Emeralds Are Forever (Love on the Run Book 2)

by Jaclyn Hardy

  “Did you find out if there were going to be ambassadors there tonight?” Dee knew she was grasping for a topic, but the silence was getting to her.

  “I believe so. Which means this isn't just about getting the emerald. We have to make sure the ambassadors leave with everything they own.” He sighed. “I just wish I was the one at the computer.”

  Dee ran her fingers along his arm. “You'll do fine. We've gone over everything a million times.”

  “I know. I'm good with that. It's the hidden variables that I don't like. Too many things could go bad.”

  “Well, then, we just have to pray that things go as planned.” It was easier said than done. Dee was glad she hadn't eaten much that day because she was sick to her stomach.

  The building they pulled up to was enormous. Cars pulled up and pulled away as lights flashed on the streets. Tourists and the press stood there to get pictures of the people heading into the party.

  “This is going to be crazy once things get started.” Ben climbed out of the car and helped Dee out. He ushered her in, his arm wrapped around her waist.

  Excitement took over the nausea, and Dee slipped into character. She was an actress. True no one would have heard of her if they asked, but that was beside the point. She could do this.

  The lobby of the building had large chandeliers and rich carpets. It took her breath away to think about how much money had been spent to decorate this place. Probably more than she'd make in five lifetimes.

  “Don't stare,” Ben whispered. “You're used to this, remember?”

  She nodded and giggled like he'd said something hilarious. They were ushered into the ballroom, and it took every ounce of self-control not to stop and stare. An orchestra played at one side of the room, and people danced in the center. She felt insignificant standing next to these people and their millions of dollars.

  Ben leaned in and kissed her cheek and neck, then nibbled at her ear. “Relax. You're too tense. You're just like these people.”

  Except that she couldn't breathe. Ben had sent all her senses in a frenzy and she just wanted to collapse. Instead she nodded and forced a smile before returning the kiss.

  “Good. Now we'll mingle on our way over to the sitting room. Braden is getting me the password right now. Got it?”

  She nodded and did her best to keep walking with weak knees. It wasn't like Ben was her first kiss. It blew every other kiss out of the water, but it was still just a kiss. She straightened and held her head high. She was an actress.

  “Phoebe? Is that you?” A woman smiled and pulled Dee in for a fake hug.

  Ben gave Dee a faint nod of the head. It was time. She squealed, mentally thanking Ben and Carlie for drilling names into her head. “Darla, sweetie, how are you?”

  Her accent could be worked on, but that was the point of the role they'd given her. Darla squealed back and shoved her hand in Dee's face.

  “Look! I finally got engaged. Isn't it wonderful?”

  “Wow, look at the stone. He must really love you.” Dee personally thought it was too gawdy, but it wasn't her ring.

  “Oh, darling. It isn't love. But you knew that already.” Darla laughed. “Oh, there he is with my champagne. Excuse me. I'll see you later tonight?”

  And she was gone before Dee could say anything else. Apparently Darla didn't care that she had no idea who Dee actually was. Ben had managed to bribe the papers and media to broadcast the fact that the up and coming actress was there that night.

  Another woman forced herself between Dee and the room they were heading for. “How was your audition, sweetie? I heard about the food poisoning before. Just tragic!”

  “It went well. I'll hear in the next few days. And how is your husband these days?” The woman's face was vaguely familiar, but Dee couldn't remember her name.

  “Good one.” Carlie laughed into the microphone. “Mention her dog next. She loves poodles. Female dog. Uh … Mrs. Snuggles.”

  The woman batted her eyes. “Oh, you know Albert. He's off on another one of his adventures China I believe.”

  “Ah. I'm sure your dog loves having your attention to herself.” Thank you, Carlie.

  “Oh, she does.” The woman laughed. “Now if you'll excuse me, I see the Duke over there. I must see how his reflux is. I have the perfect solution for it.”

  Dee moved quickly through the crowd, and Ben had to catch up. The quicker she could get to the sitting room, the better.

