Beads of sweat began to form on Heather’s brow. She’d been in this room countless times before. This time was different. This time she was alone. Rondel had flown to Switzerland and left her to check the fax machine and be there for important calls. She had the keys. She had his trust. The sucker! Blonde hair, long legs – guys fell for them every time! Losers! This would be her only chance. The keys felt heavy and sticky in her palm. She looked about her once more. No-one deserved to be that rich, she thought. The safe door opened with a delicious “clunk” and revealed its valuable contents.
It had taken her brother months to persuade her to take this job. He just needed someone on the “inside” to look for incriminating documents. She had been happy in her nine-to-five secretary’s job. Perhaps not happy enough. She was sure she loved Andy. Ok, she married him to rescue her family’s reputation but she’d grown to love him. But god – he was dull! He was never there! Always some trip to keep him away from her and the girls. She wanted more. Andy thought she still worked in that stuffy office. How typical of him not even to notice any change. Pack the wife off to work – who cares where!
This was exciting! She felt proud of her ability to organise Rondel’s trip and proud of her skill at arranging a prospective buyer at such short notice. Might as well make use of all those new contacts, eh? This was her ticket to freedom. Her self-appreciation was only occasionally peppered with pangs of guilt. She’d be letting David down. He would eventually understand, though. She would write to him, explain. Once she got settled in her new life she would make sure he got to see her and the girls. He couldn’t deny them a taste of real living. Surely they deserved it. After all, she would never have met Andy if David hadn’t talked him into spying on the syndicate. Yes, it was really his fault. That made her feel better. Adrenaline spurred her on. The tiny black pouch of uncut diamonds slipped easily into her shoulder bag. She wasn’t greedy. That would more than suffice. “Clunk”! The job was done. Easy, really. Satisfying. A wicked grin played about her lips. She was out of there.
She could not have anticipated the dire consequences of her actions.