by Dani Hoots
I was glad it hadn’t started raining yet as I had left my umbrella at home. Glancing up at the sky I saw that the clouds were dispersed and it wasn’t very likely for it to rain today. Just a perfect day to start the perfect job.
It was hard to remember art thieving before I met Bridget. I had done a few jobs before we ran into each other five years ago. I had just been a kid, fresh out of high school, having run away from home, never looking back. This was honestly the only life I ever knew, and Bridget had been there almost the entire time.
It didn’t start out as all fun and games with her, though. We were both working the same con, after the same prized vase in Dusseldorf. We had a bit of a fight and after I was successful in retrieving the vase, she followed me back to my flat, slept with me, and stole the vase in the morning. I felt betrayed but I was able to find her again and instead of chewing her out, we ended up having sex again. And it was great. After that we started working together, as we both realized together we could steal any piece of art we pleased.
And we have. Not once has anyone figured out who we are, what we do. That doesn’t mean that when I hear sirens my heart doesn’t begin to race, but that comes with the job. You just never knew when something you forgot to cover up comes and bites you in the ass. But fortunately for us we were very thorough.
I came upon a tuxedo shop and damn tuxedos were expensive. Everyone always acted like women spent a lot on dresses, really they had no idea how much some men spent on fancy clothes. I was glad we were able to get a high credit for our card. We would need to cancel it soon, though, as we had these names and cards for a while now. Had to keep changing it up so no one found us. I just hoped that our next location would be Italy. They had some beautiful art that we could sell on the black market for quite a sum.
I looked through the tuxedos, all of them looking nearly the same to me. I randomly picked one and called it good. I grabbed the fabric that I figured looked the best and went to one of the cash registers.
“I would like this fabric. Can I get it tailored today as well?”
The older man nodded. “Yes you can. Please come with me.”
He stepped out from behind the counter, taller than it seemed like he was behind the counter. He was even taller than me, and I just under six foot. He was thin, aging, his hair white but still as thick as it probably was when he was young. Stopping in front of a small room, he motioned inside. “Please wait in here. The tailor will be with you in a moment.”
I nodded. “Thank you.”
I waited for the tailor to come in, glancing at myself in the mirror. I hoped it looked fine on me, I really should have had Bridget come with me.
“May I come in,” the tailor asked from outside the door.
“Yes.”
The man stepped in. Surprising enough, he was young. He had to of just gotten out of high school. I remembered being his age, mad at the world, wanting to be free of any ties. I doubt he had a past like mine, full of physical and emotional abuse. My father beat me daily, all the girls I had ever gone out had used me, a mother who never stood up for me. There was a reason I ran away and never looked back.
He took measurements, not saying anything other than when he asked me to move a certain way. I couldn’t believe how proper he was. I was never proper, not until I started stealing, and that was only to get people to trust me enough so I could get information. Take this tuxedo for instance. I would never buy a tuxedo unless I really had to.
“There you go. Should be ready in a week,” he said as he handed me a slip.
I nodded. “Thank you. I will be back then.”
I left and headed back to the flat, wondering if Bridget already went to get a dress. Knowing her, she probably would spend another four hours trying on different dresses. I didn’t understand why she cared so much, especially since she was just using it to con someone. Either way, she always loved to pick out the dress.
As I walked down the sidewalk, I spotted Bridget. I was about to yell for her when I noticed she was with another guy.
It was our mark, it was Jaques Van Francis. He had dark greying hair, a blue jacket, red pants. Seriously, she thought I was out of fashion.
But never mind that. What was she doing with him?
It had to do with getting into the party, I suspected. It was why she didn’t tell me, she knew I hated it when she flirted her way into situations. It didn’t have to do with me being jealous or anything like that, but because it wasn’t a solid way to work a con. People were usually suspicious when a hot girl hits on them for no particular reason.
That and it always made me jealous.
Though then again, she did steal that vase from me by sleeping with me. So maybe her way did work, I just didn’t like it. I watched as she laughed and placed her hand on his chest. Damn she was good. I’d seen it before, she had done this many time before. But every time it always seemed to hurt more and more.
It really shouldn’t, I knew. She was just playing a game. What she felt for me was real, it wasn’t like everyone else in my life that had abused me, had treated me like dirt. She was different. She cared.
I turned down another street, staying clear of her working Jaques up. I would just get back to the flat and watch some T.V. Yeah, that was what I would do.
Bridget didn’t get back for another four hours. By this point I had watched two and half seasons of Hetalia (I can’t help it, it’s hilarious). She stepped in with a few bags of stuff and a long bag, which of course was the dress.
“Took a while to find the right dress?” I asked as I clicked the T.V. off and stood up.
