“Have you ever had it cleaned?”
Connie pulled her hand back and examined the stone. “Not since I’ve had it, and that’s been more than ten years.”
“If you don’t mind me saying so, you do a disservice to a ring like that. We have a laser cleaner here especially for softer stones and gems. If you’d like, I can have it cleaned for you in a jiffy.”
Delta turned her attention from the case to the front window, where the painted words “Free Jewelry Cleaning with the Latest Technology” had greeted them as they’d walked in. Then, below the store’s moniker, the cleaning ad continued: “Don’t let other jewelers put chemicals on your precious gems; clean them with ULTRA SHINE.”
Delta moved to the window and peered out. Down the street from the store sat Van Cleef & Arpels. Delta wondered if the smaller jewelry store had a hard time being competitive. “Must be tough having Van Cleef & Arpels down the street,” Delta mused, returning to the counter in time to see Connie pull her ring off and hand it to the clerk.
“It was at first, but we have on-site services that Van Cleef & Arpels either sends out for or doesn’t have.”
“Such as?”
“Watch repair while you wait, setting repair, necklace clasps, batteries, polishing, replacement gems, and cleaning are all done on-site. We do estimates and—”
“You clean the rings right here?”
Judy looked up and smiled. “Of course. We use the very latest in technology; not even Van Clee—”
“Do you keep the jewelry overnight?”
“Sometimes. Why?”
Connie must have caught the tone in Delta’s voice. She jammed the ring back onto her finger. “And you keep them in a safe.”
Judy frowned and stood up straight. “Of course. Many customers prefer to drop their jewelry off and pick it up later. Everything goes in the safe.”
Delta and Connie looked at each other, comparing notes without uttering a word. Connie turned from their silent conversation and picked up the ball. “I have a wonderful collection of jewelry from my grandmother, but I must be able to ensure their safety. I’d just die if anything happened to any of it.”
Delta nodded. “You just can’t trust anyone these days.”
“I can assure you, ma’am, that in more than twenty years in business we have never been robbed. We may appear small, but we have invested in the finest technology money can buy.”
“Do you service a lot of Van Cleef & Arpels’ jewelry?”
Judy nodded. “We service jewelry from all over the world. Because we personalize our business, people feel safer leaving such sentimental items with us. We take exceptional care of both the jewelry and the customer wearing it. Your grandmother’s heirlooms would be perfectly safe here.”
Connie shook her head. “I don’t know—”
Delta shrugged. “Forget it, Gladys. It doesn’t feel right.”
“I assure you, they would be in the safe if you chose to leave them overnight.”
“Maybe if you could show Gladys where you keep them, she might consider it.”
The clerk nodded. “Of course, if that would that make you feel better?”
Connie nodded. “Much.”
Following Judy through the back, Connie and Delta were escorted into an office about twenty by twenty feet. There were two overflowing desks and a three-foot-high floor safe tucked in the corner. On the two opposing walls, camera-like devices protruded. The single window led to the interior hallway of the small shop. Delta’s keen eye picked out the fine line of an alarm system hiding in the glass. The door, made of reinforced steel, closed into a steel frame set securely in cement. Scanning the ceiling, Delta’s attention slid to the ceiling tiles surrounding a small heating duct.
“What are those for?” Delta asked, pointing to the cameras.
“Infrared detection system. Once activated, they create beams of light invisible to the naked eye. If someone interrupts one of the beams, the alarm goes off immediately.”
Delta had seen this type of system before. “I see.”
“As you can tell, we’ve taken every precaution to ward off—”
“May I use the phone?” Delta asked abruptly.
“If it’s local, sure.”
“It is.” Eyeing Connie, Delta picked up the phone and punched a number. The phone was answered on the third ring.
“Christian here.”
“It’s Delta.”
“Hey there. To what do I owe this honor?”
“I’m downtown, Christian, and I was wondering if you had photos of those items we were discussing the other day.”