  “Phoebe! Save me a dance later?” A man leaned down and kissed her hand.

  Braden's voice almost made her jump. “Say yes and move on. He's a player.”

  “I would be delighted.” Dee tipped her head in acknowledgment. “Oh dear. I need to catch up to my date.”

  Ben had pushed ahead and was talking to an older couple. He turned when Dee walked up and pulled her to him. “This is Phoebe. Isn't she beautiful?”

  “She's an angel.” The woman kissed each cheek. “Edward here was just telling me you are an aspiring actress.”

  Edward? “I am. I've had several auditions over the last few months, and I expect to hear back any day now.”

  “Well, I have no doubt you'll be a star.” The woman patted Dee's hand.

  Dee smiled. “Thank you.”

  They continued on to the sitting room and finally reached the rather large bodyguards who stood on each side. A strange thing to have in a place like this. She stood back and let Ben take charge.

  “The cock crows at midnight,” Ben said.

  The guards exchanged glances before they both made the same sign with their hands. Ben did it back, and elbowed Dee. She jumped and copied their sign. When they were satisfied, they opened the door and allowed Dee and Ben through.

  Gambling tables had been set up, and heavy smoke filled the air from the cigars being smoked throughout the room. They were ushered past the tables and through to yet another room. Dee's stomach clenched in fear as everyone stared up at them.

  The man at the end of the table drummed his fingers on the table. “You're late.”

  “Yes, I apologize. Your guests were quite friendly and held us up.” Ben pulled out a chair and gestured for Dee to sit, then took the chair next to her. He took her hand and kissed it, never looking away from the man who Dee assumed was Karl.

  “Very well. Let's proceed.”

  A man cleared his throat. “As I said before, these goblets were found in South America. It is said they were found near the city of El Dorado. The gold is pure, the workmanship unrivaled. We'll start the bidding at $5 million.”

  Dee nearly choked on the ice water set in front of her. Those goblets were more than she'd see in three lifetimes, but the bidding war had begun. Ben and Dee bid on a few of the items when Carlie asked them to, but their money wouldn't go anywhere. It was meant for the emerald.

  It was just past midnight when the alarm went. Chaos broke out as cries of robberies ran through the crowd. Karl excused himself and the rest of the group fled. Dee and Ben ran for the treasury room and emptied all the cash from the different pockets they'd placed in Ben's coat. It would more than cover the cost of the emerald. Ben set it all down on the table next to the emerald display while Dee snatched the stone and shoved it into the holster under her dress, then they were out of there. They'd search Ben but wouldn't touch Dee.

  The gambling room was completely clear by the time they went through. Everyone had gathered in the ballroom where it was still chaos. Necklaces, rings, bracelets, pocket watches, and wallets were being claimed as stolen. Dee studied everyone around her. No one from the auction stood in that room. Including Karl. Whoever had taken everything was now long gone. But why leave the treasure in the room?

  Ben tried to pull her through the crowd, but Dee hesitated. Carlie would love to get her hands on the other artifacts. Right now was the perfect chance to grab them . . . but would that make her any better than the other people in that room?

  They made it back to the limo and climbed inside. Ben pulled out his gun a
nd didn't relax until they were back at the apartment. The limo driver let them out and they scrambled inside. Braden and Carlie stood inside holding their bags.

  “Ready? We need to get that thing out of here.” Carlie held her hand out.

  Dee turned and pulled it out of the holster. “That . . . that was terrifying.”

  “You did a great job. And for the record, if you ever actually wanted to audition for a movie, I think you'd get the part. That was fantastic.” Carlie hugged her tightly. “I can't believe we got it.”

  As they made plans to get back to the airport, Dee couldn't help the guilt that had settled over her. They'd paid for the emerald, so it wasn't that. But all those people had been robbed that night and Dee had done nothing.

  “Are you coming, Dee? The car will be here soon.” Ben's voice made her jump.

  She turned away from the window. “So we're just going to leave now?”