She shrugged. “That and I had a few other things to do.”
“Like chat up Jaques?”
Placing the bags on the ground, she raised an eyebrow. “How did you know that?”
“I saw you on my way back to the flat. Why didn’t you tell me that was how you were going to get us in?”
She pinched the bridge of her nose. “Do we really need to discuss this? You know why I didn’t tell you.”
“Because you thought I would get jealous?”
“Because you are jealous, Charles. You hate it when I flirt with someone even though you know I am only doing it to help us get away with stealing. We are thieves, we have to do what we need to do.”
I knew she was right. I knew that as thieves we needed to be able to charm our mark, charm that person enough to the point where they didn’t suspect us, before or after we left. The manner of which Bridget could do this was remarkable. She had talent, I would give her that, but as to where she learned that talent I still wasn’t sure. Over the five years working together we haven’t been completely open with our pasts. I didn’t want to talk about my old life, I wanted to forget about it all, and so did she. Or, at least, that’s what she said.
“Fine. What did you find out?” I asked, giving in to her way of life. It was stupid not to let her have her way, because damn she would fight until she had her way.
“I found that old men definitely are weak when a young girl flirts with them.” She held up two business cards. “We got two tickets. He said I could bring a friend as lovely as myself. Took a bit to get him to give me two tickets instead of one but nevertheless, I got it.”
“What did you have to do for the second ticket?”
I shouldn’t have said that. I knew she was going to give me that look if I said that—the look like she wanted me to fall on my katana as I had dishonored her. I didn’t actually have a katana but we did steal one a while back and sold it. Damn those things can go for a lot of money.
“I’m not having this conversation again, Charles, got it?”
I stepped forward and moved a piece of her hair back behind her ear. “Yeah, I know. I’m sorry.” I kissed her forehead. “I know you love me and I will work harder in not letting it bother me.”
She smiled and gave me a peck on the lips. “Good. Meanwhile, I’m going to go put this stuff away. Then maybe we can have some fun.”
/> Grabbing her bags, she walked towards the bedroom, giving me a little wink as she went inside. I quickly loosened my tie and hurried after. Four hours of waiting was definitely worth it.
It was finally time to pick up my tuxedo. I headed back to the shop, excited that the day we were going to steal the painting was coming closer. If all went according to plan, as it usually did, we would be good on money for quite some time. We would be able to go to some island off of Greece and relax in the sun. With the rain that had started just hours before, an island getaway was definitely something to look forward.
The rain wasn’t even light either, it was heavy and soaked one to the bone if they didn’t have the proper jacket. I had a pretty nice coat but even it had a hard time keeping me warm. I just wanted this to all be over so I could warm up just a bit.
The thought of Bridget in a swimsuit kept me calling off this job. It felt dangerous, it felt a bit off, but I knew that if I didn’t go through with it that I would regret it. There wasn’t any reason for me to worry, no reason for me to think that something would go wrong. But for some reason in the back of my mind, or not my mind but in my chest I felt like my world was going to come to an end. I tried to logically figure it out, figure out why this feeling was there, but it was no use. I couldn’t figure it out. There wasn’t any reason for me to feel this way.
Yet I couldn’t shake it off.
But I had faith in Bridget. She was smart and she wouldn’t let us get caught. No, she was always on top of everything always, and I do mean always. She was adventurous, not letting anything get in her way. That was why I loved her, she always knew how to have a good time. I couldn’t wait to find out what other adventures we would have in the future.
My life felt like it began when I met Bridget. Finally I met someone who cared, someone who looked out for me and didn’t just use me, or at least didn’t use me after we started working together. Granted she had used me to get the vase, but that was history. She wasn’t using me like that anymore.
Five years exploring the continent of Europe had been fun. We had gone everywhere, explored everything that this place had to offer. I knew I would never change my ways, that I would forever be a thief. It was the only way I could feel free, feel as if I didn’t have to report to anyone, have anything tying me down. I could do as I pleased, I could be the person I wanted to be without worrying about failure or judgement. I was never anywhere long enough to be judged, though then again humans judged pretty quickly.
I grew up on the Eastside of London, in a poor little community. It was easy to run away, it was easy to lose anyone following in such a big city, though I doubt anyone was really looking. It wasn’t like anyone would miss me. From then on I started stealing little things, then realized that if I stole more expensive things, I could sell them and buy whatever I wanted. The more I did that, the better I got at it. That is, until the bobbies caught on to me and I was almost arrested. Luckily they didn’t know my name or get a good picture of me.
