he said. “Please, have a seat.” He pulled out a padded chair at the main counter, and then walked behind the counter. “What size would you like to see?”
“I think two carats to start.”
“Yes, madam.” With his back to her and making sure he blocked her view of his hand, he punched in a few numbers to open a small wall safe.
While he was turned away, she unobtrusively pulled out two of the fake diamonds, being sure to keep her hands hidden from the overhead camera. She gave the stones a quick glance to view their relative size and shape. The salesman turned toward her and she smiled again and palmed the diamonds. He placed a tray covered in black velvet in front of her. On it were a dozen uncut stones worth, to her practiced eye, about sixty thousand dollars or so once they were cut and polished. And there were a few that closely matched the ones she held in her hand.
A man and woman came into the store, drawing the salesman’s attention from her for a few seconds. And that was all she needed. She swapped out the diamonds, palming the real ones for the time being. When she stood up she’d be able to slide them into the tight cuff at the wrist of her long-sleeved blouse. She made a mental promise that when this job was over she’d get the real diamonds back to the owner if she could. She felt badly for what she’d done, but in this case the end justified the means.
When the salesman turned back toward her, Keira asked him a few questions and then said, “You know, I don’t see anything that suits my needs. Maybe I need larger stones.” She flipped her wrist and checked her watch. “Unfortunately, I don’t have time right now.”
The man pulled the tray in closer and gave a quick perusal of the stones.
Keira held her breath.
He looked up with a smile. “Please come back any time,” he said.
“Oh, I will. Thank you.”
As soon as she was out the door she halted the flow of empathy, saying a silent apology to the workers inside the store who would now experience mild depression from no longer being surrounded by her peace-laden glamour.
Two minutes later she backed her car out of the parking lot and headed away from the store. She blew out a breath, part of her not quite believing she’d pulled it off. Another part felt pride that she still had what it took to get the job done.
After a couple of miles, she slowed and guided the car to the curb where she stopped and slid the gear lever into park. Drawing in a deep breath, she held it a moment before exhaling, and then dug around in her purse for a tissue. She retrieved the diamonds from the cuff of her blouse and dropped them into the tissue. She pulled out her phone and called Stefan. When he answered, she said simply, “It’s done.”
“Good! Good. I’m still at the Domain. Bring the diamonds to me now. Check in with Javier when you get here. He’ll know where I am.” He hung up before she could respond.
This was just great. If Javier was going to show her the way that meant Stefan was back in the private rooms where the vampires went to feed. By Dagda’s balls, he’d better not expect to feed off her. Not after all the energy she’d had to expend to keep everyone in the store feeling happy and calm. Plus, she had to draw the line somewhere. She pulled back into the flow of traffic and pointed her car toward Devil’s Domain.
Once again she pushed her way through the crowd at the club, and stopped at the door to the private area. And, once again, Javier was waiting for her. “Come on, bonita,” he said. “Stefan can’t wait to see you.”
As long as he didn’t plan on trying to eat her, she couldn’t wait to see him, either. She was glad she’d gotten her rest because she might have to drum up more glamour on him to make him think he’d fed on her. The sooner she saw him, the sooner she could get out of here. The sooner she left, the sooner she could take a shower and try to wash away some of the filth she was feeling. Even if it was all emotional dirt, a shower would help.