Lupine's Diamond (girlxgirl)

Chapter Fourteen

Freya made her way up the servants' stairs with her duster and mop as quietly as she could. Even though there was next to no chance of her being seen, she still wanted to have the supplies with her as a cover. Unfortunately, that meant that she couldn't be as quiet or quick as she had hoped. The bucket full of mop water was heavier than Freya had anticipated and was an extremely awkward shape, meaning that she could only travel in half-steps if she didn't want to spill it.

While she considered it, she knew that it would only make her job harder if she ruined the large and intricate carpet that lined the upstairs hall by spilling it. When she reached the landing, she set the mop and bucket in a corner and made her way over to Kenneth's office. Usually, his office was not meant to be cleaned on the late shift, but Freya didn't mind making an exception. The fate of the Kingdom might lay behind that door.

She gingerly pushed the door open, wincing as it creaked softly. After a moment's silence, she determined that no one heard her and stepped into the office. Freya resisted the urge to turn on the lights, despite the darkness that filled the room. She couldn't risk getting caught. She pulled out her small flashlight from her uniform—the same one she had used for her previous prize—and clicked it on, using part of her hand to shield the light.

Creeping behind the desk, Freya slowly began looking through the many drawers and folders that filled the room. She had seriously underestimated just how many documents she would have to sift through. Freya looked through each shelf, drawer, and filing cabinet, searching through the hundreds of documents that lay inside. With only a single name to work off of, it made the search that much harder. Folder after older, binder after binder, she made her way around the room before her eyes landed on the large desk in the centre of the room.

She had been avoiding the desk if she was honest with herself, hoping that she wouldn't need to go through the desk and would find what she needed on the shelves that covered every wall in the office. Unfortunately, this was simply not the case. She pulled open the first drawer. Stationary. That was all. The second, a folder containing bank statements involving the business. Nothing she wouldn't expect. It was the lowest of all the drawers that caught her attention though.

When she pulled it open, all Freya could see was another binder with more of the same papers, but when she went to put it back, she stopped. The drawer was large—about fifty centimetres if she had to guess—if one were to look from the outside. On the inside though, it was only thirty. In Freya's experience, this could only mean one thing: a false bottom. She felt around the walls of the drawer, searching for a clasp or other such device that would allow the bottom to be removed. After two full minutes of searching, she heard a telltale click that told her that she had succeeded.

Pulling out the plank of wood, Freya saw five manila folders stacked perfectly upon each other. Familiar folders at that. When Freya had overheard the phone call and delivered the pastry to Kenneth, she had noticed that he had been on the phone, yes, but he had also held a folder just like the ones in the drawer. If she was going to find anything about this John, it was going to be in those folders.

The first three of the folders were uneventful simply holding information regarding the security measures put in place to hide the necklace that Freya had stolen only two months previously. It was the fourth that she found interesting. It detailed a will belonging to a Beatrice Ambermore who had died two months ago, and descriptions of the future homes of her possessions. One item had been highlighted as being passed to Victoria Ambermore: the Beatrice Diamond.

It was at that moment that Freya realized that this must be the prize that Corvus had sent them to retrieve. Why then, had Kenneth highlighted it? Did he intend to sell it? Then why hadn't Corvus told them to act while they had the chance? It all made Freya's head hurt. Description of the measures that would be put in place to protect the Diamond were also detailed. Freya tried her absolute hardest to memorize all of them. It would be invaluable information. Just as Freya closed to return the folder to its rightful place though, she began to hear footsteps down the hall. Freya froze. She knew that they couldn't be Kenneth's but she also knew that it didn't matter who they belonged to. If she was caught, even by one of the staff, she would be completely compromised. She began collecting the folders, stacking them just as they had been before when her eyes fell upon the final folder in the drawer.

The footsteps were growing closer, but so was Freya's curiosity. If Kenneth had bothered to hide that folder, then something important must be in there. Without taking another moment to contemplate what might be her greatest mistake, Freya reached into the drawer and pulled out the folder. She then placed everything how it had been previously and hoped dearly that whomever it was wouldn't see her bucket and mop or enter the room.

The footsteps continued, pausing momentarily at the door before continuing down the stairs. Freya resisted the urge to sigh in relief. The last thing she needed was to be heard and have the footsteps return. She flipped open the folder. Insurance statements, and a lot of them. One for the necklace Freya had stolen, along with other treasures that had been claimed by other members of the Kingdom on previous heists.

Slowly, the pieces began to fall together in Freya's mind. This couldn't be a coincidence. She looked up at the logo and header that was on every single claim, and immediately wished she hadn't. John. That was the name she needed, but it also filled her stomach with so much dread that she nearly vomited. Hicks Insurance. Run by John Hicks himself.

Freya knew that name. It was a name belonging to someone who had been a part of her life for as long as she could remember. The name of someone who Juliana would have trusted with her life. Who had been there when Freya cried over Juliana's diagnosis. Who had taken her in when she fell on rough times. John Hicks. She knew that man, even though she normally called him by a different name. John Hicks was none other than her employer, Corvus.

Because I missed two weeks, I've got a double update for y'all! 

- How shocked are you that it was Corvus?

- What will Freya do with thid information?

- Do you think Naja knows?

- What do you think will happen next?

As always, I hope that you guys enjoyed this one!