Then I ran away from London and started learning different languages so I could travel Europe, be able to jump from country to country, no one catching me as I stole art. I knew Spanish, Italian, German, French, and Russian. I probably would have been some kind of genius if society let me. Bridget was also talented with languages and she knew how to pick them up a lot faster than I ever could. I just learned enough to get by, but she loved learning about the culture, about how the language defined a people. It was very interesting but not something I would ever take that much time to really think about.
As I walked further down the street, I watched as couples huddled under umbrellas, trying to stay dry. It made me wish that Bridget was here with me. But nevertheless, she was back getting everything sorted for the job. She was good like that, planning every little detail out.
I arrived to the tuxedo shop and picked up my tux. The same old man was working there but I didn’t see the tailor. He probably had school or something as it was morning now and last time I had come in the afternoon. That kid had to of been in high school, he looked so young.
Or I was just getting old.
I didn’t want to think about how kids kept seeming younger and younger as time went by. I don’t want to think of what it would be like after another five to ten years. I just wanted to be young forever.
I tried the tuxedo on and it fit perfectly. This place knew their tailoring but then again it was expensive so they better be good at their job. I changed back to my normal clothes and thanked him for doing such a great job. He thanked me and welcomed me to come back any time.
Yeah, that wasn’t going to happen. By this time next week, I was going to be long gone. Hopefully somewhere warm.
I started back towards the flat when I heard Bridget’s laugh. I turned around to find her with that man again. Jaques.
I couldn’t believe it. I thought she already flirted with this man enough. And she said she was running errands today, getting everything ready. Is this what she meant?
Quickly as I could I hurried back to the flat to put my stuff away. Then I was going to go find somewhere that was open before lunch for a drink.
There really wasn’t anything open before lunch for alcohol so I ended up waiting at a cafe with some tea until the closest restaurant opened for lunch and I ordered some wine with a salad. I didn’t care for French food, I was English after all, so I stuck to simple things like salad. I could not wait to leave this city.
I took a drink of the merlot and let out a breath that I probably had been holding since I saw Bridget. Why didn’t she tell me? After yesterday I thought we agreed that I didn’t mind it, I just wished I knew ahead of time. She could have just run into him, I knew, but some reason I had a feeling that wasn’t the case. She had purposely gone to talk with him, to flirt her way into his trust.
I wouldn’t bring it up. I knew if I did she would think I was jealous, and it wasn’t that. I just wanted her to be more honest with me, but in this line of work it was hard to always be honest. I had to accept that, had to realize that she did these things so that we could survive. It had nothing to do with me, it only had to do with getting by. She was doing it so we could run away to an island together. It would be like a vacation.
Or a honeymoon.
There was no way I could ever bring up the courage to ask her to marry me. It wasn’t like we really needed to be married anyway, as we were criminals changing our name constantly, running as fast as we could. We would never legally get married, but I wanted to tell her how committed I was to her, how I didn’t know what life would be like without her.
And hope that she felt the same.
I could still buy her a ring, even if we didn’t have a ceremony. It would be just between us, like a promise ring. A promise that we will always love each other.
It could have been the wine, or it could have been the fact salads are not very filling, or at least the ones I ordered weren’t, but the thought of buying a ring seemed like a good plan. I wanted to do it and I knew I could propose to her after we finished this job. Then we could celebrate on an island off the Greek coast. Yes, that was what I would do.
Finding a ring wasn’t hard in Paris, but finding a ring I could afford was. There were so many high-end jewelry shops in Paris that I couldn’t even keep track of them all. Some of them I could have afford but after buying that tuxedo I had nearly maxed out my credit card. I would have to pay flat out with cash.
Of which I didn’t have much of either.
That’s when I came upon a shop that didn’t look too grand, but appeared pleasant enough. I entered the charming little store.
“Hello sir, what are you looking for?” a woman greeted. She had curly red hair, glasses, and appeared to be in her thirties.
I glanced around. “I’m looking for a ring, but have a pretty tight budget.”
“Well then.” She smiled. “You have come to the right place. We want you to have a happily ever after without having to worry much about money.�
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I laughed. That was definitely the opposite of all the other shops I had been in. “Let me see what you have then.”
She brought out a few rings, but none of them seemed like something Bridget would wear. She had class, but was simple. God this was a hard choice.
Until the shop attendant brought out the perfect ring.
“I’ll take it.”
She laughed. “But I haven’t even told you about it.”
I shook my head. “I don’t care. I have to have it. It’s perfect!”
She checked her notes. “And according to the numbers you gave me, it is still in your price range. Shall I ring it up?”
“Yes, please.”
I paid for the ring and quickly headed back to the flat, hoping that Bridget hadn’t gotten back. Luckily she hadn’t and I was able to hide the ring in my coat. I would ask her that night, right after we stole the painting and were in the clear. It would be magical, I couldn’t wait.