Connie immediately engaged Judy in a conversation to steer her away from Delta’s discussion with Christian.
“You mean the jewels your thief ’s been taking?”
“That would be them.” Delta could hear paper shuffling on the other end of the line.
“I have two.”
“Great. Can you messenger copies over to 910 Fitzgerald?”
“Right now?”
“Right now.”
“You’re onto something, eh? Did she slip up someplace I don’t know about?”
“I hope so. Tell the messenger to look for Connie and me out front. I’ll pick the pictures up there. I’m wearing a red sweatshirt.”
“You got it. Anything else I can do for you on this beautiful day?”
Delta grinned. “Why are you so up, today? You been smelling too much formaldehyde?”
Christian laughed. “Close. I’m in love. But that’s all the dirt you get from me. You know how rumors fly around this place.”
“Gotcha. Your secret is safe with me.”
“Good. And when you return the pics, be sure to let me in on your little secret, okay?”
“Will do. See ya.” Hanging up the phone, Delta waited for Connie to finish distracting the clerk. “Would you mind if we stepped outside to discuss it?”
Judy looked perplexed. “Of...course not.”
Delta and Connie briskly stepped through the store and closed the door behind them.
“You thinking what I’m thinking?” Delta asked Connie as they stood on the sidewalk.
“Say no more. Is Christian sending the pics?”
“They’re on their way as we speak.”
“So, you want to show them and ask her if she remembers seeing them? How do you want to handle this?”
“Well, she isn’t Taylor, that’s for sure. I don’t think she’s in on it, or she wouldn’t have shown us the room and the safe.”
“Okay.”
“But did you take a look at the ceiling panels? It’s possible Taylor moved through the heating duct. These older buildings have all sorts of weird nooks and crannies.”
Connie rubbed her chin. “She’s better than I gave her credit for.”
“I think she comes here, decides which pieces she wants to steal, gets the address, and then steals them from the houses. If these pictures pan out, and this place has cleaned these jewels in the last month or so—”
“Then we’ve got her.”
Delta grinned. “Almost. It’ll just be a matter of setting Taylor up.”
Connie looked down the street for the messenger. “I hate that, you know.”
“What?”
“That you call her by name.”
Delta laughed. “What do you want me to call her? That dreaded, awful jewelry thief? That horrible woman? That big bi—”
“No. You could just call her the suspect, or perp, or thief. Do you insist on calling her Taylor?”
Delta nodded. “Yes.”
Connie snarled at Delta. “You can be infuriating. You know that, don’t you?”
“That’s what they say, Gladys.”
Before Connie could shoot out a retort, the messenger pulled up and handed a packet to Delta, who signed for it and nodded for Connie to tip him.
“Why do I always have to tip them?”
Delta smiled. “You make more money than I do.”
&n
bsp; After removing the pictures, Delta looked at them and handed them to Connie. “You think she’s capable of beating that security system in there?”
Connie looked at the pictures and nodded. “Yep. She knows exactly what she’s doing. It would be a mistake to think she doesn’t.”
“Well, I, for one, am done making mistakes.”
Connie turned to Delta and grinned. “Can I quote you on that?”
Delta grinned right back. “You betcha, Gladys.”
“Next time, I want a new name, a cool one.”
Delta’s grin grew as she walked back in the store. “Next time, I have just the perfect one.”
When Delta and Connie stepped onto Sal’s porch, two very bright security lights flashed on, illuminating the porch, the front yard, and half the street.
“Sheesh. I left my sunglasses in the car.”
Reaching for the doorbell, Connie stopped her hand in midair, when a computer-generated voice said, “Stop right there. Stand away from the door and look into the camera directly to your left.” The voice was followed by a click and a buzz as the camera focused on them.
Delta laughed. “I don’t believe this.”
“Stand away from the door, or the gate will automatically open, releasing two killer Rottweiler attack weapons.”
Delta stopped laughing and immediately stepped back. “Is she serious?”
