
lding.

  Finally!

  ‘Can I speak to him?’ he asked the aide.

  ‘Afraid not. He’s been in and out of consciousness since he came in. It’s mostly the meds, but he’s pretty banged up too.’

  Damn. Ethan hadn’t anticipated that. Still, at least it was the right guy – which meant that his own Tiffany’s bag must still be among his packages, and given that the guy had been so out of it, chances were he still didn’t have the foggiest idea about the mix-up.

  So, really, all Ethan could do now was wait for him to wake up (which he seriously hoped he would do soon). They would talk, sort it all out and, quick as you like, Ethan and the girls would be on their way back to London. But first he’d ensure they’d once again gather around the Christmas tree in their hotel room, and Ethan would drop to one knee and propose to Vanessa just as he’d originally intended. It would be wonderful.

  Then, over one last dinner in New York, the three of them would laugh about the last few days’ turn of events, and chat about the new life they would build back home together. Ethan had it all worked out in his head and almost had to restrain himself from nudging the injured man awake.

  But ten minutes later he still wasn’t conscious and Vanessa was calling Ethan’s mobile. She was finished with her shopping and wondering where he and Daisy were.

  Waiting in the hallway outside the man’s room – he’d since learned he was called Gary Knowles – Ethan had seen her number come up but had let it go to voicemail while he tried to concoct a reasonable story. ‘Hi, darling,’ he said, trying to sound offhand.

  ‘Hi, where are you two?’

  ‘Oh, down by Battery Park,’ he lied. ‘I took Daisy on the Staten Island ferry for a waterside look at the skyline.’ He winced, disgusted with himself for blatantly deceiving her. But did he have a choice? ‘But we’re almost finished now and should be back in an hour or so depending on traffic.’

  ‘OK, great. See you back at the hotel then?’ She sounded tense and he couldn’t blame her. He’d been so distracted and secretive over the last day or so that it would have been impossible for her not to pick up on it. He supposed he’d better head back to the hotel soon. If Knowles remained unconscious there was little point in hanging around here much longer and Daisy would be growing restless.

  He decided to push his luck a little further and enquire at the desk for some more details about the mysterious Mr Knowles. He headed back towards the nurses’ station, and immediately saw Daisy jump up to greet him. ‘Is it him, Daddy?’ she asked eagerly.

  ‘Yes, it is him,’ he grinned.

  ‘Yay! Does he have the—’ Seeing Ethan’s sharp look, she caught herself just in time. ‘Does he have our shopping bag?’

  Ethan glanced towards the young nurse, Molly, who was watching the scene with renewed interest. He took a deep, frustrated breath. ‘I’m sure he does, but unfortunately I can’t ask because he’s unconscious.’

  ‘Oh no.’ Daisy’s face fell.

  ‘Excuse me?’ Molly, who (as Ethan had intended) had heard the exchange, piped up. ‘Did you say something about a shopping bag?’

  ‘Yes, why?’

  ‘Well –’ she looked around edgily as if terrified her overbearing supervisor would hear ‘– it’s just that I was here when he was brought in, and he did have a lot of shopping bags with him. Some really nice stuff too,’ she added.

  ‘Yes, Daisy here looked after them while we waited for the paramedics. You know how people can be,’ he continued, pressing home the point that they’d been looking out for Knowles’s best interests at all times. ‘I wonder . . . it’s just that the bag we lost was very important and—’

  ‘So, you’re the guy who helped the schmuck in room 303?’ Ethan looked around to see yet another nurse approach from behind.

  Damn. Ethan cursed the interruption, sure he was on the verge of getting Molly to let him know where Knowles’s stuff was currently being stored. ‘That’s right,’ he said, forcing a smile.

  ‘Very kind thing you did, helping out some guy in the middle of the street like that,’ she continued.

  ‘I suppose.’ Ethan was getting tired of everyone telling him how wonderful he was; yet he still didn’t seem to be getting anywhere. ‘But I’m sure anyone else would have done the same.’

  ‘In this town? I don’t think so, honey. Chances are the injuries from the cab would have been small beans compared to the stampede to grab his loot.’ She smiled at Daisy and winked.

  ‘Yes, well, I’m certified in CPR and everything so it’s really second nature to respond to things like that. By the way, I’m Ethan Greene and this is my daughter, Daisy.’ He thought he might as well be nice and try to get as many people on side as possible.

  ‘Nice to meet you both,’ she said, shaking Daisy’s hand too. ‘I’m Kim and Mr Knowles is one of my patients. Must say, it’s good to see that kind of spirit alive and well, especially on Christmas Eve.’ She laughed. ‘You know, Mr Knowles’s girlfriend Rachel will be here soon. She’ll want to thank you in person, I’m sure. So, if you want to hang out a little longer . . .’

