Once a Thief Read Online Free

was she sure they didn’t have nearly as much time as they thought?
     
    Ed frowned down at the list and then looked at his boss with lifted brows. “So—what? We walk out with all this? Hell, I don’t even know if we can carry it all.”
    “If you can’t, I’ll find someone who will.”
    That uncompromising reply hardly surprised Ed. But to say he was happy about it would have been a serious overstatement. “Look, I know our partnership has been a lucrative one, but you’re beginning to worry me. Every job is bigger than the last, more dangerous.”
    “And you’re earning more than you ever thought possible, so don’t go soft on me now.”
    “I’m not going soft, I’m just wondering how long our luck can hold out.”
    “It isn’t luck, I keep telling you that. It’s skill, and planning—and balls. Sheer nerve. And with this next job, we’ll prove it.”
    “Why the fuck do we want to prove it?” he demanded. “And prove it to who?”
    “To everyone. The police, the other collectors in this town—and anybody else stupid enough to get in our way.”
    “Christ, all we’re doing is making ourselves a bigger target. Your way, we’re drawing more and more attention to our operations, which is the last thing we need. Visible thieves end up with their asses in jail, in case you’ve forgotten that. And we’re getting way too visible for my taste. If the jobs get any bigger, we’ll need a goddamned semi just to haul away the take. And the security systems are getting harder and harder to get through; the last one was tricky as hell.”
    “We got through it, didn’t we?”
    “Yeah, but—”
    “No buts. If you don’t like the management, go look for a new job.”
    Ed drew a breath and let it out, holding on to his temper because he’d learned the hard way that it was much safer. “Okay, okay. Let’s take a look at the floor plans and technical specs on security.”
    “I had a feeling you were going to say that.”
     
    By the time her day’s work was finished and she was ready to leave the museum on Friday night, Morgan had convinced herself that her uneasiness was no more than a natural worry magnified by the ever-approaching arrival of the Bannister collection at the museum. But that didn’t stop her from conducting one last sweep of the building herself before leaving for the day.
    For no reason she could have explained to herself, she exchanged her heels for the track shoes she kept handy in a drawer of her desk, and this time her steps through the polished marble halls were virtually silent.
    And this time, carrying a flashlight, she peered into every dim corner, behind and around every pedestal and display case. She found nothing. Absolutely nothing that wasn’t supposed to be exactly where it was.
    Morgan hated admitting even to herself that she had hoped to find something, some evidence to explain her apprehension. Not that she had the slightest idea what that might have been, but still.
    “All clear, Miss West?”
    She returned the flashlight to the guard in the lobby and smiled ruefully. “As far as I can tell, everything’s fine. Thanks for humoring me, Chris.”
    Seriously, he replied, “Knowing what’s coming into this place in a few weeks, I don’t blame you a bit for being careful. Oh—and Mr. Nickerson called a little while ago and asked me to tell you that he’s putting on a few more guards for the second and third shifts, starting tomorrow night.”
    So Wolfe had taken her worries more seriously than he had led her to believe. She wasn’t sure whether that reassured her or only added to her anxiety.
    Morgan nodded. “Thanks, Chris. See you tomorrow night.”
    “Have a nice evening, Miss West.”
    As she left the building and headed for her car, Morgan told herself that was just what she was going to have. A nice evening. The date originally planned for tonight had been rescheduled for Monday, but after the tensions of the day she was rather glad of that. What she