Connie shrugged. “Let’s not test her, okay?”
“If someone is home,” the mechanical voice continued without emotion, “the door will be answered in one minute. If the door is not opened at that time, you have one minute to leave a message on the camera. If you do not leave within two minutes, the gates will open and the attack weapons will escort you out.”
Delta checked her watch. She did not relish the idea of her legs being used for chewbones.
“Forty seconds,” the voice informed.
Suddenly, the front door flew open to reveal a tiny woman wearing army fatigues and a baseball cap jammed on top of her head. Short blonde hair stuck out from underneath the cap like pieces of straw, and freckles dotted her nose and cheeks. In her right hand she held a ratchet wrench and a piece of wire. She opened the door with her left.
“Hey! If it isn’t my two favorite cops! Come on in!” Delta looked at Connie and then at Sal. Nobody moved.
“Don’t worry,” Sal said, waving the wrench in the air. “The system shuts off as soon as my hand touches the knob.” Sal stepped out onto the porch and hugged both of them at once. “Come on in.” Sal pulled away and smiled widely at them. Her diminutive stature belied her greatness. Sal’s electronic wizardry equaled Connie’s mental prowess.
Following Sal through the door, Delta stopped when a buzzer sounded. “What’s that?”
“You packin’, Delta?” Sal asked.
Delta nodded as she reached for her nine millimeter in her ankle holster.
“It’s okay. Don’t bother.” Walking over to a huge console protruding from the wall, Sal flipped a switch to silence the buzzer. “Metal detector,” she tersely explained. “It’s so good to see you guys again.” Sal hugged Connie once more, this time, getting both her tiny arms around Connie’s neck. Not only was Sal an invaluable resource, an old friend of Connie’s, and an army brat to boot, she was also responsible for Delta still being alive. In the time it takes most people to button a shirt, Sal had once disposed of a man who would, most assuredly, have brutally tortured and killed Delta in the desert.
Connie pulled away and pointed to the console. “Speaking of business, what are you up to that requires such an elaborate system?”
Sal smiled and her freckles danced across her face. “You know me. I hang out with some pretty bizarre characters. I’m just protecting my...investments, that’s all. You like?”
“I’m impressed.”
Delta looked out the side window. “You really got two Rotts out there?”
“Ten grand’s worth and meaner than bears caught in a bear trap. Can I get you guys something to drink?”
“No thanks,” they answered in unison. Connie pulled a chair out from under a table laden with electronic equipment.
“I take it this isn’t a pleasure call,” Sal said, pulling herself up to the counter. She looked like a little girl wearing her dad’s uniform. But then, that’s just what she was doing.
Delta had been previously introduced to Sal when she and Carducci were hunting down child pornographers. At first, Delta thought the little waif in camouflage clothing was a little strange with her electronic gadgets and questionable allies. But Connie had explained that Sal’s father had saved his buddies’ lives over in Vietnam at the cost of his own. When they returned, the pack of young men took Sal under their collective wing and made sure she never wanted for anything. With her father’s insurance policy and her skill at electronics, Sal managed several patents and built a mini empire for herself and “the boys.” What had become of her mother, Delta never knew.
Picking up a microchip, Delta examined it closely. “How’s business, Sal?”
“Great. A company in Silicon Valley wants to market my latest gadget.”
“You ought to sell security systems, pal,” Delta offered.
“Boooooring. I’d hate mingling with the snooty, rich yuckies; it gives me the chills just thinking about it.”
Delta grinned. She was such an odd little woman, preferring the company of beer-bellied bikers and vets to anyone else.
“You guys didn’t come here to talk shop. You need my help again? I had a blast the last time we got together.”
Blast? Delta thought. She guessed blowing someone’s heart out the back of their body could be considered a “blast.”
Connie nodded and explained Taylor’s case.
“So,” Sal began when Connie finished. “She hasn’t stolen an amethyst yet.”
