was a simple misunderstanding. “It was a reproduction of a gold bracelet with diamonds, and the original.”
Eileen gave him a knowing look. “Reproductions seem to be the trend these days. Hard to tell them apart from the real thing, especially if you are good at it, which I am sure you are.” The flattery was working. The jeweler became chatty.
“Yes, he’s having his wife’s jewelry replicated so she can wear what she wants without worrying about losing items.”
“Huh. I thought that was what insurance was for!” Eileen laughed.
“Indeed, but as you said, it’s a trend.” The jeweler shrugged.
“What do you suppose he was expecting me to get from you?”
“He just dropped off a diamond tennis bracelet, but I told him that would take a day or so.”
“Probably just a lack of communication. Sorry to have bothered you.” Eileen smiled, made a quick turn, and headed out the door.
“No trouble. Ta,” the jeweler replied and gave a wave.
As soon as she was far enough from the shop and away from the crowd, she tapped her phone to send a text to Avery. Marcus is replacing wife’s jewels with fakes. So far one gold bangle with diamonds and waiting for diamond tennis bracelet. Avery sent the information to Charles.
Marcus was back in the office, awaiting the arrival of Jerry. Only a few minutes to go. Marcus was unusually calm. He was already high on the prospects of his future.
Annie, Charlotte, and Myra returned to the brownstone—everyone had a load of information to share. The three of them gathered in front of the large computer screen Annie had stowed in a private office. At Pinewood, the sisters, Charles, and Fergus sat in the war room, monitors glowing. Everyone could see everyone else’s faces. Technology at its finest. Annie, Myra, and Charlotte saluted Lady Justice from afar before the conference began.
Annie started by reiterating and expanding upon the information she had received from Victor. Corbett had arranged for Christie’s to broker a private purchase from the seller. Corbett was planning a private showing at his yacht club in Sag Harbor, but the painting was still awaiting customs clearance.
Charles added Avery’s information about the inventory of Steinwood’s garage—a showroom holding five high-end sports cars—and revealed that Marcus was swapping his wife’s jewelry for replicas. Most likely without her consent. During their conference call, Avery sent Charles another message. He had more info coming in from the audio and video feed in Marcus’s office. Jerry, the drug messenger, was there. Marcus gave him a gold bracelet; Jerry gave him a bag with small white rocks the size of marbles.
There it was. Marcus had a cocaine problem and was swapping the jewelry to pay off his drug dealer, although this method of payment seemed to be fairly new. Perhaps he hadn’t replaced all the jewelry yet. There was only one way to find out. Annie asked Charles to enlarge the photos Eileen had taken of the safe’s contents. Annie recognized many of the pieces: several David Yurman rings, which would fetch around five thousand dollars each; a Cartier trinity necklace, approximate value seven thousand dollars; a diamond firefly pendant from Tiffany; an assortment of diamond stud earrings ranging from four to five carats; and, literally, diamonds by the yard.
The plan for Marcus was forming. Annie would forward the photos to her jeweler and have him replicate the contents of the safe. But it would have to be quick. She needed the replicas in less than twenty-four hours if she was going to replace the originals during the cocktail party.
Lots of chatter came from the sisters as they refined the overall plan.
When it came to Corbett, Annie would ask Victor who was the best and fastest artist who could make a copy of the Chagall. Charles and Fergus would find the exact location where the artwork was being held and would reach out to their US Customs connection.
As for Steinwood, Kathryn would get in touch with some of her road travelers, particularly the less than honest types who hauled stolen cars to send overseas.
Jay had reported that there was no secret government installation on the property in Michigan owned by Live-Life-Long. Avery’s people were tailing the people who had shot down the drone in Michigan. Charles had been able to run facial recognition software on the partial photos of the men taken before the drone was blown out of the sky. Both were ex-convicts who were trying to live off the grid when they weren’t reporting to their