  Ben's eyebrows shot up. “Of course. We have the stone and we saved Carlie and Braden.”

  “And you don't worry at all about all the ambassadors that had their things stolen tonight? That doesn't bother you at all?”

  “Dee, there's nothing we can do. We weren't even in the same room as everyone else. We have nothing to go off of that could help us.”

  Dee glanced past him. “Do you two feel the same way?”

  “We have to get this out of here before we're caught again.” Carlie wrapped the stone in a pair of socks and set them inside a box. That went inside another box and into her purse.

  The faces of the people she'd met that night ran through her mind. They'd be ingrained there, screaming for justice. Most of them could afford more jewelry, but that wasn't the point.

  Dee pointed at the box in Carlie's purse. “You two get this out of the country. Ben you can go with them if you'd like. I can't just leave until the thieves are caught. I'm sorry. It's going to haunt me until the job is completely done. We left a crime scene, and no one will pay for the robberies that happened tonight.”

  The others exchanged glances before Ben cursed under his breath. “Do you have any leads that we could follow? Or are we going in blind again?”

  “I don't have much but it's better than nothing.”

  Ben pulled Carlie into a hug. “Get Braden out of here. We'll meet you at home. I'll have my dad waiting for you when you get there.”

  “But—”

  “No, you're injured, and you have a very expensive stone sitting in your luggage right now. You need to leave.” Ben opened the door. “Go. You know Frank could be here any minute for that thing.”

  That was enough to get them to leave. Dee waved as they went around the corner. Her stomach dropped when Ben turned to face her.

  “You have three days to figure out what happened and then we're leaving.”

  Dee threw her arms around his neck. “Thank you. That's plenty of time.”

  Ben couldn't understand why he was still sitting in the apartment in the middle of London. He should have been on the plane and on the way back to America by then. Instead he was here going off the whim of a woman he was quickly falling in love with. He shook his head and shut his laptop.

  There had been nothing reported. How a robbery at a highly publicized event was a mystery, but it really bugged the reporter in Ben. He knew Deirdre was right. There was a story here, and they knew the players but not how they did it.

  Deirdre wandered into the room and dropped into the chair. She laid her head on her arms. “Ugh. I didn't even drink anything and I feel like I have a hangover.”

  “That's all the adrenaline wearing off.” Ben yawned and slid the notebook over to her. “Here's what I have so far. See if you can make any sense of it while I grab a quick nap.”

  Deirdre opened the laptop as Ben stood and left the room. He dropped onto the bed and closed his eyes. Every ounce of him ached, but his mind wouldn't allow him to rest. A vehicle started up across the street, and Ben's eyes flew open. The van was being moved. He scrambled over to see the van pulling away.

  What if the information was over there? Ben rubbed his forehead as he tried to picture the layout in the house. He'd been more interested in saving his friends and making sure no one else was there to pay attention to papers or equipment.

  He pulled out his phone.

  Hey, what equipment did you have with you in the other apartment?

  It would be another few hours before Carlie landed. It was time to sleep. His mind had cleared somewhat, but as he drifted off, he pictured all of the people he'd talked to that night. Something had to click in his mind.

  A scream pierced through Ben's dreams. He bolted out of bed and grabbed his gun, then ran for the stairs.

  Deirdre stood in the center of the room with a man's arm around her neck. Another man stood there with a gun pointed at her head.

  “There you are, Ed. I'd wondered if you'd left with your friends.” Frank grinned.

  “Let her go. She has nothing to do with this.” Ben kept his hands up as he moved toward Deirdre.

  Frank laughed. “We both know that's not true. I have surveillance showing her grabbing it and you two dropping off money. Now where is it?”

  “What does it matter? We bought the thing fair and square. Let her go.” Ben held his gun steady.

  “No, I don't think I will. I need insurance.” Frank flicked his wrist and the man holding Dee moved to the door.

  Ben aimed it at Frank's head. “Let her go.”

  Frank's eyes lit up. “Wow, did little Eddy finally find someone who actually likes him? That makes her even more intriguing.”