Connie nodded again. “And, according to the records at the jewelry store, they haven’t cleaned an amethyst in two months.”
“So,” Delta finished, “we send in a couple pieces of jewelry, including an amethyst, to be cleaned, and we use your house as the address on record.”
“Why not either of yours?”
“She knows where we live. Hell, we’ve been running cross patterns just in case she’s tailing us.”
Sal leapt off her chair and paced the floor. “She couldn’t possibly beat this system.”
“Don’t doubt her, Sal. This woman is exceptional.”
Sal took her cap off and ran her hand through her hair. “I can turn the system off.”
Connie shook her head. “No. If she even suspects a trap, it will tip her off. There’s no way she’s going to pass an opportunity to beat your system. She’ll case this place before hitting it, Sal, and will really find it challenging. She lives for that challenge.”
Delta agreed. “I think she’d dig it. She might even see it as her coup de grâce.”
Sal set the wrench on the table. “I seriously don’t think she can do it.”
“Getting her here is all we really need, Sal. Do you have a safe upstairs?”
Sal jammed her hands on her hips. “Now, what kind of question is that?”
Delta grinned. “Then, we’ll go over the specifics of the plan and let you shoot any holes in it.”
Sal nodded. “I’m telling you, the biggest hole is that she won’t even be able to beat my system and get to the safe.”
“Maybe. But if it were too easy, she’d bolt. We don’t want that. Making it hard on Taylor will convince her it’s for real.”
Sal flipped her collar up and lowered her head. “Okay, super-sleuths. Where do we go from here?”
When Delta’s head finally hit the pillow, the muscles in her body melted into the bed. She hated to admit it, but a good night’s rest was exactly what she needed to escape the loneliness she’d felt more acutely since she’d shared a bed with Alex. Delta didn’t regret being the shoulder for Alex to lean on; she regretted that it hadn’t been Megan lying in her arms. S
he longed to have Megan’s hair hang in her face like it did whenever Megan lay on top of her. She missed the chats over morning coffee, the evenings in front of the fire, and the nights of cuddling in the warm, flannel sheets Megan had bought just for Delta’s cold feet. She missed phoning Megan “just because” and looking forward to a romantic dinner together.
Delta shuddered at the words she had hurled at her other lovers. “I want you, I love you, I want to be with you, but I’ll never need you.”
Boy, had she been wrong.
Delta needed. She needed Megan’s balance in her life. She needed her calm outlook, her sharp wit, and that beautiful, beautiful smile. For two months, Delta had traveled on autopilot, going to work, working too long, visiting Connie, and filling her downtime with anything that came along, and still, she could not stop that ache. The highlight of her day came at the end of her shift, when she crossed off that day on the calendar. One day down, one million to go.
As Delta’s exhausted mind and body settled into a series of small twitches and Polaroid images, she heard a knock on the door. Delta wearily sat up on her elbows and listened. With the uniformed man posted out front, whoever it was must have been recognized.
Dragging her tired limbs from bed, Delta reached for her robe on the chair and cinched it around her waist. Again, she heard a knock.
“Coming,” she said, peering through the brass peephole. Standing on the porch was Alexandria.
“Alex?” Delta said, unlocking the door and swinging it open.
“Delta, I’m so sorry to bother you at this time of night, but—”
“Come in, come in,” Delta said, pulling Alexandria in the house. “Don’t be silly. Are you okay?”
Her hands resting in the pockets of her London Fog raincoat, Alexandria shrugged. “I’m not sure.”
“Please, sit down. Want some coffee or something?” Delta took Alexandria’s coat and hung it on the rack standing next to the door.
“No, thank you. I don’t want to be more of a bother than I already am.”
Delta studied Alexandria’s face before replying. The DA looked exhausted; crow’s feet appeared where once there were none. Her gray eyes were dull and lifeless. The fight was oozing out of Alexandria like a broken pipeline oozes oil. “What’s going on, Alex?”
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