  A girlfriend? This was something Ethan hadn’t anticipated. So chances were she was the one in possession of the man’s packages now. He wasn’t sure if this was a good or a bad thing. On the one hand it could be good, as he wouldn’t have to wait around for Knowles to wake up, but on the other, what if the girlfriend didn’t believe his sorry story?

  But, surely, if he explained everything as it happened on Christmas Eve, she would understand? It was a desperate situation, that was for sure, but Ethan was very rapidly becoming a desperate man.

  Still, now that he was fairly confident the bags were no longer being kept at the hospital, he figured there was little point in sweet-talking the nurses. Instead he needed to see this girlfriend.

  ‘She’s coming here? Today?’

  ‘Of course. She was here earlier but just popped out on an errand. I’m sure she’ll be back soon.’

  ‘I see.’ Ethan thought quickly. ‘Well, why don’t we grab a quick coffee at the cafeteria ourselves while we wait?’ he said to Daisy, who nodded easily. Poor thing, she was really quite distraught about her part in all of this, which was another good reason, Ethan realised, for getting it sorted out as soon as possible.

  On the way, and feeling like a heel for lying to her yet again, he called Vanessa to tell her that they were stuck in downtown traffic and might be a little later getting back to the hotel. But time was limited and this needed to be resolved – soon.

  Now, seated over two bowls of chicken noodle soup, Daisy was quiet and Ethan was restless.

  ‘Do you really think we’re going to get the ring back, Dad?’

  ‘Of course,’ he replied. ‘Now that we’ve finally found our man. And when his girlfriend gets here and we explain everything, I’m sure there won’t be a problem.’ The only thing was, he no longer had Knowles’s purchase, as he couldn’t very well take the bracelet back from Vanessa, could he? Still, he could explain this to the girlfriend and let her know that he would arrange a replacement as soon as possible. Which meant, of course, that he’d have to shell out yet more money at Tiffany’s, but if it ensured he got his ring back, Ethan didn’t care.

  He realised Daisy was idly picking up noodles and plopping them back in the bowl. ‘Not hungry?’

  ‘Not really.’

  ‘Why? You didn’t eat much at breakfast either. Is everything OK?’

  She hesitated for a minute, as if about to say something, but then shook her head. ‘I’m just worried about the ring, that’s all.’

  ‘Try not to,’ he said, feeling doubly guilty for involving her in all of this now and giving her a reason to fret. ‘And remember, it wasn’t your fault,’ he assured her again. ‘It was just a mix-up, that’s all. I’m sure we’ll get it back. Let’s finish up here and see if we can get to the bottom of it once and for all, OK?’

  ‘OK, Dad,’ she said, but he could tell that this was really troubling her.r />
  They returned to the nurses’ station to find the nurses they’d spoken to earlier sitting behind the desk.

  ‘Is Mr Knowles’s girlfriend here?’ Ethan asked the older one, Kim.

  ‘I’m sorry, no. She hasn’t arrived yet and he’s still sleeping.’

  His face fell. ‘That’s a shame; we really were hoping to speak to her today. As you can imagine we’re heading home to London soon.’

  ‘I wish I could help you,’ Kim said, looking at the chart she held in her hand. ‘Like I said, she should be back by now.’

  ‘She’s probably already out shopping for wedding dresses, or something,’ Molly giggled conspiratorially.

  Ethan felt like he had just been hit by a sucker punch. ‘I’m sorry? What did you say?’

  ‘Don’t mind her,’ Kim said, glaring at Molly.

  Ethan’s mind raced. No, this couldn’t be happening. The girlfriend . . . she couldn’t possibly have found the . . .

  No, but of course not, he reasoned, mentally kicking himself for letting his imagination run wild. The couple were probably engaged long before now. In any case, the guy was unconscious so how on earth could he have proposed? Especially when he didn’t even know he had a ring.

  As he tried to figure out the various possibilities, Ethan’s brain was moving too fast for him to keep up, and he tried to reassure himself that, really, everything would be OK.

  ‘Mr Greene? Are you all right?’ Kim asked then. The look on his face must have given his concern away.

  ‘Daddy, maybe we should tell them,’ Daisy said, tugging at his sleeve, and the nurses exchanged a glance.

  ‘Tell us what?’

  ‘It’s nothing,’ Ethan said quickly. The last thing he needed was these two busybodies involved. Yet they seemed to know quite a bit about Knowles’s personal life.

  ‘Wedding dresses . . . Well, isn’t that nice?’ he said, trying to gather his wits about him. He looked at Daisy, then turned again to the nurses, at a loss as to what to do next. Vanessa was waiting for them so he couldn’t very well hang around here all day. ‘Tell you what, when Mr Knowles’s girlfriend gets here, can you please give her my number and ask her to call me? I’d really like to speak with her. And, of course, I’ll want to follow up with Mr Knowles, see how his recovery goes.’