  He leaned forward to give Deirdre a kiss on the cheek and a loud crack echoed through the house. Frank's face showed surprise as he dropped to his knees. Deirdre jumped to the side with a sob.

  “Don't mess with my best friend.” Carlie dropped the gun and stepped over Frank to get to Deirdre. “Did he hurt you?”

  Ben helped Braden up the stairs and over to the kitchen table. “What happened to getting the emerald out of here?”

  “We couldn't just leave you two here to find whoever stole all that jewelry. The emerald is on the way to America. It'll be picked up by the museum.” Braden's face was pale, and he was sweating profusely. “I'm glad we got back when we did.”

  “So am I.” Ben grabbed a glass of water and medicine for Braden, then knelt next to a sobbing Deirdre. “Come here.”

  Carlie let go and Deirdre allowed Ben to pull her in for a hug. She sobbed into his shoulder until she could calm down. She sat up and glared at the body that sat in the doorway.

  “What are we going to do with him?”

  “He's a wanted criminal. We're going to move all of our stuff to a completely different location since this one's been compromised, then we'll call the police. Braden, stay there. Everyone else, let's move.” Ben packed up his equipment while Carlie and Dee took the bedrooms upstairs. He'd have to pay the family extra to get better security.

  Braden found wipes under the counter and wiped down cupboards, counters, and everything else they might have touched. No need to leave extra fingerprints. This would be a simple robbery as far as the police were concerned.

  They left the house and Ben looked back. Frank had been one of the first members of his team. And now this. He shook his head and walked away, leaving the door open. Money had been wired to the family's account to pay for the frames and other items that had been destroyed to look like a robbery. Sometimes he hated his job.

  The hotel they stayed in looked out over an old train station. Braden was now being checked out by a doctor on staff, and the police had been called to find Frank. But there was still a loose end out there somewhere. He just couldn't put his finger on it.

  Deirdre came to stand beside him at the window. “Braden's leg is broken. They're going to get a cast on it as soon as the swelling goes down.”

  Ben put an arm around her and held her close. “That's great. The museum now has the emerald in their possession as well.”
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  “And yet you still look like you have the weight of the world on your shoulders.”

  He bent down and kissed her forehead. “It just seems . . . too easy.”

  Deirdre frowned. “What do you mean?”

  “Frank just happens to show up at our apartment? And I would have thought the security would have been a lot higher around their priceless stolen artifacts. It's like they wanted us to find it.”

  “Well, Frank was the one who found Carlie and Braden across the street. It's not that far off is it?”

  Ben left the window and dropped onto a couch. “AJ is the one who told Frank. He sold us out.”

  AJ. That was what was bothered Ben. Where had he gone? Ben grabbed his laptop and hesitated before doing a search for the bodyguard. The results were grisly. The man had died in a rather gruesome death. Ben had to close the story before he read anymore. So not only were his teammates turning on Ben, they were ending up dead afterward. Someone was coming after his team, and Ben was the only one left who hadn't been injured or killed.

  He froze. Things had been going smoothly until Deirdre showed up in New York. She touched his arm and he jerked out of the way. “Carlie, can I talk to you for a bit?”

  Carlie looked over in surprise. “Uh, sure.”

  They walked into one of the rooms and Ben closed the door. “How well do you know Deirdre?”

  Carlie raised an eyebrow. “Since I was a freshman in college. Why? Are you asking for my permission to date her or something?”

  “No.” Ben paced the floor. “I've lost Frank, AJ, and I don't even know how many other people since she showed up in New York.”

  “Are—are you insane?” Carlie burst into laughter. “No, seriously. You’re insane. Are you seriously—”

  Ben caught her arm and pulled her around to face him. “Can you blame me? I've been trying to figure out why things are so off, and it all leads to one event. One.”

  Carlie shook her head, disgusted. “Well, then you need to learn to count again because you just came up with the wrong answer.”

  “Can you blame me?”